Criminal Defense

Witness sequestration orders (also known as the rule on witnesses) are always granted when I request them at trial, sometimes with judicial modifications. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that the right to such orders is codified at Virginia Code § 19.2-265.1 and Virginia...

Tenacity, patience and courage often can yield excellent results for the accused. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I have seen this happen again and again. When enabled and permitted by their superiors, Virginia assistant commonwealth attorneys / prosecutors can reduce their workload by agreeing to...

Evading approaching police mays simply make their fishing trip or other investigation more fruitful for law enforcement officers (LEOs). Devon Lamar Washington v. Commonwealth of Virginia, 87 Va.App. 349 (2026) As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I do no agree that a negative judicial inference should...

Virginia DUI appeals to the commonwealth's Supreme Court and Court of Appeals will be less promising for DWI defendants now that the Supreme Court has made clear how low is the threshold to allow a conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs...

Fairfax immigrants get better consideration from the chief county prosecutor / Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano, than with federal prosecutors (who apparently give no such consideration). As a Virginia criminal lawyer, I told my views about this recently on this Spanish television news link, in the light...

Reinitiating talk with police after law enforcement officers (LEO) stop interrogation will deprive you in Virginia of your Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444 (1966) and Fifth Amendment Constitutional protections against your subsequent words being used against you at trial, absent any other grounds...

Exclusion of non-Mirandized answers to police by those in custody is the remedy required by Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, 444 (1966). As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that Miranda says in the foregoing regard: "Our holding will be spelled out with some specificity in the...

Departing the sight of police sometimes permits an arrest, at least when coupled by more than mere flight. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that the federal Supreme Court in April 2026 found Fourth Amendment-permissible reasonable suspicion for a police officer to stop a...

Police tricks are a common approach for law enforcement officers (LEOs) to coax confessions from Virginia suspects. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer I know that the Virginia Court of Appeals in a recent unpublished opinion. underlined that LEO gets wide berth to engage in such...

Running from police can give them among the basket of reasons that amount to permitting them to at least temporarily detain you. Devon Lamar Washington v. Commonwealth of Virginia, ___ Va. App. ___ (April 14, 2026) As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that if...