Criminal Defense
Cops can’t play fast and loose with Miranda
Miranda warnings are required when "a reasonable man in the suspect’s position would have understood his situation" to be one of custody. Berkemer v. McCarty, 468 U.S. 420, 422 (1984). To determine whether a reasonable person would have understood the situation to have been one...
International Extraditions: To be Fought Tooth and Nail
International extradition defense seems to be an area that most criminal defense lawyers have either not handled at all, or very little. I learned this after being hired for such a case a few months ago, and learning that one of my favorite and most experienced...
What Justifies a Prosecutor Telling a Witness to Withhold Documents from a Defense Lawyer?
Photo from website of U.S. District Court (W.D. Mi.). One day while waiting for court to start, I approached the chemist in my client’s drug possession case. He said he would talk to me only if the prosecutor was present. Once I got the three...
Too many innocent people get convicted
Too many innocent people get convicted, whether through wrongful convictions by judges or juries, or by pleading guilty when the likelihood is high of a wrongful conviction (with an attendant harsher conviction from pleading not guilty) (North Carolina v. Alford, 400 U.S. 25 (1970) allows innocent...
Will I win or lose?
Fellow criminal defense blogger Shawn Matlock recently blogged about handling potential clients’ and actual clients’ inquiries about whether they will win. Here is my comment on the matter: My short answer it to be honest with the potential client, and the actual client, about your ability and...
Breathing life into the justification defense
A convicted felon confronts a handgun being waved in his face. He disarms the gun wielder, and acts as expeditiously as possible to turn the gun over to the police. He has been confronted by Hobson’s choices: (1) either seize the handgun and face violating...
It’s not how you dress, but how you persuade
Adam Levin at Southern Criminal Law e-mailed criminal defense lawyers “whose blawgs I frequently read” for tips on practicing criminal law for newer lawyers and for those transitioning to solo practice. Here are my replies in CAPS: Philosophy What practical advice do you have for...
What drives criminal defense lawyers to fight for the accused?
What drives criminal defense lawyers to fight for the accused? I am not talking about the mere willingness to do such work, but about the very thirst to represent such clients and to do it excellently. Here is my brief story; I welcome the stories...
Why fall on a sword, when nothing worse is risked by fighting?
Numerous times, some colleagues scratch their heads about why I will not recommend my client to plead guilty when a probation-only sentence looks like a good bet, and when a guilty plea will get me out of court more quickly so that I will have...
Supreme Court permits appellate courts to presume reasonableness of sentences within the Sentencing Guidelines
Image from Bureau of Prisons’ website. On June 21, 2007, the Supreme Court permitted appellate courts to presume the reasonableness of federal sentences imposed within the Sentencing Guidelines. Rita v. U.S., ___ U.S. ___ (June 21, 2007). Although Rita still enables defendants to try to overcome such...