Criminal Defense

The bad cops make good cops' jobs harder. On top of that, how often do police not take measures against misconduct they see by their colleagues, remain silent about it, and even help to cover it up? As I repeatedly say, police come from the...

For nearly one year, chief Fairfax commonwealth's attorney Steve Descano made a gambit over being re-electable when he withdrew his office from most misdemeanor prosecutions beyond Virginia DUI, assault with intimate partners, and fatal collision prosecutions. His gamble may have paid off, based on a...

Fairfax convictions with former rogue police officer Jonathan Freitag are in line for the chief prosecutor to seek to undo them. As a Virginia criminal lawyer, I am thankful that former police officer Freitag's deceit has been uncovered, but also know that solving his misdeeds...

Marijuana reform has been a major issue for me for decades, and now the years of hard work and sweat equity (none of which I take credit for) by marijuana legalization activists has paid off amazingly as Virginia joins the ranks of other states that...

Drug court judges repeatedly hear police justify stops, frisks, searches and arrests of criminal suspects based on their purported "knowledge, training and experience" and behavior consistent with criminal activity. As a Fairfax criminal defense lawyer, I know that police have no superhuman cognition. I also...

Fairfax misdemeanor prosecutions without a prosecutor now risk dismissal more than ever Fairfax misdemeanor prosecutions without prosecutors have been common in the majority of this county’s misdemeanor cases for most of 2020 through present, except for lawyers from the commonwealth’s attorney’s office being routinely involved...

Police seizure under the Fourth Amendment happens when police apply any touching or force with intent to restrain the person Police seizure (PS) is critical to determining whether a law enforcement officer’s (LEO) encounter with a criminal suspect required probable cause to believe that the...

Fairfax prosecutor absence should not be interpreted as an invitation to go to District Court by yourself Fairfax prosecutor absence has for nearly a year been common for most Virginia misdemeanor cases in this county courthouse, other than for DUI, intimate partner assault, and fatal...

Trial success is about pursuing the extraordinarily persuasive story, says Fairfax criminal lawyer Trial success in Virginia criminal court comes from trial experience and ability, killer instincts, passion for the criminal defendant’s cause, and in-the-moment cunning. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that preparing...

Pretrial detention presumptions are reversed by Virginia legislation awaiting the governor’s signature Pretrial detention (PD) presumptions are a reality for presumed-innocent people prosecuted in Virginia for alleged designated repeat drug felony charges, robbery, other violent crimes, and other felonies. This is an even more serious...