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Virginia prostitution solicitation defense – Preparing for and executing the battle
Here are some basics for defending Virginia prostitution solicitation cases. Prostitution police stings are common at Fairfax County hotels. One cop told me that some hotels ask the cops to set up such stings because they do not want such actual activity taking place at...
When a security clearance/public trust holder is hit with a criminal or DWI charge
Repeatedly, I get clients who have -- or want in the future to obtain -- security clearances or public trusts (collectively "Security Clearances"). That is to be expected with so many people in the area working for the federal government and for federal government contractors,...
Intersection of Trump, undocumented immigrants and criminal defense
Now more than ever, criminal defense lawyers should be getting up to speed on relevant immigration law and in building teamwork with qualified immigration lawyers for relevant advice.
A one year maximum jail penalty applies to Virginia misdemeanors that list no jail penalty
In Virginia, if a criminal misdemeanor statute lists no possible jail time, then the offense actually is a Class 1 misdemeanor, carrying up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. Va. Code § 18.2-12.
On using the golden rule and silence with police
It is not always easy to be calm towards abusive police, but it is best for a suspect to complain later with the help of a qualified lawyer, rather than to address the matter more than necessary with the abusive police officer. As a Fairfax...
Being ever-prepared for trial is essential for strong negotiations and for not getting caught with pants down
Prosecutor: “Jon, you are a private practice lawyer who is willing to waste time.” Translation: “You put time into defending your clients without concern whether doing so will not be financially profitable to you.” One of the more upstanding local prosecutors recently said that to me before court...
BBC TV news interviews me about a Briton arrested on a plane
By Jon Katz, a criminal defense lawyer and DWI/ DUI/ Drunk Driving lawyer advocating in Fairfax County, Virginia, and beyond for the best possible results for his clients. Earlier this week, Briton Sean Jude Kelly’s allegedly drunken and “let’s fight” behavior on a plane returning...
Giving a cop the finger does not justify a stop nor arrest. (I am not pulling your finger — I mean leg — either.)
The middle finger never needs to be extended towards anyone. We have enough other fingers to gesture and point. Giving the finger is divisive in a world where we are all connected, and where the negative energy of giving the finger comes back to us...
Using the First Amendment Against the Criminalization of Free Expression
Beware when a judge sees the First Amendment’s free speech clause as a hindrance to judicial administration, perhaps emphasizing that the First Amendment is not absolute and does not protect the right to cry “fire” in a crowded theater. (As it turns out, a Supreme...
The criminal justice system should be about equal justice for all, and not a perpetuation of an underclass
When I became a public defender lawyer after two years working with a corporate law firm, I went from a high-rent office two blocks from the White House with a fancy desk to a non-descript office that was literally across the freight railroad tracks.I had...