circumstantial evidence
Affirming a Fairfax DUI conviction — addressed by Virginia DWI lawyer
Affirming a Fairfax DUI conviction this week, the Virginia Court of Appeals recognized that htis was a circumstantial trial where the evidence established that the defendant (found sleeping in his car) drove, the hood of the engine was warm on a cold night, the defendant...
Virginia convictions are not available without sufficient statutory specificity
Virginia convictions are a scarlet letter. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that before such harshness can be inflicted on a criminal defendant. I also know that jury instructions on the applicable law must be sufficiently worded, so as to avoid convictions based on...
Beware convictions for nearby contraband warns Fairfax criminal lawyer
Beware what happens when police find contraband in the automobile in which you are in the driver's or passenger's seat. As a Fairfax criminal defense lawyer, I know that too many Virginia police and prosecutors will pursue a prosecution of everyone in the car, leaving...
Loose tongues can get convictions underlines Fairfax criminal lawyer
Loose tongues are what police love with criminal suspects. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I read with sadness how blabbermouthing with police in 2012 is the only thing that got Ruben Edward Moore convicted of a 1981 murder in a cold case. Moore v. Virginia,...
Robber’s mere threat of having a handgun permits felony firearm conviction
People need to be careful of their words, lest they end up eating those words. Randell Linlaw learned that the hard way. Kinlaw entered a tanning salon, and passed the employee a note proclaiming words along the lines of "I have a gun. I don’t want to...