homicide
Virginia murder convictions to no longer get death row
Virginia murder convictions now will face life without sunlight at worst Virginia murder prosecutions had a high rate of prosecutors seeking the death penalty when I started law school in 1986, making Virginia and three other states leaders in pursuing capital punishment. Those efforts included...
Killing conviction upheld despite delay- Fairfax criminal lawyer weighs in
Killing convictions can be an extra challenge to obtain for prosecutors, because the victim is never available to testify in court. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I find this week's Warnick v. Virginia appellate opinion affirming a Northern Virginia murder conviction to be instructive for criminal defense...
Homicide convictions can arise from alcohol says Virginia DUI lawyer
Homicide is a risk of impaired driving, because in many ways, as Ralph Nader urged, cars can be unsafe at any speed. As a Virginia DUI attorney, I advise everyone to stay away from driving a motor vehicle for at least twenty-four hours after consuming...
Self defense – Fairfax assault defense lawyer on pursuing acquittal
Self defense is a common defense in assault cases, in addition to claims that no assault happened in the first place, or that the defendant has been misidentified as the assailant. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know how harsh can be the consequences of...
Fairfax Criminal Lawyer on need to attack chain of custody
Chain of custody involves the chronological movement, treatment, and physical changes of criminal case evidence from the time it comes into existence, and then is collected, packaged, transported, opened and repackaged. The importance of reliable chain of custody includes such factors as assuring the correct...
Beware throwing that punch if you do not want a manslaughter conviction
As banal and even irritating as the admonition sounded when I was in public school, a person can avoid plenty of aggravation and heartache by always keeping his hands to himself, unless needed for self defense.
A self defense claim requires being in imminent danger of harm
When a homicide defendant knows s/he will be found to have caused the decedent's death, the defendant often finds himself or herself pursuing a self defense claim, or else a claim of a lesser level of culpability than first degree murder (for instance manslaughter or...
Virginia criminal defense- Preserving double jeopardy protection
Any time a criminal defendant is charged with multiple offenses, it is time for the defendant's lawyer to check for double jeopardy issues. Double jeopardy protection not only applies against being tried twice on different occasions for the same offense -- U.S. Const. Amend. V...
Virginia homicide defense and self defense – No obligation to retreat in one’s own home
Alcohol and guns do not mix. Inside defendant/appellant Marvin Hines's home, Wayne Hudson -- drunk since the previous afternoon -- was in "the heat of this out-of-control temper tantrum," while having a gun in his hand. Hines walked away to obtain Hines's own handgun and...