Prosecutors
The art and benefit for a criminal defense lawyer to listen and engage
Essential is always for me to welcome and invest the time in actively listening and engaging with my clients. Pearls of getting closer to victory often result when least expected through my spending sufficient time with my clients in my office, on the phone, in...
Staying above the line for effective battle against prosecutors and police
Sometimes when a prosecutor, police officer or judge acts offensively, I have to catch myself not to spout at them that our tax dollars are not supposed to be paying for a fascist state nor for a wrongheaded attitude by such people that they are...
Fairfax County’s former chief prosecutor said Virginia prosecutes “on the cheap”
Then-recently retired chief Fairfax prosecutor Robert Horan said that "Virginia has this longstanding desire to do criminal prosecution on the cheap.
Winning through owning the outcome- Fairfax lawyer comments
One weekend day I went for a long distance run, intending on taking a beautiful nearby trail into a much longer trail. I was pumped, I warmed up, I started running, and then I twisted my ankle in a small ditch in the dirt after...
Battling by rattling the opponent’s agenda while keeping both eyes on the prize
If the prosecutor comes to court with a smirking attitude, the defense lawyer does not need to do anything to wipe the smirk off the prosecutor's face other than doing the criminal defense lawyer's job, keeping his eyes on the prize.
The prosecutors approaching their jobs as stepping stones, careers, aimless wandering, and fascist endeavors
One approach to persuading prosecutors is to consider why they became a prosecutor in the first place. The word is out on the streets that if a lawyer wants to become a litigator with a prestigious large corporate law firm, one should buck to attend...
Negotiating and talking with prosecutors in the right zone/circle
In the taijiquan martial art that I practice, we have the concepts of sparring inside a circle, disrupting the opponent's circle, and preventing the opponent from disrupting our own circle.
Similarly, it is ideal for me to speak and negotiate with prosecutors in a proverbial...
A prosecutor who wants justice will walk that walk, not the contemptuous path
"The duty of the prosecutor is to seek justice, not merely to convict." American Bar Association's standards for prosecutors, Standard 3-1.2(c).
Some prosecutors apply that principle so well that when they later switch to private law practice, their criminal defense lawyer colleagues welcome them into the...
When you feel grounded, the ground will feel more level and firm
By now, I already know that even the most sturdily built courthouse has proverbial quicksand traps, booby traps, and areas of flimsiness. Therefore, I have myself to feel grounded before I ever step foot in the courthouse, so that my client also will feel more...
The wind of a prosecutor’s condescending words
One day I was speaking with a taijiquan teacher about yelling people. He replied: “Why try to figure them out? It is just wind.” That advice is great for staying powerfully calm and unrattled in the face of someone exploding in an unjustified tirade. However,...
