Preparing to Cross-Examine the Doctor

I mentioned here my contention that the only way to cross-examine an expert witness about his conclusions is to know at least as much, if not more about the narrow subject of his testimony that hurts you than he does. It’s my position that, while I will probably never know as much about pediatrics than [...]

Know When to Shut Up

Unlike my New York alter ego, Scott Greenfield, I don’t mind the calls from people who want advice. Often I have the correct answers to their questions and can provide them some assistance, which is a) a fair return for the gifts I have been given; and b) why I am a lawyer.
Usually, though, the [...]

Moderated Comments?

To my colleagues who moderate the comments on their blawgs:
What are you afraid of?

Dealing With the State’s Expert: One Last Question

If you get a chance to talk to the State’s expert witness before trial (if you’re allowed to, try; the best experts often see themselves as neutral, and will explain their conclusions to you), your last question should be: “What book should I read to learn about this topic myself.” Get the book; it’ll be [...]

Sharon Keller Cont’d

The Houston Chronicle has not been kind to Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Sharon Keller in recent days. After yesterday’s editorial calling for her ouster the Chronicle published an article today entitled “Views divided on judge in dispute over executed man“. Well, yes. Sort of. The Chronicle dug up exactly one person willing to say [...]

More on Sharon “Killer” Keller Complaint

Death penalty enthusiasts are chortling about Judge Sharon Keller’s action in closing the courthouse doors to Mr. Richard. A common theme among their responses is “blame the lawyers.” One [anonymous] sample, in comments to my first post on the subject:
Why didn’t the lawyers who needed to file do so BEFORE the court closed????? That is [...]

I’m Mark Bennett. I Solve Problems.

When an old client came to me this afternoon with the story of how a former acquaintance of his had turned up demanding $15,000 not to disclose some years-ago alleged malfeasance to the government, I gave him my best legal advice: whether you have a guilty conscience or not, whether the threat of exposure is [...]

Chapter 2, The Tao of Criminal Defense Trial Lawyering

In a comment to a recent post about Mao and Sun Tzu, Oklahoma criminal defense lawyer Glen Graham wrote:
While the “Art of War” provides some theories, the Tao, has other theories, and still, there are a multitude of others.
I’m not sure Glen is quite right. It is true that we can learn from Sun Tzu, [...]

Will Defend for Sex

I met with a potential client today in the jail; she had spoken with another lawyer about her case. That lawyer is a guy for whom I have great respect. He’s a real lawyer who tries cases. I’ve never before heard any suggestion that he is anything other than utterly ethical.
But this potential client explained [...]

Keller Complaint

As I said yesterday, the Harris County Criminal Lawyers’ Association will be filing a complaint against Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Sharon Keller for barring the courthouse doors to Michael Richard’s lawyers, preventing them from getting a stay of execution from the U.S. Supreme Court.
If you would like to file a complaint of your [...]

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