Andy Nolen: Total Fraud?

 Posted on August 17,2009 in Uncategorized

Following on from this post, this post, and this post:

I can't swear to it, but I've heard that Andy Nolen has never tried a case to a jury. The Harris County Justice Information System, JIMS, doesn't show a jury trial for Andy Nolen in records of 342 cases going back to 2006.

Despite his not trying cases, Andy Nolen has clients that are happy with him. How?

Even a blind pig can find an acorn now and then.

In Harris County, the Blind Pig Dismissal Rate (the percentage of cases that are screwed up by the cops from the word "go", so that an average lawyer who doesn't do any work beyond showing up in court can get them dismissed) is about 15-20%.

I ran a JIMS report on one of the lawyers who received negative reviews at the hand of Andy Nolen or his proxy, and found that 15 out of the most recent 50 of his cases resolved-30%-were dismissals. (I picked him as a random representative, and won't use his name because he'd be embarrassed, but his average is not unusually high.)

Out of the most recent 50 of Andy Nolen's cases resolved, nine-18%-were dismissed.

That's not above the BPDR, but being average is okay, right? That's also nine clients in less than a year with unambiguous reason to be pleased, right?

No and no. Looking a little closer, we see the following:

1. Case number 1608067: Dismissed. Reason: other.

2. Case number 1609318: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted other count.

3. Case number 1161273: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted on another charge.

4. Case number 1135657: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted on another charge.

5. Case number 1502703: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted other count.

6. Case number 1496083: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted other count.

7. Case number 1141280: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted on another charge.

8. Case number 1496083: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted other count.

9. Case number 1483062: Dismissed. Reason: Defendant convicted other count.

A dismissal in exchange for a plea to another count isn't as clearly a win for the client as an outright dismissal. Only 2% of Andy Nolen's last 50 cases have been outright dismissals-far below Harris County's BPDR.

(Going back to my Random Representative: I checked the first five of his recent dismissals; none were dismissed as quid pro quos for pleas in other cases.)

Clients are often happy with results other than dismissals-I've had clients happy to get felony probation, where prison was the alternative-but a Harris County criminal-defense lawyer who's getting only 2% of his cases dismissed outright is not doing right by his clients.

(JIMS records are public; I wouldn't write this without confidence that I would come out favorably in a comparison of my records on JIMS with either Andy Nolen's or my random representative's. With regard to this particular stone, my house is built of steel-reinforced concrete.)

[Update: For more on Andy Nolen, see:Houston criminal-defense lawyer Paul Kennedy: I'm calling you out, Andy Nolen.Houston criminal-defense lawyer Cynthia Henley: Thinking about hiring Andy Nolen – let's put it this way – you better shop around...Miami criminal-defense lawyer Brian Tannebaum: In Houston, Criminal Defense Lawyer Andy Nolen is the Best. Everyone Else Sucks.Houston criminal-defense lawyer Murray Newman: When We All AgreeHouston criminal-defense lawyer John Floyd: Houston Attorney Andy Nolen: A Dishonest Lawyer? The Further Adventures of "Lawyer" Andy Nolen The Continuing Adventures of "Lawyer" Andy Nolen Andy Nolen: Total Fraud? Andy Nolen: Today's Last Chapter]