Via Simple Justice, this video of Maricopa County Sheriff’s Deputy Adam Stoddard raiding the file of a criminal-defense lawyer while her back is turned: Notice the pathetic weak passive behavior of Judge Lisa Flores.

David DeCosta was set up, to begin with: set up by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and the Phoenix Police Department, and almost certainly factually innocent. Phoenix criminal-defense lawyer Matt Brown didn't know that at first, but he found the story of DeCosta's arrest for allegedly trying to sneak drugs to Jesse Alejandro interesting enough to post about, especially in light of the fact that, about a

The Harris County District Attorney’s office has asked criminal Court-at-Law Judge Reagan Helm to remove himself from two family violence cases because of “deep-seated bias and prejudice.”In motions filed Thursday, prosecutors said Helm has a history of making inappropriate comments to assistant district attorneys, victims and defendants.“These comments also signal to the victims and the community that Judge Helm believes that family violence cases are simply escalated

The criminal-defense lawyer who served as the presiding director of the Austin Criminal Defense Lawyers Association wrote yesterday to tell me that Adam Reposa's writ was denied and he has to start serving his 90-day contempt sentence.Eighteen months ago I wrote, a bit critically, of the ACDLA's role in the Reposa Affair. In yesterday's email the then-director responded in part:. . . . It is my understanding

Scott Greenfield makes the world a little safer for blawgers (via Houston criminal-defense lawyer Paul Kennedy).RIP John O'Quinn. A great lawyer and, like many great lawyers, not without personal demons (Rick O'Casey, Houston Chronicle).Memo from Pat Lykos to Harris County prosecutors: if you violate Batson you're "incompetent;" if you violate Brady it's the defense's fault (Brian Rogers, Houston Chronicle) (also see Houston criminal-defense lawyer Murray Newman).In a

I got this in the mail:And no, it wasn’t addressed to me:How embarrassing for David E. A., whose mail was delivered to my office, for the whole world to learn that he’s facing a criminal charge. There ought to be a rule against lawyers sending out solicitations like this.

Rule 1.13. Prohibited Sexual Relations [new, renumbered](a) A lawyer shall not condition the representation of a client or prospective client, or the quality of such representation, on having any person engage in sexual relations with the lawyer.(b) A lawyer shall not solicit or accept sexual relations as payment of fees.(c) A lawyer shall not have sexual relations with a client that the lawyer is personally representing unless

Given how I feel about lawyers representing defendants with conflicts, I was a bit disturbed to read this piece (Lisa Falkenberg) about Richard "Racehorse" Haynes being accused of conflicted representation in a federal drug case. Richard's client, Dong Huynh, sentenced to 22 years in prison, alleges that Richard had a conflict of interest because Dong had hired Walter A. Boyd, III to represent his cousin Duc. Duc

On Facebook, one of my friends commented on this post:I’m really okay with the DA prosecuting fault for serious car crashes (these are not “accidents”), assuming they charged it appropriately. Houston leads not only Texas but the nation in terms of car crashes, and Houston-area auto owners pay among the highest liability insurance rates in the nation as a result. Most crashes are caused by operator negligence,

As if it were not humbling enough being, on my very best day, the fourth-smartest mammal in the house, I've got this blog and my loyal readers to remind me of my modest position in the universe.If I were afraid of making mistakes, I'd never get anything done. Life and the practice of law, like walking upright, are continuous series of controlled falls that take me to