Keith Hampton's editorial in today's Austin American-Statesman contrasts Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg's new policy of providing defense lawyers with copies of offense reports with Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley's policy of not allowing defense lawyers to see offense reports:In leading the way on this cost-saving measure, Lehmberg also reaffirmed the fundamentals of our system and demonstrated confidence in the quality of her prosecutors. A

I admit a fascination with the British criminal justice system, and how far it and ours have diverged in the last 230 odd years. I welcome the frequent comments from British criminal barrister "Interested Counsel", and have invited him to email me a list of questions and comments about American criminal justice. I learn a great deal about British criminal justice from the questions that our colleagues

Elliott Wilcox at Trial Theatre (who could teach even John Bradley lessons on self-aggrandizement as a prosecutor) on the outspoken juror giving answers unfavorable to your client's case: You do NOT want them sitting in judgment of your client.  They hate you, your client, or your case, and you don’t want them on your jury.  In fact, once they give you two or three of those “Get

Sarah Wolf, at the Texas District and County Attorneys Association, is looking for stories for the TDCAA magazine:Hey there, web-based friends,In the next issue of The Texas Prosecutor journal, I am asking people to send me their stories about a particular crime victim they remember. I would love for y'all to share your stories! Tell me about the case, the victim, and why he or she has

Thanks to an alert Defending People reader, here's a little more linguistic goodness (following up on Complex Questions and Children) for you today. Here's Janet Ainsworth's 'You have the right to remain silent...' but only if you ask for it just so: the role of linguistic ideology in American police interrogation law (nothin' but title!), from the International Journal of Speech, Language, and the Law.Ainsworth looks "speech

I'm a great believer in the need for a strong independent press, and I worry about what we're going to do for solid investigative journalism once all of the newspapers have gone the way of the telegraph, but the journalists aren't doing themselves or us any favors by publishing ill-researched ignorant scare pieces that can be authoritatively and conclusively debunked by in two days by some part-time

Here is an article (Complex Questions Asked By Defense Lawyers But Not Prosecutors Predicts [sic] Convictions in Child Abuse Trials) from the Journal of Law and Human Behavior describing a study using automated linguistic analysis finding that the complexity of the questions asked by defense counsel in a child sex abuse case predicts the outcome of the case: more complex questions asked by the defense are associated

Prosecutors seem so proud of themselves when they argue, "Don't show me photos of the defendant's kids. He had those kids when he committed the crime and he didn't think about them then." The particular quote is from Jane Starnes, a former Harris County prosecutor (and Bellaire neighbor of ours) who now prosecutes in John Bradley's office and apparently got some award from MADD recently. But they

A rookie lawyer mistake that I see even experienced lawyers on both sides of the criminal bar make is this: confusing "legally sufficient evidence" with "proof beyond a reasonable doubt". The prosecutor points to a case saying that similar evidence was legally sufficient as proof that the accused will be convicted; the defense lawyer acquiesces and the accused pleads guilty.Legally sufficient evidence is the constitutional minimum required

Prosecutor Ken Lammers has advice for young criminal lawyers:I know that no one will listen to me, but I think the world would be a better place if they did. Whichever side you feel are "the good guys", start on the other. Practice there not for 6 months - or even 2 years; practice there for at least five years - enough time that it becomes second