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Recent Blog Posts
The Smell of Fear / The Smell of Sex
A year and a half ago, I wrote:
Walking the halls of the Harris County Criminal Courthouse, I smellfear. The accused are often afraid, as you might expect, as are theirloved ones, but theirs is not the fear I smell. The fear I smell oozes out from under doors leading to the judges'chambers, locked to keep the outside world away, and from the robes ofthe judges, concealing the firearms they carry (literally) to protectthemselves against some imagined danger. It wafts from the prosecutors,likewise armed and armored with fear.It also comes from the lives of the jurors who have been convincedthat they can't safely walk the streets of their neighborhoods, thatthere is a sexual predator lurking around every corner, and that crimeis out of control.Where does all of this fear come from, and why?
I was waxing metaphorical, but only a little bit. I have smelled fear in the courtroom, from defendants, judges, and prosecutors as well as once (to my surprise) from myself.
Writing Sample
Here (JDSupra) is a sentencing memorandum that I wrote for a man convicted of a federal crack cocaine conspiracy (this case). He had suffered a horrible childhood, and then lived a law-abiding life for about 25 years before
It did the trick, and it has received good reviews from those who have read it; I hope you enjoy it too.
Pride
Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.
I had a federal drug conspiracy sentencing this week in which I was arguing, based on my client's horrible childhood and his history of being a law-abiding and productive member of society for all but two of his 49 years, that he should not go to prison.
The government's argument was, "there are lots of people who have horrible childhoods and don't commit crimes." My response was, "show me one person who, when he was six, saw his mother executed by his father and who, at age 10, was present when his cousin murdered his father, who didn't get tens of thousands of dollars of therapy, and who didn't wind up breaking the law."
But this didn't get through to the prosecutor at all. Because really the "lots of people go through the same things and don't break the law" argument isn't about real human beings experiencing horrible trauma, neglect, and genetic misfortune. It is, rather, about the prosecutor imagining that he would have done better if he were in the defendant's shoes, just as a good defense is about convincing a jury that they might have done the same in the accused's shoes.
I Demand a Recount
In balloting that would embarrass Kim Jong-Il, the ABA Journal has deprived Scott Greenfield's Simple Justice of its rightful award for Top Crime Blawg.
If you've followed a link from the ABA Journal to here, please check out the "Defenders" and "Prosecutors" sections of my blogroll for many blogs that are better than mine.
Prosecutors: We're Punishing Sinners
The latest discussion of the ethics of a factually-guilty person putting the government to its burden, which started with Illinois criminal-defense lawyer Jeremy Ritchey's post here, then bounced to my post here and back to Jeremy's here and onward to Virginia prosecutor Ken Lammers (a good discussion will do that, you know), here, who adjusted the question from one of ethics to one of morality, which didn't escape ABA Top Criminal Law Blogger (and, in his spare time, New York criminal-defense lawyer) Scott Greenfield's attention; Waco criminal-defense lawyer Walter Reaves followed Scott in weighing in.
A Different Sort of Red Light Camera, and A Surprise for Bal'mer
Police are using surveillance cameras and CCTV footage to catch men who visit prostitutes and pay – or seek to pay for – sex.Within weeks of such a visit a letter is sent to the "torsk" – Swedish slang for a male sex customer. If he does not admit to the crime he is taken to court.
I Would Bet That It Has
In Broward County, Florida, the judge has kicked the whole DA's office off a murder case because two prosecutors had listened to two phone calls between the jailed accused and his lawyer. (H/T Social Services for Feral Children.) The trial started in September; it's "on hold" now (not even a mistrial?).
In her order, the judge wrote that "anyone who has turned on the television in the last 10 years knows" that such conduct would be a violation of attorney-client privilege (she's apparently referring to the opening of some vile Dick Wolf franchise; maybe a reader can enlighten me).
Here in Harris County, prosecutors order CDs of jail inmates' outgoing calls in some cases. Considering that for the last eight years they were led by a guy who thought it was a good idea to send two undercover police officers posing as defense lawyers into the city jail to talk with a defendant there on cocaine charges, one has to wonder how Harris County prosecutors have responded to hearing a recording of the accused talking to his lawyer.
Blame Brain Drain?
[Co-written by Jennifer Bennett.]
The Bombay Metropolitan Magistrate Court Bar Association has adopted a resolution barring its members from representing Mohammed Ajmal Kasab (Law and Other Things blog), the sole surviving November 26th attacker.
Lawyers often feel pressure not to represent people associated with unpopular causes. I remember that Doug Tinker (RIP Doug) initially declined to represent Yolanda Saldivar, Selena's killer. But then he came to his senses. It's easy for a lawyer to find an excuse not to represent the unpopular defendant. But representing unpopular people is our job.
Rohini Wagh, President of the BMMCBA says that terror suspects "must not be defended". His reasoning? "Besides the human right of a terrorist,we have to look at the human rights of the innocent victims aswell." (Livemint.com.)
Three Notable Developments Across the Pond
1. Anti-Social Behavior Orders (ASBOs)
From the Home Office's website:
Anti-social behaviour orders (ASBOs) are court orders which [sic] forbid specific threatening or intimidating actions. An ASBO can ban a person from:
threatening, intimidating or disruptive actions
spending time with a particular group of friends
visiting certain areasASBOs are in effect for a minimum of two years, and can be longer. They are designed to protect specific victims, neighbours, or even whole communities from behaviour that has frightened or intimidated them, or damaged their quality of life.These are civil orders – not criminal penalties – so they won't appear on a suspect's criminal record. However, if that person breaches an ASBO, they have committed a criminal offence, which is punishable by a fine or up to five years in prison.
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