Before we get into today’s (true) tale, keep in mind that all criminal defense attorneys are not created equal and hiring an experienced Utah criminal defense attorney right from the get-go can make all the difference in your criminal case. Offer to Pay for Sex Leads to Murder The story began when two male cousins […]
Tawdry Tale of Sex, Robbery, Murder and Why You Want the Right Utah Criminal Defense Attorney From the Beginning
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Fail to Educate Children, Get a $7.1 Million Bonus Courtesy of the Taxpayers
In what may be a flipping of the bird to Milwaukee taxpayers… Gregory Thornton, outgoing superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools gave out $7.1 million in bonuses. $3.5 million of the loot was given to support and administrative staff in January, and $3.6 million is being given to teachers and psychologists in March. This is considered […]
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WA - Ray Spencer’s Fight For Justice
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NY - 15 Years In Environment Of Constant Fear Somehow Fails To Rehabilitate Prisoner
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Justin Bieber's bodyguard arrested on criminal charges for theft
When it comes to recording popular music, Georgia might not jump to the front of most people's minds. However, several hip-hop musicians record out of Georgia, and recently, pop star Justin Bieber made his way to the south in order...
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FL - Sex-Offender Bills' Critics Say They Won't Stop Most Crimes Against Kids
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Injury Crash on I84 at Milepost 35
IDAHO STATE POLICE NEWS RELEASE - generated by our News Release ListServer
DO NOT REPLY
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IDAHO STATE POLICE NEWS RELEASE
District 3 Patrol 700 S. Stratford Dr., Meridian 83642
(208) 846-7550
Fax (208) 846-7520
For Immediate Release: 03/05/14 5:05 p.m.
Please direct questions to the District Office
On March 5, 2014, at approximately 0738 hours, Jordan Knarr, driving a 2002 Ford F550 truck, was traveling east on Interstate 84 near milepost 35 in Canyon County. Knarr was traveling in the left lane of the two eastbound lanes of travel. Traffic was heavy. Jimmy Joe Flores, driving a 1991 Chevrolet 3500 flatbed truck, was also traveling east on the interstate at this location, in front of Knarr. Samantha Pinto, driving a 2001 Hyundai Accent, was also traveling east on the interstate at this location, also in the left lane, and in front of Flores. Pinto stopped for traffic stopping in front of her and Flores stopped behind Pinto. Knarr, who stated he looked down momentarily at the radio inside his vehicle, was unable to stop before rear ending Flores. Flores then rear ended Pinto. After colliding with Pinto, Flores?s vehicle traveled into the median separating the eastbound and westbound lanes of travel before coming to a stop.
Flores and his passenger, identified as Corey Hinrichs, sustained head/jaw injuries as a result of the collision. Flores was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.
Flores and Hinrichs were transported to Saint Alphonsus Health Plaza located off Garrity Boulevard in Nampa for treatment of injuries sustained in the crash.
Knarr and Pinto stated they were uninjured.
Traffic on Interstate 84 eastbound was partially blocked for approximately one and a half hours.
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Slobogin on Records Searches and Framing the Probable Cause Inquiry
Christopher Slobogin (Vanderbilt University - Law School) has posted Cause to Believe What?: The Importance of Defining a Search's Object -- Or, How the ABA Would Analyze the NSA Metadata Surveillance Program (Oklahoma Law Review, Forthcoming) on SSRN. Here is...
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Williamson County man actually innocent of drug possession where lab found no drugs existed: Habeas relief granted
Actual innocence claims come in a variety of stripes. Joey Ray Carabajal was convicted in Williamson County of possession of a controlled substance and sentenced to two years imprisonment. In an opinion issued February 26, the Court of Criminal Appeals granted habeas corpus relief, declaring: After Applicant pleaded guilty and was sentenced, a lab report from the Department of Public Safety revealed that the substance Applicant possessed contained no controlled substances. Applicant alleges that the lab report shows that he is actually innocent of possession of a controlled substance. The trial court determined that the lab report shows that the "thick purple liquid" Applicant possessed contained no controlled substances. The trial court concluded that Applicant established by clear and convincing evidence that no reasonable trier of fact would have convicted him in light of the new evidence, which demonstrates that he is actually innocent. The trial court recommends granting relief and the State does not oppose granting relief. Applicant is entitled to relief. Maybe prosecutors ought to actually have the drugs tested before shipping defendants off to prison.
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United States Post Office
The criminal defendant was indicted for possession of a weapon as a class D felony on the charge that he had possessed an operable revolver and a quantity of ammunition and that such drug possession was not in his home...
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Utah House Bill 20, Amending the Liability of Police Officers in Vehicle Pursuits
Utah House Bill 20 (HB 20), which amends the liabilities of police officers during vehicle-related pursuits, recently squeaked its way through the House by about as narrow a margin as possible. What is HB 20 All About? HB 20 is specifically titled Emergency Vehicle Operator Duty of Care, but it’s safe to say that it […]
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New York Public Health Law § 2805-d...cont
This court will not consider the plaintiffs' claims that any of the defendants acted negligently in not administering intra-arterial t-PA. Suffice it to say, it is not disputed that in 2003 that drug was experimental and not approved by...
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Remote controlled GPS in Duluth
By Jessica Towne
When can the cops place a GPS tracking device on your car? Depends who you ask. The Duluth PD thinks they can do it to fleeing suspects or when they’ve spotted someone who has just committed a crime. They call it “probable cause.”
How can they place a GPS on a car that is fleeing the scene?
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“WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO HAVE A DEFENSE ATTORNEY DURING A CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION?” PART 3
We have spent the last two blogs discussing what one should do if approached by law enforcement in the middle of a criminal investigation. Should you accept the police offer to “give your story” without counsel?
A regular reader of this blog was kind enough to join in the discussion and ask an important question. He asks:
You always point out that officers can lie to a suspect to gain evidence. And that's a reason to seriously consider contacting a defense attorney. Maybe you could address the following question I've always wondered about: can the police lie to your attorney? Or the minute you call your attorney in, do they have to start telling the truth? Do prosecutors have to tell the truth (out of court)? I know they can't withhold evidence, but for example during settlement negotiations could they say they claim to have some evidence they actually do not have?
Attorney Sam’s Take On: Enter The Attorneys
This part of the equation is not as cut and dry as it is where there are no attorneys involved. The rules change a bit when attorneys enter the picture for a few reasons. By the way, by “attorneys” I also mean assistant district attorneys. They are attorneys as well as the rest of us…their client is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
First of all, understand another thing about prosecutors. On the law enforcement food chain, they are the top link. They generally make the decisions as to who will be given what sort of treatment. If a temporary decision has been made by the police…that decision will have to be agreed to by the prosecutor(s) in the case. Generally, however, long term investigations, such as for federal crimes or very serious state cases, the investigation is run by a prosecutor pretty much from the start of it.
This is an area which makes it impossible for police officers to bluff too much when a defense attorney enters the picture. Any defense attorney with even a modicum of experience knows that it is the prosecutor who makes the decision as to what type of treatment a suspect is going to get. Therefore, the verbiage where the officer tells you that he or she will “give you a break” or “just wants to hear your side of things” and then let you go your merry way is untrue. The officer cannot make that decision. If the officer makes that offer to an attorney, then they both know it is untrue and so the officer loses all potential credibility with the defense attorney…not only in the case at hand, but in subsequent cases as well.
Particularly when lawyers get involved, credibility becomes very important.
“Sam, what if there is a prosecutor with the detective when he comes to question me? Can he lie to me if I do not have a lawyer present?”
It is very unlikely that the prosecutor will be present at your first meetings with law enforcement. This is because, by doing so, that prosecutor will have made himself a witness and so will not be able to conduct the trial of it. Further, the prosecutor likes to keep him or herself on a level apart from the police. The police, really, are the foot soldiers and the prosecutors generally let the officers do what they have to do within reason.
However, this, too, brings up an interesting point. A prosecutor is less likely to lie to you during the course of an investigation than police are. There is another for this, other than the ones mentioned above. There are certain rules which all attorneys must follow lest they be deemed to be unethically and so might lose their license to practice law or some such punishment. Prosecutors actually have a few additional rules given their particular role in the criminal justice system.
The system is very mindful that lawyers carry a certain amount of influence and can be intimidating to non-lawyers. Therefore, lawyers are supposed to abide by certain rules of conduct when dealing with a non-lawyer who is not represented. For a prosecutor to take advantage of such a situation and to baldly lie to a witness is to invite a whole lot of trouble for the prosecution.
First of all, there could be repercussions with the Board of Bar Overseers, who are in charge of attorney discipline. Further, a large part of any case which finds its way before a judge is that old word “credibility”. Throughout the case, both sides will be trying to look like the “reasonable” and “good” buys before the court…let alone a jury. Therefore, particularly in criminal cases, prosecutors (and defense attorneys who know what they are doing) do their best to seem “above board”.
This does not mean that there will not be spin added to arguments made…but it is very unwise for a prosecutor or defense attorney to be viewed as a liar to the court.
Lastly, credibility is still critical between prosecutors and defense attorneys. You would be surprised how small the legal community is in a place like Massachusetts when it comes to the criminal justice system. Once an attorney, on either side, gets a reputation for being a liar or sleazy, that reputation can haunt that attorney for a very long time, thus jeopardizing future cases.
Now, I mentioned a difference between “spin” and “lies”. There is actually a difference. In fact, “spin” is something courtroom attorneys do almost unconsciously. It is part of our training as advocates. We need to be able to do it…and we need to be able to detect it when it comes to the opposition.
This is why, while a non-lawyer may not be able to separate spin from truth, the experienced attorney should be able to.
Yet another reason to get an attorney involved in your case as soon as possible.
I hope this answers the question and I, once again, invite you to send in such questions when you have them.
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Transcript from argument on determining retardation in capital case
The transcript in Hall v. Florida is here.
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Transcript from argument on immunity and liability for high-speed chases
The transcript in Plumhoff v. Rickard is here.
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When Government Fears the People, There is Liberty
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NY - Disabled sex offenders being unfairly vilified
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NEW ZEALAND - Another attempt to establish a sex offenders register
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CANADA - Conservatives propose public sex offender registry, despite its failure in the U.S.
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More Pages to Explore .....
