In This Episode: I pull back the curtain on the the plea of Not Guilty By Reason of Insanity.  How does it differ from Diminished Capacity and Competency to Stand Trial? Contrary to what the media often portrays, the insanity defense is pled  in approximately 1% of all criminal cases and is only successful about 25% of the time it is used. The defense is used very rarely and frequently misunderstood by the general public. We explore some famous cases where the insanity defense was used successfully: John Hinckley Jr and Andrea Yates. Both defendants were acquitted of their crimes based on insanity defenses. Both defendants remain in custody however. In fact, studies show that defendants who successfully plead insanity often spend as much time if not more (sometimes double) than their counterparts who were convicted on a staring guilty plea. To see how each state treats the insanity defense, click HERE.  TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip: I talk briefly about the need to define terms of art in your industry, especially terms that have made their way into the common language but are used in ways that may subtly alter their original definition.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

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Download AUDIO here (MP3)

 

In This Episode: I pull back the curtain on the Collateral Consequences of a Criminal Conviction. What rights and privileges are affected beyond the punishment imposed under the law. We explore gun ownership issues, denial of government benefits, licensing issues as well as immigration issues and the two most egregious ones in my mind: disenfranchisement and exclusion from jury duty. To see the ACLU map of the UNITED STATES color coded by which states have felony disenfranchisement, click HERE.  TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip: I talk briefly about deciding WHO the HERO of your story is and why it is so important to have one in order to get your point across effectively.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)

 

In This Episode: I pull back the curtain on the difference between public defenders, appointed counsel and private lawyers. So often the injustices involved in the system are blamed on the performance of a lawyer rather than an inherent bias in our society against those we choose to marginalize. The episode explores why it is so necessary to adequately fund offices that provide defense for those defendants who cannot afford to hire their own attorney. The Rand Study of the Philadelphia Public Defender System can be found here.  TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip:

There was no Tip this week due to the length of the episode, however I do highly recommend Malcolm Gladwell’s latest book DAVID and GOLIATH. There is a link below to purchase the book which has an overall theme of understanding why the underdog is so often successful seemingly against all odds as well as a truly insightful discussion about California’s Three Strikes Law.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)

To read the CALIFORNIA LAWYER magazine cover story, scroll down to the post below or click HERE.

 

David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants

I was honored recently to be featured in a cover story about the Los Angeles County Public Defenders Office. We recently celebrated 100 years of zealous advocacy on behalf of indigent clients. As a trial lawyer, I would have preferred more mention of the trials that we do, but I think this does shed some light on the issue of plea bargains. As you may know from my episode on plea bargains I think the practice is a necessary evil in our current system, but I would like to see it reformed to be more transparent and so that  defendants are not pressured into plea deals by draconian maximum sentences and exorbitant bail.

To read the article from California Magazine, click HERE.

In This Episode: I pull back the curtain on BAIL, BONDS and BOUNTY HUNTERS. What is the difference between bail and bonds? What do Bounty Hunters do and how are they regulated and paid? Why does a monetary issue like Bail have such a huge impact on the integrity of the criminal justice system as a whole?
Click HERE to see and hear the NPR story from Texas about how bail burden keeps US jails stuffed with inmates.  TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip:

There will come a time when you are asked to give a presentation or you are making a closing argument and you must explain a complicated and dull bit of science or information. In this tip we discuss ways to pace your presentation so that you don’t lose your audience during these portions of your talk.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)

 

I was honored to be interviewed by John Skiba, the creator of JD Blogger, Smart Legal Marketing for Attorney Entrepreneurs.

Click HERE to hear the interview and read the post on his website jdblogger.com

In This Episode: I discuss the Attorney Client Relationship. I will leave attorney client privilege for another episode. Here we delve into how do we, as lawyers, and especially as public defenders, establish a relationship with our clients so that they trust and respect us and are willing to follow our advice.  Establishing this relationship is one of the most important skills a lawyer can acquire and one of the least taught or discussed aspects of our practice.  The quote above by David Augsburger keeps me grounded and helps me set my intention when meeting with clients: Hear how one epic fail with a client early in my career helped me to learn what was really important to my clients and changed the way I practiced law.  TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip:

I truly believe that fundamentally what each and every one of us want from the people in our lives is to feel heard and understood. We discuss tips and strategies for how to convey to someone that you hear and understand them in the moment.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)

 

In This Episode:I pull back the curtain on PROBATION.
What is it and how does it differ from parole? Probation is granted by the court on the condition that the defendant fulfill certain obligations and promises over a certain period of time in exchange for not receiving the maximum sentence allowed by law. Judges have great leeway to implement conditions of probation. They can include the universal admonitions such as, “You must obey all laws” as well as some more crime specific conditions such as requiring those convicted of a DUI to attend an alcohol awareness class. The creative use of probation can be the cornerstone for reforming our system and working towards restorative justice for non-violent and property related crimes.  TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip:

There will come a time when you are asked to give a presentation or you are making a closing argument and you must explain a complicated and dull bit of science or information. In this tip we discuss ways to pace your presentation so that you don’t lose your audience during these portions of your talk.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)

In This Episode:I pull back the curtain on Designer Drugs and Media Panic.
In the wake of the tragic death of actor, Philip Seymour Hoffman, the media latched on to speculation that designer drugs were likely to blame for the overdose.  Several articles and commentators went on at great length about the pain drug fentanyl. This pain relieving drug generally prescribed to cancer patients has been added to heroin to give the user a new high. Police and/or drug enforcement agents chose to exploit Hoffman’s high profile death to bring attention to the “scourge.” Media outlets could not get enough of this tantalizing designer drug story.  The only problem was preliminary tests showed no fentanyl in the baggies found in Hoffman’s apartment. Why should those interested in the criminal justice pay attention to the media scare about the latest new drug panic? Because this is the first step in what often leads to new laws with draconian punishments. Many people remember the BATH SALTS scare that was widely reported after after a vicious assault by a man who chewed off the face of another man in Florida in 2012.  The media went crazy talking about the dangers of this synthetic hallucinogen. The problem was, there were NO BATH SALTS found in the perpetrator’s system. In fact, the only illegal substance detected in that case, by two separate forensic toxicology labs, was marijuana. For an excellent discussion of this case and the ensuing drug panic, see Frank Owens’ article from December of 2012 in Playboy magazine titled “The Miami Zombie”We, as a society, would rather blame the “boogie man” personified by the latest drug than admit that we do not adequately provide for members of our community who suffer from addiction and mental illness.TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip:

Tip about how to incorporate a message you have learned to deliver well into each of your persuasive presentations. If you break down the presentations you give you will find core commonalities in each of them. Once you find a way to express a concept that resonates with you, don’t re-invent the wheel, a few minor tweaks for personalization is all you need to use that explanation over and over again in each of your persuasive talks.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)

In This Episode:

I pull back the curtain on the laws relating to the LAW OF MANSLAUGHTER.
There are 3 types of manslaughter: Voluntary, Involuntary and Vehicular.  Within these categories we find issues of reckless disregard for human life and acts committed during misdemeanors and non-dangerous felonies. The main distinction between a charge of murder and a charge of manslaughter is the lack of the element of malice in the killing. The distinctions within the manslaughter laws themselves have to do with the intentionality of the killing itself.

Manu cases have been in the news in the past several years involving the charges of manslaughter. Some of the more famous include the case of Dr. Conrad Murray convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Michael Jackson, Josh Brent, the former Dallas Cowboy convicted of vehicular manslaughter in the death of his friend and teammate Jerry Brown and the case of George Zimmerman where some felt that if charges were going to be filed at all that murder was inappropriate and manslaughter was the appropriate charge.

The punishment for manslaughter is ofter drastically lower than the punishment for murder, especially involuntary manslaughter. The law recognizes that the circumstances surrounding the act of killing determine a person’s culpability. The role of the defense lawyer is to investigate those circumstances and present them to the trier of fact in such a way as to argue for the appropriate charge and punishment for the unlawful killing.

TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip:

Some ideas about making your presentation more relatable and thereby more persuasive. We talk about how you can incorporate “universal” examples, metaphors and analogies into your talk to hook the audience and get them to relate to your speech. Also, a brief tip on finding “universals” within small niches.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)

 

 

In This Episode:

I pull back the curtain on the laws relating to the LAW OF MURDER.
First degree murder is the unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought carried out in a willful, premeditated and deliberate manner. 2nd Degree murder lacks the willfulness, premeditation and deliberation but malice is implied by the conduct, the circumstances or the conscious disregard to human life.

Murder trials are often viewed by trial lawyers as the pinnacles of their career. If television shows and infotainment “news” programs are any indication, the general public is fascinated by these unique, often complicated and dramatic trials as well. In states where the death penalty is used, there are very specific circumstances (often called special circumstances) under which a murder is committed that allow the state to seek to impose the ultimate punishment. Some of these have to do with the actor himself, such as a repeat offender, others have to do with motive, as in murder for financial gain, murder that is racially motivated. Some have to do with the actions themselves being above and beyond what is necessary to kill a person, such as torture. And still others have to do with the identity of the victim, such as the killing of a police officer, an elected official, a witness, a juror or a judge.  Some states still have a catch-all circumstance that the murder was particularly heinous or horrendous.

There are also specified felonies that if a killing during the course of their commission, the murder is deemed first degree even if a killing was not the original intent of the perpetrators. In California, these include: murder by weapon of mass destruction, by an explosive device, murder with a weapon whose ammunition is designed to pierce metal or armor, poisoning, lying in wait (ambush) and torture. Other states will list different felonies but all will be crimes that in their commission evidence that violence and harm could result form their commission.

TRIAL LAWYER MENTOR Quick Tip:

Quick Tip for keeping in check your perspective when dealing with situations that may be considered minor or less important than other situations and how refusing to “call it in” will make your presentation or relationship more compelling.

 LAWYERS and LAW STUDENTS:

Click here to sign up for our free newsletter where I share in depth tips and strategies for mastering the Art of the Jury Trial. And be sure to check back soon for a special offer exclusively for attorneys!

Download AUDIO here (MP3)