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Solo Practitioners Don’t Have A Jackie Frankfurt
We had a tremendous support network at the public defender’s office in Philadelphia. There were social workers and mental health professionals. There were administrative staff focusing on probation,...
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Every Prosecutor Should Experience the Humiliation and Discomfort of an Arrest
Your client is charged with Leaving After Colliding – Property Damage. This is the technical way of saying that he is charged with “hit-and-run” or “leaving the scene of an accident” as the offense is...
View ArticleFuneral Service for Louis Barnett to be Held April 21
Louis Barnett died on April 13, 2015 of a pulmonary aneurysm. My understanding is that Barnett and his wife were in the midst of a home renovation when his wife found him at the bottom of the basement...
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“You Look Thinner In Real Life”
If ever I thought a person’s vanity might diminish with age, I have proven myself wrong: I am every bit as vain today as I have ever been. The problem is that the vanity now leads mostly to...
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Keeping Score in Room 113
If ever I fancied the notion of becoming a judge, I changed my mind after spending another day in domestic violence court last week. The judge in Room 113 of D.C. Superior Court – where civil...
View ArticleD.C. Panel of Court-Appointed Lawyers for Juveniles
The 2015 list of lawyers eligible to accept court appointments in juvenile cases is now out. Chief Judge Lee F. Satterfield issued the order approving the list on October 23. The list will be good for...
View ArticleJoining the Adult CJA Panel in D.C.
I have just been appointed to the D.C. Superior Court panel for adult court-appointed cases. I was one of three lawyers appointed on a “provisional” basis. (Three other lawyers were promoted from the...
View ArticleA New Perspective on Representing Indigent Criminal Defendants
Three months into my court-appointed work in D.C., I now have a completely different perspective on representing indigent criminal defendants. At the time I quit my job as a public defender in...
View ArticleSecond Fiddle at a Jury Trial
It is not easy sitting second-chair at a trial when you are used to running the show yourself. Recently appointed as a provisional member of the panel to represent indigent criminal defendants in D.C.,...
View ArticleBody Worn Cameras in D.C.: Watching Events Through the Eyes of Police
On the morning of trial, I stick my head into the small room outside the courtroom where the police officers are assembled. I have spent hours watching and indexing footage from the body worn cameras...
View ArticleLove Letter to a Prosecutor
Perhaps I should not admit it, but I like the Assistant U.S. Attorneys in D.C. They are generally smart, reasonable and decent people. They know the law. And, like defense attorneys, they are just...
View ArticleThe Reconstituted CJA Panel in D.C.
Every four years, D.C. Superior Court re-establishes the panel of criminal defense lawyers who are eligible to accept court appointments. The first re-establishment occurred in 2010 and the second in...
View ArticleD.C. Superior Court Criminal Calendar: 2019 Judicial Assignments
Felony 1 Calendar Judge Ronna Beck, Room 316 Judge Danya Dayson, Room 318 Judge Craig Iscoe, Room 313 Judge Milton Lee, Room 302 Judge Juliet McKenna, Room 215 Felony 2 Calendar Judge Steven Berk, Room...
View ArticleHandling a U.S. Citation Case in D.C. Superior Court
Here is what every lawyer appearing in D.C. Superior Court should know about handling an arraignment for a U.S. citation.
View ArticleShould I enter into a “CPO without admissions” in D.C.?
A person who has been served with a CPO petition in D.C. can enter into a “consent CPO without admissions.” The CPO is granted to the petitioner without a hearing. In exchange, there is no adverse...
View Article“The man who represents himself has a fool for a client”
The man standing at the bar of the court is a nicely dressed, middle-aged white guy. He looks like a lawyer. That’s because, as it turns out, he IS a lawyer. He is seeking the court’s permission to...
View ArticleThe difference between expunging and sealing a criminal record
"Expungement" of a criminal record suggests that it is destroyed, thereby restoring the person to the position he/she occupied before the arrest. "Sealed" records still exist. They are just hidden from...
View ArticleCan you seal/expunge a felony?
The first option for sealing a felony arrest in D.C. would be to file a motion immediately on the grounds of actual innocence under D.C. Code § 16-802. The second option would be to wait two years to...
View ArticleHow long does it take to seal/expunge a criminal record?
The process after filing normally takes four to six months after filing in D.C. This includes a 60-day period for the government to respond.
View ArticleA prosecutor is caught in a lie
An Assistant U.S. Attorney has been referred for disciplinary action after being caught misrepresenting facts before a U.S. District Court.
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