Well, I just wanted to share because I know the next few months will be interesting.
I was just assigned a first degee murder case this morning. It’s not my first murder trial, but the ones I had before was as a prosecutor. As a defense attorney I’ve worked murder cases pre-trial, but never took one to trial before. That is not to say that this one is going to trial, I know almost nothing about the case as of yet. All I know is my client allegedly ran over his wife with his car during a family fight.
I’m writing this for 2 reasons. First, if anyone is interested in what happens as the case proceeds, I will be happy to post events as they happen if I have the time and it doesn’t come close to violating any ethical rules. Second, although I’m not a real frequent poster, I may have significant periods of absence over the next few months.
Well if your client is innocent -The best of luck to you both.
If your client is guilty of running her over, your on your own
Oh and yes keep us updated
Since your unfamiliar with the case, these questions are probably premature, but are you planning on filing any pre-trial motions? Any confession to suppress? Any priors that need to be kept away from the jury? Is there any scientific evidence? DNA? Hair? Fingerprints? Hows the DA on the case? You indicated you were once a prosecutor, are you friendly with the DA trying the case? Why did you leave prosecution to go to defense? Any problems with it?
I work in a law office and the lawyer I work for does a lot of Court Appointed Defense stuff. He doesn’t ask them if they did it, he just asks them to tell him their verison of what happened. I guess it’s his way of avoiding the sticky mess of knowing your client did it and then having to try to defend them.
I’m not sure if that’s how other lawyers operate but it does make sense.
Don’t worry it will never go to trial. Unless there are eyewitnesses (whose testimony you can no doubt impugn), his story that he was driving off in a fury and she stepped in front of him …etc will be very hard to disprove. The DA will accept a guilty plea to manslaughter… 3 to 5 should cover it.
Not only am I not AL (IANAL), I am not an American, but I watch your TV shows.
I am a lawyer (a Public Defender at that), and no one is guilty until they plead to it, or until the state proves it. Presumption of innocence, and all that.
Are you excited, Reloy3? I’m currently second chairing a second degree murder trial that takes place at the end of the month. Essentially, I’ll just be sitting there taking notes while my boss does all of the work. I’m hoping that I’ll get to cross some minor witness, by my chances are slight.
I’m jealous. I would be very interested to hear about what happens.
Most of the questions are premature, but I’ll answer what I can.
Pre-trial motions? Oh definitely - I can’t imagine not filing motions on any felony, even if it is just a request for a change of plea hearing. I imagine I will, just don’t know which ones yet, other than the request for discovery I already filed.
I don’t believe my client made a confession. My co-counsel and investigator are meeting with him now. (I have unavoidable court hearings today - I’ll meet with him tomorrow.)
Scientific evidence? Most probably, the state crime lab has already processed the scene, and I understand there is significant blood at the scene. I’ll certainly get an autopsy. DNA? Fingerprints? I don’t know, but identity doesn’t seem to be a real issue, at least from the early reports.
Yes, I was a prosecutor for a few years before the switch to defense. (Before that I worked environmental law). All of my collegues at the Public Defender’s office were prosecutors first, and most of the prosecutors I know were defense attorneys at one point, so the switch isn’t all that uncommon around here. I may go back to prosecution someday, but not yet.
In some ways prosecuting is better. You certainly have more control (you can dump or plead out a bad case) and a little more community respect. Defense is good to, but you have to get used to losing, a lot. The best attorneys I know were both prosecutors and defense attorneys - I think it gives you a wider perspective. I do have a difficult time with a handful of clients, but most of them are people who made a mistake or are dealing with addictions, bad luck or chronic stupidity. I like most of my clients once I get to know them.
I left prosecution for the most basic of reasons - I lost an election against the new County Attorney and he fired me.
Did my guy do it? Have no idea yet. Besides, even if he did, I still have a lot of work to do. I need to make sure his civil rights are protected and I need to make sure he understands his options and the arcane court “stuff” that is going on around him. Even if he is guilty, he still needs an advocate.
I don’t, I’m also one that doesn’t believe that ignorance is bliss as far as a client’s guilt or innocense is concerned. The closest I’ve ever came was to tell the prosecution “prove it”. I’ve also had times when my clients did something wrong, but not what they were accused of. I’ve even had clients believe they were guilty based on what they knew of the law, but a close examination of the law showed they weren’t. (Most recently in a consensual statutory rape case, where my client didn’t know that the state Supreme Court has held that consensual sex betweern juveniles is not statutory rape without, in there word “something more” to indicate coersion.
Do other attorneys do it? Probably, there is a particularly sleezy tv advertising attorney I know who is very likely of doing just that. I work in a very small town, though - a bad reputation in the legal community here would quickly hurt your other clients and your long term prospects.
5 years, but I live in a state with a very small bar - you can move up fast, like I said, I already have 2 first degree trials under my belt and did pretrial on four others. Trust me, second chair one or two murder trials and you’ll get your own soon enough?
Excited? Not yet - right now I’m more of in a panic as to how to schedule everything I will need to do and keep my active caseload happening.
Good luck with your case - tell me how things work out.
I suppose it all depends. If the defendant was leaving in a huff and negligently backed his car into the victim, I think you’d be right. But if he intentionally aimed the car at her and ran her down, then it might be murder. I’m not a lawyer myself, but I imagine these will be the sorts of things the finder of fact will have to examine.
