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On Behalf of the County of…
At some point during my time on the juvie team, I became the de facto spokesperson for the county whenever a parent is owed an apology. To illustrate: Three Spanish-speaking mothers arrived promptly at...
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Defense ex Machina
“For the benefit of the uninitiated, “dump truck” is a term commonly used by criminal defendants when complaining about the public defender. The origins of the phrase are somewhat obscure. However, it...
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You Have the Right to Remain Silent… so SHUT UP
I have many grievances with how our criminal justice system is portrayed on television, but one of the few good things that it has done is emblazoned a person’s right to remain silent in the minds of...
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Transcript of His Honor’s Handwashing Liturgy, or The Defendant’s Romero...
Under California’s Three Strikes law, defendants with two or more serious or violent felony convictions receive a minimum sentence of 25 years-to-life for a third serious or violent felony. However,...
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Journey Through the Sealed Transcript, or Marsden Motions: A “Choose Your Own...
“I want a Marsden motion!” my client proclaimed from his seat in the jury box. When a courtroom is not used for a trial, the jury box is typically used to seat 12-14 inmates, handcuffed in pairs,...
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Adversaries Need Not Apply
To: Mr. Blaise Trettis, Public Defender 18th Judicial Circuit Public Defender Brevard County, Florida From: Norm DeGuerre, Esq. Deputy Public Defender,...
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Grandma, Should I Plea? (A Largely True Story)
“I have an idea – humor me on this.” I would never have imagined saying these words to a client on the eve of trial. We were in court for a last-minute settlement conference. The jury panel would show...
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A Reluctant Call for Mercy Killing: This Lawyer’s Opinion
The time has come for the criminal defense community to rethink its well-rehearsed response to the following question: What would happen if every defendant who wanted a trial got one? Michelle...
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Dear Norm: How Do You Defend Those People? (Part 3,223)
Dear Norm: How do you defend those people? No, I don’t mean “how can you live with yourself ensuring due process for people who have done really really bad things” or anything like that. I mean, how do...
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