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Public Defense

A Public Defender

Criminal law news from Connecticut and around the country.
By Gideon

Post Frequency: 10.1/day

Last Entry: March 31, 2011 at 12:17:35

Following the crumbs

Posted on February 13, 2009
I haven’t done this in a few months, so on this Friday the 13th let’s take a look at what brought you psychotic internet readers to my blog. As always, act your age. Of all the searches, the top non law related search was for “naked pictures”...

Proof that sex offenders make people act crazy (with update)

Posted on February 13, 2009
Sex offender hysteria is well documented. Apparently, the Federal Government is also not immune from its mind altering effects. Consider the case of John Doe in Ohio. John Doe, convicted in 1993 of sexual battery in state court, is currently on Federal probation for unrelated drug offenses...

Ban the box, save the ex-felon

Posted on February 12, 2009
I have long complained about the failure of governments to engage in any sort of meaningful re-entry for inmates. For a vast majority of released felons, prison is a revolving door. Without any training, education or skills, job prospects are dismal. With no job, there is no money and where there is no money, there [...

The Nordstrom fiasco

Posted on February 11, 2009
If you don’t read blogs, you probably haven’t heard about the Nordstrom fiasco. Read these posts. Fight the power.

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Some days are agonizing

Posted on February 11, 2009
In this line of work, I don’t think there’s anything more heart wrenching that sitting across from a likely innocent client and having to tell him that there’s no way to prove that innocence and then watching him hold back tears and decide between two morbid choices: accepting the plea offer and spend the next [...

The plea jury: a mirror unto ourselves

Posted on February 10, 2009
The Plea Jury is the title and subject of a new (draft) paper by Laura Appleman, a professor of law at Willamette and blogger at The Faculty Lounge, which goes into some length about the failure of the plea bargaining system and how it should be replaced by this innovation...

Gideon?s suggestions for reducing the budget deficit in CT

Posted on February 09, 2009
I know no one asked, but I am nothing if not a bloviator, so these are my suggestions for reducing (even in small part) the current budget deficit that CT faces. In the style of a letter to our Governor. Dear Governor Rell, You and I haven’t always gotten along...

Judge Cofield suspended for 240 days

Posted on February 09, 2009
The Judicial Review Council has just handed down its punishment of Judge Cofield: a 240 day suspension. All said and done, this isn’t the worst outcome. Meanwhile, some other judges are still on the bench…

If the budget deficit exceeds $1bn, it must be bizarro-world

Posted on February 06, 2009
Ever since the Governor announced her proposed budget earlier this week, the cost-cutting proposals have received a lot of scrutiny both in the press and on the web. So it is only in this troublesome climate that eliminating a measure that would reduce incarceration costs can be considered a cost-saving measure...

CT public defenders not immune to cuts either

Posted on February 04, 2009
Not much to say here, since this is just the Gov’s proposed budget [pdf], but we’d be taking hits too (and might end up closing/merging two courthouses). I want to know what “remove or limit inflation” means. Page 719 onwards.

Down the judicial rabbit hole

Posted on February 04, 2009
CT is in the midst of judicial renominations, as I wrote about recently. So judges naturally are the center of attention, both in the legislature and the media. But perhaps no judge in recent months has received the scrutiny that Judge Curtissa Cofield, who is not up for renomination, has...

The time for abolition has come

Posted on January 31, 2009
The death penalty evokes strong emotions in those for and against it. The arguments have been thoroughly debated: justice, vengeance, retribution, eye-for-an-eye, we’re better than that, the state should not be in the killing business, it’s inhuman, it’s cruel and unusual, we’re the only civilized country, it is not deterrent, it doesn’t achieve anything, it [...

Man-Min sentences for juves: no (constitutional) problem

Posted on January 27, 2009
It was a longshot, but by definition, it means that it was worth a shot. The CT Supreme Court recently held in State v. Carrasquillo that mandatory-minimum sentences for juvenile offenders don’t violate the Eight Amendment to the Constitution. This properly should be considered a companion case to the “Life without parole is not cruel [...

The FATWOD has a new ally: the crappy economy

Posted on January 27, 2009
Folks, don’t ever again say I don’t call things. I called this. Finally, it seems that legislators might be getting “smart” on drugs and drug crimes. And no, the impetus isn’t a wake up call on the inherent unfairness of the drug crimes and the racially disproportionate impact they have...

Careful what you wish for

Posted on January 23, 2009
Someone needs to explain to me why this case ever made it to SCOTUS. Actually, I have several questions: What are you asking for, exactly? Is this a case of getting too greedy or too literal? Did anyone consider the ramifications of an unfavorable decision in this case? (Let me spell it out for you: it could spell [...

Scrutinizing the scrutiny

Posted on January 23, 2009
Judicial reconfirmations in Connecticut have usually been a low-key affair, so it was newsworthy last week when an all out battle erupted on the floor of the Senate during the reconfirmation of Judge Patricia Swords. Judge Swords, just finishing up her first 8 year term a judge of the Superior Court, made it through the Judiciary [...

New pd blog

Posted on January 19, 2009
This blog came to my attention a while back, but just getting around to posting it: Incorrigible Dicta, written by MA public defenders.

MLK Day

Posted on January 19, 2009
MLK Day doesn’t just mean another day off (although that is nice too). If you do nothing else, make sure you read Scott’s post on the fight that remains to be fought. You’ll find a video of Dr. King’s speeches elsewhere in the blogosphere, so I’m gonna give you a video instead...

A red Herring, masked by Ma(r)sala

Posted on January 17, 2009
I’m awfully late to this dance, but as a criminal law blog, I might as well shut down completely if I don’t post about Herring. As you may be aware, this past week SCOTUS held in a 5-4 decision that mere negliglence doesn’t require the suppression of evidence obtained as a result of a 4th [...

Fifth Amendment Right to Counsel

Posted on January 13, 2009
After reading the oral argument transcript of Montejo v. Louisiana today, I decided to refresh my memory of the Fifth Amendment Right to Counsel (starting with Miranda). In particular, I was curious to see if anyone had written a paper about the evolution (if any) of this right to counsel...

We could learn a thing or two from pro-ses

Posted on January 06, 2009
For example: The birds today Are singing loudly, The day is fresh With the sounds Upon the wind The crickets. The blackbirds The woodpeckers Beauty in every Spark of life Just So their sounds Are appreciated Their sounds are beauty The ants are silent But always searching The birds noise a song and the fade of the automobile tires Chirp...

Overheard at the pd?s office

Posted on January 06, 2009
Public defender 1 to public defender 2 about a client who believes God will help her obtain a verdict of not guilty: PD1: Well, what do I do now? PD2: Look at it this way. If she gets convicted, she can file a petition for writ of habeas corpus alleging ineffective assistance of divine counsel in violation [...

If only they?d used such caution the first time

Posted on January 04, 2009
As often happens, I lollygag when it comes to writing posts. Then, all of a sudden, in a span of a day of day or two, several stories appear that tie together the strands in my head. Today is such a day. Percolating in the back of my head was some chagrin directed toward the [...

Sunday Stupidity: Feels like?edition

Posted on January 04, 2009
Is that a gun in your pants or are you just happy to see me?

The Nichol(s) effect

Posted on January 02, 2009
The capital case of Brian Nichols has had a terrible effect on the state of indigent defense in Georgia. A system that was already strained under the pressure of one capital case is on the verge of a deathblow. There are many, many other defendants not named Brian Nichols in Georgia who need representation and [...

Proving the negative: lawyers are special

Posted on January 02, 2009
Lawyers hate proving the negative, unless of course they’re asking other lawyers to do so. In which case, game on! For reasons that are not very exciting, I was helping someone research the mandatory CLE (continuing legal education) requirements for lawyers in New York...

So let me take naked pictures of you

Posted on January 02, 2009
One of the most common (and infuriating) responses to any indignation about the government’s surveillance and wiretapping programs is: “I’ve got nothing to hide, I don’t care”. A fundamental underpinning of this argument is that a little bit of intrusion protects our national security, so it’s okay...

Where?s Gideon?

Posted on December 31, 2008
It’s been a while since there have been any new posts on this blog and for that, I take sole responsibility as the primary (and only) author. Gideon has been preoccupied with several things, including the holidays, work and snow. However, another round of days off are on the horizon and with that comes the [...

1 thing law school isn?t meant to teach you

Posted on December 26, 2008
How to be a lawyer. My post “10 things I didn’t learn in law school” led to a bunch of comments here, and some links from other blogs. Most of the commenters and other bloggers got it. One person, in the comments at the Marquette law school blog apparently didn’t...

Lawyer as magician

Posted on December 26, 2008
This does pose some rather interesting questions about the role of lawyers vis a vis magicians, but that’s not why I’m writing. I just want y’all to feast your eyes on this beauty. Best. Lawyer.Website.Ever.

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