The Court of Appeals, with a panel made up of Judges Dillard, Ellington, and Phipps, has reversed an order granting a motion to suppress from the State Court of Fayette County. I write about this case because it further develops the law in the area of Miranda and field sobriety testing and because it illustrates… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Subscribe to Uncategorized RSS FeedMy Controversial Talk on Typography (No Kidding)
Posted in Georgia Court of Appeals, Supreme Court of Georgia, Uncategorized, WritingIf you read this blog regularly, it is no secret that I am a recent convert and evangelist for Matthew Butterick’s Typography for Lawyers. I have a long way to go in my legal writing before I reach a point of mastery, but I am happy to be paying attention. One of the chairs for… Continue Reading
SCOTUS Requires Effective Assistance at Plea Bargain Stage: Absurd?
Posted in Opinions and Analysis, UncategorizedToday, the Supreme Court released two opinions that define standards for defense lawyers during criminal plea bargains. First, in Lafler v. Cooper, No. 10-209, 566 U.S. ___ (2012), recall that Cooper was charged with assault with intent to murder and possession of a firearm. Cooper rejected a plea bargain after his attorney (wrongly) informed him… Continue Reading
Erroneous Verdict Form = New Trial
Posted in Opinions and Analysis, Supreme Court of Georgia, UncategorizedOn Tuesday, the Georgia Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a Fulton man’s convictions would be reversed due to an improperly worded verdict form. Cheddersingh v. State, S11A1929. In 2008, Soniel Cheddersingh was convicted of malice murder, aggravated assault, armed robbery, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and possession of firearm by… Continue Reading
My Reply to the Circuit Public Defender
Posted in Attorney-Client Relationship, News, Opinions and Analysis, UncategorizedTo catch you up to speed, I recently blogged about GPDSC’s recent argument to the Supreme Court of Georgia that public defenders should have the right to represent clients in the same circuit public defender’s office even when there is a conflict in the representation. Mr. Samuel Merritt, a Circuit Public Defender disagreed. I posted… Continue Reading
Circuit Public Defender Responds to My Post
Posted in UncategorizedA Circuit Public Defender attempted to comment on a recent post of mine. For some reason, it never cued up for moderation. So, I am posting his comment here. I’ll likely respond this week when I dig my way out of this brief I am writing. I’m not sure you have all of… Continue Reading
Judges at Appellate Practice Section Luncheon Laud New Governor’s Support of Judiciary
Posted in News, UncategorizedThe Appellate Practice Section of the State Bar of Georgia convened as part of the Georgia Bar’s mid-year meeting. In spite of the fact that many participants came over from the swearing-in of Judge Boggs to the Court of Appeals, the luncheon was lively and well-attended. Originally intended to be a candidates’s forum for candidates… Continue Reading
Amanda Knox, the Appeals Process, and Moneyball
Posted in News, Opinions and Analysis, Preservation of Error, UncategorizedToday, my recent post on Amanda Knox was quoted by Ronald V. Miller in his Maryland Injury Lawyer Blog. He picks up on my point about the Knox case and other high-profile cases with an unexpected result. For clients and potential clients, such cases reinforce the often mistaken idea that, if you keep on slugging until… Continue Reading
When Judges Tell Juries About Appeals
Posted in Opinions and Analysis, UncategorizedThere’s an old bright line rule about whether judges should mention the appellate process to juries. The subtext is that you shouldn’t do it at all. The literal rule is that you shouldn’t do it in a way suggesting that the defendant is going to lose the trial. The Supreme Court recently reaffirmed on old… Continue Reading
Putting it in Context: Or, How I Almost Gave up on Blogging
Posted in Attorney-Client Relationship, Uncategorized, WritingI stopped blogging several weeks back. You won’t have to look hard to see a gap in the rate of posts on this blog from July until a few days ago. And if you look at the post I did earlier in the week, you’ll see something worse than no blog at all. You’ll see… Continue Reading
Granted Petitions on Criminal Cases for the Month of September
Posted in News, Opinions and Analysis, Supreme Court of Georgia, UncategorizedThe Supreme Court has granted two petitions for certiorari and one application for discretionary appeal so far this month. Below is an overview of each case Bunn v. State In its Order granting Cert., from September 6, 2011, the Court notes that it is particularly concerned with the following issue: Does the Child Hearsay Statute… Continue Reading
What Do Appellate Lawyers Do
Posted in Attorney-Client Relationship, UncategorizedLeave this blog right now and run, don’t walk, over to the Appellate Record and read Kendall Gray’s blog post on what distinguishes appellate lawyers from trial lawyers. A presentation he gave to visitors to his firm from China inspired this post. It provides the simplest explanation of the key differences between the two types… Continue Reading
Two New Cases Warn Lawyers to Tend to the Record on Appeal
Posted in Record on Appeal, UncategorizedTwo recent cases from the Court of Appeals demonstrate the need to put the appellate record together in a reasonable time period, the need to respond to post-trial motion regarding the record with the statutory time frame, and to be vigilant that the record stays together as the case moves its way through the court… Continue Reading
New UGA Law Review Article Takes Georgia to Task for the Way We Handle IAC Claims
Posted in Attorney-Client Relationship, Motion for New Trial, News, Opinions and Analysis, UncategorizedI returned from vacation pleased to find in my in basket at the office a copy of Ryan C. Tuck’s article from the Georgia Law Review on the confusing state of the law as it relates to ineffective assistance of counsel in Georgia. The article is titled “Ineffective-Assistance-of-Counsel Blues: Navigating the Muddy Waters of Georgia… Continue Reading
Video Arraignments are a Step in the Right Direction
Posted in Attorney-Client Relationship, Motion for New Trial, Oral Argument, State Habeas Corpus, Supreme Court of Georgia, UncategorizedAbove the Law has a good recent post on the use of video arraignments and how judges find that the process makes them feel safer. I don’t know whether video Arraignments make the process any safer or not. But the process certainly makes the process more efficient. In fact, many of the rituals of court… Continue Reading
Lessons I Learned from This Month’s Appellate Losses
Posted in Georgia Court of Appeals, Supreme Court of Georgia, UncategorizedIt’s been a bad month for my most recent crop of Supreme Court cases, both in terms of cases where I represent the party and in cases where I am amicus counsel. But I try to learn from them all. And here’s my takeaway from the month. To have and cite a case is not… Continue Reading
Author of study of Georgia criminal justice system has died
Posted in UncategorizedAlyson Palmer at the Fulton Daily Report has noted the passing of David C. Baldus. Mr. Baldus authored a study in 1986 showing that, in 2,000 murder cases in Georgia in the 1970s, defendants accused of killing white victims were more than four times as likely than defendants accused of killing black victims. That study… Continue Reading
Judge Christopher McFadden Offers Advice on Requesting Oral Argument
Posted in Oral Argument, UncategorizedHow do you make the most compelling possible case for oral argument in the Georgia Court if Appeals? According to Judge Christopher McFadden, it is important to draft a self-contained request that summarizes the key issues in the case. It is important also to explain exactly how argument will assist the court under the unique… Continue Reading
Georgia JQC Sweeps Another Judge’s Conduct Under the Rug
Posted in UncategorizedIt appears that the best place in the State to skirt the edge of the law is the judicial chambers of a Georgia court. If your crime catches the attention of the Judicial Qualification Commission and they investigate first, then you might lose your job. But that’s about it. Brian K. Finnicum, the Editor of… Continue Reading
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