Author: Mick Mickelsen
On April 21, 2009, the Supreme Court decided Arizona v. Gant. The issue in this case was whether the fact the police made an arrest of the driver automatically gave them the right to search his car. In New York v. Belton , decided in 1981, the Supreme Court had created a “bright line” rule…
Statistically about 95% of federal criminal trials result in a conviction. For federal drug cases the statistics are even worse. Today Clint and I won another federal drug trial, and as always, given the odds, the victory is gratifying. Clint was first chair in this trial and deserves most of the credit.In this case our…
On Wednesday January 14, in the case of Herring v. United States, the Supreme Court further signaled its hostility to the exclusionary rule. The exclusionary rule is the rule that does not permit state or federal prosecutors to use evidence against defendants that was acquired in violation of the law or the Constitution. Many people…
The Rights You Deserve and Can Expect to Receive You have a right to expect several things from any criminal lawyer you hire with the understanding that, like many things in life, you often get what you pay for. To further complicate the matter, there are lawyers who charge absurdly large fees and provide no…
On December 10, 2008, the Court of Criminal Appeals (the Texas Supreme Court for Criminal Cases), in a case that I argued, handed down a decision reversing the lower court. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is arguably the most unfriendly appellate court for criminal defendants in the country, so anytime a defendant wins in…
When a potential client calls our firm and tells us they have been charged with a criminal offense, our first question is if the charge is for state or federal court. There have been several instances where we have even represented two individuals at the same time, charged with similar crimes. Although one is in…
Usually, when someone is confronted with the prospect of hiring a criminal defense lawyer they are under a lot of stress. In addition to the stress arising from the prospect of being convicted and possibly going to jail, the potential client is confronting financial stress. Not only must the potential often expend funds to make…
The Fees Criminal Lawyers Charge Tend to Vary Greatly 1. Never Hire a Criminal Attorney Without a Written Fee Contract You might be surprised how many criminal defense lawyers do not provide written fee contracts. This is extremely dangerous and leads to potential problems. Often times an attorney who chooses not provide a fee agreement…
Generally speaking criminal defense lawyers look forward to representing people charged with DWIs. Many clients clients charged with a DWI are reasonable, articulate and, probably most importantly to lawyers, are able to pay a fee. Unless a person is charged with having committed their third DWI, the stakes are not as high as when representing…
In the annual 2013 report issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, it was estimated that the Court granted oral argument in 10.5% or criminal cases. The Report also indicates that the reversal rate in the Fifth Circuit is approximately 6.6% in criminal cases. In contrast, Clint Broden has obtained…