If all Lawyers were like this we'd all be in trouble

[«ÊÇ»grasshopper]

I had the unfortunate task of having to sit through 2 separate cases which turned my stomach. The 1st was a thief who ran out of a dept store and was grabbed by the security guard. The thief slashed the guard across the neck 25 stiches but fortunatly not life threatening. The guard was able to ID the crook from photos however the case was thrown ou due to a minor technicality......The crook was the only one wearing a "MUSCLE" shirt. THAT P>>>>D me off.

Worse than that , a drunk driving home hits another car where the occupants are an elderly couple. The husband dies and his wife(widow) is left paralized from the waist down and has a shattered right arm. Due to the fact that the guy drove home and wasn't located until the next day the charge of DWI was withdrawn. There was no witnesses to the accident and the lawyer argued that there was insufficient evidence to prove that his client was even driving the vehicle. CASE DISMISSED!!!!!!!!! I was in the bar the next night and guess who saunters in for a beer????

[Streetbum]

Thats messed up..... but I guess thats the American legal system for ya. Im really thinking about moving to canada in a few years.

[Greenblaster]

Criminal defense lawyers thrive on 'proving' their client innocent through the numerous loop-holes that the far-from-airtight American legal system has. Unfortunately, there are numerous cases like those every year, due to stupid technicalities.

[blackhawk777]

ok...you're a lawyer?

[«ÊÇ»grasshopper]

Streetbum you had better get up here real quick!!! As for the loopholes I don't think there is a country where there isn't one or two tucked away and brought out at just the right time. If only there were such things as "honest" lawyers... pardon the wise crack if anyone is a lawyer (inserted for self preservation and not wanting to get my @ss sued)

[fer-sher]

Originally Posted by «ÊÇ»grasshopper

I had the unfortunate task of having to sit through 2 separate cases which turned my stomach. The 1st was a thief who ran out of a dept store and was grabbed by the security guard. The thief slashed the guard across the neck 25 stiches but fortunatly not life threatening. The guard was able to ID the crook from photos however the case was thrown ou due to a minor technicality......The crook was the only one wearing a "MUSCLE" shirt. THAT P>>>>D me off.

Worse than that , a drunk driving home hits another car where the occupants are an elderly couple. The husband dies and his wife(widow) is left paralized from the waist down and has a shattered right arm. Due to the fact that the guy drove home and wasn't located until the next day the charge of DWI was withdrawn. There was no witnesses to the accident and the lawyer argued that there was insufficient evidence to prove that his client was even driving the vehicle. CASE DISMISSED!!!!!!!!! I was in the bar the next night and guess who saunters in for a beer????

These are so unreal, particularly the drunk driving one, that I almost don't believe you.
In Canada that would never happen. A friend of mine years ago rear ended a car at a red late when he was driving home drunk... he drove away and managed to get home... cralled into his bed and went to sleep. he awoke a few hours later to 2 officers standing over his bed waking him up. even without witneses the damage to his car and paint marks would have been enough. No one was hurt but he lost his license for 1 year. 0 tolerance.

[TJ1adam12]

[quote=fer_sher;30848]These are so unreal, particularly the drunk driving one, that I almost don't believe you.

Ah my friend, sad but very true, I see this all the time. That’s why it is imperative for the arresting Officer to be as detailed as he/she can be. Recognizing that I have no direct knowledge of the two specific cases that grasshopper is referring to, I can only offer general comments that may shed some light…

Minor technicalities often result in a case being dismissed. Undoubtedly this is a frustrating situation for the arresting Officer, County Prosecutor, and mostly the victim and their families. From the business point of view (Arresting Officer and Prosecutor’s Office) it’s important to learn from each mistake and attempt to minimize them in the future. Where I work, there is at minimum, a monthly meeting to discuss technicalities that have prevented strong cases from being successfully prosecuted.

I.E. When preparing a photo lineup or a live lineup, it’s imperative that all members of said lineup are similar in many physical characteristics. Example; The case would be thrown out of court all day long if in a said lineup you put the Hispanic suspect along side of four Caucasians. Hence, it is absolutely no surprise to me that if the suspect’s lineup involved he or she being the only one wearing a muscle shirt, that the case was dismissed.

With the second example of the DWI case being dismissed I will use Minnesota’s Laws as an example of what may the disposition of the case may have been. Minnesota Officers have to place the suspected drunk driver to driving his car within two hours of the event (accident in this case) or there will never be a conviction. There are other elements of the crime that have to be proved as well. The suspect obviously was the driver, hadn’t consumed any alcohol since the accident etc… just to mention a few.

Having said that, The suspect may have avoided the DWI charge, but still would be facing serious felony type crimes: Vehicular Homicide resulting in death, Vehicular Homicide resulting in Great Bodily Harm and Leaving the scene of an accident, just to mention the few that come to my mind.


Hope this provides a better understanding as to why that may have happened. Have a great day all!!

T.J.
TJ1adam12

[fraps]

fer sher... I don't know what your backround is but our laws are almost the same as the one as TJ mentioned. A breath or blood sample must be given with 2 hours or the dui is dismissed. As far a the first example... if he wasn't identified by markings (tats, scrares) on his body then yes I could see how it would be dismissed because of the muscle shirt.