Technicians for Best Buy’s “Geek Squad City” computer repair facility had a long, close relationship with the FBI in “a joint venture to ferret out child porn,” according to claims in new federal court documents, which also note that Best Buy’s management “was aware that its supervisory personnel were being paid by the FBI” and that its technicians were developing a program to find child pornography with the FBI’s guidance.
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Even Very Intelligent People Make Mistakes When Agreeing to Speak to the Police.
Never meet with law enforcement, state agencies, or any investigators of any kind without speaking to your attorney first. If you are pressured to make a decision immediately, politely decline. This is the best policy even if it does result in you being taken to jail, since often times they would have taken you to jail anyways, but if you cooperated, you would have given them more evidence to convict you at trial later on. Many times, I will allow my clients to meet with law enforcement and various investigating agencies, but I will never do that without being present and usually without setting ground rules such as: what questions will be asked; and whether we will be recording the interview.
Can you film the police while they are pulling you over in Washington?
I often times have clients that wish they had filmed their interactions with the police. Many police agencies do not have in-car or body mounted cameras or audio recording equipment, and when there is no recording, it is possible that there will be differences in what people remember or perceive happened. On the other hand, a recording can make it perfectly clear what happened. I have had cases dismissed or won at trial because of a recording. I have also had clients who were shocked to see how they behaved in a recording. The recording may not have been perfectly filed or recorded, but it is at least unbiased.
Government Entrapment of Citizens
The lawyers at Newton & Hall can assist you in determining if an entrapment defense is applicable in your case. RCW 9A.16.070 defines entrapment as: (1) In any prosecution for a crime, it is a defense that: (a) The criminal design originated in the mind of law enforcement officials, or any person acting under their direction, and (b) The actor was lured or induced to commit a crime which the actor had not otherwise intended to commit. (2) The defense of entrapment is not established by a showing only that law enforcement officials merely afforded the actor an opportunity to commit a crime.
Utah on the verge of the toughest drunk-driving standard in the U.S. – .05%
“It’s a terrible law,” said Michele T. Corigliano, of the Salt Lake Area Restaurant Association, which represents more than 100 establishments. The executive director, is lobbying Governor Herbert to veto the measure. “We feel that because .05% is so low it’s going to put a lot people in jail who should not be in jail. It’s an extremely low-level … people who use too much mouthwash could be targeted.”
There hasn’t been a criminal defense lawyer on the Supreme Court in 25 years. That’s a problem.
A criminal defense lawyer has not been part of the United States Supreme Court in over 25 years. This is problematic, since many of the cases are ones that concern criminal cases, yet there is no one on the bench to discuss represent those who provide a defense in those cases. The court has two ex-prosecutors currently, and if President Trump gets his appointment of Neil Gorsuch confirmed, the court will have a total of three, making up 1/3 of the justices.
ICE immigration sweep includes Kent, King County arrests
It is important to ensure that any criminal case is handled with the assistance of knowledgeable criminal attorney, like those at Newton & Hall, who regularly work with immigration attorneys to ensure that our client's criminal problems, don't become immigration problems.
State Lawmakers to Consider Lower Legal Limit of 0.05 for DUI Cases
Our state is following the lead of other states and looking at lowering the legal limit for alcohol while driving a motor vehicle from its current legal level of 0.08 to a lesser level of 0.05. This could make it significantly easier to be arrested and convicted for DUI or Physical Control in Washington state.
Eyewitness Identification - Your Lying Eyes!
How a person is identified by witnesses or victims of a crime can taint their memory, and lead to wrongful convictions in a court of law.
College Campus Sexual Assault Investigations - The Due Process Farce
The Title IX system of due process is a farce at best. It is designed only to allow school administrators to take quick and easy action against anyone accused of sexual assault on campus.
Microsoft Sued by Employees who are Forced to View Child Pornography and Report it to the Government
A recent article in the Seattle Post Intelligencer that you can view by clicking here, describes a lawsuit filed by employees of Microsoft who allege that "federal legislation imposed new duties on Microsoft in 2008 that required them and other tech companies to report child pornography and other...
Can you get a DUI for Caffeine?
A man in California was recently charged with a DUI, after a blood test came up positive for only caffeine. This became a national news story, and was featured on CNN, and although his case was later dismissed by the local district attorney, they did not back down on their assertion that a perso...
Cell Phone Tracking By Federal Government - Stingrays
It was recently announced by the Department of Homeland Security, that they would require warrants for Stingray devices, which are used to simulate cell phone towers, and have the ability to zero in covertly on the location of cell phones. Previously, many of their agencies were surreptitiously using these suitcase sized devices, often while driving in cars, to look for cell phone information while posing as a cell phone tower.
How Does a Criminal Trial Work?
My clients often have a belief as to how a criminal trial will work, that is based upon the trials that they have seen on television or the movie screens. These trials may or may not accurately depict what a criminal trial will look like.
CEO of Escort Company Rentboy.com Pleads Guilty to Promoting Prostitution & Backpage.com Executives Arrested for Felony Sex Charges
The chief executive officer of New York based male escort site Rentboy.com, plead guilty and admitted in federal court in Brooklyn that he violated the law by promoting "the exchange of sexual conduct in return for a fee". He is scheduled to be sentenced on February 2nd, and is facing a sentence...
The Stigma of a Sex Crime - Even for Those Found Not Guilty
The most interesting thing about the article is that Nate Parker was found not guilty by a jury that listened to all of the evidence in the case, but the allegation from sixteen years ago is still following him in a negative way. Those who are accused of a sex crime are often considered by society to be guilty, before they ever get a chance to establish their innocence.
King County Increases Number of Felony Domestic Violence Case Filings
In 2009 the King County Sheriff's Office disbanded it's investigation unit that handled domestic violence charges, but in 2015 it was reimplemented. Since that time there has been an 20% increase in the number of felony domestic violence cases being referred to the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.
Sexual Exploitation / Prostitution Arrests in Seattle, WA
The City of Seattle recently announced that 204 men, from all walks of life, were recently arrested in a sting operation run by the City of Seattle Police Department Vice Unit. The Vice Unit ran an operation out of a previous massage parlor called the "Euro Spa" in the Roosevelt/University Distr...
How Much Does a Criminal Defense Lawyer Charge?
As a longtime criminal defense lawyer I frequently meet with people who are tasked with choosing a criminal defense lawyer to represent their interests, or those of someone they care about. There are many pitfalls that a person needs to consider in hiring a lawyer, and price is just one. The bi...
Arrested for Free Speech? King County's Plan to Criminally Charge Those Writing Online Reviews of Prostitutes.
In May of 2016, the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office charged six men with the crime of "Promoting Prostitution in the Second Degree". This charge is usually thought of as "pimping" and normally is brought under that context. The allegations against these men were very different than ...
License Plate Scanning by Police Departments in Washington State - Automatic License Plate Recognition Systems
In January of 2008 the City of Kent Police Department became one of the first agencies in Washington to begin using automated camera technology on their patrol cars to scan license plates. The three camera system is mounted on patrol cars and in its first six weeks, scanned 100,000 license plate...
Don't Hire a National Law Firm for a Criminal Case
One of the things I am seeing as a criminal defense lawyer in Washington, is a proliferation of nationwide criminal defense law firms. Most of these law firms are headquartered in California, or some other state, and advertise heavily in yellow pages advertisements and on the web, in Washington ...
Kitsap Sheriff Sergeant Caught Red Handed Drunk Driving, Fellow Officer Let's Him Go
A Kitsap County Sheriff's Sergeant was recently caught drunk driving and confessed on camera. His fellow officer's failed to request field sobriety or other tests and let him go with no charges. They even confessed on camera to hoping nothing would "stick" against him.
Scarlet Letter on Sex Offender's Passports
The house and congress recently passed legislation that was in turn signed by President Obama, which will make it significantly more difficult for those who were convicted of a sex offense against children to travel. The law, known as International Megan’s Law, will require those who have been convicted of sex crimes against minors to carry special passports in which their status as registered sex offenders will be marked with conspicuous identifying marks.
How Does A Self-Defense Claim Work in Washington's Courts
The law in Washington allows a person to defend themselves against violent crime by using force to overcome that threat. The statute that authorizes this use of self-defense is RCW 9A.16.110, which states in part: (1) No person in the state shall be placed in legal jeopardy of any kind whatso...