I grew up believing that trials are a search for the truth. The whole truth. Moral truth. God’s truth. Unfortunately, after almost 50 years of practicing law I have come to believe that trials are not about a search for the ultimate truth. Trials are about the perception of truth. What the jury believes is true [...]
The State Attorney for the Sixth Judicial Circuit of Florida, Bernie McCabe, died on January 1, 2021. Although he was experiencing some health issues, his passing was a surprise to many. Bernie and I have known each other for over 50 years. In 1969, we started as freshmen at Stetson University College of Law in [...]
When I look back on the year 2020, I think of all the things that have gotten lost. Vacations, trips to see friends, movies and restaurant dining without masks. Trials for clients unable to post bond and in-person hearings to persuade a judge to grant a motion. It is now December and this past year has gone [...]
2020 will go down as the lost year. By that, I mean that normalcy just does not exist. Everything we are used to doing, we cannot continue to do. That vacation? Canceled. Having friends over for a get together? No way. Restaurants open for business? No such luck. And so on. Masks are no longer preferred, but expected. I have finally gotten use to [...]
On September 29, 2020, the presidential debate was aired. My hope was that it would produce a clear picture of whom should be president of this country. It took less than five minutes to realize that there would be no clear winner. As I watched this spectacle unfold, I silently hoped that there were no children watching who saw [...]
I have two visions of a man who so desperately wants a woman to tell him she loves him. In one vision, the man has a gun to the head of the woman telling her to say she loves him or he'll blow her brains out. In the other vision he earns her love and eventually, when [...]
Like many other businesses, the practice of law has taken a huge hit with the advent of COVID-19. People are out of work and in need of money. People without money cannot afford lawyers. And with all the lawyers vying for what little cases are out there, it becomes particularly trying to pay overhead and make [...]
George Floyd was murdered. Plain and simple. Anyone who would watch that video of someone, civilian or police, occluding the airway of a handcuffed man lying face down on the street for eight minutes, would come to the same conclusion. Premeditated, if you ask me. That case will play out in court. I'll take money [...]
Mirror, mirror on the wall . . . Do you remember the title to this column from the story of Snow White? “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?” Well let’s change that to “… who is the best criminal defense lawyer of them all?” Have you ever given any thought [...]
Law offices were initially declared essential businesses and therefore, in theory, never had to close. Law practices took the same hit as restaurants. In short, the phone stopped ringing. That reality, in part, was caused by people unable or unwilling to leave their homes, they lost their own jobs and had little money to spend. [...]
