Skip to main content

Murder Prosecutions and Criminal Defense Investigations

Murder cases may often be similar but no two are ever really alike.  Most murder defendants are found guilty.  Any person being put on trial stands an 80% chance of being convicted.
However some of the accused are actually innocent and getting their lives back is anything but easy.  The burden of proof is on the government but over-zealous cops and prosecutors too often lie and cheat to win guilty verdicts from unsuspecting jurors.  Framing someone is very easy to do for any competent homicide detective. Escaping a false conviction is always a life altering challenge.
If the case is not clear and the evidence is weak, that is where and when the prosecution chicanery goes into overdrive.  Cops hate getting sued and they know if a defendant gets convicted, any potential lawsuit would be dead.   That’s part of the motivation along with protecting their professional pride.  It’s ugly but a fact of life.
Murder cases are the ones that usually require the most work by defense lawyers and investigators.  Because of the incredibly high cost of a murder defense, public defenders get the bulk of these cases. 
The public defenders can either be horrible or very good lawyers.  A defendant is usually stuck with what he gets for a lawyer and simply does not have the ability to recognize legal blunders.  The defendant has to deal from a position of pure faith.
Public defender investigators are generally worthless, unmotivated and poorly paid.   Most private investigators over-rate themselves and pad their resumes more than the girls did their bras at my high school prom.   
Usually a good lawyer knows a reasonably decent PI.  Don’t let some plagiarized Internet website convince you to hire an investigator.  The bums see someone else’s attractive and professionally created website and simply copy and convert it to their own use.  Don’t be fooled.
You could have a great private lawyer but he could be handcuffed by budgetary problems that interfere with hiring needed experts and qualified investigators. Too many lawyers wait until they are desperate before they share their retainer with an investigator to track down needed evidence.
It may be best to pay your investigator separately to make sure he can do the work that needs to be done. 
If you’re rich and can hire the best you usually stand a much better chance. If you're poor that invites the unthinkable. 
If you barely have enough money to hire a private lawyer he really can't share any portion of his retainer with anyone else like an investigator or forensic and other expensive technical experts. 
Chances are good your lawyer will not have what he needs to win because of the failure to find witnesses that can impeach or at least challenge those presented by the prosecutor.
Multiple lawyers on a murder case sounds really good but it can be a recipe for a disaster.  Lawyers fight among themselves like cats and dogs.  They wind up working against each other just to prove a point. Any more than two good lawyers is usually a horrible idea.
Investigators are used to do background investigations on witnesses including contacting their friends, co-workers and enemies.  A proper investigation will uncover perjury, witness tampering and evidence tampering.  Investigators need to go through and analyze garbage.  They need to interview anyone and everyone possible and have an envelope with blank subpoenas handy.
If the investigator is lucky to be in a state that allows one party consent to conversation recording he needs to abuse that all he can.  Likewise placing GPS transmitters on people and automobiles to track their movements can lead defense investigators to the criminal activity of the prosecution witnesses.
Let’s say the motive for the murder is theft it’s often a prosecution witness that may be a more viable suspect if an investigator can document his nefarious activity.  If the motive for murder is to cover a sex-offense perhaps a prosecution witness’ unusual sexual liaisons can take focus off of the accused defendant.
There are a million little tricks that can be used to find the truth outside of the courtroom.  By the time the trial begins if there’s nothing discovered about the state’s witnesses the defense lawyer will be at their mercy.  Of course if there’s either no investigation or a limited one the defense lawyer may surely be defeated.
If the lawyer tells you that you don’t need an investigator on a really serious case watch out. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Chicago Cops Slammed with Sudden Ban on the Sig/Sauer P320—And the Officers Will Pay thePrice

In a move that’s rocking the rank and file, the Chicago Police Department has abruptly banned the use of the once-trusted Sig/Sauer P320 pistol as an authorized duty weapon. The order came down swiftly, leaving thousands of officers scrambling. The official reason? Alarming reports that the weapon can fire without the trigger being pulled. For years now the gun-maker has brushed off horror stories about negligent discharges, usually blaming human error. After all, it’s easier to blame the gun than admit to a deadly mistake. Just think back to Alec Baldwin’s tragic shooting on a New Mexico movie set—he insisted he never pulled the trigger, yet a woman lost her life. But experts were quick to point out that the revolver in question simply doesn’t fire on its own. This, however, isn’t Hollywood. The Sig Sauer P320 has a documented pattern of discharges—many occurring while holstered. Lawsuits are piling up, and the manufacturer continues to deny fault, but the incidents are too numerou...

A 40 Caliber Nightmare Is Caught On Tape.

So you’re confident that that .40 caliber S&W service round will keep you safe. Maybe you’ll have second thoughts after you see this video. One hot summer night in 1994 Tempe and Mesa Arizona police were involved in a pursuit with this suspect who ran into a stranger’s apartment to hide after being shot TWICE in the chest. He was shirtless and you can see the blood pumping out of those two wounds. What’s really frightening is just how agile this fellow is as he struts to the ambulance. If he was not handcuffed and had a knife or a gun, ask yourself if he could still hurt you, your partner or a hostage? If your jurisdiction demands that officers carry either the 9MM or the .40 Caliber S&W it’s time to show this video to your bosses and lobby to have the .45 ACP round authorized. The switch may well reduce the screaming by self-appointed community activists about how many rounds police had to use on a suspect. The really talented and courageous video journalist, Karen Ke...

America Will See Its Worst Race Riot Yet This Summer

Star Prosecution Witness, Rachel Jeantel Sanford, FL —Yes, the George Zimmerman trial here has thousands of African-Americans getting ready for some serious bloodletting. I don’t want to make idle and dire predictions but this nation has never been so divided and racially sensitive.  Our African-American President took sides on this case at the very beginning.  That ratified a George Zimmerman guilty verdict in the minds of millions. There’s just one little problem, and that is the murder case should have never been filed.  It was filed purely for political reasons despite the fact that it was a simple justifiable homicide.  Zimmerman was on the block watch lookout program and followed a suspicious Trayvon Martin after he used an improper entrance to a gated community.  Zimmerman was acting as the eyes and ears of the Sanford Police Department. Martin did not like being followed and knew that he could easily beat up the out-of-shape...