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Latest blog posts from Broden & Mickelsen

MAKING THE GOVERNMENT PAY
In rare cases in federal court it is possible to make the government pay for a wrongful prosecution.  On November 26, 1997, Congress passed the Hyde Amendment which provides that if a defendant prevails in a prosecution brought in federal court and the court finds that the prosecution was...
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Published 7 months ago

Montejo v. Lousiana
    On May 26, 2009, the Supreme Court handed down another important decision pertaining to Constitutional procedure.   Almost everyone is familiar with "Miranda" rights.  These are the warnings that police give suspects upon arrest.  They are derived from the Supreme Court's decision in...
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Published 9 months ago

The Fourth Amendment Lives!
    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"...
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Published 10 months ago

What Can You Do for Me?
    Every day at least one potential client asks me, "What can you do for me?"  It is natural enough.  A person has been charged with a crime; they are concerned about their future; and they are confronted with the expensive prospect of hiring a lawyer to defend them against the charges. ...
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Published a year ago

Supreme Court Narrows Rule that Police Cannot Rely on Illegally Seized Evidence
    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...
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Published a year ago

WHAT YOU SHOULD EXPECT FROM YOUR CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER
            You have a right to expect several things from any lawyer you hire with the understanding that, like many things in life, you often get what you pay for.  To further complicate the matter, however, we are familiar with lawyers who charge absurdly large fees and provide no...
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Published a year ago

Arguing an Important Case before the Court of Criminal Appeals
    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...
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Published a year ago

THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN STATE AND FEDERAL COURT FOR CRIMINAL DEFENDANTS
     When a potential client calls our firm and tells us that they are charged with a criminal offense, one the first things we generally ask them is whether they are charged in state or federal court.  There have been several instances where we have represented two individuals at the same...
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Published a year ago

Beware of a Fee Contract that Includes Expenses in the Flat Fee
    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...
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Published a year ago

THE TRUTH ABOUT THE SETTING OF ATTORNEY FEES
As a practical matter, the fees lawyers charge tend to vary greatly. It is hoped that the following will help the potential client make at least some sense of attorney fees and how they are set. NEVER HIRE AN ATTORNEY WITHOUT A WRITTEN FEE CONTRACT You might be surprised how many criminal...
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Published a year ago