Please feel free to try them out for yourself here at Chuck Says...
I ended up spending more time than I care to admit creating these stupid things and sending them to friends I hadn't seen in a while. I'm sure they think I've lost it, but what do I care? I've got Chuck Norris and Arnie in the palm of my hand baby!
Are you done creating now? Good. Do you see what I'm talking about? It's quite addicting...or maybe it's just me.
The other thing I wanted to do was respond to a comment made by Anonymous (I really do wish that people would at least make up a name sometimes so I can differentiate from the different anonymous commenters...especially when they pose questions) on Dear Private Citizen And Future Client:.
Anonymous said:
Good to know if someone has done the crime, they should do whatever it takes to escape the consequences. God forbid they admit to what they've done, or get caught on tape talking to OTHER CRIMINALS telling them to dump stolen property or drugs...
When a client asks to speak to an attorney, and the questioning continues without regard to his constitutional right...it bothers me AND it fires me up more than you would ever imagine! Remember that its up to the Judge/Jury to decide who is guilty of a crime NOT the police officer/detective.
It's amazing to me how a Public Defender Investigator is the first to slam their hand on a desk and demand evidence that will clear their client (even if the evidence is discovered by the evil police), yet will convince a criminal to conceal and/or lie about their crimes.
I'm not gonna lie, I have slammed my hand on a few desks in my day but I find it a little dramatic for everyday use. Also, I hate to be nitpicky but remember they are not criminals until they are convicted. They are Defendants or I like to refer to them as People or Clients.
Most importantly you should know that I WOULD NEVER tell a CLIENT to CONCEAL AND/OR LIE about anything related to their case...most of the time we leave that to the Prosecutor or investigating officer...I kid! I know a good many PDI'S in California and elsewhere, and I can tell you that they are all good, honest people that would never jeopardize their reputation, career, freedom, or a Client's case by lying.
I'm sure there are bad apples. Thankfully I'm not one of them.
Is there any crime that you would hope a client would be caught dead to rights for? If a guy molested a child or raped a woman, would you be more comfortable knowing they kept their mouth shut in an interview and might go free (and I'm saying you *KNOW* without a doubt they are responsible), or would you as a human being be more comfortable if the police were able to develop a rock solid case against them?
Let me be clear here. I am not for an unlawful society and I'm not someone you would consider as Pro-Crime. For gawds sake man, who in their right mind is?!?! If someone has committed a crime, that person should be punished. It's very simple. The thing is, I want people punished appropriately and justly and I don't want law enforcement officers breaking the law...to enforce it. If someone commits a crime, and they are "without a doubt" responsible for it. There is more than a good chance they will be convicted. Why would law enforcement officals need to resort to questionable/illegal tactics in a case like that?
I guess my issue here comes from wanting to see someone who has done what they're accused of, walk free or get out of trouble. I understand it is "innocent until proven guilty", however we've *ALL* seen cases where there is *NO DOUBT* the person is guilty.Say the (Roseville?) incident where the woman was stabbed to death by a stranger while pumping gas into her car... Caught on tape, suspect never left the scene, and was found with blood and the victims purse on him. Is there anyone, (even a PD Invesigator) that doesn't think this guy should go to prison for the rest of his life?
I'm familiar with the case you refer to and yes, If he commited the crime he should be punished. If the judge/jury decide life in prison is where he belongs, then thats where he will go. If they believe he needs to be sent to a psych facility for the rest of his living days then thats where he'll be sent.
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When I posted the imaginary letter, I was pretty pissed. We had a client that felt he was getting screwed because he had a crappy attorney and he told her that. She is a Felony attorney that has been practicing law for over 7 years with a good reputation and a thick skin...except for one day last week. The client felt she wasn't doing everything she could to get him out of jail. Without going into any details of the case, he forgot Items 1 thru 5 of my list and her feelings were hurt when he called her about the worst thing you can call a woman (see the letter).
Due to time constraints, I can't really respond to everyones comments but you should know I do appreciate them, regardless of where you stand.
More later...
4 comments:
Why is it that every time someone needs to bash a defense investigator they need to ask how you feel about child molesters and rapists? Arguing about something you do not fully understand is fruitless and arguing with someone like this is even worse.
I have never met a defense investigator who is Pro-Crime, most are simply Pro-Justice. Too many people watch TV and figure that is the way things work, it's not. People lie, defendants lie, witnesses, victims lie, and yes OH MY GOD the police lie, this is not a TV show where amazingly at the 11th hour new evidence magically appears, or a new witness is located, this is a puzzle, a big puzzle with many pieces most of which are missing.
We, the criminal defense investigator, put the puzzle together the best we can with what we have, no lies, no intimidation, no threats, plugging away day after day, case after case, protecting the rights of our clients and everyone else who will sit in that chair in the future.
Someday anonymous may be in that chair, he/she will say "NO WAY NOT ME I DON'T BREAK THE LAW!!" That's right, this is why we do what we do, for people like you who don't break the law but end up in that chair anyway, and it does, has and will always happen.
Like it or not innocent people get arrested and go to jail, and guilty people walk free, I've seen it, I've worked on some of their cases, some go free, some go to jail, some die, but no matter what the outcome, I as well as most of the defense investigators I know continue on, searching for the truth.
Say what you like, think what you like, we all know who we are and what we do. And if you ever end up with you ass against the wall and the shit ready to hit the fan, you better hope that one of us is there, because the police won’t help you, and the other like minded people you know and call friends won’t help, (they will pretend they don’t know you), all the people you have counted on will bail on you faster than you think. But, we will be there, the PD’s and the PD Investigators, we won’t judge, we won’t abandon you, no matter how big of an ass you turn out to be, because it’s what we do.
Matt Whalen, President
National Defender Investigator Association
Well said Matt, Well said.
Matt,
Although I respond to you in this reply, it is also to Sanch based on his quotation of what I wrote... First off I’m not going to make this a long winded reply, but I wanted to clear a few things up.
#1, if and when a suspect requests an attorney that is the end of the story as far as I’m concerned. I have no desire to continue questioning someone outside of Miranda once they’ve invoked their rights. I can tell you my reputation with the DA’s office, other investigators, and almost more importantly the Public Defender’s office and the defense attorney’s in the area is very important to me. I don’t *PERSONALLY* play around with gray areas or trying to slip in statements. I don’t want a bad reputation or people to think I’m not above boards all the time. This has served me very well my entire career. It is a high compliment to know that a PD or other defense attorney takes my work seriously based on my reputation and when I obtain a statement (although they’ll still check it and see what they can do for their client) it’s a good bet that statement is solid and obtained with the right’s of their clients protected.
#2, I don’t consider anything I’ve written as to serve to “bash a defense investigator”. If that’s the way you’ve read my comments, you’re misreading what I’m writing. I have not bashed (at least knowingly) defense investigators. It is my personal belief a defense investigator has one of the most thankless jobs in the world. Not looked upon as law enforcement by other law enforcement investigators, looked at as the “enemy”, and not even really appreciated by the clients they serve in most cases. So I commend anyone willing to do the job. I couldn’t do the work. I know myself well enough and would not *WANT* to do the job of a defense investigator. However at the same time I’m thankful they are there in order to make our system of justice “work”. I think I said this earlier in the “checks and balances” statement. Although I’ve never personally been in trouble with the law, I have close family and friends that have been. I’ve seen a few that were really given crappy deals (in terms of what I’ve seen others get) for minor offenses and it was even more annoying to see a relative get a year in jail when a case I had worked on a felony charge on another suspect got them no more than 30 days in jail. Again I *DO* empathize with what’s being discussed here.
#3, Just as I use the child molester, rapist as an example to question someone, I see the same biased questions asked from defense and defense investigators in these blogs. What about the cops who pressure people, strike them, keep them from their attorney, deprive them of food/water, etc. Again on average I think most defense investigators and attorneys are just as disgusted by those type of criminals as good law enforcement officers are disgusted by those in their own profession that use illegal and immoral methods to coerce confessions and/or obtain information.
Finally Matt, don’t think for a minute I’m naive to the fact that the brotherhood of law enforcement officers is never less brotherly than when one of their own is in real trouble (legal). I won’t say this is true of those “real friends” you make while on the job, but rather the everyday law enforcement community as a whole. You get accused of a crime and for the most part when your shield and gun are taken, you see who your *REAL* friends are. Those *REAL* friends are very few and far between. I guess this is a good and bad thing. The good thing is that people need to know that law enforcement officers will take steps to avoid appearing to be friends or close with those accused of crimes, at the same time it can be *VERY* lonely to be in this situation. As warm and safe as it feels to be in the “brotherhood/sisterhood” of law enforcement, it is equally cold when you’re expelled from that group. Yes I do hope someone is in my corner (god forbid) if it ever happens. If it is a PD investigator as yourself or a private investigator working for a private defense attorney I hope he or she is as committed to doing a good investigation to help me as I am committed to doing my job as best as I can to help the victims of the crimes I investigate. In some cases my job is thankless as well when I have to tell a victim or their family the “100% positive suspect” they have ID’d is *NOT* the suspect (based on my investigation). Suddenly the hero with a badge is a bumbling idiot that has just ruined their lives by messing up the investigation. So we do share a bit in terms of that. At the same time I also acknowledge and realize the system is designed to help the prosecution and the police and not the defense.
I am thankful for every honest, hard working, defense attorney and investigator out there. They keep me on my toes and “locked in” to doing things right 100% of the time. At the same time I would hope someone like myself (and those I know well enough in law enforcement that hold themselves to high standards) who does (or tries to do) the right thing all the time (even when it’s not the easy thing).
Regards...
Well I lied, I was long winded... My last statement should read:
At the same time I would hope someone like myself (and those I know well enough in law enforcement that hold themselves to a high standard) who does (or tries to do) the right thinga all the time(even when it's not the easy thing) would be just as appreciated by those in your group...
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