NACDL Misdemeanor Report
Today a report was released based on research by Seattle University School of Law Professor Bob Boruchowitz, lead researcher on the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers-supported study on Misdemeanor courts.
“The explosive growth of misdemeanor cases is placing a staggering burden on America’s courts. Defenders across the country are forced to carry unethical caseloads that leave too little time for clients to be properly represented. As a result, constitutional obligations are left unmet and taxpayers’ money is wasted.”
Read the report here:
http://www.nacdl.org/misdemeanor
An exciting week…
This week is an exciting week for students who are interested in criminal law. On Monday, the 22nd of September, we have criminal defense lawyer Kennet Phillipson coming to talk to us about the controversy surround the removal of Judge Nault from criminal court proceedings. This will take place from 6pm to 7pm, which makes it a great opportunity for evening students to attend a CJS event. We have been lacking in that capacity so far this year, and I apologize and plan to make up for it soon!
Also on Monday we will be holding a Murder 101 WIKI training at noon in room C-3. At this meeting students who have completed their Murder 101 Commitment Forms will be given discovery in the Sergio Reyes-Brooks case. Also, anyone who attends can participate in WIKI training. This training takes about 10 minutes and is required of all students interested in working on Murder 101. WIKI’s are encyclopedias of knowledge and a great way to keep track of large amounts of information culled by multiple sources. We will be using WIKIs on all our cases. This enables multiple people working on a large case to bring information together in one easy to use database. Using a WIKI is fairly simple; if you can use MS Word, you can use a WIKI. There are a few differences which is what we will be going over on Monday.
Another program we would like to start this week involves creating a webpage where criminal justice professionals can get information they need, such as rehab facilities in a particular town, or who to talk to about paying restitution, etc. This is an opportunity to work directly with criminal justice professionals all while learning valuable information that will help you to be a better attorney. Write to me at larsend2@seattleu.edu if you are interested in this opportunity.
We also have a great Take an Attorney to Dinner coming on Wednesday night with Aaron Pelley. Email Andrew Rice for more information on coming with us!