J. Bradley Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “If I have an outstanding warrant, what should I do?”
The Tulsa Sheriff’s Office was aware as early as 2009 of issues involving a reserve officer’s behavior in the field and special treatment he received during training, according to the Daily Mail and CBS News.
Charlotte DWI Lawyer Brad Smith answers the question: What are the long term effects of being convicted of a crime?
American Sniper Chris Kyle and friend Chad Littlefield were in an environment both men knew well when “troubled drug user” Eddie Ray Routh shot them dead. All three men were military veterans—Kyle a Navy SEAL and famed Iraq-war sniper and Routh a former marine corporal. Littlefield was Kyle’s neighbor and had teamed with him to help veterans returning from tours of duty.
On Feb. 2, 2013, Littlefield and Kyle had taken Routh to “the expansive Rough Creek Lodge and Resort” south of Fort Worth, Texas, to help him with mental issues stemming from his tours of duty in Iraq and Haiti, according to CNN and ABC News.
Late that day, a hunting guide found Kyle’s and Littlefield’s bodies; an all-points-bulletin was issued for Routh, who fled in Kyle’s pickup truck to his sister’s house 65-miles away from the shooting range. Routh’s sister described Routh as being in a state of psychosis; alarmed, she phoned the authorities.
Law-enforcement officers eventually caught Routh and arrested him. Police video from before Routh’s arrest show Routh telling officers that “Anarchy has been killing the world. I don’t know if I’m going insane. Is this about hell walking on earth right now?”
J. Bradley Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “Can I be arrested without evidence against me?”
A 30-year-old Montana man has been convicted of deliberate homicide in the April 27, 2014 shooting death of a German foreign-exchange student.
The man, Markus Kaarma of Missoula, Montana, found 17-year-old Diren Dede in his garage after Dede triggered motion sensors. Witnesses testified at Kaarma’s trial that the man fired four shotgun blasts at Dede. Prosecutors argued at trial that Kaarma paused before taking the fourth shot, allegedly adjusting his aim before firing a blast into Dede’s head. Dede was unarmed at the time.
Kaarma’s neighbors testified that the man was disappointed by the response of local police to previous break-ins at his home. His girlfriend, Janelle Pflager, allegedly told neighbors that Kaarma set out to bait an intruder and catch one himself. Prosecutors argued that Kaarma wanted to do more than catch a burglar; they said he was intent on “luring an intruder into his garage” in order to harm the person. On the night of Dede’s shooting, Kaarma had left the garage door partially open with a purse visible inside.
Kaarma argued at trial that he feared for his life and could not tell whether the intruder was armed or not at the time he fired the shot. His lawyers also pointed out that Kaarma had been on edge after his garage was burglarized at least once in the weeks before the shooting.
J. Bradley Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “If I have an outstanding warrant, what should I do?”
North Carolina is not the only state that boasts of rich fall foliage painting its Appalachian hillsides and mountains annually. Now one eastern seaboard state is counting on the falling foliage to uncover an accused cop killer.
Eric Frein, a self-described “survivalist” and trained marksman who—according to his father—“doesn’t miss” when he shoots, has been on the run in Pennsylvania’s mountainous Appalachian region since September 12. Police allege Frein shot Cpl. Bryon Dickson to death and critically injured Trooper Alex Douglass outside their Pike County, Pennsylvania barracks.
Frein, who is considered “armed and extremely dangerous,” ambushed the officers and then fled into the forested Poconos Mountains. The Poconos are part of the Appalachian range situated in northeast Pennsylvania.
The search for Frein has dragged on for over a month and, according to officials, it is costing taxpayers in the Keystone State some $1.1 million per day. Before the shooting, Frein lived with his parents in Seneca Lake, Pennsylvania. After his son went missing, Frein’s father told authorities Frein was likely armed with an AK-47 and a .308 rifle with a scope, which were missing from the home.
Frein was trained by his father to shoot the weapons and also knows how to survive in the woods. On September 29, searchers found a cache of food, two pipe bombs and handwritten notes detailing the shootings of Dickson and Douglass when they stumbled on Frein’s recently abandoned hideout.
J. Bradley Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “Should I talk to the police?”
Bradley Cooper—not the actor—was convicted of first-degree murder in 2011 after a 36-day trial that featured testimony from over 100 witnesses. That was all for naught. The Court of Appeals overturned the verdict in 2013 after ruling that Cooper’s defense team was prematurely foreclosed by the trial court from adequately investigating the reasons given by law-enforcement officers for not turning over evidence extracted from Mr. Cooper’s computer.
From the very beginning, Cooper’s defense lawyers argued that the investigation into Nancy Cooper’s death was flawed. The crucial piece of evidence linking Cooper to his wife’s slaying was a Google Maps search that investigators said Cooper made in order to hide his wife’s body. Cooper did not testify at the 2011 trial; he told investigators that his wife went jogging and never returned.
That story changed in court in Raleigh on Monday, when Cooper acknowledged killing his wife and dumping her body on Fielding Drive. Assistant District Attorney Howard Cummings told the court that Nancy Cooper had been strangled.
Cooper agreed to consent to the adoption of his daughters, who are now eight and ten-years-old, respectively. They will be adopted by Nancy Cooper’s sister. The agreement between Cooper and the State also meant that Cooper would plead guilty to second-degree murder and receive credit for the more-than-five years he has spent in jail awaiting disposition of his case.
Charlotte DWI and Criminal Defense Attorney J. Bradley Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “Is there more than one way for police to convict a DWI?”
A man who authorities said shot to death the drunk driver who killed his two sons has now left his home over fears of vigilante reprisals. The man, David Barajas, was pushing his stalled pickup truck along an Alvin, Texas road in December of 2012 with the assistance of his sons, ages 11 and 12, when 20-year-old Jose Banda plowed into them, killing the two boys.
911 calls made from the scene captured the sound of Banda’s shooting. Banda was killed instantly. Barajas fought to revive his boys until police arrived, and was covered in their blood when he was arrested.
Police charged Barajas with Banda’s murder; prosecutors alleged that Barajas killed Banda in a fit of rage. They alleged that Barajas went to his home—about 100 yards from the crash site—and retrieved a gun which he then used to shoot Banda. The gun was never found, and little physical evidence connected Barajas to Banda’s shooting. No witnesses saw Barajas shoot Banda, and gunshot residue tests performed on Barajas were negative. A search of Barajas’ home failed to turn up evidence linking him to Banda’s killing.
Barajas’ attorney, Sam Cammack, said Barajas didn’t kill Banda and was only focused on saving his two boys. Three witnesses for the State admitted that gunfire could be heard well after Banda had been shot, raising the possibility that the shooter was still at large. A Texas jury agreed, acquitting Barajas on Aug. 27.
J. Bradley Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “Should I ever plead guilty to a charge?”
When Bill Walker took the stand to address the young woman who killed his son, Chris, in a hit-and-run accident, those present in a Cincinnati courtroom were witness to one of the most extraordinary and unexpected acts of forgiveness chronicled in criminal courts of justice in recent years.
With his son’s killer standing just feet away, Mr. Walker—joined by Chris’s mother—told Lauren Balint that she was “totally forgiven. I hope you get married and have a good, long life.” Mr. Walker added that he wished his son had never stumbled onto Interstate 71 in front of Ms. Balint’s vehicle, because the accident had affected her life as well. Mr. Walker said forgiveness was the best gift he could give Ms. Balint in the circumstances.
The courts of criminal justice have long been known as adversarial settings in which prosecutors fight on behalf of state and federal governments to prove alleged criminals guilty, while accused criminals fight to prove their innocence. If guilt is established, the state or federal government seeks to punish a convict to the fullest extent possible under the law, while a convict seeks the most lenient sentence available.
These are broad generalizations, but in general our adversarial system of justice is one that provides little room for cooperation, especially in the arena of criminal law. A criminal case sets out the nature of the action in its caption: State of North Carolina v. Doe. The “v” stands for “versus,” or against. In the typical criminal case, the State is seeking to hold “Doe” accountable for his actions and to punish him.
In recent years, States including North Carolina have allowed victims of crimes to take the stand to describe the impact that criminal offenses have had on their lives. These “impact statements” may be considered by a judge or jury during the sentencing phase of a trial, after a defendant has been found guilty. Victims can describe any physical, psychological or emotional injury suffered as a result of a criminal offense, and can also explain how a criminal act has resulted in economic or property loss to the victim.
Brad Smith of Arnold & Smith, PLLC answers the question “Do I need to hire an attorney if I have been falsely accused?”
A York, S.C. man was arrested over the weekend after a disagreement over a bicycle he said a man stole from him. The man, Randall L. Hunnicutt, said the man stole his bicycle and money out of his wallet. The man admitted he had borrowed Hunnicutt’s bike four days earlier, but he told police he had returned it. He denied taking the money.
The argument began on Hunnicutt’s porch in York. After being accused by Hunnicutt, the man tried to walk away. Hunnicutt asked his son to bring him his shotgun. He then loaded the shotgun and began poking the weapon in the man’s face.
The man started to walk away, but Hunnicutt followed him and pushed him down, poking him with the shotgun. After Hunnicutt pulled the trigger, the man ran to a neighbor’s house and called police. Apparently the weapon did not discharge.
Nevertheless, Hunnicutt was charged with attempted murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. It is unclear whether additional charges are pending.
The Charlotte Observer reports that Hunnicutt’s age, as listed on the police report, is 29. The age of Hunnicutt’s son is unclear; also unclear is whether the son retrieved ammunition that Hunnicutt used to load the shotgun. In any case, the inference can be drawn that Hunnicutt’s son was too young to be employed as a shotgun-retriever in a drunken late-night argument between adults.
Attorney J. Bradley Smith answering the question: “Do I need to hire an attorney if I have been falsely accused?”
Police in Fayetteville, NC say that one family dealt with an especially unpleasant Easter surprise, a surprise that resulted in criminal charges for one 17-year-old. Authorities say that rather than enjoy a nice family Easter gathering, a teen, Tyt’ana Lisa-Nicole Johnson poisoned her grandmother’s food.
The incredibly sad incident began early Easter Sunday when 51-year-old Gaylon Moody was at church. Her teenage granddaughter did not want to attend services that day and remained at home. When the family and friends had returned to enjoy a big Easter lunch, they soon discovered that Johnson had added something extra to the collard greens.
Investigators say that Moody and a friend began feeling strange soon after ingesting the tainted collard greens. Moody and her friend say they felt numb and mistakenly assumed it was food poisoning. At first the numbness was isolated but it began to spread across their bodies. Eventually, every other food or beverage they consumed tasted differently and the two victims were unable to feel their faces. Both were taken to the nearby Cape Fear Valley Medical Center for treatment where doctors similarly misinterpreted the symptoms as a stomach virus.
Attorney J. Bradley Smith answering the question: “A past conviction is keeping me from finding work what can I do?”
A terrible recent story out of North Carolina seems to support the idea that no good deed goes unpunished. According to news reports, 20-year-old Lewis James Little, a sophomore at North Carolina Central University, spent nearly a month behind bars after reporting a crime to local police officers who wrongly concluded that he was involved in the matter.
The debacle began last summer when Little and a group of his friends from NCCU were getting together at another person’s home for an evening of hanging out. As they were walking into the house, Little and his friends spotted the body of a 25-year-old in the middle of the street.
Little says he and his friends were alarmed and while many wanted to call the cops, they were afraid at involving themselves in the matter. Little decided he needed to do the right thing and report the dead body, so he called the local police department.
Things started to go bad quickly after officers arrived on the scene when Little says he found himself facing intense questioning and was soon in handcuffs. Police say they thought he played a role in the break-in at a nearby home and that the robbery may have had something to do with the subsequent murder that left 25-year-old Michael Lee dead.
Charlotte Criminal Lawyer Blog