Federal Gun Charges and Domestic Violence

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a federal gun control law that made it illegal for those that have been convicted of any domestic violence charge to own or possess a gun or firearm. Justice Ginsberg wrote " Firearms and domestic strife are potentially deadly combination nationwide". Tuesday's ruling clarifies an ambiguity in the law of what the definition of what was a domestic violence offense. In the ruling The court held that the gun ban applies to all offenses as long as it can be shown that there was a domestic relationship between the defendant and the victim. A violation of this gun law triggers a significant jail sentence. The best way to avoid this is to fight the domestic violence charge in the state court level. For more information on domestic violence charges visit our website www.Mckinneylawfirm.com

Trial Preperation in a Criminal Trial

I just signed up for a class sponsored by the National College of Criminal Defense. The class is on Theories and Themes in a criminal trial. One of the key components of my case strategy is to have a theme of the case. I want to introduce the theme of the case early and often. I want the jury to understand the theme and let the facts that come out at trial to weave a story. A great trial story and theme presents a great defense.

Punishment in Child Sex Cases

In child sex abuse cases , the punishment is severe if you are convicted. One issue is consecutive sentencing. If one is convicted of more than one child sex charge , the court may impose consecutive sentences. Consecutive sentences is where one serves one sentence after the other. Tennessee Code Annotated section 40-35-115(5) provides the court under which circumstances that consecutive sentences may apply. One key factor is the extent of residual , physical , and mental damage to the victim.

Jury Selection in a Criminal Case

The first stage of a criminal jury trial is that of jury selection or voir dire. The basic idea is that an attorney can ask questions to determine whether the potential juror can be fair and unbiased. Jury selection is one of my favorite areas of the criminal trial process. I love studying the concepts and psychology of the jury selection process. I have given numerous lectures on the area of jury selection to the Barristers in December 2008 and to the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. I am studying whether authoritarianism is an indicator of juror bias.

I Wonder Why ?

Today , I was in Columbia , Tn. on a sex offender probation violation case. I was stunned what the judge was doing on some cases. If a person was applying for an appointed attorney , she would require them to pay $7500.00 in attorney's fees at the rate of $50.00 per week. It is ironic that an appointed attorney is capped in the attorney fees of what they can charge the State of Tennessee. The amount ordered buy the judge exceeds the cap. Go figure.