Things have changed in the courtroom this year.
Not the law or procedure exactly...
The courthouse itself.
In Los Angeles, plainclothes agents walked into a federal courtroom and pulled a defendant out…
Seconds after the judge left the bench.
No identification or warrant shown.
Just surrounded the client and backed him against the railing.
The defense attorney said he'd never seen anything like it in nearly four decades of practice.
This isn't an isolated incident.
Criminal defense lawyers and prosecutors across the country are now reporting the same thing…
Victims not showing up, witnesses going silent, defendants terrified to walk through the courthouse doors.
One public defender in California called it "the destruction of our judicial system."
Defense attorneys in Utah are warning that if witnesses stop cooperating out of fear of being detained at a courthouse…
Prosecutors may have no choice but to dismiss charges…
Doing a "disservice to the entire community and the justice system."
California public defenders are now pushing legislation to ban ICE arrests within 1,000 feet of state courthouses. Other states are watching.
For criminal defense attorneys, this is now a conversation you're having…
Or should be having… with every client who has any immigration exposure at all.
The Criminal Defense Brief will keep covering the developments that matter to your practice.
Until next time,
The Criminal Defense Brief
P.S. What's going on in your practice right now?
Only takes two minutes.
Tells us what to cover next.