NYCBA Members Newsletter

Welcome to the September 2006 issue of our Newsletter. We hope you had a great summer.

President's Message:

Many of the challenges and opportunities we faced before the summer are still with us, including:

1) indigent defense: as previously reported in this newsletter and elsewhere, the NYS Commission on the Future of Indigent Defense has recommended a new, state-funded "Indigent Defense Commission" with the authority to name a state-wide chief defender; some of us are concerned that this new state-wide defender system, if adopted, would eliminate a significant role for the private bar in providing indigent defense; the Commission's report, appendices and extensive testimony can be found at www.nycourts.gov/ip/indigentdefense-commission; your thoughts on this vitally important subject would be greatly appreciated;

2) trials wanted for second-seaters: if you have a trial date in any of your cases, especially a short trial--federal or state--please contact Andrea Hirsch (aghirsch@rcn.com), who is coordinating NYCBA efforts to match second-seaters with trial lawyers and to develop a protocol to facilitate more second-seating arrangements; if you are interested in being a second-seater, please let Andrea know, if you have not already done so; second-seating is a win-win proposition--the second-seater gets the experience (if federal, this should enhance an application to the CJA panel) and the trial lawyer gets an extra pair of hands, sometimes a very experienced person who can help with legal research, etc.;

3) voucher delays - on 8/9/06, I and NYCBA Secretary Leonard Levenson met with Polly Horton, Director of the Assigned Counsel Plan (NYC Mayors' Office) and Melissa Ballard of the Mayors' Office of the Criminal Justice Coordinator regarding reported delays in processing 18-b vouchers (discussed in NYCBA's April 2006 Newsletter); we were informed that an electronic approval system is being planned, to be implemented in 6-12 months, which will hopefully reduce present delays in paper vouchers being signed and returned by judges; if you are experiencing delays or problems with your 18-b or CJA vouchers, please let me know so that NYCBA can try to help you and can also suggest systematic improvements;

4) IDV will be here soon--the new Manhattan Integrated Domestic Violence ("IDV") court is scheduled to open this Fall, as reported in the NYCBA 2006 newsletter; it will take misdemeanor domestic violence cases which overlap with Family Court and matrimonial proceedings; the IDV judge will have two or three separate proceeding before her (each case will remain in a separate file, which will be in an overall IDV case jacket); plea discussions will apparently be affected by related proceedings; if you would like work with me to learn more about this new and important Manhattan court, and to offer input in the final planning stage, please let me know.

Upcoming Events:

ANNUAL HOLIDAY PARTY

ADVANCE NOTICE! Our annual Holiday Party will be held on Tuesday evening, December 12, 2006 at SPQR Restaurant, 133 Mulberry St., New York. We will be sending out additional details at a later date, but in the interim PLEASE SAVE THIS DATE.

CRAWFORD PROGRAM AT BROOKLYN LAW SCHOOL 9/29/06 - REGISTRATION DEADLINE 9/22/06

An all-day program, entitled "Crawford & Beyond: Revisited in Dialogue" will be held at Brooklyn Law School on 9/29/06. To register, go to www. brooklaw.edu/rsvp by 9/22/06. The program is free to those who do not want CLE credit, but you must RSVP.

CEREMONY CO-NAMING COURTHOUSE INTERSECTIONS FOR THREE COURT OFFICERS WHO DIED ON 9/11 TO BE HELD ON 9/30/06

On Saturday, 9/30/06 at 11 a.m., at Lafayette and Franklin Streets, a dedication ceremony will be held to co-name three street corners intersecting Lafayette St. (Leonard, Franklin and White Streets) for the three court officers who died in 9/11 rescue efforts at the World Trade Center: Capt. Harry Thompson, and Court Officers Jurgens and Wallace.

NYCBA CLE PROGRAM ON U.S. SUPREME COURT PLANNED FOR THIS FALL

NYCBA's usual Fall CLE program reviewing recent and pending cases in the U.S. Supreme Court, with Prof. Leon Friedman of Hofstra Law School as the speaker, is being planned. WATCH FOR an announcement of THE DATE.

BROOKLYN LAW SCHOOL'S ANNUAL UPDATE ON CRIMINAL LAW AND EVIDENCE TO HELD ON 12/2/06

Professor Robert Pitler of Brooklyn Law School is putting on his annual seminar on New York Criminal Law, Procedure and Evidence Seminar on 12/2/06. SAVE THE DATE for this invaluable program.. Registration information should become available about 10/1/06.

Yours for a better defense,

Henry J. Steinglass,
President (212) 406-7700
direct email: hjsteinglasslaw@earthlink.net

Judicial Re-Appointments:

The Mayor's Advisory Committee on the Judiciary is required to make recommendations to the Mayor concerning the qualifications of incumbant judges for reappointment to the Criminal Court. At the present time, the following three interim Civil Court Judges are being considered for assignment to the Criminal Court:

Abraham L. Clott

Anthony J. Ferrara

Alex J. Zigman

If anyone has any information that would bear upon the candidacy of any of these persons, please advise the Committee at 36 West 44th Street, Suite 1408, New York, NY 10036, Att. Desiree Kim (212-944-6225).

Congratulations To Jonathan Marks On E.D.N.Y. Acquittal

Longtime NYCBA member Jonathan Marks won an acquittal on 9/14/06 in a case tried before Judge Carol Amon in which his client was facing a mandatory minimum of 10 years for allegedly delivering $40,000 to an informant as a downpayment on11 kilos of cocaine. The successful defense was that the defendant thought the money was for a construction deal. Congratulations, John.

PLEASE TELL US ABOUT YOUR SUCCESSFUL TRIALS, MOTIONS, APPEALS, ETC. Send a brief summary (like this one) to Scott Tulman, Chair of the NYCBA Internet and Newsletter Committee at his email, stulman@aol.com, or directly to the Committee at nycrimbar@nyc.rr.com.

Blogs Of Note For Criminal Defense Lawyers In New York

It is no longer a problem finding blogs in the Internet that provide commentary on the latest developments in the field of criminal law. In fact, the problem has become sorting through the hundreds (and ever growing numbers) of blogs maintained by lawyers, law firms, professors, civil rights organizations and others who want to see their names in print. One enterprising lawyer in California even provides a service (for $180 a year) where you can get headlines from the top 15 criminal defense blogs to help you wade through the avalanche of new materials and resources that are available on the Internet each day.

Fortunately, through this Newsletter and through your access to the weekly issues of Punch and Jurists (which is one of the free benefits of membership in the NYCBA), our organization keeps you apprised of those latest developments in a timely and concise manner.

Nevertheless, there are times when we need to know where to find the best blogs on the Internet. Therefore, we have set forth below a listing of the best and most useful blogs for criminal defense attorneys in New York.

SCOTUSBlog - http://www.scotusblog.com/movabletype/
This blog is now sponsored by Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, but is has numerous contributors from other firms and organizations. It is clearly the place to go for current and important information about the latest activities at the Supreme Court.

Second Circuit Blog - http://circuit2.blogspot.com/
An outstanding BLOG that provides cases timely case summaries and commentary by the attorneys from the Federal Defenders Office in New York City, particularly Yuanchung Lee.

Second Circuit Sentencing Blog - http://www.fedsentencinglaw.com/
Written and maintained by Harlan J. Protass, a criminal defense attorney in New York City, this blog provides summaries and commentary on substantive sentencing decisions (both published and unpublished) in the Second Circuit.

Sentencing Law and Policy* - http://sentencing.typepad.com/
This excellent and much cited blog is maintained by Douglas A. Berman, Professor of Law at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and co-author of "Sentencing Law and Policy: Cases, Statutes and Guidelines" and Editor of the Federal Sentencing Reporter

Decision of the Day - http://appellatedecisions.blogspot.com/
Written under the pseudonym of Robert Loblaw, this outstanding and well written blog contains "a daily summary of the best (and worst) of Federal Appellate Decisions."

White Collar Crime Prof Blog* - http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/whitecollarcrime_blog/
This blog is written and maintained by Prof. Peter J. Henning of Wayne State University Law School and Prof. Ellen S. Podgor of Stetson University College of Law

Crim Prof Blog* - http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/crimprof_blog/
This blog is written and maintained by Mark A. Godsey, Professor of Law at the University of Cincinnati Law School

Appellate Law & Practice - http://appellate.typepad.com/appellate/
Written by a group of federal law clerks and appellate lawyers, some of whom blog anonymously. This blog tends to emphasize decisions from the First Circuit - although cases from other Circuits are covered somewhat sporadically.

OrinKerr.com - http://www.orinkerr.com/
Written by Orin S. Kerr, an Associate Professor of Law at George Washington University Law School in criminal law and criminal procedure, and a recognized authority in the field of computer crime law.

FourthAmendment.com - http://www.fourthamendment.com/blog/
Written by John Wesley Hall, Jr., a noted criminal defense attorney from Little Rock, AK and the author of the book Search and Seizure, published by LEXIS Law Publishing. (Mr. Hall is also the NACDL's Ethics Advisor, and he maintains another blog called LawOfCriminalDefense.com at http://www.lawofcriminaldefense.com/ which deals with Professional Ethics in the field of Criminal Defense.)

Crime and Federalism - http://federalism.typepad.com/
This blog, which is an affilliate of the Law.com Network, deals with civil rights and criminal law, federalism, and lawsuits under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. One of the main contributors is Norman A. Pattis, the noted civil rights attorney from New Haven, CT

Concurring Opinions - http://www.concurringopinions.com/
Written by a number of people including Daniel J. Solove, Professor of Law at George Washington University School of Law

Full Court Press - http://www.afj.org/fullcourtpress.html
This blog, sponsored by the Alliance for Justice, seeks to raise public awareness about the role of the Federal judiciary in criminal proceedings by highlighting some of the most provocative decisions published by the courts.

Crime and Consequences - http://www.crimeandconsequences.com/
This blog, sponsored by the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, explores some of the policy considerations and consequences of crime and punishment in America.

Reentry.Net/NY - http://www.reentry.net/ny/
While probably not a true blog in the traditional sense, this site is an excellent source of timely events and resources dealing with problems relating to reentry into society from jail and prison and the civil consequences of criminal proceedings.  _______

* A Member of the Law Professors Blog Network

NYCBA Web Site Features:

Each month, we try to point out some of the latest resources that we have posted on our Website at www.nycrimbar.org/. In keeping with that tradition, we note the following items:

• On the What's New Section of our Website, we have posted a copy of an article entitled "OCA Unveils Pilot Projects Expanding Internet Access to Records," by Daniel Wise, New York Law Journal, July 7, 2006 which noted the next phase of expansion of the availability of court records online. Of particular significance to lawyers from the downstate area, a variety of court documents from New York county will be made available by the end of September, including: (a) briefs filed in the Appellate Division, Second Department; (b) court orders and decisions in all civil cases in New York County; (c) pleadings in all civil cases in New York County (which will become available 30 days after they have been filed to give time for the service of those pleadings); and (d) all Family Court Calendars in New York County.
  
  
  
• We have posted a copy of the Second Circuit's recent ruling in Lopes Torres v. New York State Board of Elections, 06-0635 (2nd Cir., Aug. 30, 2006). This 82-page decision essentially affims Judge Gleeson's ruling in Lopez Torres v. New York State Bd. of Elections, 411 F. Supp. 2d 212 (E.D.N.Y., 2006) to the effect that New York State’s nominating system for its trial court judges is unconstitutional; and ordering that Supreme Court Justice nominations be settled through primary elections until the State Legislature enacts corrective legislation.
  
  

• On the Computer Tips Section of our Website, we have posted a copy of an article entitled "An Easier Way to Send Large Email Attachments," by Walter Mossberg and Katherine Boehret, The Wall Street Journal, July 12, 2006.
  
  

Professional Notices:

Comments and Newsletter Contributions Welcome

Comments on this and future issues of this Newsletter are most welcome, as are your own stories about cases, issues, arguments, events. etc. - whether just a sentence or a paragraph to alert us to a recent development, or a longer piece. Please send your material to Scott Tulman, Chair of the Internet and Newsletter Committee at Tel.: (212) 867-3600 or email: stulman@aol.com - or send your comments by email directly to our committee at: nycrimbar@nyc.rr.com.

Internet and Newsletter Committee:
Scott Tulman, Chair
Harvey Fishbein
Michael K. Bachrach
Peter G. Schmidt