Eleventh Circuit Criminal Appeals Attorney
A federal criminal conviction or sentence does not necessarily end when the district court enters judgment. A defendant may have the right to challenge legal errors, trial rulings, constitutional violations, or sentencing errors in the United States Court of...
Federal Grand Jury Subpoena to an Accountant: Is the Information Privileged?
A federal grand jury can subpoena an accountant and demand financial records, tax information, correspondence, work papers, and potentially testimony concerning a client.
That can pose a serious problem for someone already under federal investigation.
Many clients assume that conversations with their accountant are confidential in...
United States v. Gomez and the Rule 404(b) Evidence Standard
Attorney Michael J. Petro represented Nicolas Gomez during the motion-to-suppress proceedings, at trial, on direct appeal, and on the en banc appeal before the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. The resulting decision changed how federal courts within the Seventh Circuit evaluate evidence of prior crimes, wrongs, and other...
Federal Sentencing Guidelines Attorney
The United States Sentencing Guidelines play a central role in determining the potential sentence in a federal criminal case. Although the Guidelines are advisory rather than mandatory, federal judges must correctly calculate the applicable guidelines...
Federal Drug Conspiracy: Sufficiency of Evidence and Variance
Federal drug conspiracy prosecutions can involve dozens of defendants, multiple suppliers, numerous customers and years of alleged drug transactions.
But knowing people who distribute drugs does not automatically make someone a member of their conspiracy.
Under 21 U.S.C. § 846, the government must prove that the...
Federal Drug Conspiracy: When Is a Buyer-Seller Relationship a Conspiracy?
A person does not automatically become a member of a federal drug conspiracy merely because he buys or sells illegal drugs. Every drug sale necessarily involves an agreement between a buyer and seller, but federal conspiracy law requires an agreement to participate in a broader criminal objective.
The distinction...
The Bruton Rule and Redacted Co-defendant Confessions
A federal prosecutor may seek to introduce one defendant’s confession during a joint trial involving several defendants. A serious Confrontation Clause problem arises when the confession incriminates a codefendant, but the person who made the statement does not testify and cannot be cross-examined.
The government may attempt to solve...
Drug Expert Testimony About Coded Conversations
Federal drug prosecutions frequently rely on recorded telephone calls, text messages, and intercepted conversations. The government may claim that ordinary words, numbers, or phrases are coded references to drugs, quantities, prices, or participants.
Federal agents cannot...
Federal Writ of Coram Nobis: Challenging a Conviction After the Sentence Is Complete
A federal criminal conviction can continue to cause serious consequences long after a person has completed the sentence.
A prior conviction may affect employment, professional licensing, immigration status, firearm rights, future sentencing, security clearances, and other important interests.
But once the sentence has been completely served,...
Federal Preliminary Hearings: What Defendants Should Know
A person arrested on a federal criminal complaint may be entitled to a federal preliminary hearing before a United States Magistrate Judge. The purpose of the hearing is limited but important: to determine whether there is probable cause to believe...