Of Rats, Sinners and Trial Lawyers

I just lost a tough case and, as in any loss, I am bitter about it. My client faces 60 years for the shooting of a rival gang member in Hartford’s North End. We tried the case twice, the first time to a hung jury. On Monday, a jury returned a quick guilty verdict.
The case turned on the testimony of two witnesses, one a man who claimed to be the driver as my client mowed down the decedent with an assault rifle. This witness was facing charges in some 14 attempted and conspiracy to commit murder charges, a man who had already pleaded guilty to another murder and had been sentenced...
March 26, 2015

Straight Talk About War on Drugs

What if just about everything we think we know about the war on drugs is wrong?
Start, for example, with the oft-repeated proposition that the war began in the 1970s, during the administration of Richard M. Nixon.
Wrong. The war is far older, and originates in Henry Anslinger's Federal Bureau of Narcotics, created in 1930. Anslinger's preoccupation with marijuana set the nation on a tragic and costly course from which we still have not recovered. You can drink yourself into a coma, but don't dare touch weed or a pill, at least in most states.
Or how about the canard that...
March 25, 2015

The Judas Iscariot Sentencing Argument

Only rarely have I been able to use the Judas Iscariot sentencing argument. I did so today. My client was found guilty of murder, and faces a maximum of 60 years. There is little doubt he will get every bit of that, given the fact that he faces many other charges of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
So rather than bend a knee and request mercy, we took a "bring it on" posture.
After the jury left the room, the judge asked about a sentencing date.
"We're anxious to take an appeal, Judge," I said.
"Considering this verdict," I continued, "I am mindful...
March 23, 2015

Call Me Lazarus

I came home after dark last night to a report from my wife that our emu had died. She spotted him lifeless in the back of an outbuilding in which he seeks shelter. I could not bear the thought of dealing with him last night. It had been too long and too difficult a week.
I went out not long ago to bury him. A dismal sort of task I avoided all day long.
I was suspicious as I walked out to the building in which she saw him. From the barn to his outbuilding were what appeared to be fresh tracks in new fallen show. How could this be?
I walked up to the building, and was overcome...
March 23, 2015

Using Liars to Find the Truth?

March 22, 2015
Trial, some say, is a search for the truth. That’s specious tomfoolery. In fact, trial, at least a criminal trial, is guerilla warfare. Some of...

Public Defenders For All

March 12, 2015
I’ve never understood why folks don’t regard public defenders as real lawyers. Some of the best lawyers in the state are public defenders...

Sentencing Reform Overdue in Connecticut

March 8, 2015
Gov. Dannel Malloy is calling for reform of some of the state's draconian sentencing laws, proposing that mere drug possession be a misdemeanor, and...

Sentencing and its Discontents

March 4, 2015
I was sitting with a client, a federal prosecutor and a FBI agent the other night. We were engaged in what is known as a “reverse...

Defense Lawyers as "Law Enforcement" Officers

February 27, 2015
At courthouses throughout the state, the public at large is required to walk through a metal detector to gain entrance. This includes criminal...

The Fallacy of Accountability

February 26, 2015
Now that we've abolished the death penalty in Connecticut, at least insofar as future cases are concerned, the fate of those currently on death row...

Visit His Websites

Pattis & Smith Law Firm
Norman Pattis
RSS Feed
Become a patron

Press Videos

Books

Taking Back the Courts
Norm Pattis Taking Back the Courts

The Wizard of Oz was one of my favorites movies as a kid. Little did I know judges were so much like the wizard, hiding behind empty trappings of power. This book tells you things you need to know about what really goes on in court. Read it, weep, and then demand that the courts do better.

In the Trenches
Norm Pattis In the Trenches

Plenty of lawyers write about the law, but few who write try cases. Judge for yourself whether I talk the talk and walk the walk in this collection of occasional essays about life in the law's trenches.

Juries and Justice
Norm Pattis Juries and Justice

How prepared are you to take seriously the notion that 'we the people' are, in fact, sovereign? Discover the secret, and unused, power of jurors. 'Ask why; then nullify.'

Norm Pattis

About Norm

Norm Pattis is a Connecticut based trial lawyer focused on high stakes criminal cases and civil right violations. He is a veteran of more than 150 jury trials, many resulting in acquittals for people charged with serious crimes, multi-million dollar civil rights and discrimination verdicts, and scores of cases favorably settled.

© Norm Pattis is represented by Elite Lawyer Management, managing agents for Exceptional American Lawyers
Media & Speaker booking [hidden email]