As a Matter of Law, the House Is Haunted

[friendshapedhole]

[orcboxer]

Should go without saying but never date a cop and christ never marry one. Rule of thumb if he’s legally untouchable he’s ethically unfuckable. You don’t like that cop, you like buff men in tight clothing. I can show you more of those, better ones. Take my hand.

[solarpunkybrewster]

burned honey knows what’s up

[can-i-make-image-descriptions]

[Image ID: Tumblr reply from burnedHoney reading: Go to a union meeting to find a buff husband in uniform, easy, just pick which trade you think is sexiest /End ID]

[pizzaback]

Not everything that is unethical or bad should be illegal. very simple to understand

[pizzaback]

people listening to music loudly in public may be annoying or rude but people trying to use the law to enforce politeness is what leads to noise ordinances that are largely used to brutalize black people

plagarism is unethical and plagarists should be criticized and held accountable for it but intellectual property law is mostly used to suppress speech critical of major media corporations and stifle the creativity of independent artists

just as some examples

[pizzaback]

generally speaking i just think trying to use the power of the law to make people be polite is a bad idea just, in general

[illegally-tired]

just reviewed a case for possession with intent to deliver of over 400g of meth, which, in Texas, is 15-life and (it looks like) they didn’t have a fucking search warrant

it could be a discovery issue, like the PD just didn’t send the county attorneys office the search warrant…

or they didn’t have a search warrant. and no exceptions that I can think of apply. and I really hope it’s this one. imagine them having to dismiss a case for over 400g of meth because their cops are too stupid 😂😂😂

[illegally-tired]

so here’s where we’re at: they have the search warrant affidavit and the return, both signed by one of our district judges. all the cops believed there was a search warrant so I assume they’d testify to that. the rule on motions to suppress here is that if there’s no search warrant, it’s the states burden to show probable cause or some other legal reason for the search. if there is a search warrant, it’s my burden to show they somehow violated it or the warrant was bad.

in this case, I really don’t know whose burden it is. what do y’all think? if mine, I’m not sure how to go about proving a negative, you know?

[ruthbaderginsburn]

I’d argue that they’ve got the burden to prove there was a warrant. That’s the same legal rule as when they’ve got to prove probable cause or an exception to the warrant requirement— it’s the state’s burden to prove the search was legally authorized.

In my jurisdiction, if the cops say they thought there was a warrant, I’d expect to get eaten alive on the good faith exception.

[illegally-tired]

I’m so tired of begging for my clients’ basic constitutional rights to be respected

[accidental-criminals]

[ruthbaderginsburn]

Made this meme a couple weeks ago when I had to call a prosecutor and ask him to dismiss a case

[illegally-tired]

just reviewed a case for possession with intent to deliver of over 400g of meth, which, in Texas, is 15-life and (it looks like) they didn’t have a fucking search warrant

it could be a discovery issue, like the PD just didn’t send the county attorneys office the search warrant…

or they didn’t have a search warrant. and no exceptions that I can think of apply. and I really hope it’s this one. imagine them having to dismiss a case for over 400g of meth because their cops are too stupid 😂😂😂

[milfsisyphus]

have you guys heard about this new video game? it’s called microsoft outlook and it fucking sucks 👍

[orcboxer]

Should go without saying but never date a cop and christ never marry one. Rule of thumb if he's legally untouchable he's ethically unfuckable. You don't like that cop, you like buff men in tight clothing. I can show you more of those, better ones. Take my hand.

[zoesupreme]

the student loan forgiveness application site just went live btw

[bluesturngold]

you're a lifesaver :')

here's the link:

https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief/application

[ruthbaderginsburn]

It is still in beta test, so it will be unavailable sometimes as they debug.

Other than that, it’s quicker and easier then a buzzfeed quiz.

[spaceshipsandpurpledrank]

[the-director]

Person off screen: what are five things you would never do after working as a lawyer?

Man on camera: well the first thing I would never do after working as a lawyer is call the police. I think people need to be very careful, when they consider of the issue of whether or not to invite the police into their world, their life, or into their home.

The second thing I'd never do after being a lawyer is to talk to the police.

Number three, I would never allow the police into my home without a warrant. But to invite the police into your home, is to grant them permission to make observations to what's inside. And who knows? You may have left your bong out.

Number four, I would never consent to a search of my vehicle, my home or my property. If police want to search my person or my home: get a warrant.

And the fifth thing I'd do: never submit to an interview without an attorney present. They tell you "you have the right to remain silent" and they also tell you "you have the right to have a lawyer present" before you ever speak to them.

I won't be talking to the police.

[lawschoolruinedme]

Credit: @ruthbaderginsburn

[firstgrave]

the #1 way police enforce anti-sodomy laws is the same way they enforce every other law: by lying. they say they saw your car in a parking lot and you were giving your partner a blow job. they went to your house to ask about a neighborhood disturbance and saw you having anal sex. it’s the same way they claim they saw the suspect throw drugs in the bushes or they swear the guy reached for his waist to pull out a gun. they lie because they can.

even if it’s not enough for a conviction (which, let’s be very frank and recognize that police lies are often very much enough evidence to convince the right jury), the police have still arrested you, which you have to disclose when getting certain jobs or applying for housing or getting government assistance, they’ve kept you away from work / home / family / your responsibilities, and they’ve humiliated you in open court. they enforce whatever laws they want, whenever they want, however they want, because they can

[rustingbridges]

if someone was willing to give you $1000, but you had to engage in an awkward email correspondence with them first, would you do it?

[centrally-unplanned]

I literally do this every day its called a job

[mousenemy]

Ive eaten crunchwraps more supreme than this court

[somelikeitpop]

happy Labor Day

[enki2]

[grumpydex]

this is actually neither based nor brave. nothing helps the state more than, when given an opportunity to help a defendant escape the system you claim to hate, you raise your hand and smugly confess just how much you hate them so you can be taken off of the jury.

you're placing a gift in the hand of the prosecution just to profess how morally superior you are

[illegally-tired]

Hey, I’m thinking about getting into public defense and I’m wondering how they start you out? I think I could handle getting thrown into the fray, but I’m pretty fresh out of law school and wondering how much I need to be prepared for right out of the gate.

Hello!! I’m so glad you’re considering public defense!!

I think the answer to your question depends on the office. If you start in a big, well-funded, well-staffed office, you’ll probably get to start pretty slow with just some nice little misdemeanors. If you start in an office that is NOT those things, yeah you’ll probably be thrown right into it. I was, and I really had no more preparation than the basic law school classes. I think this is where it’s REALLY important to have a mentor or supervisor who is available/approachable for case talk. Otherwise, they’re setting you/your clients up for failure. Definitely a good question to ask when interviewing! The “sink or swim” method isn’t bad and I think it weeds out those not fit for the job pretty quickly, but again, you and the clients shouldn’t suffer for it.

[kaerya]

I would agree with all of this, but also add--be prepared to fight immediately. You may shadow other attorneys for a while; you may have a two week training camp; you may just start with misdemeanors, but it's always easier to get into the fighting mentality if you're already there. You're not going to be ready to fight on the felonies where someone's freedom is at stake if you aren't already fighting on the baby misdemeanors like trespass. Don't be afraid to ask questions--if the folks in your office aren't receptive, find your states criminal defense listserve or other group. If you can't find anyone local-ish, reach out to folks on the internet. Beyond just fighting though, start figuring out what your case prep system is, ie (look up the offense in the code, make a list of elements, get client info, figure out which elements you can attack, etc.) No matter which kind of office you have, once things get going, you're going to have more cases than you'd like, and already having systems in place helps immensely.