Crime, Death Penalty

What A F*cking Terrible Niche Practice

Pulling this beat has to be depressing as hell -- particularly right before the holidays.

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I know there is pressure on lawyers, especially those outside of Biglaw, to develop a niche practice area — something in which they are truly experts. But sometimes the race to be known for one area of the law can have some awful results — like how Colorado lawyer Daniel King is the lawyer to mass shooters.

As Reuters points out:

The public defender for [Robert Lewis] Dear, 57, who police say surrendered after killing three people and wounding nine in the Nov. 27 clinic rampage, King most recently represented Colorado movie massacre gunman James Holmes.

I understand the virtues of our criminal justice system and that every defendant really does need and deserve an attorney, but pulling that beat has to be depressing as hell — particularly right before the holidays.

And as you might have anticipated, the prosecutor in the case against Dear is expected to seek the death penalty. The good news is that King’s team doesn’t seem terrible at their job, which given the sad state of capital punishment defense work is nothing short of amazing:

Within hours of taking on Dear’s case, King’s team had filed motions seeking to seal evidence, visit the crime scene, have defense experts observe forensic tests, and the imposition of a gag order to prevent anyone in law enforcement from disclosing details of the crime.

Colorado’s public defenders have successfully had several death sentences overturned on appeal, and are widely viewed as among the nation’s most effective death penalty litigators.

Perhaps it is trite, but these cases are getting all too familiar — for the lawyers, judges, and public at large. There is no reason why someone should have to be the lawyer to the mass shooters, and as a society we need to do better.

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Familiar lawyer and issues loom over Colorado rampage case [Reuters]

Earlier: You Aren’t As Bad At Your Job As This Guy Is At His
When A Defense Attorney Feels Like She Enables An Executioner

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