,, ,

,
I
SUMMER 2007
3
6
Winning Warriors
The Fight Goes On
by Patrick F. McConn
II ..... Year-End Report:HCCLA Speaker's Bureau
&Public Relations Committee
by Wendy M. Miller
10 .................... Strategy:Strength In DeFense
by Joseph WVarela
14 Easy Ways To AccountForYour Ti me
In Criminal Work
by Patrick F. McConn
16

Annual Banquet
THE DEFENDER * 1
HCClA @ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 2007-2008
PRESIDENT
Patrick f. McCann
PRESIDENT ElECT
Mark Bennett
VICE PRESIDENT
JoAnne Musick
SECRETARY
Nicole DeBorde
TREASURER
Steven H.Halpert
PAST PRESIDENT
Rober tJ fi ckman
BOARD OF DIRECTDRS:
Thamos Berg
NealDavis
Christopher Downey
Todd DuPant II
Tyler flood
Tucker Graves
Mark Hachglaube
Randoll Kallinen
feral Merchant
Marjorie Meyers
Earl D. Musick
JohnParras
Robert A. Scardino
Charles StanPield
Amonda Webb
O. Tate Williams
PAST PRESIDENTS:
1971-2006
C. Anthony friloux
Stuart Kinard
George luquette
Morvin D. Teogue
DickDeGuerln
W.B. House, Jr.
David R. Bires
Waody Densen
Will Groy
Edword A. Mollett
Corolyn Gorcio
Jock B. Zimmermann
Clyde Williams
Robert Pelton
Candelaria Elizanda
Allen c. Isbell
David Mitcham
Jim E.Lavine
Rick Brass
Mory f. Conn
KentA. SchoPPer
Don Cogdell
Jim Skelton
George J. Pornhom
Gorlond D. MCinnis
Robert A. Moen
lloyd Oliver
Danny Ea sterli ng
Wayne Hill
Richord fronkoPP
W. Troy McKinney
Cy nthio Henley
Stonley G. Schneider
Wendell A. Ddom, Jr.
HCCLA
Shawnal.Reagin
Shawnal.Reagin &Christina Appelt
limb Design
7026 Old Katy Road, Ste. 350
Houston, Texas 77024
713-529-1117
~ ~ @ I f ~ ~ EDITOR
Now that the name of a former North Carolina District Attorney has become a verb meaning "to
be unjustly prosecu ted , often for the personal aggrandizement of the proseclltor, " the world outside
the legal community has been alerted to the dangers inherent in unbridled prosecutorial discretion.
Just one day's reading of The Houston Chronicle raises questions abollt whether the Harris County
District Attorney's office is due for some reining in of that same discretion.
On the front page of the June 6 editi on was a report of a no-bill in the shooting death of an
unarmed man that occurred on a Metro bus. A prosecu tor was quoted as saying the accused
originally was charged with murder " because someone had been shot and authorities needed time
to investigate." The investigati on apparently validated what scene witnesses revealed at the time
of the shooting: The man shot in self-defense. Unfort unately, the shooter had to be arrested,
make bail and get a lawyer while this inves tigation took place. Here's a novel concept : Why not
investigate first, then file charges only if substantiated by the evidence>
In the same day's paper, a woman initially charged with murder for allegedly killing her
bedridden mother by unplugging her ventilator entered a plea of "no contest" to criminall y
negligent homi cide and was sentenced to five years' deferred adjudication. Although the facts as
reported don't seem to constitute any form of homicide, the more interesting aspect of the articl e
is the reason the State disregarded her explanati on of what happened : The woman's husband had
left her the same day the ventilator came unplugged, so "because of the timing, " she was charged
with murder. Pretty slim evidence for a murder charge.
More recentl y, a mi sdemeanor trespass to protest the illegal detention and mistreat ment of
immigrant children was hijacked into a felony charge of unlawful use of a criminal instrument. The
criminaJ instrument> A bicycle chain and lock.
Prosecutors over-charge because they can, and because they know that is the only wa)' they can
saJvage any conviction out of marginal cases that should never have led to criminal charges in the
first place. In the case of the Pasadena bus driver whose acquittal is reported in Winning Warri ors,
the prosecutor initially sought a murder indictment for an incident investigated by the police as a
tragic traffic accident. The prosecutor's reasoning, as reported by the media, appeared to be that
any time a child is kill ed or injured, someone must be cri minally responsible. This prosecutor also
pLlblicly argued that manslaughter was not an appropriate charge; he then prosecuted that very
charge and filed a mot ion in limine demanding that the defense not mention his about-face.
After the verdict, the prosecutor was quoted in the Chronicle as saying that he knew from the
outset that the case would be difficult to win, "[b]ut to honor [the complainant] we had to try
to make sure he was held accountable for his actions." On thi s logic, we drag people through the
criminal justice system, regardless of whether or not they have engaged in criminal conduct, to
"honor" the dead. And what arrogance to pretend that an individual involved in such an accident
will not hold himself responsible a thousand times over for the rest of hi s life.
Around the same time as the Pasadena bus accident , a woman ran over and killed a young child
who ran into an intersection in northwest H ouston. No prosecutor appeared on TV to denounce
her behavior and accuse her of murder. A few years ago, a friend's family member was run down
like an armadillo by a drunk driver as she walked home along a narrow street with no sidewaJks.
Despite the presence of an eyewitness, the driver's license plate laying in the road by her mangled
body, a driver who fl ed the scene and the driver still being drunk when arrested, the Harris County
D.A.' s offi ce steadfast ly refused to even seek an indictment for intoxication manslaughter, opting
instead to file separate misdemeanor DWl and state jaiJ felony FSGI charges, to which the driver
was allowed to plead to concurrent misdemeanor time. Try expJai ning to these families why their
loved ones were not worthy of" honor."
So how does the office decide who gets Nifong-ed and who doesn't> Unlike the Nort h Carolina
case, the chosen ones in Harri s County are more likel y to be the poor and di senfranchised. These
are the people who can least afford the costs of bail and a lawyer, and are of course the easiest to
coerce into some kind of plea bargain. By forcing these bogusly charged cases to trial , we can raise
local taxpayer awareness of the consequences of prosecLl torial indiscretion and muzzle our own
budding Nifongs.
Shawna L. Reagin, Editor
171e Editat's opinion is purely personal, and in no way reflects the viewpoint or position of the H arris CMtnty
Criminal Lawyers' Association.
SUMMER
Gilbert Villareal won a Not Guilty on a burglary of a
habitation with the intent to commit aggravated assault .
In yet another instance of a tri al court refusing to admit
defensive character evidence, Rosa Eliades reversed the
351
st
District Court in Melgar v. State, _ S.W.3d._,
2007 WL 852636 (Tex.App. - Houston [1
st
Dist.] No.
01-05-01049, delivered March 22, 2007) [designated
for publication].
Cynthia Rayfield and Annette Henry scored an
acquittal for their client charged with indecency in the
228[h District Court.

The jury only took five minutes to hand Joe Wells
a Not Guilty verdict on a DWI in CCCL #8 on
March 26, 2007.
At least part of the jury was so appalled by the
State's expert's claim that parents have no right
to bathe their own children that Jerald Crow
got a mistrial on an aggravated sexual assault of
a child trial in Montgomery County.
Katherine Scardino and Danny Easterling again
prevailed in obtaining a life pl ea for a client facing
the death penalty, three weeks before trial was
scheduled to begin . The client was accused of beating
up and strangling his 5-months-pregnant girlfriend and
having sex with her corpse the next day; he gave two
confessions.
Katherine then teamed up with Jimmy Phi11ips on a
death capital in Angleton, where their stellar performance
during guilt/innocence earned them a life offer before
commencement of the punishment phase. Client
convicted of killing 3 people and wounding a tourth on
orders of a Texas Syndicate gang leader.
Proving that some hot streaks never cool, after working
a capital in Montgomery County for nearly two years,
Ms. Scardino recently negotiated a plea to aggravated
robbery for five years TDCJ-ID.
A quick win was awarded to James Alston, who got a
6-1/ 2 mioute Not Guilty on a criminal trespass.
A no test, no accident DWI in CCCL #10 brought
Dennis Craigs a Not Guilty 00 April 12, 2007.
That same day, Doug Murphy added to the string of
victori es over former DWI task force officer Robinson
when he heard Not Guilty in CCCL #3. [How many


THE DEFENDER ", 3
for the officer whose
supporters publicly
claimed that his woes
were solely attributable
to disgruntled defense
lawyers who were unable
to beat him in court?]
After Lisa Benge
investigated the post-
arrest firing of the police
officer involved, she
gleaned a dismissal of her
client's second DWI with a
breath test, even though said
client had also taken a slightly
unauthorized leave of absence
during pendency of the case.
Michael Gillman overcame the
odds to achieve an acquittal on
an aggravated assault with a deadly
weapon, enhanced to first degree, in
the 263
rd
District Court.
defeats does this make
In a case full of obstacles and a lack of
cooperation from certain quarters, Roland
Moore avoided a probable life sentence for his aggravated
robbery client in the 179[h District Court, when he
convinced Judge Wilkinson to suppress the confession
and thereby garnered a trial offer for the 2S-year
mInimum. Improperly obtained confession courtesy of
the Jacinto City police department.
Emily Detoto persuaded a Burleson County jury whose
foreman had twice before convicted to acquit her client
accused of two counts of aggravated sexual assault,
despite DNA evidence and underhanded prosecutori al
tactics. A co-defendant was also acquitted.
Todd Dupont scored a IS-minute Not Guilty on a no
test / no accident DWI in CCCL #4.
'''!hen his own photos proved the cop lied about the
accused entering a crosswalk that did not exist, Roger
Bridgwater secured a directed verdict in CCCL #13.
In Amad01' v. State, _ S.W.3d _,2007 \VL 1217267
(Tex.Crim.App. PD-0786-06, delivered April 25, 2007),
Troy McKinney reversed the Beaumont Court of
Appeals for assuming that the contents of a videotape
not included in the appellate record would be adverse
to the defendant on the issue of probable cause to arrest
for DWI, rather than remanding the matter to the trial
court to resolve the disputed issue of whether the record
should be supplemented and to what extent.
Blair Davis preserved error that helped Joe Varela
reverse a conviction due to the 178
th
's failure to charge
the jury in accordance with Art. 38.23, Tex. Code
Crim. P., in Holmes v. State, _ S.W.3d _, 2007 WL
1245891 (Tex.App. -- Houston [14[h Dist.] No. 14-
06-00269-CR, delivered May 1, 2007) [designated for
pll blication] .
A domestic violence assault ended in acquittal for John
Perez in CCCL #1.
Along with Mark Hochglaube, Nicole DeBorde
successfully argued to the Court of Criminal Appeals
that it is constitutional error to prevent a lawyer from
asking a proper question during voir dire in Jones v. State,
_ S.W.3d _ , 2007 WL 984571 (Tex.Crim .App.,
delivered April 4, 2007) . The case was originally tried
in the 263
rd
and remanded to the First Court ofAppeals
for harm analysis .
vVith what has been described as her "gracious but
aggressive" manner, Nicole also finessed a directed
verdict on a DWl in CCCL #11 on May 7, 2007.
Jed Silverman and Steve Gonzales took a 25-minute
Not Guilty in a no test, no accident, task force DWI in
CCCL #13, even though the client admitted to having
three drinks.
A domestic violence assault conviction was reversed on
denial of confrontation in Zapata v. State, _ S.W.3d
[1
st
_ , 2007 WL 1439872 (Tex.App. -- Houston
Dist.] No. 01-06-00286-CR, delivered May 17, 2007)
[designated for publication], thanks to Bob Wicoff.
Keith Hampton preserved error when he tried the case
in CCCL #8.
Aggravated robbery dissolved into 12.44(a) time on
theft from a person for two co-defendant brothers when
Paul St. John and Ken McCoy hung the jury after three
days of trial in the 180
th
District Court. Two of Paul's
client's three jail assaults were also dismissed, leaving him
to do 2 years on the remaining charge.
Tom Stickler won an acquittal in only 12 minutes for
Laine Lindsey and Tyrone Moncriffe garnered an 11th_
hour capital life plea for their death penalty client in the
209
th
District Court.
Relying on the time-honored "swiss cheese" defense,
Kyle Allen convinced a Montgomery County jury to
return a Not Guilty for his client accused of retaliation;
the verdict should also allow the client to remain in the
United States.
David Cunningham scored a Not Guilty for his client
charged with possession of 28 grams of cocaine in the
262
nd
District Court. Fox Curl helped select the jury.
Mter getting a felony terroristic threat refded as a
misdemeanor, Sarah Wood turned a trial loss into a
win by successfully suppressing the complainant's ID of
her client, following Judge Mike Fields' grant of a new
trial.
Last, but certainly not least, Robb Fickman and Stan
Schneider prevailed in a hard-fought and closely-
watched trial where the State prosecuted a Pasadena
school bus driver for manslaughter in the traffic death
of an 9-year-old girl, despite no alcohol or drugs being
involved. The State initially sought a murder indictment
for the accident, but Robb convinced the grand jury to
return on the lesser charge.
CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THESE
WINNING WARRIORS!
felon in possession of a firearm charges in the 412
th
District Court of Brazoria County.
THE DEFENDER '* 5

M Y
I cannotexpress enough thanks toRobbFiclunan as outgoingPresjdentfor all his
work and heJp this past year. Robb did an outstanding job,and I am grateful for
F R I E NDS
ail the assistance and advjce he has given me.
I Lookingto the future, I am fortunate to have a motivated and
talented group ofofflcers and an energetic board working with me. Togetherwe
will make this an exceptional year, and here is why:
HCCLAwill continue to be anaggressive andstrongvoice for ourmembersand
their clients. Whether standing up against abuses ofpower, or for an individual
member,HCCLAwill speakoutagainstanyattemptstolimitourmembersin their
role as counselor to deprive their clients oftheir civil liberties . No one who is a
member ofthis organization will stand alone . Whether that voice ofHCCLA is
spoken qujetiyorshouted,it will be heard.
As an organization, this year we must strive to expand our membership and
increase ourdiversity. I will take the lead onthat, butI will urge every memberto
recruit atleast one new member, and tospeak to ourminoritycolleagues whoare
notmembers and encourage them to jojn.
We must also strengthen and renew our reputation as the organization on the
Texas GulfCoast for great legal education and exciting professional CLE. Our
officers and board members are especially qualified to help guide us back to this
spot;theyhave runan outstandingseries ofCLEsessionsfor thepasttwoyearsand
this year will be even better.
In order to sustain our organization's commitment to having a voice for our
members and for the people we represent, we mustshore up ourability to pay for
the things thatreachouttoandspeak for oursupporters,fi'om broadcastprograms
to our magazine, The Defender. This is a long term effort and will require help
from all the membership at large .
Last, we have many new fights to take on in the public arena and the courts.
From a colossal white elephant ofa proposed new jail for Harris County, to the
recenteffortstolimitbondinourlegislature,tothe newefforts by courtstopermit
DWI suspects to have blood drawn against their will, to efforts to deny Hispanics
the ability toqualifyfor communitysupervjsion unless they prove theyare citizens,
to the utter lack ofserious funding for drug treatment and probation programs
thatmightactually help solve some ofthe long term problemswithjail and prison
overcrowding, we have much to do. As your President I will speak out on these
jssues, andyourvoice will be heard.
I LOOK FORWARD TO SERVING YOU ALL.
Yours truly,
PATRI(K f. M[(ANN
THE DEFENDER 1:< 7
YEAR-ENDRPORT
HCCLAS BakBrS'BurBaU&
PUBliC Rf ATIONS COMMITTH
BY WENDY MILLER
[R S' BUR[AUprovides volunteer
[ [attorneyswilling to
speak - free ofcharge - to schools, church groups, civic groups, and
otherorganizationson manydifferent topics relevant tocriminal law
and criminal defense (adult and juvenile). Recent speaker events
include presentations tolaw studentsand clinics atlocal lawschools,
to the general public at the People's Law School, to elementary-
school campers at Camp C.O.O.L. (Children's Orientation On
Law), and to teenagers participating in local Teen Court programs.
To volunteer as a speaker in the HCCLA Speakers' Bureau or to
arrange a speaker, please send contactinformation and speaker topic
toSpeakersBureau@hccla.org.
What has this committee done In the past year
for HCCLA?
HCCLA Speakers' Bureau has the names of 25 HCCLA
members (& particular speaker topic expertise) willing to
speakatcommunityevents when requested.
HCCLA speakers made over t.hree dozen presentations in
the past year in the Houston community -- with audiences
ranging from educating law students at the University of
HoustonLawCenter-- toteensattheHAYCenteragingout
offoster care -- to high school students participating in the
TeenCivic LeadershipAcademy.
THE DEFENDER *8
HCCLAspeakers ColinAmann and WendyMiller [center1with UH Law Center's
Criminal Defense LawStudentsAssociation officers RachelWall and HeatherKostc
HCCLA members have volunteered in the pastyear to assist
high school student attorneys and jury members in three
differentTeen Courtprograms in the GreaterHouston area.
HCCLA has averaged sending at least two volunteers every
monthto assist aTeen Courtprogram since June of2006.
HCCLA members made presentations for four consecutive
monthsatthe CLElunches benefitingattorneysin the Harris
County Municipal Justice BarAssociation (February through
May2007).
HCCLA members received a discount on tickets to attend a
pre-mixer reception and showing ofHarper Lee's "To Kill a
Mockingbird" in April of2007 at theAlley Theatre.
HCCLA Public Relations hosted a reception and private
exhibit viewing at FotoFest in Houston in May of 2007
for the photo exhibit "Guantanamo. Pictures From Home.
QuestionsofJustice."
HCCLA Public Relations is consistently working to increase
HCCLA involvement in wortll\vhile volunteer projects --
suchas the presenceof a "HCCLATeam" in April of2007at
the Houston Helping Elder Hands event (organized by the
Houston Young Lawyers Association) . Theevent completed
"handyman" tasks for 25 homesofseniorcitizensand helped
100residents at the U.S. Veterans Homein Houston.
THE DEFENDER *" 9
... IT IS EASIER FOR THE DEFENSIVE THAN FOR THEOFFENSIVE TO MAKE
ATTA(KS FROM SEVERAL QUARTERS, BE(AUSE, AS WE HAVE ALREADY SAID,
THE FORMERIS IN A BETTER SITUATION TO SURPRISE BY THE FOR(EAND
FORM OF HIS ATTA(KS.
Clausewitz, On War(1832),VI, ii.2
WE (HOOSE OUR OWN GROUNDFORTHE TRIAL OF STRENGTH.
WE ARE HIDDEN ON FAMILI AR GROUND; HE IS EXPOSED ON
GROUND THAT IS LESS FAMILIAR. WE CAN LAY TRAPS AND
PREPARE SURPRISES BY COUNTER-ATTACK, WHEN HE IS MOST
DANGEROUSLY EXPOSED. HENCE THE PARADOXICAL DOCTRINE
THAT WHERE DEFENCE IS SOUND AND WElL DESIGNED THE
ADVANTAGE OF SURPRISE IS AGAINST rHE ATTACK.
Corbett, Some PrinciplesofMaritimeStrategy
(1911), I,ii.
There is something counterintllltlve about a general
theory of conflict which holds that the defense is
inherently stronger than the attack. Corbett
3
had to
call this observation "paradoxical" because it rings a
sour note in vVestern ears . Indeed, one considering
any competitive enterprise, be it warfare, litigation or
football, would likely hold that "The best defense is a
strong offense."4
While it is true that the attacker picks the time and
place at which he will appear, once he has committed
himself to that time and place, he has "used up" the
advantage of surprise and is now fully exposed. Surprise
and the ability to maneuver now shift to the defender,
who may pick the time(s) and place(s) of his counter-
strokes.
LET'S ILLUSTRATE THESE ABSTRACTIONS BY VISITING AHISTORICAL EXAMPLE.
Both Germany and Japan defended coasts against
invasion. Over the objections of senior generals, Hitler
demanded that all available resources be deployed at
the beach. At Normandy the Allies met immediate
resistance but penetrated the vaunted "Atlantic Wall" in
one day.s
Japanese commanders watched and learned. At Iwo
Jima they abjured their signature strategy of heavy
beach defense and banzai charges in favor of
a dug-in defense in the interior, where many
elaborate traps and surprises were prepared.
6
The invasion eventually succeeded due to
numerical superiority and lack of Japanese
reinforcement? but it took five weeks and
the cost was terrible.
s
Had the defenders
started the battle with more soldiers, or been able to call
in reserves, the invasion might have failed . The Japanese
exploited the inherent strength of the defensive where
the Germans did not.
The defense lawyer is sometimes daunted by being
"on the defensive." Our cultural bias predisposes us
to believe that the advantage lies with the prosecutor,
who selects what charge to file, what theory of guilt
to advance, what witnesses to call, and what exhibits
to present (i n what order). But the authorities quoted
above tell us that the defense lawyer has an advantage
inherent in his defensive position.
Corbett implies that information favors the defense .
Although discovery rights against the prosecutor are few,
tl1ey do exist and should be exercised. Particularly in a
Texas state case, the information flow is asymmetrical.
9
Nor should other sources of discovery be neglected .
Informal "open file" discovery allows for additional
asymmetrical information gathering. Another source
is affidavits for search or arrest warrants; these should
always be obtained and scoured for information.
When the trial starts, the prosecutor goes first. As
early as the voir dire he may commit himself to a specific
theory. The defense can listen to his questions and
"read" how he will try his case. The prosecutor may
compound his problem when he mal<es his opening
statement. The opening statement should receive utmost
attention; while the prosecutor is giving the jury his
"roadmap," he is informing the defense what he intends
to do and what he thinks is important.
The prosecution opens the evidence. Once
the prosecutor has revealed his evidence, he
has to live with his case-in-chief and is now
"exposed" in Corbett's terms. The defense
can tailor its presentation to counter-attack
the prosecutor's evidence.
attack. 10
Rather than becoming unnerved
defensive, the defense lawyer should eXJ)lO:lt
strength. Consider taking Corbett's advice. Emulate th
Japanese at Iwo lima, not the Germans at Normandy.
Defense may indeed be stronger than attack.
S e, c.g., 11 .
reciprocal discovery in Fcclafdiliil
39.14(b) is the exception, a D I ~ ~
experts.
HI H urd v. State, 725 S.W.2d 249 (To
v. State, 95 S.W.3d 488 (Tex. App.-HoUlton [1st
rcf' d)(denial ofsuch cross is constitutional crror).
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SHAWNA L. REAGIN
ANNOUNCES HERCANDIDACY
IN THE 2008DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY
FORTHE
176
TH
DISTRICTCOURT.
JUSTICE,
WITH
COURTESY
AND
FAIRNESS FOR ALL
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in compliance with the voluntary limits of the Judicial Campaign Fairness Act.
Mark Bennett. Treasurer. 735 Oxford Street. Houston. Texas 77007.
I
SUMMER
PATRICKF. MCCANN
I
I
-I Ikn ow,you didn'tbecome acrilllinallawyer to track time. In
fact, itmay be that you hate tracking your time, and love the
easiermethod of charging in crirninallaw; i.e., up front an da
setprice on the barrel-head.
Yet increasingly, for appointments in the state, county,
Iand even federal district courts, one is forced to provide an
accounting in order to get paid promptly and properly. So,
in order to avoid cheating yourself on the time you really do
schedule and commit to your clients each week, here are some
I simple tips, both low-tech and middle-tech, to help you get
paid. If you use aday planner religiously or aBlackberry/Palm-
type device you probably do not need this advice, but if you
can use one of these tips to track your time, and thus your
money, then itwill be worthwhile.
1U,eblock,oftimein yout d,ypl' nno</ " Iend". We
all oftenmarkdown thecourttime for docketcall onourdaily
calendar; how many times do we actually input the time we
knowwe will spend on that docket? In otherwords, instead
ofputting down a 0830 docket call for Mr. Smith, why not
put the two hours we knowit will take for us to get through
the docket, read the file, negotiate with the State, visit the
holdover, wait for the myriad other items that will take place,
etc.? Then at the end ofeach week you tally up your hours
by the calendar, and either place them in the file or on a
spreadsheet/ list, and voila, your time is magically in a usable
form. [FYI, this also works with the inevitable two to four
hours onespends atthecountyjailorfederal detention center,
at the state prison, etc.].
2Put the county/ CJA/ di,ttict coutt fotm IN the file,
along with the worksheets for extra hours on the first day.
This requires some pre-planning; you need to get that set
offorms in bulk early or often from the court coordinators,
clerks, orcase managers, orwherever YOLl can get them. Put
them in thefile so thatevery timeyou are incourtonthatcase
YOll can fiJi the darn thing Ollt right there, so on the day the
trial is done, orthe plea orsentencingis finished, the voucher
gets filed immediately. Oryourassistant can gatherthem and
place tbem in thefiles as theyprepare them;itsimplifies record
keepingand preventsthat"afterthe fact" efforttocompilethe
hours and reconcile them for the voucher. Also, fill them in
going forward, not backwards as we sometimes do. As long
as the final hours match it only matters thatthesheets existas
a record, notin which orderyou filled outthe form.
EASY WAYS TO
ACCOUNT
FORYOUR
THE DEFENDER *14
3 U,e youe eell phone. OK, ,imo" emy one ofm h"
one. Almost every model also has a voice record function.
Whenever you do something for a client, hit the record button
or selection on the phone, say the client's name, the court,
the activity, and the time spent with the date. Example:
"Smith, 333
rd
District Court, May 5
th
, suppression hearing,
three hours." You can do the same with texting, by the way.
Give the phone to your assistant or your kind spouse, the
neighborhood kid who does your taxes, whomever, at the end
of each week, and have them do the tally. Presto! You have
accollnted for your time.
Repeat the
above for your own message service, voice mail, or secretary,
as soon as you have visited a jailed client, finished a morning of
appointments, or completed a plea or hearing or a day of trial.
You will have an easy-to-use record of your time.
This is very handy when you are out of town on trial or some
other event and cannot get back to your office.
I
8 Bill your tmel time. We ,11 [Nget ,bou, 'hi, When
you drive from Brazoria to the Harris County jail, or vice versa,
you will run up bet\veen a half and one hour of travel time each
way. Just counting this could add up to fifty or more hours
billed per year. Even at county rates, that is still a nice piece
of change, say a week-long cruise for you and your spouse or
significant other. Use one of the methods discussed above to
do this, but do it .
9Use your phone bill. \iVhen paying your bills each
month, and looking over your phone charges, why not make
it a party where YOU get paid? Looking at your phone
bill , eliminate aU charges to your house, parents, girlfriends,
boyfriends, bookies, substance-abuse counselors, etc. The
remainder will normally be client and other attorney calls, with
the time spent on them handily annotated next to the number.
If you cannot remember who the number belongs to, call it
and figure out if you can bill for it. Write down the times and
hours and voila, your phone bill will have just paid for i t s l f ~
5Ifyou have email, at the end of the day, ,hoot you",if
or your assistant a quick accounting of your activities. It
does not have to be long, just a quick note as to the hours
you spent on whatever you did, and you can create a folder in
almost every system (Outlook, Web mail, etc.) to store these
emailsin.This creates an easily accessible, easily forwarded or
printable record.
6
Use the Oudook calendar and journal functions in
Microsoft Office. Both of these come bundled with almost
every Office package, home, student, business, whatever. You
do not have to buy any new programs, and their use is easy and
intuitive. The journal function can actually serve as a printable
of your time, while the calendar's function is essentially that of
an automated day planner; hence, block time entries can work
here as well.
7HandheJd,jPDru/new multi-function cell phones
- all of these have calendar functions and memo functions.
If you have one, and have not mastered those functions, do
so, and use it to record the time you spend immediately after
completing the action. At the end of the week, hand it to the
person who does your tallies. If YOLl do not have a twelve-year-
old in your office who works for bubblegum, and that person
who does your tally is you, then schedule a Friday cup of coffee
with yourself, and do the recording before YOLl head home.

1 0 Bill foe the time you 'pend doing the ,illy thing,
that get your case to a resolution. Take a sip of coffee or [or
Scotch, depending how your morning is starting] and think
back over how much time you spend during an average week
doing the following : Going to the printers to get documents
bound and copied, going to the Clerk's office and getting
copies of the State's sllbpoenas, the vast criminal histories of
their witnesses, talking over coffee [or Scotch, it all depends J
to other attorneys about your case, chatting with investigators,
fielding calls from the same concerned relatives who would
not cough up a dime for your client's bail, etc. Now, take a
second sip, and say aloud how often you bill for that. That's
what I thought. Maybe not on every case, but on one where
you worked especially hard, why not quit cheating yourself and
actually put in for that time?
series of memos to the file as well as a good diary-like capture 1----------------------------
If these tips
are useful,
great. If not,
bill the State
for the time,
and good luck.
THE DEFENDER * 15
Mike Ramsey,
Lifetime Achievement Award
o 0
onI
HCCLA's annual banquet was held May 10, 2007, at
the downtown Hyatt Regency. Over 350 tickets were
sold, and many who could not be accommodated for
the seated dinner joined the cocktail crush immediately
preceding. Faces in the crowd were a veritable "who's
Navy Lt. Cmdr. Charles Swift
gives the Keynote Address
who" of the legal community, as the venerated objects
turned out to honor the ultra-venerated Mike Ramsey,
recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award and
George "Mac" Secrest, chosen Attorney of the Year.
The banquet was outgoing President Robb Fickman's
GRACE accepts the Torch of Liberty Award
Richard" Racehorse" Haynes with the new board members
New President Pat McCann share a moment
Mark Bennett unveils Robb's parting gift
- an original movie from" Henry V"
Robb thanks Christina Appelt & Diana Stachmus
for their invaluable contributions
last hurrah, and he made the most of it, regaling the
audience with his signature firebrand humor and
satirical observations. Robb presented Member of the
Year awards to Troy McKinney, JoAnne Musick and
Shawna Reagin.
Richard "Racehorse" Haynes continued his tradition
of swearing in the new officers and board members.
Mr. Haynes had graciously agreed to celebrate his
birthday with this crowd of admirers, so everyone got
to enjoy some delicious cake after singing their good
wishes.
Once the baton had passed to incoming President
Patrick McCann, he awarded this year's Unsung
Hero plaque to Vivian King, for her outstanding
representation of the indigent accused .
The Torch of Li berty award went to the Gulf Regional
Advocacy Center [GRACE], and was happily accepted
by Danalynn Recer, Aimee Solway, Gilly Ross and several
others of their faithful crew.
Attorney of the Year Mac Secrest was specifically
commended for rising to the occasion in last year' s trial
of former Enron CEO Ken Lay and Jeff Skilling, but that
was just one hallmark in a career defined by quintessential
professionalism. When Mike Ramsey acknowledged his
Lifetime Achievement award, he also lauded Mr. Secrest
for his role in the Enron trial .
George Tyson and Kent Schaffer entertained the
group with various anecdotes from the life and times of
Mr. Ramsey, many of which served to remind those of a
certain age that, while it sometimes seems as though the
good old days are long gone, the Old Guard marches on,
bringing excitement and color to a world that desperately
needs both.
Keynote speaker Navy Lt. Cmdr. Charles Swift,
the military lawyer who successfully challenged the
government's plan to deny fair trials for Guantanamo
detainees, shared stories of his incredible victory and its
aftermath. His remarks weLC an inspirational coda to an
evening devoted to the celebration of due process and
those lawyers who spend their lives in pursuit of justice.
President PatMcCannpresentsthe
UnsungHeroAward toVivian King
MemberoftheYear JoAnne Musick
is thanked by Pat & Robb
BANNED IN BOSTON!
CITY COUNCIL'S WORST NIGHTMARE!
DENOUNCED FROM PULPITS COASTTO COAST!
Is it Deep Throat? Tropic oP Cancer? Hustler?
NO) irS EVEN BmER:
REASONABLEDOUBT
WITH
TODD DUPONT
TUNE IN TO THE CABlEACCESS CHANNElTHAT HAS
HOUSTON'S GUARDIANS OF PUBliC DECENCY
TOTAllYA-TWITTER TO SEE TODD) HIS CO-HOSTS AND
HIS GUESTS SPIN CRIMINAl JUSTICE CONTROVERSY.
BE INFORMED AND ENTERTAINED.
CATCH IT WHILE YOU CAN
THURSDAYS AT 8:00P.M.
CABLE ACCESS CHANNEL17
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fjvteJ V
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JHE DEFENDER *' 20
IN BECOMING AMEMBER?
HCClA
..Promotes aproductive exchange of ideas and encourages
bettercommunication with prosecutorsand thejudiciary.
..Provides continuing legaleducation programsfor improving
advocacy skillsand knowledge.
..Promotesajustapplication of the court-appointed lawyer
system for indigent persons chargedwithcriminal offenses.
..Rles amicuscuriae briefsinsupportof freedom and
human rights.
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