Michigan Criminal Defense Lawyers Blog

Confessions of a Crooked Cop; Part VI: The First Circuit Court Appearance and Words Colliding

Published on: December 27, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

Editor’s Note: This series will be highly controversial, and the privacy of the article’s subject has demanded to remain nameless for their safety and respect for their family. The only attorneys present for this series of interviews are employed for McManus and Amadeo and include Matthew McManus, William Amadeo and Jennifer Kelley. A non-disclosure agreements have been signed. CM=Carly McGregor, Officer= Defendant’s father, the other parties will go by their initials MM,=Matt McManus, JK=Jennifer Kelley, BA=Bill Amadeo, NS=Nick Sanderson).

Part VI of this series will deal with the first circuit court appearance and another case that hit close to home. Tensions flared with Bill (Amadeo) and the father of the defendant and the past of both parties came to a collision course.

CM: What were you thinking when the matter wen to circuit court?

“The Clayton Motion”: Can New York Set the Tone for the Future of Michigan?

Published on: December 24, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

“The Clayton Motion” is a criminal motion to dismiss an indictment in the interest of justice. The action has garnered national recognition since it’s mention in the hit television series “For Life.” Aside from its popularity in pop culture, motion is a powerful technique that has played a role in preserving justice in the New York criminal justice system and now has a chance to impact the Michigan criminal justice system with the encouragement of forwarding thinking prosecutors.

According to New York’s Criminal Procedural Law Section 201.40, An indictment or any count thereof may be dismissed in furtherance of justice, as provided in paragraph (i) of subdivision one of section 210.20, when, even though there may be no basis for dismissal as a matter of law upon any ground specified in paragraphs (a) through (h) of said subdivision one of section 210.20, such discharge is required as a matter of judicial discretion by the existence of some compelling factor, consideration or circumstance demonstrating that conviction or prosecution of the defendant upon such indictment or count would constitute or result in injustice. In determining whether such compelling factor, consideration, or circumstance exists, the court must, to the extent applicable, examine and consider, individually and collectively with the characteristics listed within the statute. To discuss these factors, we spoke to several Michigan attorneys to gain their insight.

Matthew McManus is the Managing Member of McManus and Amadeo in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and is known as one of the top business attorneys in our state but has ties to New York. McManus stated, “Growing up in Brooklyn, the Clayton Motion was something that we regularly discussed. The first factor the courts look at is “the seriousness and circumstances of the offense,” and that could place a barrier immediately to a successful motion. We need to remember that the presumption of innocence is in effect at all times, and just because a prosecutor issued a charge that may be deemed severe, the court needs to look beyond the information in the complaint objectively.”

Confessions of a Crooked Cop; Part V: The Preliminary Exam

Published on: December 21, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

(Editor’s Note: This series will be highly controversial, and the privacy of the article’s subject has demanded to remain nameless for their safety and respect for their family. The only attorneys present for this series of interviews are employed for McManus and Amadeo and include Matthew McManus, William Amadeo and Jennifer Kelley. A non-disclosure agreements have been signed).

Part IV of this series will deal with the preliminary exam and what happened that day and the strategy that occurred.

CM: Can you explain what the preliminary exam is and how are you familiar with them?

Confessions of a Crooked Cop; Part IV: District Court and the Investigation

Published on: December 18, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

(Editor’s Note: This series will be highly controversial, and the privacy of the article’s subject has demanded to remain nameless for their safety and respect for their family. The only attorneys present for this series of interviews are employed for McManus and Amadeo and include Matthew McManus, William Amadeo and Jennifer Kelley. A non-disclosure agreements have been signed).

Part IV of this series will deal with the topic of the District Court and the 2 weeks from when the case was adjourned for another Probable Cause Conference (PCC). The father/officer of the defendant explains what happened at the District Court level. CM=Carly McGregor, Officer=Subject).

CM: So when you hired Bill (Amadeo) what happened?

The False Confession: When a pack of M & M’s Leads to a Life in the Michigan Department of Corrections (A Step-by Step Analysis)

Published on: December 16, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

What if I told you that a bag of peanut M & M’s was what led to a false confession? Would you believe me? And wouldyou believe that the reason an individual made such a confession was because they wanted the M & M’s so bad they told the police what they wanted to hear? Today, we are going to discuss the topic of the confession and what can lead to one making an admission to something that they did not do.

The story starts with a young man that was questioned by the Michigan State Police. The young man was a suspect of a crime. He went into the police station and took a police polygraph. He was never read his Miranda Warnings and was at the station for 7 hours. The young man had mental health issues and all he wanted to do was leave the station. He was tired and he was hungry. The officer asked if the young man liked some candy. He responded that he would love some peanut M & M’s. The officer said he could have the M & M’s if he would just tell the police a few things. From there the camera “accidentally”went off but luckily for the prosecution, a written statement was present. The young man got his M & M’s and also got life in prison for a murder that DNA proved was not his. We hear horror stories of the “West Memphis Three”, “The Central Park Five” and Brendan Dassey. While all of these cases are tragedies, there are so many other that tragically fall under the radar. To combat this issue, the qualified criminal defense lawyer needs to bring in a false confession expert. Today, we spoke to several of the top lawyers in the state of Michigan to discuss the 6-step process of how you should make your argument at the Daubert Hearing for the False Confession Expert.

Step I: The Introduction. This is when you lay the foundation for who your false confession expert is. This will generally be 5 to 7 questions that will connect the expert with your judge. Matthew McManus is the Managing Member of McManus and Amadeo in Washtenaw County, Michigan and is known as one of the top brief writers in the state of Michigan. When asked about the introduction, McMauns stated, “It’s like the first quarter of a football game. You want to start strong. You do not need to go too long but you need to set the tone. Short and Sweet after you provided the CV for your expert and you start off on the right foot.”

Confession of a Crooked Cop; Part III: The Attorney Switch

Published on: December 15, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

(Editor’s Note: This series will be highly controversial, and the privacy of the article’s subject has demanded to remain nameless for their safety and respect for their family. The only attorneys present for this series of interviews are employed for McManus and Amadeo and include Matthew McManus, William Amadeo and Jennifer Kelley. A non-disclosure agreements have been signed).

Part III of this series will deal with the topic of the attorney switch. The father/officer of the defendant in this case did go through previous counsel before they ended up with William Amadeo as their lawyer. The journey and why the switch was made is a journey that was surprising. (CM=Carly McGregor, Officer=Subject).

CM: Was Bill (Amadeo) the first lawyer that you had?

Confessions of a Crooked Cop; Part II: The Polygraph

Published on: December 10, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

(Editor’s Note: This series will be highly controversial, and the privacy of the article’s subject has demanded to remain nameless for their safety and respect for their family. The only attorneys present for this series of interviews are employed for McManus and Amadeo and include Matthew McManus, William Amadeo and Jennifer Kelley. A non-disclosure agreements have been signed).

Part II of this series will deal with the concept of the polygraph and how it was dealt with in this case and more importantly, how it has been dealt with in other cases. While the firm of McManus and Amadeo are strong proponents of the polygraph, there are a lot of things that were discussed about this particular case and the test in general. (CM=Carly McGregor, Officer=Subject).

CM: Officer, you stated that your son passed a polygraph, is that accurate?

Confessions of a Crooked Cop; Part I: The Overview

Published on: December 6, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

(Editor’s Note: This series will be highly controversial, and the privacy of the article’s subject has demanded to remain nameless for their safety and respect for their family. The only attorneys present for this series of interviews are employed for McManus and Amadeo, and non-disclosure agreements have been signed).

What if I told you that there was once an individual that was a police officer across different counties in Michigan, and that individual broke the rules. In fact, not only did they break the rules, they were taught to do so. During their career, which was on paper a successful one, they did many things they are now ashamed of. The individual did something that would most of us to felony prosecutions. And if I told you that the individual did so in unison with prosecutors in their county, would be you believe me? As for the individual, they are highly conflicted. Still, they have agreed to discuss their career, life, and this topic at length under two conditions. The first condition is that everything they say is protected and only to be utilized for this blog. The second is that the only people who can be present are me (Carly McGregor and McManus and Amadeo, which include: Matthew McManus, William Amadeo, and Jennifer Kelley. Non-disclosures have been agreed to. This individual’s revelation will lead to civil litigation regardless of when such disclosure would ever occur. With that, we present to you the first in a series of blogs entitled “Confessions of a Crooked Cop.” CM=Carly McGregor; Officer=subject.

CM: Good morning. How are you today?

The Batson Challenge: Where Jury Selection Gets Heated; By Carly McGregor

Published on: December 5, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

The Batson Challenge is a voir dire technique that separates the good lawyers from those that are deemed to be elite. The Batson Challenge, also known as the Batson Objection, is an objection. One party argues that the other has used the peremptory challenge to strike one or more prospective jurors from the panel for a discriminatory purpose in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s equal protection guarantee.

The Batson Challenge was born in the case of “Batson v. Kentucky” (476 U.S. 79; 1986). It is a challenge that was initially applied to racial discrimination in jury selection but is now also used when gender or sometimes ethnic background is an issue. The party objecting usually must establish by evidence a prima facie case of discrimination. The other party must then prove a neutral reason for the strike. To learn more about the Batson Challenge, we spoke to several of the top lawyers in the State of Michigan.

Matthew McManus is the Managing Member of McManus and Amadeo in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and is known as one of the top research attorneys on the topic of jury selection. McManus stated, “Jury selection is a topic that is highly overlooked in the criminal law sect. As many seasoned lawyers will tell you, the jury picks their team during voir dire. The Batson Challenge is utilized in different communities when a prosecutor is trying to stack the court in their favor. Knowing how to utilize the challenge is essential to success.”

Does Education Hinder Litigation?

Published on: November 30, 2020 | By McManus & Amadeo PLLC

The path to becoming an attorney is filled with barriers but many of which make little to no sense. For example, when you are in college, your major has nothing to do with being a lawyer. In fact, if you do major in pre-law it can work against you. Many college advisors will tell students to take writing courses to do better in law school. From there we have a 4-step process which is most easily placed in baseball terms. First base, second, third and then you finally make it home but the journey has more movement than a Phil Niekro knuckle ball. Let’s break it apart:

First base: The LSAT. The Law School Admissions Test is what is measured to allow students into law school. The test itself carries much more weight that one’s grade point average.

The path to becoming an attorney requires graduating from law school and passing the bar exam. According to their website, (www.lsac.org) the LSAT is the only test accepted by all ABA-accredited law schools, and it is the only test that helps candidates determine if law school is right for them. Ironically, the LSAT has next to nothing to do with getting to second base.