Case, Staff, DREAM, CJA & Intern News!
Case News:
Case Dismissed!
Client was charged with Felon in Possession of a Firearm after an unloaded firearm was found inside a backpack during a security check entering a government office. Client was assisting a disabled relative, and the evidence indicated client was not aware the firearm was in the backpack. After a hard fought battle, the Court ruled in client’s favor on 2 of his four motions. The government filed a motion to reconsider, but client again prevailed, and the Court declined to reconsider. The government chose to dismiss to the indictment just prior to trial.
Congrats to client and to Tacoma AFDs Becky Fish and Heather Carroll – with assistance from research and writing specialist, Alan Zarky, Tacoma investigator Mike Stortini, Tacoma paralegal Alma Coria!
Client receives probationary sentence!
Client was charged with a serious offense. Tacoma AFD Becky Fish was able to show the government that the circumstances of the case were not what they initially believed. She successfully fought to get client released from custody. Once released and given an opportunity to succeed, client worked incredibly hard to turn his life around. Client did so well that at sentencing everyone – the government, probation, and client – recommended a probationary sentence, despite a plea agreement that allowed to government to ask for more than two years of custody.
Congratulations to client, and to Tacoma AFD Becky Fish, Seattle investigator Chevy Echeverria, Tacoma paralegals Amy Strickling and Julie Valencia, former MSW intern Hannah Gross, and former undergrad intern Rylan Godinez.
On January 3, 2024, our client, Mr. M. was released after serving over 20 years in state custody after being sentenced to 130 months to life in prison. Although Mr. M. had long exceeded the minimum term provided in his sentence, it appeared that he would spend the rest of his life in prison because he was unwilling to engage in classes or otherwise cooperate with the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board (“ISRB”) because he continued to deny the charges forming the basis of his case. Mr. M’s situation was compounded by the facts that he suffers from several physical ailments and that he had a track record of difficult relationships with prison officials, rendering the chances of his being released that much slimmer. Seattle AFD Andy Kennedy and Seattle paralegal Janet Stanton began representing Mr. M in 2018 to challenge his conviction in a petition for habeas corpus. Unfortunately, the case was complicated by the fact that Mr. M had frequently been transferred between DOC facilities and his legal materials did not always follow him and, even if they did, he was only afforded access to a small subset of them in his cell. He therefore lacked many of his legal materials which he said would have excused any delay in filing his petition. Andy attempted to obtain access for him and made some inroads but, ultimately, he did not obtain the needed access and the petition was dismissed as untimely in the fall of 2020. While others may have given up at that point, Andy and Janet did not. They kept in contact with Mr. M and encouraged him to attempt to improve his relationship with prison officials and secure his release through the ISRB. In 2022, Mr. M was slated to appear before the ISRB but due to several obstacles including his physical ailments, he was unable to do so. He was deemed to have refused to attend and his case was continued 60 months, until 2028. Andy contacted the ISRB on his behalf and made sure they knew Mr. M. indeed wished to participate in his interview and obtained an alternate date. Without that intervention, Mr. M was not slated to have another hearing for another five years with no guarantee that he would be ordered released. Remarkably, at his rescheduled hearing Mr. M. was deemed releasable but, unfortunately, not to live with his relatives who had retrofitted a home to accommodate someone in Mr. M’s physical condition. Janet was not deterred though, working with officials from a number of government agencies and non-profits to obtain suitable release housing for Mr. M. Although things often looked bleak, Janet and Andy never gave up and encouraged Mr. M. to keep trying as well. That persistence paid off when he was released this month to a facility that is equipped to handle him. Although the outside world can be a daunting place for someone like Mr. M. who has not lived. in it since the 1990’s, he is adapting and working to build a life for himself on the outside. We wish Mr. M. all the best as he rebuilds a life for himself.
Congrats to our client and wonderful perseverance and work by Andy and Janet!
Staff News:
A note of appreciation and congratulations to Seattle paralegal, Charlotte Ponikvar, a paralegal in Seattle who, among all of her other responsibilities, joyfully does pretty much all of the early termination of supervised release motions in our Seattle office. Charlotte had (another) big win this month getting early termination on a particularly tough case where the client really turned his life around. The client was convicted of a drug offense in 2011 and sentenced to seven years. He then escaped from BOP custody in 2013 and was convicted of a burglary offense. The client was then sentenced for the escape offense in federal court. Since the client’s release about two years ago, he’s been doing extremely well on supervision with a solid employment record and perfect compliance. The government opposed early termination but the Probation Department supported it. The judge agreed with the Probation Department and the client gets to close this chapter of his life and move on.
We Are Hiring!
Our office currently has FOUR openings! We are hiring for a CJA Panel Administrator out of our Seattle office, a social worker/mitigation specialist, for either office and two assistant federal defenders, one in Seattle and one in Tacoma. Please check out our employment page to learn more!
DREAM News:
The DREAM Executive Committee, including First Assistant Corey Endo, worked to update the DREAM program and unveiled a new interagency agreement at the beginning of 2024. DREAM is a program that allows people charged in federal court to participate in a therapeutic court. Successful participants have their criminal charges dismissed upon graduation. Most significantly, the new agreement allows for a person to participate with more criminal history. More information can be found at Drug Reentry Alternative Model (DREAM) | Western District of Washington.
We are hopeful that the changes will allow for greater participation in DREAM and encourage people interested in the program to reach out to Corey with questions. She can be reached at corey_endo@fd.org.
CJA News:
FPD is currently accepting applications for its Criminal Justice Act (CJA) felony panel and to the CJA Mentor Program, which provides structured, paid opportunities for seasoned criminal defense attorneys to gain exposure to federal practice. The application is available on our website. Applications are due March 1, 2024. Questions may be submitted to jennifer_kaplan@fd.org.
CJA Panel Administrator Natalie Harmon and CJA Resource Counsel Jenn Kaplan are hosting a virtual open house for prospective applicants to learn more about the CJA Panel and Mentor Program on Thursday, February 15, 2024 at noon. We will discuss the selection process, requirements for the mentor program, compensation, and more. Here is the Zoom information:
https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1612592899?pwd=ODJ1dzgya3EzOWlmaUxHUmVBQyttdz09
Passcode: 556950
Intern News:
Welcome our four legal interns!
Intern Updates:
Shelby Enman, who interned with us during the summer of 2022 as a rising 2L at the USC Gould School of Law received and accepted a post-bar offer with the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office as a Deputy Public Defender. Shelby will be joining Gabriella Jackson at LACPD. Gabriella externed with us Winter quarter 2022 during her 3L year at UW. Congratulations to both Shelby and Gabriella! We look forward to following their careers!
Henry Zhu, who interned with us remotely from Northwestern as a 3L in Spring of 2022 was named a Skadden Fellow, a prestigious fellowship that allows the recipient to pursue public interest work on a full-time basis for two years. Henry will be working at the National Immigrant Justice Center in Chicago trying to halt attempts by the government to deny asylum protections to low-income immigrants who have suffered past persecution or fear future persecution on account of their membership in a cognizable particular social group (like LGBTQ+ individuals and survivors of domestic violence). Congratulations to Henry on this well-deserved honor and the launch of his public-interest career!