Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Withholding

I have to disagree with Mr. Nelson and Mr. Torrey. An appeal can only be based upon the record from the trial court, and it is unlikely that the record will reveal many of the issues you raise. In particular, the record almost surely won't say (1) who the "real criminal" is; (2) that he was a friend of the defense counsel; (3) that the jury was all-white; (4) that defense counsel tried to make the jury all white; (5) that the reason she did so was to make a conviction more likely; or (6) that the result likely would have been better had she not kept minorities of the panel. Your hypothetical defendant would probably have to prove all of these things in order to win, but the record likely won't establish any of them.

Does this mean he's out of luck? No. It just means an appeal is probably not the way to protect his rights. He will likely be much better off filing a petition for a writ of habeas corpus. Such petitions can refer to information outside the record and thus can involve issues which would not be available in an appeal.

I have considerable experience in criminal appeals and habeas petitions, and am certified as an appellate specialist by the State Bar's board of legal specialization. Please feel free to contact me directly if you want to discuss this matter further.

Re: Withholding

And your question is??

Any such provable claims would be the basis of an appeal. Feel free to contact me if serious about discussing the costs of an appeal.

Re: Withholding

If you have clear and convincing evidence supporting your claims, our Law Firm can aggressively represent the accused on appeal.