The Texas College Stabbing and the Sandy Hook Shooting

Posted on Behalf of Attorney Ross Goodman for Criminal Defense

Before the year 2012 even closed itself, the world was shook by a shooting incident in Newtown, Connecticut that took the lives of 26 people—20 of them children. The incident started when a heavily armed man walked inside the Sandy Hook Elementary School and opened fire aimlessly. Enforcers, within minutes, were in the scene and handled the situation leaving a sad number of dead including the elementary school’s principal, Dawn Hochsprung, the school psychologist, Mary Sherlach, and the shooter himself, Adam Lanza.

The Sandy Hook shooting incident is considered by some as one of our country’s worst after the VirginiaTech Massacre in 2007. The incident produced such an emotional scene with crying children running towards the parking lot in search for their frightened parents. To the parents who saw their children crying, it was a bittersweet relief that means their children were safe, to some, it was an excruciating puzzle that heightens their panic.

Driving Drunk and DUI

One of the most common misconception about DUI is it’s painfully mis-association to drunk driving. If you only had a few drinks and can still see the road with a little blur, it is okay; the police officer is unlikely to charge you with anything anyway. This is where it gets wrong. Obviously, alcoholic drinks mess up your nervous system hindering you to think straight and act properly. Remember, drinking little doesn't equate the idea of causing an accident to little; let alone if  you are a hardcore drinker. Regardless of the amount, the possibility of causing an accident tantamount when alcoholic drinks are involve. You cannot just prevent road accidents because you had a little drink.

Avoid Police Brutality Through Cooperation

Posted on Behalf of Attorney Ross Goodman for Criminal Defense

A person arrested is still entitled to be treated in a very humane way possible. Whether the arrestee is already proven guilty or not, police enforcers are expected to minimize the physical amount of force needed to contain a person or situation. However, there are cases where police enforcers use wanton force as a wrong way to intimidate a person.

By definition, police brutality is the use of excessive force that can either be in the form of psychological intimidation, abuse, police misconduct, false arrest, and police corruption that violates the civilian's rights. In United States, police brutality is not tolerable and is subject to the Fifth and Fourth Amendments of the Bill of Rights Law.

DUI Slipups You Should Avoid

Many people have misconceptions of DUI chargers, and in that effect tend to underestimate the seriousness of DUI convictions.

Driving under the influence is a very serious charge and may carry severe penalties and with that, life changing consequences if you are convicted. 

Lawyer, Wife Met Prison Terms for Scamming Disabled Veterans

Posted on Behalf of Attorney Ross Goodman for Criminal Defense

A 73-year-old longtime Houston lawyer, like his 72-year-old wife earlier this year, was handed a

46-month prison term for stealing from forty-nine disabled military veterans.

Joe Phillips on Wednesday was sentenced by Judge Lee H. Rosenthal to 46 months in federal prison. He was also ordered to repay $2.35 million to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), which claims to have already compensated most of his victims, and to pay an additional $282,112 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for his income tax liability.

Phillips pleaded guilty in September to two of the 21 conspiracy to make false statements, misappropriation by a fiduciary and signing a false income tax return charges he faced and admitted that between 2003 and 2007, he had transferred over $1.36 million from client accounts to a joint checking account for himself and his wife Dorothy.

Tips on Hiring a Criminal Defense Lawyer

Posted on Behalf of Attorney Ross Goodman for Criminal Defense

Hiring a Criminal Defense Lawyer that you can depend on is not an easy task as hiring the wrong one will result in you losing your case or worse, jail time.

Here are tips on selecting a criminal defense lawyer:

1. Ask questions

Asking questions like; “how many cases similar to mine have you won?” or “how many cases have you engaged in?” is very helpful, especially if you want to hire a lawyer that has experience in a case that’s the same as yours.

Pedestrian Killed in DUI Hit-And-Run by Substance Abuse Counselor

Posted on Behalf of Attorney Ross Goodman for Criminal Defense

A man who opted to walk instead of drive home because he had three beers was hit and killed by a drunk driving alcohol and drug addiction counselor Saturday night in Torrance, California.

The 31-year-old Philip Moreno who spent his last day alive having beer and watching a college football game with friends at a bar called The Branch Office was struck head on by a Mitsubishi Eclipse convertible as he was crossing Torrance Boulevard. He was hit so hard he got knocked off his shoes and got lodged in the windshield of the car. He was carried writhing atop the hood and stuck in the windshield for two miles before other motorists managed to swarm the drunk driver at a traffic light at Crenshaw Boulevard and 182nd Street and snatch the car keys away from 51-year-old Sherri Lynn Wilkins. When responding rescue workers arrived and pulled Moreno off the windshield, he still had a pulse. However, he died on arrival at the hospital.