News Archive
A Message from AACJ's New President
Jan 18, 2006
Joseph St. Louis
When I graduated from law school in 1987, my real desire was to become a criminal defense practitioner. However, in a remarkably drastic wrong turn, I went to work for a real estate law firm. I could write an entire column on why that was a horrible experience on just about every level, but let's just say it wasn't my cup of tea. Within six months I was out of there, and I had begun my true life's work as a criminal defense attorney.
I wanted learn the ropes, so I signed up for a seminar in criminal law sponsored by the State Bar. The format was, essentially, a prosecutor, lecturing on how to prosecute cases, a judge speaking on how to prosecute cases, then another prosecutor, then another judge. There was nothing in any of those presentations that was of any use to me. I remember a prosecutor answering a question from a defense attorney by literally saying, "Well, don't plead your clients guilty if they are innocent." Wait, I thought, let me write that little gem down. At the 3:45 p.m. break, about two-thirds of the attendees left. Then a lone defense attorney got up to speak to the depleted audience. I don't remember what he had to say, but I do remember the message the State Bar sent to me that day: defense attorneys were second-class citizens, worthy of no more than a token gesture.
The next seminar I went to was an AACJ seminar. It was one of Mike Bloom and Steve Barnard's DUI seminars. I could not believe the difference in the quality of the presentations. It's not just that the talks given were defense-oriented; it was the fact that the entire seminar was designed to give you information that you could use, and use right away. I received a book full of practical motions, and the presentations were informative with an absolute minimum of war stories. (Mike and Steve's seminars, through their tireless efforts, have remained remarkably consistent in this regard over the last 18 years).
I have never been a joiner, but I had found a place where I belonged. I joined AACJ, and through attending its seminars I met the defense lawyers who were like rock stars to me. The men and women whose names were always in the paper, the defense attorneys who obtained remarkable results in their cases. I joined AACJ committees and volunteered to work on AACJ's Strike Force, drafting amicus briefs, and representing lawyers threatened with sanctions for doing their jobs. (I have also been the beneficiary of the Strike Force's services). Eventually I was elected to AACJ's Board of Directors.
Now, as AACJ celebrates its 20th anniversary, I am assuming it's presidency. Some things have changed dramatically in the last twenty years. When I first started practicing, it would be weeks or months before you learned about a new case. Now, I belong to several e-mail listservs (including the first rate Azlaw list serv run by Randy Callender) that allow me learn of new cases the day they come out. These listservs also allow me to tap the best minds in the State and in the Country when I have a criminal law question. AACJ has just finished completely redesigning it's web site, and soon a motion bank and the latest news on criminal law issues in Arizona will be available to all members with a few clicks of a mouse.
Some things however, have not changed. There are some who still view us as second-class citizens of the criminal justice system. Our DUI practitioners are under attack on several fronts, and we will have to continue to fight to get a fair trial in front of an unbiased jury pool in the coming year. The courts have instituted yet another campaign to speed up DUI "processing." Prosecutors can dismiss a case the morning of trial when an officer doesn't show, then refile the case the next day, and try the case months later, but the delays are our fault. (Has anyone else noticed that when the courts speed up the trial process the defense ends up winning more trials?) We apparently have not seen the end of the Governor's Office of Highway Safety's "Expect the Max" campaign, which uses the proceeds of the DUI abatement fund to spread the message that conviction is inevitable on a DUI charge, and hiring a defense attorneys is just a waste of money.
Our legislature is back in session, which means changes will be made to the criminal code. If we have learned anything from history, most of these changes will not inure to the benefit of our clients. (My favorite change in the law last year occurred when our legislature decided that the lack of "moral justification" to kill someone is a meaningful distinction that helps to identify who is the worst of the worst and deserves the death penalty). For the first time AACJ will have a professional lobbiest present at the legislature to represent our interests.
Many other challenges lie ahead in the coming year. Some of these challenges will come from the courts and the prosecutors' offices state-wide; others may just affect a single law office. Whatever the challenge, I believe the men and women who make up this organization will rise to it, stand firm for their clients' rights, and aid their brothers and sisters-in-arms. If you believe that too, then AACJ is where you belong.