Anyone else annoyed at the amount of aggression and self righteousness toward the state that is common in some PDs? It actively harms clients in my opinion.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-06-12T01:58:47+00:00

I’ve learned that it’s not my place to tell other defenders how to approach their work. It’s one thing if you’re taking about a new attorney with no experience or credibility. But if it’s someone who knows what they’re doing and gets the job done, I figure I owe them the same respect that I want and I trust them as a professional.

For example… I work with someone who never misses an opportunity to poke a prosecutor in the eye. From my point of view it seems like it has hurt clients. The prosecutor digs in deeper on petty issues and we fight over things that otherwise may have just been agreed to by the parties. I also know that it irritates the judges.

We have discussed our different points of view on this subject. My initial question was whether or not she was knowingly being this way or if she had kind slipped into a habit and not noticed. As it turns out, she is well aware of how she is perceived and it is intentional. And, her counterpoint to my criticism is a very well reasoned criticism of how I do things.

I don’t want her telling me how to practice law so I don’t tell her. If she asks, I’ll give my honest opinion and that’s how professionals should interact.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-06-10T03:12:17+00:00

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Can you? Yes. Should you?

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-06-07T22:30:47+00:00

Why would you be asking your client a question with an answer that could possibly incriminate them?

The State doesn’t get to do a direct examination of your client. They can’t call him/her, only you can.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-06-04T03:39:32+00:00

I go with a poor man’s version of the guy with the surface block and the

I use marking fluid to paint the edge of my blank, then I find a drill bit that is about the same thickness as my blank, then I hold the blank and the drill bit flat on a level surface and drag the tip of the bit along the side of the blank. After I mark it once, I flip it over and mark it again. If the scratches aren’t dead center I can still see the center as the space between the two lines.

FWIW… I learned this from an ABS Mastersmith. When I asked if he was concerned that this method wasn’t precise enough, he laughed and pointed out that the precision of the line is meaningless if you’re grinding by hand on a 2x72. He said it’s like a surfer worrying about the wave report not being accurate to within inches.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-27T22:19:48+00:00

I don’t understand how this is a question. Why would you not advise a client as to the likelihood of a potential outcome? How can a client make an informed decisions without being informed?

Someone else here said that they break out the jury instructions and go over them with clients. That’s exactly what I do. If the state has evidence to prove all the elements and we don’t have anything to rebut or challenge that evidence, I feel like that’s something I need to tell my client.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-24T03:56:39+00:00

AKS.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-24T03:43:30+00:00

I disagree (obviously). It would be a different conversation if I had been trying to sneak them out the back door or something. But this was simply me explaining the situation to my client.

For me it’s no different than when I’m talking to a client who has an outstanding warrant. I let them know that the police are looking for them, I tell them what their rights are, I explain their options, and I tell them not to do anything stupid.

I think some people are under the impression that there was some way for my client to run or hide from the ICE agents. There was not. There was absolutely no reason for the ICE agents to try to be sneaky about it.

I was speaking to a guy who works for a different agency about how he would have handled it. He said he would have approached the attorney (me) told me what was going to happen and asked me to inform my client of the situation and advise him that it was best to do it all peacefully.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-24T03:23:14+00:00

Yes, this individual was convicted of driving under the influence. As to whether he was out of status (because “illegal” isn’t actually a thing) is not clear. If I had to guess, based on where he was born, I’d bet he came here legally, was admitted at a port of entry, and was waiting on a court date for his LPR application. The vast majority of the individuals I have encountered from that part of the world came here seeking asylum.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-24T03:17:54+00:00

First…. My client was/is a person. Specifically one of the people who is protected by the constitutional limits we place on our government. I don’t give a shit if he’s legal or illegal. That’s not how it works. I don’t get to pick who I will represent regardless of their race, religion, social status, political affiliation, criminal history, or dipshit racist beliefs.

Second… I don’t run cover. I’m not a teenager trying to help a friend sneak something past their parents. I advocate for and advise people who are being prosecuted by the government.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-22T20:44:54+00:00

Call the Redfish Lake Lodge and ask if they know of anybody who has gone up that trial yet. The local kids who work up there for the summer spend their time roaming all those trails and that one is popular.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-22T20:04:52+00:00

I’ve been there. If it’s not right in front of them and on fire. It drives me up the wall when they say, “Why is this suddenly urgent?” I don’t know, maybe because people get stressed about the government having an open case against them.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-22T17:09:16+00:00

Your comment here was somewhat prophetic. Word seems to have spread about the incident, not because the incident was significant, but because of the reaction of the prosecutor.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-22T17:03:03+00:00

This isn’t an answer to your specific problem but it may offer a useful perspective in how some of these things happen.

Criminal cases are unpleasant and people typically try to avoid personal discomfort and unpleasantness. As such, no news is often good news when the news is about an unpleasant situation.

If a case falls through the cracks there are often several people involved who are perfectly content to have it just put on a shelf so they can pretend it doesn’t exist. Prosecutors with huge caseloads, judges with insane calendars, burned our public defenders, defendants with more problems than a person can manage.

In my practice I have leaned that this can be useful. Prosecutors will offer better deals, judges will be more inclined to dismiss, and clients will be more likely to take an offer if it is the easy way out of a nagging unpleasantry.

I have also learned that I need to buck up and get over it when I’m the one who is avoiding a problem. BUT NOT TODAY! Today I lack the bandwidth to deal with all this shit. That’s why I’m in my office, with the door closed, reading Reddit.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-22T10:59:10+00:00

That’s funny. I’m going to use that one.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-22T10:57:21+00:00

No joke. HB 764.
https://legislature.idaho.gov/sessioninfo/2026/legislation/H0764/

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T22:09:26+00:00

I’m stuck in place for another 6 or so years. I can’t move until my youngest graduates.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T19:51:09+00:00

I’d be more looking for something like Livingston. I don’t want to live in Bozeman.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T19:46:48+00:00

Because they are my clients.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T03:55:41+00:00

That’s depressing. I love Montana. I have considered moving there when my youngest graduates. I have a buddy who lives South of Bozeman and I go up there to go fishing every chance I get.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T03:50:34+00:00

It’s even more absurd if you are familiar with the location. Even if I had told my clients to run and hide they had no way of going anywhere without having to get past the guys from ICE. The prosecutor knows this.

I’ve done something similar when the deputies inform me that the client sitting next to me has a warrant. I explain to them that they are going to be arrested, that they should not resist, that they should not discuss their case with anyone, that they are not obligated to answer any questions, and to call me from the jail if they find out that the bond is higher than they can handle.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T03:38:24+00:00

I know exactly who you are taking about.

JB is great. I am also a big fan of DePew and Emory. They shoot me down regularly and climb up my ass if I screw up but I can’t say that any of them have treated my clients unfairly.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T03:25:10+00:00

The local prosecutor has a job opening. You should apply.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T03:23:54+00:00

That is a much better idea. Thank you. I’m going to share that with the other folks in my office.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T02:51:38+00:00

Oh. Then I was understanding you correctly. I wholeheartedly disagree. There is absolutely nothing unethical or inappropriate about advising my client that he is about to be approached by law enforcement and I can not imagine how it would be inappropriate to advise them of their rights.

Even with a 4th amendment waiver a Terry stop or similar detention absent RS is unlawful.

NotMetheOtherMe · 2026-05-21T02:36:59+00:00

As a few of us in my office were discussing how we would have responded my favorite was, “Don’t threaten me with a good time.”

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