My client in this case just posted a wonderful review on AVVO. This client was innocent and had a horrible set of circumstantial evidence that could have caused a conviction. The police treated her horribly based on what they believed the circumstances to be. They were wrong. No video again of the SFSTs and interaction with the client because the Senior Deputy had the camera facing the wrong direction. There was rear seat video that was exculpatory when you saw the client. I provided the name and location of the witness who saw the client cold stone sober (0 alcohol consumed) 32 minutes before the stop. It was a sales person who remembered the client and who emailed me her statement. I turned the email over to the State and the first contact they had with her was on cross-examination.
Because of the career implications for my client, I turned over to the State her written statement, typed immediately after her release from jail, along with the receipts for all the stores where she had been shopping. I told the State I was providing Open File Discovery. You have to be real careful and fully confident of what you are doing when you make that decision. It was the right decision. The State introduced her entire 3 page statement and the Judge was able to consider it without her testifying. Although she was prepared and intended to testify, the State’s introduction made it unnecessary. Whatever benefit they thought they got was completely offset by the totality and detail in the statement.
This was a life that would have been totally totally ruined if there was a conviction. Justice was served and the client can move forward.