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Brown Law Blog

Justin Brown with Allen Finke the day he was freed.

The Impossible is Possible: Allen Finke is Free After 44 Years

When we first met Allen Finke, some four years ago, it seemed like all hope had been lost. Allen had been in prison more than 40 years for a crime he did not commit. His health was failing. He had tried almost every kind of legal remedy, and nothing had worked. Brown Law agreed to take his case, even though the chances of winning seemed like one in a million. The case was just too ...

PG County Murder Reversed; Brown Law’s 7th Life Sentence Overturned

A Prince George’s County judge vacated the murder conviction of Brown Law client Marlon Marshall, finding that his trial counsel was constitutionally ineffective for failing to consult a DNA expert. The case was litigated by Brown Law attorneys Justin Brown and Lylian Romero. Marshall had been convicted in a 2017 ...

Prosecutors pursue PPP loan fraud in Maryland

In recent months, Maryland, like the rest of the country, has seen an uptick in PPP loan fraud prosecutions. These cases are just winding their way through the courts, but it seems likely they will continue to be a focus of the U.S. Attorney’s office in Baltimore, Maryland, long after ...

ADNAN IS FREE

September 16, 2022 For more than a decade I represented Adnan Syed. With the help of many others along the way, we achieved some amazing results – winning his post-conviction hearing, winning in the Court of Special Appeals, and, perhaps most importantly, keeping alive the hope that someday he would ...

Maryland’s Juvenile Restoration Act Gives Young Offenders Relief From Long Prison Sentences

On October 1, 2021, a breakthrough law will take effect that could grant early prison release for juvenile offenders serving long sentences. The measure is one of Maryland’s most significant criminal justice reforms in recent memory. The Juvenile Restoration Act, or JRA, lets state courts reduce sentences for people who ...

Federal Compassionate Release Full Steam Ahead with McCoy Decision

In recent decades, there has existed a resounding finality to federal prison sentences. Once a sentence was imposed – no matter how unfair it may have been – it was virtually impossible to get it reduced. Federal law often tied the hands of judges, and forced them to impose punishment ...