Lloyd Hall is Free after 34 years
(Photo by Alan Chin) A Montgomery County Circuit Judge ordered Lloyd Hall to be released from prison on Thursday – immediately – vacating a life-without-parole sentence and ending an injustice that had persisted for 34 years. Hall walked out of the courthouse in a new black suit around 1:15 p.m., and was greeted by…
This is why we fight.
I get asked the question all the time. Why do you represent criminal defendants? Sometimes I ask myself. But this is why. I have sat in prison visiting booths with inmates serving life sentences whom I believed were innocent. I have stood side by side with guilty defendants who were better human beings than the…
Adnan Syed Updates
February 18, 2020 The past year was a disappointing stretch for Adnan Syed. The Maryland Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, reversed the granting of a new trial and reinstated Syed’s conviction. Our appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was denied. But this does not mean we have given up. There are multiple legal…
When Finality Trumps Common Sense: Brendan Dassey Denied
This week the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the legality of Brendan Dassey’s confession to the 2005 killing of Teresa Halbach, finding that it was voluntary and could be used against him at trial. To many of the millions of people who watched video of the confession in the Netflix documentary series “Making a…
New Expungement Laws Coming to Maryland
Important changes are coming to Maryland’s expungement law. Starting October 1, 2017, more people than ever before will have the ability to have their criminal records expunged – in many cases, for free. In the criminal context, expungement refers to the removal of certain criminal records from public inspection – meaning that the general public…
Firm Fights to Clear Name of Wrongly Convicted
Brown & Nieto this week filed a federal habeas petition on behalf of Christopher Jones, who was falsely convicted in 2015 by allegedly corrupt Baltimore City Police officer Daniel Hersl. Jones has maintained his innocence since he was first arrested in Baltimore City and charged with drugs and a gun. According to Jones, Officer Hersl…
Syed’s Final Appellate Filing
Adnan Syed today filed his final written brief leading up to the oral arguments scheduled for June 8 before the Maryland Court of Special Appeals. Read the filing here: REPLY BRIEF The oral arguments are open to the public, although seating may be limited….
Syed Files Appellate Brief
Adnan Syed today filed his “Brief of Appellee/Cross-Appellant” with the Court of Special Appeals. To recap, on June 30, 2016, the Baltimore City Circuit Court vacated Syed’s conviction and granted him a new trial. The Baltimore City Circuit Court found that Syed’s trial counsel had been constitutionally ineffective, in violation of the Sixth Amendment, at Syed’s original…
Message to Non-Citizens with Prior Convictions
The election of Donald Trump will have sweeping consequences for everyone, but perhaps no group should be more concerned than non-citizens who have criminal records. Trump has already stated that he will target this group, and, as president, he now has the means to follow through on his promise. Many of these non-citizens are legal…
Court Denies Syed’s Bail Motion
The Circuit Court for Baltimore City has denied Adnan Syed’s Motion for Release Pending Appeal. Judge Welch denied the Motion, in large part, because of the open status of the case in the appeals court. (The State is attempting to appeal Judge Welch’s Order vacating Syed’s conviction and granting a new trial; multiple applications for leave…
New Filing: Syed’s Reply in Support of Release
Adnan Syed today filed a Reply in support of his Motion seeking pretrial release. Syed seeks pretrial release following the Circuit Court’s Order vacating his conviction and ordering a new trial. The State opposed Syed’s Motion in a filing last week, and this is Syed’s Reply to the arguments raised by the State. To read…
Syed Files Motion for Bail
Adnan Syed today filed a Motion seeking to be released on bail while the State’s appeal is pending and while he awaits a new trial. The Motion was prepared by Brown & Nieto and Hogan Lovells, and was filed in Baltimore City Circuit Court. The full Motion is available here: Motion for Release Pending Appeal…
Life Sentence Defeated in Federal Court
The Firm is happy to announce that today we defeated a life sentence in federal court. Eleven years ago, while represented by different counsel, D.E. was sentenced to life imprisonment for a non-violent drug offense. Because he had at least two prior drug convictions, he received a mandatory life sentence, without the possibility of parole….
National & Local Lawyers File Amicus for Syed
Two prominent criminal defense organizations have moved for leave to file an amicus curiae brief on behalf of Adnan Syed, urging the Maryland Court of Special Appeals to deny the State’s appeal and push the case forward toward a new trial. The brief, drafted by Steven Klepper of Kramon & Graham in Baltimore, does not take a…
Syed’s New Filings: Retry Case
Adnan Syed responded today to the State’s recent filings in which the State seeks (1) an appeal of Judge Welch’s order granting a new trial; and (2) a remand of the case back to the circuit court so the State can introduce the testimony of two impeachment witnesses. Syed’s filings urge the Court of Special Appeals to…
Syed files Conditional Cross Appeal
Syed today filed his conditional application for leave to cross appeal. Essentially, we are asking the Court of Special Appeals that, if it hears the State’s appeal of Judge Welch’s Order, we also want to appeal. The state wants to appeal the cell tower issue, upon which the new trial was granted, and we would want to…
Hogan Lovells to Join Syed Defense Team!
Brown & Nieto is happy to announce that Hogan Lovells will join the Adnan Syed defense team as pro bono co-counsel. Hogan Lovells is a fantastic international firm with great lawyers and deep resources. They are one of the best large firms in the country, and they have deep ties to Baltimore. They are also experienced in innocence…
Reform on Hold?
In the past two years we have heard that Congress is on the brink of passing legislation that would reform our criminal justice system — by shifting away from the practice of warehousing drug offenders in prison, and moving in the direction of rehabilitation. This was one thing, it was reported, upon which Republicans and…
Syed Files Post-Hearing Motion to Supplement Record
Petitioner Adnan Syed filed a post-hearing Motion today to supplement the post-conviction record with two letters that were sent to the Court. One letter was sent by the State; the other was sent by University of Maryland Law School professor Michael Millemann. Here is the filing, with letters attached, by link: FILING and embedded: https://cjbrownlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/FILING.pdf…
Firm Wins Important Coram Nobis
Brown & Nieto won an important coram nobis proceeding this month that could take a decade off a client’s sentence in federal court. Leonard Shelley was facing a mandatory 15-year federal sentence as an “Armed Career Criminal.” This was in large part based on his prior convictions in state court – essentially a three-strikes sentencing…
