Chapter 1        The Playing Field

I call this book a combat manual.  If you're about to be charged, have been charged or engage in risky behavior make no mistake, you are at war with those who would seek to make you spend the rest of your life in prison.  Life in prison!  Now that sounds a bit extreme.  In most states you can get multiple charges from one offense and the sentences can be "stacked" or run consecutively, making for what amounts to a life sentence.  This applies to almost all offenses, not just those involving minors.  Here is a list of offenses in the vernacular that will get you branded a sex offender, you may be surprised: 

01.       Peeping Tom

02.       Flashing

03.       Public urination/defecation

04.       Mooning

05.       Streaking

06.       Pimping

07.       Prostitution

08.       Illegal pornography (non child)

09.       Rape of an adult

10.       Sex with children

11.       Beastiality

12.       Necrophilia

13.       Child pornography

14.       Sado masochism

15.       Groping 

Some of these acts seem appropriate by their title alone until you consider that wearing a bathrobe late at night as you take Fido out for a dump and your bathrobe falls open for a moment as you bend down to scoop Fido's poop, can land you with a charge of public indecency, get you labeled as a sex offender and in some cases you may be forced to register as a sex offender for the rest of your life.  I have personal experience with a man who had exactly this happen to him.  He told his wife that if they were going to make him register for life or go to prison he never would have taken a plea bargain.  Now my friend has a public indecency offense on his record.  Forever branded a pervert at all future job applications where they do a ten-year background check.  It's definitely not a career move.  In my friend's case a neighbor unintentionally saw his brief moment of public exposure and then she called the cops.  Now maybe the neighbor thought all that what happened is a scolding from the police, but that's not how it works.  The cops are expected to generate revenue with each call.  Consequently when you call the cops on someone, that someone is going to jail.  No question about it.  Something to think about the next time you consider making that call. 

Because my experience originates from the state of Arizona and Arizona has the stiffest sex offender laws in the nation, all of the statutes, rules of evidence, rules of court, rules of criminal procedure etc. presented in this book will be from that state.  This doesn't mean however that these laws are unique to Arizona.  In most cases you will find similar regulations in your state.  The indexing system may be different but generally speaking the rules are the same.  State Bar regulations are determined by the American Bar Association and are generally speaking identical from state to state.  If you file a complaint with your State Bar association they will not consider your complaint if it is a matter being decided on appeal or references a violation of statute.  Statutory violations of law are decided by the courts only.  It is therefore a waste of time and effort to pursue this direction.  The only jurisdiction they have are over their own ethics rules.  The only avenues of discipline they can exert are disbarment, which means they can no longer work as a lawyer in that state.  It doesn't stop them from taking the bar exam in another state, but that's a tough one to pull off for anybody after spending years at work away from law school.  They can also sanction and fine an attorney which means they can't try cases for a period of time usually one month to a year.  The bar can also insist on mandatory ethics training at the attorneys expense.  The training would relate to the area of ethics the attorney violated.  In five years I encountered only one disbarment and one censure and it didn't work for me.  So realize it may be a waste of time to pursue this.  In addition the attorney accused by you will have a copy of your complaint faxed to him to respond to.  Something to consider if handwriting is an issue in your trial and they never got a sample from you.  Your complaint goes into the attorneys file along with the bar's judgment for three years.  The State Bar will seldom side in your favor.  The State Bar is an employee union, not a policing organization, they only get involved in the things they have to. 

Also seldom productive is requesting a state grand jury (S.G.J.).  The purpose of a state grand jury is to investigate corruption of government officials.  To request one you must petition in the attorney general of your state.  If you're Attorney General is himself a corrupt official you aren't getting anywhere with that either.  I know, I tried. 

Writing your Governor or the press will be as productive as panning for gold in your own shower.  Don't waste your time.  It is more important that you learn the law.  Learn how the criminal injustice system works.  If you stand with the law and on the law eventually your cause will be heard in a court that is far from the local influence of corruption and your claims will be recognized. 

Many of those accused suffer from life histories of debilitating abuse that has left them feeling incapable of learning and completely helpless.  The first thing you must do is to throw out the idea that you can't learn the law.  Once in prison you are left with only two options.  To fight and ignore everything that says I can't or to give up and settle in for a long stay.  Most people opt out for the latter because it is easier.  You should remember the Brooklyn Bridge was built by someone who didn't have a high school diploma or engineering degree.  What's stopping you from getting where you want to go?  The answer to that question could be the most important thing to happen to you in your life. 

Never assume your attorney knows the law so well that you can sit back and let him do all the work on your case.  Some public defenders are not as bad as they are made out to be and some paid attorneys may have never tried a case before a jury and always urged their clients to take a plea bargain.  I’ll get more into this later.  The point is you should be researching the law and case law as much as you think your attorney is.  In the event you discover your attorney is a dud, then you can take over temporarily until they appoint you a new one.  Doing the homework on your own will put you in a better position for appeal as well. 

To do your legal research you will need the Georgetown Law Journal (G.L.J.), the annotated Revised Statutes for the criminal code of your state, Blacks Law Dictionary, annotated Rules of Court, annotated Rules of Criminal Procedure, annotated Rules of Evidence and if you are on the outside access to Westlaw’s database of case law on the Internet.  Some superior courts will provide up to 10 free case laws a day via e-mail.  Annotated books provide case law relevant to the issues concerning a rule or a statute.  Westlaw on the Internet can be your one-stop place for all of these materials.

For questions and comments about this web site contact jcoghill2@cox.net