For a few tense hours the other day, it appeared my 71-year-old client, Robert Stackowitz, was going to be led from the courtroom in handcuffs, locked up, and taken to a jail to await the arrival of lawmen from Georgia. You see, he escaped from a Georgia prison 48 years ago, and returned to his native Connecticut. Georgia wants him back.
For a lifetime, he lived a peaceful life in Connecticut, avoiding the long arm of the law. It all came crashing down on him late last spring, when his name surfaced after he applied for Social Security benefits. He was arrested at his home.
Bob...
September 1, 2016
Odds are you did not know that the United States government can be sued only with its consent. That’s because a legal doctrine called sovereign immunity, a doctrine nowhere found in the Constitution of this great land, prohibits anyone from suing the government for money damages.
I somehow how doubt that the founders of this Republic had their fingers crossed when they signed the Constitution. The preamble of our charter begins with the majestic words “We the people.” It then speaks about our having created a republic to serve the goals of life, liberty and the pursuit...
August 28, 2016
I am deflated suddenly, staring out the window wondering about the point of it all. News is just now breaking that another lawyer has committed suicide. The body of Meriden’s John Ivers, 50, reported missing this past weekend, has been recovered. A self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, the police say.
Did it have to come to this?
The scoffers out there will mutter it’s no loss, another lawyer dead. You know the jokes: “What do you call a dozen lawyers at the bottom of the ocean?”
Ready for the answer?
“A good...
August 12, 2016
The decision to have Khizr Khan address the Democrat’s national convention at the coronation of Hillary Clinton was a stroke of genius. Who better to take aim at Donald Trump on the topic of Muslim immigration?
Humayun Khan, Mr. Khan’s son, was a captain in the United States Army. He stepped in front of a suicide bomber in Iraq in 2004, sacrificing his own life to save the lives of those he commanded. For this he was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star – high honors for bravery in the United States military.
The Khan...
August 3, 2016
July 28, 2016
If you’re looking for a good summer read, I’ve just the book: Lionel Shriver’s, “The Mandibles: A Family, 2029-2047.”...
July 27, 2016
It’s hard to avoid online commentary about the value of social media to practicing lawyers, so my decision to leave Twitter and...
July 13, 2016
Corey Menafee wants his job back at Yale University. He is also hoping he doesn’t face criminal charges for his on-the-job conduct. His hopes...
June 29, 2016
The doom and gloom forecasts about the consequences of Britain’s vote to leave the European Union are bewildering. Why all the storm and...
June 29, 2016
Connecticut has now joined the majority of states requiring lawyers to complete continuing legal education (CLE) courses each year. The only thing I...
June 23, 2016
Walk into criminal court some time to listen to closing arguments. Odds are you will hear the prosecution talk about holding the defendant...