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Turned over Attorney/Client info to D.A.

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whatisnot

Guest
[email protected]Texas
I paid an attorney in Waco TX to defend me through the trial stage of a criminal trial. While he told me that he was qualified, it soon became clear that he was not, and expected to get me to plea. At the attorney's suggestion I took a pollygraph given by the D.A. The test was inconclusive, and my attorney suggested that I pay to have a private examination done. I was assured that the test was confidential and work product of my case, just as was my private investigator. The test was in error and showed desception, and even though we had conclusive evidence that I was innocent, the attorney turned the pollygraph info over to the D.A. and told me that if I did not plead guilty and take a 3 year prison term, that he would withdraw. Needless to say, I did not plea, and he did withdraw. While I did get another attorney, and all charges were dismissed, and I was released from jail, I spent 1 year, 4 months, and 10 days in solitary confinment for something that I did not do. Much of this was the cause of the attorney turning over confidential information in an attempt to get me to plea. He was after quick money, and wanted to remain in the good graces of the D.A.

Not withstanding the thousands of dollars in legal expenses, phone calls from jail, my fathers travle expenses from Peru etc... What is it worth to spend a year and a half in solitary confinment faced with going to prison for the rest of your life. My grandfather died while I was in jail and my grandmother had a stroke. My reputation has been destroyed, and now I have a record.
 
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H

HomeGuru

Senior Member
whatisnot said:
[email protected]Texas
I paid an attorney in Waco TX to defend me through the trial stage of a criminal trial. While he told me that he was qualified, it soon became clear that he was not, and expected to get me to plea. At the attorney's suggestion I took a pollygraph given by the D.A. The test was inconclusive, and my attorney suggested that I pay to have a private examination done. I was assured that the test was confidential and work product of my case, just as was my private investigator. The test was in error and showed desception, and even though we had conclusive evidence that I was innocent, the attorney turned the pollygraph info over to the D.A. and told me that if I did not plead guilty and take a 3 year prison term, that he would withdraw. Needless to say, I did not plea, and he did withdraw. While I did get another attorney, and all charges were dismissed, and I was released from jail, I spent 1 year, 4 months, and 10 days in solitary confinment for something that I did not do. Much of this was the cause of the attorney turning over confidential information in an attempt to get me to plea. He was after quick money, and wanted to remain in the good graces of the D.A.

Not withstanding the thousands of dollars in legal expenses, phone calls from jail, my fathers travle expenses from Peru etc... What is it worth to spend a year and a half in solitary confinment faced with going to prison for the rest of your life. My grandfather died while I was in jail and my grandmother had a stroke. My reputation has been destroyed, and now I have a record.
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**A: please list the crimes that you committted.
 
J

JETX

Senior Member
"What is it worth to spend a year and a half in solitary confinment faced with going to prison for the rest of your life. My grandfather died while I was in jail and my grandmother had a stroke. My reputation has been destroyed, and now I have a record."
*** How much did you make, in total wages, during the six months IMMEDIATELY prior to your arrest??
 
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whatisnot

Guest
Reply to HomeGuru

HomeGuru said:
**A: please list the crimes that you committted.
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I committed no crime. I was charged with sexual assault and possession of child pornography. Isn't it odd that all charges would be dropped after sending the F.B.I., U.S. Marshals, and Interpol to extract me from my home inPeru.

Of course that has nothing to do with releasing confidential information; it's not a case where the attorney discovered that I had either commited, or was planning to commit a crime which would cause him an ethical conflict if that's what your point is. As a matter of a fact, as I stated, he had evidense which cleared me.
 
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J

JETX

Senior Member
Just curious.... I can see where the issue of 'sexual assault' could be in error as there are lots of potential factual concerns there (evidence, testimony, examinations, etc.), but how can you be charged with 'possession of child pornography' and then have that charged drop. I would think it is a simple matter of your having it or not (unless you were able to show that they were not children.... or not pornographic.... which should have been fairly simple to resolve).

So, curious.... how did you presumably possess the subject material (pictures, videos, whatever) and then have that charge dropped???? Simply, doesn't seem reasonable, does it??

Also, you still haven't answered my question as to what the TOTAL wages received in the six months immediately prior to your arrest, have you?? Without that, how do you expect anyone to even try to determine your 'compensation' for incarceration (less costs of housing, meals, etc. of course)??
 
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whatisnot

Guest
Prior earnings not the point

While prior earnings could be included in losses caused by unlawfull arrest, and wrongfull imprisonment, that is a different issue, one involving a violation of civil rights. While I do feel as though I also have a good case for wrongfull prosecution, the sittuation I posted deals with attorney malpractice.

As for the possession of pornographic material, the prosecution alleged that they found one photo on one floppy disk in a warehouse which they contended was child pornography. As many people who tinker with and collect computer junk, I had hundreds of floppies, jaz disks, zip disks, DVD, and CD disks, while I never saw the photo in question, I was told that it was a thumnail photo smaller than the size of an eraser and when enlarged to a 4"x6" it was impossible to tell what it was. The D.A. was planning to use it to bootstrap, and inflame a jury, and frighten me into a plea. Obviously had it been child pornography, even after I had been cleared of the sexual assault charge, they would have prosecuted the child pornography charge.

Still my earnings has nothing to do with the malpractice, but if you must know, I had lost money. A company that I had invested in, in South America had just began to show a profit, so in your line of reasoning, maybe the court, and the attorney saved me from myself.
 
J

JETX

Senior Member
Well, look at it this way. You got a free trip from Peru to the US..... and doesn't seem like you have gone back... yet. All, in all, maybe we taxpayers should sue you since it appears that you were 'bettered' by the circumstances. :D
 
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stephenk

Senior Member
if the DA had a good faith belief with sufficient evidence supporting probable cause, you cannot now sue the DA just because the charges were later dismissed. Were they dismissed with or without prejudice?

They obviously had enough evidence to support an extradition order to bring you to Texas from Peru. Did the complaining witness back off from proceeding forward?
 
W

whatisnot

Guest
JETX said:
Well, look at it this way. You got a free trip from Peru to the US..... and doesn't seem like you have gone back... yet. All, in all, maybe we taxpayers should sue you since it appears that you were 'bettered' by the circumstances. :D
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=whatisnot

Maybe you just don't pay attention to what you read, I have not returned to Peru because I still have legal matters pending in regards to the attorney who stole my money. My father is still there as the manager of a oil company as he has been for many years, but more importantly, my grandmother has suffered a stroke and doesn't have much longer according to doctors.
 
W

whatisnot

Guest
stephenk said:
if the DA had a good faith belief with sufficient evidence supporting probable cause, you cannot now sue the DA just because the charges were later dismissed. Were they dismissed with or without prejudice?

They obviously had enough evidence to support an extradition order to bring you to Texas from Peru. Did the complaining witness back off from proceeding forward?
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=It would seem that way wouldn't it; the parts that you do not know is that no the accusser did not back off, it was discovered that she had lied, and that her family had gone to police with the same information that freed me prior to my arrest. The D.A. thought that I would never find this out because I did not know the people, but by the grace of God they steped up to the plate. In other words this all stemed from a personal conflict that I have had with a judge in Waco TX, which started in 1997 over a divorce and custody battle. He is the familly court judge, but his name is all over search warrants in my case, and out of a list of thirty two criminal trials schedueled for court, only two were assigned a court other than the 54th Dist. which is McLennan County criminal court, both were mine and both were in the divorce judges court.

Chew on that for a while, and remember, this is Waco TX I am talking about. Further there was no order of extradition, I was kidnapped; my passport does not read persona non grada, it is a normal exit visa. Still, I did not post a desire to file suit against a D.A., but an attorney who turned over confidential, inflamatory information to the D.A.
 
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J

JETX

Senior Member
Since you are so intent on your path already, just go ahead and file a complaint with the Texas State Bar Ethics committee (if you haven't already) and file a lawsuit against the attorney.
Seems pretty simple to me.....
 
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