First, my good friend and Houston criminal defense attorney Pat McCann wrote a nice op-ed piece for the Chonicle today. I don't agree with some of Pat's opinions on some legal matters, but he is a very honest fellow and a really, really nice guy. A helluva defense attorney as well. He served our country, as did his wife, in the armed forces reserves during the last decade, and is an American hero if there ever was one.
I have handled one complex matter with Pat in the past, and although it was a serious crime with a highly dangerous and mentally ill defendant, we got some justice done and we got along very well in the process. I came to respect and like Pat very much, and although I may not professionally agree with him always, he's one of the most reasonable and talented defense attorneys I've ever worked with, and I've handled cases against many famous attorneys, some of whom are very talented.
So check out Pat's op-ed piece here
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/6743408.html.
There was a story in the Statesman today about a new prosecutor blog, and of course that caught my eye. It's author is a Travis County ADA with whom I am not acquainted. The article is here http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/2009/11/29/1129pryor.html
and the blog is here http://daconfidential.blogspot.com/.
The author, Mr. Mark Pryor, thought up a great name for his blog. It's one I had been considering since I visit LA often and over the years have seen articles out west entitled or subtitled the same thing, a twist on the popular L.A. Confidential news columns and blogs that have appeared since the days before talkies. In any event, he beat me to it, and good luck to him in all of his endeavors.
Apparently, Mr. Mark Pryor has been at this a while, being 42 years old. That's good. We need someone out there blogging about the good that prosecutors do. I'm holding back my judgement though, as the Statesman article says he is partially using his blog to develop an audience for his novel "The Bookseller". Nothing wrong with cross-promotion, but give me six months and I'll report back on how I think he is serving the occupation.
I'm glad the Travis County D.A., Rosemary Lehmberg, gave him her cautious blessing to blog. I understand from my Travis County friends that things have gotten much more open since she took over from longtime DA Earle. I understand she has a real open door policy, which is essential for a good DA's office. Good for her. And good luck to Mr. Pryor.
My old blog standbys for now remain the same: Texas Ghostrider , Liberally Lean From The Land Of Dairy Queen and Life at the Harris County Criminal Justice Center . These are blogs I read whenever there is a new post, and you can find them handily located to the right of this blog. Texas Ghostrider often has very humorous necktie rating posts, and the comments are often hilarious. I keep offering to send he and his partner, Detective Ninja, a box full of old neckties my friends and co-workers and collegues are well tired of seeing, but he hasn't taken me up on that.
But tonight, there is no frivolity as Texas Ghostrider comments on the tragic deaths of four officers killed this weekend in cold blood in Washington State. He says it much better than I. Four Officers Murdered If you want to show your gratitude to an officer, the next time you see a police officer and have the opportunity to talk to them, simply approach them, ask them to shake your hand, and tell them how much you appreciate their service keeping us safe. Include police officers in your prayers at night. They keep us safe, and now more than ever, they are the thin blue line between good and evil that keeps those of us citizens and our families safe.
One final word. Several of my favorite bloggers went out of business this year, more or less. Both were prosecutors, and both were hilarious. I really miss SO-AND-SO, and need to email her and see how she is doing. She was such a funny writer. Same with ole' R.J. I haven't read much from him from awhile. For awhile, I wondered how he was such a prolific and well-written blogger, but I decided he's just smarter than the average bear. He didn't write about DA work, just about stuff in general.
I miss them both.
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