Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association

  • Home
    • COVID-19 Court Updates
    • Local Court Information
    • Criminal Law Jobs
  • Membership
    • HCCLA Membership
    • Mentorships
  • About HCCLA
    • Officers & Directors
    • Member Directory
    • Mentorships
    • In Memoriam
    • Bylaws
  • Media
    • Press Releases
    • The Defender
    • Reasonable Doubt 2021
  • Events & Seminars
    • Event Calendar
    • Holiday Party 2024
    • Declaration of Independence Readings
    • HCCLA Annual Banquet & Awards
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Member Login

Chess Corner Winter 2015

March 17, 2016 Leave a Comment

Chess Corner: Winter 2015-2016
by Tyler Flood, HCCLA president-elect and attorney lifeguard_Page_34

 

There is a French Proverb that says “You Cannot play at Chess if you are kind-hearted.” Don’t let fear stand in the way of success.

You have to have the fighting spirit. You have to force moves and take chances…
(Bobby Fischer)

 

This job we signed up for requires a deep down passion for righting the wrongs we see happening every day in the criminal justice system. If we don’t fight to protect our rights, who will? Nobody. We are the rebellion against the First Order. Grab your light saber and go to battle.

Recently, a young-ish trial lawyer found himself in a tough spot that required him to do some soul searching. He was in trial when the State’s key officer, who was 3 months pregnant, was rushed to the hospital due to complications with the baby. She had miscarried before and she thought it was happening again. The witness became unavailable after the jury was sworn. The Court did not declare a mistrial sua sponte but instead urged the defense lawyer to request a mistrial on his own. A difficult position to be put in. The lawyer had the night to weigh his options. The Court and the State were putting a tremendous amount of pressure on the defense lawyer. The State even made terrible comments to the lawyer, among other things, threatening him that they would never agree to any continuances from him ever again in the future for anything and they tried to guilt him into putting the police officer’s interests before his client’s.

Being a reasonable and compassionate man, the lawyer was deeply torn. As much as he wanted to help the officer with her medical situation he decided that the right thing to do would be to remain loyal to his client. He politely and sincerely conveyed his sympathy to the Court and to the State but told them he just could not agree to a mistrial and would not be requesting one. The Court granted a continuance request from the State from Wednesday to Friday to see if the officer would be available so the trial could proceed. The officer saved the baby and recovered well enough to appear on Friday and testify. At 9:30 pm on that Friday night, the jury came back with a Not Guilty verdict.

Being a trial attorney is not for the weak at heart. It takes strength and courage to do this job the right way. We often find ourselves in frightening situations and we have to hold our chin up and face our fears head on. Sometimes we are put in positions where there is great pressure to compromise our ethics and our integrity. These are the moments that define who we are. Our decisions set examples for lawyers young and old. In the face of adversity, be strong and stand up for what is right. You can make lasting impressions on others that will empower them to be strong when the time comes. Most importantly, do the hard things and fight the tough battles for the one who matters the most…You!

The only real lawyers are trial lawyers, and trial lawyers try cases to juries…Clarence Darrow.

Filed Under: chess corner, Defender, Trial Techniques, Trial Tips Tagged With: chess corner, strategy, tyler flood

Mentoring in Criminal Defense

December 7, 2015 Leave a Comment

Law school does not prepare lawyers for the courtroom generally. It teaches them to think, to analyze, and to process, but it does not generally teach the techniques necessary to the courtroom.

In criminal defense, most lawyers are solo practitioners. Many hang their shingle and start accepting cases immediately out of law school. Others may start in a prosecutor’s office but still do not understand the nuances of “defense” work or running a practice. In this vein, mentoring is vitally important.

HCCLA has led the forefront for mentoring in Texas. We have the largest and most successful second-chair program. We have worked with the public defender to further mentoring by assisting in the FACT program (future appointed counsel training). The goal has been to train lawyers in both private practice and indigent defense. By increasing the quality of defense lawyers, the entire system works stronger and better.

HCCLA’s second-chair program has been in existence for many years and is quite successful, thanks to the efforts of Sarah Wood (our coordinator) and all of those who regularly participate in the program.

You can read and download the entire report here:

Download (PDF, 929KB)

Filed Under: benefits, clients, justice, law school, Members, membership, Trial Techniques, Trial Tips Tagged With: constitution, criminal defense, giving back, hccla, lawyers, mentee, mentor, mentoring, mentorship, second chair program

Chess Corner

September 13, 2015 Leave a Comment

Chess Corner
by: Tyler Flood

Appear Weak When You Are Strong

“When we are able to attack we must seem unable, when using our forces, we must seem inactive, when we are near we must appear far away, when we are far away we must make the opponent believe we are near. Humble words and increased preparations are signs that your opponent is about to advance. Violent language and driving forward as if to attack are signs that your opponent may retreat.”…Sun Tzu

Before Bobby Fischer became the World Champion Chess player in 1972 by beating Boris Spassky, Spassky was known as the Demon of Deception. He played some of the most exciting and surprising moves ever seen in chess. Many were designed to deceive his opponent and take advantages of opportunities that resulted from those deceptions.

The Sun Tzu book The Art of War teaches deception, preparation and skill on the battlefield. All warfare is based on deception, using surprise maneuvers and using your opponent’s psychological predispositions against him to gain tactical advantages.

In chess and martial arts, attack by deception, is the attack of the master. We must surprise our opponent and catch them in the moment of his helplessness.

This applies to trial. If you are prepared and know your case inside and out there will be at least one moment, one point in the case, one opportunity you can seize and take advantage of and surprise your opponent. However, if you are unprepared, opportunities may present themselves without you even being aware of them and you will not be able to exploit them.

When the time comes for your attack you should “look as boldly aggressive as a beast of prey—without becoming reckless—in order to bring pressure at once upon the adversary’s morale.”…Bruce Lee

Attack your opponent where he is unprepared and appear where you are not expected to attack.

If your opponent’s pleadings are open to attack, weigh the costs and benefits of bringing pretrial motions as opposed to using the deficiencies to your advantage in trial. Not all problems with your opponent’s pleadings require or deserve a “motion to fix” (otherwise known as a motion to quash). And you do not have to raise a motion to suppress by written pre-trial motion. You can raise a motion to suppress at any time during trial before the objectionable evidence is admitted. Roberts v. State, 545 S.W.2d 157 (Tex. Crim. App. 1977).

Ponder and deliberate before you make a move.

Sun Tzu teaches us:

“He will win who knows when to fight and not to fight.”

“He will win who prepared himself and waits to take the enemy unprepared.”

Trial is about opportunity. You must think about and plan for all possible outcomes, 99% of which will never occur. In over 140 jury trials in my 14 years of practice I have yet to have one go exactly as expected. There is almost always something that happens that I wasn’t expecting (but hoping for) and I was prepared for and ready to take advantage of the surprise opportunity. The successful trial lawyer is an opportunist. Be an opportunist.

There is no need to stick your chest out and talk loud and make a public show of confidence unless you want to tip your opponent off that you are not prepared. This usually is a signal that you are desperately trying to obtain a dismissal so you don’t have to go to trial. This is what I see many lawyers do who are either 1) dealing with a weak defense case or 2) who are scared to go to trial.

Being a trial lawyer is the only way to do this job correctly. The small number of lawyers setting their cases for trial in this county is embarrassing. I want to encourage all attorneys to go to trial more often and reap the rewards of taking advantage of opportunities that present themselves during trial. Opportunities that only present themselves when in trial. Opportunities that would never be realized if the attorney did not thoroughly prepare for trial and opportunities that would never be seen if the lawyer pleads out a case when there is no risk in trying it.

Much success in trial comes from out-preparing your opponent and finding issues to use and then waiting for the right opportunity and the right time to make use of those issues. Don’t spoil your chances by bragging or boasting beforehand about problem’s you have found with your opponent’s case. Telling your opponent about issues beforehand will cause you to lose the issues completely. The issues will be “fixed.”

What could be better than knowing your case inside and out and keeping quiet about it and luring your opponent into a false sense of confidence? You go to trial and then unleash your attack, taking your opponent by surprise.

To be successful in trial, why not prepare, prepare, prepare, then be quiet, appear unprepared and wait for your day of triumph. Don’t telegraph your level of confidence in the case.

If you study people you can pick up on so many cues that tell you everything you need to know. For example, during a break in trial the other day I was about to move to suppress the HGN (motion granted) and I asked the officer in the hallway a question about it before we went back on the record. His answer was evasive as he paused, looked accusingly at me and then stated, “I’m not supposed to be talking to you.” I explained that it was fine for him to talk to the attorneys just not other witness but then I said “Thank you though, you just answered my question for me.” He was weak and was trying to appear strong. If he was strong and had no problems with his HGN test he would have responded differently I think.

The idea of being quiet and confident goes both ways though. The prosecutors I am most concerned about, the ones who I worry the most about, are not the ones emailing me or calling me asking me if I am ready on a case. It’s the ones who I ask if they are ready and they simply give a one-word answer, “yes.” If they are bugging me asking why we aren’t pleading and if I am really going to be ready for trial then I know they are not wanting to go to trial on that case for some reason. You can learn a lot by paying attention to people’s actions.

So be prepared but don’t advertise it. If the State is definitely going to try your case then informing your opponent of all the work you have done in preparing for the trial and letting them know that you are very ready and very prepared will cause them to work harder and be even more prepared to fight you. If you know for sure it is a trial case then consider following the ancient lessons learned from warfare and from the game of chess. Act weak and unprepared and you can catch your opponent off guard. Feign weakness and your chances of success increase. This doesn’t necessarily apply to cases that you know are very weak for the state. In this situation you want them to see and hear how prepared you are so that you can increase your chances of a dismissal or a reduction.

Now go out there and fight with a winning strategy in place. Set your cases for trial and announce “Ready” on trial day!

Tyler

Filed Under: chess corner, Defender, Trial Techniques, Trial Tips Tagged With: chess corner, criminal defense, criminal defense practice, Defender, harris county, trial techniques, trial tip, tyler flood

Cross Exam by Terry MacCarthy

July 30, 2015 Leave a Comment

Learn Cross Examination from the Master, Terry MacCarthy — in the privacy of your home, car, or office.

“There are absolutely no judges and very few lawyers whom I respect so much. I have long been an admirer and a fan of Terry MacCarthy. I think that all of the things that can be said about a lawyer would not be enough to say about Terry MacCarthy.” — Richard “Racehorse” Haynes

Purchase and Download Your Own Copy Here

If you try cases, you must master cross examination!

Filed Under: Featured, Members, practice pointers, Trial Techniques, Trial Tips Tagged With: cross examination, endorsed by Racehorse Haynes, terry maccarthy, trial technique, trial techniques, trial tip

Helpful Links & Resources

  • Seminars & Events
    • Speakers Bureau: Request a Speaker
  • Court Info & Policies
  • Harris County Managed Assigned Counsel (MAC)
  • Guide to ePLEA
  • HCCLA Ethics Hotline 713.518.1738
Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association (HCCLA)

Important Links

  • Bylaws
  • HCCLA Membership
  • Join HCCLA
  • Media
  • HCCLA Blog

Upcoming Events

  • 16th Annual Reading: Declaration of Independence
    Thu Jul 3 2025, 11:00am CDT

Contact Us

Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association
P.O. Box 924523
Houston, TX 77292-4523
(713) 227-2404

    

Copyright © 2025 · Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association. The HCCLA logo is a registered trademark.