Easton Thompson Kasperek Shiffrin LLP

http://etksdefense.com/etks-partner-brian-shiffrin-victori/

In 1982, in his book The Best Defense, Alan Dershowitz listed what he called the Rules of the Justice Game. Among these were the following: Rule III: It is easier to convict guilty defendants by violating the Constitution than by complying with it, and in some cases it is impossible to convict guilty defendants without violating the Constitution. Rule IV: Almost all police lie about whether they violated the Constitution in order to convict guilty defendants. Rule V: All ...prosecutors, judges, and defense attorneys are aware of Rule IV. Rule VI: Many prosecutors implicitly encourage police to lie about whether they violated the Constitution in order to convict guilty defendants. Rule VII: All judges are aware of Rule VI. Rule VIII: Most trial judges pretend to believe police officers who they know are lying. That prosecutors encourage and judges credit police perjury to allow unlawfully obtained evidence to be admitted is not merely a theory. The New York Times has reported that the prevalence of police perjury to justify stops and seizures is so great that the police themselves for it testilying. Indeed, in a three part March 2018 series, the New York Times found that there is a culture of dishonesty and that officers who lie to justify illegal police conduct are more likely to be promoted than punished. This encouragement and acceptance of police lies regarding illegal police behavior explains why police believe that they can get away with writing false reports about their actions. The videos of the past month have demonstrated that the police version of events, such as the murder of George Floyd, are often lies to justify their illegal behavior. Only because of the videos, we know that the police lied when they claimed that Floyd resisted arrest or that, in Buffalo, Martin Gugino, tripped. Otherwise the police lies would have been accepted. We won’t have justice until prosecutors and judges stop pretending to believe lying police officers. If after seeing proof of police lies, prosecutors and judges still pretend to credit them, they are complicit in the misconduct.

Silvon was shot by the police outside his home, and woke up handcuffed to a chair, fighting for his life in more ways than one. - Noah Rosenberg for Narrativ...ely. We want to spend time this week sharing client stories and how the criminal justice system has impacted their lives. We’re starting with one of our more well-known cases, because much of what happened here is relevant to the national Black Lives Matter movement and the push for major police reform. In 2016, attorneys from the Monroe County Public Defenders office were assigned to defend 34-year-old Silvon Simmons, who was charged with Attempted Aggravated Murder of a Police Officer after being shot by Officer Ferrigno of the Rochester Police Department. Officer Ferrigno claimed that Silvon fired a gun at him first, but the evidence did not support his version of events. Ferrigno‘s story was that he was out looking for another Black man, who reportedly had a gun the week before. Seeing Silvon riding in his next-door neighbor’s car as they returned home from the store, Ferrigno immediately jumped out of his patrol car with his gun drawn and pursued Silvon down the driveway, where he ran towards the hopeful safety of his backyard and his family inside. Ferrigno claimed that he heard a gunshot and believed Silvon had fired a gun at him; he immediately fired four times into the dark backyard, hitting Silvon 3 times in the back. As Silvon laid immobilized with his face in the dirt of his own backyard, unable to breathe and believing he was about to die, Ferrigno claimed he found a gun on the ground nearby. But there was no evidence of Silvon ever firing a gun - no bullets or casings were ever found in the area, the gun was unloaded, and the DNA found on the handgun did not match Silvon. Prosecutors pursued a conviction against Silvon for attempted murder of a police officer, a charge that could send him to prison for the rest of his life. Though Officer Ferrigno had more than two dozen formal complaints against him (including a federal lawsuit for dumping a disabled man out of his wheelchair and beating him), the internal police investigation was revealed to be cursory at best and extremely biased. Civil Rights Law 50-a prevented almost all information from prior complaints to be disclosed to the attorneys defending Silvon. After 18 months spent sitting in jail waiting for justice, Silvon finally was brought to trial. Four weeks later, after many days of jury deliberation, Silvon was found NOT GUILTY of attempted aggravated murder of a police officer, attempted aggravated assault of a police officer, and criminal possession of a weapon with intent to use unlawfully against another. Although he was convicted of the fourth count, criminal possession of a weapon outside of his home, Silvon was finally released from jail. As he was led into the back after the verdict, he incredulously asked his attorneys what had just happened. Senior Assistant Public Defender Liz Riley told him, You just got the rest of your life back. 3 months later, Monroe County Court Judge Christopher Ciaccio shocked a courtroom filled with police officers and overturned the jury’s verdict of guilty of the final weapons count, clearing Silvon of all charges. Amidst gasps from the crowd, Officer Ferrigno and his family and fellow officers stood up and yelled at Silvon You’re lucky! , Should have taken care of you while you were down. , Better come harder next time. Silvon has returned to his life working full time and raising his two sons. He still has two bullets lodged in his body. Officer Ferrigno remains employed by the Rochester Police Department. For more info on Silvon’s case: https://narratively.com/he-was-shot-in-the-back-by-a-copth/ https://narratively.com/believable-podcast-episode-4-the-g/

As members of our community head out to protest today, here are a few things to keep in mind. Please stay safe. 1. You have the right to protest. 2. You have ...the right to hand out flyers and hold signs. 3. Social Distancing and face mask are still required in New York State. 4. You have a right to record the police (Maintain enough distance not to interfere with police activity.) 5. Police officers may not confiscate or demand to view your photographs or video without a warrant, nor may they delete data under any circumstances. 6. If you are arrested, ask for an attorney immediately and remain silent. Before or after an arrest officers can ask for your name address, date of birth and a way of contacting you. 7. If you choose to talk to the police, anything you say can be used against you. 8. If bail is set and you cannot afford it, you will be assigned a lawyer within a day or two, depending on whether you are arrested on the weekend. 9. Have your family or attorney contact a bail fund. Free The People Roc. 10. Carry as few electronic devices as possible. 11. Don’t consent to a search of your devices or unlock device for police. 12. Do not consent to search of your clothing, or property. 13. Avoid tagging or posting identifiable images of people without their permission. 14. Don’t try to remotely wipe your device because police will secure against that and it can result in additional charges. 15. Don’t consent to the police taking your DNA swab without a warrant or court order. 16. If you feel that your rights have been violated,write down everything you remember, including the officers’ badge and patrol car numbers. 17. Get contact information for witnesses. 18. Take photographs of any injuries. 19. Get medical treatment right away if you need it, and ask for a copy of any medical records. 20. To begin the complaint process contact the Center for Dispute Settlement at 585-546-5110 ext. 117 to talk with someone. 21. If you are interested in pursuing a lawsuit, make sure to consult with a lawyer as soon as possible. This is not legal advice and is for informational purposes only. This information does not create an attorney-client relationship.

New York has paid more than $100 million on police misconduct settlements each fiscal year between 2015 and 2018, per data from the New York City Comptroller’s Office. In total, New York Police Department misconduct settlements cost the city $630 million between the fiscal years of 2011 and 2017. In Los Angeles, they totaled more than $139 million in that same time period, according to data compiled by the Los Angeles Times. And in Chicago, police misconduct settlements between the calendar years of 2011 to 2018 totaled $398 million, according to data compiled by The Chicago Reporter. In Philadelphia, that number is nearly $90 million, per data from the city’s Law Department.

Proud to be NYSCDL members!