Post by Anja on Jun 23, 2006 18:07:30 GMT -5
Dothan attorneys attend capital defense college
They all have law degrees hanging on their office walls, but 3 Dothan
lawyers went back to school recently and say they gained a wealth of
information.
Thomas Brantley, Patrick Amason and Billy Joe Sheffield - along with
investigator William Moeglin - attended the Clarence Darrow Death Penalty
Defense College at Depaul University in Chicago May 30 through June 4. The
trio said their brains were whizzing after several days of intense
instruction in death penalty defense. And while it may take months to
digest all of the information, they say constructing an effective capital
murder defense comes down to two things - time and money.
That's why Amason had scarcely landed back in Dothan when he rushed to the
office and filed motions for more time and more funds for an upcoming
capital case. Both were granted.
"What we hoped to accomplish was to improve our skills and learn more
about the national scope of death penalty litigation," said Brantley, who
has defended many capital murder cases in Houston County.
Sheffield said death penalty experts from around the country offered
instruction in a variety of areas, and stressed the need for funding in
order to craft an adequate defense. Sheffield said money allocated by
presiding judges in capital cases varies greatly.
The week-long seminar was limited to 42 defense lawyers with pending
capital cases. Instruction included lectures, demonstrations and small
group workshops where lawyers were able to work on their individual cases.
There is no formal certification required to defend capital cases in
Alabama, but Amason said the college not only provided good instruction,
but allowed the trio to make valuable contacts.
"We talked to a lot of people hooked in on a national level who told us
that if we really needed them, to call and they would do everything they
could to make it down here and help us. That's the kind of thing that
could be a big benefit," Amason said.
(source: The Dothan Eagle)
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They all have law degrees hanging on their office walls, but 3 Dothan
lawyers went back to school recently and say they gained a wealth of
information.
Thomas Brantley, Patrick Amason and Billy Joe Sheffield - along with
investigator William Moeglin - attended the Clarence Darrow Death Penalty
Defense College at Depaul University in Chicago May 30 through June 4. The
trio said their brains were whizzing after several days of intense
instruction in death penalty defense. And while it may take months to
digest all of the information, they say constructing an effective capital
murder defense comes down to two things - time and money.
That's why Amason had scarcely landed back in Dothan when he rushed to the
office and filed motions for more time and more funds for an upcoming
capital case. Both were granted.
"What we hoped to accomplish was to improve our skills and learn more
about the national scope of death penalty litigation," said Brantley, who
has defended many capital murder cases in Houston County.
Sheffield said death penalty experts from around the country offered
instruction in a variety of areas, and stressed the need for funding in
order to craft an adequate defense. Sheffield said money allocated by
presiding judges in capital cases varies greatly.
The week-long seminar was limited to 42 defense lawyers with pending
capital cases. Instruction included lectures, demonstrations and small
group workshops where lawyers were able to work on their individual cases.
There is no formal certification required to defend capital cases in
Alabama, but Amason said the college not only provided good instruction,
but allowed the trio to make valuable contacts.
"We talked to a lot of people hooked in on a national level who told us
that if we really needed them, to call and they would do everything they
could to make it down here and help us. That's the kind of thing that
could be a big benefit," Amason said.
(source: The Dothan Eagle)
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