Crime Time: With Virginia Defense Attorneys

Evictions and landlord tenant law have a lot of similarities to the criminal justice system.  So we were lucky to have two awesome attorneys join us in this episode.  Dipti Pidikiti-Smith and Colleen O'Conor are two local legal aid attorneys sharing their own opinions (not those of their place of employment) in this episode.  They helped to educate us all on why tenants need attorneys when th...

A joke's punchline is not an excuse to assault someone yet we all either saw this happen live or saw it in the news or on social media after it happened at the Oscars.  In this episode we discuss what Virginia law is and how it could play out if you were to use your fists when someone makes fun of your or mouths off at you.  It can lead to a criminal charge in Virginia even if you are just re...

We welcome back the Honorable Judge David Bernhard who presides in Fairfax County Circuit Court.  He answers our questions about what he found surprising switching from the role of attorney to judge.   He also gives us some insight into what a judge is thinking as people appear in the courtroom.  We discuss how judges must balance justice for the community and victims and making sure everyone is s...

Criminal Justice Reform is always something that needs changes.  Sometimes we take steps forward and then go backwards.  There are always issues for the legislature, judges, attorneys, officers, probation officers, jails, mental health and treatment providers, and other stakeholders to address.  We are lucky to have the Honorable Judge William Jarvis join us in the second part of our episodes on t...

Criminal Justice Reform is always something that needs changes.  Sometimes we take steps forward and then go backwards.  There are always issues for the legislature, judges, attorneys, officers, probation officers, jails, mental health and treatment providers, and other stakeholders to address.  We are lucky to have the Honorable Judge William Jarvis join us in a 2 part episode on the unintended c...

A year into our podcast and we thought we would start the 2nd season off with with the Honorable Judge David Bernhard who presides in Fairfax County Circuit Court.  David lets us in on his journey to becoming a judge.  We were honored to him as a guest on the show.  We really hope you enjoy hearing about his path to becoming a judge just as we did. LEGAL DISCLAIMER: If you are listening to this po...

To celebrate our 1 year anniversary, we decided to recognize and celebrate our guests by holding a poddy award ceremony for them!  We love each and every guest that appeared on our show.  We are humbled and honored that each of these guests agreed to come onto our show.  Thank you to each and every one of you!  You all are awesome!  You helped us make our show valuable to our listeners! LEGAL DISC...

Move Over (or slow down)! This is our public service announcement episode to all who drive on the roads in Virginia.  As defense attorneys who see these cases in court all the time and as drivers on these same roads, we find many people do not seem to know this law or they fail to understand how to comply with this law.  This episode is all about helping people avoid causing harm to someone on the...

In this episode, we discuss how catching an embezzlement charge can impact your ability to get employment, be accepted into the school of your dreams, or even cause issues with obtaining clearance or a promotion for your current job.  While both larceny and embezzlement charges are very serious, there are many not-so-subtle differences between the two that can prove to have different consequences....

So, we happened upon this YouTube video https://youtu.be/zCUev5nV5kM where the incident being videotaped occurred at a local jail in our area.  So we brought on a friend and fellow attorney Amy Bradley to  join us in this episode since she does criminal defense but also used to be a journalist.  We talk about whether the person video taping was committing a crime, what constitutional rights were b...

You may have noticed that we focus a lot on Fairfax in our podcasts since the four hosts all have offices there.  In this episode,  friend and fellow attorney Rex Flynn joins us with an Arlington County practitioner's perspective.  We also explore his efforts in diversifying the legal field through his leadership roles with the Arlington County Bar Association and The Northern Virginia Black...

This is an episode you do not want to miss.  We are excited to have our guest speaker Tati King join us in this episode to talk about what it was like to go to prison and what it is like to be out of prison.  Tati is real, genuine, and honest as he owns the past mistakes he made.  He also shows vulnerability as he opens up about how he felt while doing time, missing time with his son and family, a...

Driving in Northern Virginia is a necessity for many people.  But, did you know there are many different ways you can lose your license?  You could lose it for medical reasons, not having insurance, accumulating too many points, or when the charge you face in court requires or allows a suspension of your license.  This can be devastating for anyone facing this situation.  Many people need to be ab...

In this episode, we welcome back our guest Blake Woloson, a veteran criminal defense attorney with decades of experience.   When you or someone you love is charged with a criminal offense it can be scary, confusing, overwhelming, and even embarrassing.  You probably do not want to broadcast the pending charges to your friends and neighbors.  So maybe you start looking online or asking your attorne...

Today we welcome back a guest, Blake Woloson who subbed in as a sub co-host for Alberto when he was out recovering.  We had a great 2021!  We started this podcast and managed to get episodes out every Tuesday morning!  We explored various criminal justice topics.  We had on a variety of local guest attorneys who had insight on other areas of law impacted by criminal cases.  We had on a Virginia Se...

Times are changing in the criminal justice system and technology is big for everyone these days. In this episode we welcome back our dear friend Chris Holley.  He has been a guest on previous episodes but today he helps us close out the year with our last episode as he subs in as a co-host for Alberto Salvado.  We are also lucky to have a guest on today.  Jazz Hampton joins us to talk about his co...

We welcome back local criminal defense attorney Blake Woloson as a sub host for Alberto Salvado in this episode.  We talk about how choosing to have a case heard in front of a jury as opposed to a bench trial with a judge is different. You have a lot more things to consider when your client exercises their constitutional right to a jury trial. You have to evaluate these issues and help your client...

When you have a criminal or traffic case in court you want all the information you can get. In this episode we have local experienced criminal defense attorney Mary Nerino join us to tell us about some creative ways she has found to defend her clients.  You have a right to "FOIA!!!"  FOIA stands for Freedom of Information Act.  Doing a FOIA request allows you to request information from...

Part 2 of our Sentencing Episodes In this episode we welcome back Mark Petrovich and Thomas Walsh for part 2 of our episode about sentencing.  Last time we focused on federal sentencing so now we turn the focus to sentencing in the state courts when someone is convicted of a criminal offense.  We explore different ways people can be sentenced. Sometimes there is an agreement with a prosecutor for...

You have heard us mention him in various episodes of our podcast but the man, the myth, the legend Blake Woloson finally joins us not as a guest but as a guest sub host to fill in for Alberto Salvado.  In this episode, we discuss all things Rittenhouse.  That case happened in Wisconsin so today we explore what it could have been like in Virginia.  We also analyze why things went the way they do an...

It is hard to fill Alberto's shoes but we once again have James Freeman Aka Jimmy/Jim joining us to sub in as a host today.  The Holidays are around the corner (or for some started before Halloween).  Many people look forward to the holiday season as there are parties, lots of food and drinks, time off from work, and more free time to spend with friends and family.  However, all that free tim...

With one of our fellow co-hosts out we had to call in reinforcements and today we are lucky to have a guest host fill in for Alberto.  James Freeman, otherwise known as Jimmy or Jim or Mr. Fairfax joins us a sub host in today's episode.  We are talking about DUI cases that involve drugs instead of alcohol.  These types of cases are different than a typical DUI case with alcohol where you have...

Part 1 of our first two episodes on criminal sentencing   We are honored to have the experienced criminal defense attorney duo Mark Petrovich and Thomas Walsh join us in this episode.  They both have practiced criminal defense for a long time in Northern Virginia in both the state and federal courts.  In this episode they school us on all things related to federal sentencing. If you are charged in...

In this episode we are lucky to have two elder attorneys join us as guests.  Cary  Cucinelli and Jesci Norrington are attorneys with Cucinelli Geiger, PC in Fairfax , Virginia.  They are dedicated to doing whatever they can do to help protect their elderly clients from being taken advantage of by family, friends, predators who target the elderly, nursing homes, etc.  They make sure the proper docu...

Ever been driving home and see flashing lights ahead of you and think Oh, Crap...Police?!  Roadblocks or checkpoints as they are sometimes called are set up by police in various places for different reasons.  Listen to this episode of our podcast as an experienced defense attorney Matthew McConnell joins us in this discussion about what happens at a checkpoint, what is needed to prove these cases...