Why Do Most Defendants Get the Order of Mitigation Completely Wrong—And Pay the Price?
(Click the Play button above to listen to the whole podcast.) At a legal conference in San Diego a few years ago, […]
Why Do So Many Defendants Treat Their Lawyer Like a Nanny—And Stay Quiet Even When It Hurts Them?
(Click the Play button above to listen to the whole podcast) About a year ago, Michael Santos and I had a tough […]
Why Will a Federal Judge Be More Inclined to Listen If They See Their Own Values in You?
(Click the Play button to listen to the whole podcast) Data suggests people are more likely to help you if they recognize […]
Hardest Part of Getting Out of Prison: Why Reentry Is Harder Than You Think
What’s the Hardest Part of Getting Out of Prison? It’s not the bars. It’s doing the work every day without knowing when—or […]
Do White Collar Defendants Go to Dangerous Prisons? The Honest Answer.
Sometimes, but not always. Placement depends on your sentence length, background, and behavior. Most white collar defendants are placed in minimum-security prison […]
What Most Defendants Get Wrong About Cooperation
This blog closes out our 10-part series based on the New York Times article about Hugo Mejia. You can read the full […]
Why Letting the BOP Choose Your Prison Can Hurt You
This blog shares another insight from our New York Times article about Hugo Mejia. You can read the full article [here]. It […]
Your Lawyer Won’t Prepare You for Prison—Here’s Why
This post shares excerpts and insights from our New York Times article about Hugo Mejia. You can read the full article [here]. […]
The Pre-Sentence Interview Mistake That Costs You More Time
This post shares excerpts and insights from our New York Times article about Hugo Mejia. You can read the full article [here]. […]
What Happens If You Deny Guilt After Pleading Guilty
This post shares insights and excerpts from our New York Times article about Hugo Mejia. You can read the full article [here]. […]
What George Santos Got Wrong About Federal Sentencing
When I got sentenced to 18 months in a minimum-security federal prison camp, people said I didn’t deserve a second chance. I […]
Waiting for Trial Is Not Waiting Time: What the Minnesota COVID Fraud Case Teaches Defendants
The Feeding Our Future fraud case in Minnesota exposed something deeper than financial theft. As FBI Director Kash Patel put it, this […]