State v. Mr. C. (Maricopa County Superior Court No. 2002012644CR): Mr. C. was at his house when renters let his ex-girlfriend in. She began taking some of Mr. C.’s belongings, and he waved a gun on the back patio. Neighbors called the police, who subsequently arrested Mr. C. We were able to demonstrate that he was justified in his defense of property, and all charges were dismissed.
(Maricopa County Superior Court No. 8577032CR): Ms. B.’s husband alleged that during an argument she had pointed a gun at him. In reality, she was throwing the guns from his gun collection out the window. He panicked, went outside, and yelled that she had pointed a gun at him. We were able to show there was no true assault, and the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office dismissed all charges.
State v. Mr. H. (Maricopa County Superior Court No. 200111038786CR): Mr. H. had two guests at his house that robbed him of all of his possessions. He spoke on a cell phone with one of the people, who agreed to sell his laptop back to him. When they arrived at a predetermined location, Mr. H. had a friend present. A fight ensued and Mr. H.’s friend used a taser on one of the robbers. We were able to show that Mr. H. never possessed a weapon, nor was he aware that his friend was going to use a weapon. Therefore, all charges were dismissed by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
(Maricopa County Superior Court No. 1999004298CR): Mr. C. called an Escort Service for a dancer to arrive at his home. He received a knock on his door from two dancers with a “bouncer.” They told him the fee was double, and when he declined, the “bouncer” insisted on an “appearance fee”. When Mr. C. declined, he was attached by the bouncer. He eventually got the bouncer to leave his house by pointing a shotgun at him. We were able to show (through extensive interviews) that the bouncer had assaulted Mr. C. and was lying about Mr. C. “robbing” him. We also filed a Motion to Suppress evidence based on an illegal search, and all charges were dismissed by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.
DISMISSED | Aggravated Assault with a Gun (Maricopa County Superior Court No. 200000378CR): Mr. H. was charged with Aggravated Assault with a Weapon after his girlfriend, (who was drunk at the time) told police he threatened her with a gun. We were able to show that she was being untruthful and was highly intoxicated at the time of her allegation. The Pinal County Attorney’s Office subsequently filed a Motion to Dismiss all charges.
(Kyrene Justice Court No. JC2006131746): Mr. V. was at Axis / Radius nightclub in Scottsdale when a fight broke out. As all parties were being escorted from the club, police claim that Mr. V. was seen shouting profanities and attempting to push his way towards others involved in the fight. He eventually used profanity towards the officers, and he was shot six to eight times with a pepper ball gun by police. He was then taken to the ground and handcuffed. We were able to show the prosecutor that Mr. V. was actually trying to protect his brother, who had been beaten up by other patrons, and he was acting reasonably in the situation. We also questioned the officers’ version of the facts. The prosecutor then dismissed all charges.
(University Lakes Justice Court No. JC2006161187): Ms. R. was a student at ASU. She had gotten into an argument with her dorm roommate, who claimed that Ms. R. was threatening her without specifically stating she would do physical violence. The case was set to bench trial, and on the day of trial the State had not subpoenaed their necessary witnesses. The State attempted to continue the case, and we objected. When the State moved to dismiss so they could merely re-file the case on a later date, we asked the judge to dismiss the case “with prejudice.” That motion was granted. The State then moved for a motion to reconsider and they were denied. Ms. R. was facing a possibility of up to six months in jail.
NOT CHARGED | AGGRAVATED ASSAULT – (Maricopa County) (DMC No. 6977): Ms. K. had a very volatile relationship with her boyfriend and had recently broken up with him. When she went to his house to retrieve her items, he became abusive and violent towards her. Ms. K. had 2 male companions who then engaged in a fight with her boyfriend. He suffered a concussion and some various broken bones as a result of the fight, and he sought to have her charged with Aggravated Assault and Conspiracy to Commit Aggravated Assault. After having Ms. K. take a polygraph test (which we submitted to the Detective), we were able to show that in fact her ex-boyfriend had attacked her 2 male companions, who were utilizing self-defense. No charges were brought against her, and she avoided being charged with a crime that carried a range of 5 to 15 years in prison.
NOT CHARGED | ASSAULT/DOMESTIC VIOLENCE – (Phoenix Police Department) (DMC No. 7063): Mr. C. had been married to a wife whom he had found on the internet from another country. They had a child in common. They began arguing when his wife took out a knife and cut him on the arm and ran outside with their baby. Police arrived and observed marks on his wife’s face. Each said the other person had struck them first. Since the husband and wife were now getting a divorce and because the information received was in dispute, we were able to convince the Phoenix Police Department to not file charges.
DISMISSED | SEXUAL ASSAULT & KIDNAPPING (Maricopa County Superior Court No. CR2006-172515): Mr. R. was at a bar when a young woman began “hitting” on him. They went out to his vehicle, and they engaged in consensual oral sex. The girl had been drinking heavily, then went back inside. When confronted by her friends, she said she was forced into having sex with Mr. R. The police came, contacted Mr. R. in the parking lot, and questioned him. He initially denied any sexual conduct (because he was married), then finally told them he had engaged in consensual sex. We were able to show that the police had lost audio and video recordings (and thereby destroyed evidence), combined with the alleged victim now claiming she was drunk and didn’t remember much of the incident at all. Ultimately the State moved to dismiss all charges just prior to trial. Mr. R. had been facing potentially over 30 years in prison.