Video – Should A Criminal Defense Attorney Prepare A Case Differently Depending Upon The County?

Ray Hrdlicka – Host – Attorneys.Media

“Do you find a significant difference between counties, Alameda County, San Francisco County, Santa Clara County? Do you prepare the case differently? Let’s say the same crime, and would you prepare it differently between the counties?”

Andrew Dósa – Criminal Defense Attorney – Alameda County, CA

“The answer is yes. Certainly, if I don’t know the Judge, I want to be a little bit better prepared because I want to know who the Judge is, find out a little bit about the Judge. I want to find out a little more about the system itself. How a courtroom and a District Attorney may approach certain cases. So, for example, the Mariposa case I mentioned earlier, I want to find out what Mariposa county is doing with marijuana grow cases or possession cases. There is a county ordinance that has adjusted how the District Attorney prosecutes. So, I wanted to know that going in…that’s helpful for me. If I need to know what the Judge is like, then I can be prepared for that. I called an attorney and he responded out of Mariposa County to give me a little information. Like the District Attorney drives those cases more than the Judges. If I can persuade the District Attorney, I’ve got the Judge that will go along with the program.

My general thought would be why would a Judge not like a deal that the District Attorney would approve of, because they technically represent the people of the state of California, although realistically they represent the county.”