Two Major Courtroom Victories Show Why Every Client Deserves Relentless, Equal Advocacy
As some of my colleagues and opponents know, I take a very dim view of the government prosecuting individuals who are in the throes of a mental breakdown. Now, upfront, I have been cautious to assert this defense because many of my fellow defense attorneys dilute it by making the claim too often. Simply because someone has mental illness does not mean they are in the throes of it when their alleged crime was committed
I am talking about it when the illness is active and obviously present. This calendar year alone, I now have three cases that have either resulted in minimal impact or been dismissed outright. One was where my client was in the middle of a psychiatric episode, and he allegedly spit on an EMT—charged with assault. He ended up being admitted to the hospital. That Case ended up with a minor misdemeanor that goes away after 6 months. The anguish of riding the case out for my client was crushing. I was not going to budge. We prevailed.
The second case was that my client was actually in the psych unit but unstable. He was having religious delusions. In this state of mind, he supposedly damaged a water pipe in the ceiling by, out of nowhere (unprovoked), leaping up in the air and pulling a pipe down. The client ended up with a 10-day involuntary commitment. The case was ultimately dismissed on a witness issue, but I was confident I could prevail in trial.
The third one was resolved with an offer on Friday. It is set for jury trial. My client has in the LEIN system an order adjudicating him legally incapacitated. His crime was allegedly assaulting a hospital worker. He, too, ended up with a 10-day involuntary stay. He was offered an excessive noise ticket. I had berated the prosecutor on the record for his failure to do the right thing. I reminded him of our State Supreme Court’s rule of ethics imposed on prosecutors to seek justice. Well, finally justice is served.
I am hard-pressed to understand how the government could prosecute in these cases. The individuals allegedly harmed or damaged property; respectfully assume the risk. It is part of the job. These clients have to needlessly endure the heavy weight of being prosecuted. The anguish is real. Now some may say, they should be medicated. Sure. The problem is meds change. Some fail. And the medical system is ill-equipped to help these folks.
I have dedicated my career to fighting for the mentally ill accused of crimes. Pressure, however, must be placed on those who authorize these charges.
Happy Sunday
Michael L “Miko” Steinberg, Esq.
