Category: Criminal Defense
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Criminal Defense Requires Strategy, Not Just Presence
In criminal courtrooms across the country, and certainly here in Utah, it’s not uncommon to see attorneys standing beside their clients with little more than a file and a few…
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Monarrez v. Utah Depโt of Transp., 2016 UT 10
In this appeal the Utah Supreme Court addressed how courts should interpret statutes and legislative intent behind statutes.ย
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State v. Canton, 2013 UT 44
ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย How should a court determine the ordinary meaning of nontechnical terms of a statute?
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Mitigation in Utah Criminal Defense: Beyond the Question of Guilt
When the public imagines a criminal case, they often reduce it to a single question: Did the defendant do it? Yet experienced criminal defense attorneys in Utah know the reality…
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White-Collar Crimes: Power, Profit and Deceit
“Money is a cruel mistress. Pay attention to her or she will leave you for someone else.”
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State v. Pham, 2016 UT App 105
What evidence is sufficient to support a finding of serious bodily injury?
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State v. Ricks, 2013 UT App 238
Did sufficient evidence support a conviction for depraved indifference murder?
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Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 (1984)
What must be established in a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel in criminal cases?
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State v. Frausto, 2002 UT App 259
ย What words in jury instructions should the court offer further definition for?
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State v. Couch, 635 P.2d 89 (Utah 1981)
When must a court further define terms of common usage given in a jury instruction?
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Pink-Collar Crimes: How Trusted Employees Steal Millions
“Trust can be very expensive, especially when it is invested in the wrong person.”
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State v. Abonza, 2025 UT App 101 – Analysis
In State v. Abonza, 2025 UT App 101, the Utah Court of Appeals delivered a sharp reminder: Police need probable cause at the moment of arrest, not a prediction that…
