Denise Gragg, Esq. - California Attorneys for Criminal Justice

California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
2015 Criminal Defense
Seminar
Friday, December 11, 2015
Charles R. Garry Memorial Lecture
Tamara Brady, Esq.
A Chief Trial Deputy with the Colorado Public Defender's Office,
and co-counsel for Aurora movie theater shooting case
Trying the “Hopeless” Case
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Al Menaster, Esq.
The Year’s Cases
Ignacio Hernández, Esq.
2015 Legislative Review:
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Elizabeth Kelley, Esq.
Representing Clients with Mental Disabilities
Dan Simon, Professor
The Psychology of the Criminal Justice Process
David Wymore, Esq.
Voir Dire: Lessons Learned From the Death Wars
Denise Gragg, Esq. & Scott Sanders, Esq.
Discovery Overview: Brady and Informant Scandal in O.C.
Jeff Adachi, SF Public Defender, Esq.
Crucial Issues for our Times
Hotel Nikko San Francisco
222 Mason Street, San Francisco, CA 94102
Seminar Coordinator: Jeffrey E. Thoma
Seminar Committee Co-Chairs: Jacqueline Goodman, & Allison Zuvela
For more information, and to register go to: http://www.cacj.org/events
EVENT SCHEDULE
Friday, December 11, 2015
Monterey Room, Hotel Nikko
5:00 pm — 6:00 pm
Charles R. Garry Memorial Lecture
Tamara Brady, Esq.
Trying the “Hopeless” Case: Picking the Most Receptive Jury
6:00 pm— 7:00 pm
Reception in Golden Gate Room
7:00 pm— 8:00 pm
CACJ Board Meeting in Carmel Room
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Nikko Ballroom, Hotel Nikko
7:30 am—8:30 am
Registration – Coffee and Muffins Provided
Al Menaster, Esq.
The Year’s Cases
9:45 am— 10:15 am
Ignacio Hernández, Esq.
2015 Legislative Review: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Break
10:30 am—11:30 am
Elizabeth Kelley, Esq.
Representing Clients with Mental Disabilities
Awards Luncheon
Break
1:15 pm— 2:15 pm
Dan Simon, Professor
The Psychology of the Criminal Justice Process
2:15 pm— 3:15 pm
David Wymore, Esq.
Voir Dire: Lessons Learned From the Death Wars
3:15 pm— 3:30 pm
Break
3:30 pm— 4:30 pm
Denise Gragg, Esq. & Scott Sanders, Esq.
Discovery Overview: Brady and Informant Scandal in O.C.
4:30 pm— 5:30 pm
Jeff Adachi, SF Public Defender, Esq.
Crucial Issues for our Times
Charles R Garry Memorial Lecture
Friday, December 11, 2015 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Nikko Hotel - San Francisco
Featuring Tamara Brady
Trying the “Hopeless” Case: Picking the Most Receptive Jury
When you find yourself in an uphill battle, choosing the right jury may be the key to winning – even when it
seems impossible. Hear about lessons learned from someone who was on a team of defenders fighting a very
steep uphill battle and ended up saving their client’s life. It is all about choosing those jurors most open to
the themes of your case!
Tamara Brady, Esq.
Tamara Brady graduated from Colorado State University in 1988 and
University of Colorado Law School in 1991. She has been a Colorado
public defender since 1991. Tamara has been defending capital cases
since 2000, and in 2006 she was named chief trial deputy. Brady is on the
faculty of the National College of Capital Voir Dire. Tamara Brady most
recently was co-counsel for the trial and sentencing phases defending the
Aurora movie theater shooting case for James Holmes.
"They are trying to execute our client, we will do whatever we can to save his life."
04/26/2015 The Denver Post
History of the Charles R. Garry Memorial Lecture
Charles R. Garry
Charles Garry was an American civil rights attorney who represented a number of
high-profile clients in political cases during the 1960s and 1970s, including the
Peoples Temple in Jonestown during the 1978 tragedy that occurred at that location.
In 1968, he was retained by the Black Panther Party both as their chief counsel, and to
defend Huey P. Newton in the 1967 slaying of Oakland Police Officer John Frey.
Newton was convicted on the lesser charge of manslaughter.
Subsequently, he defended Black Panther Chairman Bobby Seale. Garry was famous
for flair and courtroom dramatics, and one policeman, under intense questioning,
jumped from the witness stand and pulled his gun on him. Charles Garry served as
President of California Attorneys for Criminal Justice in 1979.
Previous Year’s Speakers:
| James Egar 2014 | John Cleary, 2013 | Natasha Minsker, 2012 |
Donald Specter, 2011 | Tony Tamburello & Karen Jo Koonan 2010 |
SPEAKER BIOS
Jeff Adachi, Esq.
Jeff Adachi is the
Public Defender of
the City and County
of San Francisco.
Before
being
elected as Public
Defender in March
2002, Mr. Adachi
worked as a deputy
public defender in
San Francisco for
15 years and in
private practice for
2 years. From 1998-2001, he served as the Chief
Attorney of the office. He has tried over 150 jury
trials, including numerous serious felony and
homicide cases, and has handled over 3,000
criminal matters throughout his career, including
some of the Bay Area’s highest profile cases.
Mr. Adachi served on the American Bar
Association’s Standing Committee on Legal Aid
and Indigent Defendants and is a member of the
National Board of Trial Advocacy. He is the
co-author of Chapter 25: Immunity for Testimony,
in the California Criminal Law Procedure and
Practice book, and a past board member of the
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice and the
San Francisco Bar Association. He is a past
president of the Asian American Bar Association
of the Greater Bay Area and the San Francisco
Japanese American Citizen’s League. He has been
a certified criminal law specialist since 1991. Mr.
Adachi has also taught with BAR/BRI bar review
for 15 years and has published five books on
passing the bar exam.
Denise Gragg, Esq.
Denise Gragg began her
legal career in private
practice in 1981. In 1984,
she worked with Juvenile
Defenders and joined the
Orange County Public
Defender’s Office two
years later. She started
with misdemeanor and
felony
preliminary
hearing assignments and
went on to felony trial
assignments and writs and appeal assignments;
she became a Deputy Public Defender in charge
of Harbor and North County branch courts in
1995. By 1996, she was a Deputy Public Defender, in charge of the Writs and Appeals Department. Beginning in 1998, Ms. Gragg was an
Assistant Public Defender in charge of capital
litigation. Her capital trials include, People v.
Hilbun (1996), People v. Famalaro (1997), and
People v. Abrams (2000). In 2012, she became
Associate Defender, County of Orange.
Ignacio
Hernández, Esq.
Ignacio
Hernández
founded the Hernández
Strategy Group in 2003 as
a full-service lobbying and
consulting
firm
for
non-profit organizations.
Criminal justice reform is his specialty. He has
testified before the Legislature more than 400 times
on criminal justice since 1999. Ignacio has been the
legislative director for CACJ at the state capitol since
2005. He is a former criminal defense attorney.
SPEAKER BIOS
Elizabeth Kelley, Esq.
Elizabeth
Kelley
is
a
criminal
defense
lawyer
based
in
Spokane,
Washington.
Her
family
settled in the Palouse Country
of
Washington Territory
in 1872; she was born and
raised in Spokane. She returned to the
Pacific Northwest in 2012. She travels throughout
the country working on cases involving people
with mental illness and intellectual/developmental
disabilities.
She is serving her third term on the board of the
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
(NACDL), chairs its Mental Health Committee,
has chaired the Membership Committee, and is a
Life Member. She has served on the ProblemSolving Courts Task Force and currently serves on
the Body Camera Task Force. She has been
appointed to the National Advisory Committee of
The ARC’s National Center on Criminal Justice
and Disability.
Elizabeth frequently lectures across the U.S. on
representing persons with mental disabilities and
frequently provides legal commentary for radio
and television. Her book reviews regularly appear
in The Federal Lawyer; and she hosts two internet
radio shows, Celebrity Court and Author Chats.
Al Menaster, Esq.
Albert Menaster has
served as a Deputy
Public Defender in Los
Angeles County since
1973, and was awarded
with the California
Attorneys for Criminal
Justice
Significant
Contributions to Criminal Justice Lifetime
Achievement
Award.
He was also named CPDA’s “Defender of the
Year” in 1987, and was chosen Defense Attorney
of the year by the LA County Bar Association in
2007. Al writes books, articles and lectures
frequently on a wide range of defense topics,
including computer technology for defense
attorneys, juvenile court practice, Proposition 115,
Three Strikes, Proposition 36, Courtroom
Evidence and Motion Practice. Al has argued
before the United States Supreme Court and
repeatedly before the California Supreme Court.
He has written and spoken at many programs for
CACJ and CPDA over the years, and has authored
amicus briefs with a remarkable success rate. Al is
a managing editor of CACJ's Forum magazine, for
which he writes a tech. column and book reviews,
as well as substantive legal articles.
Scott Sanders, Esq.
Sanders graduated from
University of Wisconsin
and Emory University
Law School. He has been
an attorney with the Orange County Public Defender’s Office for twenty
-one years, and currently
serves as an Assistant Public Defender. Sanders is
currently preparing for trial in two capital
cases. In one of the cases, People v. Dekraai, eight
people were killed in a hair salon located in Seal
Beach.
In January of 2014, the defense filed a motion,
accompanied by 15, 000 pages in exhibits, alleging
misconduct both in People v. Dekraai and in
multiple other serious cases. The motion also
detailed the prosecution’s improper use of an
informant in the case, and the government’s use of
a jail informant program that repeatedly concealed
its intentional violations of the Sixth Amendment. The trial court permitted four months of
hearings in which numerous prosecutors and members of law enforcement testified. During the hearings, the District Attorney’s Office admitted that
discovery was withheld in a number of cases. The
DA recently agreed to vacate a special circumstances murder conviction because of discovery
violations detailed in the motion.
SPEAKER BIOS
Dan Simon, Professor
Professor
Dan
Simon specializes in
the field of Law &
Psychology.
He
teaches
Criminal
Law, as well as
various courses in
the intersection of
law and psychology.
He also teaches a
course on law and
psychology at the USC Dornsife College of Letters,
Arts and Sciences.
Professor Simon is the author of In Doubt: The
Psychology of the Criminal Justice Process
(Harvard University Press, 2012). Professor Simon
has been a visiting professor at Yale Law School
and Harvard Law School. He earned an S.J.D.
degree from Harvard Law School, an MBA from
INSEAD in France, and an LL.B. from Tel Aviv
University. He worked as an attorney for the
Association for Civil Rights in Israel, and was a
member of the faculty of the University of Haifa
Law School before joining the USC Gould School
of Law in 1999. He is an ad hoc referee for the
National Science Foundation, a number of
academic presses, and various peer reviewed
journals in experimental psychology.
David Wynmore, Esq.
David
D.
Wymore
maintains
a
solo
practice
in
Boulder,
Colorado. He graduated
from Ohio State University
and University of Colorado
School of Law. He became
a Colorado Deputy Public
Defender in 1976 and the
Colorado Chief Trial Deputy from 1982 to 2004. As
the Chief Trial Deputy for
the statewide defender system, he represented
death eligible clients across the State of Colorado.
Mr. Wymore has taught trial tactics and death litigation across the United States as well as in
foreign countries. He has been on the faculty for
numerous national organizations involved with
training in capital litigation. He is primarily
recognized for his creation of the COLORADO
METHOD OF CAPITAL VOIR DIRE. He is the
founder of the National College of Capital Voir
Dire (NCCVD.org) at The University of Colorado
Wolf Law School, Boulder, Colorado.
2015 Annual Awards Luncheon
Saturday, December
12th from
11:30 a.m. -1:00 p.m.
Upcoming
Events
Congratulations
to
our
Award
Recipients
Nikko Hotel - San Francisco
Significant Contributions
to Criminal Justice
Lifetime Achievement Award
. . . And the award goes to . . .
Jack Earley
CACJ is proud to honor Jack M. Earley with the Lifetime
Achievement Award. Jack, former CACJ president, is renowned
among criminal defense attorneys. With more than 300 jury
trials, 90 homicide trials, 7 death penalty trials, and gavel-togavel coverage on Court TV (People v. Betty Broderick), Jack is
recognized as one of the leading attorneys in the state. Jack is a
frequent speaker at criminal defense and capital case training.
Aside from being a leader and a mentor to many, Jack is fun to
work with and a great cook. Congratulations Jack! You make us
proud.
When I began with the Orange County Public Defender office in
1983, there were three young attorneys who had just left our
office and opened up the firm of Eager, Early & Keller. Each of
them were role models for us as young trial attorneys. Each
would always be there if we had any questions. Over all the
years since then, Jack Earley has always been that kind of touch
stone for me. He has always come through for us in CACJ, as a
speaker at the Capital Case Seminar, or various other programs,
or to just give us sage advice. I cannot thank him enough for
always being there for CACJ, and for me personally.
Nancy Haydt, CACJ Death Penalty Committee Co-Chair
Jeffrey E. Thoma, CACJ President
In 1973, Jack M. Earley graduated from Loyola Law School and is now in private practice in Irvine, California. Mr. Earley is a past president of California Attorneys for Criminal Justice and now actively serves on CACJ’s Death Penalty Committee.
He is a Certified Criminal Law Specialist by the State Bar of California. Mr. Earley is
often called upon as an expert or consultant for issues regarding competence of
counsel. In addition, he is an associate professor at the University of California, Irvine
and a frequent speaker for national seminars regarding various criminal issues. He is
founding President of the Orange County Criminal Defense Bar Association.
As a trial lawyer, he has tried many complex cases in California: Over 90 homicide cases
to a jury, Over 300 jury trials, 7 death penalty cases to jury. Jack tried the first death penalty case in California. One of the first gavel to gavel cases shown on Court TV (People
v. Betty Broderick). Three not guilty by reason of insanity verdicts, including a Santa Barbara, California case
where a student ran over and killed four students (People v. David A ttias). Santa Barbara case in which a judge
was charged with serious felonies arising out of domestic issues with another woman (People v. Diana Hall).
courts.
He has also testified numerous times as an expert on attorney and client competency in Federal and State
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR
AWARD RECIPIENTS
Co-Legislator of the
Year Award
Co-Legislator of the
Year Award
Assemblymember
Reginald Jones-Sawyer
Assemblymember
Shirley Weber
As a member of the public safety committee for two years, Asm.
Jones-Sawyer has been a stalwart for promoting and protecting
thoughtful criminal justice policies. His leadership as the chair of
the Budget Subcommittee on Public Safety has also made a
significant impact on the positive trajectory our state is heading
towards. This year, Asm. Jones-Sawyer authored THREE CACJ
sponsored bills. His leadership helped our organization receive
two Governor signatures. Asm Jones-Sawyer helped CACJ
clarify the Penal Code to ensure that peace officers may be
charged with a felony for destroying or modifying digital images
or video recordings. Most importantly, he led the push to encourage the legislature to provide much needed reentry services, along
with free identification cards and driver's licenses, for exonerees.
CACJ looks forward to working with Asm. Jones-Sawyer for
years to come.
Dr. Weber has emphasized defending and promoting social
justice issues. This year, Dr. Weber took a strong stance on social
and criminal justice issues with three controversial, yet highly
needed, measures. Dr. Weber authored CACJ's historic legislation
on prosecutorial misconduct. After having our first attempt vetoed
by Governor Brown, CACJ needed a strong, courageous, and
influential legislator to lead our fight. Dr. Weber's leadership and
passionate speeches on the Assembly floor helped moved the
legislation forward. This first-of-its-kind legislation will lead the
way for other states to address the growing "epidemic" of
prosecutorial misconduct. Dr. Weber also authored the most comprehensive body camera legislation and passed the Racial
Profiling Act of 2015.
Assemblymember
Reginald Jones-Sawyer
Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr. most
recently, the Director of Asset Management
for the City of Los Angeles was elected in
November 2012, to represent California's
59th Assembly District. The entire district
lies within the county of Los Angeles and
includes the communities of South Los Angeles,
Florence-Firestone, Huntington Park and Walnut Park.
Assemblymember
Shirley Weber
Assembly Member Shirley Nash Weber was
re-elected in November of 2014 to represent
California's 79th Assembly District, which
includes the cities of Bonita, Chula Vista, La Mesa, Lemon
Grove, National City and San Diego.
She currently chairs the Assembly Committee on Budget, the
Assembly Select Committee on Higher Education in San Diego
County and the Assembly Select Committee on Campus Climate.
His history of public service includes serving as Chair of the LA She also serves on the Assembly Standing Committees on EducaCounty Small Business Commission, an Assistant Deputy Mayor tion, Higher Education and Appropriations. She served as
for the City of Los Angeles and Vice President of SEIU's (Local conferee in 2014 and as Chair in 2015 on the Joint Budget
Conference Committee.
721) Los Angeles Professional Managers Association.
The Jones-Sawyer family were early pioneers in the civil rights
movement. His uncle was one of the "Little Rock Nine"--high
school students who braved violent mobs to integrate Little Rock
Central High School in 1957; one of the most important and
documented events in our nation's history.
Jones-Sawyer earned a Bachelor of Science in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, and completed
the prestigious Harvard University, Kennedy School of
Government program, for senior executives in state and local
government.
Weber has been outspoken on inequities in the justice system,
corrections and policing. This is reflected in her policy initiatives,
including bills that ensure former inmates exercise their right to
vote, nullify forced arbitration in hate crime cases, require police
transparency in racial profiling and use-of-force incidents, and
require disclosure of prosecutorial misconduct to juries.
Assembly Member Weber has been a resident in the 79th
Assembly District for over 30 years. Her children attended public
school in the district and she was elected to the school board. As a
board member, and subsequent board president, she became
known for her advocacy for closing the achievement gap and a
higher standard of excellence for all children.
CACJ ANNUAL AWARDS LUNCEHON
PROGRAM
ADS
Upcoming Events
Join Us in Celebrating Our Honorees
By Placing A Congratulatory Announcement
in the Awards Luncheon Program
Significant Contributions to Criminal Justice
Lifetime Achievement Award
Jack Earley
Co-Legislator of the Year Award
Co-Legislator of the Year Award
Assemblymember Reginald Jones-Sawyer
Assemblymember Shirley Weber
SEMINAR INFORMATION
Cancellations/Substitutions:
Refunds, less a $30 processing fee, will be sent for those
cancellations received by Friday December 4th 2015.
Cancellations received after this date are not eligible for a
refund. It is possible, however, to substitute one person on
another’s registration, excluding Patron and Life Member
registrations. Substitutions are permitted for group
registrations.
Accommodations:
Hotel Nikko San Francisco
Free or Discounted Seminar Tuition:
222 Mason Street,
San Francisco, California 94102
Telephone: 415-394-1111
Life or Patron Members: To r egister for this seminar by
using your Tuition Waiver, a hard copy registration form
must be completed and faxed or mailed to the CACJ office.
Registrations not requiring payment CANNOT be processed
online.
To reserve a room at the special CACJ conference rate starting at $189.00 (plus tax) per night. Call (415) 394-1111
before 5:00 pm Friday, November 20, 2015 and mention
the CACJ Seminar. The hotel can not guarantee room availability after that time/date; reservations will be accepted on a
space available basis.
New Lawyer Division: The cost of lunch is not included
when using a free or discounted tuition waiver. A hard copy
registration form must be completed and faxed or mailed to
the CACJ office. Please select if you will be needing to
include lunch.
MCLE and Specialization Credits:
Lunch:
CACJ certifies this activity is approved for MCLE credit by
the State Bar of California. This includes 1.0 hours for the
Charles Garry Lecture on Friday night, and 6.75 hours for the
sessions on Saturday; for a total of 7.75 hours. This seminar
also offers Criminal Law Legal Specialization Credits, to be
announced.
Lunch is included in all tuition rates, except for Law Student
tuition, and those using a discounted or free tuition waiver.
Guests are welcome at the luncheon, please indicate on your
registration form, section 4, if you will be needing to
purchase an additional lunch.
Syllabus Materials:
Parking:
A digital syllabus will be emailed to all pre-registered
attendees before the seminar and serves as confirmation of
your seminar registration. Hard copies of the syllabus will
also be available for purchase, please check the box on the
registration form to have one for pick-up at Check-in.
The Hotel Nikko offers valet parking for overnight guests at
$50 per night, plus tax, with in and out privileges. Parking is
also available at several locations near by, visit http://
www.cacj.org/Events/Seminars/Annual-Criminal-Defense/
Parking-Information.aspx for more information
Group Discounts:
Groups of 5 or more that pre- register together as a group by
Friday December 4th, 2015 will receive a 15%
discount on their tuition. Group discount does not apply to
student and Attorney Members 0-5 year registrations, as their
registration has already been dramatically reduced. Discounts
cannot be used on-line, the completed registration form must
be faxed or emailed.