Posted on June 06, 2008 in Criminal Defense

Maryland Criminal Attorney – Maryland Criminal Lawyer – Baltimore Criminal Attorney – Baltimore Criminal Lawyer – There is an interesting case in the Baltimore Sun today that brings up a topic that I deal with regulary that almost no one, including most attorneys really undestands – extradition. An experienced Maryland criminal attorney should be well versed in the laws and procedures involved in extradition, which is the legal process by which someone who is wanted in a particular state is brought back to that state when they are captured in another.

Unfortunately, as I said, most lawyers are not well versed in extradition law. Not only that, but more often than not people wait until it is too late to consult an attorney. When a person is captured in a state other than the one in which he or she is wanted, that person will be held on what is called a fugitive warrant. The person will brought in front of a judge or a magistrate, usually within 24 hours of his or her arrest. At this hearing, the person will be told that he or she is wanted in another state, in this example Maryland, and asked if he wishes to challenge or waive his extradition to Maryland. It is critical that a defendant or his or her family contact an experienced criminal attorney prior to this hearing because if the wrong decision is made, the person may not be entitled to bail. In Maryland if a person waives his extradition then he is not eligible for bail. It seems counterintuitive but if a defendant in Maryland elects to challenge his extradition, then he is eligible for bail. Bail is granted frequently particularly when the offense is a relatively minor and non-violent one. If the defendant is granted bail then he has the option of returning to the state in which he is wanted to turn himself in, thereby avoiding the entire extradition process. This is significant because extradition, even when it is waived can take up to 10 days or even 2 weeks during which time the person is held in the local jail or detention center without bail. In many cases the person unecessarily spends this time in jail for a case in which he is unlikely to be incarcerated, even if he is ultimately convicted. Most States have similar procedures and rules concerning extradition and if and under what circumstances the person is entitled to bail, but there are differences. That is why it is crucial to consult with an experienced criminal attorney prior to the initial fugitive hearing at which a defendant will be asked to make the decision as to whether to waive or challenge extradition.

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 Posted on June 05, 2008 in Driving Under the Influence

Maryland DUI Attorney –Maryland DWI Attorney – Maryland Drunk Driving Attorney – Baltimore DUI DWI Lawyer – Baltimore Drunk Driving Lawyer – I have received many questions from people from out of state who have been charged with either DUI, DWI or both here in Maryland. As a former prosecutor (or Assistant State’s Attorney as they are known in Maryland) and a full time criminal defense attorney specializing in DWI and DUI law for the past 15 years, I have handled thousands of these cases. I will briefly explain the criminal and motor vehicle administrative consequences of receiving a DWI or DUI in Maryland but please feel free to contact me for a free consulation that will include a more thorough explanation as well as a review of the specific facts and circumstances of your case. Brian Thompson

The questions invariably concern the procedures and possible sanctions in both the DUI, DWI criminal proceeding in District Court as well as the possible sanctions that will be levied against the person’s privilege to drive. One of the most common questions I receive is whether or not the person will have to return to Maryland or if the attorney can appear in court on the person’ behalf. In Maryland the defendant must appear in court for the trial of the DUI or DWI. In some states a lawyer can appear on behalf of the defendant but that is not the case in Maryland. For a first offender the possible penalties that can be imposed range from a $500 fine up to a one year prison sentence or a combination of fines and incarcertation. A person may also be required to serve a period of supervised probation which can be transferred under some circumstances to the person’s home state. If a person has been previously convicted of a DUI or a DWI in Maryland or any other state the penalties can be increased or enhanced as it is termed in Maryland to a maximum of a three year prison term. Is some cases a first offender or even a subsequent offender may receive what is called probation before judgment. In this disposition the court withholds the guilty finding and places the person on a period of probation which is usually supervised. The primary benefit of this outcome is that the DUI or DWI will not appear on the person’s motor vehicle record and therefore does not have to be disclosed on most backround checks for employment or other purposes and cannot be used against the person by their insurance company to justify a rate increase or the denial of insurance. Regarding sanctions by the motor vehicle administration, a person with an out of state license will be subject to a suspension of their privilege to drive in the state of Maryland if they refuse the breath test, have a reading of above .08 or more or are convicted of a DUI or DWI in criminal court. Under most circumstances this information will also be transmitted back to the motor vehicle administration of the person’s home state where they may also be sanctioned.

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 Posted on June 04, 2008 in Criminal Defense

Maryland Criminal Defense Attorney who represented a man in the Howard County determined that under Maryland Criminal Law his client in Howard County murder case was guilty of being an accessory after the fact to murder. In the case which is featured in the Baltimore Sun today. A Maryland Criminal Defense Lawyer determined that the fact that his client drove the killer to an apartment the day after he claimed he had killed someone and purchased bleach for him to wash his clothes were sufficient to convict him of being an accessory after the fact to the murder he committed.

This case illustrates the proposition that one does not have to actually participate in the actual commission of a crime to be guilty of being an accessory to it. The classic example is the getaway driver in a bank robbery being guilty of first degree murder if he co-conspirators kill someone while carrying out the robbery. The driver of the getaway car in this hypothetical is guilty of first degree felony murder even if he never touched a weapon or entered the bank and even if his co-conspirators promised him nobody would be hurt.

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 Posted on June 04, 2008 in Medical Malpractice

Under Maryland Rule 2-501(a), summary judgment is only appropriate where there is no dispute of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Therefore a motion for summary judgment should be denied where the opposing party has shown that "there is a genuine dispute as to a material fact by proffering facts which would be admissible as evidence." Beatty v. Trailmasters Products, Inc., 330 Md. 726, 737 (1993). "A material fact is a fact the resolution of which will somehow affect the outcome of the case." Carter v. Aramark Sports and Entertainment, 153 Md.App. 210, 224 (2003) (quoting Sterling v. Johns Hopkins Hosp., 145 Md.App. 161, 167 (2002), cert. denied, 371 Md. 264 (2002)).

"When ruling on a motion for summary judgment, a court must view the facts, including all inferences drawn therefrom, in the light most favorable to the opposing party." Carter, 153 Md.App. at 224, (citing Sterling, 145 Md. App. at 168, quoting Jones v. Mid-Atlantic Funding Co., 362 Md. 661, 676 (2001)). "The moving party bears the burden of establishing the absence of a genuine issue of material fact." Carter, 153 Md.App. at 224, (citing Sterling, 145 Md.App. at 168, citing Adickes v. S.H. Kress & Co., 398 U.S. 144, 157 (1970)), therefore the Defendant must show the absence of disputed facts. Furthermore, the standard is such that the trial court is not to draw inferences in favor of the moving party. Rather, if the facts are undisputed, but these facts "are susceptible of more than one permissible inference, the choice between those inferences should not be made as a matter of law." Carter, 153 Md.App. at 225, (citing, Porter v. General Boiler Casing Co., 284 Md. 402, 413 (1979), quoting Fenwick Motor Co. v. Fenwick, 258 Md. 134, 138 (1970)).

For more information about summary judgment in Maryland, please contact Maryland Super Lawyer and adjunct professor Andrew G. Slutkin.

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 Posted on May 28, 2008 in Medical Malpractice

A New York jury on Tuesday ordered a hospital to pay a former patient more than $17 million in a medical malpractice case. The woman claimed a Caesarean delivery in 2003 damaged her organs and resulted in the removal of the transplanted pancreas she received in 1995 to treat her diabetes. A copy of an article regarding the case can be found here.

Injuries during childbirth are always tragic because they turn a usually joyous event into a catastrophy.

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 Posted on May 28, 2008 in Medical Malpractice

The parents of an 18-year old who died as a result of a negligent liposuction procedure were awarded $20.5 million on Friday by a Philadelphia jury. The young girl died two days after undergoing liposuction during which a blood vessel in her neck was severed. Despite falling oxygen levels, the surgeon did not call an ambulance until the patient was near death, after almost 2 1/2 hours in the office.

I handled a case just like this where a woman went into cardiac arrest at a plastic surgeon’s office and subsequently died. It was a tragedy, especially considering the fact that the surgery was elective. In the cases, it is critical to look at the type of anesthesia that was used and whether it was administered by a qualifed health care provider.

We handle cases like these all of the time in my practice.

Contact Andrew G. Slutkin with further questions or inquiries at 410-385-2786

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 Posted on May 28, 2008 in Medical Malpractice

Documents filed this week in an Ohio court revealed that lawyers for the Cleveland Clinic and the mother of a brain-damaged child settled a medical malpractice lawsuit on May 1 for $10 million. Apparently, a jury heard the two-week trial and reached a $15.9 million verdict, but the lawyers settled the case before the verdict form was signed. Part of the settlement called for the verdict forms to remain sealed, but the verdict papers were placed into the public case file by accident, revealing the jury’s award, which would have been one of the largest verdicts ever in Ohio. A copy of the article regarding the settlement can be found here.

What is interesting here is that the defense apparently tried to keep the verdict secret but failed. Typically, health care defendants and health care insurers like to keep such verdicts quiet so as not to encourage other cases.

As I have said before, cases involving permanent injuries to children are some of the most difficult cases that Maryland and District of Columbia medical malpractice attorneys pursue because they usually involve multiple expert witnesses, such as obstetricians, neonatologists, pediatric neurologists, placental pathologists, life care planners and economists. This makes them extremely time-consuming and expensive to pursue. Nevertheless, these cases are extremely important to pursue, so that compensation can be obtained for the parents and child, in order to provide the child with best medical and other care that the child can have, so as to maximize the child’s abilities and comfort. Nothing is more important.

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 Posted on May 28, 2008 in Medical Malpractice

A jury has ordered a Wisconsin physician to pay $3.2 million in damages to a man whose leg was amputated after alleged malpractice. According to news reports, the doctor examined the patient at least five times before a specialist determined that the patient had muscle damage, nerve damage and reduced blood flow in the leg, causing the amputation. A copy of an article describing the case can be found here.

These cases are almost always devastating because of the difficulty the amputation causes for the rest of the person’s life. In Maryland, the cost or advanced prosthetics should always be included in the malpractice case so as to give the person the best chance of leading a normal life.

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 Posted on May 22, 2008 in Medical Malpractice

This past weekend, there was a fascinating story in the New York Times about doctors who say “I’m sorry” when a medical mistake is made. A copy of the article can be found here. According to the article, some of the leading hospitals in the country are instituting policies that encourage doctors to apologize when a medical mistake is made. What a novel idea!

In my experience, one of the most frequent reasons that people contact my office to investigate a potential Maryland medical malpractice case, is because their doctor will not tell them what happened when something went wrong. These new steps should help doctors avoid medical malpractice cases.

Interestingly, Maryland recently enacted legislation that makes apologies by doctors inadmissible at trial in medical malpractice cases, furthering the goals stated in the New York Times article.

Contact Andrew G. Slutkin with further questions or inquiries at 410-385-2786

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 Posted on May 21, 2008 in Medical Malpractice

An Illinois hospital and doctor have agreed to pay $15.35 million to settle a lawsuit filed by a woman whose son suffered brain damages during the delivery in 2001. The child, Cody Smithey, now suffers from cerebral palsy and mental retardation arising from the unsuccessful use of a vacuum extractor, which was used to assist in delivery of the child.

Interestingly, I successfully handled a similar medical malpractice case in Maryland approximately 15 years ago in which an obstetrician used a vacuum extractor to assist in the delivery of a premature infant. Such use was contraindicated by the manufacturer. Because the obstetrician used the device, the child developed a severe (grade 4) intraventricular brain bleed, which left the child severely and profoundly disabled. The success of the case allowed the family to better care for the child.

As I have said before, cerebral palsy and birth trauma cases like this are some of the most difficult cases that Maryland medical malpractice attorneys pursue because they usually involving multiple expert witnesses, such as obstetricians, neonatologists, pediatric neurologists, placental pathologists, life care planners and economists. This makes them extremely time-consuming and expensive to pursue. Nevertheless, these cases are extremely important to pursue, so that compensation can be obtained for the parents and child, in order to provide the child with best medical and other care that the child can have, so as to maximize the child’s abilities and comfort. Nothing is more important.

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