Let’s get something out of the way. I woke up feeling more snarky than usual and am quite undercaffeinated as I write this. Perhaps that’s why I chuckled when I got on my laptop and almost immediately got a pop-up ad for a “Relentless Criminal Defense Attorney in Phoenix”. It’s no one that I had ever heard of – and I’ve been doing this for 25 years – and it’s certainly not an attorney who has handled major high-profile cases or who regularly appears in Arizona federal courts handling complex white-collar and drug conspiracy charges. And what exactly does “relentless” even mean?
What is a "relentless" criminal defense attorney?
Dictionary.com defines ‘relentless’ as not easing or slackening; maintaining speed, vigor, or being unyieldingly severe, strict, or harsh. So basically, this criminal defense attorney is saying that he or she is rigid and harsh. In my world, I see that as operating with blinders and not seeing the big picture. Just imagine if your criminal defense stuck with just one theory of your defense and couldn’t deviate from it as circumstances change (they always do). To top it off, you would be stuck with a severe, strict, and harsh criminal defense attorney who, likely due to a personality disorder, cannot be flexible and mold their thinking and strategies to best help his/her clients.
Contrasting, I find that being flexible and keeping my initial strategies in pencil – rather than indelible ink – allows me to be flexible and creative so that I can get extraordinary results for my clients by solving complex criminal defense problems and issues practically. And, for what it’s worth, being unyielding and harsh to prosecutors and judges will never help a criminal defense attorney help his clients. In fact, by being firm, cordial, and professional, both judges and prosecutors are far more willing to hear you out and give credence to your legal arguments and opinions. Common sense tells you that this is far better for the client.
So here’s the bottom line: if you are looking for a criminal defense attorney in Phoenix who yells, screams, pounds the table, and has temper tantrums, I am probably not the best lawyer for you. On the other hand, if you are looking for a criminal defense attorney who plays hard, but smart, and who has a 25-year track record of getting unusually good results for his clients and gets along with judges and prosecutors, call my office at (602) 663-9100 to set up a confidential consultation. You’ll get sound legal advice, not stupid buzz words that are meaningless and nothing more than cheap advertising ploys.