We are excited to share that Trial Manual 10 for the Defense of Criminal Cases, authored by Anthony G. Amsterdam and Randy Hertz, both of NYU School of Law, is now available in print and download. The Trial Manual is a guidebook for criminal defense lawyers at the trial level. It covers the information a defense attorney has to know, and the strategic factors s/he should consider, at each of the stages of the criminal trial process. It is organized for easy access by practitioners who need ideas and information quickly in order to jump-start their work at any given stage.
The allocation of material among the five volumes of the book is intended to facilitate defense attorneys’ use of the book:
Volume One (Chapters 1-13) provides an overview of criminal procedure and then focuses on the issues a defense attorney is likely to confront, and the actions s/he will need to consider taking, at the early stages of a criminal case, prior to arraignment. These include: the first steps to be taken to locate, contact, and protect a client who has been arrested or summoned or who fears s/he is wanted for arrest; arguing for bail or another form of pretrial release; conducting the initial client interview; developing a theory of the case; dealing with police and prosecutors; planning and overseeing the defense investigation; obtaining state-funded expert and investigative services; conducting the preliminary hearing; and grand jury practice.
Volume Two (Chapters 14-23) begins with the arraignment, then examines plea bargaining and guilty pleas and the additional considerations that may arise at any stage of a case when representing a client who is mentally ill or intellectually disabled. The volume begins the book’s coverage of pretrial motions practice, addressing all pretrial motions other than suppression motions (which are covered in Volume Three). In addition to discussing strategic and practical aspects of drafting motions and handling evidentiary and non-evidentiary motions hearings, this volume covers the substantive law and procedural aspects of the following motions that defense attorneys commonly litigate in criminal cases: motions for discovery (along with a discussion of all other aspects of the discovery process); motions to dismiss the charges on various grounds; motions for diversion or for transfer to juvenile court; motions for a change of venue or for recusal of the judge; and motions for severance or consolidation of counts or defendants.
Volume Three (Chapters 24-27) focuses extensively on three types of suppression motions: motions to suppress tangible evidence, to suppress statements of the defendant, and to suppress identification testimony. The volume begins with a chapter on general aspects of suppression practice, which discusses defense goals and strategies, procedural aspects of a suppression hearing, and techniques for handling a suppression hearing. The volume then provides a detailed discussion of the substantive law of search and seizure; doctrines for suppressing statements; and doctrines for suppressing identification testimony. These chapters cover federal constitutional doctrines and a large number of state constitutional rulings that confer heightened protections.
Volume Four (Chapters 28-40) starts with the immediate run-up to trial: issues relating to the timing of pretrial and trial proceedings; interlocutory review of pretrial rulings; and the concrete steps that counsel will need to take to prepare for trial, including working with expert witnesses where appropriate. It begins the book’s coverage of the trial stage, discussing the decision to elect or waive jury trial; jury selection procedures and challenges before and at trial; general characteristics of trials; opening statements; evidentiary issues and objections; techniques and tactics for handling prosecution and defense witnesses; and trial motions. Issues, procedures, and strategies unique to bench trials are discussed in tandem with the parallel aspects of jury-trial practice.
Volume Five (Chapters 41-49) concludes the coverage of the trial by discussing the renewed motion for acquittal; closing arguments; requests for jury instructions; objections to the court’s instructions; and jury deliberations. This volume then discusses posttrial motions and sentencing and concludes with a short summary of appellate and postconviction procedures and a précis of the first steps to be taken after judgment.
The structure and presentation of material are designed to facilitate the conversion of text into defense motions and other types of briefing. Three of the documents in the text are available for direct downloading from the ALI website: section 2.5’s flow-chart of procedures in summary, misdemeanor, and felony cases; section 4.5’s questionnaire for obtaining information pertinent to bail from the client; and section 6.15’s checklist for interviewing the client. The bail questionnaire and the interview list are in Word format that can be edited and thus customized to an individual user’s practice and/or turned into a form for use in taking notes in real time during client interviews.