Another Not Guilty

Welcome to this week’s episode of ANG from the Archives. We’ve dusted off the cobwebs and gone back to our third episode ever, back to even when Dave had hair.

And since it’s Halloween, what could be the only thing scarier than a guy exposing himself? That’s right, being the wrong guy on trial for it.

Someone else did the crime, but the prosecution wanted that evidence buried. reasonable doubt has a nasty habit of clawing its way back out.

Enjoy this week’s episode of ANG from the crypt

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During the great platform migration, several older episodes vanished from the record. Unlike the prosecution, we do not hide the evidence. We recovered the master, cleaned the audio, rewrote the description, and put this one back into the feed.

Originally Season 1, Episode 7. Public defender Michael had almost nine years in when he took a vandalism case that only looked simple. His client, a veteran, turned down Veterans Court twice because getting in meant admitting the vandalism. A prior strike turned what Michael says would likely have been a misdemeanor into a felony he estimates at over eight or nine years in prison.

The homeowner's account: a shirtless man at about 5 a.m., broken outdoor piping, garden lights ripped up, a car kicked and hit, trash bins thrown at it, and water in the garage. Michael went to the house himself. The car was a VW Jetta. The body shop estimator, called by the prosecution, said the marks were ordinary wear and tear, not kicking, punching, or thrown trash bins. Ring video, turned over on the day of trial, showed the client waiting at the door and garden lights still in place. One file in the download sequence, IMG 847, never showed up. The jury was out about two or three hours. Not guilty on the counts Michael describes.

The next day, the DA told Michael the homeowner was thinking of a state bar complaint for his visit to the house. Michael says the DA told her he had not done anything wrong. He says he was never on her property.

Dave, Nikhil, and Michael also get into why a prior strike does this to a vandalism case, what malicious means when the defense is accident, and why Michael stopped trusting the version that owned him at the preliminary hearing.

Chapters

(00:00) Cold open: a bad estimate, and lights that are still on
(01:09) Welcome, then Michael, almost nine years in
(06:58) A vandalism with a prior strike
(08:52) Veterans Court, twice, and why an admission was the dealbreaker
(13:10) Her account: 5 a.m., a shirtless man, pipes, lights, and the car
(21:11) The prelim owns him. Then the trash bins show up
(24:18) The investigator gets no pictures. Michael goes to the house
(27:31) Same name, different brother, and the second Veterans Court offer dies
(40:15) The body shop estimator will not back the kicking story
(51:44) Sunday in the hills, before Monday's cross
(1:00:41) Ring video on the day of trial, and the file that is not there
(1:08:19) Malice, accident, and a client who testifies anyway
(1:23:30) Less than three hours. Not guilty. Then the state bar threat

Dive into more stories from the bold and brilliant public defenders wherever you listen to podcasts, and connect with us on social media:

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· Apple Podcasts: Another Not Guilty

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Before Loren became a co-host, she was defending people in psychiatric crisis and saving dogs. Whether the first job prepared her for working with Dave is still an open question. (Not really)

In this case, her 68-year-old client was living in a locked psychiatric hospital, asking to see a doctor and for basic care. The system’s response? A third-strike felony threat case that could have sent him to prison for life. Loren went to the preliminary hearing ready to fight. The case was dismissed.

Dave, Nikhil, and Loren get into how a mental health crisis became a criminal case, what the evidence actually showed, and why one dismissal doesn’t fix a system that keeps doing this. On the bright side, Dave is still only a possible case for rescue.

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·      Website: anothernotguiltypod.com Another Not Guilty

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Where it all began, the very first ANG episode. As many defenders and their clients know, once something is on the internet, it stays there forever. We are not hiding from the evidence, but we are remastering and cataloging.

Originally Season 1, Episode 1, released June 6, 2018, and edited back when Dave's weapon of choice was GarageBand. Who still uses GarageBand anyway?

Public defender John tells David and Nikhil about a client who called 911 because her partner was abusing her. By the time the officer arrived, the partner was gone and she was sitting in the driver's seat. The state charged her with DUI. The police report somehow forgot to mention her entire account. The prosecutor told the defense he did not need to know what actually happened, because finding the truth was not his job.

The jury needed five to ten minutes to disagree. Not guilty. The court then billed her $1,200 for the privilege of proving it. The very first ANG episode, and the state was already treating the truth like an optional exhibit.

Dive into more stories from the bold and brilliant public defenders wherever you listen to podcasts, and connect with us on social media:

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·      Website: anothernotguiltypod.com Another Not Guilty

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·       Support the show (potential bonus content!): Patreon

During the great platform migration, we discovered that several older episodes had vanished from the record. Unlike the prosecution, we don’t hide the evidence. So we dusted off the master, cleaned up the audio, rewrote the description, and released this one back into the wild.

Originally in Season 1 Episode 14, Public defender Mike takes on a double homicide case where the prosecution’s theory has more holes than a crime scene interview conducted by committee.

As Mike digs deeper, the DA’s case begins shedding evidence, logic, and apparently any remaining attachment to structural integrity. What first looks like a straightforward prosecution turns into a spectacular collapse of assumptions and strategy.

The case proves that truth and justice sometimes require jumping onto the grenade before the state can pull the pin, especially when the grenade is labeled “Exhibit A” and nobody bothered to check whether it was armed.

Dive into more stories from the bold and brilliant public defenders at all the places you get your podcasts, and our social channels:

Stay Connected & Support the Show:

• Website: anothernotguiltypod.com
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• Support the show (potential bonus content!): Patreon

This episode has been pulled from the archives for reasons entirely unrelated to switching platforms and discovering that several old episodes had disappeared like a witness after being asked whether they actually saw anything. We cleaned up the audio, rewrote the description, and returned the case to the docket.

Public defender Erik takes on sensitive and deeply serious allegations complicated by unreliable witnesses and a prosecution determined to move forward.

Erik carefully challenges the accusations without losing sight of the human stakes, exposes weaknesses in the government’s case, and fights for a client facing charges that can destroy a life before a jury ever hears evidence.

The case ends during jury selection, proving that sometimes the strongest courtroom victory happens before opening statements and before the prosecution has time to prepare another PowerPoint labeled “Justice.”

Dive into more stories from the bold and brilliant public defenders at all the places you get your podcasts, and our social channels:

Stay Connected & Support the Show:

• Website: anothernotguiltypod.com
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Editors note: This episode was originally released in Season 2 as two part episode. We have combined it to be one episode and give some of our newer listeners a chance to catch up on some of our "classic" NGs!

The prosecution thought they had zipped up the case tight. No gaps, no questions, no chance for escape. But the truth has a way of slipping through, especially when a fearless public defender takes the stand.

In this combined episode — Parts 1 and 2 brought together — we follow our fellow public defenders as they dismantle the state's so-called "airtight" story. Every witness who thought they were backing up the prosecution's narrative stumbled under sharp cross-examination. Every detail the state insisted was proof of guilt came undone, exposed as sloppy, incomplete, or outright misleading.

What the state tried to package as justice turned out to be nothing but a messy zipper snag — and the defender was ready with the scissors. The comedy comes in watching the state scramble to explain their unraveling theory, while the tragedy lies in how close the system came to convicting someone on patchwork evidence.

By combining the two parts into one episode, the full scope of the defender's strategy shines: from the first objection to the last word before the jury, it's a master class in fearless advocacy. And when the verdict came, it wasn't guilt — it was vindication. Another powerful reminder that even when the system tries to stitch up the innocent, a relentless public defender can tear through the seams.

Dive into more stories from the bold and brilliant public defenders wherever you listen to podcasts, and connect with us on social media:

Stay Connected & Support the Show:

·         Website: anothernotguiltypod.com Another Not Guilty

·         Follow us on Instagram: @anothernotguilty

·         Find us on Facebook: Another Not Guilty

·         Support the show (potential bonus content!): Patreon

Message from Dave: We are taking the rest of the month off for some big trials and to build a backlog of awesome episodes!

We also have new merch with our new logo, so please check that out on our website!

Rachel and Dallas welcome back Stanford Fraser: Public Defender from PG county Maryland with new updates on his life, career and of course Another Not Guilty! 

See how Stanford got the not guilty when a two-step salsa at a local bar turned into potentially major consequences for his client.

Stanford is currently running for Maryland house of delegates in addition to his PD work. Check out and support his campaign: https://www.stanfordfraser.com/

Dive into more stories from the bold and brilliant public defenders wherever you listen to podcasts, and connect with us on social media:

Stay Connected & Support the Show:

·      Website: anothernotguiltypod.com Another Not Guilty

·       Follow us on Instagram: @anothernotguilty

·       Find us on Facebook: Another Not Guilty

·       Support the show (And get a T-Shirt!): Patreon

In this episode, fellow Compton L.A. public defender Analise shares an insider look into a recent not guilty verdict in a complex carjacking and kidnapping case involving her client Diane. Listen as she breaks down the case strategy, courtroom dynamics, and the importance of credibility and storytelling in trial advocacy.

Dive into more stories from the bold and brilliant public defenders wherever you listen to podcasts, and connect with us on social media:

Stay Connected & Support the Show:

·      Website: anothernotguiltypod.com Another Not Guilty

·       Follow us on Instagram: @anothernotguilty

·       Find us on Facebook: Another Not Guilty

·       Support the show (And get a T-Shirt!): Patreon