As the title suggests, I want to welcome you to zweigandassociates.com, or more professionally and business like, Zweig and Associates, PC.  We are a boutique law office of two attorneys offering services for a wide range of legal problems.  I specialize in criminal and traffic defense litigation.  I have been working in this capacity for nearly 15 years and am very passionate about what I do.  I consider myself an incredibly zealous advocate for my clients and I have believe I have built just such a reputation within the legal and lay community as well.  I believe in the basic tenet of our democracy, which is: all those accused of criminal activity are innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.  The burden of proving an accused person of crime or traffic infraction rests solely and distinctly upon the prosecution, known in Virginia as the Commonwealth Attorney.  Neither I nor my client owe the Commonwealth anything in the context of proving their case.  The Commonwealth must rely on its own investigators, police officers and lay witnesses to secure convictions against those charged with committing crimes or traffic offenses.  Although those charged with these types of offenses often times admit their involvement to the law enforcement agents investigating the cases, it is not a requirement that those accused of an offense speak with law enforcement agents.  In most circumstances, I prefer it if my clients have refused to talk with the police about their involvement with the crimes.  And, here's why:  Without having conducted any scientific study, it is my humble opinion that those charged with crimes admit their involvement in the crime in greater than 90% of the cases in which an individual is charged with wrongdoing.  Once a criminal defendant confesses to the police about his/her involvement in the commission of the crime, the difficulty the prosecution has proving the case dwindles dramatically.  In fact, most cases in which a confession has been gathered by the police are negotiated as plea agreements or pleas and recommendations prior to trial.  This is because the incentive to proceed to trial is significantly diminished because the accused has helped the prosecution prove their case.  My theory is that those accused of crime or other wrongdoing should never willingly help the prosecution prosecute them for their wrongdoing.  It is the nature of an adversarial system that neither party must aid the other party during the litigation.  This does not mean that the parties (in the context of the prosecutor and defense attorney) need to have an antagonistic relationship.  It does mean that each should be aware of and embrace their respective roles.  And it means that the both parties shall be advocates for the position of their client.  The difference is that I, as a privately retained attorney have a distinct disadvantage at the hands of the Commonwealth Attorney. That disadvantage comes in the form of the investigative tools the Commonwealth has at its disposal.  Resources and tools that many in the criminal defesne litigation field do not have, especially if they are court appointed to represent an indigent accused.  But, I will get into that more at a later date.

 

Thank you for reading this post.  This is my first blog ever and I intend to continue partcipating with this medium for the exchange of ideas.  If you have any questions or concerns, or just want to write a comment to a legal blog, please feel free.

 

Thank you.

 

Barry Zweig, Esq.