LAWYERS: Queens of the Court

2008 has shown us that some of the women lawyers of our courthouse are no wimps. It has been a year so far that in a profession dominated by the male gender, some of our female colleagues have stepped up to the plate and taken a swing. They are models of dedication and focus, advocacy and perseverence. These are women who take on the hard cases, often with difficult clients, and tow the line with grace. They are the Charlie's Angels of our workplace who draw the line in the sand and don't try to merely get along with just a smile. In no particular order, here are the Queens of the Court:

LINDA ICENHAUER-RAMIREZ With three (3) serious jury trials so far this year, Linda sets the standard yet again for her experience and dedication to trying the hard cases. Whether its in Travis or Williamson County, Linda takes on those mountains to climb without hesitation.

AMANDA McDANIEL Believe it or not, Amanda has six (6) jury trials already. An up and comer with no hesitation to push the right case, Amanda is another walking resource of valuable experience. My hat is off to her.

TAMARA NEEDLES One of the greatest tests of a lawyer is plodding through a lengthy jury trial. After a three week jury trial in Hays County (with Will Holgate), Tamara turned right around a tried another serious felony. With three (3) serious felonies under her belt so far, the year promises to be busy, yet prosperous in experience.

MARGIE JOHNSON With a well publicized not-guilty recently, Margie has leap-frogged into the class of those trial lawyers that will take on a case at any time or any place. Margie has tried at least three (3) seious felony cases this year with more to come. Practicing in two counties, Margie has put the prosecution on notice that she knows what she is doing.

AMBER BODE With the recent not guilty on a case which the prosecution thought was a slam dunk, Amber has taken on highly publicized cases as well as those in which the indigent deserved competent representation. I know of her abilities as she second-chaired me this January. She deserves our recognition for her tenacity.

So there is my current list. I'm sure there are more. But for now, when you think of females willing to take cases to trial, these should come to mind. The prosecution has taken note, so should you.

CLIENTS: Sexual Healing

Yes, I was the lawyer for 19-year-old Jean Carlo Ponzanelli who was recently featured on KXAN. Jean recently received a sentence of 3 years in the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of Corrections for violations of his deferred adjudication probation received for a plea of guilty to Attempted Sexual Assault last year in Williamson County. He was 17 years old at the time of his alleged offense, and the alleged female victim was 13. I did not represent him on this plea. After the plea and after his arrest for his alleged probation violations, it was found he was not a citizen. He did not know this because his mother brought him over as a very young child. He is now facing deportation.

While I am not permitted to discuss the priviledged commuication between us, I can say this: Jean did not have many good choices in the matter.

Under the law, Jean most likely would face deportation under any of the possible scenarios: continued deferred adjudication, continued regular probation, or receiving a sentence within the range of 2-10 years in prison.

The one scenario that Mr. Ponzanelli would have been able to stay in this country would have been if his original plea of guilty had been allowed by the Court to be withdrawn, the case went to trial (the original charge with a potential range of 5-99 years), and he prevailed with a not-guilty verdict.

Mr. Ponzanelli considered these possibilities and made his decision.

The main focus of his supporters now should be on amending the law to provide some defense to those young men caught in situations because of deception, lies, and entrapment. Young women these days have the ability to lie and mislead by the likes of MySpace and other social outlets not available just a few years ago. But in addition, schools should start educating their students in the impact of the criminal statutes. If the students knew the consequences of their actions, maybe they would think twice before putting themselves in such situations.

I did my best for Jean, I just wish the law would have been a bit kinder. It's up to the Legislature now.