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WISCONSIN CRIME & JUSTICE
DEFENDING PEOPLE IN THE HEARTLAND OF AMERICA

In the competitive legal profession, having a name that stands out doesn’t hurt.

Mastantuono Law Office appeared before the Wisconsin Supreme Court for oral argument over a defendant’s right to have legal counsel today, which Mastantuono Law argued was denied to our client in this case.

People can blog, tweet or text from almost anywhere — as long as they’re not in a jury box. It used to be that judges would instruct jurors not to converse about an ongoing case with anyone they might encounter coming in or going out of the courthouse. That’s not enough anymore.

Change can sometimes be swift in Wisconsin when momentum gathers behind a rotten idea. The drastic revision to Wisconsin’s Children’s Code in the 1990s, fueled by the hype and scare tactics employed by certain criminal justice leaders at that time, serves as an example.

The ongoing collection of age, race and gender data by police during routine traffic stops to assess the existence of racial profiling could be an evidentiary resource for attorneys. But a legislative push to repeal the mandate jeopardizes the chances the data will provide any value to the criminal justice system.

A state budget provision that would alter and eliminate early release options for inmates could prompt criminal defense attorneys to take more cases to trial.

Image matters. And it especially matters when your criminal client is facing trial. Lawyers need to convey the importance of wearing clothes which won’t be distracting or disrespectful, said attorney Paul E. Bucher.