Law Blog of prominent Orlando Criminal Law
Defense Attorney John Guidry publishes Guest Articles on matters of crucial importance in
Criminal Defense
Blog is publishing two guest articles by criminal defense attorney
Patrick Megaro
Orlando, FL (August 2018) – Respected Orlando Criminal Defense attorney John Guidry, II has served the community by defending the criminally accused since 1993. Among his numerous awards and accolades are “Top 100 Trial Lawyers” and “Best Criminal Defense Lawyer in Orlando” (2016). To provide information to the public, Mr. Guidry maintains a Blog with matters of crucial importance in the area of criminal defense, questions such as “Must an Alleged Victim Show Up in Court?” and “Can I Be Convicted If There’s No Evidence?”
Mr. Guidry is now publishing a series of two guest blog articles on his Blog. The first of the articles is “How to Preserve Error At Trial in Florida: An Appellate Lawyer’s Practice Tips (PART 1)”, written by fellow Criminal Defense Attorney Patrick Megaro. In the first article, just published on the Blog, Mr. Megaro addresses the problem when an error at trial is not properly preserved for appeal. In legalese, that is something like “This issue before us was not properly preserved for appellate review and is therefore not now cognizable. Affirmed.” Mr. Megaro explains that “appellate lawyers cringe when we see these words written, especially in our own case decisions. This means that no matter how brilliant the trial attorney was, they did not make a specific, timely objection at the trial level, which has effectively waived their client’s right to appeal that issue.”
The law requires that any error during trial be properly preserved. Thus, a lawyer must be specific with the objection so as to inform the trial court of the perceived error.” State v. Garza, 118 So.3d 856 (Fla. 5th DCA 2013). It means that the attorney must spell out WHY he or she objects (be it in a motion, a post-hearing memorandum of law, a written notice of objection, or an argument on the record at the appropriate time why something is legally erroneous). Further, such objection must be SPECIFIC. Finally, the objection must be TIMELY and CONTEMPORANEOUS. This means that the attorney must immediately object when something is coming into evidence – sometimes before and after.
Mr. Megaro then continues with specific advice about common issues that arise during the course of a trial. One of those issues is the suppression of evidence. Explains Patrick Megaro: “If you move to suppress evidence prior to trial, make sure you make another objection at the time the evidence is introduced in order to preserve the objection. You can make the objection at the time of introduction by incorporating your prior arguments, and by making any new arguments that came up during the trial (such as authenticity, foundation, etc).”
The second part of the blog articles is
forthcoming shortly.
About Attorney John P. Guidry, II
The Law Firm of John Guidry
is dedicated to defending the rights of the criminally accused. Mr.
Guidry has defended thousands of citizens arrested on a wide variety of
crimes. This aggressive, intelligent criminal defense work started with
an Accounting Degree, then a Master's Degree, then a Juris Doctorate, all with
Honors, then admission to the Florida Bar (1993).
Law Firm of John
P. Guidry II, P.A.
320 North
Magnolia Avenue #B1
Orlando, FL 32801
Phone: (407)
423-1117
Website: https://www.jgcrimlaw.com/
Mr. Guidry’s legal
blog is at https://www.orlandocriminaldefenseattorneyblog.com/
About Attorney Patrick Megaro
Patrick Michael Megaro is a partner at
Halscott Megaro PA. His primary areas of practice are criminal defense,
criminal appeals, post-conviction relief, civil appeals, and civil rights
litigation.
Website: https://www.appealslawgroup.com/our-attorneys/patrick-megaro-esq/
Attorney Profile: https://criminal-defense-attorney.squarespace.com/patrick-michael-megaro-esq/
Attorney Profile: https://criminal-defense-attorney.squarespace.com/patrick-michael-megaro-esq/
**** Patrick Michael Megaro is a partner at Halscott Megaro PA. His primary areas of practice are criminal defense, criminal appeals, post-conviction relief, civil appeals, and civil rights litigation. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/patrickmichael.megaro.9 - Attorney Profile: https://criminal-defense-attorney.squarespace.com/patrick-michael-megaro-esq/ - Attorney Profile at: https://solomonlawguild.com/patrick-michael-megaro; Attorney News at: https://attorneygazette.com/patrick-megaro%2C-esq#ab17a387-a757-4c0f-bc37-81f556fd15ea
