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“There is an inherent problem with an attorney posting a web page or publishing any advertising for that matter. The point of the web page/ad is to promote one’s self. I want you to be impressed enough with the contents of this web page to want to hire me. But it is a fine line between legitimate advertising and immodest self- promotion. That line is a little bit like the Supreme Court’s old definition of obscenity. To paraphrase Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart : I can’t tell you what it is, but I know it when I see it."

I don’t mean for this web page to be merely self promotion. I want it to be a good resource tool for you and to provide you with information and links to useful sites. Of course in doing that, I also want to persuade you that your legal needs would best be served by hiring me. Let’s hope I do that without crossing the line into shameless self promotion.

This August will mark my 20th anniversary practicing law. I began my career as a prosecutor in the Concord, New Hampshire City Prosecutor’s Office. Before I finished law school, I had tried over 50 misdemeanor and traffic trials under special permission from the New Hampshire Supreme Court.

I switched my focus to criminal defense after graduation and opened my own practice in June of 1989. Since that time, I have handled cases ranging from speeding tickets to murder trials. No decent attorney can promise you a result (although I know many indecent ones who will). Based upon my experience in my chosen field, what I can promise is that I will not as a habit of personality, habit and ethics, fail to advocate for you in a zealous manner because I have political concerns or a fear of confronting the District Attorney and the police. It is unfortunate that there are members of my profession who will not want to “make trouble” with the District Attorney and so will not advocate for a client as strongly as they should. There are also those who will unnecessarily be combative and take cases to trial when a reasonable resolution that would be in the client’s best interest can be had through negotiations. The art of practicing law is knowing when to fight and how hard.

Since I have been in the Saratoga/Warren County area for so many years, my history is a matter of public record in regard to many cases I have handled. It is also the matter of media record. A defining moment in my career came in 1991 in the infamous “Flag Pin Case”. That matter, memorialized in an Appellate Division entitled, Montgomery v. Muller (Mausert intervener/appellant), 176 A.D.2d 29, 580 N.Y.S.2d 110 (3rd Dept. 1992), see link below.
Tom we have to somehow put the text of that case on a place on the web page.

Aside from my credentials listed in the resume below, you should know something about my practice. I am not a general practitioner. While every attorney on occasion will do a simple will or real estate closing, those areas of law are not my primary concern or focus. When someone asks me what I do for a living, I don’t tell them I am a lawyer, I tell them I am a criminal defense lawyer. Criminal Defense (including traffic matters and DWI) is why I practice law. I doubt very much that I would be in this profession if it wasn’t for this particular field. For me, this is where the passion is. This is where I find the most opportunity to come to the aid of people in need and to make a positive difference not only in my client’s lives, but in our system of justice. So, if you are looking for a general practitioner who can help you plan your estate, incorporate your business or do your taxes, you are on the wrong web page. If on the other hand, you or a loved one is being pursued by the government and your liberty is at stake (or your license and other essential rights), you have come to the right site.

What you won’t find here are hoaky advertising symbols of a gavel or lady liberty holding a scale. But you will find useful links that will give you information regarding your rights as a defendant in the criminal justice system and an honest presentation of what kind of attorney I am and strive to be.

• Admitted to the Bar (State & Federal Courts)
New York, 1989
Nevada, 1991

• Licensed to practice law in New York State, inactive license status in Nevada. Admitted to state and federal courts in New York State

• Education and Training
State University of New York, B.S.
Franklin Pierce Law Center, J.D.
Lethal Force Institute

• Graduate of Franklin Pierce Law Center, Concord, New Hampshire, May 1989.
Undergraduate degrees in Fine Arts and Liberal Studies.

• Former prosecutor
Concord City Prosecutor's Office, Concord, NH, 1987-88.

• Special District Attorney
Served by appointmtent in Warren County, New York (1996-1997)

Memberships:
• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
• New York State Defender's Association
• New York State Bar Association
• American Bar Association

Areas of concentration:
• Criminal Defense including all misdemeanors, felonies, DWI & Vehicle, and Traffic.
• Personal Injury. 
• Graduate of Lethal Force Institute (Massad Ayoob, Founder and Instructor): LFI 1; LFI 2.