Author Archives: David S. Zapp and Johanna S. Zapp

By David Zapp, Esq.

Narcotics importation laws require that the defendant have actual knowledge or intent that the drugs would be imported to the United States. Proof of the requisite intent or knowledge can be shown through direct and/or circumstantial evidence. When finding the defendant lacked actual knowledge of the destination of the […]

By David Zapp, Esq.

If a defendant chooses to plead guilty before trial he can do so without benefit of a plea agreement with the prosecutor or with such a plea agreement. In most cases in New York and near as I can tell in Florida, the prosecutors give you “ice in winter.”—nothing. They give you […]

By Johanna S. Zapp, Esq.

You’ve been arrested, perhaps you’ve been extradited, and now what? You have a lawyer who tells you that the next step is that you’ll be getting your “discovery” (another word for evidence) from the prosecutor. But when will you get your discovery? Over these past few years I’ve […]

By David Zapp

“Judge shopping” is the means by which prosecutors and sometimes defense attorneys go about getting their cases in front of a judge of their choice. Prosecutors do this by alleging that a certain case is “related” to a previous case and that “judicial economy” is best served by bringing the new case in […]

Excerpt from Editorial published on April 17, 2013 in The New York Times

By the Editorial Board

The Supreme Court’s conservatives dealt a major blow Wednesday to the ability of American federal courts to hold violators of international human rights accountable. The court declared that a 1789 law called the Alien Tort Statute does not allow foreigners to sue […]

By Ethan Bronner 

Providence, R.I. — When Denise Dallaire was arrested at age 26 on charges of selling a few ounces of crack cocaine here a decade ago, she was sentenced to prison for more than 15 years. Last month, shackled inside the same court and facing the same judge, she received an apology and was […]

By Adam Liptak

Published in The New York Times on March 26, 2013

The case concerned Franky, a chocolate Labrador retriever who detected the smell of marijuana outside a Florida house used by Joelis Jardines. Based on Franky’s signal, the police obtained a warrant to search the house, and they found a marijuana-growing operation inside.

Mr. Jardines moved […]

Published on elespectador.com on March 19, 2013

In the Senate, where this warning was made, it was denounced that many capos, after serving “ridiculous” sentences, have received visas from the United States.

The Senate is gearing up to conduct a profound debate regarding the situation of the extradition treaty between Colombia and the United States.

Amidst the continuous […]