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

Published in The New York Times on August 19, 2012

Rachel E. Barkow is the Segal Family professor of regulatory law and policy and the faculty director at the Center on the Administration of Criminal Law at New York University.

By almost any measure, federal prosecutors wield too much power. Because many federal laws govern similar behavior and […]

Published in The New York Times on August 21, 2012

Federal law allows federal courts to award attorneys’ fees and other expenses to criminal defendants who prove gross misconduct on the part of federal prosecutors. The law — a 1997 amendment sponsored by Representative Henry Hyde, a Republican — is a valuable deterrent to prosecutorial abuse, […]

Defendants should hire lawyers from districts where their cases are pending. If they want to see their lawyers they can in a matter of hours. If they want to see their out of district lawyers, it may take a day or two, maybe even a week.

Of course no defendant thinks of that when he is […]

By David Zapp

“I have already sought out the advice of Gen. Oscar Naranjo, who recently retired as Colombia’s national police chief and is one of the world’s top crime fighters” said Enrique Pena Nieto, Mexico’s president-elect.

Well if the president did that and wants to follow Naranjo’s advice then he knows that to win he has […]

Dear Mr. Zapp,

I am an inmate awaiting extradition in the Picota-Eron jail, Patio 15. I am being detained on conspiracy to commit trafficking of drugs destined to New York State. I am being requested by the Southern District of New York.

I am someone who lacks the means to hire an attorney; I cannot even do […]

Defendant: What is a “Pimentel letter” and what is the difference between that letter and a regular plea agreement?

David Zapp (DZ): The “Pimentel Letter” (called that after the case that talks about the responsibility of the prosecutor to send a letter to the judge when there is no plea agreement but the defendant is pleading […]

By David Zapp

There was a time when criminal defense lawyers advised their clients after reviewing the evidence against him. Now some lawyers and “friends” of lawyers simply advise clients before reviewing the evidence to surrender, plead guilty, and cooperate. Some of these clients don’t even have pending charges. They have to plead to informations, informal […]

Published by The New York Times June 18, 2012

By Peter Lattman

For Goldman Sachs, the insider trading case against a former board member, Rajat K. Gupta, which ended in a conviction on Friday, was distracting and discomforting.

At least until now, it has also been very expensive.

Goldman Sachs has paid for the bulk of Mr. Gupta’s legal defense, which […]

By Juliet Macur of The New York Times

June 18, 2012

Roger Clemens, who intimidated even the toughest batters while becoming one of the best pitchers in baseball history, was acquitted Monday of all charges that he lied to Congress in 2008 when he insisted he never used steroids or human growth hormone during his long career.

The verdict, […]

By William Alden and Azam Ahmed of The New York Times

June 15, 2012

The jury for the insider trading trial of Rajat K. Gupta took only two days to reach its verdict. But the process was not easy, with several jurors saying they felt conflicted.

After fewer than 10 hours of deliberations, the jury found Mr. Gupta, […]