Attorney Profile

Bar admissions

• Maryland State Bar
• District of Columbia Bar
• U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland Bar
• U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Bar

Education

Duke University School of Law – Durham, NC Juris Doctor, Cum Laude, 1999

• Duke Law Merit Scholar
• Duke Law Certificate for Pro Bono Service
• Legal Research & Writing Class, Teaching Assistant
• Criminal Law Society, President
• Dean’s Advisory Council, Member
• Orange County Public Defender, Research Assistant
• Black Law School Association, Member & Webmaster

Rutgers University – New Brunswick, NJ Bachelor of Arts, History/Political Science, High Honors, 1996

• Phi Alpha Theta Honor Society (History Honors Society)
• Pi Sigma Alpha Honor Society (Political Science Honors Society)
• Golden Key Honor Society
• Dean’s List (1993-1996)
• The Daily Targum Newspaper, Editorial Columnist
• Minority Mentor Program, Mentor & Tutor
• Eagleton Institute of Politics, Undergraduate Associate

Languages

• English
• Spanish

Professional Associations

• Member (2002 to Present), District of Columbia Bar
• Member (2008 to Present), Superior Court Trial Lawyers Association
• Defense Attorney Panel Member (2008 to Present), D.C. Superior Court Criminal Justice Act Panel
• Committee Member (2016 to Present), D.C. Superior Court Criminal Rules Advisory Committee (chosen to sit on advisory committee to advise and comment on changes to D.C. Superior Court’s Criminal Rules)
• Committee Member (2009  to 2011, 2017 to Present), Advisory Committee to Judicial Committee on D.C. Superior Court Criminal Justice Act Panel Admissions
• Committee Member (2009), D.C. Superior Court Attorney Practice Standards for Criminal Defense Representation Committee
• D.C. Superior Court Judicial Training on D.C. Court of Appeals and U.S. Supreme Court Case Updates of 2012-2014, 2016-2019 (invited to be part of Panel which provided judicial training to Criminal Division Judges regarding relevant appellate decisions; provided commentary on a variety of cases)
• Delegate Member (2011, 2013), D.C. Judicial and Bar Conference (invited by D.C. Superior Court Presiding Judge of Criminal Division on two occasions to attend and participate in annual conference as delegate member)
• Defense Attorney Panel Member (2014 to 2018), U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland Criminal Justice Act Felony Panel (selected from pool of applicants based upon prior criminal defense experience and other qualifications to be appointed to represent individuals charged in Maryland federal courts with felonies; resigned from Panel due to scheduling difficulties)

Publications

• Winston Manuel Pérez Hernández v. United States, No. 15-CM-130 (May 9, 2019) (trial counsel; defense at trial resulted trial judge not crediting government’s theory that client violently attacked complaining witness but in trial judge nonetheless finding client guilty of simple assault based on government’s revised theory that client merely touched complaining witness; District of Columbia Court of Appeals reversed in significant opinion, finding that simple assault conviction on mere unwanted, offensive touch cannot be sustained unless it occurs in a sexual context; case now being considered by District of Columbia Court of Appeals en banc).
• Slater-El v. United States, 142 A.3d 530 (D.C. 2016) (trial counsel in case where arguments to trial judge helped lay foundation for appellate reversal of trial judge’s factual findings for attempted cruelty to children conviction based upon inherent incredibility doctrine).
• Campbell v. United States, No. 14-CM-782 (D.C. 2016) (unpublished memorandum opinion & judgment; trial counsel; cross-examination and arguments allowed for reversal of attempted possession of a controlled substance where there was insufficient evidence presented at trial).
• Saidi v. United States, 110 A.3d 606 (D.C. 2015) (trial counsel in case where cross-examination, arguments, and requests for specific findings under Rule 23(c) resulted in appellate court remanding case for finding regarding defense of property).
• Vaughn v. United States, 93 A.3d 1237 (D.C. 2014) (trial counsel in case where client acquitted of all charges but arguments and requests for exculpatory materials at trial level laid foundation for reversals of co-defendants’ convictions due to Brady v. Maryland violation by the government).
• Mitchell v. United States, 64 A.3d 154 (D.C. 2013) (trial counsel in case that charged client with multiple felony and misdemeanor counts based upon execution of search warrant; obtained acquittal on nine out of fourteen counts, including most serious count of possession of a firearm by convicted felon).
• Voluntary Sentencing Guidelines Presentation, Sponsored by D.C. Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, April 13, 2011, PowerPoint Presentation Available to Defense Attorneys Upon Request.
• Porter v. Jones, 139 D.W.L.R. 1777 (Aug. 15, 2011) (J. Stuart Nash; D.C. Superior Court) (litigated case of first impression after appellate decision in Robertson v. United State ex rel. Watson regarding whether or not the Assistant Attorney General who represented a litigant in a civil protection order hearing can also prosecute a defendant on behalf of the United States for contempt based upon an alleged violation of this civil protection order).
• Dickens v. United States, 19 A.3d 321 (D.C. 2011) (trial counsel and appellate counsel; at trial level, defense prevailed on all but one charge; appeal presented issue of first impression regarding when words alone can be sufficient to sustain a conviction under the District’s assault on a police officer statute).
• Rolen-Love v. United States, 980 A.2d 1063 (D.C. 2009) (appellate counsel; appeal presented issue of first impression concerning interpretation of indecent exposure statute).
• United States v. Harris, 137 D.W.L.R. 429 (Oct. 29, 2008) (J. Kaye Christian; D.C. Superior Court) (trial counsel in case that was dismissed after court struck testimony of police officer who effectuated traffic stop; defense argued that government failed to preserve a document, namely a PD 256 Quick Booking Form, that the testifying police officer prepared and failed to preserve).
• Jones v. Ritter, 587 F. Supp. 2d 152 (D.D.C. 2008) (trial court ruled that client’s assault and battery claims were not barred by the notice requirements in D.C. Code § 12-309 because a detailed police report about the incident put the District on notice of the claims and that the assault and battery claims against the police officers were not clearly barred under the limitations period in D.C. Code § 12-301(4), as the client was imprisoned and thus was entitled to tolling).
• James G. Sammataro, Business and Brotherhood, Can They Coincide? A Search Into Why Black Athletes Do Not Hire Black Agents, How. L.J. 535 (1999) (co-edited by Justin Amaechi Okezie).
• Justin Amaechi Okezie, The Presumption of Guilt and Compulsory HIV Testing of Sex Offenders: A Case Study of State Ex Rel. J.G., N.S., and J.T., 6 AM. U.J. GENDER & L. 557 (1998).