A New York court will look into whether a secret meeting last year between the local attorney representing a man charged with murder and the law clerk for the judge trying his case amounted to an ethical violation and possibly infringed the man's constitutional right to a fair trial, attorneys told Law360 Friday.
When Jawaun Fraser was charged for robbery in October 2014, the New York Police Department and Manhattan prosecutors never told him that his arresting officers had been targeted in dozens of civil lawsuits over alleged evidence fabrication, abuse of power and other misconduct. Now, after a $2 million civil rights verdict last month over the disclosure failures, Fraser's case could lead to new legal challenges for criminal cases in the city.
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Until the U.S. Supreme Court's decision Monday in Thompson v. Clark, many former criminal defendants seeking to sue their arresting officers in federal court for malicious prosecution faced an almost insurmountable barrier: demonstrating that their criminal proceedings ended with an affirmation of their innocence.
How This High Court Case Could Affect Police Abuse Suits By
Marco Poggio | April 4, 2021, 8:02 PM EDT Attorneys all seem to agree: When a prosecutor dismisses charges against a defendant, that s an ultimate win. The defendant can heave a sigh of relief, and walk free without the burden of a trial and the potential costs associated with it.
But to criminal defendants who allege police misconduct and plan to file civil lawsuits, a dismissal could mean doom.
A case involving a Brooklyn man who sued the New York Police Department on misconduct allegations in 2014 presents a compelling case in point: the man, Larry Thompson, was arrested and charged with misdemeanors.