Yesterday a state trooper asked if I am related to new Virginia state police superintendent Jeffrey S. Katz . Not that I know of, although that is my older brother's first name. Katz is a very common surname. When people had landline phones, my last name would fill multiple

Blurts run amok with too many people stopped by police. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I shook my head in my hand as I read about this blurt from now-convicted Virginia drug and gun defendant David Witcher, who went down at his non-jury trial: “’I am going to get a whole lot of

Here are excerpts from my most recent Beat The Prosecution newsletter. The free signup link is below: Winning by proceeding with one’s best real self ... A big theme at the Trial Lawyers College was discovering our real self and expressing our best real self. Until we do that,

Yoda meets Duke youtube.com/watch?v=7rIaAE…

The #WalkForPeace from Texas to Washington, D.C. seems to be sparking great connection among the walkers and those they meet along the path. dhammacetiya.com/walk-for-peace . The walkers are expected to be in the capital area next week. I am keeping an eye on their schedule to hopefully

Some remarkable people walk among us. One of them is sujatha baliga (spelling her name without capitalization) sujathabaliga.com, who greets people with "warm hellos." sujatha is a leader in restorative justice, a practitioner of mindfulness, and a self-described (at

What good can come of Jeff Bezos's buying the Washington Post, I asked myself. Subsequently, butting into editorial decisions when his predecessor owner(s) apparently kept hands off there, Bezos blocked the Post's decision to endorse Kamala Harris's presidential run. 200,000

Tonite at the Mt. Vernon Presbyterian Church is when I will visit the peace walking monastics soon concluding the #WalkForPeace to the capital. Last night I turned around to avoid an accident backup.

Drug dogs (DDs) run rampant with police departments / law enforcement officer (LEO) departments, sniffing for drugs, explosives and other evidence. As a Fairfax criminal lawyer, I know that a dozen years ago, the federal Supreme Court by a 5-4 decision found that the

Following are excerpts from my latest Beat The Prosecution newsletter -- The gift of presence The story goes of the child who once asked what his often-absent executive father was paid hourly. The boy then opened his piggy bank and handed him that amount of cash, so much

My wife and I felt the positively inspiring energy of the crowd joining with the peace walking monastics tonight outside the Mt. Vernon Presbyterian Church, on a very cold evening. Our brief time in the cold was nothing compared to the monastics' intrepid average of twenty miles

When I receive the attached and other invitations for me to donate to judicial campaigns, I ask to be removed from such communications. A lawyer sent me a mass emailing that included the attached flyer (and this link about the campaign electsittingjudgesmcs.com/meet-the-judge… ) inviting people

Today came word that retired Arlington County Circuit Court William T. Newman, Jr., passed away earlier today. I rarely write about judges when they leave their bodies, but Judge Newman deserves this posting. I had occasional material disagreements with Judge Newman, but

Texts about actual or potential drug deals too often litter the seized cellphones of suspected drug dealers. I too often see cellphone extractions of my alleged drug dealing clients that have incriminating incoming and outgoing drug transaction communications out the wazoo. On

My public taijiquan practice near courthouses draws reactions ranging from a prosecutor apparently emailing numerous or all office colleagues that he had a few moments earlier espied me practicing the martial art during lunchtime, to a prosecutor asking if I was okay during the

Yes, Pam Bondi Attorney General Pamela Bondi came under vituperative verbal attack from Democrats at her hearing today before the House Judiciary Committee. youtube.com/watch?v=sMahB2… Regardless of one's political and other views, I suggest that her following comments are instructive about

Thanks to my recent podcast guest sujatha baliga, who posts on my Apple podcasts page: "Thoughtful questions- John's interest in the nexus of spiritual wisdom and criminal defense work is right up my alley. I also really appreciate his humble, thoughtful interview style and his

Excerpt from my latest Beat The Prosecution newsletter- One day many years ago, I was driving a rental van to move some large items, when I unexpectedly found myself spinning a wheelie with this vehicle with which I had little experience. While I delighted in my unplanned

Invalid Virginia arrests and certificates of analysis katzjustice.com/invalid-virgin…