Blog 20: Exit Interview

1. My essential question is, What is the best way a defense attorney can defend her client in court? My best answer is, The best way a defense attorney can defend her client in court is to negotiate a plea bargain. This is my best answer because according to, Plea and Charge Bargaining Research Summary by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, it is used 90% of the time. I have witnessed it in my mentorship being used many times. Also, there is less risked involved compared to trying to win a court case. In addition, usually the defendants are arrested for good reason, so there would be little reason to dismiss the case in the misdemeanor courts.
2. I arrived at this answer fairly slowly. At first, I tried to research on what others thought the answer could be, but it was proven fruitless. It wasn't until I talked with my mentor on possible answers to my essential question that I realized this was my best answer. When he brought up plea bargains, it just made me realize how often it was used in court.
3. Some problems I have faced was finding enough information on my topic or my answers. There aren't a lot of articles that have to do with the judicial system that isn't already common knowledge. No one really says, 'Just the other day, I went to court and had a great public defender!' They would be to ashamed. I overcame this by narrowing down my search, and reading some memoirs of defense attorneys.
4. One of my significant sources would be my mentor, Ramiro Cisneros. Working under him gave me a lot of opportunities to ask questions and get first hand experiences. This goes without question that my next best few sources are my interviews with other defense attorneys. One of the articles that has best helped me so far is "Criminal Defense Strategies," from criminal.findlaw.com because it gives the reader a lot of advise that pertains to all of my answers.