Birmingham Criminal Defense Blog : Birmingham DUI & Criminal Defense Lawyer & Attorney : Eversole Law Firm : Criminal and DUI Defense : Serving Birmingham, Montgomery, Alabama

White collar crime in Alabama can range from petty theft to embezzlement to Internet fraud. Hard economic times can cause people to attempt crimes like these, or they can become embroiled in a difficult situation with seemingly no way out. As a Birmingham criminal defense lawyer, I know that many people accused of a particular crime feel they are not guilty. I also know that some people who may have committed a criminal act did so under heavy emotional or financial pressure.

While what happened may seem clear cut, there are usually extenuating circumstances that as defense attorneys we must explain to a jury so they can make an informed decision on the guilt or innocence of a defendant. A recent news article pointed out one kind of crime that may be more common than people imagine. A former SouthBank employee has reportedly been indicted for allegedly stealing more than a half-million dollars from that financial institution.

The defendant, a 48-year-old Huntsville woman, was recently indicted on charges she stole more than $500,000 over a five-year period while she was employed by SouthBank. Keleste Sherrill is a former assistant manager at the bank's Jefferson Street branch. She was charged with bank fraud after having allegedly stolen money from the bank's vault and ATM machines between January 2004 and August 2009. Bank management estimates the total amount at $533,000.

According to reports, SouthBank President Art Freeman said bank officials discovered an irregularity on a Friday afternoon last August. After completing an internal investigation the following Monday, bank officials confronted Sherrill as she arrived at work and described what they had found. Freeman said the woman was cooperative.

The Huntsville prosecutor’s office alleges that Sherrill used ATM ledgers and avoided bank cameras as a part of the scheme, according to the indictment. This initial indictment is just the first phase in the process of criminal prosecution. If convicted, the woman could be looking at up to 30 years in prison and may even have to pay $1 million in fines.

Former SouthBank employee indicted in $500K Huntsville bank theft, AL.com, September 30, 2009
 

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

It’s a shame when a representative of the court is charged with a crime. Of course, any person accused of a criminal act, such as child pornography or criminal sexual behavior, is always considered innocent until proven guilty. However, to have the charges brought forth in the first place can truly be an embarrassment to the individual and their profession. As a Birmingham criminal defense lawyer, I can empathize with this defendant and only hope that justice will be served quickly and with an even hand.

According to news reports, a Dothan attorney is facing multiple child pornography charges. His legal representative had recently asked the court for litigation expenses, including money to pay for a computer expert. The attorney handling Randy Carroll Brackin’s child porn case told the Houston County Courthouse that his client would be submitting an affidavit of indigency, declaring he could not afford to retain an attorney.

The case stems from a February 5 arrest in which Houston County Sheriff’s investigators took the 62-year-old Brackin into custody, charging him with 11 felony counts of possession of child pornography or obscene material. If convicted, the man faces one to 10 years in prison for each of the class C felony crimes.

According to police reports, deputies seized evidence related to the case from five different locations, including Brackin’s office, home, a female friend’s home, a storage facility and his mother’s home. Some of the images found on computers included pictures of some sexual acts and nudity. The children depicted in the pictures were under the age of 12, authorities claimed.

Because Brackin has served as an attorney in Houston County and appeared before numerous judges in that locality, a judge from Dale County, Circuit Court Judge P.B. McLauchlin, Jr., was brought in to preside over the case. The judge has set a tentative trial date for Brackin’s case for early 2010. As a result of the criminal charges, Brackin’s license to practice law was suspended earlier this year.

The defense had asked for bond requirements to be loosened, saying that Judge Lawson Little had already withdrawn the requirement that Brackin wear an electronic ankle bracelet while out on bond. Brackin’s attorney said some of the remaining restrictions included that his client live with his mother, that he call Houston County dispatch anytime he wants to leave the house and that he cannot leave Houston County or the state of Alabama.

Dothan attorney facing child porn charges claims indigency, DothanEagle.com, September 24, 2009

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Everyday we see instances where the law doesn’t reflect the capabilities and extent of technology. This appears to be the case in Alabama and other states with frequent instances of young people, teenagers and preteens, being accused of criminal sexual behavior. As a criminal defense lawyer in the Birmingham area, I have defended numerous clients who have been accused of crimes such as drug possession, theft, sexual abuse, and pornography, just to name a few.

The newest use for smart phones (mainly by youngsters) seems to be causing a great deal of trouble. “Sexting,” or sending lewd and sexually explicit photos of oneself to friends via cell phone, has gotten a bunch of kids in trouble with local authorities. One particular case caught my eye and points to a possible flurry of court cases that may occur in the future.

According to news reports, there's an uproar in Wisconsin due to a local 14-year-old boy who is now facing child porn charges. The Milwaukee police say the boy threatened to spread rumors about the girls he targeted if they didn't send him nude and semi-nude pictures -- which they did.

Local authorities claim they found 80 images from several girls on the 14-year-old's cell phone. And one nude snapshot of a girl was found on hundreds of phones. To most parents, this will seem horrendous, but is it a crime worthy of child pornography charges?

The girls whose photos have been distributed were aged between 13 and 15 years old when they sent the photos. Investigators have not yet identified all of them.

Milwaukee police claim that the 14-year-old’s exchanging of sexually explicit photos with other kids is a simple case of child porn, and not the more common sexting that people are hearing more about. Based on news reports, investigators have also seized computers belonging to a group believed to have begun the forwarding.

While one can wonder what drove this 14-year-old to do what he did, the real question is whether or not it was innocent curiosity or truly a criminal act. The problem is that the police are attempting to apply a law that never envisioned this kind of behavior, not to mention the technology that makes it all possible.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Lawyers, judges and law enforcement professionals all have a responsibility to uphold the laws of Alabama and the United States. But those who twist the law for their own purposes do a disservice to themselves and to society. As a Birmingham criminal defense lawyer, I was shocked by recent revelations regarding an Alabama judge who reportedly used his authority to allegedly commit sexual assaults on convicted criminals and jail inmates.

According to news articles, former Mobile County circuit court judge, Herman Thomas, was recently acquitted on a number of charges, which included sexual abuse, kidnapping, extortion and sodomy. The initial finding of the court seems to indicate that Thomas is not guilty, however many people may not be convinced. Regardless of the outcome, it was very unsettling for criminal attorneys such as me to hear of a respected judge being accused of this type of alleged activity.

The 48-year-old Thomas resigned from the bench in October 2007, just before he was scheduled to stand trial before the Alabama Court of the Judiciary on multiple ethics violations charges. The complaint, dismissed after Thomas' resignation, accused him of "extrajudiciary personal contact" with some defendants but does not refer to any sexual contact.

The Alabama State Bar suspended Thomas' law license in March following the first indictment. The latest indictment has the names of the alleged victims blacked out. Both it and the initial indictment reference Thomas allegedly forcing victims to expose their buttocks and striking them with a belt or paddle.

The March indictment charged Thomas with 57 counts, and a second indictment in August added more. At one point, Thomas faced 105 counts, according to court records. A judge apparently threw out some of them because the statute of limitations had expired.

According to reports, during Thomas' judgeship he had a storage room furnished like an office near his eighth-floor chamber at Mobile's Government Plaza. Several criminal defendants have alleged, in affidavits and in court, that Thomas asked to paddle their buttocks in the room, and some said he suggested sexual encounters there, according to newspaper articles.

Citing a state forensics report, the newspaper reported in April that a semen stain found on carpeting in the room matched one of the nine alleged victims from the first indictment.

As would be expected, all Mobile County circuit judges recused themselves from Thomas' case. According to reports, the Alabama Supreme Court appointed retired Marengo County Judge Claud Neilson to hear the case.

Alabama judge cleared of sex abuse with inmates, AL.com, October 26, 2009

Former judge goes on trial in sex-with-inmates case, CNN.com, October 8, 2009

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link