By Zachary Margulis-OhnumaMany of the outrageously high sentences doled out in federal court are driven by fear — fear that a person convicted of a crime once will go on to commit another crime once he or she is freed
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ZMO Law adds investigator Stephen Abreu
We are delighted to announce that ZMO Law PLLC has hired former narcotics investigator Stephen Abreu as a full-time Paralegal/Investigator for our firm. Mr. Abreu brings ten years of law enforcement experience as a former investigator for the New York
The complete database of child pornography, now available on your iPhone
BY ZACHARY MARGULIS-OHNUMAApple announced a remarkable program last week to crack down on “CSAM” — child sexual exploitation material, also known as child pornography — on its hardware. At first glance, the program, which hopes to protect privacy while flagging
Justice for Tracy McCarter
ZMO Law attorneys Tess Cohen and Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma were recently drafted to join the defense team of Tracy McCarter, a nurse charged by the New York County District Attorney with murdering her estranged spouse during a terrifying physical altercation. Full
Some thoughts on Mother's Day from a criminal defense lawyer
One thing every single one of my clients has in common is that they all have a mother.That’s one of the many responses I give when asked the iconic question, how can you defend criminals when you know they are
Derek Chauvin’s knee is still on your neck
America breathed a collective sigh of relief this afternoon when Minneapolis Judge Peter Cahill read out the verdict and ordered Derek Chauvin taken away in handcuffs. One bad cop is off the streets. The Rev. Al Sharpton—an important African-American leader
Was George Floyd murdered over a counterfeit $20 bill?
Yesterday’s testimony in the George Floyd trial brought home Irish poet Brendan Behan’s remark: “I have never seen a situation so dismal that a policeman couldn’t make it worse.”
Trial witness Chris Martin, the 19-year-old clerk working the cash register
The end of police propaganda? New NYPD crime statistics show the sky is not falling
Guest Post by Adam Elewa, Esq.New York implemented historic and significant criminal justice reform in 2020, including a bail reform bill that led to a “substantial reduction in jail incarceration,” a discovery reform bill that replaced one the
Sex, Race, and Violence in Atlanta
By Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma
Just before 5 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, Robert Aaron Long walked into Young’s Asian Massage, thirty miles northwest of Atlanta. He was carrying a nine millimeter handgun he had bought legally earlier that day. He opened fire,
When getting arrested is a death sentence
Three unnamed men died of COVID-19 on Rikers Island in March of 2020, according to a heavily redacted draft report from the Board of Correction, a watchdog for New York jails and prisons. As heartbreaking as it is unsurprising, the