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805-962-4887
(24 hour emergency page after hours) or
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| The lawyers at Sanger & Swysen
-- Robert Sanger,
Catherine Swysen and Stephen Dunkle -- all have experience and
specialized training in the handing of death penalty (capital
punishment) cases at all phases in
the California courts. The firm provides regular training in capital
cases for the
firm's lawyers, investigators and staff. |
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| Robert M. Sanger, partner in Sanger & Swysen, has
extensive experience in death penalty (capital case) defense. Mr.
Sanger has handled capital cases in the trial courts as well as on direct
appeal and habeas to the California Supreme Court. He has written on
the subject extensively including a leading study of the legal
underpinnings of the death penalty in this state in
the Santa Clara University Law Review,
Volume 44, Issue 1, "Comparison
of the Illinois Commission Report on Capital Punishment with the Capital
Punishment System in California." Mr. Sanger has
lectured on capital case and homicide matters and is also on the Planning
Committee for the annual Monterey Capital Case Seminar. He has
also testified before the State Senate on the legal status of capital
litigation in California. |
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| Mr. Sanger is a Certified Criminal Law Specialist.
Based on over thirty years of practicing criminal defense and over
twenty five years of specialized training and experience in capital
cases, he has qualified
under each of the three sets of guidelines for representation of the accused
in capital cases. One set is promulgated by the American Bar
Association and pertains to representation in the trial courts and
appellate courts throughout the nation. The other two -- one
pertaining to representation in the California trial courts and the
other pertaining to representation before the California Supreme Court
-- are set forth in the California Rules of Court. |
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| The three sets of rules (ABA Guidelines and Rules of Court) are:
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American Bar Association
Guidelines for the Appointment and Performance of Counsel in Death Penalty
Cases.
- California
Rules of Court Rule 4.117:
Qualifications for appointed trial counsel in capital cases.
- Rules of
the Supreme Court of California Rule
8.605: Qualifications of counsel in death penalty appeals and habeas corpus
proceedings.
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| Currently, the California Rules of Court are
mandatory only in cases where the lawyer seeks appointment. The ABA
Standards would require that counsel meet the qualifications whether appointed or
retained. However, in California, a lawyer who fails to meet the
qualifications can still be retained to represent a defendant even if such
lawyer would not be eligible for appointment. |
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| Death penalty cases present legal and factual issues in addition to
those familiar to the experienced criminal practitioner. Sanger &
Swysen takes a team approach to defense of all cases and, in particular,
capital cases. Investigation of the underlying allegations,
investigation of the defense and careful preparation of mitigation is
particularly critical in these cases. If the case comes to the firm
after the client has been convicted, it is necessary to reinvestigate the
entire case, to rethink any assumptions made by prior counsel or the court
and to look for prosecutorial misconduct. In addition, of course,
attention must be paid to the latest legal issues including an attempt to
predict what might be of interest to the California or United States Supreme
courts in the near future. |
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| We are pleased to speak with the accused or family members of the accused
to discuss representation. We
also are pleased to speak with attorneys who either wish assistance or need
to refer a capital case to qualified counsel. |
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| For more information or for attorney to
attorney consultation: |
Call,
805-962-4887 (24 hour emergency
page after hours) or
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| Listed: Naifeth and Smith, The Best Lawyers in America; Martindale-Hubbell, Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers.
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