CASE RESULTS

Case: United States of America v. J.J.
Charges: Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana, 

                 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(D)

                 Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking

                 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)
Results: Firearm Count: Dismissed

            Marijuana Count: 6 months in jail, 6 months home confinement

     Both the State of Texas and the federal government charged J.J. with the a gun and marijuana charge, arising from a traffic stop in what police considered a high crime area. After J.J. posted bond for the state charges, the federal government charged J.J. for the same offenses. The issue was that at the federal level, J.J. was certainly facing jail time, while his state charges would only result in a slap on the wrist. 

     To make matters worse, when the government went to arrest J.J., he had even more marijuana, which did not look favorably. Despite being arrested with even more marijuana, Temani Adams was able to successfully get J.J. released on bond for his federal charges. 

     J.J. had no criminal history, so his sentencing range for the marijuana count was less than a year in jail, with the possibility of a split sentence, or probation. The issue was the gun count, which carried a mandatory 5 year jail sentence. Temani and her client geared up for trial. Temani knew that she could prove J.J. was not guilty of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. J.J. carried a gun all the time, and Temani gathered lots of evidence to prove this. 

     A few nights before the pre-trial hearing in the case, the Assistant U.S. Attorney (more commonly known as "prosecutor"), called Temani to work out a plea agreement. Temani was able to negotiate a plea agreement that involved the gun charge being dismissed, and J.J. pleading guilty to the marijuana charge. 

     J.J. was sentenced to a split sentence of 6 months home confinement and 6 months in jail.

Case: United States of America v. E.Y.
Charges: Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine 

                  21 U.S.C. §  846

                  Attempted Possession of Cocaine 

                  21 U.S.C. §  846
Results: Attempted Count: Not Guilty 

                Conspiracy Count: Guilty 

     E.Y. was setup by a ‘friend,” who was a paid government confidential informant ( more commonly known as a "CI"). E.Y. had no idea that his friend was actually out to set him up. The paid informant had been paid over $200,000 by the government, for setting people up during his time as a paid informant. E.Y. knew none of this. 

     One day E.Y.’s “friend” called him and asked if he wanted to buy some cocaine or if he knew anyone that would be interested. E.Y. eventually negotiated the purchase of 2 kilos of cocaine for one of his neighbors. E.Y. was never supposed to receive any cocaine. He was only going to be paid a finder’s fee for making the connection between the two parties. 

     When it was time for the group to meet up, the Drug Enforcement Agency ("DEA") was there. Not E.Y.’s “friend.” E.Y.’s neighbor, who had significant criminal history, plead guilty and agreed to testify against E.Y. in hopes of receiving a reduced sentence . E.Y. had no criminal history and decided to proceed to trial, with the defense of entrapment. 

     Prior to trial, Temani discovered that the government informant had been an illegal immigrant with a long criminal history. Temani wanted to call the CI as a witness at trial, but the government refused to provide his name. In fact, at this point in the case, the government only planned on calling one witness at trial, the case agent. Temani was able to cleverly use the CI’s criminal history and the information she’d received from her client, to identify and subpoena the CI to trial. 

     During trial, E.Y.’s neighbor testified against him, despite changing his story numerous times. The CI was forced to testify. The CI’s credibility was so bad that the judge scolded him about making false statements under oath. The CI was paid $5,000 for setting up E.Y., and the government had given him a VISA to stay in the United States for his work in setting up people like E.Y. The jury deliberated a little more than a day. After several hours of deliberations, the jury gave an inconsistent verdict of guilty on the conspiracy count, and not guilty for the attempted possession count. 

Case:United States of America v. B.S.
Charge: Sale or Transfer of a Firearm to a Prohibited Person 

               18 U.S.C. § 922(d)
Result: Hung Jury

     Temani came into this case, after a colleague needed help with a trial. The client, was a local, criminal defense lawyer, who was charged with selling firearms to his client, who was a convicted felon. The case was interesting to say the least. 

     Temani’s colleague had a defense but Temani, knew that his defense wouldn’t work. It simply didn’t make sense and would lead to B.S. going to prison for a long time. Temani offered a new defense, and that’s the defense that they used at trial. During jury selection, Temani instructed the trial team on how to research potential jurors, so that only the jurors that would side with her defense theory would be selected. 

     During trial, many people wanted Temani to attack an Assistant US Attorney that had to testify. Temani took a different approach, and it worked. After the first day of jury deliberations, Temani told her trial team that she believed that the case would end in a hung jury. The next day, that is exactly what happened. 

Case:United States of America v. T.S.
Charge: Possession of a Firearm by Prohibited Person 

               18 U.S.C. § 922(g)
Result: Hung Jury 

     Temani was brought onto this case to assist with jury selection at trial. The trial was in the ultra conservative Eastern District of Texas, and was before a judge who’d never presided over a criminal trial before. It was Temani's first federal criminal trial and the judge's.

     Temani knew that jury selection was going to be tough. The jury pool was extremely limited, and the potential jurors came from several small towns. A person has the right to be tried by a jury of their peers, however, none of the potential jurors had anything in common with T.S. 

     Temani began researching the potential jurors the night before trial. Temani reviewed their social media accounts, work history, family history, and the way they voted. When it was time to strike potential jurors that she didn't want on the jury, Temani had her list ready. 

     The defense was simple, the government couldn’t prove that the item T.S. had in his hand in a surveillance video, was actually a gun. The government only had surveillance footage of T.S. with an item that looked like a gun. No actual gun was ever recovered, only some non-functional gun parts. 

     After a 2 day trial, the jury was hung 11-1, in favor of a not guilty verdict. 

Case: United States of America v. W.G.
Charges: Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance (marijuana)

                  21 U.S.C. § 846

                  Felon in Possession of a Firearm

                  18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1)
Result: Both charges dismissed. Client plead to a lesser offense.

     W.G. hired Temani after his court appointed lawyer failed. W.G.’s court appointed lawyer had incorrectly informed him that he was a career offender under the federal sentencing guidelines and pressured him to sign a plea agreement. After a brief look at his criminal history, Temani knew that W.G. was not a career offender, and knew that the government could not prove the drug quantity listed in the indictment.

     After she was hired, Temani immediately began going through the volumes of discovery (more commonly known as evidence). After reviewing the evidence, Temani was certain that the 

government couldn’t prove that her client had possessed or sold the amount of marijuana the government was alleging. When Temani confronted the prosecutor about the drug quantity, she had no answer. Around the same time, Temani discovered that the case agent, made a false statement in the search warrant for W.G.’s home. Temani immediately began to prepare a request for a Franks hearing. 

After some back and forth, the judge in the case, abruptly cancelled the hearing that was scheduled for the Franks’ issue, and denied the motion. Temani kept pushing forward, because she knew that the government couldn’t prove their drug quantity.

     A few days before the pre-trial hearing, Temani received a call from the prosecutor. Not only was she now willing to dismiss the gun count, she was also willing to dismiss the conspiracy count, if W.G. plead to a lower offense. 

Case: State of Texas v. K.O.
Charge: Murder
Result: No charges filed

           On a Sunday morning, our client was essentially involved in a drug  deal gone wrong.  After getting into the car with a man who wanted to  buy marijuana, our client quickly realized that the man had different  intentions. The unknown man pulled out a handgun, and attempted to rob  our client. Our client was subsequently shot at, and returned fire.  Fearing for his life, he fled on foot, and called Temani.

           Temani met with our client, discussed the altercation, and  personally went to the crime scene. After reviewing the evidence and  prepping our client, they both went to police headquarters to discuss  the altercation. After less than an hour, Temani and our client walked  out of the police station together. Temani’s successful preparation  ensured that no charges were filed against our client.

Case: State of Texas v. D.E.
Charge: Aggravated Assault by a Public Servant
Result: Charge Dismissed

                 Our client, a city bus driver, was charged with a first degree felony after she had a physical encounter with an unruly bus passenger. The passenger alleged that our client pulled a knife on him after he was forced off of the bus. Our client hired Temani Adams after her original attorney could not produce any results. Once retained, Temani obtained the criminal history of the alleged victim, and learned that not only was he currently in jail, but had a history of violence, drug use, and mental illness. 

                The prosecutor originally refused to dismiss the charges, despite there being clear evidence that the victim actually assaulted our client. Temani began to prepare for trial. The State’s star witness, the victim was already back in jail for another crime. Days before trial, the prosecutor agreed to dismiss the charges if our client would take an online anger management class. Our client gladly took the course and the charges were dismissed. Our client went from facing 99 years in jail, to  walking  away with no record. 

Case: State of Texas v. S.W.
Charge: Felony Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon
Result: Charge Dismissed

                 Our client's dad hired Temani, after she defended herself in  an  altercation.  Our client was called to assist a relative who was  being  bullied by a neighbor. The neighbor and her friends began  taunting our  client via Facebook, in order to have our client come  fight. After a  physical altercation, our client was leaving the  location when the  alleged “victim” hit our client’s car with a baseball  bat, and shot at  her car. In self defense, our client shot back and  left the scene. 

                After reviewing the  evidence in the case, Temani went to the crime  scene herself, and was  immediately able to determine that the victim was  lying. Temani was  able to show the prosecutor that there was crossfire,  which indicated  that the victim also had a gun. Temani also produced a  video, and  affidavits of several witnesses. After reviewing all of the  evidence  that Temani presented, the prosecutor reduced the charge to a  Class C  misdemeanor, the lowest offense level in Texas, and that ticket  was  dismissed. Our client went from facing 2-20 years in jail, to  walking  away with no record.

Case: State of Texas v. C.L.
Charge: Misdemeanor Assault Causing Bodily Injury, Family Violence
Result: Dismissed

            After a verbal altercation with the mother of his child, our  client was  charged with Assault Family Violence. The victim stated that  our client  assaulted her and pushed her into a wall, among other  things. Temani  was able to show that our client had no prior history of  family  violence, and that the “victim” in the case, had a habit of  lying. After  reviewing the lack of evidence, and other outlandish  statements made by  the victim, the prosecutor agreed with Temani, and  the case was  dismissed. 

Case: State of Texas v. C.G.
Charges: Felony Possession of a Controlled Substance PG2,                         

                 Misdemeanor Possession of Marijuana 

Results: Charge 1-Reduced to a Misdemeanor, Charge 2- Dismissed

     Our client was charged with possession of a controlled  substance,  after he was pulled over for speeding, and the cop searched  his car. The  substance was dab, a highly concentrated form of weed. His  mom  immediately called Temani.  After reviewing the surveillance video  from  the officer’s car, Temani immediately knew there was an issue  with the  search. 

               While the  possession of a  controlled substance case was still pending, our client  was pulled over again. A small amount of marijuana was found in his  car, and he was  arrested. Being arrested for a new offense, while on  bond, normally  results in a higher bond amount, or the judge throwing  the person in  jail for a few days. This didn’t happen for our client. 

                 After Temani brought up the search issue to the prosecutor,  he  immediately wanted to make a deal. The prosecutor had originally  offered  to place our client on felony deferred adjudication probation.  After  the search issue was brought to his attention, we came to the  agreement  that he would dismiss our client’s new marijuana charge, and  reduce the  felony case to a misdemeanor. Our client was placed on a  short term  probation, and his charge will be dismissed once he  completes it.

Case: State of Texas v. L.R.
Charges: Misdemeanor Possession of Marijuana, Misdemeanor 

               Unlawful Carrying of a Weapon
Results: All Charges Dismissed

     Our client was pulled over by cops after he made a  wide  right turn. The officer stated that he smelled “the strong odor of  burnt  marijuana,” and subsequently searched our client’s car. A gun  and  marijuana were found. Temani filed a Motion to Suppress, based on a  bad  stop. The judge denied our motion. 

     Our client  insisted that there was no marijuana in the car, and that  the cops  didn’t show him the marijuana that they found. We then filed a  Motion to  Inspect, demanding that they prosecutor show us the  marijuana. At the  police property room, an officer pulled out the  marijuana. The amount  was so small that it couldn’t be tested. Texas  law requires that the  amount of marijuana at least be a usable amount.  Based on the small  amount of marijuana, both charges were dismissed.

Case: State of Texas v. B.D.
Charge: Misdemeanor Unlawful Carrying of a Weapon
Result: Charge Dismissed

     Our client was parked in his drive way, scrolling down his  Facebook  timeline, when officers approached his vehicle with guns  drawn. After  some intense moments, where officers threatened to shoot  him, our client  was yanked from his vehicle, and was subsequently  charged with unlawful  carrying of a weapon.

     Temani immediately  ordered the body camera footage from the  police department. What is  showed was startling. Temani went to speak  with the prosecutor before  the first court setting. Temani was able to  show that our client was on  his own property, and in his own vehicle.  As a result, he was not  unlawfully carrying a weapon, because the law  allows a person to possess  a firearm in their car or on their property.  The case was dismissed  before its first court setting.

Case: State of Texas v. C.C.
Charge: Misdemeanor Possession of a Dangerous Drug

Result: Charges Dismissed

     After a bad search, our client was charged with a misdemeanor, after  officers found her grandmother’s prescription medication in her car. Our  client explained to the officer that she was her grandmother’s care  taker, and that she often picked up her grandmother’s prescriptions and  medical supplies. They even had the same address.

     On the first court setting, Temani went to court with all of her  pre-trial motions in hand. The prosecutor agreed with Temani’s  possession, and dismissed the charge the same day.

Case: State of Texas v. R. J.
Charges: Felony Manufacturing and Delivery of a Controlled Substance  (Heroin), and Manufacturing and Delivery of a Controlled Substance  (Cocaine); with a firearm
Result: All Charges Dismissed

     Our client was arrested for, and charged with, two (2) felony  counts of Manufacturing and Delivering a Controlled Substance, after  hanging out at a friend’s house that was subsequently raided. Due to his  criminal record, before retaining Temani, the client was held in the  county jail for months with a high bond. One the same day he retained  our office, Temani had the client’s bond reduced, and he was released  from jail.

     After several contentious court  settings, and a plowing through a large volume of evidence, Temani was  able to prove that our client was simply in the wrong place at the wrong  time. Despite, Temani using the State’s own evidence to come to this  conclusion, the State refused to dismiss the charges. After showing that  the State’s own witnesses, and the lead police detective agreed that  our client had nothing to do with any drug activity, our client was  cited with a ticket, and the felony charges were dismissed.

Case: State of Texas v. M. C.
Charge: Misdemeanor Unlawful Carrying Weapon
Result: Charges Dismissed

     Our client and his friends were pulled over while heading to do  some target shooting at a local gun range. All three people in the  vehicle were arrested and charged with Unlawful Carrying of a Weapon, a  Class A Misdemeanor. Officers claimed that our client’s weapon was in  “plain view” in the backseat of the vehicle, making his possession of  the weapon unlawful. Temani did not set out to disprove that the gun was  in “plain view.” Instead, Temani focused on a little known exception to  the law, that allows a person to possess a gun if they are in route to a  shooting range.

     Temani presented this  exception to the State and requested a dismissal of the charge. The state refused, and the parties proceeded to trial. On the day of trial,  after a jury panel was ordered, the state dismissed the charge.

Case: State of Texas v. Fifteen Thousand Five Hundred Twenty Dollars
Charge: Asset Forfeiture
Result: Verdict in favor of Defendant

     Early one Sunday morning, our client was pulled over for a traffic  violation. He was subsequently arrested for an outstanding traffic  warrant. Shortly after being handcuffed, officers discovered that our  client had over $15,000.00 in his possession. While our client was only  arrested for a traffic warrant, the police department filed seizure  proceedings, in hopes that the department would be able to keep the  funds. Once retained, Temani, provided the prosecutor with a large  volume of documents proving that the seized funds were legitimately  earned, and should be returned. The State dropped the ball, and we  proceeded to trial.

     During a one (1) day  bench trial, Temani was able to refute the State’s argument that our  client was a drug dealer, who’d earned the seized funds by selling  marijuana. Temani tore the State’s evidence to shreds. She presented  several witnesses that testified, in detail, about our client’s various  business ventures. Temani also produced an even larger volume of  documents, detailing our client’s income. The judge agreed with Temani,  and ordered the police department to return the seized funds.

Case: State of Texas v. J. H.
Charge: Felony Unauthorized Absence from Correctional Facility
Result: Dismissed

     While completing a two (2) year probation, our client was arrested  for, and charged with the felony offense of Unauthorized Absence from  Correctional Facility. The State alleged that our client failed to  comply with a condition of his probation, that required him to complete  fifteen (15) days in jail. Temani produced certified court documents,  proving that the court modified the conditions of our client’s  probation, that our client was fully compliant with his probation, and  that the State erred in filing the new charge. While the same documents  were in the possession of the State, once Temani produced them in court,  the State dismissed the new charge, and continued our client’s  probation.

Case: State of Texas v. J.A.
Charges:  Felony Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Deliver  (Xanax) in a Drug Free Zone, Felony Possession of Marijuana in a Drug  Free Zone, and Felony Probation Violation.
Result: Charges Dismissed. Probation reinstated.

     While on felony probation, our client was arrested for, and charged  with, two (2) felony drug charges and a probation violation. The State  alleged that our client sold prescription Xanax, and marijuana in a  house located near an elementary school.

     In reality, our client fell asleep at a neighbor’s home, after  mistakenly being locked out of his home. While asleep, the neighbor’s  house was raided by the police and drugs were found. Our client and two  (2) other occupants were arrested and charged. Our client immediately  called Temani.

     Temani used a pre-trial  hearing, known as an examining trial, to obtain the testimony of the  lead detective. Temani began by having the officer admit that the “drug  free zone” that the State used to enhance the charge was bogus, because  the alleged school had been closed for years. Through effective cross  examination, Temani was also able to force the officer to admit that our  client did not live in the home where the drugs were found, was not in  the room where the drugs were found, and that he was asleep in a spare  bedroom when officers entered the home. After producing the record from  the hearing, Temani was able to have the drug charges dismissed, and  have the client’s probation reinstated without any jail time.

Case: State of Texas v. M. P.
Charge: Felony Aggravated Assault Causing Serious Bodily Injury, Against a Family Member, and Parole Violation
Result: Criminal charge rejected. Parole Reinstated.

     Our client was charged with assaulting his live in girlfriend after  police received a false 911 call. When officers arrived, both our  client and his girlfriend vehemently denied that any assault occurred.  Despite their statements that nothing happened, our client was charged  with a first degree felony. This was a very serious case. Not only  because of the charges our client faced, but because our client was  currently on parole. After reviewing the facts, the State elected not to  proceed with charges. However, our client still faced jail time due to  parolee status.

     During the initial parole  hearing, Temani called two (2) witnesses, our client’s girlfriend, and  the 911 caller. The parole officer conducting the hearing was livid. The  officer felt that it was a waste of time for an attorney to present  witnesses at a preliminary parole hearing. Temani proceeded. Temani  effectively questioned both witnesses, who testified that no assault  occurred. Temani was even able to get the 911 caller to admit that he  was under the influence of drugs at the time of his call, and made a  false statement.

     Before the final parole  hearing, Temani obtained new evidence that substantiated our client’s  claim of innocence. Evidence that the State did not have. During the  final parole hearing, Temani produced the 911 call, and police in car  video from the night of the arrest. Before making it half way through  the police video, the hearing officer sided with Temani, and recommended  that our client’s parole be reinstated.

Case: State of Texas v. M.P.
Charge: Misdemeanor, Possession of Marijuana
Result: Dismissed

     Our client was riding in the car with friends, when they were  pulled over. After questioning the driver, the officer found marijuana  on the ground, and stuck the charge on our client. After reviewing the  police report, Temani knew that there was no evidence to prove that the  marijuana belonged to our client. Temani setup a meeting with the  prosecutor to discuss the case. During their meeting, the prosecutor  agreed that there was no evidence to substantiate the charge, and the  case was dismissed.

Case: State of Texas v. D.Y.
Charge: Felony Assault Family Violence, Impeding the Breath, and Parole Violation
Result: No Billed, Parole Reinstated

     Our Client was arrested when he and his girlfriend went to the  police station to clear up false allegations she’d previously made.  Instead of listening to his girlfriend explain how other police officers  twisted her words, our client was arrested and held without bond.

     Due to our client being in custody, Temani took the smart approach  of having our client’s girlfriend testify at the grand jury hearing.  Temani rigorously prepared our witness, to ensure that the correct story  was told to the grand jury. The girlfriend told her story, the true  story, and the case was No Billed.

     Temani  then prepared to have our client’s parole reinstated. Using the same  preparation techniques, Temani prepared our witness to testify during  our client’s parole hearing. After a productive hearing, our client’s  parole was reinstated.

Case: State of Texas v. F.B.
Charge: Felony Manufacturing/Delivery a Controlled Substance in PG 1 (Cocaine)
Result: Dismissed

     Temani was contacted by our client’s mom after he was  arrested for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Our client had  gone with one of his friends to play Playstation at another friend’s  house. While waiting his turn to play, the police barged in. They were  executing a search warrant. 

     Although our client didn’t live there, and had just arrived, he was  charged with a crime. In his report, the cop even falsely stated that  our client was sitting near the door, acting as a lookout. After  reviewing the evidence, we were able to show that our client had nothing  to do with what was found in the home.

Case: State of Texas v. R.O.
Charges:  Felony Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, Felony Possession  of Identifying Information, Misdemeanor Possession of a Controlled  Substance in Penalty Group 3, Misdemeanor Resisting Arrest, and  Misdemeanor Possession of a Prohibited Weapon,
Result: All charges dismissed

     Our client was charged with 5 crimes, after being involved  in a crazy situation at a grocery store. His parents called Temani, and  she got the ball rolling. The first thing that we did was request the  dash camera footage from the police car. This was crucial to our case. 

     After reviewing the police reports, we knew that the gun,  and identifying information, were found in a bag, they couldn’t prove  our client possessed. Based on that, we were able to have the officer  agree not to pursue the felony charges.

     We then began dealing with the misdemeanors. After the prosecutor  insisted that there was no dash camera footage available, it magically  appeared (thanks to our earlier request). Not only did the video show  that our client did not resist arrest, but it also showed that the cop  lied. The resisting arrest charge was out, but the prosecutor was forced  to dismiss the remaining two (2) charges as well, because the cop lied.