At Kenny, Burns & McGill, we’ve learned a crucial lesson over our many years of practice: always listen to your clients. It might sound obvious, but many attorneys think that they know more than their clients and that the client should just do whatever they say.
Recently, we handled a DUI case that perfectly illustrates why listening to your client is so important. Our client insisted from day one that his case was in the wrong county. Specifically, he was pulled over and arrested in one county but processed and charged in another.
In Pennsylvania, law enforcement officers generally only have jurisdiction within their own county. An arrest made outside an officer’s jurisdiction can potentially be deemed illegal, leading to evidence suppression or even case dismissal. This is a fundamental aspect of criminal procedure that protects citizens from overreach and ensures proper authority in law enforcement. Even state and federal law enforcement agencies with broader jurisdiction must be careful to file the charges correctly and in the proper court.
Now, it would have been easy to brush off our client’s claim as confusion or an attempt to duck responsibility. But that’s not how we operate at Kenny, Burns & McGill.
We took our client’s assertion seriously and thoroughly investigated. Internally, we analyzed dashcam video footage of the traffic stop, compared the footage with satellite imagery and GPS data, and overlaid those results on a map of the county borders. Armed with our preliminary results, we hired an expert to prepare a formal report that would be accepted by the court. Lo and behold, the expert’s conclusion aligned perfectly with our client’s account and our own in-house investigation: the arrest had indeed occurred in a different county from where the charges were brought.
Following the rules of evidence, we provided the expert report to the Commonwealth. Their own expert reviewed it and agreed with our findings. The result? The Commonwealth is withdrawing their entire case against our client.
This outcome is huge. Our client was facing a mandatory jail sentence and other serious consequences, should he have been convicted. By listening to him, understanding the legal implications, and following through with a thorough investigation, our team was able to have the case withdrawn.
The lesson here is clear: listen to your clients, investigate diligently, and prepare for battle every time. Good results come from careful preparation.
At Kenny, Burns & McGill, we’re not afraid to go the extra mile for our clients. We know that every detail matters in building a strong defense. This case is just one example of how our approach – combining attentive client service with aggressive advocacy and deep legal knowledge – leads to positive outcomes.
In the legal world, assumptions can be dangerous. Always listen, always verify, and always be prepared to fight for your client’s rights. That’s the Kenny, Burns & McGill way.
