I am blessed. I wake up each day bursting with gratitude that I am a practicing attorney who helps decent men and women navigate the courts and resolve disputes. I get paid to make the world a better place. I am blessed.
Guest
Anonymous
April 21, 2023 7:38 pm
Telles looks like he's facing a pretty grim situation between the DNA and other evidence.
And, Obviously, the RJ is, understandably, very much focused on justice concerning their slain colleague and friend. But, that said, the RJ is picking a legal fight that is a distraction to the issues at hand, and that could help Telles to some degree.
I understand that media outlets wish to protect the confidentiality of sources that their investigative reporters rely on. I also believe that there is probably nothing on German's phone that could really vindicate Tells, or even serve as some mitigation.
But the public(who tend to distrust the media) will assume that there is info. that could support Tells innocence, and that the RJ is attempting to block it. That is how it will look to the public. The public will not merely assume that media outlets protect their sources of information.
It seems like really misguided strategy. Their counsel should have told them that if we try to block the contents of German's phone from disclosure, that many may start listening to Telles assertions that there is all this great material on the phone which clears, or really helps, Telles.
We could wind up with a jury including several people who think that the phone contents were not disclosed because such contents vindicate the defendant. That may not be a reasonable, or supportable view, but trust me–if this fight continues more and more members of the public may start to believe what Telles is saying.
So, if I am looking for a word to describe this fight picked to protect the contents of German's phone from disclosure, words like "misguided" or, less diplomatically, "stupid", seem to come to mind.
The RJ absolutely is doing the right thing, trying to protect the confidentiality of sources. The RJ is duty-bound to fight this fight because when legitimate journalists tell a source that they will protect the source's identity, they mean it and are willing to go to jail – or fight whatever legal battles are necessary – to protect that source.
Since I was not one of Jeff's sources because he could not be trusted off of the record, I am all for all of the people who mistakenly did trust him being outed, including a number of you in the legal community.
12:56-I think you are right, and 12:38 readily concedes that point, as to the protection of sources.
So, I agree with and understand the concept, and understand why the RJ is taking that approach. So, I think 12:38 really over-states matters when they say the R.J's approach was not smart and was really misguided.
However, I tend to agree with 12:38's point that often perception is reality. If you have homicide defendant incessantly insisting that certain evidence will vindicate him, and the other side strenuously fighting against disclosure, most of the public will not see the nuance and will not properly focus on the concept of journalistic confidentiality.
Instead, many will simply assume that the information is being doggedly protected from disclosure because Telles may be right that there is info. that would be helpful to defend his case.
1 p.m., the journalism career of any investigative reporter who cannot be trusted to protect his or her off-the-record sources is over really quick. Jeff's long and successful career alone puts the lie to your statement. But moreover, I was his editor for years, and I saw firsthand, day in and day out, how conscientious and ethical he was. Journalism, Nevada, and this nation desperately need many more like Jeff.
Why would the judge allow information about how hard the RJ fought over access to German's phone to be presented to the jury? I doubt most people are closely following the RJ's legal battle over this.
7:50-Presumably, that would not be something deemed relevant and shared with the jury. But I guess what some posters are suggesting is that if prospective jurors follow the news, they may be aware of the dispute, and may further assume that since there is a big legal fight about whether to disclose it, that such might indicate the blocked info. is favorable to Telles.
But I agree with you that although some members of the public have been generally exposed to the Telles/German story, that very few of them will get so far into the weeds that they follow an arcane and off the radar type of sub-issue. It's simply not interesting enough.
3:55 I applaud Jeff doing his job as well as he did. But that job involved certain levels of duplicity. Jeff traded information obtained "off the record" for other information that he deemed more valuable. Call it the nature of the game if you will. There is no lie to my statement, and if the truth ever came out you would know (and I suspect already do) the accuracy of that fact.
Our profession also has an ethical code that involves not selling client secrets to journalists for personal gain; there is a duplicity to many in our profession also that Jeff exploited. On one level, good for him because it got him information. But to deny the ethical gray in both the sender and receiver of such information is to unnecessarily play daft.
There was a story or rumor that Jeff German was about to make some startling revelations about Telles gleaned from information provided to him. German had been provided withTelles's phone records and had cooperating individuals from Telles's office who were ratting on him. In the criminal case, Telles is entitled to this stuff regardless of the source or the shield law. BTW, DNA evidence sometimes can be questioned and is not the smoking gun it is made out to be. There are all sorts of issues and problems with collection, contamination, and analysis.
Guest
Anonymous
April 21, 2023 7:42 pm
12:38-I know generally about this dispute, but not in any real detail. Not sure how Telles would know what is on someone else's phone, but that aside, did Telles ever offer any specificity as to what is supposedly on the phone, and how it helps Telles?
Telles maintains he was framed. I guess his argument would be that someon else German was investigating set him up, planted evidence, etc. I don't see jurors falling for it. RT has a very distinctive body profile and gait, which are obvious in the person dressed up as the dayworker walking around German's house. 1238 is giving too much credit to RT and not enough to the general public from which the jury will be drawn.
Telles does not know what is on German's phone and probably secondarily does not want what is on German's devices. He wants to seek what is on German's devices, be denied and then be able to point to the empty chair or missing laptop and say "I would have been able to meet the standard for a not guilty if only they would have let me see the evidence." Telles is not trying to win on the merits. He can't win on the merits. He needs to try to win on the idiosyncrasies that the case includes to cast doubt.
12:50, we can agree to disagree. I don't think 12:38 thinks much of Telles' approach. But I think they may be right when they suggest we be careful about how much faith to place in the prospective jury pool.
I really hope you are right and I am wrong. I hope they all see through all this. But I know from experience what many people tend to think when they hear that information is not being disclosed. And some of those people will be likely prospecctive jurors.
Yes, 1:06, that is it, and 12:38 alludes to it as well. It is highly unlikely anything on that phone helps Telles, and he presumably knows that. What he wants is to be handed an issue that he hopes to develop-they aggressively blocked me from having all this info. that I told everyone would vindicate me.
In some cases that is effective, although I highly doubt it will be here. There is significant DNA and other evidence. If the best he can muster is "I was framed. It's a hideous conspiracy" then I would wager that once the jury starts deliberating, they are likely to be able to return to their employment the very next morning.
Guest
Anonymous
April 21, 2023 9:27 pm
How aggressive are you in chasing down judges to make decisions? There is a certain judge on the EJDC (civil) who has not issued decisions on any of my cases since the beginning of the year. Taken everything under advisement. Never issued a decision. We start May in 10 days.
3:15-Presumably not, as I think a valuable lesson was learned, after being sanctioned by the Commission for this very issue-taking matters under advisement for way too long.
I know two judges in particular who need to read this article. When my client says he promised to ruin her life 10 years ago and he’s still tracking her and hurting her and her family…it fucking matters. Joint custody with a psycho IS NOT in the best interest of the child. Damn cowards. I can’t wait for Falconi to get access to family court so all their incompetence and corruption gets shown to the public.
28 percent, that's all?
My thoughts exactly. I think about leaving this job every day.
Glad to be in about the seventh inning of my career. Don’t think I could do it starting out in this environment.
I am blessed. I wake up each day bursting with gratitude that I am a practicing attorney who helps decent men and women navigate the courts and resolve disputes. I get paid to make the world a better place. I am blessed.
Telles looks like he's facing a pretty grim situation between the DNA and other evidence.
And, Obviously, the RJ is, understandably, very much focused on justice concerning their slain colleague and friend. But, that said, the RJ is picking a legal fight that is a distraction to the issues at hand, and that could help Telles to some degree.
I understand that media outlets wish to protect the confidentiality of sources that their investigative reporters rely on. I also believe that there is probably nothing on German's phone that could really vindicate Tells, or even serve as some mitigation.
But the public(who tend to distrust the media) will assume that there is info. that could support Tells innocence, and that the RJ is attempting to block it. That is how it will look to the public. The public will not merely assume that media outlets protect their sources of information.
It seems like really misguided strategy. Their counsel should have told them that if we try to block the contents of German's phone from disclosure, that many may start listening to Telles assertions that there is all this great material on the phone which clears, or really helps, Telles.
We could wind up with a jury including several people who think that the phone contents were not disclosed because such contents vindicate the defendant. That may not be a reasonable, or supportable view, but trust me–if this fight continues more and more members of the public may start to believe what Telles is saying.
So, if I am looking for a word to describe this fight picked to protect the contents of German's phone from disclosure, words like "misguided" or, less diplomatically, "stupid", seem to come to mind.
The RJ absolutely is doing the right thing, trying to protect the confidentiality of sources. The RJ is duty-bound to fight this fight because when legitimate journalists tell a source that they will protect the source's identity, they mean it and are willing to go to jail – or fight whatever legal battles are necessary – to protect that source.
Since I was not one of Jeff's sources because he could not be trusted off of the record, I am all for all of the people who mistakenly did trust him being outed, including a number of you in the legal community.
12:56-I think you are right, and 12:38 readily concedes that point, as to the protection of sources.
So, I agree with and understand the concept, and understand why the RJ is taking that approach. So, I think 12:38 really over-states matters when they say the R.J's approach was not smart and was really misguided.
However, I tend to agree with 12:38's point that often perception is reality. If you have homicide defendant incessantly insisting that certain evidence will vindicate him, and the other side strenuously fighting against disclosure, most of the public will not see the nuance and will not properly focus on the concept of journalistic confidentiality.
Instead, many will simply assume that the information is being doggedly protected from disclosure because Telles may be right that there is info. that would be helpful to defend his case.
1pm, why do you want lawyers who trusted Jeff be "outed"? Do you think they'll sue the RJ or Jeff's estate? I'm not understanding your point.
1 p.m., the journalism career of any investigative reporter who cannot be trusted to protect his or her off-the-record sources is over really quick. Jeff's long and successful career alone puts the lie to your statement. But moreover, I was his editor for years, and I saw firsthand, day in and day out, how conscientious and ethical he was. Journalism, Nevada, and this nation desperately need many more like Jeff.
Why would the judge allow information about how hard the RJ fought over access to German's phone to be presented to the jury? I doubt most people are closely following the RJ's legal battle over this.
7:50-Presumably, that would not be something deemed relevant and shared with the jury. But I guess what some posters are suggesting is that if prospective jurors follow the news, they may be aware of the dispute, and may further assume that since there is a big legal fight about whether to disclose it, that such might indicate the blocked info. is favorable to Telles.
But I agree with you that although some members of the public have been generally exposed to the Telles/German story, that very few of them will get so far into the weeds that they follow an arcane and off the radar type of sub-issue. It's simply not interesting enough.
3:55 I applaud Jeff doing his job as well as he did. But that job involved certain levels of duplicity. Jeff traded information obtained "off the record" for other information that he deemed more valuable. Call it the nature of the game if you will. There is no lie to my statement, and if the truth ever came out you would know (and I suspect already do) the accuracy of that fact.
Our profession also has an ethical code that involves not selling client secrets to journalists for personal gain; there is a duplicity to many in our profession also that Jeff exploited. On one level, good for him because it got him information. But to deny the ethical gray in both the sender and receiver of such information is to unnecessarily play daft.
There was a story or rumor that Jeff German was about to make some startling revelations about Telles gleaned from information provided to him. German had been provided withTelles's phone records and had cooperating individuals from Telles's office who were ratting on him. In the criminal case, Telles is entitled to this stuff regardless of the source or the shield law. BTW, DNA evidence sometimes can be questioned and is not the smoking gun it is made out to be. There are all sorts of issues and problems with collection, contamination, and analysis.
12:38-I know generally about this dispute, but not in any real detail. Not sure how Telles would know what is on someone else's phone, but that aside, did Telles ever offer any specificity as to what is supposedly on the phone, and how it helps Telles?
Telles maintains he was framed. I guess his argument would be that someon else German was investigating set him up, planted evidence, etc. I don't see jurors falling for it. RT has a very distinctive body profile and gait, which are obvious in the person dressed up as the dayworker walking around German's house. 1238 is giving too much credit to RT and not enough to the general public from which the jury will be drawn.
Telles does not know what is on German's phone and probably secondarily does not want what is on German's devices. He wants to seek what is on German's devices, be denied and then be able to point to the empty chair or missing laptop and say "I would have been able to meet the standard for a not guilty if only they would have let me see the evidence." Telles is not trying to win on the merits. He can't win on the merits. He needs to try to win on the idiosyncrasies that the case includes to cast doubt.
12:50, we can agree to disagree. I don't think 12:38 thinks much of Telles' approach. But I think they may be right when they suggest we be careful about how much faith to place in the prospective jury pool.
I really hope you are right and I am wrong. I hope they all see through all this. But I know from experience what many people tend to think when they hear that information is not being disclosed. And some of those people will be likely prospecctive jurors.
Yes, 1:06, that is it, and 12:38 alludes to it as well. It is highly unlikely anything on that phone helps Telles, and he presumably knows that. What he wants is to be handed an issue that he hopes to develop-they aggressively blocked me from having all this info. that I told everyone would vindicate me.
In some cases that is effective, although I highly doubt it will be here. There is significant DNA and other evidence. If the best he can muster is "I was framed. It's a hideous conspiracy" then I would wager that once the jury starts deliberating, they are likely to be able to return to their employment the very next morning.
How aggressive are you in chasing down judges to make decisions? There is a certain judge on the EJDC (civil) who has not issued decisions on any of my cases since the beginning of the year. Taken everything under advisement. Never issued a decision. We start May in 10 days.
Let me guess…. Delaney?
Cutter?
3:15-Presumably not, as I think a valuable lesson was learned, after being sanctioned by the Commission for this very issue-taking matters under advisement for way too long.
5:06, Oh, I didn't know that happened
I wish these were published in the Nevada Lawyer too:
https://judicial.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/judicialnvgov/content/Discipline/Dicisions/2022.12.21%20Certified%20Copy%20of%20Stipulation%20and%20Order%20of%20Consent%20to%20Public%20Reprimand%202021-025-P%20and%202022-026-P.pdf
Escobar and Albertson
https://www.rgj.com/story/news/2023/04/20/reno-mother-shot-and-killed-filed-multiple-tpos-against-man-who-is-only-suspect-in-her-murder/70135659007/?fbclid=IwAR2zY32maBRSL8czW-oIfxnB0waVviVxE9xk2fXEYYQdrnRyabot3WpA-jY&mibextid=tejx2t#lgs616t44vanhh3fsisp
I know two judges in particular who need to read this article. When my client says he promised to ruin her life 10 years ago and he’s still tracking her and hurting her and her family…it fucking matters. Joint custody with a psycho IS NOT in the best interest of the child. Damn cowards. I can’t wait for Falconi to get access to family court so all their incompetence and corruption gets shown to the public.