John Henry Browne (born August 11, 1946) is an American criminal defense lawyer who trains in Seattle, Washington. Browne is known for his passion in defending his client and his talent for media attention. He has represented the defendant in a number of high-profile cases, including serial killer Ted Bundy, Colton Harris-Moore (also known as "The Barefoot Bandit"), Benjamin Ng and Martin Pang. He has tried more than 250 criminal cases to the verdict. Browne and his actions have been the subject of some controversy, and he is sometimes criticized for his strange and aggressive style both inside and outside the courtroom. He is especially known for obtaining sympathetic treatment for his clients by shifting the focus from serious crimes committed by arguing to consider the background of the defendant and the circumstances in which it happened.
Video John Henry Browne
Certain cases
On March 14, 2012 Browne took the case of Sgt Staff. Robert Bales, a US soldier accused of killing 16 Afghans (mostly women and children) in an incident known as the Kandahar Massacre. Browne defended Bales with military lawyers. Browne describes Bales as "polite", and claims his client is upset after seeing a friend's foot in the wind before the day of the murder, but there is no hatred towards Muslims. Browne said, "I think the message to the public in general is that he is one of our boys and they should treat him fairly." Browne also criticized an anonymous report from government officials, who stated "the government will want to blame this on individuals rather than blame it on war." To avoid the death penalty, Bales pleaded guilty to sixteen counts of murder and six counts of assault and attempted murder in a plea deal. On August 23, 2013, he was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole.
Browne's client, Colton Harris-Moore, is accused of at least 67 crimes in long-running crimes spanning several US, Canadian and Bahamas states. Crimes include theft and theft of cars, boats, airplanes, store properties, and private property. By arguing to consider Harris's brutal education, Browne can set up bargains involving 7 1 / 2 - years of imprisonment, which is less severe than would normally be expected in this published case.
In 2011, when representing Dominic Briceno's client on drug trafficking charges, Browne engaged in significant disputes with the judge in the case and made numerous allegations against the judge. A lie was announced, and the judge then died before the matter was resolved.
On behalf of David Wayne Kunze, Browne convinced an appeals court of the State of Washington to annul the first-ever punishment of murder based on forensic "ear" evidence. After winning Kunze's new trial, he discredited a key witness and convinced the prosecutor to overturn all charges and release Kunze in 2001.
Browne also gained national attention as a primary plaintiff in a lawsuit filed in 2007 by class-action lawyer Steve Berman against Avvo, a legal review site. He was reported annoyed that the site gave him an "average" rating through a rating system that considers disciplinary action taken against lawyers. He claims that the rating system is deceptive, not based on valid criteria, and is unreliable. Browne has previously been sanctioned by state disciplinary authorities. The lawsuit against Avvo was dismissed on a pretrial basis, arguing that ratings are expressions of opinion protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States.
In 2006, Washington State Bar rebuked Browne as part of a settlement of ethical demands stemming from compensation issues, saying that he indicted more than what had been set in a written agreement. Such reprimands are the lowest form of Bar disciplinary action. Browne said that an assistant had prepared a written agreement and he did not know about it.
In 1995, Martin Pang burned his frozen food processing business - which resulted in the deaths of four firefighters with the Seattle Fire Department - and fled to Brazil, where Browne successfully argued before the Brazilian Supreme Court that the treaty law requires Pang to only to be extradited if he is not accused of murder. As a result, the District Attorney General, Norm Maleng, was forced to cancel the initial demands of first-degree arson and four counts of first-degree murder and no longer seeking death sentence, thus avoiding Pang's potential death penalty.
Browne was less successful in representing his client Darrell Cloud, who was accused in 1994 for killing his former high school teacher with assault rifles after years of sexual abuse. Browne guided his client to reject bargaining offers, and then presented an unsatisfactory defense that did not succeed in the jury trial. Cloud was convicted of first-degree murder, and later managed to argue that Browne had undermined his ability to negotiate defenses by making unreasonable judgments about his possible trials (which Browne had described as a 95% chance of a favorable outcome). By blaming Browne's behavior, Cloud can get reduced penalties at a lower cost.
His client, Benjamin Ng, has participated in the killing of thirteen people in the 1983 incident known as the Wah Mee massacre. Browne was able to avoid his client receiving the death penalty by stating that Mr. Ng previously suffered a brain injury.
Browne defended American professional footballer Duke Fergerson of the Seattle Seahawks against rape charges, earning his release in 1980.
Maps John Henry Browne
References
Source
- John Henry Browne, Defender of Satan: My American Ted Bundy's Crime Through American Criminal Justice to the Kandahar Massacre , Chicago Review Press City, 2016.
External links
- John Henry Browne Law Office, P.S.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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