PA DUI Attorney Justin McShane authors another publication about DUI defense.
One of the things I really love to do is share my research and knowledge with other lawyers to help them defend their clients. The defense of justice shouldn’t be limited to just Pennsylvania. Part of this commitment is authoring works on complex legal and scientific subjects.
Recently a new publication was released: Defending DUI Vehicular Homicide Cases, 2012 ed.: Leading Lawyers on Understanding DUI Cases, Developing a Thorough Defense, and Negotiating Settlements in which I authored a chapter entitled: Navigating the Complexities of a DUI Vehicular Homicide Defense.
You can view a complete list of my publications: http://www.themcshanefirm.com/attorneys/mcshane/.
Once again, this is an honor that recognizes my hard-work and expertise in the field of DUI defense. For a free consultation with a qualified expert Pennsylvania DUI lawyer please call 1-866-MCSHANE.
The National College for DUI Defense (NCDD) sponsors the most intensive and advanced DUI training seminars an attorney can attend. Not only do the Pennsylvania DUI attorneys at The McShane Firm regularly attend these seminars, I have been invited to present my research at the 2012 NCDD Winter Session to be held in Orlando from Jan. 19-20, 2012. My presentation is entitled “Why there is no Science in Evidentiary Breath Testing”.
DUI breath testing is completely unscientific. We are gambling with people's lives.
Briefly, DUI breath testing as it is used today was developed in the 1950′s and has remained largely unchanged since tat time regardless of the fact that science has completely evolved. DUI breath testing machines use an indirect method to produce a result and this method is not specific to ethanol. Many other substances, even some that are naturally produced in our bodies, can confuse the machine into producing erroneous readings even in people that are completely sober. On top of this, the software that these machines use have never been scientifically validated and there is an absence of oversight when it comes to making sure the machines are checked for its calibration properly. When all of this is taken into account, it is clear that thousands of people are being tested daily on inaccurate and unvalidated technology. DUI breath testing is a complete crap shoot.
Once again, it is a tremendous honor to be selected to speak at such a prestigious event which once again shows the recognition my work has received in the broader legal community.
Pennsylvania DUI Attorney Justin McShane and Oklahoma DUI attorney Josh Lee were recently appointed as the Forensic Co-Chairs of the American Chemical Society Chemistry and the Law Division in a unanimous vote by the Executive Committee. This is an exceptional honor and a testament to the scientific work of both of these outstanding attorneys.
PA DUI Attorney McShane Voted Forensic Co-Chair by ACS
With more than 163,000 members, the American Chemical Society (ACS) is the world’s largest scientific society and one of the world’s leading sources of authoritative scientific information. A nonprofit organization, chartered by Congress, ACS is at the forefront of the evolving worldwide chemical enterprise and the premier professional home for chemists, chemical engineers and related professions around the globe.
In his new role, Attorney McShane will strive to encourage legal experts to contribute their knowledge and research to the ACS and help advance the cause of validated science in the legal arena.
Pennsylvania DUI attorney Justin McShane has always been known across the legal fraternity as someone willing to teach and help other lawyers become better. He has an extensive speaking resume and has lectured at some of the most advanced DUI seminars in the nation. Recently, Attorney McShane was honored for his services by the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA).
PA DUI Attorney Justin McShane is honored by the TCDLA
By way of background, the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA) is the largest state association for criminal defense attorneys in the nation. TCDLA started more than 40 years ago as a small, non-profit association and has grown into a state-of-the-art organization, providing assistance, support and continuing education to its members. TCDLA provides a statewide forum for criminal defense lawyers and is the only voice in the legislature interested in basic fairness in criminal defense cases. \Among its 3100 members are found the “who’s who” of the criminal defense profession in Texas.
TCDLA hosts more than 45 seminars each year, providing the highest quality legal education available for new lawyers, as well as seasoned veterans. Attended regularly by members, non-members, judges and professionals in related fields, its yearly seminar attendance has increased to approximately 4500 people seeking to continue their educational opportunities.
The executive committee of the TCDLA recently issued a proclamation honoring the services of Attorney Justin McShane.
The proclamation reads as follows:
Whereas, Justin J. McShane, a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association and a criminal defense attorney who zealously represents citizens accused of crimes; and
Whereas, he is a skilled and fierce trial lawyer who uses his in-depth knowledge in all forms of forensic science in the courtroom; and
Whereas, he has unselfishly shared his time and his knowledge with his fellow defenders and with the members of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association on many occasion; and
Whereas, he has an absolute commitment to his clients, to professional excellence through education and to scientific truth in the courtroom; and
Whereas, he exhibits the finest qualities of a criminal defense lawyer with singular mission to improve justice through science and education of his fellow members of the criminal defense bar:
Therefore it is hereby proclaimed that the Executive Committee of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association on behalf of its members, directors, and officers hereby publicly HONORS our friend and colleague JUSTIN J. McSHANE and expresses our profound GRATITUDE for his extraordinary service to the TCDLA; Hereby proclaimed on this the 11th day of August, 2011.
Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association
J. Gary Trichter, President
This is indeed a huge honor and a strong endorsement of Attorney McShane’s knowledge of DUI and his commitment to excellence. Attorney McShane is recommended and trusted by lawyers across the country and is recognized as being amongst the elite DUI attorneys in the country. If you need to hire the very best DUI attorney, please call 1-866-MCSHANE.
At The McShane Firm, we strive to be very best DUI lawyers in Pennsylvania. Part of that struggle for perfection is attending the most prestigious and cutting-edge training programs available. In the world of DUI, there is no organization more dedicated to DUI training than the National for DUI Defense, Inc. (NCDD) and the crown-jewel of the NCDD training calendar is the Summer Session held at Harvard Law School. As we have in previous years, all of the attorneys at The MCShane Firm attended the 2011 Summer Session held from July 28-30.
PA DUI Attorney awarded certificate of appreciation by the NCDD
The NCDD Summer Session is a three-day intensive seminar that brings together the very best and most experienced experts in DUI Defense. This year some of the esteemed faculty included Francisco Duarte, Virginia L. Landry, Andrew Mishlove, Ted Vosk, Evan M. Levow, Thomas Workman Jr., Roger Dodd, Bill Kirk, Mike Hawkins, Donald J. Ramsell, Doug Murphy, Kenneth W. Fornabai, Tommy Kirk, Leonard Stamm, Steve Rickard and even a keynote address by F. Lee Bailey. The highlight for me was being awarded a certificate of appreciation for my work on the case of Bullcoming vs. New Mexico which was a seminal case held this term before the Supreme Court of the United States.
All of our team members took away a lot of knowledge from this training and are skilled and experienced enough to use the latest and best techniques in the defense of your DUI case. I can safely say that no DUI law firm in Pennsylvania has attended even close to the number of advanced training seminars we have.
Whether you end up choosing The McShane Firm or not, I would advise you to check out the NCDD site and Avvo.com. Use these sites as a starting point for your search. Then ask your prospective attorney about how much DUI training they attend per year. At the end of the day, knowledge is the key to successfully defending a case.
Please call the Pennsylvania DUI lawyers at The McShane Firm at 1-866-MCSHANE for a free consultation and experiences the difference.
PA DUI Attorney Justin McShane was recently selected as a 2011 Super Lawyer Rising Stars in Criminal Defense: DUI for Pennsylvania. Super Lawyers is a respected publication and selects the very best attorneys in the country for these prestigious awards. They use a very thorough selection process based on peer ratings and those lawyers with the highest point total are selected.
From the Super Lawyers site:
Super Lawyers magazine names attorneys in each state who received the highest point totals, as chosen by their peers and through the independent research. Rising Stars names the state’s top up-and-coming attorneys.
You can view Attorney McShane’s Super Lawyers listing as well as his profile.
The Supreme Court Announces its Decision in Bullcoming v. New Mexico in Favor of the Petitioner
The Supreme Court of the United States has reversed the decision in the case of Bullcoming v. New Mexico siding with the argument that the prosecution using a surrogate forensic analyst who was not involved in the actual testing is in violation of The Confrontation Clause.
PA DUI Attorney Justin McShane worked on the amicus brief in the landmark case of Bullcoming v. New Mexico before the U.S. Supreme Court
As a foremost expert in gas chromatography, PA DUI Attorney Justin McShane was one of the lawyer-experts who co-authored the amicus brief in this case and The Court favored amici arguments in its opinion. The credit goes to Professor Jeffrey Fisher who framed, wrote and argued successfully not only this case but all of the other Confrontation Clause wins. The influence of the amicus brief that McShane co-authored with Lenny Stamm, Ron Moore, Barbara Bergman, Molly Schmidt-Nowara and Alexandra Freedman Smith could clearly be seen throughout and in particular here:
Gas chromatography is a widely used scientific method of quantitatively analyzing the constituents of a mixture. See generally H.McNair & J. Miller, Basic Gas Chromatography (2d ed. 2009) (hereinafter McNair). Under SLD’s standard testing protocol, the analyst extracts two blood samples and inserts them into vials containing an “internal standard”—a chemical additive. App. 53. See McNair 141–142. The analyst then “cap[s] the [two] sample[s],” “crimp[s] them with an aluminum top,” and places the vials into the gas chromatograph machine. App. 53–54. Within a few hours, this device produces a printed graph—a chromatogram—along with calculations representing a software-generated interpretation of the data. See Brief for State of New Mexico Dept. of Health, SLD as Amicus Curiae 16–17.
Although the State presented testimony that obtaining an accurate BAC measurement merely entails “look[ing] at the [gas chromatograph]machine and record[ing] the results,” App. 54, authoritative sources reveal that the matter is not so simple or certain. “In order to perform quantitative analyses satisfactorily and . . . support the results under rigorous examination in court, the analyst must be aware of, and adhere to, good analytical practices and understand what is being done and why.” Stafford, Chromatography, in Principles of Forensic Toxicology 92, 114 (B. Levine 2d ed. 2006). See also McNair 137 (“Errors thatoccur in any step can invalidate the best chromatographic analysis, so attention must be paid to all steps.”); D. Bartell, M. McMurray, & A. ImObersteg, Attacking and Defending Drunk Driving Tests §16:80 (2d revision 2010) (stating that 93% of errors in laboratory tests for BAC levels are human errors that occur either before or after machines analyze samples). Even after the machine has produced its printed result, a review of the chromatogram may indicate that the test was not valid. See McNair 207–214.Nor is the risk of human error so remote as to be negligible. Amici inform us, for example, that in neighboring Colorado, a single forensic laboratory produced at least 206 flawed blood-alcohol readings over a three-year span, prompting the dismissal of several criminal prosecutions. See Brief for National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers et al. as Amici Curiae 32–33. An analyst had used improper amounts of the internal standard, causing the chromatograph machine systematically to inflate BAC measurements. The analyst’s error, a supervisor said, was “fairly complex.” Ensslin, Final Tally on Flawed DUI: 206 Errors, 9 Tossed or Reduced, Colorado Springs Gazette, Apr. 19,2010, p. 1 (internal quotation marks omitted), available at http://www.gazette.com/articles/report-97354-police-discuss.html . (All Internet materials as visited June 21, 2011, and included in Clerk of Court’s case file).
This is yet another milestone in Attorney McShane’s illustrious career as a DUI expert attorney and speaks volumes about his experience and knowledge. While most lawyers in Pennsylvania have never taken a DUI case to trial, Attorney McShane has helped fight and win DUI cases and provided input in The Supreme Court of the United States that has now had a global impact on all DUI prosecutions throughout the United States.
If you are looking for an experienced Pennsylvania DUI Attorney to handle your case, choose the best- choose The McShane Firm at 1-866-MCSHANE.
As a respected DUI expert attorney, I have been invited to many DUI training seminars to share my expertise, particularly in the area of DUI blood testing. Gas Chromatography is the process used to measure blood alcohol content (BAC) and is considered by many prosecutors to be “invincible” and an “automatic conviction.” That is because most DUI attorneys do not have the expertise to be able to challenge this evidence properly. I have been able to use my scientific knowledge of this process in courtrooms across Pennsylvania and have been successful in defending my clients in the face of blood test evidence.
PA DUI Attorney Lectures on Gas Chromatography
Over the past few weeks I have presented at lectures about DUI blood testing at four major DUI training seminars across the country.
1. American Chemical Society course by Dr. Lee Polite, BA, MBA, PhD and Harold McNair, PhD “Forensic Applications of Chromatography (GC/HPLC) and Mass Spectrometry: Headspace Gas Chromatography with Flame Ionization Detector and Mass Spectrometry and High Pressure Liquid Chromatography (a lecture laboratory course)”
The American Chemical Society is comprised mostly of scientists not lawyers. This is why this course is very important because it validates Attorney McShane’s scientific credentials in the field of analytic chemistry. This small group, week-long, hands-on laboratory course is Attorney McShane’s brainchild and legacy. The course is not only made up of instruction in the theory of Headspace Gas Chromatography with Flame Ionization Detector but also other forms of forensic chromatography and detectors such as Mass Spectrometry and diode array UV/Vis. The participants spend a full five days of actually preparing and operating the instrumentation. This is the third full course offered with two more full classes scheduled by the end of the year.
2. Texas Criminal Defense Lawyer’s Association “DWI Defense Project-DWI Science: What You Must Know to Win!”
At this one day seminar, Attorney McShane taught the attorneys present how to spot issues in DUI blood testing by teaching the basic principles of Headspace Gas Chromatography with Flame Ionization Detector that is used in determining Blood Alcohol Content. He was rated as the top-rated speaker yet again for his entertaining and informative presentation.
3. Maryland Criminal Defense Attorney’s Association seminar “7th Annual Advanced DUI Seminar”
At this day-long seminar, Attorney McShane was once again called upon to teach Headspace Gas Chromatography in a long format. Attorney McShane not only taught the basic scientific principles as he has done before, but also detailed advanced issues including resolution, sensitivity, selectivity and method validation issues.
4. The California Public Defenders Association “Third Annual Two-Day DUI Defense Practice Institute”
At this conference, Attorney McShane not only taught the attendees about Headspace Gas Chromatography with Flame Ionization Detector that is used in determining Blood Alcohol Content, but also took part in a panel discussion on best practices in defending all manners of DUI accusations.
If you are looking for a PA DUI expert, then call The McShane Firm. We challenge you to ask the hard questions and find the very best DUI attorney in PA to handle your case. When you meet with an attorney ask them about Gas Chromatography and when was the last time they lectured about the subject at a DUI seminar. Ask the tough questions and make the selfish decision to choose the very best lawyer to protect your freedom.
The McShane Firm is synonymous with excellence in DUI Defense. Here we have assembled a dream team of elite DUI lawyers who use their immense talents along with dogged determination to fight your case. Don’t believe us? Hear what nationally recognized DUI experts have to say.
Attorney Patrick Barone Michigan DUI lawyer and highly regarded DUI expert:
The McShane Law Firm was founded by Justin McShane, one of Pennsylvania’s and one of the United States’ top DUI lawyers. Justin has surrounded himself with four other professionals who are there to help you win your case. They work collaboratively as a a team and all those lawyers have been trained like Justin in all of the intricacies of breath and blood testing. They’ve been through extensive and grueling training that few other lawyers have in breath and blood testing and if you want results, The McShane Law Firm is the place to get them.
If you want to protect your rights with the best DUI Attorneys in PA, call 1-866-McShane.
I have devoted many blog posts to highlighting my credentials as the most qualified and prepared PA DUI Attorney you can find. Beyond my numerous scientific publications and many certifications, the credential I am most proud of is my standing in the eyes of my peers as a DUI expert and a rigorous defender for my clients. Peer endorsements represent the pinnacle of recognition in the legal community especially when you consider the caliber and recognition of some of the famous attorneys who have endorsed me.
If you don’t already know him, William “Bubba” Head is considered by many to be the best DUI attorney in the country. Attorney Head is a former regent and co-founder of the prestigious National College for DUI Defense and has been fighting DUI cases for over 35 years. Listen to what he has to say about myself and The McShane Firm:
Now you’ve got a guy who wants to win, who has the skills and the training to beat anybody in court. Imagine being a prosecutor and having a guy who knows more about the science than you know, able to express it in the terminology used by doctors and scientists, being able to do it fluently and convincingly to a jury. That’s the person who want in court. You don’t want somebody who’s over there trying to read it off a piece of paper. With Justin McShane, if he takes your case, he’s playing to win. If winning is what you’re looking for, you’re talking to the firm- The McShane Firm in Pennsylvania.
I have a long list of endorsements from attorneys across the country you can read on my Avvo Profile.
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