Current Employment Position(s)

Principal, since 1998

Lawyer Overview

Areas of Practice

• Criminal Defense and Technology Based Defenses 100%

Representative Clients

• Ohio Innocent Inmates Association
• Family Transitional Housing
• MetLife Insurance
• ShoreBank

West Practice Categories

Criminal Law, Criminal Fraud, DUI/DWI, Drug Violations, Federal, Felonies, Juvenile Crimes, Misdemeanor, Parole & Probation, RICO Act, Sex Offenses, Traffic Violations, White Collar Crimes, Computer Law, High Technology, Internet, Patents

Bar Admissions

• Ohio, 1997
• U.S. District Court Northern District of Ohio, 1999
• U.S. District Court Southern District of Ohio, 1999
• U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 2004
• U.S. Supreme Court, 2008

Professional Associations and Memberships

• Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, 2007 - Present (Adjunct Professor, Computers & The Law; Criminal)
• Ursuline College, Pepper Pike, Ohio, 2005 - 2007 (Adjunct Instructor, UCAP - Criminal Forensics)
• Ursuline College (Curriculum Advisory Board)
• Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (President; Present)
• Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2007 (President Elect)
• Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (Board of Directors)
• Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (Membership Chairman)
• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (Champion Magazine Advisory Board)
• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (Life Member)
• Cleveland Bar Association (Certified Grievance Committee)
• Ohio State Bar Association (Jury Instructions Committee)
• Ohio State Bar Association (Ohio Jury Instructions, Subcommittee on Sex Offenses)
• Cleveland-Marshall College of Law (Criminal Justice Advisory Board)
• Cleveland-Marshall College of Law (Board of Trustees, Alumni Association)
• Cleveland-Marshall College of Law (Board of Trustees, Alumni Association, Membership Co-Chairman)
• Cleveland-Marshall College of Law (Mentor Program)
• Ohio State Bar Association (Member)
• Cuyahoga Bar Association (Judicial Candidate Rating Coalition)
• Jewish Federation (Young Leadership Division, Committee Chairperson)
• Cleveland Bar Association, 2005 - 2006 (Trial Committee)
• Family Transitional Housing, 2001 - 2004 (Board of Directors)

Honors and Awards

• Ohio Rising Stars; Ohio Super Lawyers, 2009 - Present
• Leading Criminal Lawyer; Inside Business Magazine, 2008 - Present
• President's Award; Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2007 - 2008
• Top 20 Professionals; Cleveland Jewish News, 2009 - Present
• Top 100 Trial Lawyers; The American Trial Lawyers Association, 2007 - Present
• President's Award; Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2005 - 2006
• Outstanding Service; American Civil Liberties Union, 2001

Classes and Seminars

• Superstar Seminar, Uncovering Evidences in the Age of Technology; An Interactive Experience, Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2009 - Present
• Criminal Evidence Reform Debate, The Federalist Society for Law & Public Policy Studies, 2009 - Present
• Annual Seminar; Defending the Child Pornography Case, Montana Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2008
• Defending High Technology Crimes, Cincinnati Defense Lawyers Association, 2008
• FL Defense of Cybercrimes, Public Defender, Ninth Judicial Circuit Semi-Annual Public Defender Training Seminar, 2007
• Procedure and Practice Clinic for Criminal Law, Cuyahoga County Bar Association, 2007
• Criminal Defense Practice & Current Legal, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, 2007
• Defending Allegations of Internet & Computer Crimes; Who Put that Porn In My Cookies?, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; San Francisco, CA, 2007
• Annual Green Mountain Criminal Defense Institute; Defending Virtual Crimes: Winning Strategies For Internet Sex & Child Pornography Cases, Office of the Defender General, 2007
• Defending Cybercrimes & Pornography Cases, New Hampshire Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2007
• Defense By Ambush, Thinking Outside the Box To Obtain Discovery In State Criminal Prosecutions, Cleveland Bar Association, 2007
• The Role of Electronic Evidence in Criminal Defense, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, 2008
• Cutting Edge Forensics, Dirty Pictures & Beyond. Evidentiary Issues of Electronic Evidence, Ohio Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Superior Seminar, 2008
• Pre-Trial Motion Practice and Trial Preparation, Cleveland Bar Association, 2008
• Criminal Defense Practice, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, 2008
• Current Issues and Trends in Child Pornography Defense Part II,, Cuyahoga County Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, 2008
• Current Statistics, Trends & Strategies in Child Pornography Prosecutions, Cuyahoga County Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, 2008

Education

• Cleveland State University, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law, Cleveland, Ohio, 1997
  Juris Doctorate
• Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, 1994
  B.A.
  Honors: With Honors
  Major: Legal Communications

Published Works

• Inside the Minds: Strategies for Defending Internet Pornography Cases, Aspatore Books, 2008
• Getting Tough on Sex Offenders: The Adam Walsh Act & Ohio, Law & Fact, 2007
• How the Adam Walsh Act Restricts Access to Evidence, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers: The Champion, 2007
• Why Defend Computer Sex Crimes?, Law & Fact, 2007
• Poor Audiences for the Defense, American Bar Association, 2006
• Pre-Trial Preparation in Computer Child Pornography Cases: Combating the Watering Down of Ashcroft vs. Free Speech Coalition in State Prosecutions, The Vindicator, 2005

Address

1304 West 6th Street
Cleveland, OH 44113

Phones

(216) 928-7700
(800) 781-2234

Faxes

(216) 556-9779

Emails

Contact Us