Tara A. Barnes has joined Rollins, Smalkin, Richards & Mackie LLC as an associate. Her practice includes civil litigation, with a focus on negligence, insurance defense, workers’ compensation and personal injury cases. Barnes graduated from the University of Maryland School ...

Tagged with: assistant state's attorney law clerk trial

It was 1:30 p.m. on a Tuesday when the judge took the bench for the incarcerable traffic docket. The doors had opened a half-hour earlier to allow the witnesses to check in. These cases are officer-driven; generally, the officer makes ...

Tagged with: assistant state's attorney citations cop court defendant driver dui judge license police trial

“You gotta grow a thick skin pretty fast in this line a work,” he said. I turned around and there stood a police officer leaning on the door to the liaison’s office where my showdown with seersucker ensued. He stood ...

Tagged with: assistant state's attorney cop criminal law district court prosecutor trial

I managed to survive my first criminal docket, but only by a hair. The good news was we finished the docket by noon. The bad news was I had to drop half of the cases — and I lost all ...

Tagged with: assistant state's attorney circuit court discovery district court dui Montgomery County trial

I was only a week into training as an assistant state’s attorney and I was beginning to doubt my ability to perform. My drill sergeant of a trainer took a “sink or swim” approach to teaching, and I was floundering ...

Tagged with: assistant state's attorney district court Law School Montgomery County trial

Our state’s attorney swore us in as his newest assistant state’s attorneys, quoting U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson: A prosecutor has more control over life, liberty and reputation than any other person in America. Their discretion is tremendous … ...

Tagged with: assistant state's attorney district court Montgomery County states attorney training