Kielsky Provides Comments In Goldwater Investigative Report
Criminal Law Attorney Michael Kielsky provided extensive commentary in a recent Goldwater Investigative Report. Cities across Arizona continue to prosecute people who fail to produce identification to police under a law that was declared unconstitutional 15 years ago. More than 120 people have been prosecuted over the past five years in the state’s 10 largest cities alone. At least 17 defendants have pleaded guilty to the charge. One man was convicted after a trial in Mesa Municipal Court. Another 33 people had the charge dismissed but pleaded guilty to other charges. In some of those cases, the unconstitutional charge was dropped through plea agreements with prosecutors, in which the defendant pleaded guilty to other charges in return for having the illegal count dropped.
Kielsky got interested in the issue in 2011 when he represented a man who was riding his bicycle when he was arrested and jailed after refusing to show identification to Tempe police. Kielsky quickly got the charge dismissed. But as he was negotiating a civil settlement for false arrest with the city, his client was again arrested and jailed under the same unconstitutional charge.
This is a public service announcement. If you need legal advice please feel free to contact at 480.461.5300, log on to udallshumway.com, or contact an attorney in your area. Udall Shumway PLC is located in Mesa, Arizona and is a full service law firm. We assist Individuals, families, businesses, schools and municipalities in Mesa and the Phoenix/East Valley.
