Author Archives: Alan F. Pendleton, "Of Counsel" Martine Law Firm, Director of Mentorship & Education, Former District Court Judge

Three Rules For Attorneys To Live By

Posted on July 14, 2022 | 1 comment

This little dose of humor is brought to you by AutoGrabBag.com.

We are a small faith-based car accessory gift store.

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Posted in AutoGrabBag.com, JUDICIAL PHILOSOPHY, RESOURCES & SAFETY

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GUILTY PLEA HEARINGS: THE DANGER OF USING LEADING QUESTIONS (20-7)

Posted on June 2, 2020 | 1 comment

QUESTION: Should a judge accept a plea of guilty when the factual basis supporting the plea of guilty is based on the common practice of asking defendants a series of leading questions, without the defendant ever stating in his own words what happened?

For the answer and explanation read the attached judicial training update.

For a print ready copy of training update 20-7 click here.

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Posted in Leading Questions

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EXTRADITIONS: A Step-by-Step Guide for Judges and Attorneys (2020-6)

Posted on May 12, 2020 | 2 comments

QUESTION: What procedure should a judge (and attorneys) follow when a fugitive is arrested in Minnesota and charged with being a “Fugitive from Justice” makes his/her first appearance on an in-custody or bail calendar?

The first thing a judge must do is give the fugitive a very specific “Waiver of Extradition Advisory.”

See the attached training update (2020-6) for the rest of the answer.

Click here for a print ready copy of Training Update 2020-6

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Posted in Extraditions - Advisory and Habeas Corpus

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SEARCH WARRANTS: Answers to 12 Core Questions Every Judge and Attorney Should Know (20-05)

Posted on April 27, 2020 | 3 comments

The search warrant requirement delineated in the 4th amendment of the United States Constitution is one of our most sacred constitutional rights.

This Training Update provides answers to the following 12 core search warrant questions:

  1. What is the legal standard for issuing a search warrant?
  2. What is the standard for issuing a “no knock” warrant?
  3. What is the standard for authorizing a “nighttime search”?
  4. What kind of peace officer can execute a search warrant?
  5. What type of crime must be involved for a search warrant?
  6. Who has jurisdiction to issue a search warrant?
  7. Who must sign the application for a search warrant?
  8. Who does the judge actually issue the search warrant to?
  9. Once a search warrant is issued how quickly must it be executed?
  10. When executed who gets copies of the search warrant?
  11. Once executed what must be returned to the issuing court?
  12. What is the standard for obtaining a telephonic search warrant?

For a print ready copy of this search warrant update click here

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Posted in SEARCH & SEIZURE, Search Warrants: Answers to 12 Core Questions

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INTRODUCTION TO MINNESOTA’S MOST CONVENIENT AND SIMPLE LEGAL RESEARCH LIBRARY (20-04)

Posted on April 20, 2020 | 1 comment

If your looking for a “cream of the crop” legal research tool then you should buy a subscription to an expensive service like Westlaw Next or Lexus Research. But if your looking for a convenient and simple “one-stop” (and did I mention free) legal research tool then the best option for Minnesota legal practitioners is the “Minnesota Judicial Training & Education Blog”

In addition to the Blog site containing the complete repository of all past Judicial Training Updates, it is also home to the most comprehensive convenient and free legal research tool that I’ve been able to find for Minnesota legal practitioners.

This legal research site was created out of frustration with my inability to find a centralized website that could give me direct links to the legal resources that attorneys, judges and other legal practitioners use on a regular basis. I wanted simple, direct and convenient.

This Update (20-04) gives you a short introduction to this new online legal research library.

CLICK HERE FOR A PRINT READY COPY OF UPDATE 20-04

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Posted in Legal Resource Library

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