Relentless Criminal Cross-Examination is the culmination of Attorney Mahoney’s 18 years of trial experience. In the courts of Massachusetts, he is regarded as an aggressive, extremely well-prepared, and street smart cross-examiner. His trial record speaks for itself, having won 39 of his last 41 trials. Relentless Criminal Cross-Examination is the fastest selling book in the history of James Publishing Company – a respected, well-established publisher of law books for 27 years.
Whether the witness is an alleged victim, a police officer, or a forensic expert, every cross-examination is a power struggle and battle of wits between the lawyer and the witness. With insights into witness psychology and a focus on juror impressions, Mahoney teaches lawyers how to incorporate proven techniques into every cross-examination. But, it’s more than a simple “how to” book, Mahoney helps lawyers develop the killer mindset of a successful cross-examiner while never losing sight of the goal: persuading the jury.
Indeed, cross-examination is arguably the essential, if not sole, purpose of a criminal trial. Opening statements, the importance of which so many lawyers underestimate, is the foundation of effective cross-examination. The opening is where the lawyer not only provides the jury with the defense’s version of the facts, but details how he will cross-examine prosecution witnesses. If the lawyer wastes the invaluable opportunity afforded by the opening, leaves critical “facts” unchallenged, neglects to cite examples of the witness’s duplicity, and fails to tell the jury how he will cross-examine the witnesses, it’s unlikely the jury will grasp the significance of otherwise effective cross-examination.
On television and in the movies, the lawyer who gives the most riveting closing argument wins the trial. That, of course, is total nonsense. If the criminal defense lawyer hasn’t won his trial before the closing argument, his client is likely doomed. If the lawyer fails to discredit pivotal prosecution witnesses during cross-examination, what could he now say to persuade these jurors that the witnesses should be disbelieved? If the jurors believed a witness was truthful – particularly after an unimpressive cross – no amount of eloquence or finely crafted arguments will change the jurors’ minds. Closing argument is where the defense attorney shoots the dead – and these witnesses are dead because counsel killed the bastards with his cross-examination.
The book not only covers the general principles of effective cross-examination, it provides sample cross-examinations from trials, hearings on motions to suppress and probable cause hearings, including sample cross-examinations of:
- officer who administered field sobriety test
- detective who coerced confession
- accident reconstructionist
- eyewitnesses
- informants
- state chemists
- medical examiners
- fingerprint experts
There is no other book on cross-examination that teaches a defense lawyer how to fit cross-examination within the overall trial strategy and still make cross-examination the centerpiece of that strategy.
