Congratulations to Sarah Roland for receiving the Lubbock Area Bar Association’s President’s Award, as she just finished her term. Great work, Sarah!
Kudos to Carlo D’Angelo for receiving an acquittal on a big drug case last week in Federal Court. Congrats on your hard fought victory, Carlo!
We will miss Lisa Gonzalez, who will leave the TCDLA Board and served as Vice Chair of the New Lawyers Committee due to being appointed as the 268th Associate District Court Judge. Congratulations, Lisa!
Kudos to Stephanie Alvarado, whose client was released from jail. His children were so excited to be reunited with their Daddy, they ran down the sidewalk to leap into his arms. Continuous Sexual Assault of a Child under 14 dismissed!
Jessica Canter, Claire Profilet, Lynnette DeBault, and Victoria Saxe obtained a directed verdict for their client in a jury trial on a misdemeanor assault – family violence case. Before getting a complete dismissal of the charges for their client by pointing out to the judge that the State had failed to produce any evidence of two elements of the charge, they vigorously fought the case, challenging the jury array and getting two potential jurors to admit on Voir Dire they would be biased against their client because of his race. Great job, ladies!
Congratulations to Nnamdi Ekeh whose client’s 2019 DWI Speedy trial motion was granted/dismissed. He thought he’d made a losing argument, as the government argued that the pandemic prevented a trial. The judge thought otherwise. Big reminder to keep shooting your shot no matter what!
Kudos to Tyler Flood, whose first jury (DWI) trial since the pandemic lasted 9 minutes and resulted in a not guilty verdict. Tyler’s client drove his industrial water truck though a guardrail and off the freeway into a ditch at 10:30 a.m… cooler in the truck and bottle caps in his pockets. He then hid a beer bottle in his pants… but not very well. The police found the bottle in his pants, after seeing him shove said bottle in through the fly.
Thuy Le fought against a case of infant abuse after a caseworker accused parents of not believing in western medicine – falling back on stereotypes of Asian parents. Thuy argued that medical records show the baby was premature at birth. The judge ruled no evidence of abuse and the baby was returned home just in time to celebrate their first birthday. Great job, Thuy!
When Daniel H. Wannamaker was assigned to a federal conspiracy indictment case, he was cool, confident and reassuring from the beginning, stated his client. After Daniel was a successful advocate, his client decided to return the favor, saying “He worked his magic and the case was dismissed! He truly fights for his clients and kept in constant communication with me. He always treated me kindly and with respect even though I didn’t actually spend any money on him. I highly recommend Dan. God forbid I get another federal case, but if I do, I will be calling on him again!” Kudos, Daniel!
Kudos to Josh Tetens and Michel Simer – whose client was found not guilty after serving 818 days in jail. They argued that the state failed to prove its case, as no weapon was seen by witnesses in the stabbing accusation. Their client cried tears of joy as he left the courthouse after being found not guilty of aggravated assault.
May 9th marked three years since Stan Schneider and David Schulman presented an argument to the court of appeals in Waco on the Michael Morton Act. The appearance was David’s first before the Waco Court, meaning he had, after 32 years, finally appeared in front of all of Texas’ fourteen Courts of Appeals. Congratulations, David!
Congratulations to Ryan Kreck! He received his second not guilty in a row on Continuous SXAB of a child in Collin County. Great work, Ryan!
Congratulations to Michelle Simpson Tuegel, Russell David Hunt Sr., and criminal appellate attorney, Walter Reaves! The Texas Court of Criminal appeals vacated the death sentence of a client they represented at trial. The death sentence was vacated based on evidence of intellectual disability which they fought hard to prepare and present evidence on at trial. Sometimes they work comes through, years later…7 years to be exact. Great work!
Don’t be shy, brag on a colleague! E-mail your shout-out to to be featured in our next issue.
Staff Highlights:
TCDLA’s Executive Assistant: Keri Steen
“Keri is the glue that holds our office together, helping to keep us organize & on track! ” -Melissa Schank
Title: Executive Assistant
Native State: Wisconsin
Zodiac Sign: Scorpio
Favorite Color: Purple
Loves to: Play board games
Fun Fact: She’s a Green Bay Packers fan!
Keri was a stay-at-home mom for 15 years before she joined TCDLA five years ago. Her household has twin daughters and one son; along with two dogs, a cat, a bearded dragon, a hognose snake, a green iguana, and their newest edition – an Uromastyx. When she is not working, she loves to watch movies and play board games with her family.
