Mimi Coffey | Attorney at Law

Making the World a Better Place Judge David Rippel Collin County Court at Law no 4 As a people’s attorney (defense lawyer standing up for the citizen against the government in the defense of one’s constitutional rights) for 20 years, the wisdom I have gained in what makes the world a better place is truly invaluable. Here are a few nuggets and observations. A court focused on their statistics (how many trials they have a year, how old their oldest cases are, the number of dispositions), is not one that is attentive to the needs of the citizen accused or society as a whole. You can’t force justice. Most of the time, it is like baking a cake. For all the parts to come together perfectly- it takes time. Courts that harangue defense lawyers by not allowing them some say in scheduling, do this to everyone’s (including theirs) detriment. This is a court concerned about bragging rights to their fellow colleagues. The fact is- hardly anyone knows the judges they are vot...

To all my past, present and future clients, and for anyone who is curious: If you ever wanted a nutshell version of "DWI at Night, Coffey in the Morning" here you are straight from the source. I have practiced law for 19 years. This defines who I am. At the age of 12, my father encouraged me to be a lawyer after helping me write and practice a Student Council Treasurer campaign speech (I ended the speech, "Vote Me Me for You You" and won, so it's true I come by my marketing quite honestly). In my wildest dreams, I never could have fathomed how much injustice there was in the world of criminal law, particularly DWI. As a new lawyer, I heard about the National College of DUI Defense or NCDD (celebrating its 20th anniversary this year) training held at Harvard every July. I went to it and my world was lit on fire. It was shocking to find out how inaccurate breath testing was; how the National Highway Safety Administration skewed statistics and cond...

The American Criminal Justice System: “Houston, We have a Problem.” James Ferguson Mark Fuhrman, convicted of a felony perjury after the O.J. Simpson trial, is now a national Fox legal analyst, an “expert witness” on police matters. Last week, the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio, ruled “Dr.” James Ferguson, a state toxicologist, convicted of perjury, could NOT be sued or found liable for lying in a murder case where his expert witness testimony was relied upon by the judge for the conviction. Fred Zain, toxicologist at the West Virginia Department of Public Safety, falsified lab results which resulted in as many as 134 wrongful convictions. Once under investigation, he merely picked up and moved to San Antonio, Texas to work as a toxicologist where an investigation found at least 180 cases in which fraud may have led to wrongful convictions. He died in the comforts of his Florida home in 2002. Picking up the pieces in Boston, Massachusetts, over 34,000 lab...