DRUG ATTORNEY IN BERGEN, PASSAIC AND MORRIS COUNTIES: THE SIXTH AMENDMENT RIGHT TO REPRESENT ONESELF

In February 2010, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals granted a writ of habeas corpus in a case that produced a conviction over twenty-two years ago.  The defendant in the case was Anthony Alongi.  His  co-defendant Paul Kamienski had his conviction reversed by the Third Circuit last year because of insufficient evidence.  The case had its roots in a drug transaction that went bad and resulted in the murder of two people.

The issue in the Alongi case related to whether he was entitled to represent himself during the course of his trial.  In the beginning stages of prosecution Alongi engaged a well known criminal attorney to represent him.  That attorney was conflicted out of the case and another lawyer with good criminal experience was hired.  After a while,  Alongi got the impression that the second attorney was not “interested” in this case because the lawyer was not getting paid.  Resultantly,  Alongi requested the trial court to allow him to function as his own attorney.  The application was denied.  As things developed, the second attorney did a stellar job for Alongi when he obtained an acquittal on the murder charges. 

During the habeas corpus litigation the government contended that Alongi’s application to act as a pro se litigant was untimely and that he did not clearly articulate his request to represent himself.  The Court rejected both claims and confirmed that the Sixth Amendment Right to Counsel also contained a right to proceed without counsel.