Successes

Some potential clients want to know about a lawyer’s results.  Note, however, that because you and your case are unique, the success stories on any lawyer’s results page are useful only to the extent they give you some degree of insight into the work ethic of the attorney in question, or into whether the lawyer has achieved successful outcomes in particularly difficult cases. Additionally, lawyers inevitably work on cases with various members of a team, including investigators, paralegals, experts, and other lawyers who share the burden and thus the credit, and for the results I mention below there is a long list of people who shared both burden and credit.  Finally, out of respect for the privacy of my clients, I have provided only limited details regarding the cases and have not provided any client names. 

Michael Iaria

  • Not guilty verdict for young man charged with first degree murder after confessing to police.
  • Not guilty verdict, based on self-defense, for man charged with first degree murder for shooting unarmed man.
  • Not guilty verdict, based on self-defense, for man charged with first degree murder and attempted first degree murder for stabbing in a bar.
  • No charges filed against woman investigated by federal authorities for the murder of U.S. national abroad.
  • Convinced prosecutors not to charge young client on the autistic spectrum under investigation for social media threats against fellow students.
  • Voluntary intoxication defense for man charged with second degree murder after shooting victim in face with Uzi; client convicted only of manslaughter.
  • Hung jury and dismissal of charges for man charged with using his car to assault off-duty police officer.
  • Hung jury and later reduction of charges for young man accused of felony malicious mischief for ramming the vehicle of a parking enforcement officer with his own car after she had given him a parking ticket.
  • Not guilty verdict, based on diminished capacity defense, for man charged with malicious mischief for using his car to smash through the doors of and into the lobby of a local television studio.
  • Death sentence avoided for illegal immigrant charged with aggravated first degree murder of police officer during a traffic stop.
  • Death sentence avoided for man charged with two counts of aggravated first degree murder and one count of first degree murder.
  • Death sentence avoided for man charged with three counts of aggravated first degree murder.
  • Death sentence avoided for woman charged with aggravated murder.
  • Death sentence avoided for man charged with one count of aggravated first degree murder and one count of first degree felony murder.
  • Not guilty verdict for excavating company on multiple counts of theft and evasion of special fuel tax.
  • No charges filed against environmental specialist who was a target of a four-year federal investigation into alleged fraud and environmental crimes at major international oil company’s North Slope drilling facilities.
  • No charges filed against billing coordinator who was a target in lengthy federal investigation into the allegedly fraudulent billing practices of a major hospital and its associated physicians.
  • No charges filed against physician who was a target in a state investigation into allegedly fraudulent billing practices.
  • Charge of assaulting a police officer dismissed after results of defense investigation presented to prosecutor.
  • Young man charged with first degree assault convicted only of fourth degree assault, a gross misdemeanor.
  • Burglary and theft charges against young woman reduced to a single misdemeanor after presenting prosecutor with results of defense investigation showing she had been battered and coerced by her boyfriend and co-defendant.
  • Death sentence vacated on appeal for defendant convicted of aggravated first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and first-degree robbery while armed with a deadly weapon. See State v. L****** ,127 Wn.2d 690  (1995).
  • Conviction reversed and death sentence vacated for defendant convicted of aggravated first-degree murder and first degree felony murder.  See In re B*****, 142 Wn.2d 868 (2001).
  • Death sentence vacated on appeal for defendant convicted of aggravated first degree murder.  See State v. F***** ,122 Wn.2d 440 (1993).
  • Trial court’s order denying motion to suppress evidence reversed.  See State v. S****** , 59 Wn. App. 586 (1990).
  • Felony murder conviction vacated in post-conviction. See In re W****** , 152 Wn.2d 853 (2004).
  • Trial court’s dismissal of charges based on government violation of attorney-client privilege affirmed.  See State v. P***** , 156 Wn.App. 322 (2010).
  • Child molestation convictions reversed and remanded on appeal.
  • Trial court granted post-trial motion, based on ineffective assistance of counsel, to withdraw plea in attempted murder case.
  • Obtained settlement of $1,000,000 for rape victim from city school district and county juvenile probation department for failing to supervise convicted sex offender.
  • Obtained settlement of $200,000 for rape victim from owners of apartment complex who allowed unsafe conditions to exist.
  • Obtained settlement of $325,000 from Washington State Patrol for woman who was sexually molested by State Trooper.
  • Obtained settlement of $185,000 for young man wrongfully arrested and charged by Seattle Police.
  • Obtained settlement of $50,000 for young man wrongfully arrested and charged by Seattle Police.
  • Obtained settlement of $120,000 for bicyclist who broke his wrist in a collision with car driven by employee of the City of Seattle.