ROAD RAGE VICTIM:

Carl Kraft's story shows the power of positive media relations to influence an outcome. Carl is a local businessman who has operated his plumbing business in the valley for over thirty years. He was headed back to his shop after a typically busy day when he heard the siren of a firetruck just as he was about to turn onto the Hohokam Freeway. He pulled over at his first opportunity and let the firetruck pass. Pulling back into the rush-hour traffic, Carl noticed in his rearview mirror a white car gaining on his truck, the driver waving something out the window. Carl saw it was a gun just as the man opened fire. Carl could only step on the gas, trying to elude the irate driver who, it was learned later, felt that Carl had cut him off when yielding to the firetruck. An avid recreational target shooter, Carl had some handguns in the truck with him but, because of the other traffic, it never occurred to him to return fire. He fled, weaving in and out of the traffic until he reached his nearby shop where he called the police. From them he learned the terrible news; another man on the freeway, well ahead of the shooting, had been struck by a bullet and killed. Unfortunately for Carl, the police had been careless in gathering the initial witness statements and some of them characterized what had happened as an exchange of gun fire. Carl saw himself named as a suspect in a homicide on the evening news. That same evening though, I sent an investigator out to conduct our own interviews of these same witnesses. I gave him specific instructions; "Don't ask them 'What happened', ask them 'What did you see'"? This more precise question exonerated Carl; all of the witnesses were adamant that only the man in the white car had been shooting. The next morning I provided our tape recorded witness interviews to the prosecutors and held a press conference. That evening the news programs were explaining to their viewers the diference between asking "What happened" and "what did you see". The shooter, George Gonzales, was soon arrested. The State, which was at first going to charge Carl with murder, now wanted his help. They called Carl as a witness to testify at trial, Gonzales was convicted of 2nd degree murder and sent to prison. Carl continues to run his plumbing business.

STATE v. JOHN DOE:

Sometimes no publicity is the best media control of all. A few years ago I got a phone call from the agent of a professional football player on a team on the east coast. The player had been driving a van back to Phoenix with some friends when it rolled over. No one was seriously injured but the player was charged with DUI. Because of the NFL's strict substance abuse policies, a conviction would have far reaching negative consequences for him. Also, the League was very sensitive to negative publicity and merely having his arrest become public would also have further harmful consequences. The need to avoid conviction eliminated the easiest route to avoiding publicity, which is a quick guilty plea. Working behind the scenes, I was able to negotiate the charge down to a civil violation, essentially a speeding ticket. The fine was paid without my client ever having to appear in court and all publicity was avoided. Since the DUI was dismissed, the NFL concluded its substance abuse investigation on favorable terms. The player has since retired from professional sports.