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Business trial lawyers today through my daughter’s big green eyes

homesafetytechpros — Mon, 21 Apr 2025 08:51:44 +0000

Fourteen years ago, I wrote an article for a business journal that summarized a dinner conversation I had with my 4-year-old daughter. She asked me to explain “What is a re-sezz-ee-un?” By the end of our conversation, her greatest concern shining through her little green eyes was whether Santa Claus himself would be experiencing any effects of that “re-sez-ee-un.”

Much has changed since that conversation. That particular recession eventually ended, only later to be replaced by what some economists called a second one. The Cubs finally won a World Series. We sent an unmanned spacecraft to Pluto. An unprecedented world pandemic wreaked its havoc, and Donald Trump became our president, not once but twice.

My daughter has seen quite a journey as well. She became a singer, musician, artist, model, cheerleader and even an actress, playing the lead Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz” at the Apollo Theater. She is a self-taught competitive gymnast and part of a team that made the national finals in Orlando, Florida. Perhaps most important, my little green-eyed girl grew up and graduated from high school, and she is now a college freshman trying to find her place in this crazy world.

Now we sit together, sometimes late into the evening, and we talk. She has never had any interest in becoming a lawyer, but she has always shown an interest in why I do it. Recently, she asked me a question that I haven’t heard in a while. She asked the difference between being a lawyer today and when I started many years ago.

“The difference is I don’t consider myself just a trial lawyer anymore,” I told her. “Clients once hired me to try their cases. They don’t want that today. Now they hire me to help their business avoid trials.” She looked up at the ceiling, raised her eyebrows and nodded, as if she understood me perfectly.

“Does that apply to all lawyers or just you?” Of course she would follow my answer with an even more difficult question. I had to think about that one.

The truth is that the legal industry has changed along with the rest of our world. First came cellphones. Then came the internet. Then came cellphones with internet and all the knowledge of the world instantly at our fingertips. With that came the expectation for instant satisfaction and an acute lack of patience. People want problems solved instantly, with relatively little discussion. When business owners experience unforeseen and unbudgeted issues, they want them resolved quickly. From Caterpillar to the corner restaurant, the last thing companies want is to devote their resources toward litigation. When businesses hire a lawyer, their historic desire for Perry Mason now takes a back seat to the need for Harvey Specter. Businesses no longer want to retain the best trial lawyer; they want the lawyer who can quickly fix the problem without the need for such elaborate time and expense.

This reality has resulted in a generational swing in which lawyers, just like those in other industries, are forced to adapt to be competitive. Don’t get me wrong: A trial lawyer still needs the skill and experience to try a good case; otherwise, the bluff will get challenged every time. Nevertheless, possessing excellent trial skills just isn’t the sole (or even primary) skill anymore that businesses are seeking. The real talent is solving the situation by avoiding the trial.

I believe this is true no matter what kind of trial lawyer you are. Ask an experienced personal injury lawyer how many cases insurance companies settle today compared with 10 years ago. Ask a criminal defense attorney how many accused are going to trial versus entering into a plea bargain.

Ask any business owner what he or she thinks about litigation. Don’t just ask ones who have been sued and lost; also ask those who have sued and won but didn’t consider it a victory because of the amount of legal fees they paid. I have tried hundreds of cases in my 30-year career. I have heard every criticism of our legal industry that exists, and many of them I agree with. Perhaps the worst of all is the notion that the cost of victory can be just as devastating as the agony of defeat. On the other hand, I have never received criticism from a client after we managed to avoid a trial.

I still have plenty of time left to practice law on this journey I began 30 years ago. Fortunately, my kids keep me “young at heart” and provide me with the tools to reinvent my career when needed. One thing is certain: More change lies ahead. Interest rates, government regulations and debtors’ ability to repay their loans were once easy problems to forecast, analyze and solve—but not anymore. Fortunately, I know I can always count on my daughter’s inquisitive green eyes to help me through the journey.

Joseph VanFleet is an experienced trial lawyer, focusing his practice on small businesses and community banks in addition to Fortune 100 publicly traded entities and large-scale lenders he has always represented. He has represented clients throughout the country and in numerous complex and multidistrict cases, and he has obtained victories in well over 100 trials, appeals and alternative disputes.

ABAJournal.com is accepting queries for original, thoughtful, nonpromotional articles and commentary by unpaid contributors to run in the Your Voice section. Details and submission guidelines are posted at “Your Submissions, Your Voice.”

This column reflects the opinions of the author and not necessarily the views of the ABA Journal—or the American Bar Association.

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Wyoming mom shoots her 4 daughters in triple murder-suicide

homesafetytechpros — Thu, 13 Feb 2025 09:41:20 +0000

Inset left to right: The Harshman family and Tranyelle Harshman (Facebook). Background: The house where Harshman shot and killed three of her daughters in Byron, Wyo. (Google Maps).

The firm grip of horror took hold of multiple Wyoming families after a mother shot her four daughters before turning the gun on herself.

Midafternoon on Monday, Tranyelle Harshman, 32, called 911 to report the gunshots she fired at her own home on East Shoshone Avenue in Byron — a tiny town located roughly 415 miles northwest of Cheyenne — and some 90 miles due south of Billings, Montana.

The woman went on to report that her daughters had been shot, according to a press release issued by the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office.

“When dispatchers asked the status of the gunshot victims the female stated that she believed them to be deceased,” the sheriff’s office said.

Harshman also gave dispatchers a macabre guide to the violence they would encounter inside the unassuming home.

“Two children would be located upstairs in their cribs and two children would be located downstairs in their shared bedroom,” the press release reads. “The caller further stated she could be found in her upstairs bedroom and that she was going to do the same to herself.”

Attempts were made to slow things down. Those efforts failed.

“The dispatcher pleaded with the female caller over the phone for the female caller to remain on the line until responding units arrived,” the press release goes on. “The female caller stated multiple times that she could not do that and that it was too late. Multiple attempts to keep her on the line failed and the call was disconnected.”

When deputies and local law enforcement arrived, two girls were already dead: a 2-year-old and her 9-year-old half-sister died from gunshot wounds to the head. Another 2-year-old and her 7-year-old half-sister had also been shot in the head but managed to cling to life.

The toddler who first survived, however, “succumbed a very short time later due to the extent of her injuries,” according to the sheriff’s office.

The shooter was also “found to have signs of life” while suffering from a gunshot wound to the head, authorities said. The mother and the 7-year-old were both swiftly transported to North Big Horn Hospital. The girl was later airlifted to a hospital in Salt Lake City where she is currently “fighting hard for her life,” according to family members.

Harshman herself died on Tuesday afternoon.

The family had lived in the house for about a year before tragedy struck, a next-door neighbor told Cowboy State Daily. The neighbor recalled seeing the girls playing outside — where they would sometimes pet his dogs. The murderess, the neighbor said, appeared to be a homemaker and did not evidence any signs of mental turmoil.

“I wish I had known something was going on. I could have done something about it,” the man told the newspaper through tears. “Terrible. F–––ing terrible.”

Now, two fathers and the killer’s surviving family are grieving and trying to make sense of the tragic turn of events.

One GoFundMe was started to help the biological father and stepmother of the two older girls — particularly with medical expenses as the 7-year-old recovers from surgery.

“Olivia has suffered severe traumatic brain injury,” the first fundraiser reads. “All prayers and whatever higher faith or power you believe in are appreciated for the family at this time. If she does pull through this, she and the family have a very long road ahead of them, a lot of unknown right now. This loss and hurt is unimaginable. Please rally around Quinn and Katelynn as they prepare to bury one daughter and beg and pray that the other survives this horrible tragic event.”

Other funds will go toward the 9-year-old girl’s funeral expenses and travel for her parents to attend.

A second GoFundMe was started to help the widower — the father of the two younger girls — with various costs.

“This devastating event has left Cliff and his loved ones reeling in grief, struggling to come to terms with the immense void left in their lives,” the second fundraiser reads. “The financial burden of funeral expenses, ongoing family support, and other related costs only adds to their pain.”

In response to a request from Law&Crime, the Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office said incident reports about the triple murder-suicide “aren’t finalized yet.”

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Mother rages at daughter’s killer as he’s sentenced to life

homesafetytechpros — Tue, 31 Dec 2024 18:48:23 +0000

Top inset: Sonja Moen (West Funeral Home). Bottom inset: Spencer Moen (Cass County Jail). Background: The location where Sonja Moen was killed (KVLY).

A North Dakota man will spend the rest of his life in prison for the beating death of his wife, who he initially said face-planted on the stairs.

Spencer Moen, 32, learned his fate on Monday for the murder of Sonja Moen, 30. He was convicted in October.

“I just can’t seem to get out of that space. You beat the life out of my daughter. And to make it worse, you did it in front of the kids,” said the victim’s mother, Kristin Scofield, in court. “I will continue to pray for forgiveness, but currently, it is not in my soul. I’m sorry.”

Spencer Moen apologized to the family.

“I’d like everyone to know the remorse, pain and sorrow I feel, I never meant for this to happen,” Spencer Moen said Monday. “She was everything to me. I feel lost without her. If I had the ability to go back and change it, I absolutely would. … I am deeply sorry and promise to be a better man.”

The case came to light on Aug. 10, 2023, when Spencer Moen called 911, according to the affidavit for probable cause obtained by Law&Crime. Police found Sonja Moen lying in a bathtub not breathing or responding. She was declared dead at the scene.

Spencer Moen first told cops his wife had slept in the bathtub the previous night and was now unresponsive.

“He said she had slept there because she had said she was going to take a bath or a shower,” the affidavit stated. “He also said she had vomited last night as well.”

Cops noted visible injuries on the victim, including what appeared to be defensive wounds.

“Sonja had significant bruising on the left side of her face and forehead,” cops wrote. “Both of her eyes appeared to be swollen shut and had dried blood from the right corner of her mouth. Sonja had bruising on the backs of her hands, which appear to be defensive wounds.”

Sonja Moen’s mother arrived within a minute of the first responding officer, police said.

Police asked the mother and Spencer Moen to step out of the bathroom, where Sonja Moen’s body was, into the adjoining bedroom.

“After exiting the bathroom, [the mother] looked at Spencer and said ‘get the f— out of my house,”” police said. “While in the bedroom, officers noticed bruising on Spencer’s right hand in the knuckle area.”

Cops also said they found blood on the master bedroom floor. Blood drops were spotted on the left side of the bed, on the floor, and at the foot of the bed going toward the bathroom, police said.

Officers said they learned that Spencer Moen had been golfing the day before, on Aug. 9. Sonja Moen went to pick him up after dark.

They purchased sandwiches and cigarettes at a Holiday Convenience Store on the way home, Spencer Moen told police.

“According to witness statements, Sonja and Spencer would have arrived home sometime around 10 PM (CST),” police said.

According to Sonja Moen’s mother, Spencer Moen took the children to day care the morning of Aug. 10 between 7 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. — approximately two hours before he usually brought them there. The normal time was 9 a.m., the mother told police.

Officers detained Spencer Moen and took him to the police department for an interview. He said that he and his wife had been intoxicated when they arrived home.

“When asked about the injuries to Sonja’s face, Spencer explained that when they arrived home from Mapleton, Sonja had tripped coming up the steps from the garage into the house and ‘face planted,’” police wrote.

In further conversation with officers, Spencer Moen said he put their children to bed. After that, he returned downstairs to Sonja Moen and argued with her again while smoking in the garage. He claimed his wife smacked him in the back of the head.

Spencer Moen claimed his wife later jumped on him while he was in bed. They rolled off the side of the bed as she punched him. He pushed her away by her throat, but she kept attacking, he claimed.

Spencer Moen asserted he punched her in the face three to four times.

“F— you, I’m taking a shower,” Sonja Moen said, according to this account.

But police did not find any marks on Spencer Moen that indicated his wife punched him, according to the affidavit.

In this account, Sonja Moen entered the bathroom, but Spencer Moen heard no running water from the tub, he said. The defendant asserted he went downstairs for about 15 minutes to smoke after hearing a commotion in the bathtub but not checking.

“Spencer was asked if it would be fair to say that Sonja had fallen in the tub due to the head trauma, associated to the intentional punches,” officers said. “Spencer stated, ‘Sure.’”

Spencer Moen said that when he returned, he saw his wife lying in the bathtub alive and making noise but not talking.

“Spencer states he dumped water over her head to get her attention, so she would return to the bedroom to go to sleep,” police wrote. “Sonja didn’t give him a response and remained in the tub.”

Spencer Moen said he returned to bed and slept. Upon waking up, he found Sonja Moen in the tub and tried to wake her up. She was cold to the touch. He then took the children to the day care.

Spencer Moen said he returned home and tried to wake her up again. When she did not, he called her mother to say Sonja Moen was not waking up and that he did not think she was breathing. He then called 911.

Cops said they also spoke with the children.

“According to one of the children, they were present when Spencer and Sonja were wrestling and observed Sonja’s blood on Spencer’s face,” police said. “It should also be noted, officers were also able to recover Sonja and Spencer’s Apple iPhones.”

Police said that it turned out that Sonja Moen’s eldest daughter called her the night of Aug. 9. But Spencer Moen picked up at 10:41 p.m.

“She explained Spencer’s voice sounded irritated and he told her to go to bed because it was late,” police said. “Spencer’s daughter advised she heard Sonja in the background snoring.”

Spencer Moen denied this conversation happened.

Police said they found a video on the defendant’s phone showing Sonja Moen lying in the bathtub. It was time-stamped Aug. 9 at 11:37 p.m.

“The video shows Sonja lying in the opposite direction from where she was found by responding patrol officers,” cops said. “It appears Sonja was having extreme difficulty with breathing and lying in an abnormal sleeping position. Sonja was also exhibiting a sound similar to snoring, which was described by Moen’s oldest child. Based off my training and experience, the sound being made by Sonja appears to be consistent with agonal breathing [which is labored breathing associated with agony or dying].”

Police determined the husband filmed the video based on him calling out her name, but he did nothing to help her while filming. The autopsy determined Sonja Moen suffered a subdural hematoma and died from a blunt force trauma to the head. She also suffered a fractured rib.

Alberto Luperon contributed to this report.

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Dad charged for allegedly confronting daughter’s classmates

homesafetytechpros — Fri, 15 Mar 2024 04:34:18 +0000

Left: a man identified as Aaron Thomas confronts a student at a high school (Screengrab via theneighborhoodtalk/Instagram); Right: Aaron Thomas appears in a booking photo (Salem County Jail).

A New Jersey father is in a bevy of legal hot water after allegedly showing up at his daughter’s high school and aggressively confronting other students, authorities allege.

Aaron Thomas, 38, stands accused of two counts of making terroristic threats and one count each of simple assault, trespassing, and disorderly conduct, according to the Paulsboro Police Department.

A video of the confrontation was posted on Instagram and went viral.

The incident occurred on Monday at Paulsboro High School, authorities said. In the widely shared footage, an adult can be seen walking through a classroom and getting close to a student.

“Apologize to my daughter,” the man says over and over.

“You got a problem with my daughter?” the grown man asks the teenager. “Apologize to my daughter.”

The student replied that he didn’t have anything to apologize for.

“You heard what the f— I said,” the man says. “Apologize to my daughter.”

About a minute into the incident, another adult can be seen walking up to the man and patting him on the back in an apparent attempt to cool down the tension and get him to leave the classroom.

“If I gotta come up here again, I’m gonna slap fire on both of ya’ll,” he can be heard saying in the footage.

Later, he gets into a second confrontation with a different student. This time, the man identified as Thomas appears to actually make contact with the second student after being encouraged by the teen to come to blows by grabbing his arm.

According to an affidavit in the case obtained by Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based ABC affiliate WPVI, Thomas originally came to the high school to sign his daughter out because she was having a problem with another student over sharing photos. The small Garden State borough is part of the Philadelphia metropolitan area.

Nearly three hours after the contretemps, the school called law enforcement. Thomas was arrested after he left the school and jailed later that day. He was released after a hearing on Tuesday, according to NJ Advance Media.

Under the terms of his bail, Thomas is not allowed to enter his daughter’s high school or contact the students involved in the confrontation or their families.

School officials took note of the in-school confrontation and the cellphone video posted on “social media platforms.”

“The Paulsboro Public School District in cooperation with the Paulsboro Police Department continues to investigate the incident and have communicated with all involved parties in accordance with district protocols,” the superintendent wrote in a letter obtained by WPVI. “Due to the ongoing nature of this investigation, additional details about the situation cannot be released to the public.”

Law&Crime contacted the Paulsboro Police Department for additional details about this story, but no response was immediately forthcoming at the time of publication.

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