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3. Former Duane Morris partner arrested on outstanding…

Criminal Justice

Former Duane Morris partner arrested on outstanding warrant related to Michigan assault case

By Debra Cassens Weiss

March 10, 2025, 3:16 pm CDT

Updated: A former Duane Morris partner was arrested on an outstanding Michigan warrant at his condo in Chicago’s South Loop on Friday, the same building where his wife’s body was found in a stairwell in October 2024.

Adam Beckerink, 46, was ordered extradited to Michigan at a court hearing Monday, the Chicago Tribune reports.

The warrant was based on charges of domestic abuse and assaulting police officers arising from incidents at the home in Berrien County, Michigan, where Beckerink’s wife, 36-year-old Caitlin Tracey, lived before her death, WGN-TV reports.

Initial media reports said the warrant was issued after Beckerink did not show up for a pretrial hearing in the Michigan case in October 2024. He also missed his trial that was set to happen days later, the reports said.

But Chicago police said the warrant was for alleged violation of pretrial conditions in the Michigan case, without providing further information, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Beckerink has not been charged in Tracey’s death. But in the extradition hearing Monday, Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Danny Hanichak referred to Beckerink as a suspect, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Beckerink’s lawyer, Jonathan Brayman, said Monday and at a court hearing Saturday the warrant was not valid, according to the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times.

Brayman said Monday that his client had attended all his hearings and had not violated any conditions of pretrial release, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Beckerink “is the absolute opposite of a fugitive from justice,” Brayman said on Monday, pointing out that Beckerink was arrested at home.

Beckerink was ousted from Duane Morris after the law firm became aware of domestic violence allegations against him made in court proceedings, including allegations made by his wife when she obtained an order of protection against Beckerink in 2023.

See also:

Duane Morris partner ousted after wife found dead in stairwell and her parents allege domestic violence

Judge denies bid by former Duane Morris partner to stop his wife’s funeral

Updated March 11 at 8:02 a.m. to add lawyer Jonathan Brayman’s assertion that former Duane Morris partner Adam Beckerink had attended all court hearings in Michigan.

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3. Arizona judge who championed domestic violence…

Obituaries

Arizona judge who championed domestic violence survivors dies at 77

By Lee Rawles

January 9, 2025, 2:54 pm CST

Judge Elizabeth “Ellie” Finn, a champion of specialized courts who served as a judge in Arizona for more than 42 years, died Dec. 27 at age 77.

The ABA Journal featured Finn in its Members Who Inspire series in September, highlighting her work establishing the Glendale Mental Health Court in Glendale, Arizona, and crafting domestic violence legislation in the state.

Finn served as the presiding judge of the Glendale City Court in Glendale, Arizona, for the last 18 years of her career and wrote about her role for the Journal’s Defending Justice series.

“When I was appointed, the mayor and council indicated they did not really know what occurs at the court,” Finn wrote. “I realized an important aspect of my position would be that of a communicator, ensuring transparency and that there are no surprises.”

In addition, Finn had been active in the ABA since joining the association in 2005. She was a member of the House of Delegates and of the Commission on Domestic & Sexual Violence. Finn was also a former chair of the National Conference of Specialized Court Judges and served on its executive committee. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer shortly after attending the ABA Annual Meeting in 2022.

“She was a dedicated passionate advocate and strong believer in the good work of the ABA and CDSV in advancing education of judges and lawyers on domestic violence, as well as advancing protective policies for survivors,” says Vivian Huelgo, a former chief counsel for the commission.

When asked why she became so involved with domestic violence policy, Finn told the Journal that it did not stem from personal experience with the issue or with a survivor.

“It was just something where I saw a need and felt like I could do something to help,” she said.

Finn is survived by her husband, Edward Turner, and her children, Sarah Turner and Jesse Turner. According to her obituary, Finn “enjoyed traveling with her husband, particularly to Southern California for the boating life. Her recreational passions included reading mystery and romance novels, dancing and officiating weddings for friends and family.”

Finn’s memorial service will be at the Glendale Civic Center on Jan. 12 at 1 p.m., followed by a reception. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to A New Leaf, an Arizona nonprofit supporting the homeless and survivors of domestic violence.

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3. Duane Morris partner ousted after wife found…

Criminal Justice

Duane Morris partner ousted after wife found dead in stairwell and her parents allege domestic violence

By Debra Cassens Weiss

November 12, 2024, 9:42 am CST

Updated: A judge in Cook County, Illinois, has granted a temporary restraining order that prevents a now-ousted partner at Duane Morris from retrieving the remains of his wife after her body was found in a stairwell in his South Loop residential building last month.

The lawyer, Adam P. Beckerink, was blocked from receiving the remains in a Nov. 7 TRO sought by the parents of Beckerink’s deceased wife, 36-year-old Caitlin Tracey, report CWBChicago, the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times.

The parents alleged that Beckerink, a tax lawyer, had physically abused his wife, the articles report. The parents filed a separate action in Berrien County, Michigan, where Tracey had lived, that seeks authority to access her remains from the Cook County medical examiner and make funeral arrangements. A Michigan judge granted the request Tuesday.

Tracey’s body was found in a stairwell of Beckerink’s building in Chicago’s South Loop on Oct. 27. Her foot had been severed.

Beckerink was “swiftly removed” as a partner at Duane Morris, and he is no longer associated with the law firm, a firm spokesperson told the ABA Journal in a statement. Duane Morris was not previously aware of the domestic violence allegations, the statement said.

Two domestic violence charges are pending against Beckerink in Berrien County, according to the Chicago Tribune. He is also facing felony charges of resisting and obstructing arrest. He has not been charged with crimes related to his wife’s death.

Tracey had obtained an order of protection against Beckerink in Cook County in October 2023, but it was dismissed the following month after Tracey moved to vacate it, according to CWBChicago and the Chicago Tribune. In an affidavit supporting her bid for a protection order, Tracey said she filed two police reports for domestic battery against Beckerink in August and September 2023, the articles report.

The affidavit alleged that Beckerink physically abused her at a Ritz-Carlton hotel, at Beckerink’s South Loop residential building and at her Michigan home, according to CWBChicago and the Chicago Tribune. In one instance, she alleged, Beckerink struck her in the head with a pickle jar and poured vodka on her body, burning her wounds. In another, she alleged that Beckerink strangled her and slammed her head against a cabinet.

Tracey’s parents, Monica and Andrew Tracey, are represented by lawyer Andrew J. Cunniff of Galarnyk & Associates in the Cook County case and by Mowitt “Mitt” S. Drew III of Butzel Long in Michigan.

A lawyer for Beckerink, Todd Pugh, told the Chicago Tribune that there is no link between Beckerink and Tracey’s death.

“Caitlin was the love of Adam’s life, they’ve been married since April, her family has not had any contact with her in the several months since she married Adam,” Pugh said. “He wanted to include them in honoring her memory and wanted to do this at the funeral home that her family selected, but based on the filing that we just received, that wasn’t sufficient.”

Here is the full statement from Duane Morris to the Journal: “This is a shocking and tragic case, and we send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Caitlin Tracey. Our firm was not aware of the domestic violence and other allegations against Adam Beckerink asserted in various legal proceedings until recent media accounts of her death. Once we confirmed key facts, the partners board swiftly removed Adam as a partner of Duane Morris LLP. He is no longer associated with our firm.

“This is a tragedy for all involved. Our deepest condolences go to Caitlin Tracey’s family. Counseling will be available for Chicago office employees this week.

“Out of respect for the legal process, it is not appropriate for the firm to speculate about the ongoing investigation, other than to say we hope justice will be served, and we stand ready to assist if we can be helpful to investigators.”

In a statement after the Michigan judge ruled for Tracey’s parents Tuesday, Drew said he and his clients are “incredibly grateful” for the expedited decision.

“The ruling allows Caitlin’s family not only to honor her life with the final services she deserves but also to grieve appropriately, supporting them in their journey through this difficult time,” Drew said.

Updated Nov. 12 at 11:35 a.m. to include information on the Michigan judge’s ruling and a statement by the parents’ attorney.

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3. 5th Circuit becomes ‘proving ground’ for…

Judiciary

5th Circuit becomes ‘proving ground’ for aggressive arguments by conservatives

By Debra Cassens Weiss

September 4, 2024, 8:59 am CDT

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at New Orleans has become “a proving ground for some of the most aggressive conservative arguments in American law,” according to the New York Times.

When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the right to abortion in June 2022, for example, the 5th Circuit had teed the case up for Supreme Court review, the New York Times reported last week.

In the term beginning this fall, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear five 5th Circuit cases, including a decision challenging the regulation of untraceable “ghost guns” that are made with kits.

The 5th Circuit’s decisions have been “so audacious” that the Supreme Court overruled the appeals court seven times last term, according to the article.

Overturned decisions would have curbed access to the abortion drug mifepristone, would have allowed gun possession by domestic abusers, and would have allowed states to sue over U.S. social media pressure.

Six of the 5th Circuit’s 17 judges are appointees of former President Donald Trump, who appointed 54 appeals court nominees, the most of any president since former President Jimmy Carter, the article reports.

According to a article in the Texas Tribune, the 5th Circuit’s adoption of conservative positions, even when overturned, helps shift the debate to the right.

Decisions by the 5th Circuit “have the effect of taking legal theories that were off the wall and putting them on the wall,” said Steve Vladeck, a professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, in an interview with the Texas Tribune.

Even when conservative decisions don’t prevail, “the effect is to make these cases of national import and give credibility to those arguments,” Vladeck said.

Akhil Reed Amar, a professor at Yale Law School, told the New York Times that the 5th Circuit’s conservative opinions could stem partly from appellate judges jockeying for a nomination to the Supreme Court.

“If you’re MAGA and you think Donald Trump is going to win the election, you can be in the right lane or hard-right lane,” Amar said. “The hard-right lane is the better lane to be in if you want to get yourself nominated.”

I was hopeful that Max’s Justice, USA, a six-part documentary series about Tennessee’s criminal justice system, would deliver its marketing promise of a “compelling, insider’s view of Nashville’s criminal justice system.” Sadly, it fell short.

There is some pedagogical value to shows such as Justice, USA, which provides access to men’s, women’s and juvenile jails, along with details that inmates and law enforcement struggle with, such as the effects of incarceration, mental illness and addiction. The series’ offer of a “360-degree” approach could go far in helping to educate viewers.

That sounds great in theory for those looking to understand the criminal justice system. But if you’re not involved with it, you don’t see what happens behind closed doors, and you don’t get a clear view.

And the incarcerated people’s stories will never go away, even if they get clean and turn their lives around. What’s on the internet and streaming services will live on forever.

Moreover, the series has thus far failed to explain some of the most counterintuitive aspects and sex-based discrepancies of American sentencing and incarceration.

Detained discrepancies

“Women, Incarcerated,” the fourth episode, piqued my interest. Since 2014, I’ve written about the astronomical number of incarcerated women in the United States specifically and my home state of Oklahoma generally.

According to the Prison Policy Initiative, as of March 5, there are 190,600 women and girls incarcerated in the United States. Over recent decades, women’s incarceration has increased at twice the pace of their male counterparts.

Over 25% of women who are incarcerated have not been convicted, and 60% of women in jails under local control (usually city or county jails) are incarcerated pending trial, as they are unable or decide not to post bail in their case.

But it’s not just the sheer number of women held in prisons and jails. Women have a higher mortality rate than men in jails; they die of drug and alcohol intoxication at twice the rate. Women are also more likely to become incarcerated with a preexisting medical issue or a mental health issue.

Different crimes, same times

Compared to men, women are often disproportionately charged and sentenced. For example, Oklahoma’s child abuse and neglect statute punishes mothers who arguably engage in child neglect, which is defined, among other things, as various omissions, such as failure to supervise, feed or provide children with enough nurturance and affection.

The statute also includes situations in which an adult doesn’t protect a child from exposure to illegal activities or sexual materials that are not age appropriate.

In the same vein, the “failure to protect” definition includes the conduct of a nonabusing parent or a guardian who “knows the identity of the abuser or the person neglecting the child but lies, conceals or fails to report the child abuse or neglect or otherwise take reasonable action to end the abuse or neglect.” Oddly, child neglect and child sexual abuse can both include life sentences.

Prosecutors have quite a bit of leeway when arguing the specific actions—or more often inactions.

The fifth episode of Justice, USA included the struggle that one inmate faced as she tried to live with herself through charges related to an overdose suffered by her toddler daughter after the child accidentally ingested some of her mother’s narcotics. The mother genuinely appears to love and miss her daughter, and the sorrow is evident. But her neglect as a drug addict kept her from protecting the toddler.

Situations such as that don’t have much middle ground. The mother’s recklessness still had a high likelihood of ending in tragedy. After all, the neglect was an obvious and apparent consequence of the mother’s failure to protect her child. That isn’t always the case for failure to protect and child neglect charges, though.

Take Tondalao Hall, for example.

An Oklahoma judge sentenced Hall to 30 years in prison because her boyfriend broke her child’s ribs and femur, and Hall “failed to stop him.” The boyfriend? He got two years.

Make that make sense to me.

Hall’s story was relayed by Samantha Michaels and published in Mother Jones in an excellent piece that highlights multiple Oklahoma women who suffered abuse at the hands of the men who ultimately abused their children, as well. Many of the women profiled received longer sentences than the men who actually physically abused the children.

I understand the position: As a society, we think that mothers should and will do anything in their power to protect their children. But what happens when the mother’s psyche is so destroyed by the abuse that she suffers that she can’t? The mind is powerful, but it can be damaged.

Maybe you argue that responsible women should never put their children in such a situation to begin with, or that she should just leave and take the kids. But ask yourself: Why would she stay if she really could leave? It’s a difficult question without an easy answer.

Questions such as these escape any analysis in Justice, USA. I understand if the series is restrained on how deep it can delve, but it’s a shame that it missed the chance to educate a huge audience on a systematic miscarriage of justice. If nothing else, the series was tailor-made for exploring the problem—at least from a surface level.

Things might start to change if the public has more exposure to the problem.

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Adam R. Banner is the founder and lead attorney of the Oklahoma Legal Group, a criminal defense law firm in Oklahoma City. His practice focuses solely on state and federal criminal defense. He represents the accused against allegations of sex crimes, violent crimes, drug crimes and white-collar crimes.

The study of law isn’t for everyone, yet its practice and procedure seems to permeate pop culture at an increasing rate. This column is about the intersection of law and pop culture in an attempt to separate the real from the ridiculous.

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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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3. Client escapes sanction for lawyer’s refusal…

Trials & Litigation

Client escapes sanction for lawyer’s refusal to appear on camera in Zoom deposition

By Debra Cassens Weiss

January 25, 2024, 12:01 pm CST

A client won’t have to pay a sanction of nearly $10,000 for his lawyer’s refusal to appear on camera during a remote deposition, a California appeals court ruled Tuesday.

In an unpublished opinion, the California Court of Appeal’s Second Appellate District ruled that the client doesn’t have to pay because a motion to compel the attorney’s on-camera appearance had been withdrawn.

Law360 and the Metropolitan News-Enterprise covered the Jan. 23 opinion.

The lawyer, Jeffrey Katofsky, represented a man alleged to be taking sports bets. The client was subpoenaed by a wife in divorce proceedings who wanted his testimony about thousands of dollars in sports bets said to be placed by her husband, mostly in the last five years of their marriage.

The wife is Shawn Agnone, and her husband, Frank Charles Agnone II, is an award-winning Hollywood producer, according to the Metropolitan News-Enterprise.

The opinion described what happened at the deposition.

Katofsky was in the same room as his client during the deposition. The client appeared on camera, but Katofsky refused to turn on his webcam. The lawyer for Shawn Agnone complained that he wouldn’t be able to see whether Katofsky was “making any visual signs” or “otherwise coaching” his client.

Katofsky referenced the subpoena notice, which required Katofsky and his client to participate in a Zoom deposition “using their own computer equipped with a webcam,and with a stable landline/wired ethernet connection to the internet.”

Katofsky told the opposing lawyer that his computer was equipped with a webcam, “so we complied with your notice,” according to the opinion.

The lawyer for Shawn Agnone ended the deposition. He filed a motion to compel the appearance of Katofsky’s client in accordance with the terms of the deposition notice and sought sanctions against Katofsky and his client.

The wife later notified the judge that she had settled the divorce case with her husband, and she withdrew the motion to compel. The trial judge partly granted the sanction request anyway, ordering Katofsky’s client to pay $9,981.

The appeals court said under the applicable laws, the judge could not impose any sanction because no order had been entered requiring compliance with the subpoena.

Katofsky told the ABA Journal that the appeals court made the right decision. He also says as a lawyer, he doesn’t have to be on camera in a deposition.

“I have no interest in ever being on camera. Ever,” he says.

“No lawyer has to be on camera,” he says. “It’s completely inappropriate to demand it. If they were worried about seeing me, they could have taken the deposition in person.”

Katofsky also says his client is an insurance agent, not a person who takes sports bets.

“He has nothing to do with sports betting at all,” Katofsky says.

The case is Agnone v. Agnone.