Recent Successes

A man was charged with domestic assault stemming from an incident on New Years Eve in a hotel room. The victim alleged that the man held her down and covered her mouth to prevent her from leaving the room. At trial it was revealed that the woman didn’t report the incident until 3 months later and only after she and the man had called off their engagement. Also the man’s story was that the victim was making a scene and he was only pleading with her to settle down, not trying to keep her from leaving. She had no scratches or bruises; coupled with the motive for the late reporting the jury returned a NOT GUILTY verdict.

A young man was charged with 1st degree assault following a stabbing on New Years Eve. The man insisted that he was attacked by the man he stabbed and 3 of his friends. The police gave his story no credence and developed a one sided case against the defendant that was then vigorously prosecuted. After varying accounts of the evening from multiple witnesses (some of which the police had failed to mention in their report), the jury sided with the evidence that the defendant had in fact acted in self defense.

St. Louis man acquitted of Assault charge after jury finds he acted in self defense.

Jury did not find that his conduct was reckless.

“We didn’t particularly like the Defendant but as for the crime he was accused of committing; we did not find that he acted recklessly.” -said the Foreperson of the Jury

Jury sees truth despite Florissant Police officers lying under oath.

Judge does not believe State’s Witness that she was beaten about the head and face after pictures and medical records show no physical signs of abuse.

State unable to exclude medical records that show State’s Witness was under influence of cocaine at time of alleged altercation.

“It clearly goes to his ability to have accurately perceived what was going on” – Charles L. Barberio IV

An Alton Man was facing charges of attempted 1st degree murder and aggravated battery in Madison County Illinois. He was alleged to have shot the victim 3 times in the torso and was facing mandatory life in prison but through the filing of multiple motions and case investigation his attorneys were able to convince the prosecution that a trial was a risky proposition. After months of tough negotiations and legal maneuvering the man was offered a reduced charge and the minimum possible sentence of 6 years and credit for his time already served.

A St. Louis County Jury acquitted a young man of Murder in the second degree and armed criminal action. The prosecution alleged that the defendant engaged with the victim in a drug sale and that during that exchange the victim was shot by the defendant. At trial the jury heard evidence that the alleged victim was actually shot in self defense as the defendant was defending himself against a robbery. Physical evidence showed that the defendant was assaulted by the defendant and that the defendant’s cell phone was later found in the possession of the victim. After a 4 day trial the jury returned a quick not guilty verdict finding that the shooting was in self-defense.

A man accused of Murder and armed criminal action, following a fatal shooting in Webster Groves, sat in jail for nearly a full year awaiting his trial (bond was set at $100,000 CASH ONLY), all the while insisting that the shooting was done in self defense.

After a 4 day trial a St. Louis County jury returned a verdict of NOT GUILTY on both counts.

“We were really in a hard fought case the whole way. In my opinion my client was hung out to dry by the police and the prosecutor; doing no investigation for 8 months despite irrefutable evidence that there were clearly two sides to this story. There were numerous witnesses that were never talked to even after the police were made aware they had differing views that corroborated self defense. Fortunately he finally got his day in court and 12 strangers (the jury) found him NOT GUILTY.” –Charles L. Barberio IV

For more on this case: St. Louis Post Dispatch

Jury finds a St. Louis man not guilty after short deliberation. “we were not convinced” said multiple jurors.

“Then who shot him?!” asks stunned prosecutor.

A young man was facing charges of 1st degree murder but contacted Charles Barberio prior to turning himself in. Although the young man was innocent it was clear that the police were angling to build a case against him. He was arrested and charged but didn’t make any statements. His lawyer was able to attend a live lineup that turned out to be crucial in getting the case dismissed. The “eyewitness” picked out the defendant but only after having to view several subjects, multiple times. Had his lawyer not been there it would have simply been written down as “a positive identification”; instead the prosecutor was persuaded to dismiss the case.

A St. Louis man was acquitted of drug possession after a 2 day trial. Police had a search warrant for a North City residence where they “expected” to find large quantities of drugs and guns. The S.W.A.T. team forcibly entered the residence and tased the defendant twice as he was sitting in the front room. Upon searching the house they only found a backpack with Marijuana in a back bedroom; no guns and no large quantity of drugs as their search warrant indicated. At trial it was revealed that the Police Officers were “stretching the truth” in efforts to bolster their prosecution against the defendant and to excuse their over the top behavior. There was no connection between the backpack found in the bedroom and the defendant who was only a guest in the house. The jury found the defendant not guilty as they frowned upon the officers’ conduct.

Out of state man was in St. Louis County on business. After being arrested for possession of marijuana the Police illegally searched his hotel room and found felony drugs. At a preliminary hearing the Police Officer’s testimony did not establish probable cause to search the man’s hotel room. The judge dismissed the case on the spot.

“It was the legal equivalent of a first round knockout.” – Charles L. Barberio IV

Jury deliberated for less than an hour before returning the Not Guilty verdict.

Defendant faced a minimum of 10 years in prison without the possibility of parole,

Jury sees through a coerced written confession despite officers lying under oath.

State’s witness cannot identify defendant as the suspect, he can only describe race, build and clothing.

Another man also fit the description that lived in the same apartment complex but was never investigated by police.

“The prosecutor wanted my client to plead guilty for months; we refused to back down or give in and insisted on his innocence.” -Charles L. Barberio IV

On cross examination State’s Witness admits she lied to police.

Young man was facing up to life in prison. No plea deal was offered by the prosecuting attorney so he had no choice but to go to trial. After months of preparation on the morning of trial the charges were dismissed.

St. Louis Teen says “it couldn’t have been me,” subpoenas uncover video surveillance that corroborate alibi.

A man found himself in a notoriously bad neighborhood with a suspicious car tailing him. It was the police but they were driving a “covert” vehicle and the man got scared and drove off. The police claimed they activated their lights and sirens and that the man was actually just fleeing from their attempted stop. At trial the Judge agreed that it was possible the driver did not see the lights because the Officer testified that they only kept the lights on for half a block and less than 10 seconds.

A St. Louis County woman with no prior criminal history was charged with felony leaving the scene of an accident. Although her insurance company paid for the alleged damage, her only options were plead guilty to a felony or go to trial.

“I believed my client that she did not know she hit the other car. After the jury saw the evidence they believed her too.” – Charles L. Barberio IV

Charge reduced, as it is determined man did not violate gun law.

“It was a case of the cop not knowing the law” – Charles L. Barberio IV

St. Louis Man has case dismissed after jury selection but before commencement of opening statements.

A man was accused of shooting from a car into another car. The victim claimed that the defendant and two other men pulled up from behind and opened fire. Through defense investigation it was proved that another man was responsible for the crime.

“My client was happy despite being incarcerated for 8 months while awaiting trial for a crime he didn’t commit” – Charles Barberio

Officer failed to administer field sobriety tests correctly and was biased against younger drivers.

After a short deliberation the jury returned the NOT GUILTY verdict.

A conviction would have resulted in federally mandated Sex Offender Registration

** The man and his previous attorney had actually made a plea deal with the State in which he was told by all parties involved (including the prosecutor) that the plea bargain would spare him having to register as a sex offender. He reluctantly took the deal based on that information. As misfortune would have it, a week later the feds were at his door requiring him to register. His lawyer immediately filed the paperwork to vacate the plea bargain and contacted Charles L. Barberio IV to takeover the case. The judge agreed the man deserved a trial and a few months later, at that trial, the jury found him NOT GUILTY. He was exonerated and removed from the list.

He faced a possible sixty years in prison. Jury acquits after alleged victim lies on the stand and then tries to deny it. “Facebook messages also played a big part” said a juror.

“I’ve tried some tough cases before and that one ranks right up there. I thought the prosecutor tried a great case.” – Charles L. Barbeiro IV