Nina Marino

In the world of criminal defense, winning is sometimes a matter of perspective.

Marino cites the example of a client she helped last year. Her client — who she identified as Mr. C — was charged with perpetrating a multi-state construction fraud that involved factoring invoices. The district attorney’s office was firm on its demand: Mr. C could avoid a jury trial if he served over seven years in prison.

For Mr. C., a father of three, jail wasn’t an option. So through a series of strategic decisions that Marino couldn’t discuss in detail, she managed to get Mr. C probation.

“He pled to a lot of felony counts, but he went home to his family at night,” Marino said, adding that to this day when she sees this man, he starts crying.

Marino won another favorable outcome last year for a different client — a security guard at a club she called Mr. R — who had an altercation at his workplace that resulted in the death of a patron. Charged with second-degree murder, Mr. R was looking at life in prison.

Marino put together a presentation for the D.A. with scientific evidence addressing the events that led to the death. Marino was unable to share specific details, but she said after the presentation the office agreed to resolve the case with involuntary manslaughter probation.

While her firm’s focus has never been geographically restricted, Marino said her cases have become increasingly national and international.

She cited the example of an ongoing extradition matter involving a client who the state of Costa Rica has accused of fraud. Upon reviewing the extradition filings, Marino and her team discovered there were significant documents missing, as well as serious statute of limitations problems. Discussions are underway with the U.S. Attorney’s Office to determine how it should proceed.

Once again, she said, the stakes are incredibly high for her client.

“Costa Rica is a country that is known for its frequent failure to observe the same standards of due process that we do,” Marino observed. “If this gentleman is in fact extradited to Costa Rica, he could very well sit in custody for 10 years before he reaches trial.”

Marino has also noted an uptick in dark web matters. She’s engaged in a case pending in Fresno federal court dealing with the sale of marijuana for bitcoin.

“Matters involving cryptocurrency are on the rise,” she said. Marino added that her firm’s practice has become so varied that it may lead the firm to expand its footprint in other legal markets.

— Eli Wolfe