Prison Consultants and the Myth of the Fixer: How to Separate Substance from Snake Oil

Prison consultants have been receiving dubious attention in the press lately. The truth is, a qualified prison consultant can be a valuable member of a well-managed defense team. But, beware of so-called experts who promise you the moon for a fee.

Helping us get set for sentencing is Walt Pavlo, the founder of Prisonology, a collection of exceptionally qualified prison consultants, most of whom are former high-level Bureau of Prisons officials.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Deconstructing the New York Times piece about "a new breed of fixers";
• Picking the right consultant for the job;
• The kind of experts connected to "prisonology";
• Example of "RDAP Law" who weren't lawyers, gave terrible advice, bilked clients out of millions, and went to prison as a result;
• What are reasonable fees for Prison consultants;
• Limitations of prison consultants;
• The importance of finding a prison expert that can testify or submit sworn declarations to a judge at sentencing;
• How finding the right expert can save the attorney time and the client money;
• How the wrong consultant may put work product and attorney-client privilege at risk;
• How the attorney's failure to properly manage a consultant/expert can lead to disastrous results;
• How an attorney's failure to properly communicate and connect with a client may drive them into the arms of a charlatan;
• How to properly vet a potential prison consultant;

LINKS:

NYT Article: Want to Do Less Time? A Prison Consultant May Be Able To Help

Prisonology

Walt Pavlo at Forbes.com

Prison consultant, former BOP Warden, Maureen Baird was an early guest on the podcast. This is a great example of someone who can really help at sentencing. Listen (or re-listen) to Set for Sentencing, Ep. 3, Telling the Story of Prison at Sentencing!