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Bloomington, MN, August 23, 2010 – Appelman Law Firm, a premier Twin Cities criminal defense firm, announces its recent addition of Geoffrey R. Saltzstein, of Minneapolis, MN, as its new Associate Attorney.

Saltzstein was formerly a law clerk for the Honorable Philip Bush of Hennepin County District Court, Felony Division. Saltzstein’s experience extends from low-level felony probation violations to sexual assault and homicide trials. He worked closely with the judge to gain insight on all levels of the criminal process—including in chambers during attorney negotiations.

Salzstein attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor where he received his bachelor’s degree in Communications along with a minor in Sports Management. He then attended the University of St. Thomas School of Law and received his Juris Doctor in 2009.

“Geoff’s notable past experience, along with his passion for helping people and excellent negotiation skills, make Geoff an admirable attorney. He will be a significant addition to the Appelman Law Firm as we continue to grow the firm and take on a greater number of cases,” says Avery Appelman, Managing Partner of Appelman Law Firm.

Saint Louis Park, MN, October 29, 2010 – Appelman Law Firm, a premier Twin Cities criminal defense firm, announces its recent addition of Stacy Kaye, of Minneapolis, MN, as its new Associate Attorney.

Kaye previously worked as a Law Clerk at Appelman Law Firm for the past three years, during which time she gained valuable experience working on DWI, drug, and white collar criminal cases. Now as an associate, Kaye will primarily focus on trial litigation.

Graduating Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Macalaster College in 2004, Stacy received her Bachelor’s degree in History and Political Science. She then went on to attain her Juris Doctor from the University of Minnesota Law School in 2010.

“Stacy has all the qualities of a great defense attorney. She is unwaveringly loyal, meticulously attentive to detail, and genuinely passionate about her work. Appelman Law Firm is lucky to have her,” says Avery Appelman, Appelman Law Firm.

St. Louis Park, MN, October 11, 2010 – Appelman Law Firm, a premier Twin Cities criminal defense firm, announces a change in address.

Please take note of the firm’s new office location:

6465 Wayzata Boulevard
Suite 120
Saint Louis Park, MN 55426

The beautiful new office provides a more convenient and centralized location (at the intersection of Highway 394 and Louisiana Avenue), and therefore, better serves the needs of clients.

Saint Louis Park, MN, January 7, 2011 – Appelman Law Firm Associate Attorney, Geoff Saltzstein, was featured in a Star Tribune article about a new rehab program at Hazelden Treatment Center geared specifically toward lawyers.

The goal of the new program is to offer specific treatment to those working in the legal profession who, because of the high stress levels of the profession, may have different rehabilitation needs. The program is the first of its kind in the state of Minnesota and costs $28,300 for 28 days of treatment.

Those enrolled in the program would undergo the same treatment as anyone else, in addition to attending a weekly legal professionals group therapy session, and AA meetings composed solely of legal professionals. Hazelden also employs staff clinicians who are lawyers.

Geoff Saltzstein was quoted in Wendy Lee’s article:

I think it’s great…There are some special challenges that attorneys may face when trying to get into recovery. It provides them a place where they can be with their peers and understand what they’re going through.

Following his arrest, Julian spent 88 days in jail and faced a maximum of life imprisonment. His wife, Thal Wendrow, was accused of allowing the sexual assaults to happen and could have incurred decades of prison time.

The only evidence against the Wendrows was a written statement from their daughter (who has the brain capacity of a 2-year-old and cannot speak) alleging that her father had been raping her since she was 7-years-old while her mother watched. The daughter wrote the statement with the help of a school aide, through a method called “facilitated communication,” wherein the aide assisted the daughter type the statement on a computer.

Despite this written statement, several physical examinations showed no signs of physical abuse to the girl. When the case was brought to court, the daughter took the stand to testify through facilitated communication. Her credibility quickly diminished when it became apparent that she could not answer even the most basic questions, such as the color of her own shirt.

With such unfounded evidence, the case fell apart in March 2008, three months after police arrested Mr. Wendrow.

“They nearly sent an innocent man to prison for life,” said Deb Gordon, the Wendrows’ attorney. “They pushed this thing in spite of literally having no evidence of any kind of abuse, other than this facilitated communication nonsense, which is in effect, a Ouija board.”

Shortly after Mr. Wendrow’s arrest, it was also later revealed that police tried to coerce a confession from the Wendrows’ 13-year-old son, who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome. The interrogating officer claimed to have videos of Julian and his son both sexually assaulting the girl. There was no adult or attorney present during the interrogation. The detective later admitted to lying about obtaining said videos.

On Tuesday, January 11, it was announced that the Wendrows and their attorney will share a settlement of $1.8 million from the township’s insurance carrier. But it won’t stop there. The Wendrows are continuing their lawsuit against the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office, the Walled Lake Consolidated Schools, and the Michigan Department of Human Services. In a cowardly move, the defendants cited governmental immunity and asked the judge to dismiss the Wendrows’ case.

This is a truly shocking story of police and prosecutorial overreach that should trouble everyone. It is a clear-cut, dangerous mentality of prosecutors “obtaining a conviction at any cost.” Especially with criminal sexual conduct cases such as this, prosecutors have an obsession with obtaining a conviction as quickly as possible regardless of the lack of evidence.

This is a prime example of prosecutorial misconduct. Police and prosecutors showcased a reckless disregard for the rights of the Wendrow family. A father was held for nearly three months in prison, and his son was subject to browbeating by the hot-headed interrogating officer who attempted to coerce a false confession through intimidation and lies.

The prosecutors and police officers involved in this case should be held personally accountable. They should be sanctioned and forced to pay a personal price for the grievous acts they committed. It is not right that they are allowed to hide behind their governmental titles.

Minneapolis, MN, January 27, 2011 – Appelman Law Firm hosted a networking event geared specifically toward young Minnesota attorneys.

The goal of the event was to bring together burgeoning Minnesota attorneys and law students in an attempt to help them build their networks and referral bases. The event was a great success, with more than 40 lawyers in attendance.

In addition to the opportunity to expand their networks, attendees were also given the chance to enter their business cards into a raffle to win a free iPad at the end of the night.

The event was hosted by Geoffrey Saltzstein and Stacy Kaye, two of Appelman Law Firm’s associate attorneys. It was such a wonderful success that they hope to make the Appelman Law Firm “Networking Event for Young Attorneys” an annual occurrence.

Bloomington, MN, August 23, 2010 – Appelman Law Firm, a premier Twin Cities criminal defense firm, announces its recent addition of Geoffrey R. Saltzstein, of Minneapolis, MN, as its new Associate Attorney.

Saltzstein was formerly a law clerk for the Honorable Philip Bush of Hennepin County District Court, Felony Division. Saltzstein’s experience extends from low-level felony probation violations to sexual assault and homicide trials. He worked closely with the judge to gain insight on all levels of the criminal process—including in chambers during attorney negotiations.

Salzstein attended the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor where he received his bachelor’s degree in Communications along with a minor in Sports Management. He then attended the University of St. Thomas School of Law and received his Juris Doctor in 2009.

“Geoff’s notable past experience, along with his passion for helping people and excellent negotiation skills, make Geoff an admirable attorney. He will be a significant addition to the Appelman Law Firm as we continue to grow the firm and take on a greater number of cases,” says Avery Appelman, Managing Partner of Appelman Law Firm.