Richard V Stevens III

I am a military Senior NCO who was falsely accused of sexual assault by a civilian acquaintance. I faced a general court-martial trial. Mr. Stevens represented me in this case, and I was completely exonerated. I plead not guilty in front of a military "jury" consisting of officers and enlisted.... Mr. Stevens handled all aspects of my court-martial trial. In a separate motion hearing, he filed and argued motions to help us present my defense. The written motions were extremely well written and the intent was more than I ever expected. His legal knowledge was superior. Likewise, his motion arguments during the motion hearing were vital to ensure I received a fair trial and ensured all possible evidence would be discovered. When my case went to trial, Mr. Stevens conducted the voir dire, delivered both the opening statement and closing argument, and he questioned all major witnesses, to include cross-examining the complaining witness. Mr. Stevens' opening statement was precise, direct, and to the point. His questioning of the witnesses demonstrated his high level of experience. Particularly with regard to his questioning of the complaining witness, and exposing her lies and her motive to make false allegations against me, his cross-examination of her was vital to my defense and left no doubt for the panel of jury members that she was not being truthful. Finally, Mr. Stevens delivered his closing argument, to wrap up the case, to expose the truth of my innocence, and with my future on the line. His closing argument was exactly what the jury needed to hear. He truly explained their responsibilities and was very meticulous in exposing all the evidence and motives to ensure justice prevailed. After a long and contentious trial, I was found not guilty of all allegations I faced - and the verdict came back very quickly. It was obvious the case against me was false, and Mr. Stevens' work on the case was crucial to show this. I was cleared of the allegations and went back to resume my military career. I would highly recommend Richard Stevens.

I am a military officer who was accused of misconduct during my career. Upon direction of my commander, I faced an involuntary administrative discharge board where the government attempted to end my career. Mr. Stevens represented me during my discharge board hearing, which, like a trial, included a...n opening statement, cross-examination of government witnesses, to include my commander, and presenting of witnesses and evidence on my behalf before delivering closing arguments over multiple days. I hired Mr. Stevens, after working with another lawyer whom I fundamentally disagreed with in terms of a winning strategy. My philosophy was that the charges were somewhat petty and taking this to a board in the first place was based on a misinformed and over-reacting command climate. Interestingly, as a result of the disposition of my case, and Mr. Stevens speaking truth to power, the climate has since changed. Coming across as apologetic and throwing myself on the mercy of the board, was not the approach that I sought to take. I wanted to refute the charges, and I believed there was enough on my side to be able to do that. Ergo, I wanted a lawyer that shared the sentiment, and would then step in and SELL that narrative. Although my Area Defense Counsel mostly shared this view as well, and was very competent for his level of experience and I valued his counsel, I wanted the absolute best chance at winning this case, as this was a binding decision and a once in a lifetime event that would forever change the course my life would take. In my mind, it would have been a very regrettable decision to leave that any more to chance then necessary. While Mr. Stevens may or may not have as much notoriety as some lawyers, that isn't what makes a good lawyer. I had previously heard of Rich's work from another service-member, had looked at his website once before, and since he came recommended to me by the my appointed counsel (AC), I called him. From the first time I contacted him leading up to the case, I felt that he was frank and gruff with me about what to expect from the government and what was important to focus on to win this case. He was able to sift through the array of evidence and hearsay I had for and against me and determine the best course of action better then I or the AC ever could have. Both in the courtroom and in person he is a straight-shooter and he will set you straight and help align you with the reality of your situation, which I needed and appreciated. He is speaking from his experience dealing with the government going after you. I felt he was great at exploiting holes in the prosecutions arguments and unpreparedness in certain areas, as well as scientifically building a narrative into the minds of the board members to anticipate and control their train of thought within the limits of rational and equitable decision making. The disposition was no basis for discharge, I was retained, and have a clean slate. While your mileage may vary depending on the specifics of your case, I can wholeheartedly say that Rich is the most competent lawyer I have ever worked with, and that is saying a lot because I've interacted with 7 lawyers over my life, spoken to and have friendships with others, AND i thought that the AC was the best I had worked with, before I met Mr. Stevens! I believe this gentleman is a cut above even the top tier of lawyers out there both military and civilian. Whatever the burden of proof allows for, you will get with Rich, whatever speculation the jury or judge may have when they have to decide your case, will become as objective a decision as possible. He will SELL and paint as clear and favorable of a narrative/picture as the evidence allows for, to influence the decision makers to generate as much clemency or as favorable a decision possible. He's easy to get a hold of and always responds within 24 hours. He won't take a heavy case load so he can give each case enough attention.

Mr. Stevens was amazing in defending me throughout my General court Martial and I'm not saying that term lightly. I literally owe him my life and freedom. If you want to be spending time with your loved ones and not sitting in a military prison then you should very much consider reaching out to this ...man. Hiring Mr. Stevens was one of the best decisions I've ever made, and I would do it again a thousand times over. I am a military NCO who was falsely accused of sexual assault and related claims by a civilian. I faced a general court-martial trial, in which the maximum punishment if convicted was decades in prison and I would have had to register as a sex offender. I plead not guilty at trial and Mr. Stevens represented me during my court-martial. This included him filing and arguing pretrial motions, delivering the opening statement, cross-examining the complainant and key government witnesses, calling multiple expert witnesses to the stand on my behalf, and delivering the closing argument. Mr. Stevens has a very good reputation as an ethical and very effective defense attorney in the Military Justice System. It felt like the whole world was against me until Mr. Stevens leveled the playing field. After a long and difficult trial, I was found not guilty of all allegations I faced and I couldn't be happier.

I am a senior military officer who was falsely accused of sexual assault by another military member. A senior sex crimes prosecutor was on the case against me. I was represented and defended by my military defense attorney and I hired Richard Stevens as my civilian defense counsel in the case. Th...e processing of my case was lengthy, but Mr. Stevens was always available to discuss the case with me and to advise me regarding various issues in the case. He always described things in a way that they could be understood and appropriately considered. There were significant legal issues in my case prior to the litigation of the allegations, and Mr. Stevens submitted briefs and argued the discovery and evidentiary issues - which we prevailed on. Mr. Stevens made the opening statement in my case, he questioned the important witnesses, and he delivered the closing argument. Because of my rank, the panel members were very senior, and Mr. Stevens was able to confidently and comfortably communicate to them, based on his prior military experience and the length of his affiliation with the military legal system. His witness questioning skillfully exposed the facts necessary to show my innocence. Mr. Stevens' closing argument was perfect! He tied together the facts, evidence, testimony, and instructions into our theory of the case, and was extremely persuasive in how he argued. He prepared a timeline of the important facts of the case, to indicate the motive of the complainant to make her false claims. He pointed out the inconsistencies in her story, and the inconsistencies between her story and what other witnesses said. After waiting so long to have my case fairly heard, it was a relief to have such a strong and thorough closing argument that left no doubt that the allegations against me were false. That was exactly why I brought Mr. Stevens onto the case! Although I was still nervous about the outcome, I was not surprised when the members announced we had won. It was the right result based on my innocence, but it was also the right legal result, based on the work of my defense attorneys. My career and my retirement were saved. I highly recommend anyone facing legal trouble in the military hire Richard Stevens as their civilian defense attorney, and if they face rape or sexual assault allegations, I can't imagine going to court without attorney Richard Stevens on your side!

I am a military member who was falsely accused of sexual assault by an acquaintance. I faced a general court-martial trial accusing me of sexual assault, and the government had a prosecution team that included a senior sex crimes prosecutor. I hired Richard Stevens to represent me. From the outse...t, Mr. Stevens was very involved in preparing my case for trial, to include requesting multiple experts, identifying and interviewing witnesses during our own investigation, and filing motions. He always answered my questions and provided timely advice. Mr. Stevens traveled to my base to represent me at the motion hearing. He had filed several important motions, and this provided us the chance to question the complainant under oath. She did not handle the questioning well, and came off very poorly. Mr. Stevens handled all of the witness questioning during the motion hearing, and arguments on the main motions. He was very well prepared and he obviously was an expert in military law and procedure. Soon after the motion hearing, based on the support of the complainant, the government agreed to drop the court-martial and handle the case through administrative action instead. This allowed me to avoid a public felony-level criminal trial, and - knowing the environment in the military right now - the possibility of a federal criminal conviction, sex offender registration, and a sentence that could have included a lengthy prison sentence and dishonorable discharge...all despite my innocence. If you face a serious military case, particularly an alleged sexual assault, I would highly recommend Mr. Stevens. He lived up to his reputation for me and my family. Furthermore, Mr. Stevens not only saved me but provided me another chance to be with my Family with his skillful knowledge in Sexual Assault cases and his professionalism. Thank you!!!!