James Joseph Whitus

Mr. Whitus met with me exactly once before my DUI case. We went over the details of my case and I felt confident, based on his record and reputation with Albo & Oblon as being "experts in the field of DUI" and "aggressive in defense", that he would represent me in the best way possible. On the da...y of the trial, he showed up late (stuck in traffic... I was in the same traffic, yet I managed to make it there in time) and did not recognize me at the courthouse (his own client). We ended up walking into the courtroom late as a result; fortunately I had not been called up by the judge yet. He told me there was videotape of my interaction with the officer yet did not bother to get and review the videotape as "it usually doesn't help" -- that may be the case, but how do you know if you don't even bother to review it? Mr. Whitus was unfamiliar with common over-the-counter medicine such as BC Powder and was unfamiliar with the effects of energy drinks such as Mio. He insisted that we would need to hire experts to testify every detail, such as to the effects of caffeine on the Nystagmus test (even though the guidelines required by officers administering the test acknowledge that any caffeine can negate the results of said test). He did not pursue this or anything else as a defense at trial and instead suggested only a guilty plea. Mr. Whitus and Albo & Oblon charged over three times what the average lawyer would have cost via mail solicitations after my arrest, and I don't feel as if he did anything beyond what they would have done. Save your money and your time and go with another lawyer and/or law firm who will spend time with you in analyzing the details of your case instead of just going through the motions and putting in a guilty plea. My assumption was that paying for a more expensive lawyer would allow me the opportunity to be represented by someone who would spend more time with my case, but it was obvious that Mr. Whitus had spent no more time than was required to show up. He even made it clear that he had another case later in the day that he would need to attend to immediately following my case. I was told to plead guilty and was given the minimum sentencing, not as a result of any offers by Mr. Whitus, but instead by the fact that I was cooperative with the officer. Mr. Whitus was anything but "aggressive in defense" of my DUI and I would never consider working with either him or Albo & Oblon if I were to be in legal trouble in the future, and would never suggest them to anyone I know should they be in the same situation.