Francisco J Rodriguez

THE HARDEST WORKING ATTORNEY IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA!

"I am a firm believer that our criminal system, while the best in the world, makes every effort to get rid of cases by manipulating citizens into pleading guilty.  My job is to stop the government from doing so, but above all, my job is to protect my clients and the rights afforded to them by our Constitution!"  

When I take a case, I take it with one thing in mind: To win!  My goals are as follows:

To believe my client - they are my boss;

Know the case better than anyone else;

Research every issue, twice;

Prepare every case not for negotiation, but instead for trial;

Find passion in every case;

Always remain on the same page with my client - communication;

From the most serious felony case to a minor traffic offense, the philosophy  never changes.  By following this recipe, I believe every case can be won!

I have been in the criminal defense field for just over 16 years.  I have been licensed for 13 of those years.  

My first job, during my first year in law school, began with the First District Apppellate Project.  Here, I was extensively trained on the in's and out's of writing successful appeal (Appellate Opening Brief).  How to look for issues on any case and how to put together a convincing argument.  I have since applied this knowledge and have handled at least 100, criminal and traffic, appeals with a great success rate!  I have also written and filed writs, both to the Appellate DIvision and the California Court of Appeals, on many of my cases.  I hope to one day get the right case in front of the Supremes.

After working at the First Appellate District, I worked at the California State Public Defenders Office.  I believe it is here where I truly learned about passion for your case.  The office focused on doing appeals for those convicted and sentenced to death.  I spend quite a bit of time on an inmate who killed three people.  It was this experience that taught me why it is that we (Criminal Defense Lawyers) do, what we do - always a topic of debate at the dinner table.

I left the appeals area to focus on being a trial lawyer.  I wanted to be on the trenches where the initial battle took place.  I ended up volunteering as an intern at the San Francisco Public Defenders Office.  After all I was raised in San Francisco and knew the streets pretty well.  Here, I interned with several Deputy Public Defenders and wrote countless Motions to Suppress, 995 motions as well as researched countless legal issues for the deputies.  I also assisted in trial work from start to finish.  The main lesson I got from working at the SFPD was, the cold reality of how the system, at the trial level really works.  It is nothing like what you see on TV. 

My last employment as an intern was at the Alameda County Public Defenders Office.  Here I was assigned many duties including the initial intake of the accused. Again, I gained great courtroom experience and extensive training on all aspects of a criminal case, but the biggest lesson here was caring about the people you defend!  They were not files or numbers, as many of the Judges and Prosecutors saw them.  They were people wanting to be heard, and whether you like it or not this is what OUR Constitution affords them.

After passing the bar, I began working as at the Santa Cruz Public Defender's Office.  I worked here for a total of two years and conducted at least 18 jury trials with a high success rate (I think I lost two).  I received in-office weekly training pertaining to all aspects of a handling a criminal case. I was also sent for training at the Western Trial Advocacy Institute (run by Gerry Spence and considered to be the top trial school in the country) in Wyoming for  an extensive week long trial work training.  I left the Santa Cruz Public Defender's Office feeling confident that I now possessed all the tools necessary to competently and aggressively represent private clients.

After leaving the Public Defender positions, I opened several offices and have been in private practice ever since.  Every day, and in every case, I use the knowledge acquired at my previous jobs as well as the knowledge acquired I acquire on a daily basis. I continue to improve my skills and knowledge by attending countless seminars on every issue you can think of.  I am one of a handful of Attorneys trained in the performance of Field Sobriety Testing approved by the National Highway and Traffic Administration.  I never stop learning, and if I did I would retire immediately since I would be doing a great disservice to my clients.  I consider my self one of the lucky few who loves what I do.  I love the daily challenge; I love the fight; I love winning; but most importantly, I love helping people.  

Feel free to visit my website for further information on my office and how we can help!  We have a vast amount of knowledge and experience in all aspects of a criminal, DUI, Traffic, or DMV case.  You can also call me directly.