Katrena Engstrom
N/A
Licensed for 53 years
Law Degree
Awards
Primary Practice Area
Criminal Defense
Language
English
About
A lawyer for more than forty years, John Williams started his legal career as a lobbyist for Aetna Life & Casualty in Hartford in 1967, following several years working in staff positions in the United States Senate. His introduction to litigation came when company lawyers were asked to donate time to pro bono publico activities of the Hartford County Bar. His first criminal client was Preston ("The Real Thing") Holloway, a man sentenced to life in prison in the 1950s for "use of heroin" in the days before the Fourth Amendment prohibition on illegal searches and seizures was applied to the states. Obtaining his release from prison and a job in the Aetna cafeteria, Williams was quickly disillusioned with corporate liberalism when a Senior Vice President fired Holloway upon learning that thirty years earlier he had suffered from a venereal disease. Forced to return to a life on the streets, he was promptly arrested on other charges and returned to prison.Leaving Aetna for more useful activity, Williams became chief criminal attorney in the Hill Neighborhood Law Office of the New Haven Legal Assistance Association in the summer of 1969. His first major case was as one of the defense attorneys in the murder prosecution of the local and national leadership of the Black Panther Party, the so-called New Haven Nine. After their acquittal in the summer of 1971, Williams joined Catherine Roraback and Michael Avery, two other Black Panther Party lawyers, in forming New Haven's first public interest law firm. That firm continues today under the name John R. Williams and Associates, LLC.John Williams is best known as a pioneer in the field of police misconduct litigation. Since 1971, he and his firm have filed most of the police misconduct suits litigated in the federal court in Connecticut. He and his associates have argued many of the Section 1983 appeals decided by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in the years since then, and his name and the names of his associates appear on many of the important Second Circuit decisions in this field. He writes and lectures extensively in the area.His notable Section 1983 cases include Porter v. Nussle, 534 U.S. 516 (2002) (Prison Litigation Reform Act); Liscio v. Warren, 901 F.2d 274 (2d Cir. 1990) (medical treatment of prisoners); Cartier v. Lussier, 955 F.2d 841 (2d Cir. 1992) (misrepresentations in arrest warrant applications); Mozzochi v. Borden, 959 F.2d 1174 (2d Cir. 1992) (release-dismissal agreements); Dobosz v. Walsh, 892 F.2d 1135 (2d Cir. 1989) (police whistleblowers); Musso v. Hourigan, 836 F.2d 736 (2d Cir. 1988) (free speech at public meetings); Sousa v. Roque, 578 F.3d 164 (2d Cir. 2009) (free speech rights of public employees are not limited by the motivations of the speaker); Reed v. Town of Branford, 949 F. Supp. 87 (D. Conn. 1996) (age discrimination as a &1983 violation and harassment as a substantive due process violation); Gavlak v. Town of Somers, 267 F. Sup. 2d 214 (D. Conn. 2003) (rights of property owners in zoning disputes); In re Alexander V., 223 Conn. 557, 613 A.2d 780 (1992) (familial relationships as a fundamental constitutional right); Warren v. Dwyer, 906 F.2d 70 (2d Cir. 1990) (submission of qualified immunity question to jury); Gagnon v. Ball, 696 F.2d 17 (2d Cir. 1982) (police bystander liability); Pitchell v. Callan, 13 F.3d 545 (2d Cir. 1994) (color of law); Miller v. Lovett, 879 F.2d 1066 (2d Cir. 1989) (pendent jurisdiction); Dodd v. City of Norwich, 827 F.2d 1 (2d Cir. 1987) (municipal liability); Pouncey v. Ryan, 396 F. Supp. 126 (D. Conn. 1975) (Newman, J.) (collateral estoppel effect of prior conviction); O'Neill v. Krzeminski, 839 F.2d 9 (2d Cir. 1988) (standard for punitive damages); and Ruggiero v. Krzeminski, 928 F.2d 558 (2d Cir. 1991) (opportunity cost as a factor in attorney fee awards).He also is an active criminal practitioner. His celebrated cases include the Lorne Acquin mass murder case in Prospect, Connecticut, in 1977 which remains the largest mass murder case ever prosecuted in the State of Connecticut. He represented members of the Black Panther Party in the so-called "New Haven Nine" prosecutions between 1969 and 1971, members of the Black Liberation Army, Los Macheteros, and other controversial cases. He has argued countless appeals in the Connecticut Supreme Court in both criminal law and other areas of the law. He has contributed to the expansion of rights for criminal defendants under the state constitution, going beyond the protections afforded by the federal Bill of Rights. State v. Joyce, 229 Conn. 10, 639 A.2d 1007 (1994). For several interesting weeks in 1976, he succeeded in decriminalizing both the possession and the sale of marijuana in Connecticut until an astonished Connecticut Supreme Court overturned the lower court's ruling. (The lower court judge later was himself appointed to the Supreme Court.) State v. Anonymous (1976-3), 32 Conn. Supp. 324, 355 A.2d 729 (1976) (Berdon, J.), reversed State v. Rao, 171 Conn. 600, 370 A.2d 1310 (1976).He takes particular pride in his efforts to reshape and democratize the Connecticut jury system. In 1976, he was the first Connecticut lawyer to challenge in federal court the then common prosecutorial practice of using "peremptory challenges" to remove minorities from juries in criminal cases. United States v. Newman, 549 F.2d 240 (2d Cir. 1977).Throughout the entire decade of the 1970s and into the 1980s, in a series of state and federal court cases, he fought many court battles to change the method by which Connecticut juries were selected, a complex legacy of the colonial era which produced juries that were disproportionately white, male, middle-aged and suburban. Finally, in 1986, in the companion cases of Alston v. Manson and Haskins v. Manson, 791 F.2d 255 (2d Cir. 1986), he persuaded the United States Court of Appeals to strike down the Connecticut system.In the cases of State v. Anthony, 172 Conn. 172, 374 A.2d 156 (1976); and State v. Roberson, 173 Conn. 102, 376 A.2d 1087 (1977); he persuaded the Connecticut Supreme Court to prohibit trial court judges from limiting the time lawyers could question prospective jurors during the jury selection process, thereby reducing the danger of biased jurors infecting trials with racial and other prejudices.One of his most celebrated cases was the New Haven Wiretap Litigation class action in the federal court in Connecticut running from 1977 to 1984, in which he represented more than 1,000 people from all walks of life and strata of society who had been victimized by an unlawful wiretap operation conducted jointly by local police and FBI agents for more than a decade. This litigation resulted in a settlement of over $1 million, led to significant reforms in the area of personal privacy, and generated a voluminous history of illegal police surveillance of the Black Panther Party which is now archived at Yale's Beineke Library.He has worked extensively, and sometimes successfully, in cases involving the "false confession syndrome," in which innocent people have confessed to crimes they did not commit. E.g., Miller v. Angliker, 848 F.2d 1312 (2d Cir.), cert. denied, 488 U.S. 890 (1988); State v. LaPointe, 237 Conn. 694, 678 A.2d 942 (1996). He was the first lawyer in the United States to win an acquittal in a criminal case on the ground that the ingestion of prozac caused the criminal behavior. State v. DeAngelo, 2000 WL 973104 (Conn. Super. 2000).
Practices Areas
Criminal Defense
Employment and labor
Civil Rights
Language
English
Contact
John R Williams and Associates, LLC51 Elm St Ste 409New Haven, CT, 06510-2049
Office: N/A
Website: N/AReviews
John saved my case ( had 3 lawyer's before him ) John saved my faith ( when you have no earthly hope and God sends you a lawyer you begin to see how strong faith and belief are) John saved my family ( we were financially strapped and physically separated due to the nature of the case, but John never lost his composure or compassion) Overall, as a man of Christ I thank my Lord and Savior first and foremost. He took John someone who was least likely to me and made the greatest impact.
I am currently represented by John Williams in a federal civil rights case regarding an employment matter. I had been handling the case myself at the CHRO level and made an error and was in over my head. I thought my case was dead. I was referred to John. At our first meeting, he told be that indeed, I had made an error. I stood up to leave and he informed me that there was another way. Thanks to John, my case is still alive, has survived a dismissal effort, and has moved into the discovery phase. I believe that the case will continue to move along. I could not be happier and more impressed with John Williams. He is patient and answers questions in a thoughtful manner. He has many years of experience and a wealth of knowledge. I highly recommend him.
John R. Williams & Associates is the firm to choose if you need effective representation. Mr. Williams personally oversees your case and he and his associates will work very hard on your behalf. His rates are reasonable and once he is retained you do not have to worry about anything. I would highly recommend this firm to anyone who needs a law firm to advocate on their behalf.
never read the complaint did not explore the evidence that i presented to him was dis-bared several times for invidious behavior. this guy is out for retainers only never communicates and does not have qualified associates
John Williams asked for a $5000 retainer after telling me that I had an open and shut case. I paid him. He did nothing. His excuses were endless. I lost my job, my health and health insurance, my house and all its contents. He is a thief.
During my case he appeared to be very distracted. Did not know the facts and did not offer my any pre-trial preparation. Also gave me wrong advise on the law. I can not recommend him in the least.
I hired Williams with a $5,000 retainer. The initial attempt in J R Williams filing of my complaint was totally in error and inconsistent with the 5-1/2 page complaint of facts that he was given. I was able to intervene and stop the filing, directing the firm to the facts that were already presented to them and that I had discussed with John in his office before rendering payment. There was another attorney that I had consulted earlier that had done some preliminary work on my case with discovery. Her work was impressive in my opinion, but she felt she lacked the financial resources to proceed. Maybe the funds presented to J R Williams would have been better spent with her efforts. Going into the deposition process, long after I had completed a 33 page interrogatory, I noted that the opposing party was not making any reference to the material that I presented during the interrogatory filings. Half way through the deposition, I asked John's associate if the opposing party had possession of the interrogatory. He said that apparently not and that he would look into it. In that moment I began to understand that none of my interrogatory would be allowed, because the time of discovery had long closed. I presented the material in a timely fashion, it was just not passed onto the opposing party. After my being deposed, I asked the William's associate, when the defendants would be deposed. I was told that they would not be deposed, with the comment that, "We don't show our hand." Hmm.....don't fill your hand, don't show your hand sounded like a peculiar position to me. J R continually assured me that there would be no position of the defendants to win on summary judgement. One day I got an email, with the subject, "Bad News." My case was lost in summary judgement. I requested that J R send me his firm's response to the defendant's request for summary judgement. As the defendants were never deposed and my interrogatory was not transferred to the opposing party during discovery, there was miserable little for a proper and diligent response. Whoever wrote the response for J R's firm was not at all skilled, and I wondered if an 8th grader could have presented a better response. In my opinion, a better heading for, "J R Williams and Associates," would be J R Williams and the Disassociated." Don't believe the hype of days gone by or get taken in my what seems to present a well managed law firm. Perhaps those days are passed?
Took our money and never appeared in court on our behalf- he sent an "associate" who was totally unfamiliar with the case. Of many poor attorneys in CT, he is among the worst! BEWARE!!!
John saved my case ( had 3 lawyer's before him ) John saved my faith ( when you have no earthly hope and God sends you a lawyer you begin to see how strong faith and belief are) John saved my family ( we were financially strapped and physically separated due to the nature of the case, but John never lost his composure or compassion) Overall, as a man of Christ I thank my Lord and Savior first and foremost. He took John someone who was least likely to me and made the greatest impact.
I am currently represented by John Williams in a federal civil rights case regarding an employment matter. I had been handling the case myself at the CHRO level and made an error and was in over my head. I thought my case was dead. I was referred to John. At our first meeting, he told be that indeed, I had made an error. I stood up to leave and he informed me that there was another way. Thanks to John, my case is still alive, has survived a dismissal effort, and has moved into the discovery phase. I believe that the case will continue to move along. I could not be happier and more impressed with John Williams. He is patient and answers questions in a thoughtful manner. He has many years of experience and a wealth of knowledge. I highly recommend him.
John R. Williams & Associates is the firm to choose if you need effective representation. Mr. Williams personally oversees your case and he and his associates will work very hard on your behalf. His rates are reasonable and once he is retained you do not have to worry about anything. I would highly recommend this firm to anyone who needs a law firm to advocate on their behalf.
never read the complaint did not explore the evidence that i presented to him was dis-bared several times for invidious behavior. this guy is out for retainers only never communicates and does not have qualified associates
John Williams asked for a $5000 retainer after telling me that I had an open and shut case. I paid him. He did nothing. His excuses were endless. I lost my job, my health and health insurance, my house and all its contents. He is a thief.
During my case he appeared to be very distracted. Did not know the facts and did not offer my any pre-trial preparation. Also gave me wrong advise on the law. I can not recommend him in the least.
I hired Williams with a $5,000 retainer. The initial attempt in J R Williams filing of my complaint was totally in error and inconsistent with the 5-1/2 page complaint of facts that he was given. I was able to intervene and stop the filing, directing the firm to the facts that were already presented to them and that I had discussed with John in his office before rendering payment. There was another attorney that I had consulted earlier that had done some preliminary work on my case with discovery. Her work was impressive in my opinion, but she felt she lacked the financial resources to proceed. Maybe the funds presented to J R Williams would have been better spent with her efforts. Going into the deposition process, long after I had completed a 33 page interrogatory, I noted that the opposing party was not making any reference to the material that I presented during the interrogatory filings. Half way through the deposition, I asked John's associate if the opposing party had possession of the interrogatory. He said that apparently not and that he would look into it. In that moment I began to understand that none of my interrogatory would be allowed, because the time of discovery had long closed. I presented the material in a timely fashion, it was just not passed onto the opposing party. After my being deposed, I asked the William's associate, when the defendants would be deposed. I was told that they would not be deposed, with the comment that, "We don't show our hand." Hmm.....don't fill your hand, don't show your hand sounded like a peculiar position to me. J R continually assured me that there would be no position of the defendants to win on summary judgement. One day I got an email, with the subject, "Bad News." My case was lost in summary judgement. I requested that J R send me his firm's response to the defendant's request for summary judgement. As the defendants were never deposed and my interrogatory was not transferred to the opposing party during discovery, there was miserable little for a proper and diligent response. Whoever wrote the response for J R's firm was not at all skilled, and I wondered if an 8th grader could have presented a better response. In my opinion, a better heading for, "J R Williams and Associates," would be J R Williams and the Disassociated." Don't believe the hype of days gone by or get taken in my what seems to present a well managed law firm. Perhaps those days are passed?
Took our money and never appeared in court on our behalf- he sent an "associate" who was totally unfamiliar with the case. Of many poor attorneys in CT, he is among the worst! BEWARE!!!
John saved my case ( had 3 lawyer's before him ) John saved my faith ( when you have no earthly hope and God sends you a lawyer you begin to see how strong faith and belief are) John saved my family ( we were financially strapped and physically separated due to the nature of the case, but John never lost his composure or compassion) Overall, as a man of Christ I thank my Lord and Savior first and foremost. He took John someone who was least likely to me and made the greatest impact.
I am currently represented by John Williams in a federal civil rights case regarding an employment matter. I had been handling the case myself at the CHRO level and made an error and was in over my head. I thought my case was dead. I was referred to John. At our first meeting, he told be that indeed, I had made an error. I stood up to leave and he informed me that there was another way. Thanks to John, my case is still alive, has survived a dismissal effort, and has moved into the discovery phase. I believe that the case will continue to move along. I could not be happier and more impressed with John Williams. He is patient and answers questions in a thoughtful manner. He has many years of experience and a wealth of knowledge. I highly recommend him.
John R. Williams & Associates is the firm to choose if you need effective representation. Mr. Williams personally oversees your case and he and his associates will work very hard on your behalf. His rates are reasonable and once he is retained you do not have to worry about anything. I would highly recommend this firm to anyone who needs a law firm to advocate on their behalf.
never read the complaint did not explore the evidence that i presented to him was dis-bared several times for invidious behavior. this guy is out for retainers only never communicates and does not have qualified associates
John Williams asked for a $5000 retainer after telling me that I had an open and shut case. I paid him. He did nothing. His excuses were endless. I lost my job, my health and health insurance, my house and all its contents. He is a thief.
During my case he appeared to be very distracted. Did not know the facts and did not offer my any pre-trial preparation. Also gave me wrong advise on the law. I can not recommend him in the least.
I hired Williams with a $5,000 retainer. The initial attempt in J R Williams filing of my complaint was totally in error and inconsistent with the 5-1/2 page complaint of facts that he was given. I was able to intervene and stop the filing, directing the firm to the facts that were already presented to them and that I had discussed with John in his office before rendering payment. There was another attorney that I had consulted earlier that had done some preliminary work on my case with discovery. Her work was impressive in my opinion, but she felt she lacked the financial resources to proceed. Maybe the funds presented to J R Williams would have been better spent with her efforts. Going into the deposition process, long after I had completed a 33 page interrogatory, I noted that the opposing party was not making any reference to the material that I presented during the interrogatory filings. Half way through the deposition, I asked John's associate if the opposing party had possession of the interrogatory. He said that apparently not and that he would look into it. In that moment I began to understand that none of my interrogatory would be allowed, because the time of discovery had long closed. I presented the material in a timely fashion, it was just not passed onto the opposing party. After my being deposed, I asked the William's associate, when the defendants would be deposed. I was told that they would not be deposed, with the comment that, "We don't show our hand." Hmm.....don't fill your hand, don't show your hand sounded like a peculiar position to me. J R continually assured me that there would be no position of the defendants to win on summary judgement. One day I got an email, with the subject, "Bad News." My case was lost in summary judgement. I requested that J R send me his firm's response to the defendant's request for summary judgement. As the defendants were never deposed and my interrogatory was not transferred to the opposing party during discovery, there was miserable little for a proper and diligent response. Whoever wrote the response for J R's firm was not at all skilled, and I wondered if an 8th grader could have presented a better response. In my opinion, a better heading for, "J R Williams and Associates," would be J R Williams and the Disassociated." Don't believe the hype of days gone by or get taken in my what seems to present a well managed law firm. Perhaps those days are passed?
Took our money and never appeared in court on our behalf- he sent an "associate" who was totally unfamiliar with the case. Of many poor attorneys in CT, he is among the worst! BEWARE!!!
John saved my case ( had 3 lawyer's before him ) John saved my faith ( when you have no earthly hope and God sends you a lawyer you begin to see how strong faith and belief are) John saved my family ( we were financially strapped and physically separated due to the nature of the case, but John never lost his composure or compassion) Overall, as a man of Christ I thank my Lord and Savior first and foremost. He took John someone who was least likely to me and made the greatest impact.
I am currently represented by John Williams in a federal civil rights case regarding an employment matter. I had been handling the case myself at the CHRO level and made an error and was in over my head. I thought my case was dead. I was referred to John. At our first meeting, he told be that indeed, I had made an error. I stood up to leave and he informed me that there was another way. Thanks to John, my case is still alive, has survived a dismissal effort, and has moved into the discovery phase. I believe that the case will continue to move along. I could not be happier and more impressed with John Williams. He is patient and answers questions in a thoughtful manner. He has many years of experience and a wealth of knowledge. I highly recommend him.
John R. Williams & Associates is the firm to choose if you need effective representation. Mr. Williams personally oversees your case and he and his associates will work very hard on your behalf. His rates are reasonable and once he is retained you do not have to worry about anything. I would highly recommend this firm to anyone who needs a law firm to advocate on their behalf.
never read the complaint did not explore the evidence that i presented to him was dis-bared several times for invidious behavior. this guy is out for retainers only never communicates and does not have qualified associates
John Williams asked for a $5000 retainer after telling me that I had an open and shut case. I paid him. He did nothing. His excuses were endless. I lost my job, my health and health insurance, my house and all its contents. He is a thief.
During my case he appeared to be very distracted. Did not know the facts and did not offer my any pre-trial preparation. Also gave me wrong advise on the law. I can not recommend him in the least.
I hired Williams with a $5,000 retainer. The initial attempt in J R Williams filing of my complaint was totally in error and inconsistent with the 5-1/2 page complaint of facts that he was given. I was able to intervene and stop the filing, directing the firm to the facts that were already presented to them and that I had discussed with John in his office before rendering payment. There was another attorney that I had consulted earlier that had done some preliminary work on my case with discovery. Her work was impressive in my opinion, but she felt she lacked the financial resources to proceed. Maybe the funds presented to J R Williams would have been better spent with her efforts. Going into the deposition process, long after I had completed a 33 page interrogatory, I noted that the opposing party was not making any reference to the material that I presented during the interrogatory filings. Half way through the deposition, I asked John's associate if the opposing party had possession of the interrogatory. He said that apparently not and that he would look into it. In that moment I began to understand that none of my interrogatory would be allowed, because the time of discovery had long closed. I presented the material in a timely fashion, it was just not passed onto the opposing party. After my being deposed, I asked the William's associate, when the defendants would be deposed. I was told that they would not be deposed, with the comment that, "We don't show our hand." Hmm.....don't fill your hand, don't show your hand sounded like a peculiar position to me. J R continually assured me that there would be no position of the defendants to win on summary judgement. One day I got an email, with the subject, "Bad News." My case was lost in summary judgement. I requested that J R send me his firm's response to the defendant's request for summary judgement. As the defendants were never deposed and my interrogatory was not transferred to the opposing party during discovery, there was miserable little for a proper and diligent response. Whoever wrote the response for J R's firm was not at all skilled, and I wondered if an 8th grader could have presented a better response. In my opinion, a better heading for, "J R Williams and Associates," would be J R Williams and the Disassociated." Don't believe the hype of days gone by or get taken in my what seems to present a well managed law firm. Perhaps those days are passed?
Took our money and never appeared in court on our behalf- he sent an "associate" who was totally unfamiliar with the case. Of many poor attorneys in CT, he is among the worst! BEWARE!!!