Students in the Criminal Defense Clinic Help Obtain No-Seek Decision
As their client faced the possibility of the death penalty, Professor Susan McGraugh and social worker Lauren Choate turned to Saint Louis University law students Shannon Besch (3L) and Camron Gales (2L) to assist with the critical work of sentencing mitigation. The SLU students were tasked with helping build a comprehensive picture of the client’s life, experiences, and circumstances. This work ultimately played a key role in the case’s outcome.
Through extensive research, interviews, and careful documentation of the client’s background, the team presented a compelling mitigation case that resulted in a no-seek decision. This decision meant prosecutors would no longer pursue the death penalty, removing the most severe possible outcome from the case.
“It is a very unique experience and something that involves a lot of trust,” said Besch. “For a professor to trust a student with a high-stakes case and something as precious as their life is a lot to consider.”
For both Besch and Gales, trust emerged as a central theme throughout the process. This included the trust placed in them by their professor, as well as the trust they needed to earn from their client. According to Gales, building that relationship was essential to their success.
“No one deserves to die at the hands of the government,” said Gales. “Taking time to meet with our client where he was, not just to talk about the case, but to get to know him as a person, was really important to me and my role in the case.”
While the threat of a death sentence has been removed, the case remains pending. For the students involved, the experience underscored both the responsibility and the impact of client-centered advocacy and highlighted the meaningful role law students can play in life-altering legal work.