MacDonald Hinds Testimonial

To Whom It May Concern:

My name is MacDonald Hinds. I am 42 years old and have been a resident of Baltimore County for several years.

On September 9, 2008, I was arrested and charged with armed carjacking, 1st degree assault and other related offenses.. Fortunately I was able to make a fairly high bail, but the charges were serious and the fact that I was in Baltimore County made me pretty nervous.

Shortly thereafter, I met Brad MacFee, Sr. I was referred to Brad by a good friend of mine that had used him in the past and done very well. We discussed my case and all of the facts surrounding it. He seemed to think that the case could be won.

The facts of the case as they were written were a little strange. The short version is that guy in Randallstown said that late one evening I made him take me to an ATM to withdraw money and when there was no money to be withdrawn, I threatened him with what he believed to be a gun and took his car. From the very beginning I told Brad that the guy was lying and he believed me. That did not erase the fact that when the police arrested me I did have the guy’s car and he did have at least one eyewitness that verified his version of the story.

The truth of the matter is that I am an auto mechanic. Several years ago I loaned the guy a book on transmissions, which he never returned. I asked repeatly for the book to be returned and he always had an excuse. On the night in question I saw him in a Randallstown parking lot and confronted him about my book. He first said he would pay me for the book and asked me to take him to an ATM to get the money. There was no money so we agreed I would keep his car until the next day when he would pay me for the book. After I took the car he called the police and said that I had stole it from him at gunpoint.

From the outset, Brad began chipping away at the case. He negotiated a potential plea deal with the state that would have required me to pay the owner of the car for the transmission that he claimed I destroyed while his car was in my possession. Knowing that the “victim’s” story was nothing more than an attempt to extort money from me, Brad told the state he could not authorize me to pay any money until we saw a receipt for the damaged transmission. This was the key to the case as we knew it was highly unlikely there could be any receipt. Still, Brad insisted that we see the receipt and filed the motions with the court seeking that the victim presented us with a receipt that we know was completely bogus. The receipt, which looked to be homemade, claimed that the victim ordered part from a dealer known as “JE Imports.”

In response to this information, Brad postponed the case. Next the subpoenaed all bills, documents, receipts, estimated and anything else in the possession of JE Imports regarding any business they had done with the victim. In response, we learned the victim had not done any business with this dealer since 2 years prior the date the charges were brought against me. Moreover, we received copies of receipts that looked nothing like the one that we now knew for sure the victim had created on his own computer. Brad took all of this information and provided it to the State’s Attorney, requesting that she have a discussion with her victim and get back to him\.

On the next trial date all charges pending against me were dismissed. If you know anything about how the State handles crimes of violence in Baltimore County, particularly something like armed carjacking, you know that they almost always go to trial and the conviction rate is high. Outcomes like the one Brad got for me are few and far between and if not for his belief in me and hard work it never would have happened.

Brad and I are still in touch. We talk from time to time and he has handled some other business for me in the time since the criminal case ended. The way Brad looks at things, just because the case is over doesn’t mean the relationship ends.

If you weren’t in trouble, you wouldn’t be reading this. My advice is to hire a lawyer if you can, and if at all possible, hire Brad MacFee. While there is never a guarantee that you will win your case, my experience tells me tat he well at least work for you like he did for me. If you have any questions, please feel free to call or to have your family call me at 410-982-3344.