About Us

• Criminal Defense Litigator Focusing on Criminal and Capital Defense at Trial, on Appeal and in Post-Conviction Proceedings in State and Federal Court
• 35-Plus Years of Litigation Experience in All Phases of Criminal Defense
• Significant Civil Rights Litigation Experience
• Former Chief of the Nationally Renowned Capital Habeas Corpus Unit of the Federal Public Defender for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Providing Post-conviction Representation to Capital Prisoners Around the Country
• Litigated and Argued Cases in the United States Supreme Court, Various United States Courts of Appeals and District Courts, in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, Superior Court and Trial Courts
• Delivered the 2011 Key-note Address to the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund’s Airlie House National Conference on the Death Penalty, a National Gathering of the Country’s Leading Capital Litigators
• Extensive Courtroom Experience at Trial and in Evidentiary Hearings
• Extensive Oral Argument Experience in State and Federal Appellate Courts
• Recipient of the 2009 Outstanding Legal Services Award from the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
• Member of the Death Penalty Working Group – Appointed by Director, Administrative Office of United States Courts, as One of Fifteen Lawyers from Around the Country to Advise this Federal Government Agency on Formulation and Implementation of Strategies for Death Penalty Defense, 2007 to 2011
• United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Task Force on Death Penalty Litigation – Appointed by Then-chief Judge Edward Becker to Working Group of Defense Attorneys, Prosecutors, and Judges Charged with Identifying and Resolving Problems in Capital Habeas Corpus Litigation, 1999-2001
• Adjunct Faculty Member, Widener University School of Law, Teaching Courses in Trial Advocacy and Capital Punishment, 1994 to Present 
• National Commission on Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome – Testified as Expert Witness Before Commission, July 1990

Rompilla v. Beard, 575 U.S. 374 (2005) (successful litigation of ineffectiveness of counsel claim in United States Supreme Court)

Commonwealth v. Jahmir Harris, CP-51-CR-7962-2013 (CCP Phila) (working with the Conviction Integrity Unit, obtained PCRA relief for, and release of, life-imprisoned client) (included in The National Registry of Exonerations, www.law.umich.edu)"

Commonwealth v. Dennis Horton and Lee Horton, CP-51-CR-731772-1993 (CCP Phila); CP-51- CR-731773-1993 (Phila) (advised brothers and co-defendants convicted of second-degree murder and serving life sentences, regarding proceedings before the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons; clemency granted and both men released)"

Tyson v. Superintendent, 976 F.3d 382 (3d Cir. 2020) (obtained habeas corpus relief and a new trial based on unconstitutional jury instruction for client convicted of a double murder)

Commonwealth v. Donte Rollins, CP-51-CR-511332-2006 (CCP, Phila), 3499 EDA 2016, 2016 WL 7369123 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2016) (co-counsel in successful litigation of ineffective assistance of counsel claim for failure of trial counsel to present available alibi evidence; client exonerated and released from 60-120-year sentence (included in The National Registry of Exonerations, www.law.umich.edu)) 

Commonwealth v. Lorenzo Johnson, CP-22-CR-1544-1996 (Dauphin, CCP) (obtained negotiated settlement and release of actually innocent client serving life imprisonment in the course of litigating third PCRA Petition, July 2017)

State of Delaware v. Isaiah McCoy, Cr. Id. 1005008059A (Kent County Superior Court) (obtained not guilty verdict and immediate release on retrial of client who served seven years -- 5 on death row, January 2017) (included in The National Registry of Exonerations, www.law.umich.edu)

Abdul-Salaam v. Superintendent, 895 F.3d 254 (3d Cir. 2018) (obtained relief from the death penalty based on ineffective assistance of trial counsel) 

Commonwealth v. Aquil Bond, 3054 EDA 2014 (Pa.Super.Ct. June 6, 2016) (affirming trial court grant of dismissal of homicide charge on state double jeopardy grounds, and discharging client)

Commonwealth v. Jose Colon, CP-51-CR-0916941-1988 (CCP, Phila) (obtained negotiated plea in 2017 for client serving life imprisonment, during litigation of eighth PCRA petition resulting in imposition of term of years and immediate parole eligibility)

Saleem Bey v. Superintendent, 856 F.3d 230 (2017) (obtained writ of habeas corpus and new trial from United States Court of Appeals for client serving life imprisonment, based on faulty jury instructions and the ineffectiveness of trial and initial PCRA counsel to properly object and litigate the instructional issue)

United States v. William Merriweather, 07-cr-242 (N.D. Alabama) (co-counsel in federal death penalty proceedings in which, after years of litigation, the government deauthorized the death penalty, 2017)

Commonwealth v. Harold Murray, 83 A.3d 137 (Pa. 2013) (achieved penalty phase relief on direct appeal for Pennsylvania death row client)

United States v. Steven Northington, 07-CR-550 (E.D. Pa.) (co-penalty phase counsel, achieved a unanimous life verdict in federal death penalty trial for client charged with two killings as part of a RICO drug conspiracy, June 2013)

Derrick Ragan v. Horn, 411 Fed.App. 491, 2011 WL 149461 (3d Cir. Jan. 14, 2011) (obtained equitable tolling of habeas corpus limitations period for capital client)

Zachary Wilson v. Beard, 589 F.3d 651 (3d Cir. 2009) (new trial granted in capital case based on prosecution’s suppression of exculpatory evidence)

Donald Hardcastle v. Horn, 332 Fed.Appx. 764, 2009 WL 1683335 (3d Cir. June 17, 2009) (new trial obtained based on racial discrimination in jury selection)

Jesse Bond v. Beard, 539 F.3d 256 (3d Cir. 2008) (successful litigation of ineffectiveness of counsel claim)

United States v. David Hammer, 404 F.Supp.2d 676 (M.D. Pa. 2006) (successful litigation of ineffectiveness of counsel claim following 14-week federal court evidentiary hearing)

Zachary Wilson v. Beard, 426 F.3d 653 (3d Cir. 2005) (new trial obtained based on prosecutor’s racial discrimination in jury selection)

Commonwealth v. Ronald Collins, 888 A.2d 564 (Pa. 2005) (successful litigation of ineffective assistance of counsel claim in Pennsylvania Supreme Court)

Commonwealth v. Nicholas Yarris, 690-1982 (CCP Del. Co. 2004) (capital DNA exoneration achieved through state and federal court litigation) (included in The National Registry of Exonerations, https://www.law.umich.edu)

Fredrick Jermyn v. Horn, 266 F.3d 257 (3d Cir. 2001) (successful litigation of ineffectiveness of counsel claim in capital case)

Martin Appel v. Horn, 250 F.3d 203 (3d Cir. 2001) (new trial achieved for capital client)

Commonwealth v. James Strong, 761 A.2d 1167 (Pa. 2000) (new trial obtained in Pennsylvania Supreme Court for death-sentenced prisoner based on prosecution’s suppression of exculpatory evidence)

Death Row Prisoners v. Ridge, 106 F.3d 35 (3d Cir. 1997) (class action forcing Pennsylvania to “opt-out” of some provisions of restrictive habeas corpus statute)

MICHAEL WISEMAN, ATTORNEY AT LAW

2011-2018

Solo practitioner with focus on criminal and capital defense at trial, on appeal and in state and federal post-conviction litigation.

FEDERAL COMMUNITY DEFENDER OFFICE FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA, DEFENDER ASSOCIATION OF PHILADELPHIA, CAPITAL HABEAS CORPUS UNIT 

Chief, 2007-2011

Supervisory Assistant Federal Defender, 1995-2006

• Managed day-to-day operations of 80-plus person, Capital Habeas Corpus Unit which represents death-sentenced state prisoners in all phases of post-conviction litigation. Duties included oversight of substantive legal work, preparation of long-term litigation strategies, employment matters, office administration, preparation of budgets and approval of expenditures. Reported directly to Chief Federal Defender on all supervisory matters.

• Founded and supervised the Pennsylvania Capital Representation Project, a special program delivering legal services to capital prisoners in state court.

• Handled capital post-conviction caseload including, review of transcripts, investigation, preparation of petitions, motions, and briefs, conducting evidentiary hearings, appellate advocacy, intensive client contact, and litigation of all aspects of capital post-conviction cases in state and federal courts.

ADJUNCT FACULTY MEMBER, WIDENER UNIVERSITY, DELAWARE LAW SCHOOL,  

1994-2013

Adjunct faculty member teaching courses in capital punishment and trial practice.

PENNSYLVANIA POST-CONVICTION DEFENDER ORGANIZATION

Senior Staff Attorney, 1994-1995

Represented capital post-conviction clients in state and federal court.

THE ASSOCIATION OF LEGAL AID ATTORNEYS

1993-1994

Full-time popularly elected Secretary-Treasurer of the Association representing one thousand staff attorneys employed by The Legal Aid Society of the City of New York.

THE LEGAL AID SOCIETY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK, PRISONERS’ RIGHTS PROJECT

1988-1993

Represented New York State prisoners in federal civil rights class action and open- record act litigation, including class counsel for state-wide litigation challenging HIV-related medical care for prisoners; class counsel monitoring implementation of consent decree governing medical women’s health care at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility; class counsel for delivery of dental care for class of women at Albion Correctional Facility.

WISEMAN AND KINIGSTEIN

1987-1988

MICHAEL WISEMAN, ATTORNEY AT LAW

1986-1987

Private law practices with emphasis on criminal trials and appeals in state and federal courts.  Member of the Criminal Justice Act Panel of Attorneys for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and the assigned counsel panel for indigent criminal defendants in Kings County, New York, for trials, homicides, and appeals. Member of the pro bono panel of attorneys for the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Southern District of New York.

THE LEGAL AID SOCIETY OF NASSAU COUNTY, COUNTY COURT BUREAU

1981-1986

Represented indigent criminal defendants in Nassau County Court through all phases of felony prosecutions.

State University of New York at Buffalo

Faculty of Law and Jurisprudence

J.D. Degree, May 1981

Awarded Birzon Prize for Clinical Studies

Member of Prisoners’ Rights Committee

Ad Hoc Committee on Affirmative Action

State University of New York at Buffalo

B.A. Degrees in History and Political Science, December 1977 

Cum Laude

Honors in History

• Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
• United States Supreme Court
• United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
• United States District Court for the Eastern and Middle Districts of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Arguing Against the Death Penalty, July 2017, Harrisburg, PA

Alabama Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, Mental Health Mitigation and the Death Penalty, March 2017, Birmingham, Alabama

Delivered Keynote Address to the 2011 NAACP Legal Defense Fund’s Airlie House National Conference on the Death Penalty, Warrington, Virginia

Tenth Circuit Capital Habeas Corpus Seminar, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, December 2010, Accounting for Bad Facts

United States Supreme Court Roundup, July 2008 & 2009, NAACP Legal Defense Funds' Airlie House National Conference on the Death Penalty, Warrington, Virginia

Funding the Defense, April 2008, Sponsored by the Delaware Supreme Court, Wilmington, Delaware

Finding Mitigation in Aggravation – Lessons From Rompilla, April 2006, National Seminar on the Development and Integration of Mitigation Evidence, Washington, D.C.

Applying Wiggins v. Smith, November 2003,

Virginia Bar Association Capital Defense Seminar, Richmond, Virginia

Capital Case Issue Identification, August 2003, Eighth Annual Federal Habeas Corpus Seminar

Chicago, Illinois