Memphis Criminal Defense Attorney

Criminal Lawyer William D. Massey’s Profile

Education:

• Memphis State University, Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law, J.D., 1981
• University of Tennessee at Knoxville, B.A., 1978

Practice Areas:

• State and Federal Criminal Defense
• Appellate Practice
• Death penalty cases
• Homicides
• Drug cases
• Sex offenses
• Assaults
• Robbery
• Theft
• Gun cases
• RICO
• Pornography
• Arson
• Extortion.

Admitted:

• All courts in Tennessee
• United States Supreme Court
• Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals
• U.S. District Court, Eastern, Western and Middle Districts of Tennessee
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Mississippi
• U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Arkansas

Certifications:

• Certified Criminal Trial Specialist by the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization since 1996
• Board Certified Criminal Trial Advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy since 1996

Awards and Recognitions:

• Best Lawyers in America, 2008 & 2009
• Mid-South Super Lawyers, 2007 & 2008
• Recognized as one of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers by the American Trial Lawyers Association
• Appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives to serve on the Tennessee Judicial Evaluation Commission for a 6 year term, September 2007
• Robert W. Ritchie Award for Outstanding Service to the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2004
• NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund's 22nd Annual Capital Punishment Training Conference, July 2003
• Lionel Barett, Jr., Award for Outstanding Work of Death Penalty Arena, 2001
• Special Congressional Recognition, United States House of Representatives for Invaluable and Outstanding Service to Community, 2001
• Who's Who, Executives and Businesses, Honored Professionals, 1999-2000
   

Officer:

• Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
  • President, August 2005-2006
  • Executive Committee, 2001-2007

• National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

• Board of Directors, 2002-2008
• Parliamentarian, 2003
• Executive Committee, 2003-2004 and 2006-2007

• Memphis Bar Association
  • President, Criminal Law Section

Author:

• "Offer the Olive Branch, But Grip the Sword," October and December 2006, February 2007;
• "The Heart of a Fighter," April 2007;
• "We Will Remember," June 2007;
• "A Collage from a Believer, August 2007.

Seminar Speaker:

• "Suppression of Evidence After Berrios," National Bar Association, Ben F. Jones Chapter, December 2007
• "The Gentle Wind of Words, Moving Jurors from Abstract to Experiential," National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Key West, FL, October 2007
• "Getting It On The Table," Making the Case for Life Seminar X, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Southern Center for Human Rights, Las Vegas, NV, September 2007
• "Qualifying and Defending Our Expert Witness," Bench Bar Seminar, Memphis Bar Association, San Destin, FL, May 2007;
• "The Team Approach to Death Penalty Defense," Loosening the Death Belt, Alabama Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, Birmingham, AL, January 2007
• "Opening Statement as Story Telling," Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, August 2006;
• "Themes Theory and Theater from Daringly Dangerous Minds," Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, April 2006;
• "Embracing Confessions: To Hug or To Squeeze," Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, March 2005;
• "Closing Argument: Taking the State's Case to the Dump in High Profile Cases," Betting on Justice V, Arkansas Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Little Rock, AR, April, 2004
• "Friends Don't Let Friends Waive Opening," Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, March 2004;
• "A Diner Menu Approach to Preparing for a Death Penalty Trial: How To Serve Desert with the Main Course and Cook a Little Hash," National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, San Antonio, TX, February 2004
• "Cross My Heart, Hope to Die: The Pain of False Confessions," National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, New York City, NY, May 2003
• "Wiggins & ABA Guidelines," Making the Cases for Life Seminar VI, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and Southern Center for Human Rights, Memphis, TN, September 2003

Faculty and Senior Instructor
Tennessee Criminal Defense College, 1998 – Present