Larry Daniel

How did politicians, bureaucrats, reporters, and civilians in Richmond understand a war being fought a thousand miles away? Expert Civil War historian Larry Daniel shows for the first time how poor intelligence, fierce politics, and cultural prejudice affected Confederate strategy in the Western Theater. In his novel approach to understanding the Western Theater of the U. S. Civil War, Larry Daniel brings new insight and understanding to the war without ever setting foot in the West. Rather, he takes readers to Richmond, Virginia, to see how the war was understood in the Confederate Capitol. We see in real time how the Jefferson Davis administration received, understood, and reacted to reports from the front, which often arrived in Richmond days after they were written. Daniel gives voice to cabinet members, War Department clerks, congressmen, capitol reporters, and even civilians, all watching the war unfold hundreds of miles away. Although most of their attention was given to the enemies at their doorstep, Richmond was still rocked by the disastrous losses across the Appalachians, especially Fort Donelson, New Orleans, Vicksburg, and Atlanta. Still, incomplete information and biased press reports deified certain western generals in the public imagination, including P. G. T. Beauregard, Sterling Price, and Joseph E. Johnston, whose performance did not justify such public adoration. Richmonders’ “Virginia-first” military strategy and their aristocratic sense of cultural superiority over the diverse regions and cultures of the West blurred their view and damaged their ability to make strong strategic decisions. The Davis administration’s preference for territorial and static defense, influenced by their strategic and political (mis)understanding of the region, set the war in the West on a spiraling downward trend from which it never recovered. Students of the Civil War cannot fully understand the battles that took place in the woods of south-central Tennessee, along the banks of the Tennessee River, across the bluffs and backwaters of the Mississippi Delta, or in the red clay and thickets of North Georgia without understanding what was happening a world away in Richmond. This is that story.

The early 1960s in Springdale, Arkansas, were colorful to young Larry Daniel in spite of the all-white upbringing the town had provided him. He'd thought he was rich growing up. His dad flew him around in his personal airplane to resort locations. A ski boat, tickets on the fifty-yard line at Razorback Stadium, and a membership at the country club were some of the other benefits of his childhood. His father, Lemus Daniel, was a successful businessman, and famous musicians among others were a part of his inner circle. He was fun-loving, popular, and generous, but deeply lacking in impulse control and far too trusting for his own good. Turning 11 for the son brought an introduction to women that weren't his mother and his father's coming-of-age ritual, alcohol. The fast lane had his father blinded to what was important, which helped get him set up for a big fall from someone that he'd considered a friend. When everything went down it was without a soft landing. After word had been passed down from the top, Lemus had suddenly drawn the ire of a rogue cop with a grudge. He was effectively smeared and eventually run out of town. Set adrift, the boy was doomed to fail. At 15, Larry was kicked out of school, roughed up by his dad who'd returned to set him straight, and ran away from home. Walking the streets of a neighboring town among other runaways and returning war veterans, he experimented with substances and panhandled for spare change. Many months later, he was retrieved by his notorious father and brought home after he'd returned from his own exile. After father and son reunite, a perilous walk on the dark edges of society, follows. It would be another decade before Larry Daniel took an honest breath and began the road to redemption. Ugly truths reveal a young man who struggles mightily, but survives and contributes to society in a big way. Meanwhile, the father writes a tell-all about his downfall and the Feds get involved. Parts of his manuscript are included in the story of this wild ride.

Cell Phone Location Evidence for Legal Professionals: Understanding Cell Phone Location Evidence from the Warrant to the Courtroom is a guide, in plain language, for digital forensics professionals, attorneys, law enforcement professionals and students interested in the sources, methods and evidence used to perform forensic data analysis of cell phones, call detail records, real time ping records and geo-location data obtained from cellular carriers and cell phones. Users will gain knowledge on how to identify evidence and how to properly address it for specific cases, including challenges to the methods of analysis and to the qualifications of persons who would testify about this evidence. This book is intended to provide digital forensics professionals, legal professionals and others with an interest in this field the information needed to understand what each type of evidence means, where it comes from, how it is analyzed and presented, and how it is used in various types of civil and criminal litigation. Relevant case law are included, or referred to, as appropriate throughout this book to give the reader an understanding of the legal history of this type of evidence and how it is being addressed by various state and federal courts.

Digital Forensics for Legal Professionals is a complete non-technical guide for legal professionals and students to understand digital forensics. In the authors’ years of experience in working with attorneys as digital forensics experts, common questions arise again and again: "What do I ask for?" "Is the evidence relevant?" "What does this item in the forensic report mean?" "What should I ask the other expert?" "What should I ask you?" "Can you explain that to a jury?" This book answers many of those questions in clear language that is understandable by non-technical people. With many illustrations and diagrams that will be usable in court, it explains technical concepts such as unallocated space, forensic copies, timeline artifacts and metadata in simple terms that make these concepts accessible to both attorneys and juries. The book also explains how to determine what evidence to ask for, evidence that might be discoverable, and furthermore, it provides an overview of the current state of digital forensics, the right way to select a qualified expert, what to expect from that expert, and how to properly use experts before and during trial. With this book, readers will clearly understand different types of digital evidence and examples of direct and cross examination questions. It includes a reference of definitions of digital forensic terms, relevant case law, and resources. This book will be a valuable resource for attorneys, judges, paralegals, and digital forensic professionals.