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Primary Area of Expertise

Deadly Force

Expert Witness Profile

Michael Levine Trial Consultant/Expert Witness

Michael Levine is one of the most decorated Supervisory Agents in the history of the Drug Enforcement Administration. A US Law Enforcement Procedure Expert, Mr. Levine has many decades of courtroom experience (civil & criminal) as a Trial consultant and Expert Witness, including 25 years of service with DEA, Customs, BATF, and the IRS Criminal Investigations Division. Mr. Levine's supervisory and other law enforcement experience includes being in command of task force units combining officers of FBI, BATF, IRS, Customs, NYPD and other police agencies, service as an Internal Affairs supervisory investigator, a senior inspector with the Department of Justice OPR, Office of Professional Responsibility, and Director of a sheriffs department drug bureau.

Mr. Levine, during his decades of trial experience, both as a senior law enforcement officer including the past 30 years as a professional trial consultant, has qualified as an expert witness for both prosecution and plaintiff as well defense, in federal and state courts including 19 states, Puerto Rico and 8 foreign nations. He offers full trial consulting and investigative services in both criminal and civil matters as follows: Expert Witness File Review and Strategy Assessment; Case Particular Design of Cross-Examination "menus"; Investigative, Technical and Research Support; Expert Witness Report and/or Affidavit Preparation. Utilizing his extensive experience as a Supervisory Internal Affairs Investigator, he can also identify the elements of probable cause indicative of false reporting, cover-up, and the concealment of Brady materials. Since the year 2007 he has been retained by the Atlanta and DeKalb County District Attorneys Offices, to conduct police-involved shooting reviews and as such has testified before criminal grand juries leading to the indictment and conviction of law enforcement/violators.

 

Latest Testimony: March 21, 2023 - Regina v. Mathew BLACHFORD, CANADA. Summary: Defendant was arrested after a search warrant was executed on his cellphone data and his residence. He was charged with Second Degree Murder, Offence section 235 in Canada. The homicide victim was an acquaintance of the accused, and a known drug dealer in the providence. Her body was found in a high density public parking lot and my review and testimony were strongly indicative of improper police investigation and poor evidence handling and analysis, which led to the wrongful arrest of the defendant. Ultimately, while video evidence proved BLACHFORD was in the area, the lack of DNA evidence inside his vehicle or on his person, the lack of cellphone communication between the two, and the fact that the accused did not own or possess a weapon or bullets that matched the caliber used in the crime, Justice Henderson rightfully concluded that it was not possible to draw the inference that Mr. BLACHFORD was the victim’s assailant. Outcome: Defendant found Not Guilty of Second Degree Murder

 

Mr. Levine specializes in full trial consulting services and expert testimony in criminal and civil matters and has testified as an expert in the following areas of expertise:

  • Use of force and use of force continuum, including reasonableness, excessive force up to and including deadly force
  • Undercover Operations
  • Police Misconduct
  • Informant recruitment, Management and Corroboration (attorney general’s guidelines)
  • Investigative Procedures, including but not limited to, advanced interrogation and interview tactics, evidence handling, report writing and documentation of all procedures
  • RICO
  • Title three investigations and other electronic eavesdropping devices
  • Asset Seizures
  • Narcotic/Drug Enforcement (all areas)
  • Undercover use of informants to entrap
  • Internet Drug Trafficking
  • Blind Mule Defense
  • Undercover procedures related to Internet child predatory practices
  • Undercover Entrapment (all areas)
  • Smuggling
  • Money laundering
  • International drug trafficking practices and mores
  • Police Misconduct
  • Official Corruption
  • Reasonability of Arrest tactics including but not limited to raids and the execution of search warrants
  • Cooperation deals

Services Offered:

  1. Expert Testimony
  2. Detailed and case specific design of cross-examination of law enforcement officers and, when permitted, in-court assistance
  3. Court quality Expert Witness Reports and Affidavits
  4. Investigative and Planning Support
  5. Detailed cross-examination menus and, when permitted in-court assistance
  6. Identification of elements of probable cause indicative of: false reporting, concealment of Brady materials and cover-up

Mr. Levine specializes in full trial consulting services in criminal and civil matters in the following areas of expertise:

  • Undercover Operations
  • Police Misconduct
  • Informant Management Control and Corroboration
  • Investigative Procedures
  • Use of Force, up to and including police involved shootings. Since 2012, retained by two major metropolitan area District Attorney’s Offices (Dekalb and Fulton Counties Georgia) to conduct police involved shooting reviews, duties that included testimony before criminal grand juries.
  • RICO
  • Asset Seizures
  • Narcotic/Drug Enforcement
  • Informant Entrapment
  • Internet Drug Trafficking
  • Blind Mule Defense
  • Undercover Entrapment
  • Smuggling
  • Money laundering
  • International drug traffic
  • Police Misconduct
  • Official Corruption
  • Arrest tactics
  • Cooperation deals

 

2021 Recent Notable Cases Michael Levine

 

Michael Levine is the only US law enforcement expert ever admitted to testify before a Japanese court, (Japan v Goldstein) and used the Blind Mule Defense, which resulted in an acquittal. He is a best-selling author, media consultant, lecturer and police instructor with extensive experience as court-qualified expert witness and trial consultant in civil and criminal matters.

Since leaving the Department of Justice, he has been retained in excess of 500 occasions as a trial consultant/expert witness throughout the United States, Canada, England and Japan. Mr. Levine has also remained active as a police instructor in the US, Canada and Australia. In January of 2008, his police instructional manual "Undercover Tactics and Informant Handling" previously written for the Department of Justice, was published by the New York State Department of Justice Services and utilized as an instructional manual for New York State law-enforcement. The manual was subsequently edited and republished by the US State Department for the instruction of Brazilian Federal Police which was conducted by Mr. Levine and his team of US-based experts. The manual was subsequently republished via academia.edu from where it is now among the top .05% of Global downloads by police agencies, attorneys and researchers.

2021 Michael Levine CV

Education & Licenses

Licensed Private investigator, New York State, BBA (accounting) Hofstra University.