150 North Main St, Franklin, IN 46131
In 1993, Founding partner, Andy Baldwin, was hired by nationally-recognized trial attorney Tom Jones as an associate lawyer. It was at Tom’s office, 150 N. Main Street in Franklin, where Andy learned the importance of brainstorming and strategizing during the pre-trial process. It was also where he learned how to deal with obstinate prosecutors as well as the art of plea negotiations. Most importantly, it was our Franklin office where Andy learned the power of the jury trial.
Tom Jones was known throughout the state and country as a hard-nosed trial lawyer that would not back down until his client received the outcome they deserved. Andy soaked in this attitude and style and then married it with his own style. It was at this Franklin office where Andy also learned that lawyers who have a reputation for going to trial will gain the respect of prosecutors and judges, which ultimately leads to better results for clients. It was shocking how few lawyers actually did take cases to jury trial. Eventually, Andy left 150 N. Main and embarked on his own journey.
It was during this time that he ran into an exceptional trial lawyer, Mark Kamish, who shared his passion for criminal defense and trial work. Over several conversations, they realized that they shared the same vision: to assemble a team of trial lawyers who were all dedicated to fighting for people accused of committing crimes, while also training young lawyers in the art of criminal defense. It was through these conversations that the Criminal Defense Team was born. In 2009, everything came full circle as Andy returned to 150 N. Main along with founding partner Mark Kamish and the firm that they created purchased the very building where it all began 15 years earlier.
Our historic Franklin office was built in 1864, and has been a law office since the 1960s. Hundreds of lawyers have passed through its doors over the years. We are very finicky about the lawyers and staff we hire. Since 2009 The Criminal Defense Team has been adding quality trial lawyers to the firm and all of them spend time working and training in our Franklin office. We also take pride in our staff that provides exceptional service for our clients. We view our Franklin office as the flagship of our firm. Our roots are deep. If you are accused of a crime anywhere in Indiana (particularly south of Indianapolis) and you hire the Team then there is a good chance you will be visiting our Franklin office. When you do, you will find a team of lawyers brainstorming, strategizing and aggressively fighting for our clients, something that hasn’t changed since Andy first stepped through its doors in 1993.
1060 Villa Avenue, Indianapolis, IN 46203
Managing Partner Kathie Perry had been battling prosecutors in Marion County for nearly 15 years when she joined The Criminal Defense Team. After the firm hired her, she initially worked out of our Franklin office. However, it was Kathie’s goal to eventually return to Indianapolis – but this time as part of a team of lawyers dedicated to criminal defense. In 2019 that dream became a reality when the Criminal Defense Team expanded, and a number of our lawyers moved into an office in downtown Indianapolis on Wabash Street. As an added bonus, we began a relationship with legendary Indianapolis criminal defense attorney David Hennessy.
For over 35 years, David has been a thorn in the side of prosecutors in Marion County. Many would say that David is simply the best criminal defense attorney in Indianapolis and beyond. Our relationship with David would allow us to peer into his brain and for two high-powered criminal defense firms to work with one another for superior representation for our clients. Although our lawyers had been battling and fighting for our clients in Indianapolis for over two decades, once we opened up an Indy office, our growth in Indianapolis was rapid. The word was out. Soon our office on Wabash Street was simply not large enough to house all of our lawyers and staff.
In June 2020, with managing partner Kathie Perry’s leadership, The Criminal Defense Team took the next step in our evolution by moving our Indianapolis office to 2900 N. 96th Street. In 2023, Marion County was going to open its Criminal Justice Campus (CJC) on Prospect Street. the CDT knew it would want to be closer to the criminal courts, jail, probation and community corrections (which would all be conveniently housed on the same campus). After a year-long search, we finally purchased a building less than a mile from the CJC so that we could move our offices to more easily fight for our Marion County clients. It’s less than a five minute drive to the jail and courtrooms. After a 9 month renovation, we finally opened the doors on our Indy office on July 1, 2023. Now, located at 1060 Villa Avenue, our office space is conveniently located right off of I-65 and is only 10 minutes from downtown Indianapolis. Most importantly, it is large enough to house all our lawyers and staff that work out of the Indianapolis office. The importance of having lawyers and staff in the same space able to brainstorm at a minute’s notice is vital to our success, as is the ability to quickly and easily meet with our clients who are detained in the Marion County jail, as well as to attend a court hearing or deposition. It’s also provides quick access for our lawyers to strategize privately outside the ears of prosecutors and witnesses when trials break for lunch or longer periods of time. Because of its proximity to two different highways, it is also a convenient location to fight for our clients throughout the rest of the state.
While The Criminal Defense Team has three offices (Indianapolis, Franklin and Noblesville) our lawyers remain tight-knit. It is with great intention that our lawyers from the various offices are paired with each other on certain cases throughout the year. Additionally, thanks to technology, we often set up impromptu brainstorming sessions with all of the lawyers when an issue arises that requires multiple opinions. All of our lawyers are on email and text strings so that we can all provide input on all of our cases. The Criminal Defense Team is not a marketing concept. It is real and has led to exceptional outcomes for our clients.
23 S 8th St, Noblesville, IN 46060
In 2007, The Criminal Defense Team, led by founding partner Mark Kamish, went to battle in Noblesville defending a client accused of stealing thousands of dollars from her employer. After a not guilty verdict, our partners started learning more about Hamilton County. We realized that there were no law firms dedicated to criminal defense. We also learned from those in the legal community, including one judge, that prosecutors were not being pushed to trial and therefore were running roughshod over the defense bar. At that time a decision was made to open an office in Noblesville. Finally, in April of 2013 the Criminal Defense Team opened its northern office at 23 S. 8th Street in Downtown Noblesville, conveniently located just across the street from the Hamilton County courthouse. More than a dozen jury trials later in Hamilton County, The Criminal Defense Team has made its imprint in the legal community.
Since opening our Hamilton County office, we have successfully defended a doctor of felony charges, as well as firemen, racecar mechanics, farmers, students and many others from all walks of life who were accused of a wide range of crimes. Max Wiley, a partner in the firm, has been instrumental in the success of our Noblesville office. Max is a respected trial lawyer who has practiced both as a criminal defense attorney and as a prosecutor handling high profile cases. Max has probably tried more juries in Hamilton County than any other lawyer in the state of Indiana since becoming a fixture in our Noblesville office in 2018. However, Max is not alone. All of our lawyers in the firm have handled cases in Hamilton County at some point in time.
When our firm goes to trial, we always use two of our lawyers at trial. At least 6 of our lawyers, in various combinations, have worked together as part of winning teams at jury trial. Our success in Hamilton County is directly attributable to our team concept and aggressive style. We call Noblesville our Gateway office to the north because not only do we utilize our Noblesville office for our Hamilton County cases, but it is also a beachhead for all our cases north of Indianapolis. The Criminal Defense Team handles cases all over the State of Indiana and the convenience of having an office close to State Road 31 and I-69 allows us to travel with ease to fight for our clients.
If you have been accused of a crime in Hamilton County or north of Indianapolis and you hire The Criminal Defense Team to fight for you, you will probably spend time in our Noblesville office. However, sometimes a client is accused of a crime in a county where they don’t reside. Because we have 3 offices (Franklin, Indianapolis and Noblesville) we can meet with you at any of those offices, if they are near your home or work.