I am an investigator on criminal cases. I heard about Review Case Research a little more than a year ago from a prisoner in Alabama. I called them several times and they seemed to have services that would lead to their coordination with a group of lawyers that would then take on the case after the research was completed. I actually visited their office in Birmingham, AL and met with the alleged director, a man who called himself Tony Alexander, who said he was a lawyer but not licensed in Alabama. I discussed two cases with him and then he walked me to an office on the other side of the same building where I met with two researchers and a law student who was supposedly part of the team. I gave information to one of the researchers on one case and then signed a contract for an expedited review of another case. I paid $300 for this review, which was supposed to be completed in 90 days. Mr. Alexander actually told me that the legal team would then take this case on a pro bono basis as soon as the research was completed. The contract was signed in their office on April 6 and copies were to be sent to the client. The other case was supposedly near completion.
I returned to Colorado, where I live and work, and for the next several months, would periodically call for progress reports, since neither of the clients were hearing from Review Case Research. Meanwhile, the person who had told me about them, a man incarcerated with a Life Without Parole sentence in Alabama, and who had also paid for their services, was getting occasional letters putting off any results. I started calling regularly and usually got an answering machine or a secretary, but no return calls. Once I talked with Mr. Alexander and he told me that the research was almost complete on the case for which I had paid for expedited research and that he would get right back to me but he had to take another call. I got cut off and then no one answered. Once I spoke with the researcher on the other case and he promised to get back to me with information but never called or took a call again. I called on a regular basis until I got a message one day that their phones were disconnected. I then tried to report them to the Alabama Bar Association but found that you can only report lawyers. I did get the name of 2 lawyers who were supposedly part of the legal team. I called this man and he told me that Tony Alexander had been arrested for fraud and that his group of lawyers had not been paid by Review Case Research for their work and that they were trying to pick up what files they found in the vacated offices and help the clients. Unfortunately, the client for whom I had paid had sent transcripts and these had disappeared and the lawyer knew nothing about this case. He promised to get back to me with information but never would answer a call or e-mail again to the point that I suspected him as being part of the scam.
I then heard from the man incarcerated in Alabama that Review Case Research now had a GA address and was still sending letters to other prisoners claiming they would work on their cases. I had warned him not to send them any more money and to warn others. Since I had nowhere to file a claim, I had to write my clients and tell them that I had been scammed and in the case of the person who sent transcripts, that they were gone. I did not know what else to do because they had disappeared.
Today I received a letter from this client and the client had just received a letter from them, dated March 1, misspelling her name but claiming they were working on her case. The letter gave an Atlanta address and phone number and a website, but when I checked the website, I found a complaint with similar claims to mine. The letter she received was signed by a "Jamie Alexander", so I am assuming this is the same scam artist, no longer in jail, and using a slightly different name and trying, once again, to scam poor people.
I really feel that these people need to be exposed and deterred from this activity. Most people in prison are poor and they scrape together money to get some work done on their cases that was never done; they send their documents, often original copies, and then they lose everything as well as their hope for some relief in their cases.
I hope others who have had this experience will post their experiences with Review Case Research and that we will eventually be able to take some legal action against them. According to the report currently on your website, they have moved several times just in this year and I gather this is how they continue to take advantage of people who legitimately need services.
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