Federal Defender Investigators, Paralegals and Mitigation Specialists A Virtual Series: Session No.1 - Investigating the Open-Source Intelligence World in 2025

In the ever-changing digital age, looking for online and social media evidence is essential to any criminal defense investigation.  This session will cover the latest techniques and tools to help all federal defender trial teams confidently navigate digital pursuits for useful information in 2025. You will learn the latest search engine hacks, AI tools, advanced social media search strategies and resources to enhance your examinations. Investigators, paralegals and other defense team members will receive practical guides, handouts, and a curated collection of OSINT bookmarks to use in their own cases.

Presenter:

Maria Sapene is the Chief of Litigation Support at the Office of the Federal Public Defender in Los Angeles, CA.  Prior to this position, she was a senior capital trial investigator, specializing in the collection and analysis of open source and digital evidence. Before joining the federal defender’s office in 2004, Maria worked as an Investigator for the New York City Civilian Complaint Review Board, investigating allegations of police misconduct. Also, she is a former U.S. Army Reserve Intelligence Officer with training and background in intelligence collection and analysis. Maria has presented at regional and national conferences on the use of online and social media in capital defense investigations and law enforcement technology.

NOTE:  This webinar series is created for federal defender trial investigators, paralegals, and mitigation specialists and participation is limited to federal defender organization staff.

CLE:  CLE credits will not be available for this session.