Steven Kaplan and Joe Arnone worked together in the mid-2000s as assistant prosecuting attorney under Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith.

Now they’ll be working against each other in a Detroit courtroom.

Arnone, who moved to criminal defense and practices out of St. Clair Shores, is representing Shelby Township resident David Lamberson against a second-degree murder charge for driving drunk and killing two Eastpointe children in a crash in Detroit.

Kaplan, an assistant prosecutor in Wayne County, will try to convict Lamberson.
When they worked together in the mid-2000s, Arnone was a young up and coming lawyer, but he stayed in the prosecutor's office for only about a year. Meanwhile, Kaplan was a seasoned vet who worked there a darn-near quarter century and handled some of the highest profile and serious cases in the county.

Kaplan will bring a ton of experience in the case against Lamberson. A second-degree murder charge against a drunken driver is unusual, but Kaplan has done it  before. He handled one of the first cases of its kind in the state and the first case in Macomb County many years ago, and several other similar cases over the years. For 2^nd-degree murder to be warranted, the defendant’s actions have to be so grossly negligent that prosecutors believe a 15-year felony is insufficient punishment.

For his part, Arnone has become a seasoned criminal defense attorney and has handled several major cases.

I don’t think he will let up against a talented younger former colleague.