Alan Jackson said "To be arrested on a misdemeanor, it has to happen in front of the authorities, or conversely the person against whom the crime was allegedly committed has to file a formal complaint with police". Loyola Law School professor and former federal prosecutor Laurie Levenson said that the case was not serious enough to merit being treated as a priority; defense attorney and former prosecutor Michael Cardoza agreed, saying that while Smith's actions did constitute a crime, "it's not significant enough to clog our courts".[123] Defense attorney Lou Shapiro argued that Smith was not being given any special treatment by not being arrested, stating "On a simple battery with no injury, LAPD is not deviating from the norm on this one. Unless it's a domestic violence case, they're more likely not going to use resources on it, because if the victim is not going to pursue charges, then who are we protecting at this point?"[124] Experts consulted by the Associated Press agreed that Smith would be unlikely to face charges at all, and if convicted, would receive only a minor penalty.[3]