tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5945843206427351559.post7434629961478167377..comments2024-01-25T14:51:13.377-05:00Comments on Gamso - For the Defense: The Men in the White HatsJeff Gamsohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09869425697771419546noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5945843206427351559.post-39592615284300086602013-03-17T15:53:45.766-04:002013-03-17T15:53:45.766-04:00"Criminal defense lawyers aren't supposed..."Criminal defense lawyers aren't supposed to be pursing justice or truth."<br /><br />Thank you. Finally we get to hear in unvarnished fashion why defense lawyers have no compunction about lying and sponsoring lying.<br /><br />"The charges you bring against the criminal defense bar are either that they're defending even if that means twisting the facts (which is their job)..."<br /><br />So it's OK to twist the facts? And even better to twist them in the service of, say, some child rapist who'd be headed to prison if the facts were NOT twisted? A child rapist who, thus emboldened by his counsel's successfully gaming the system, is even more likely to do it again? And this behavior by counsel is what you want to palm off as moral?<br /><br />Yikes.<br /><br />"...or committing actual crimes or sandbagging the system. And those efforts to sandbag the system? No, the courts don't view that as ineffective assistance. They view that as sandbagging and blame the clients."<br /><br />That's revealing. The heroic defense lawyer (not you personally, the generic defense lawyer) is a give-it-all-for-the-client kind of guy -- right up to the point where the lawyer's own hide is in trouble, at which point the lawyer throws the client to the wolves to save himself.<br /><br />Well that's cool.<br /><br />Bill Otis<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5945843206427351559.post-22849519947127355952012-03-14T03:42:13.916-04:002012-03-14T03:42:13.916-04:00"... most adamantine prosecutor ..."
I ..."... most adamantine prosecutor ..."<br /><br />I doubt you meant 'adamantine'.A Voice of Sanityhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11285284153694191831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5945843206427351559.post-42552023639841192242012-03-13T00:40:08.184-04:002012-03-13T00:40:08.184-04:00The book is about trying to end prosecutorial misc...The book is about trying to end prosecutorial misconduct. You want to write a book (or a blog) about defense lawyer misconduct, have at it. I'd observe, though, that the prosecutorial misconduct at issue is violation of the duty to do justice which for purposes of the book and this post means the duty to protect the innocent. And the violations of that duty are violations of an ethical duty, not of criminal law.<br /><br />Criminal defense lawyers aren't supposed to be pursing justice or truth. They're supposed to be defending. You don't like that? Like I say, start a blog. The charges you bring against the criminal defense bar are either that they're defending even if that means twisting the facts (which is their job) or committing actual crimes or sandbagging the system. And those efforts to sandbag the system? No, the courts don't view that as ineffective assistance. They view that as sandbagging and blame the clients.Jeff Gamsohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09869425697771419546noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5945843206427351559.post-87387488923522631992012-03-12T23:37:03.505-04:002012-03-12T23:37:03.505-04:00Couldn't even worse be said of defense lawyers...Couldn't even worse be said of defense lawyers? They put on evidence they believe is probably false (although most at least draw the line at knowingly putting on false evidence and soliciting perjury). They intimidate witnesses -- or at least give defendants and family members the names of key witnesses in the hopes that they'll shut them up. At trial, they'll use cross-examination to paint a witness as a liar even when they know she's telling the truth. They'll run roughshod over their reciprocal discovery obligations, or even their obligation to prepare for trial and meet motions deadlines -- knowing that they can worm out of any purposeful failing on their part by saying "my client shouldn't be punished for my failings, your honor -- otherwise this is ineffective assistance.". They take dirty money. And instead of just helping their client beat a pending charge, they also offer advice on how to continue illegal activities undetected?<br /><br />What's that you say? That I'm painting the whole profession with too broad a brush, using the worst actions of a few to tar the rest? Well, so are you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5945843206427351559.post-90713290508935981192012-03-12T20:18:55.442-04:002012-03-12T20:18:55.442-04:00This court has several times used vigorous languag...<i>This court has several times used vigorous language in denouncing...</i><br /><br />I feel somewhat vindicated. I've pointed out this situation for years and every single attorney I've spoken with immediately comes down with a severe case of marble mouth, scuffs his feet, slumps in his chair and refuses to look me in the eye until the topic is changed to something safe. Like gun control, religion or politics.<br /><br />Even Johnny the Hammer doesn't like to talk about it much, and John will raise hell about anything if I tweak him often enough.<br /><br />Nice article, Jeff.Mad Jackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06190137186843630543noreply@blogger.com