10/18/2024
I originally wrote this in 2015:
"HOW DO YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT?"
I recently spoke with an old friend (whose husband I am currently representing following a mishap) who asked me these very words as we reviewed some aspects of her husband's case. I was quite taken aback because she was a friend of many decades, and it highlighted some misconceptions about the role of a defense lawyer.
I will readily admit that if you had told me in Law School that I was going to be a Criminal Defense specialist, I would have laughed at you. I had planned to make millions of dollars suing people, and I intended to gain quick trial experience working in various District Attorneys and Prosecutors Offices. I believed you would have to essentially be a low-down criminal conspirator in order to defend those accused of crimes. Only experience and first hand knowledge would change my perception, and I am glad that it happened.
It is certainly not an easy job, and while I make a nice living, it pales compared to my buddies on Wall Street. You know what, though? Sometimes I feel like I was put on Earth to do this job. That's right. I truly believe you have to be a big person, a stand up guy, a ballsy individual, an empathetic human, and you have to have an innate ability to confidently battle on when all the odds are entirely in the other guy's favor. I takes guts, it takes smarts, it takes hard work, preparation, and a thick mental coating which I probably developed through the confidence imbued in me from my parent's loving upbringing.
You see, the other team begins every game at First and Goal to go. When I begin, their case is complete, and on paper, my client is guilty. Without Defense Attorneys, it would be GAME OVER right there. I can only imagine a world where this was the case, and boy, what a frightening place that world would be! The Government would have the capability of walking into a courtroom and simply announcing a person's guilt, with no review, no opportunity to present the accused's side of the story, no chance of challenging the propriety of a police officer's allegations or to examine the accuracy of scientific test evidence. The role of a defense attorney in this equation is without question the most essential aspect of the quest for justice.
No doubt, the last place anyone wants to find themselves is sitting across the desk from me in my office. I can't tell you how many thousands of kind, caring, courteous, and downright excellent people I have been privileged to defend through the years. I've defended cops, judges, politicians, World Series Champions, Super Bowl Athletes, famous movie stars, Pl***oy playmates, but most of all, just regular folks who never intended any harm to anyone ever in their lives. Oftentimes the transgressions which lead them to my office are merely the product of human frailty, such as those which result from drug and alcohol use, or anger control issues. I am proud to be able to assist fellow humans through what is often the lowest point of their lives, to help them find the bottom, then push off it to grow through the experience. To help someone come through the other side of the situation as a better, stronger, healthier and improved version of the person who got in trouble is my goal. We serve as confidants and counselors, and we provide them with guidance to attain proper counseling, and commonly develop profound relationships with our clients.
Yeah, I am proud to do what I do, and I am glad to count myself among the ranks of the Defense Bar. At the end of the day, when I put my head on my pillow, I know that I have done absolutely everything and anything I can possibly do that day to help my fellow man through their darkest hour, and that just possibly, their life, and the lives of those around them, will be better for having known me.
How do I sleep at night? Just fine, thanks.
