13 upvotes, 1 direct replies (showing 1)
View submission: The Ethics of Defense Lawyers
13 year US public defender here. I’m just glad to see that the comments understand what drivel this blog post is.
When people ask me “How can you defend people you KNOW are guilty?” I tell them, that’s the EASY part. If the almighty government doesn’t convict them, then THEY failed.
You know what REALLY sucks? Representing someone and them pleading guilty when you KNOW they AREN’T guilty.
That shit keeps me up at night.
Not sure if it helps, but in my closing arguments at trial I almost always say:
The presumption of innocence is the bedrock of our society. In the 18th century BCE, King Hammurabi in Babylon wrote down the very first set of written laws. They were inscribed on clay tablets and then into pillars around the kingdom. Included in those laws was the idea that people accused of crimes are innocent unless they are proven guilty.
Those laws are at least 300 years older than the Ten Commandments. That’s how fundamental they are.
Everything we hold sacred or important, whether you are religious or simply respect the rule of law, is built upon the foundation of the presumption of innocence.
When the State must prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt, that burden isn’t just based on the words of the current law the judge read you, they’re based upon everything good upon which our civilization stands.
Comment by lawnerdcanada at 14/01/2020 at 05:26 UTC
2 upvotes, 0 direct replies
You know what REALLY sucks? Representing someone and them pleading guilty when you KNOW they AREN’T guilty.
That shit keeps me up at night.
As a Canadian criminal defence lawyer, I've thankfully never been in that situation (there's no *Alford* or *nolo contendere* plea in Canada, and a lawyer cannot assist someone in pleading guilty if they know the person isn't guilty). But what *does* keep me up is the conviction (at trial) of a client I know or think is innocent. It's haunting.