[Marauder]

You're absolutely right. He had a job to do, but it's about his ethics. A lawyer's job is to ensure that the defendant's rights are not violated in the process of a trial. In this case, he knew his client was guilty because they were negotiating a plea bargain when the little girl's body was found, yet he tried every trick - aboveboard and otherwise - to "get his client off" as opposed to safeguarding his rights.
Getting the defendant off at all costs regardless of his guilt or innocence doesn't in my view hit the "job" or "ethics" nails exactly on the head.

[brownie]

I did not follow this case closely, so cannot comment specifically on this attorney's conduct.

However, do not forget, whether or not a person is guilt - even if his or her defense attorney knows the person is guilty - it is the government's job to prove the person is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The defendant's attorney's job is too try to poke holes in the government's case (i.e., establish reasonable doubt) by questioning witnesses' bias, competancy, etc., and putting on any evidence that tends to show the defendant is not guilty.

A lot of people think that doing this is slimy, but it ensures that the government is not able to convict people on flimsy evidence and trumped up charges. I agree that defense attorneys can go overboard doing this, but the real problem is liberal judges and stupid/uninformed/biased juries, who believe things like O.J. was set up, even with the overwhelming evidence against him. You may want to blame it all on Johnny Cochraine, but the fault lies with the incompetent prosecutors and the idiotic jury.

- brownie

[Henrietta]

Hmmm. Guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one....