These days, white-collar defense lawyers face the unenviable task of representing corporate executives widely depicted in the media as reckless and greedy miscreants responsible for the current economic crisis. Those attitudes permeate just about every jury pool in New York. Although the recent acquittals in the Bear Stearns fraud trial demonstrate that juries can and do rise above the temptation to scapegoat, that verdict nevertheless stands in stark contrast to many others in recent white-collar trials. Given the generally hostile climate, astute defense counsel must at least consider the possibility of seeking a bench trial in white-collar criminal cases.
A jury trial is always the “default” position, since it is generally much harder for the prosecution to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt to 12 individuals than to a single finder of fact. If defense counsel is able to convince even one juror that the prosecution has not met its burden, a mistrial may result, which in turn may lead to a decision by the prosecutor not to retry the defendant, or at least the possibility of a better plea offer.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.
For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]
