Tuesday, February 28, 2023

BONUS EPISODE: FOR THE DEFENSE -- DOUGLAS BROOKS FOR HARVARD FENCING COACH PETER BRAND



It's been too long!  I apologize for the slow pace of the podcast, but 2022 was an insane year for me with 4 federal trials, all in different districts. 

Before the next wave of trials begin, I was able to sit down with my good friend Douglas Brooks (we went to college and law school together).  Doug is a wonderful criminal defense lawyer in Boston. He represented Peter Brand, the Harvard Fencing Coach, who was indicted as part of the sprawling Varsity Blues investigation (because this case did not involve the snitch, Rick Singer, technically the U.S. Attorney's office did not include it as one of the Varsity Blues indictments). 
 
Although many questioned whether the Varsity Blues prosecutions should have even been brought, almost all of the 50+ defendants pleaded guilty.  Only a few had the guts to go to trial. So there was a lot of pressure on the U.S. Attorney's office to beat Doug in this case and show that the folks who decided to plead guilty made the right choice. The prosecution was so confident that it packed the courtroom with AUSAs to listen to the verdict. Not so fast...  
 
Have a listen on Apple Podcasts here (it's also available on your desktop and on all other podcast platforms, here) to Doug explain the trial tactics he used to win an acquittal (to the dismay of the scores of prosecutors who had to slink out of the courtroom).  

One other note -- Season 5 is already in production.  And we have some great guests lined up: Barry Scheck, Milton Hirsch, Lisa Wayne, and more.  We are shooting to launch Season 5 at the end of the summer.  

Thanks again for listening.

--David

 

Hosted by David Oscar Markus and produced by rakontur

 
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