R. I. P Johnnie Cochran (1 Viewer)

[DustinLC]

He would be nuts to say otherwise. The interview I heard which is about 1/2-year ago, he didn't say he believes he's innocent. He dodged the question with a "no comment" followed by how badly the prosecution presented their arguments.

Now come on, we all have seen the evidences. How many of us who truly followed the case on TV and understood the DNA evidence believe the guy is innocent. Cochran is a smart man.

 

[Drew Bethel]

Apologies for statement about OJ above, I have removed it.

JC has been honoured on many occassions for doing pro bono work for those in the inner city and the like. But most don't know of this because it's not on CNN...all they know about is the OJ trial.

"The walls of Cochran's Los Angeles office was dotted with framed copies of the million-dollar settlements he won for the victims of police brutality and injustice. Among those are Abner Luima, the Haitian immigrant tortured by New York police; Tyisha Miller, the Black teen who Riverside (Calif.) Police riddled with bullets as she sat in a locked car; the $760,000 award in the wrongful death of Ron Settles, the Black football player who was choked to death while in police custody in 1981."

Rest in peace Johnny!

 

[Chris Derby]

Hypothetical but: OK, what if he never asked OJ if he did it or not and based his defense on what he thought he could challenge based on the evidence before him?

Also, we had the benefit of sitting in front of our TVs and watching the whole case including sidebars and motions that the jury never got to see. We saw a LOT more than the jury did.

 

[CharlesD]

Cochran did his job in the OJ case. IMO if you are looking for someone to blame for a murderer getting away with it (and personally I think OJ is guilty) point fingers at those who did not do their jobs at all well: the Prosecution and the Judge.

 

[AjayM]

Exactly, with all of that evidence why wasn't the prosecution able to convict? Why weren't they able to at least get a hung jury? What we saw on TV and read in the papers at the time was not the same as what the jury was seeing/hearing, the jury came back with the correct verdict for the case.

There are jury memebers who have stated in interviews that they believe OJ is guilty, but the case wasn't proven by the prosecution.

Andrew

 

[Chris Derby]

I wouldn't blame the judge, but the prosecution and the police definitely didn't bring their "A-game".

 

[Michael Reuben]

As described, this would not be an ethical violation. There's an ethical obligation not to present evidence that the attorney knows to be false, but bear in mind that the defense does not have to present evidence of innocence. If your job is to raise a reasonable doubt, there are many ways to do so even if you know for certain that you represent a guilty person. (Experienced criminal defense attorneys make a point of not asking.)

M.

 

[DustinLC]

Chris, I haven't seen all the interviews but that's probably how he tells it.

Nevertheless, the guy hears more than we do from OJ. All the things that make OJ looks innocence in court got in. Still, a majority will conclude that OJ is quilty. He still has an opinion based on the evidences whether OJ is guilty or innocent .

Either Cochran is an idiot or unethical.

I think bringing up what he accomplished in other cases has no bearing in this one.

 

[DustinLC]

I agree with this statement. What you speak of is ethicality in the eyes of the law.

What I mean is moral values, the right and wrong, outside of the law or technicality of the profession.

 

[Robert Crawford]

So are you saying that any lawyer that defends a client that might be guilty or they think to themselves that he/she is guilty is lacking in moral values?






Crawdaddy

 

[DustinLC]

I hate to say it Robert, but yeah. It goes with the profession.

If you believe a man committed murders, rapes, ect, and you presented the case to the contrary, it's morally wrong. Sure, it's within the law, sure someone has to do it, but it doesn't mean I have to agree the person is doing the right thing.

Someone has to defend the bastards out there recently who just raped and killed those young girls.

 

[Ted Lee]

unfortunately, he is only known for the oj trial. for that, he will always be "condemned". but it's nice to see that some people (as well as most of the news articles) also recognize his more charitable work.

overall, while i don't agree with his actions for the oj trial, i think he was actually a pretty decent guy.

---

ot - during the whole oj thing, i actually sold robert shapiro a bose system when i worked at good guys. i *so* wanted to ask him, "c'mon...did he do it or not?". but i thought better...

 

[DustinLC]

Come on you know you'll regret that missed opportunity for the rest of your life .

 

[Edwin-S]

What was gross about Cochran's defense of Simpson was that he turned a murder case into a race case. By the time Cochran was finished with Fuhrman, he made Furhmans use of a few verbal racial slurs look like a bigger crime than Simpson's crime of repeatedly stabbing and hacking two people to death.

[sarcasm]That is really good defense work.[/sarcasm]

Fuhrman gets his reputation destroyed because he used some verbal slurs and a vicious, murderous asshole gets to play golf and look for the "real killer". Apparently the "real killer" only hangs around on golf courses. Oh.....that's right....I just remembered.....the real killer really does hang out on a golf course.

Regardless of all that, the prosecution and the LAPD screwed the pooch and gave Cochran the opening that he needed.

Apparently, in the USA, all you need to be is a celebrity if you want to get away with murder. A person just has to look at the verdict in the latest case involving a celebrity murderer to see the truth of that statement.

 

[ThomasC]

Selling a Bose system...the most unethical and immoral action of all.

 

[Robert Crawford]

An insulting comment that deeply offends me! Let's not get nationalistic with our comments. This isn't the right discussion nor forum for such assertions.





Crawdaddy

 

[Julian Reville]

I agree 100% Edwin. And I can't remember the last time I agreed with a Canadian on anything!

 

[Kevin Alexander]

Was Robert Blake's lawyer unethical?....After all Blake did do it, or at least arranged for the killing of his wife, didn't he?....Where is the outcry here calling Blake's lawyer immoral? The answer to these questions: Just like OJ's lawyers, Blake's lawyers did their job as well.

Lawyers do what lawyers do. Some of you need to get over your smug sense of self-righteousness and understand that.

Condolences to the Cochran Family.

 

[AjayM]

Perhaps instead of condeming a country, perhaps a little education as to why this celebrity got away with murder is in order. You look at all the things that the "city/state" did wrong in that case and it didn't take a "dream team" of lawyers to get that verdict. Past that you basically ignore the hundreds/thousands of people who get away with murder each year who aren't celebrities along with the numerous celebrities who have spent time in jail for any number of crimes including murder.

Andrew

 

[Edwin-S]