How Can You Defend Those People?

by Mickey Sherman

In the tradition of true crime bestsellers by Alan Dershowitz and Dominick Dunne, Mickey Sherman delivers a powerful and extraordinarily candid account of his legal career that gives the readers an all-access backstage pass to not only the sausage factory that is the criminal justice system but the “big cases” we have all lived with on TV.
Sherman started his career as a public defender, then as a prosecutor, and later became a criminal defense attorney for clients such as Michael Skakel (convicted 27 years after the fact for the murder of Martha Moxley) and Alex Kelly (who, on the eve of his double-rape trial in Darien, fled to Europe for nine years). Sherman’s work has been groundbreaking and sometimes the raw Court TV coverage of his successful PTSD defense of a Vietnam veteran charged with murdering an unarmed man over a parking space argument was nominated for a Cable Ace Award.  When, after a mistrial due to a hung jury in a rape trial, Sherman hired one of the jurors to be his consultant in the retrial of the client, the New York Times declared he had “undercut the entire jury system.” A law was soon passed in Connecticut making Sherman’s move a misdemeanor.
This is both an entertaining account of how a successful attorney deals with impossible cases and clients and boldly challenges accepted laws and conventional tactics, as well as a voyeuristic glimpse into the real lives and travails of clients who represent a fascinating cross section of life.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Law

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Michele Pardon]

Anyone who knows me as a person who survived the grueling criminal justice system on the victim's side constantly asks me, how can you psossibly stomach this book?

When it was first reccomended to me by a fellow crime survivor friend, I thought the same thing. How can you possibly read this??? AT FIRST.

However, given that famed defense lawyer Mickey Sherman handled infamous cases in the area I grew up in- (Fairfield county, Michael Skakel, Alex Kelly) I thought I would give him the benefit of the doubt.

I was pleasantly surprised, and I am the first person to bitch to no end on the criminal judicial system, its downfalls and unfairness. But Mickey really does shed some interesting perspective on criminals combining a sense of humor with a serious subject, and you realize, even as a defense lawyer, he isn't defending "all those people," but candidly explaining why sometimes in our system, criminals are allowed to get away with what they do. It doesn't make it right, but it explains a lot in ways that other criminal lawyers I have seen on tv, don't.

If you are a wise ass like me, you will like this book!

[Brian DiMattia]

Mickey Sherman was always a good story teller, and that's what this book is...good stories.

Sherman pulls back the curtains to demonstrate just how un-mysterious the legal process is. His manages the same tone of bemused honesty to describe his everyday wins and losses, and still breaks down in a very human way on the little moments that came as shocks and heartbreakers. He looks back with equal respect on all the different stages of his career, with as many lessons learned from being an underappreciated public defender to being a celebrity cable TV lawyer.

The reader can get what they want out of this book. Those looking for the funny and absurd moments behind high-drama trials like that of Scott Peterson will find it. Those looking for an understanding of the law will get several different perspectives. Those looking for the psychology of the defense attorney will value the section where Sherman asks other famous defenders what clients they would never take.

[Kim]

Light reading . . . but great fun as a criminal defense attorney to find out how the big wigs answer the interminable question about how we can do what we do.

[Koren]

There are plenty of prosecutors that have written books about trials they have been involved with, but not very many books written by Public Defenders. The author is a public defender with a sense of humor. He has been involved in some well-known trials (O.J. and Scott Peterson). He has also been involved with Court TV from the time it began and has been on many news programs. This is not very much about those trials, but more about what it is like to defend people even though it is fairly obvious that they are guilty.

[Greg]

Mr. Sherman was a very high-profile defense attorney who defended some headline-grabbing cases. But he is known as a TV personality who commented on almost all of the high-profile legal battles since OJ. This book focuses more on Sherman's personality than what he did for his clients. The true measure of a defense attorney is what he does for his clients - not himself. Veteran defense attorneys, especially those in the trenches every day, will be a little irked at Sherman's megalomania.

It is also important to note that Sherman has been accused of doing an ineffective job in his cases because he was more worried about his career as a TV personality than his clients. It seems that he did not adequately investigate his clients' cases while doing TV appearances, and it led to at least one innocent client being convicted of a horrible crime.

[Joe Kapraszewski]

This is one of those books that has a catchy title and is a catchy read. The author takes a subject that not everyone would seem to enjoy reading (eg. the life of a criminal defense lawyer), and makes it very readable. I enjoyed reading about the defense side, where most of the time we think of these people as the "bad guys" since they are the accused. Sometimes they are not the right bad guy. What the author does is make people realize hopefully is that he's just doing his job... with the humor he has. I enjoyed the book throughly and learned a few things in the process.

[Theresa]

This is not my typical book, but it was really interesting. It's very easy to read, conversational, and yet thought-provoking. It's from the point of view of an attorney who is a criminal defense attorney. He has worked in other areas of the law, and he provides an apologetic for his work without being defensive or shrill. Actually, he is funny, approachable, and matter-of-fact. I think of it as an afternoon read for a cloudy day by the fireplace or a nice day on the beach.

[Andrew]

I work as a public defender in the Missouri State Public Defender System. Sherman writes an accessible introduction to the world of criminal defense work. His prior experience as a prosecutor only adds to his credibility. I didn't care so much for the latter third or so of the book, where he concentrates on his specialized TV-lawyer experiences.

[Matt]

Mickey Sherman gives an excellent look at what it means to be a defense attorney, along with some fascinating examples from his own practice. With a wry, and somewhat twisted sense of humor, he very effectively explains the importance of defense attorneys in our legal system.

[Princess]

I had so much fun reading this book! It has a very conversational tone and covers all sorts of questions that one might want to ask a defense attorney. If you've ever wondered how criminal defense attorneys do their jobs, then I highly recommend this book.

[Sarah]

Haha okay, most people probably won't like this book unless they're into politics and law, but I loved it. Mickey Sherman is so funny, and this book really helps people to see that defense attorneys aren't horrible people.

[Nancy Vincent]

He didn't tell me anything I didn't already know. The thing is, he should have interviewed a few PDs for his polls, instead of nothing but high-priced mouthpieces such as himself. We PDs have even better stories than the rich boys do.

[Toni Fuscellaro]

I really enjoyed this book. The writer is very charismatic and it came through in his book. He tells good stories about what it takes to defend people when the public has already decided that they are guilty.

[Karen]

Loved it. Mickey Sherman is a ham- he may think he is funnier than he is, but he is still funny. A good read whether or not you care about law.