Thursday, January 21, 2010

Sometimes, the Client is a REAL ASSHOLE


Prominent, Boston defense Attorney Jeffrey Denner (pic) had just informed the the court that the defendant--an incarcerated inmate charged with an assault on another inmate--was competent to stand trial.  Let's see what the Boston Hearld said occurred next:

Just as [the. . . ] jury-waived trial was about to get under way on a charge [the defendant] assaulted a correctional officer at Bridgewater State Hospital, Eben Howard told Judge Diane M. Kottmyer that Denner was 'useless rubbish,'  had poisoned his cranberry juice and that Denner’s co-counsel, Mark Freeman, had run over his dog, according to a transcript. Howard, 36, handcuffed and in chains, lunged at Denner.


'The court officers subdued (Howard) immediately,' said court spokeswoman Joan Kenney. 'There was adequate security in the courtroom when the incident happened, and there will be again when the defendant is back in court.' 'It’s no problem,' Denner told the Herald. 'I’m not intending to press charges. The court officers were very diligent and very quick.'  Howard, who Denner said is awaiting trial for murder in North Carolina, was accused of beating family killer Neil Entwistle at the Middlesex Jail in Cambridge in 2006.  Denner said he was jumped right after telling Kottmyer Howard was competent to stand trial.  'Perhaps I spoke too hastily,' [attorney Denner] said."
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Who says practicing law isn't stressful.  Seriously, I've had several occasions in my career where I've requested security--it can be a challenge. 

3 comments:

  1. Yes, but have you ever run over a client's dog?

    Perhaps then you could ascend to the level of a Useless Rubbish Lawyer rather than merely a Bad one.

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  2. Funny you should ask, I ususally only run over squirrels, but there are one or two felines that I have my eye on.

    BL

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  3. I had a client come into the office drunk and threaten to shoot me. Irony of it was, I was dispersing a great deal of money from a settlement to him.

    ReplyDelete