Aaron Biber Update

You will remember that back in December Bad Lawyer told you the astonishing tale of the Minneapolis Super Lawyer, Aaron Biber (pic), arrested for raping his neighbor's adolescent son.  Biber who was at the time a prominent Minneapolis law partner, was also the President-elect of the Minnesota Bar Association.  Biber's trial on the rape charges are slated to begin Monday, here is Rochelle Olson's Minneapolis Star-Tribune update:

The criminal sexual conduct case against attorney Aaron Biber took an unusual twist Monday when lawyers disclosed that there are self-portraits of the alleged 15-year-old victim dressed as Adolf Hitler in a Nazi salute.  Defense lawyer Rachael Goldberger said she believes the photos should be shown to a jury because Biber is Jewish and the alleged victim, who is not Jewish, is posing as a man who killed Jews.

Hennepin County District Court Judge Lloyd Zimmerman didn't rule Tuesday on a request from Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Judy Johnston to keep the photos out of Biber's trial, scheduled to begin Monday. Zimmerman said he will decide later whether the photos are relevant.

Biber, 47, of Shorewood, is charged with soliciting a child for sex and first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a child under age 16 over whom he was in a position of authority. Until his December arrest, Biber [was a partner] in a downtown Minneapolis law firm and was treasurer of the State Bar Association.

If a jury finds Biber was in a position of authority, he could face a substantial prison sentence if convicted.

Goldberger said the heart of the defense will be that the boy was more controlling than Biber. "He controlled when they got together ... when they could talk and who would be in the dominant position" during sexual acts, Goldberger said.

Johnston argued the photos are so inflammatory and emotional that they shouldn't be shown to a jury. She said the teenager isn't anti-Semitic and only posed for the photo after Biber "victimized" him. She said the victim was upset and hospitalized because he was suicidal, then when he later became angry and wanted to kill Biber, the teen's parents hospitalized him again.

Zimmerman said the case itself is inflammatory but said he will decide whether the jury should see the photos in the context of all the evidence."
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The anti-Semitism defense is pretty obnoxious when you consider that it's being offered by a guy who was anally raping  a child for a number of years.   I'm pretty sure I've never come across this defense to pedophilia, before--the child I was raping was Racist,--oh, OK then, you were justified.  Aaron Biber was truly a Super Lawyer, if he pulls this one off.