Public Defense

Good facts beat good law

By Gideon

Doug at Not Guilty asks practitioners whether they’d prefer good facts or good law in a case. The answer, I think, is clear. Good facts (almost) always trump good law.

Putting aside the question of whether there actually is such a thing as “good law” for defendants, if the facts are not on your side, your options get severely limited. If you have a case with bad facts, you’re essentially looking to get the “least worst” resolution for your client.

If, on the other hand, you have good facts - such as DNA evidence that excludes your client - then not only can you argue to a jury (or a judge) that the verdict should be not guilty, but you can also try to create an exception in the “bad law” for your good facts.

Anyone disagree with this?

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Full post as published by A Public Defender on April 14, 2008 (boomark / email).