Defense attorney advocates objectivity

Few lawyers can lay claim to representing such clients as Anita Hill, Tupac Shakur and John Gotti. But Charles Ogletree Jr., a practicing lawyer and Harvard Law School professor, discussed his representation of these controversial public figures yesterday at a talk entitled "The Case for Client-Centered Advocacy." Beginning his speech by revealing his thoughts about entering the legal profession, Ogletree said, "If I was going to do this, I had to give all clients the best representation that I could." Ogletree, who cited examples from his earlier years trying civil cases, noted the care he takes to protect the interests of his clients, guilty or innocent. While he said defending a guilty client does not come without a cost, he believes every defendant deserves a fair trial -- just as every hospital patient deserves medical treatment. "Doctors don't pass judgement on their patients. They simply treat them according to the Hippocratic Oath," Ogletree told the crowd of about 100 at the Law School. "This is the highest degree of professionalism." He added that defending clients who are guilty proves especially tricky when they are "well known, controversial, notorious people." In his defense of mob boss John Gotti, Ogletree sought to prevent his client's reputation from interfering with legal proceedings, especially jury selection and cross examination. Cases like Tupac Shakur's, however, leave Ogletree wondering what more he could have done to help his client. Although Shakur's trial ended in acquittal, it was quickly followed by his murder in 1996. He described Shakur as "one of the most complicated, exciting figures" he had met and praised him as a "poet, philosopher, educator, activist and artist? who had good ideas to bring to the forefront." Ogletree also stressed that lawyers can best represent their clients by listening to and respecting their wishes. Using the recent Massachusetts au pair trial as an example, he said the defense lawyers properly eliminated the possibility of a manslaughter conviction at their client's request. In his advisement of Anita Hill when she accused current Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment, for example, Ogletree was careful to preserve his client's personal life. He said Hill was "a lawyer who wanted to provide testimony as a witness in a case that had large public value" and that he "sought to protect her by not responding to the patronization of the Senate Judiciary Committee by sinking to their level." First-year Law student David Leibowitz expressed admiration for Ogletree's speech, which was this year's installment of the annual Hon. A. Leon Higginbotham Jr. Lecture. "I have seen Ogletree on television and live before so he is a known quantity to me and I was expecting great things," he said. "He is eloquent and? he handles himself in and out of the courtroom with rare class and ethic." He added that he particularly admired Ogletree's admission of the personal cost of defending guilty parties.