Libby Hired a Black DC Lawyer to defend him

[win_in_06]

I think his name is Ted Wells and he is supposed to be great.

Will this help in front of a DC jury? Will this make it harder for democrats to criticize him as his trial plays out on TV?

This could be OJ-like...


(edited to correct the lawyer's name)

[Cha]

1. That was very clever of that

lying pervert but whether libby's lawyer is Black or not should have nothing to do with a bush cronie lying to the Grand Jury.

Is this lawyer a Democrat?

[Captain Hilts]

5. It should not have anything to do with it, but it just might help him. nt

[sabbat hunter]

2. how so

we arent criticizing his attorney, but libby himself. the person he selects as could be pink with purple polka dots. it doenst matter.

david

[win_in_06]

3. In high profile cases like this, it sure as hell does matter

[Justitia]

4. I think last name is Wells. -eom

[win_in_06]

6. Thanks, I'll edit

[xxqqqzme]

7. I thought he was using Luskin (?uncertain of spelling)

Is this a new lawyer or a co-counsel?

[win_in_06]

8. Apparently he is the lead attorney

[sundancekid]

24. Luskin=Rove's attorney. Joseph Tate represented Libby in Judas Miller fit

[madrchsod]

9. it`s not going to help him one bit

the jury will not even consider what color anyone is

[win_in_06]

10. Yeah, right.

[AlCzervik]

11. can we please give the jury the benefit of the doubt here?

[bluedog]

12. Philip Morris lawyer?..(I think)

I think this is the same man.......he'll try to prove.........NO conspiracy


was a lawyer big tobacco

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A43187-2004Sep22.html
We do not concede in any shape or form that there was a conspiracy," said Ted Wells, a Philip Morris USA lawyer who led the defense arguments yesterday morning in federal court in Washington. "Some of the conduct by individuals in the past . . . was wrongheaded, mistaken and even regrettable, but it wasn't a . . . conspiracy."

[Loonman]

13. Republicans want to be able to shout RACIST

If he's criticized for his handling of the case.

Not a new Republican game, folks.

[faithnotgreed]

14. with the jury i dont believe it will make a whit of difference

with the court of public opinion it could make a bit of an impact and they will certainly exploit him the best they can in any arena presented
thats what they do

[marbuc]

15. Being from DC, I can report with confidence

that the color of the lawyer's skin will have very little if any impact on the outcome of the case. If Libby were black this might be different, but not necessarily. Instead, Libby is lily white, very much upper class, and a Republican. I think the latter two would have much more of an impact on the personal level than his anything about his lawyer. I think we can count on the case being decided on its merits.

[win_in_06]

17. Wells will play a role in jury selection

and that will have quite an impact.

[marbuc]

18. No more of an impact than any other attorney

in my opinion.

[win_in_06]

19. He'll get the jury he wants or he'll get the trial moved to the suburbs

[marbuc]

21. Any lawyer worth his salt would try this

white, black, or purple.

[Joe Chi Minh]

28. To suggest otherwise is laughable, and

an insult to African Americans. Do they think having Jewish defense counsels would have saved the Nazi monsters at Nuremburg?

[bluedog]

16. Wells Bio

Theodore V. Wells Jr.: In January 2000, Ted Wells left the law firm of Lowenstein, Sandler, Kohl, Fisher and Boylan, Bill Bradley's No. 12 career patron, and joined the law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton, & Garrison.

Wells is a hard-hitting litigator and earned a name for himself in defending James Regan, who was managing partner of Princeton/Newport Partners, which in 1988 and 1989 became the first securities firm to be charged with racketeering. Regan was indicted and convicted of insider trading under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

Four other partners and a trader from Drexel Burnham Lambert were also found guilty in the case. All six convictions were later overturned on appeal. Wells also has had many other high-profile clients. He represented Exxon Corp. in 1990 when the government launched three separate criminal probes into the company's involvement in an oil spill between Staten Island and New Jersey. Exxon pleaded guilty to reduced charges and paid $15 million in fines.

Wells also defended Salim "Sandy" Lewis, a Wall Street trader who pleaded guilty to manipulating the share price of Fireman's Fund Corp. in concert with Ivan Boesky, the notorious arbitrageur, who also pleaded guilty to charges of insider trading. More recently, Wells defended former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy, receiving acquittals on all 30 counts. Espy was charged by the independent counsel's office with accepting more than $35,000 in gratuities from companies his department regulated.

Wells has worked for Bradley on two of Bradley's Senate campaigns and also worked for Rep. Donald Payne, D-N.J. Wells was general counsel to the New Jersey Democratic Party and the New Jersey NAACP.

[1932]

34. He was a year behind Clarence Thomas at Holy Cross

[Devil Dog Dem]

20. Ted Wells is an outstanding lawyer.

A lawyer in my office who is a Dem and who has litigated cases with Wells told me today that Ted Wells is the best trial attorney he has ever seen.

The fact that he is black is just icing on the cake, if that.

[maxrandb]

22. Like OJ??

You mean his attorney is going to get up and scream; "If Cheney's in deep-shit, you must acquit"??

[snowbear]

23. LOL... too funny.. And I think everyone should STOP WORRYING !

I mean.. the few here who are worrying.

Once this baby gets going, the trial is going to open up such a huge can of worms, it wouldn't matter if who the hell is representing him..

[sundancekid]

25. he's #11 on this list of top 75 lawyers. will truth to power win for us?

http://www.washingtonian.com/people/lawyers/75bestlawyers.html

[win_in_06]

26. I don't know, but I was hoping for a plea bargain

so we could rope someone else.

[snowbear]

27. I think we'll do more roping this way...

[AZBlue]

29. I'm very disturbed that race is an issue here.

Thoroughly disgusted actually.

Would you have started a thread just to tell us that his lawyer was female? A brunette? Blue-eyed? Short? I don't think so.

[win_in_06]

30. If you don't realize the political significance of his lawyer being

black, especially with a trial in DC, then you are uninformed.

[Vickers]

31. Disgusted? Thoroughly?

People here are discussing the effect that a lawyer's race could have on a jury trial in Washington DC. How is that disgusting?

:shrug:

[0007]

32. The bigger they are the harder they fall.

Wells puts his pants on the same as any other man, one leg at a time.

[Justice]

33. If Libby feel he needs the best available lawyer - he must be

pretty worried.

Fitzgerald is pretty darn good.

[win_in_06]

35. It will cost him a fortune. I heard on the news that conservatives are

raising money to pay his legal bills.