The Importance of Upholding the Constitution, the Right to Counsel and the Presumption of Innocence by Alan M. Dershowitz  •  January 25, 2022 at 6:00 pm       [W]hen law professors such as Cornell University's Michael Dorf -- who is an acolyte, water-carrier and co-author of America's most prominent constitutional hypocrite, Professor Laurence Tribe -- set out to defame... anyone, for a principled representation of unpopular defendants, it becomes clear, and alarming, how much trouble the Constitution is in. Dorf apparently does not remember the principle often attributed to Voltaire: "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." He also deliberately omits the fact that my "oeuvre" includes representing half of my clients on a pro bono basis and that many of my cases have focused on the First Amendment, the Fourth Amendment and the death penalty. [T]he reader is given no idea even of how many people were included in this admittedly "unscientific poll," or how they were selected. (Image source: iStock) Sometimes it takes an absurd event to illustrate the high cost of upholding crucial principles, such as the right to counsel. For nearly 60 years, I have tried to emulate John Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Clarence Darrow, Thurgood Marshall, Edward Bennett Williams and others in the pantheon of my legal heroes, by representing, as they did, the most hated and vilified defendants. In making that career choice, I knew that I would be criticized by those who do not understand the constitutional right to counsel and the need for every defendant to receive zealous representation. Continue Reading Article