The reasons I defend those "type of people" are manifold but here goes.
My father basically grew up in Hitler's death camps. He saw Hitler live on 2 occasions.
My Grandfather, Jakob Breitowicz was shot in the head at point blank range with a rifle held by a 19 year old SS soldier Josef Wurst who was later found guilty of war crimes
and executed on October 3, 1947 in Dachau.
My Grandfather, left for dead, survived and wrote a book about his experiences entitled Through Hell To Life (Shengold Publishing). Not a best seller by any means.
My Grandfather, Grandmother and Father found each other after the Americans liberated the camps and they came to America when my Dad was 13 years old. None of them spoke English.
My Dad ended up as a Medical Doctor, spoke 11 languages, played 9 instruments (he went to NY Performing High School where he was friends with Billy D. Williams and said Peter Yarrow of Peter
Paul and Mary was a "fag." My Dad voluntarily entered the Marines and then later the Army Reserve where he served in Dessert Storm and rose to Lt. Colonel. He passed a year and a half ago.
The point: I was brought up to despise racism. I was also brought up with a distrust for government and tyranny.
My job as a Criminal Defense Attorney is simply to test the State's evidence and to ensure that they followed all the rules. If we don't do that, each and every time, even with the most
despicable defendants, if we allow the government to cut corners because "we all know he did it," then trust me, the government will start to cut corners everywhere, on every case.
Sure, first they will do it to all the Blacks. Then to all the Hispanics. Then to all the Jews. Then to all the gays. They won't know when to stop as they will have become drunk with impunity.
No matter who you hate or why you hate them, you can't have a government refusing to obey the rules and laws in their prosecution of others because if you allow that, one day, they will be at
your door taking you and your loved one away on fabricated evidence or at least tainted in ways the Constitution does not permit.
We may not have a perfect criminal justice system, but it's still the best in the world but only if there are people to keep it in check.
There are actually people sitting in prisons who are wrongfully accused and wrongfully convicted. It is not the norm, but it happens enough to be leery of any government willing to suppress your rights.
The other reasons I do what I do is because I am often well paid and I do it as well as anyone else I have ever seen but for my mentor. It also feels good to actually help someone which does happen quite often.
It is quite the adrenaline rush to get up before a jury and deliver a Closing Argument that just blows away the Judge, Prosecutor and the jury.
That is about as honest an answer I can give.
Harley
