THE SHADOW OF JUSTICE

THE SHADOW OF JUSTICE

By Milton Hirsch

American Bar Association

$14.00, paperback, 205 pages; ISBN 1-59031-328-3 (2004). 

This much-hyped book, published by the Criminal Justice Section of the American Bar Association, is the first in the ABA's new fiction series "Great Stories by Great Lawyers." The Shadow of Justice is the first work of fiction published by the ABA in its 125-year history. Its author, Milton Hirsch, has been named in The Best Lawyers in America and is listed as one of South Florida's top lawyers in Miami Metro Magazine. He is also a past president of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Miami chapter. 

Hirsch has handled some of Miami's most notorious and controversial criminal cases, including: the acquittal of former Los Angeles Dodger/St. Louis Cardinal All-Star Pedro Guerrero on federal narcotics charges, and the freeing of a Miami man who was convicted of rape and spent 22 years in prison before

Being released on new DNA evidence obtained through Hirsch's efforts. Clearly, Hirsch is a skilled attorney. 

Who can resist the story of how the book became published? Hirsch reportedly arrived at his office early every morning – for a year – and wrote the novel. 

"Therapeutic," is how he described it. He then stuck the manuscript in a drawer. "There it sat," for three years until he learned of the ABA's interest in fiction and submitted it for review. The rest, as they say, is history. 

After finding out about this author and how the book was published, I was anxious to read it. I hoped that an experienced trial lawyer would make the courtroom scenes sparkle and show readers what a trial is really all about. Someone who has tried complex, high-publicity cases would, I thought, be able to describe the intricacies of the courtroom and still capture the tension of the participants. 

In short, I wanted to like this book.

It begins with Judge Clark Addison being awakened one morning and told that one of his closest friends, a policeman, has shot and killed his family and himself. Judge Addison is shocked. He searches for a reason why his oldest friend would commit such an act. Before he can come up with any answers, he's on the bench, presiding over a trial in which another of his oldest friends, Jack Sheridan, is the defense attorney. Addison describes his courtroom and gives the reader a glimpse of his own personality.

Behind me are the flags, American and Florida, and on the wall high above me a placard with the motto, "We who labor here seek only Truth." In truth, we who labor here seek many things. Truth is a luxury. Defendants seek a break, prosecutors seek a conviction, defense attorneys seek an acquittal and, if they are very lucky, a legal fee. Jurors seek relief from boredom, visitors seek entertainment, victims and family members seek closure. I have no leisure to consider what it is that I seek. Miami has America's busiest criminal courts. The caseload of a judge in Miami is, on average, three times that of a judge in Manhattan. I seek not to drown.

The novel focuses on a drug dealer's trial. It is one of the most detailed and procedurally correct renditions of a trial that I've ever read in a novel. Unfortunately, that is both a plus and a minus. 

If you're a trial attorney, you'll feel right at home as all the aspects of a trial are described: the judge's preliminary instructions, voir dire, dismissal of jurors for cause and through peremptory challenges, direct and cross examination, closing arguments, and instructions to the jury. If you're not a lawyer, I question how much you'll enjoy the detailed description of the court hearings and the trial in this novel. Since the story is primarily set in a courtroom, and is told in the first person perspective of a judge, the law plays a central part in the novel. Although Hirsch does a fine job of explaining the intricacies of the law as the trial proceeds, I found the constant explanations of the law distracting. 

At one point in the trial, for example, the prosecutor asks a police officer to identify the person in the courtroom who is alleged to have committed the crime (the defendant). Instead of just allowing the flow of the trial to proceed, Hirsch gives another civics lesson.

It is a ritual. In every trial, one or more eyewitnesses will be invited, with as much flourish as the prosecutor can muster, to look around this courtroom and tell us if you see the man who … . Does it prove anything? Is any witness really likely to point the finger of guilt at the black-robed judge, the uniformed bailiff, or juror number five? There are only two persons seated at defense counsel table, and one of them, to judge by his suit, his trial bag, and his law books, is a lawyer. A blind man could pick out the defendant with his cane. It is a ritual, nothing more. But trials are rituals, and the votaries – the judges, lawyers, and cops – must play their parts.

 

I really wanted to like this book. And I did. Will you? If you're in the legal field or interested in the details of how a criminal trial occurs, the answer is probably yes. If not, you may want to wait for the movie. Regardless, this is an excellent first book in the "Great Stories by Great Lawyers" series and I look forward reading future novels.

Hirsch has handled some of Miami's most notorious and controversial criminal cases, including: the acquittal of former Los Angeles Dodger/St. Louis Cardinal All-Star Pedro Guerrero on federal narcotics charges, and the freeing of a Miami man who was convicted of rape and spent 22 years in prison before

 

Being released on new DNA evidence obtained through Hirsch's efforts. Clearly, Hirsch is a skilled attorney. 

 

Who can resist the story of how the book became published? Hirsch reportedly arrived at his office early every morning – for a year – and wrote the novel. 

 

"Therapeutic," is how he described it. He then stuck the manuscript in a drawer. "There it sat," for three years until he learned of the ABA's interest in fiction and submitted it for review. The rest, as they say, is history. 

 

After finding out about this author and how the book was published, I was anxious to read it. I hoped that an experienced trial lawyer would make the courtroom scenes sparkle and show readers what a trial is really all about. Someone who has tried complex, high-publicity cases would, I thought, be able to describe the intricacies of the courtroom and still capture the tension of the participants. 

 

In short, I wanted to like this book.

 

It begins with Judge Clark Addison being awakened one morning and told that one of his closest friends, a policeman, has shot and killed his family and himself. Judge Addison is shocked. He searches for a reason why his oldest friend would commit such an act. Before he can come up with any answers, he's on the bench, presiding over a trial in which another of his oldest friends, Jack Sheridan, is the defense attorney. Addison describes his courtroom and gives the reader a glimpse of his own personality.

 

Behind me are the flags, American and Florida, and on the wall high above me a placard with the motto, "We who labor here seek only Truth." In truth, we who labor here seek many things. Truth is a luxury. Defendants seek a break, prosecutors seek a conviction, defense attorneys seek an acquittal and, if they are very lucky, a legal fee. Jurors seek relief from boredom, visitors seek entertainment, victims and family members seek closure. I have no leisure to consider what it is that I seek. Miami has America's busiest criminal courts. The caseload of a judge in Miami is, on average, three times that of a judge in Manhattan. I seek not to drown.

 

 

The novel focuses on a drug dealer's trial. It is one of the most detailed and procedurally correct renditions of a trial that I've ever read in a novel. Unfortunately, that is both a plus and a minus. 

 

If you're a trial attorney, you'll feel right at home as all the aspects of a trial are described: the judge's preliminary instructions, voir dire, dismissal of jurors for cause and through peremptory challenges, direct and cross examination, closing arguments, and instructions to the jury. If you're not a lawyer, I question how much you'll enjoy the detailed description of the court hearings and the trial in this novel. Since the story is primarily set in a courtroom, and is told in the first person perspective of a judge, the law plays a central part in the novel. Although Hirsch does a fine job of explaining the intricacies of the law as the trial proceeds, I found the constant explanations of the law distracting. 

 

At one point in the trial, for example, the prosecutor asks a police officer to identify the person in the courtroom who is alleged to have committed the crime (the defendant). Instead of just allowing the flow of the trial to proceed, Hirsch gives another civics lesson.

 

It is a ritual. In every trial, one or more eyewitnesses will be invited, with as much flourish as the prosecutor can muster, to look around this courtroom and tell us if you see the man who … . Does it prove anything? Is any witness really likely to point the finger of guilt at the black-robed judge, the uniformed bailiff, or juror number five? There are only two persons seated at defense counsel table, and one of them, to judge by his suit, his trial bag, and his law books, is a lawyer. A blind man could pick out the defendant with his cane. It is a ritual, nothing more. But trials are rituals, and the votaries – the judges, lawyers, and cops – must play their parts.

 

I really wanted to like this book. And I did. Will you? If you're in the legal field or interested in the details of how a criminal trial occurs, the answer is probably yes. If not, you may want to wait for the movie. Regardless, this is an excellent first book in the "Great Stories by Great Lawyers" series and I look forward reading future novels.