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Defending Conspiracy Cases: Mission Impossible?, Paul Marcus

Paul Marcus

Defending conspiracy cases has never been an easy task. There were days in which joint trials of 20, 30, 40, or even 50 defendants were not uncommon, creating insuperable problems for defense lawyers. Even though large joint-defendant trials are not as common today, several problems remain, particularly in light of the frequent use of the conspiracy charge at the federal level. In this article I will discuss some of the recent issues which create special difficulties for criminal defense lawyers. With regard to these issues, there is, as some would say, good news and bad news.