Pellicano to be his own lawyer at trial
By John Spano
Times Staff Writer
6:44 PM PST, January 5, 2007
Tossing a legal hand grenade into a contentious case, celebrity sleuth Anthony Pellicano on Friday demanded and won the right to act as his own lawyer in his upcoming trial on wiretapping and racketeering charges.
U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer tried to talk Pellicano out of his plan, but he would not relent.
"I urge you to let me appoint counsel for you," Fischer pleaded in federal court in downtown Los Angeles.
"You're very kind, your honor, but no thank you," answered Pellicano.
The surprising case, which has rocked the Los Angeles legal and entertainment communities, thus took another unexpected turn. Pellicano was once one of the city's most successful private detectives, and for years had worked on behalf of marquee names in Hollywood and legal circles, allegedly gathering secrets to help sway court and business affairs in his clients' favor.
The specter of an untrained self-advocate in a complex, high-profile case raised sharp concerns among some court observers. One cited the trial of Lynette Alice "Squeaky" Fromme, who insisted on exercising her constitutional right to defend herself on charges of trying to shoot then-President Gerald R. Ford, only to turn the courtroom into a circus.
"It's a very foolish thing to do," said Peter Keane, former dean of Golden Gate University School of law in San Francisco. "Usually you're consigning yourself to failure.
"It creates nightmares for judges. Judges and prosecutors hate it," Keane said.
Most lawyers for Pellicano's six co-defendants declined to comment on the record. But while some saw catastrophe, others cited the defendant's stellar career in suggesting he might be effective.
"It affects the whole case," one lawyer said. "You have to address his silly motions. If the government is taking up time answering frivolous motions, it's time they are not spending providing your discovery."
"I don't know what happens with Anthony when he gets up to do his opening statement," said another lawyer. "Does he waive his Fifth Amendment privilege (against self-incrimination)? I don't know which way it cuts, in terms of benefit to the prosecution or the defense."
Pellicano, one of seven defendants in the complicated federal prosecution, had been represented by San Francisco attorney Steven F. Gruel without charge. Pellicano wrote to Fischer that he released Gruel because he felt it was unfair for him to continue working gratis.
Pellicano has been declared indigent, and qualifies for court-paid counsel, a person normally selected from a list of qualified lawyers maintained by the separate federal trial courts in California. Lawyers familiar with the case said Gruel is not on the list, and Fischer was reluctant to appoint him.
Lawyers uniformly praised Gruel as a top attorney, and said his loss would be difficult. Several lawyers and observers suggested other defendants might decide to seek separate trials, adding to delays. The trial is scheduled for this summer.
Several people suggested Pellicano will find it impossible to review all the evidence before trial. Massive amounts of electronic records were seized from Pellicano's computer system before his arrest. Being incarcerated, his options are limited, lawyers said.
Keane said while Pellicano has "assured his own conviction," the impact on other defendants "could go in a number of directions."
"If Pellicano is an abrasive, arrogant, obnoxious person, it could be a godsend for the other defendants. He could deflect all the antipathy towards himself," Keane said.
Half a dozen defendants have pleaded guilty in the broad Pellicano investigation, including a Hollywood filmmaker and a former record executive, both of whom admitted lying to the FBI about hiring Pellicano to wire-tap rivals.
If convicted of all 108 counts in the federal indictment, including wire fraud, identity theft, computer theft and possession of wiretapping devices, Pellicano faces a maximum of 625 years in prison and $26,750,000 in fines.
