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Interview:
Leigh Johnson - 30th
November 1997
(exceprt
and credit - NineMSN - Sunday)
JOHNSON:
Am I a target for the Law Society?
DALLEY:
Yeah.
JOHNSON:
Completely, and I've been a target for years. Which
is why the star witness, Ms Coghlan, went to them
in the first place, because she knew that where nobody
else would listen to her, that they would listen to
her.
DALLEY:
But many in the legal profession aren't surprised
Leigh Johnson might be the focus of attention. Criminal
defence lawyers tend to raise eyebrows in the profession,
often looked down on as the bottom feeders, their
clients some of the most despised in the community.
But having carved out a career defending the seemingly
indefensible, Leigh Johnson has raised more eyebrows
than most.
With
clients such as convicted Anita Cobby murderer, Gary
Murphy; Milperra massacre bikie, Glen Eaves [ph.sp.];
convicted bank robber, Julie Cashman, once dubbed
the Angel of Death, escapee and drug dealer, Ian Sexton
[ph.sp.]; and Dr Victor Chang's killers.
But
in the conservative world of the legal profession,
it was Johnson's up-front style and media savvy as
much as her client list that brought her both prominence
and opprobrium.
DALLEY:
She is a very controversial figure in the profession,
isn't she?
SIR
LAWRENCE STREET - FORMER NSW SUPREME COURT JUDGE:
Well, part of the skills of the criminal advocate
are flamboyance, the Thespian skills ... many of them
are actors ... Rumpole hasn't got the field to himself,
and that tends to generate a degree of controversy.
I think many of them would view her with a degree
of circumspection, because she is flamboyant.
DALLEY:
Much of the controversy comes from her ever ready
grabs for media on the courtroom steps, often publicly
deriding the prosecution and police in a case.
...[File
tapes]...
JOHNSON:
... because he was afraid for his life? Possibly from
even police themselves because of the knowledge that
he has.
JOHNSON:
... and so that there's some sinister reason why the
police didn't carry out the tests properly.
...[End
file tapes]...
Media
websites
NineMSN
- Sunday
Articles
Bikie
massacre movie planned - 23rd June 2002
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