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The recent deal brokered by the lawyers representing the rapper “T.I.” here in Atlanta is but one more example of how creative lawyers can sometimes put together a deal that works out for both sides. The high profile nature of the case obscures the bigger point: when qualified and creative defense attorneys work with open-minded prosecutors, sometimes there can be a deal that is in everyone’s best interest.

The Internet is full of stories about how the rapper T.I. was caught in a federal gun investigation just outside a music awards ceremony here in Atlanta. T.I. is a veritable cash cow, making millions for himself, his label and assorted hangers-on. He also is a quite talented young man, if his performance in the movie “American Gangster” is any indication. Unfortunately, T.I. also has a bit of a checkered past, replete with some felony convictions. According to press reports, along with my personal conversations with some of the lawyers and judges involved in the case, it appears that T.I.’s bodyguard got himself into trouble, and then became an informant against his boss. The feds claim that T.I. had the bodyguard purchased numerous weapons, some of which were allegedly stored in a safe at T.I.’s house.

Most defendants in this situation would be facing somewhere between 4 and 6 years in custody. However, T.I.’s defense team came up with a deal in which their client does less than a year in custody, but he has to go out and spend at least 1000 hours talking to at-risk young people about the dangers of guns and violence. One of the truly creative parts of the deal is that it requires that T.I. perform this community service BEFORE he goes to jail, and if he fails in any way, he could be facing more than 5 years in custody.

Criminal defense lawyers in Atlanta are like those throughout the country, I suspect. We enjoy our work, are a bit clubby and territorial, and for the most part pay attention to high profile cases, even when we are not ourselves involved in the matter.

Most people know about the case against Brian Nichols, a man accused of shooting a judge, court reporter, guard and others during a rampage in and near the Fulton County Superior Courthouse a couple of years back. There have been a variety of problems in the case, ranging from the lack of funding for the defense team, squabbles over the location of the trial, and finally, the judge’s decision to step down after he was quoted as saying that everybody knew that the defendant did the crime. A new judge was appointed just this past week.

The Fulton County Daily Report, a local paper for lawyers, did a recent piece on how the new judge might handle the case. The Daily Report quoted me as saying that most new judges would want to familiarize themselves with what happened so far, and that “clever” lawyers would try to re-visit earlier rulings by repackaging previous arguments. Several other lawyers were quoted about other aspects of having a judge replaced in the middle of a high profile case.

Criminal defense attorneys in Atlanta, like lawyers all around the United States, all know how important it is to try and get a bond for their clients, and get the defendant out of jail early in a criminal prosecution. The recent criminal prosecution of the rap artist T.I here in Atlanta on firearms charges is a great example of how the whole process works in a federal criminal case. My law partner Carl Lietz and I have handles hundreds, if not thousands, of such cases, and we recognize how incredibly important it is to our clients and their families to remain free while they fight against a federal criminal case. Not only do we realize how crucial this is, we also know from vast experience how to “work the system” during this early phase of a criminal case.

First, let’s talk about the law. Something called the Bail Reform Act was enacted by Congress in 1984. Readers might remember from an earlier post that this was the same time that Congress enacted the unfortunate Sentencing Guidelines, and all in all, Congress made some very unwise choices when these laws were created. Anyway, under the Bail Reform Act, a prosecutor can try and hold a defendant in jail with no bail or bond whatsoever, something we call “detention.” Before that can happen, there has to be a “detention hearing”, which generally takes place in front of a Federal Magistrate Judge. The prosecutor can put off this detention hearing for up to three business days, which means that some of our clients are held over a weekend just because a prosecutor claims he or she will later win at the detention hearing.