Bruce Barket shared the following note with his colleagues after achieving a notable federal sentencing hearing outcome with Aida Leisenring:
"Time Served" is not a phrase often heard at the end of a federal sentencing hearing. Aida and I heard that phrase yesterday.
What is even more remarkable is that after the judge said, “Time already served,” (which, by the way, was no more than an hour or two during processing), she said, “I am not going to order supervision or probation. Good luck, sir, keep doing the volunteer work you have been doing.” She did this despite a guideline range of 121-151 months, millions lost to a fraud scheme that swindled dozens of people of tens and in some cases hundreds of thousands of dollars, a recommendation of 48 months by probation, and two victims of the fraud scheme who lost their life savings speaking at sentencing.
The client, his family and friends, which included a retired NYC detective and a partner at a large law firm, were overjoyed.
Our office (mostly Aida) did an excellent job at developing a narrative and getting letters and documents to support our version of the events. It was a masterful sentence memo, the themes of which the judge adopted in issuing her sentence.
You all know what I say about our criminal practice: “We represent the accused, seek mercy for those convicted and participate in the exoneration of the innocent.” Given the nature of criminal defense, seeking mercy is the skill used most often. It is a critical function of our representation, and I am proud to say we are highly skilled mercy seekers! Great work by all involved