JaMarcus Russell has lawyered up for the criminal trial proceedings of his codeine cough syrup arrest, and certainly his legal team will never be called slow, lazy, or unmotivated.
"I think at the end of the day, JaMarcus is going to be acquitted and will go on about the business of getting on with his career," Russell's attorney Donald Briskman told the Mobile Press-Register.
Sports writers nationwide are scoffing at Briskman's confidence, considering how red-handedly Russell appears to have been caught.
"Any lawyer who pretends to know in advance the outcome of a legal case is lying, stupid, or both," quips former attorney Mike Florio at ProFootballTalk.com.
But Donald M. Briskman, Esq. is no slouch lawyer. He's been an Alabama Super Lawyer since 2008, meaning he's considered to be among the top 5 percent of all attorneys in the state. Briskman himself has more than 10 years experience serving as a judge in Mobile, Ala., which is where the case will be tried.
JaMarcus' legal team seems to have quickly settled on a strategy -- that Russell is being unfairly persecuted because of his fame. Briskman notes that Russell's home was full of people at the time of the arrest, but only JaMarcus was hauled off to jail.
"There was close to a dozen people there. I think the facts speak for themselves," Briskman told the Press-Register. "Of course he was targeted."
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Briskman says Russell will plead not guilty at his July 20 arraignment.
Joe Kukura is a freelance writer who expects to see the phrase "Roll Tide!" turn up in court papers if JaMarcus' case is tried in Alabama.
