Most
lawyers
focus
on
defending
their
clients.
As
you
should,
it’s
the
job
after
all!
But
procedural
issues
and
statutory
interpretation
aren’t
the
only
things
you
need
to
stand
on
guard
for.
Sometimes
the
bigger
threat
is
sitting
right
next
to
you.
One
lawyer
found
that
out
the
hard
way
when
his
client
allegedly
sucker
punched
him
after
a
negative
verdict.
ABA
Journal
has
coverage:
A
criminal
defense
lawyer
has
said
he
does
not
have
direct
knowledge
of
allegedly
getting
punched
in
the
face
by
a
client.“At
that
point
apparently,
I
was
out.
My
client
hit
me
in
the
face.
People
in
the
courtroom
said
I
fell
back
in
the
chair,
hit
a
counter
and
apparently
fell
to
the
ground,”
Houston
lawyer
John
Petruzzi
told
Fox
26
Houston.
…The
sentence
range
was
five
to
50
years,
and
the
judge
in
April
sided
with
the
government
for
a
50-year
sentence.
Then
came
the
alleged
punch.
Receiving
a
guilty
verdict
is
a
heavy
event.
While
I’m
sure
everyone
would
like
to
think
that
they’d
remain
stoic,
crying
or
passing
out
aren’t
all
that
out
of
the
ordinary.
While
rare,
this
is
far
from
the
only
time
that
someone
has
reacted
violently
to
an
unfavorable
verdict.
The
last
time
something
like
this
went
viral
there
was
more
jumping
involved:
Unsurprisingly,
Petruzzi’s
former
client,
Jaquarius
Lewis,
was
promptly
charged
with
intentionally
causing
bodily
harm.
I’m
usually
not
one
to
give
advice
on
how
to
hurt
people
and
get
away
with
it,
but
it
generally
isn’t
a
good
idea
to
do
that
in
a
courtroom.
That
isn’t
legal
advice
mind
you,
and
it
definitely
isn’t
directed
at
Mr.
Lewis.
Especially
after
hearing
what
he
was
accused
of
doing
to
the
last
guy
that
gave
him
legal
advice.
Criminal
Defense
Lawyer
Allegedly
Punched
In
Face
After
Client
Gets
Maximum
Sentence
For
Murder
[ABA
Journal]
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s
.
He
endured
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boat
builder
who
is
learning
to
swim
and
is
interested
in
rhetoric,
Spinozists
and
humor.
Getting
back
in
to
cycling
wouldn’t
hurt
either.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at
[email protected]
and
by
Tweet/Bluesky
at @WritesForRent.