Dershowitz

Alan Dershowitz's book "The Abuse Excuse" looks as if it was put together in a hurry. It could well be titled "The Abuse Excuse and a Bunch of Tenuously Related Columns Thrown Together for the Purpose of Thickening My Book, Publishing My Columns and Making 'The Abuse Excuse' a Household Word Attributed to Me."The purpose of the book -- executed well when the author stays on topic -- is to attack and unmask America's proliferous excuse-making inside and outside of the criminal justice system and warn of the consequences.

Alan M. Dershowitz, a Harvard Law professor and one of the nation's leading commentators on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, told about 1,800 people last night at a program commemorating the Holocaust and celebrating the 60th anniversary of Israel's independence that the world continues to be in denial about the intentions of Islamic fundamentalists, who he said have "opted for a culture of death rather than one of peace." Dershowitz, 69, spoke for about 45 minutes at the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation in front of an audience that included Gov. Martin O'Malley, Mayor Sheila Dixon, other state political leaders and dozens of Holocaust survivors.

Can a democracy ever condone torture? In the months since Abu Ghraib, the controversy over what constitutes torture and when, if ever, it can be used has been rife. The pictures from the prison expose a sinister reality: Torture remains a dark weapon human beings continue to wield against each other. The first military hearings of those accused in the torture have begun. Early this month, Pfc. Lynndie England, the 21-year-old whose impish grin smiled out from many of those brutal pictures, proffered a defense reminiscent of other torturers: England says she was just following orders.

Can a democracy ever condone torture? In the months since Abu Ghraib, the controversy over what constitutes torture and when, if ever, it can be used has been rife. The pictures from the prison expose a sinister reality: Torture remains a dark weapon human beings continue to wield against each other. The first military hearings of those accused in the torture have begun. Early this month, Pfc. Lynndie England, the 21-year-old whose impish grin smiled out from many of those brutal pictures, proffered a defense reminiscent of other torturers: England says she was just following orders.

CONTRARY TO POPULAR OPINION. By Alan M. Dershowitz. Pharos Books. 398 pages. $22.95.ONCE upon a time there was a young Harvard professor who decided that instead of getting all his legal knowledge from law ++ books, he also would get involved in actual court cases. From such unusual beginnings did Alan Dershowitz move on to become one of the most famous lawyers in America -- becoming in the process an author, talk show guest and even a major character in a motion picture.He also, somehow, finds time to write a syndicated newspaper )

As any TV viewer who watches the afternoon shock shows knows, things can get pretty rank when Oprah, Geraldo, Maury, Montel and the rest of the posse climb aboard their steeds.For instance, it looked as if the local fire department would have to be summoned yesterday when a mother and her 14-year-old daughter tried to explain how beneficial it was for both of them to frequent a male strip joint together. The audience hardly agreed.However, many of the shows often turn out to be informative and entertaining and even thought-provoking as the "Montel Williams Show" does today (Channel 2, 3 p.m.)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Jim Bakker was expected to accept responsibility for misleading PTL's faithful today, but it was unclear how far Bakker's admission would go.One of Bakker's attorneys, Alan Dershowitz, said yesterday that the fallen television evangelist planned to "tell the court he feels completelyresponsible . . . and will accept responsibility for his conduct."But when asked yesterday if that meant Bakker would own up to intentionally defrauding PTL partners, Dershowitz said, "He's not going to say something that isn't the case," Dershowitz said, leaving court after the first day of Bakker's two-day resentencing hearing.

Mike Tyson, who never got a chance to regain his heavyweight crown, today gets a chance to regain his freedom.A year after Tyson, 26, was convicted of raping an 18-year-old Miss Black America contestant in an Indianapolis hotel room, lawyers for the former champion will argue before the Indiana Court of Appeals that Tyson's conviction should be reversed because of mistakes by the trial judge, Patricia Gifford.The hearing is Tyson's last best hope for winning a new trial after a scandal that derailed his career and became a flash point for race-and-gender politics.

WATCHING THE fascinating ''Reversal of Fortune'' is a little like watching ''GoodFellas,'' Martin Scorsese's comedy-drama about a young man and his life as a Mafia hood.Much of the dialogue in ''Reversal of Fortune'' is extremely witty and funny, but when you laugh, you wonder why.This is, after all, the story of Claus Von Bulow, the man who was convicted then acquitted of attempting to murder his wife, Sunny Von Bulow.Of course, it is difficult to have that much feeling for the victim as portrayed in the film.

Alan M. Dershowitz, a Harvard Law professor and one of the nation's leading commentators on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, told about 1,800 people last night at a program commemorating the Holocaust and celebrating the 60th anniversary of Israel's independence that the world continues to be in denial about the intentions of Islamic fundamentalists, who he said have "opted for a culture of death rather than one of peace." Dershowitz, 69, spoke for about 45 minutes at the Baltimore Hebrew Congregation in front of an audience that included Gov. Martin O'Malley, Mayor Sheila Dixon, other state political leaders and dozens of Holocaust survivors.

THE ANCHORS HAD been warned. If the jury finds against O.J. Simpson in his civil trial, don't say ''guilty,'' say ''liable.'' Not guilty. Liable.But then Peter Jennings, in one of the most deeply satisfying mistakes in the history of his medium, put it precisely. He meant to say, ''Mr. Simpson is liable.'' What he said was, ''Mr. Guilty is liable.'' The addled anchor was right. It was Mr. Guilty who was liable.Still, we are cheerless. The new finding against O.J. Simpson is cold comfort for the old finding for O.J. Simpson, because it is marred by a miserable paradox.

ALAN DERSHOWITZ has been called "the lawyer of last resort" and "the patron saint of lost causes." He has represented some of the most controversial figures of our time: Leona Helmsley, Michael Milken, Jim Bakker, Mike Tyson, Claus Von Bulow.Lately, Mr. Dershowitz has been representing that most controversial and most public figure of them all: O.J. Simpson.The renowned attorney and Harvard law professor was in Fort Worth last week mounting a spirited defense on behalf of one of the most maligned classes on the planet: lawyers.

Alan Dershowitz's book "The Abuse Excuse" looks as if it was put together in a hurry. It could well be titled "The Abuse Excuse and a Bunch of Tenuously Related Columns Thrown Together for the Purpose of Thickening My Book, Publishing My Columns and Making 'The Abuse Excuse' a Household Word Attributed to Me."The purpose of the book -- executed well when the author stays on topic -- is to attack and unmask America's proliferous excuse-making inside and outside of the criminal justice system and warn of the consequences.

LOS ANGELES -- Former star running back O. J. Simpson has hired some of the best blockers in the legal profession to defend him against two murder charges, a high-priced team of specialists few defendants could afford and one that leaves uncovered few aspects of the case expected to be mounted against him.Criminal defense attorneys say the team approach enhances Mr. Simpson's chances in court by enabling each of the lawyers to focus on what he does best....

As any TV viewer who watches the afternoon shock shows knows, things can get pretty rank when Oprah, Geraldo, Maury, Montel and the rest of the posse climb aboard their steeds.For instance, it looked as if the local fire department would have to be summoned yesterday when a mother and her 14-year-old daughter tried to explain how beneficial it was for both of them to frequent a male strip joint together. The audience hardly agreed.However, many of the shows often turn out to be informative and entertaining and even thought-provoking as the "Montel Williams Show" does today (Channel 2, 3 p.m.)

Mike Tyson, who never got a chance to regain his heavyweight crown, today gets a chance to regain his freedom.A year after Tyson, 26, was convicted of raping an 18-year-old Miss Black America contestant in an Indianapolis hotel room, lawyers for the former champion will argue before the Indiana Court of Appeals that Tyson's conviction should be reversed because of mistakes by the trial judge, Patricia Gifford.The hearing is Tyson's last best hope for winning a new trial after a scandal that derailed his career and became a flash point for race-and-gender politics.

NEW YORK -- With her sentence for tax evasion upheld yesterday, self-styled hotel queen Leona Helmsley said she was "prepared to abide by the law" by going to prison today.Helmsley is to report to a federal prison hospital in Kentucky after an appeals court upheld her four-year sentence. The court rejected arguments by her attorney that the term would amount to a "life sentence" for her and a "death sentence" for her ailing husband.The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in a unanimous decision that a lower court judge had not abused his discretion in denying Helmsley's appeal of her sentence.

In "Reversal of Fortune," Jeremy Irons comes on like some sort of Eurotrash St. Sebastian, a sleek, icy geek who looks sensational in expensive clothes, smokes with more style than a regiment of hussars, and affects soigne indifference to the arrows the American legal system insists on shooting into his body.Irons makes a stunning Claus Von Bulow, the titled swell who married and then possibly tried to murder his impossibly rich wife, Sunny, in their 56-room Newport, R.I., cottage one Christmas season a decade ago.The movie, directed by Barbet Schroeder, is neither tragedy nor muckraking exercise in outrage: Rather, it's a comedy of manners, --ing after macabre giggles as it contrasts the bizarre Von Bulow with his ultimate defender, the earthy liberal guru of the law, Harvard professor and talk show gadfly Alan Dershowitz, who is played by Ron Silver.

CONTRARY TO POPULAR OPINION. By Alan M. Dershowitz. Pharos Books. 398 pages. $22.95.ONCE upon a time there was a young Harvard professor who decided that instead of getting all his legal knowledge from law ++ books, he also would get involved in actual court cases. From such unusual beginnings did Alan Dershowitz move on to become one of the most famous lawyers in America -- becoming in the process an author, talk show guest and even a major character in a motion picture.He also, somehow, finds time to write a syndicated newspaper )

NEW YORK -- With her sentence for tax evasion upheld yesterday, self-styled hotel queen Leona Helmsley said she was "prepared to abide by the law" by going to prison today.Helmsley is to report to a federal prison hospital in Kentucky after an appeals court upheld her four-year sentence. The court rejected arguments by her attorney that the term would amount to a "life sentence" for her and a "death sentence" for her ailing husband.The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in a unanimous decision that a lower court judge had not abused his discretion in denying Helmsley's appeal of her sentence.