One of Jeffrey Epstein’s lawyers has spoken out after the wealthy financier, charged with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy, died of an apparent suicide while in federal custody in Manhattan on Saturday.
Marc Fernich, a member of Epstein’s defense, responded to his client’s death in an email to New York City courts reporter John Riley, who tweeted it out on Saturday. Fernich wrote that he speaks “as an outraged citizen and defense lawyer, not as a representative of Jeffrey Epstein’s defense team.”
Here’s a statement from one of Jeffrey Epstein’s lawyers, Marc Fernich: Lots of people with “blood on their hands.” pic.twitter.com/n4mNmWAtAc
— John Riley (@jriley8832) August 10, 2019
“There seems to be plenty of blame to go around for this unthinkable tragedy,” Fernich wrote. “Overzealous prosecutors bent on locking up a presumptively innocent man posing no real danger or flight risk. Pandering politicians who wrote the restrictive bail laws that empower them to do it.”
“Compliant judges who let them get away with it while paying lip service to the presumption of innocence,” Fernich continued on in the email. “Jailers who appear to have recklessly put Mr. Epstein in harm’s way, heedlessly placing his life at risk and failing to protect him.”
Fernich appeared to be criticizing US District Judge Richard Berman’s decision to deny Epstein bail, announced July 18, a week before Epstein’s first apparent suicide attempt. In his decision to withhold bail, Berman argued that no bail package could overcome the danger posed to the community if Epstein was released. – READ MORE