Barry Bonds struck out on his first attempt to hire a high-powered lawyer to defend him against federal perjury charges.
Negotiations broke down between the home run king and John Keker, a celebrated criminal defense attorney. Reports were that Bonds was put off by Keker’s fee — said to be $900 an hour — and other issues.
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But Bonds stepped up to the plate again, and by the end of last week he had assembled a solid defense team of experienced lawyers.
Led by Bay Area lawyers Allen Ruby and Christina Arguedas, the six lawyers have been involved in a wide variety of highly publicized cases.
Media savvy, they’re also used to representing less than popular clients — the famously surly Bonds falls into this category — and they know the ins and outs of the federal legal system.
Beyond that, should the defense lose at trial, it’s intimately familiar with the appeals process.
“That’s an A-Team (Ruby’s) put together,” Tony West, a former federal prosecutor, told The New York Times.
Ruby is the son of a professional wrestler who wrestled himself while attending Michigan State University. He went on to Stanford University Law School and has represented high-powered corporations, including Microsoft. However, he’s celebrated for his down-home style.
“Ruby’s fans think that one of his strengths with juries is what they describe as his ‘By Golly!’ Regular Guy routine in what look like J.C. Penney suits,” wrote the San Francisco Chronicle.
This year, he successfully defended former San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales, who had been indicted on corruption charges.
Arguedas has taken on many pro bono cases. At the same time, she’s had a series of white-collar clients, including Nancy Heinen, the former general counsel of Apple in a case involving the alleged backdating of stock options. Aguedas joined the defense team in the O.J. Simpson trial, taking on the task of preparing Simpson for cross-examination should he take the stand.
“She a little person in stature but huge in the courtroom,” Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, told the Times. “I’ve watched her against a good lawyer. She ate him up alive. She has confidence because she is prepared.”
Arguedas’ law partner, Ted W. Cassman, is also serving on the Bonds defense team.
They’re joined by Dennis P. Riordan, a lawyer who specializes in appellate cases, and his law partner, Donald M. Horgan.
“Dennis P. Riordan is the man, the go-to-guy, the one they call The Last Hope for convicts who feel they’ve been wronged,” wrote The San Diego Union-Tribune.
In 1988, Riordan won a reversal of the 1976 murder conviction of Black Panther Johnny Spain in a case involving the shootout killing of three San Quentin prison guards.
His firm also got the murder conviction of Marjorie Knoller, whose dog killed a neighbor, reduced to an involuntary manslaughter conviction. After a subsequent court action, Knoller faces retrial on the murder charge.
Michael L. Rains rounds out the Bonds defense team. He has represented the baseball player since 2003 when Bonds learned he was being investigated for his connections to the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO), an alleged supplier of steroids and human growth hormone to athletes.
In December 2004, Bonds testified before a federal grand jury that was investigating BALCO. Represented by Arguedas, sprinter Tim Montgomery also testified before the grand jury.
Bonds was charged last month with four counts of perjury one count of obstruction of justice in connection with his testimony to the grand jury. He pleaded not guilty on Dec. 7.
If convicted, Bonds could face 30 months in prison.
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