The dark-skinned lawyer of the “devil”, known for his unshakable position to defend the rights of African Americans, was born in American Louisiana in 1937 (he died in 2005 from a brain tumor). Who would have thought that this dark-skinned guy, whose great-great-grandfather was a slave, would achieve world fame, recognition and wealth in America in the 50-60s?
Man band
Johnny Cochran over his saturated 67 years managed to probably live several similar average lives. His experience and knowledge would be enough for a couple of careers. He managed to make himself known not only in the field of advocacy, but also as a TV presenter and writer, public figure and just an incredibly charming and charismatic person. Indeed, in the beginning he had no connections, no money, but only talent and just an unearthly industriousness, and nothing heralded success.
Quotes by Johnny Cochran became part of national folklore, his fiery figurative speeches, manner of communication and behavior became a model for some, as well as for others - objects of hatred. A large number of film and literature characters are created in his image.
A galaxy of famous defendants, including Michael Jackson, as well as Jim Brown and actor Todd Bridges, rappers Snoop Dogg and Tupac Shakur were honorably justified by Johnny Cochran. But the most notorious case won by a lawyer is O. Jay Simpson, who was accused of killing his wife and her friend, and against which all the evidence was there. The defendant had not only defenders, but also worthy prosecutors.
Johnny has gained incredible popularity not only in his own country, but throughout the world. Visiting South Africa, he was surprised that even local children knew him and greeted him by name. He is the only one in his person who has drastically changed the world view of a dark-skinned lawyer, who, it turns out, can be the smartest expert with an unrivaled talent for reading both the letter of the law and human hearts.
TV, publications
He outlined many of his professional activities in his own two books - The Life of a Lawyer, which he co-authored with David Fisher and Travel for Justice. For three years, Johnny Cochran also televised on Court TV, a human rights advocate.
Roots
The black boy Johnny was born in an ordinary family, his dad owned a small business. As already mentioned earlier, Cochran’s great-great-grandfather was a slave, and grandfather worked his whole life on a small plot of land, working as a sharecropper.
Education, career start
What prompted the young boy to step on the rails of the bar and jurisprudence? Cochran was inspired by the activities of attorney Tergud Marshall with the Brown case against the Education Commission. This happened in 1954, during a scandalous trial, Marshall proved the violation of the rights of black children who are educated separately from whites. In his opinion, the levels of knowledge acquisition in children were completely different, as was the material and technical equipment. Why should black children get an order of magnitude worse?
Cochran considered this case with a cold head, and later wrote in a biographical work that the law as a social tool can be very effective. Johnny wanted to be involved in this, he wanted to fight, seeing that jurisprudence could change the world for the better, he wanted to make his own contribution, protecting the oppressed and the disadvantaged. No one and nothing could turn him astray when he made this decision.
Johnny managed to enroll and graduate from the University of California and receive further law education at the Loyola Law School.
After graduation, Cochran gained experience at the Los Angeles Attorney's Office, managing to "grow" to the position of Deputy City Prosecutor for Criminal Cases. At that time, there was not a single black lawyer in the prosecutor's office, except for him. The career of a talented guy was successful, but despite this, Johnny left the civil service.
Practice
He enlisted in a private law office, and then, having accumulated funds, founded his own company - Cochran, Atkins & Evans. The first truly significant business that the new company took up was a lawsuit filed by a black driver, her husband was killed by police officers who mistook him for a criminal. The case was lost, but Johnny Cochran regarded this as not a personal defeat, but as an excellent case for the "buildup" of the African American population in attempts to fight for their rights. And he was right - the matter has resonated in society.
Quite quickly, the young lawyer Johnny Cochran realized that money is everything in this world. Including in the field of justice.
Already in the late 1970s, he became famous and in his practice specialized in claims of police abuse of power, he dreamed that the police would stop considering black people a priori as criminals. The office was inundated with business, customers went one by one.
Many of Johnny Cochran’s affairs had a wide public outcry. For example, the case when the police killed a black man who exceeded speed. At the same time, he took his pregnant wife to the hospital. Or else - a guy of 19 years who was looking after a child in a strange house was killed - he was mistaken for a robber.
Johnny Cochran gradually became so popular that his earnings began to exceed one million dollars a year.
Juice itself
In the case of O.J. Simpson, Cochran had no formal evidence of the innocence of the client, then the lawyer resorted to informal, relying on the infringement of the rights of African Americans, seeing Simpson as a victim of racial discrimination. Cochran has always brought a creative approach to his affairs. He argued that there are 20, 000 people in Los Angeles whose blood matches the one found at the crime scene. During a court hearing, he told Simpson to put on the killer’s gloves with traces of blood, and then said to the jury: “If the glove doesn't fit, you must acquit "(" If the glove did not fit, the defendant must be acquitted "). The phrase became winged.
In 1995, after defeating the Simpson trial, Johnny Cochran was proclaimed the Best Lawyer of the Year by the National Law Journal. In 2000, our hero entered the hundred of America’s most influential lawyers. Students considered him the best after Clarence Darrow, Gerry Spence and Tergud Marshall.
Statements, opinions, quotes
Johnny Cochran took a rather aggressive-cynical stance towards the American justice system. This was evidenced by the fact that he calmly walked around in T-shirts with the inscription: “Innocent until I go bankrupt, ” and in his interviews he emphasized that jurisprudence works on money, like on gasoline, and if you are poor, the law will not protect you.
A lawyer with like-minded people launched the national campaign “Project Innocence”, checking the DNA of criminals with DNA samples of the accused. More than a hundred innocent prisoners were released.
Sponsor, teacher
Johnny Cochran was involved in charity work and sponsored various cultural events such as exhibitions and vernissages. In 1998, he founded the Art Fund, 250 thousand dollars were allocated to him for the maintenance of this organization.
Photo attorney Johnny Cochran probably hangs at the head of the bed of many novice lawyers. He set up a scholarship for African American students at the University of California, the Early Baptist Church Early Learning Center, a forty-year-old parishioner, was also founded by a prominent lawyer. Cochran also taught, in particular, lectured at Harvard.
