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Mesereau’s fame is ironic. He admonishes

attorneys who seek fame and fortune and

believes such goals are responsible for much

misery in the legal profession.

Known for his shock of white hair and

his brilliant and often unusual cross-

examination skills, Mesereau said winning

the Jackson trial with �4 not-guilty verdicts

had increased interest in his career, but had

not changed him as a man or an attorney.

He recently started a new firm, Mesereau

& Yu, with his co-counsel from the Jackson

and Robert Blake trials, Susan Yu. And he

continues to take on death penalty cases pro bono.

“Unfortunately, most lawyers don’t want

to do pro bono work. They’re caught up in

their lifestyle; they’re caught up in paying

their debts; they’re caught up in wearing

nice clothes and driving fancy cars, and, you

know, all of sudden, they realize they’re not

terribly fulfilled,” he said. “Civil rights work,

pro bono work can be extremely fulfilling.

I didn’t get to Michael Jackson through

Hollywood, and I didn’t get to Michael

Jackson by being known as a celebrity

lawyer. I got to Michael Jackson for my work

in the black community and my concern for

civil rights.”

While some believe Michael Jackson

was found innocent partly because of his

celebrity, Mesereau says Michael Jackson

was a targeted because of his fame.

“I felt that Michael Jackson was a victim of

his own celebrity status,” he said. “I felt that

prosecutors and sheriffs were trying to make

names for themselves and obtain fame and

fortune at his expense by trying to exploit

the fact that he’s a different kind of human

being. And I felt he was a victim of what I call

celebrity injustice. He was targeted because

he’s a megastar and they used resources

that they would never have used even if he

were a serial killer.”

Mesereau said that millions of dollars were

needlessly spent trying to convict Jackson

and 70 officers raided Jackson’s home and

prosecutors traveled overseas to find people

to testify against Jackson. Mesereau is in

the initial stages of writing a book on the

experience.

“I’d like the book to focus on my views of the

justice system, my views of criminal defense,

and also use the Michael Jackson case as an

example of how injustice can appear in all

areas, including how the media treated the

case, how the prosecutors treated the case,

et cetera,” he said.

Mesereau needed a vacation after the case.

Now he’s working on a book proposal, setting

up the new firm, and preparing for a death

penalty case in Alabama. He tries one such

case a year in Alabama and is passionate

about abolishing the death penalty, which

he considers barbaric and ineffectual.

One of Mesereau’s friends was the former

director of the American Bar Association’s

Death Penalty Representation Project in

Washington, DC, and she got him involved

with a group of attorneys in Alabama.

“She was primarily trying to get the services

of lawyers to do appellate work and post-

conviction work. I told her that I don’t do

post-conviction work, that I’m a trial lawyer

and I’m willing to try cases,” he said. “And

she indicated to me that that was highly

unusual, that most trial lawyers don’t want

to go anywhere near a death penalty case pro bono.”

Community service has always been a part of

Mesereau’s life, even before he went to law

school. The son of a World War II hero and

West Point graduate, Mesereau said it took

him years to decide he wanted to work in

criminal defense and urged young attorneys

to keep trying different areas of the law and

different firms until they find what makes

them happy. Early in his career, Mesereau

tried administrative law in a big Washington,

DC, firm and spent a year as a prosecutor,

which he disliked. Mesereau is known for

putting prosecutors on the stand during

trials.

“Don’t give up finding a niche that satisfies

you. Too many lawyers will go from one firm

to another firm to a third firm to a fourth firm

and basically finally throw up their hands and

say, “It’s never going to get better,’” he said.

“I think that’s a mistake. I think there are

fulfilling opportunities for all lawyers if they

will really look into who they are and keep

trying.”

After studying government and international

affairs at Harvard, Mesereau worked as a

speechwriter on Capitol Hill. He then earned

a Master’s degree in International Affairs

at the London School of Economics before

attending law school at the University of

California, Hastings College of the Law.

continued on back

Thomas A. Mesereau, Jr. [by Regan Morris]

Since the Michael Jackson trial ended in June, Thomas Mesereau’s phone has been ringing off the

hook. His successful defense of Jackson made Mesereau one of the most famous attorneys in the world.

LawCrossing speaks to Mesereau about his practice and his commitment to fighting injustices—for both

celebrity clients and impoverished men on death row.

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Mesereau said he finally found his niche with

criminal defense work, but can’t remember

the first criminal case he tried. When asked

the about his success in the courtroom,

Mesereau said the secret is a good memory

and old-fashioned work habits.

“I do not use a computer. I don’t like them,”

he said. “I’m known for my prodigious

memory when I try cases. I’ve been known

to cross-examine people for days based on

what’s in my head and looking at documents

in front of me. And I feel if I were used to

stuffing everything into a computer, I would

not stuff it into my head.”

Mesereau said he does not talk about his

financial situation, but does not consider

himself overly affluent. He consistently talks

about how fulfillment is more important than

money. He is an active volunteer in South Los

Angeles, offering legal advice to the poor.

“I really believe that lawyers often miss

the boat. They’re unhappy in their work;

they’re unfulfilled; but they never try to find

a way out of it,” he said. “People with our

education and our professional opportunities

have many, many options available to them.

And one of the options they have is to fight

injustice and to make a contribution to

society.”

In �003, when prosecutors announced

the warrant for Jackson’s arrest during a

televised press conference, many people

were shocked to see the media, prosecutors,

and the sheriff laughing and telling jokes

about Jackson and the child molestation

charges.

“Well, we had the last laugh,” Mesereau said.

“We got �4 not-guilty verdicts, �0 felonies

and four misdemeanors. So I think we had

the last laugh in that one.”