Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty
Former President Donald Trump learned the value of delay from the infamous attorney Roy Cohn—who had been Sen. Joseph McCarthy’s chief lawyer during the witch-hunt for communists conducted in the 1950s. In Trump’s case, Cohn delayed a civil rights lawsuit against Trump and his father, Fred Trump, for two years before the case settled.
But even Trump can’t compete with a true master of criminal defense delay like the Bronx-based criminal defense attorney Douglas Rankin, whose legendary delay tactics were highlighted by The New York Times. Notably, Rankin’s delay tactics included being perpetually late to court—his excuses ranging from a lost EZ-Pass to traffic delays.
As most of us know when we are late, every little delay from lost keys to red lights adds up. For criminal defense lawyers, delay is nearly always their friend. Memories fade with time, evidence grows stale and—in Trump’s case—elections happen.