Judge admonishes El Chapo's lawyer for opening statement
NEW YORK — A federal judge admonished the lawyer for Mexican drug smuggler El Chapo on Wednesday after an opening statement that riled Mexican presidents by accusing them of taking bribes.
Federal prosecutors had asked U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan to throw out the defense's opening statement at the New York trial of Joaquin Guzman, saying it was "permeated with improper argument, unnoticed affirmative defenses and inadmissible hearsay."
Cogan stopped short of that Wednesday but admonished defense attorney Jeffrey Lichtman for having gone "far afield of direct or circumstantial proof." He said he would instruct the jury to focus on the evidence.
"Your opening statement handed out a promissory note that your case is not going to cash," the judge said, calling Lichtman's opening misleading.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/judge-admonishes-el-chapos-lawyer-for-opening-statement/ar-BBPHKI8?li=BBnb7Kz
