Gerald "Jerry" Lawrence Shargel (October 5, 1944 – July 16, 2022) was an American
defense attorney who was based in New York City and generally considered one of the best criminal defense lawyers in the country.
Shargel was widely regarded as one of the best criminal defense attorneys in New York.[7][8] A 1998 profile in The New York Times referred to him as "regarded on
Centre Street as a brilliant tactician and a very good trial lawyer with a successful white-collar practice".[9] In receiving the
Thurgood Marshall Award for Outstanding Criminal Law Practitioner by the
New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in 2006, he was referred to as "one of the most brilliant criminal defense attorneys in America… quite possibly the finest of his generation".[10]
In a 1991 federal case against the
Gambino crime family, Shargel was initially slated to represent
underbossSammy Gravano. However, Judge
I. Leo Glasser barred Shargel and
Bruce Cutler from representing, respectively, Gravano and Gotti, agreeing with prosecutors' assertion that the lawyers were "in-house counsel" to the Gambinos. Prosecutors, including
John Gleeson, contended that since Shargel and Cutler may have known about criminal activity, they were "part of the evidence" and liable to be called as witnesses.[11]
Shargel was well known for his courtroom style and dramatic presentations, which may have helped some of his clients to be found not guilty. For example, in 2005,
Murder Inc. record label owners
Irv and Chris Gotti (who are no relation to his aforementioned client
John) were acquitted on all charges, possibly partially due to the effect of his courtroom demeanor on the jury—as there were a number of lively exchanges between him and
NYPD detective Anthony Castiglia during testimony.[15][16][17]
In 2012 Shargel defended
hip hop mogul
James "Jimmy Henchman" Rosemond, CEO of Czar Entertainment, in a federal trial in
Brooklyn, New York, presided over by Judge Gleeson.[18] Rosemond was convicted on all charges (including cocaine distribution, conspiracy, money laundering, firearms possession, and witness tampering),[18] and on October 25, 2013, he was sentenced to life imprisonment.[19][20]
Shargel also taught criminal law classes at his alma mater,
Brooklyn Law School,[21] where he held the position of Practitioner-In-Residence, teaching courses on evidence, criminal procedure, and trial advocacy.[3][5] He was also a frequent writer and commentator on legal issues that arise during high-profile criminal cases, which generate sustained national and regional media focus.[22]
In 2018, he retired from active law practice, citing burnout.[1]