Engaged by the defense in a high profile federal prosecution of a Staten Island businessman confronting strong evidence of his guilt, The Forensic Panel’s examiner probed mitigation possibilities in anticipation of sentencing. The seemingly unsympathetic defendant had been publicly vilified for the unusual actions that led to his arrest. Our expertise in the interface of medical illness and psychiatry proved decisive, as The Forensic Panel uncovered brain involvement of Lyme disease, and clarified its impact on the defendant’s illegal choices.
In a case that earlier portended severe sentencing, the judge gave strong consideration to The Forensic Panel’s well-substantiated findings, and the defendant was summarily released to the community in downward departure.
