The ‘Perp Walk’ Debate: Prejudicial or Legit?

[WSJ_law_blog]

Indicted former Bear Stearns fund manager Matthew Tannin being escorted to the courthouse. (Credit: Associated Press)


We’ve visited the topic of the perp walk before, but we thought that given the former Bear Stearns hedge fund managers being forced to do the walk earlier today, it was high time to revisit the issue. Why, we asked ourselves after watching the clips, does this ritual take place, especially when a suspect might otherwise willingly turn himself in? (Click here for visual history of the perp walk, from Tannin to Regis (Adelphia) to Skilling (Enron).)

For a little insight, we checked in with William “Mitch” Mitchelson, a former AUSA and current white-collar defense lawyer at Alston & Bird in Atlanta. Mitchelson, back in March of 2006, helped write this comprehensive piece in the National Law Journal on the perp walk.

Mitchelson informed us that whether a suspect does a perp walk is largely up to the prosecutor. The prosecutor can order an arrest warrant — in which case law-enforcement officials cuff the suspect (usually allowing the suspect to drape a coat over the cuffs, which, in our minds, always looks a little more conspicuous than the cuffs alone) and walk the suspect to his first court appearance. Or the prosecutor can simply issue a summons, allowing the suspect to turn himself in at a pre-appointed time.

Given the no-fuss, no-bother, no-cameras nature of the summons process, why do a perp walk at all? “In high profile cases, it lets the public know that law enforcement is taking action against a problem,” says Mitchelson. “It also encourages people with evidence to come forward.”

That said, Mitchelson, who worked as an AUSA in the Middle District of Florida in Jacksonville in the early 1990s, says he’s “not a big fan” of the perp walk. “Portraying someone in handcuffs right after an arrest really undermines the presumption of innocence, in my opinion.”

LBers, we’d love to hear from you on this one. On the whole, is making someone like Matthew Tannin walk the walk of shame a good thing?