Quotes by Alan Dershowitz

“The prosecution lost its credibility by putting a man on the witness stand who lied about the n word.”

“By allowing his client to be sworn under oath about his private sex life, he made a terrible, terrible mistake.”

“The count is going to go on. That doesnt mean my clients will be satisfied with the count. If the count excludes the votes of some whose will is clearly reflected in the ballot, we will pursue our options in the state court.”

“Youre absolutely right: Bob Grant is a racist, Bob Grant is a bigot, hes a despicable talk show host and I agree with that.”

“The jury concluded that Fuhrman planted the glove.”

“Summers committed the cardinal sin against the academic hard left. He expressed politically incorrect views regarding gender, race, religion, sexual preference and the military. . . . In the minds of at least some vocal members of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, expressing such politically incorrect views is the academic equivalent of provoking Islamic extremists by depicting Prophet Mohammad in a political cartoon.”

“Nobody gets immunity from perjury. If he testified falsely, he would be prosecuted. Its hard for me to make a judgment because I dont know whats true and whats false.”

“Its David Duke with footnotes.”

Bigotry against any group should be disqualifying for high office.

For something to be a crime there must be both an actus reus and mens rea — that is, a criminal act accompanied by a criminal state of mind.

This book is dedicated to Israels constructive and nuanced critics, whose rational voices are too often drowned out by the exaggerations, demonizations, and hate-filled lies put forth by Israels enemies. Criticism is the lifeblood of democracy and a sure sign of admiration for an imperfect democracy seeking to improve itself.

Its never acceptable to target civilians. It violates the Geneva Accords, it violates the international law of war and it violates all principles of morality.

Juries are not computers. They are composed of human beings who evaluate evidence differently.

I think mistakes are the essence of science and law. Its impossible to conceive of either scientific progress or legal progress without understanding the important role of being wrong and of mistakes.

Real heroes are those who face death for a principle - say, to save the lives of others - without any promise of reward.

Great research universities must insist on independence from government and on the exercise of academic freedom.

The same independence that got me into trouble in high school got me praise in college.

Good character consists of recognizing the selfishness that inheres in each of us and trying to balance it against the altruism to which we should all aspire. It is a difficult balance to strike, but no definition of goodness can be complete without it.

The threat or fear of violence should not become an excuse or justification for restricting freedom of speech.

It simply cannot be disputed that for decades the Palestinian leadership was more interested in there not being a Jewish state than in there being a Palestinian state.