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CNN Live Today

Discussion With Former Attorney For Timothy McVeigh

Aired July 25, 2002 - 13:05   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Joining us now to talk more about this from Enid, Oklahoma: defense attorney Stephen Jones. He was hired and fired by Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.

Thanks for being with us, Stephen.

STEPHEN JONES, FMR. ATTORNEY FOR TIMOTHY MCVEIGH: Thank you, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Are you seeing a lot of parallels between Timothy McVeigh, how he treated you, and how Maoussaoui is treating his court- appointed lawyers.

JONES: There are some parallels, but Mr. Maoussaoui has gone more public. Mr. McVeigh didn't go public until after the trial. Our struggles with him were, for the most part, behind the scenes.

PHILLIPS: Do you have empathy with these court-appointed lawyers?

JONES: Very much so. They didn't ask for the appoint. As I wasn't. They were appointed by the court. They have a very difficult circumstance. I empathize with them. And they have a difficult client. They conducted themselves very professionally.

PHILLIPS: These are two men who allegedly attempted, and in Mr. McVeigh's case, succeeded to conduct terrorist attacks against Americans. Are their objectives the same, with regard to wrangling with the legal system.

JONES: They could be. Tim McVeigh was not opposed to death penalty. His primary objective, as clear from own public statements, was to protect the identity of others.

Mr. Maoussaoui may be playing theater with the court and making himself a martyr to rally support in the Middle East, and yet protect people that may have assisted.

PHILLIPS: Stephen, forgive me, I understand you resigned from the case of Timothy McVeigh; he did not fire you. Why did you resign?

JONES: I had represented him through the trial, and which had been 2 1/2 years. I felt I could no longer control him after the trial was over. He was self-destructive of own legal interest, as in fact turned out to be the case. And so I did not think there was anything I could do for him.

PHILLIPS: Do you think the same thing happening with Maoussaoui? Do you think he's just being destructive to his own case?

JONES: He's been destructive on his own legal case, but Mr. Maoussaoui, like Mr. McVeigh, may be serving what he perceives to be a larger and a political interest.

PHILLIPS: Now you resigned from the case of Timothy McVeigh. This was case getting a lot of publicity, no doubt making money for players involved, and you resigned. That's -- what made you stand by your ethics?

JONES: I did not see any reason to lend myself to something that every day I worked on it could be undercut by the client. That would essentially living a professional lie, and I simply did not think I should continue that.

PHILLIPS: What do you think the options are for Maoussaoui's defense attorneys?

JONES: I believe what the judge will do, and this is important. The judge will first, as he has, let him be his own lawyer, and then when he becomes constructive and obstructive, she will say, wait a minute, there are limits on being your own lawyer, and you're obstructing your own best legal interest, and so I will appoint lawyers for you now to represent you. She can remove him from the courtroom. She can gag him. She can tell him to sit down, that he must speak through his lawyers, and I think that day is not too far off.

PHILLIPS: Stephen Jones, former lawyer for Timothy McVeigh. Thanks for your insight.

JONES: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: Very interesting. Appreciate it, Stephen.

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