Defending Killers. 12 High-Profile Cases of Russia's Most Famous Lawyer

How was Praskovya Kachka exonerated after she shot her former lover—a student from a wealthy family named Bairashevsky—in front of numerous witnesses and refused to explain her actions in court? What mitigating circumstances did Fyodor Plevako cite when defending retired rotmistr Nikolay Lukashevich—who killed his stepmother on his father’s estate? How was Prince Gruzinsky acquitted—after he shot, in the presence of witnesses, the young tutor of his children? Who attempted to poison the merchant Dmitriev—only the mother-in-law, or together with the victim’s wife? These and other questions are answered by the famous Russian lawyer Fyodor Plevako (1842—1908). For his unique ability to convince any panel of jurors of his clients’ innocence, he was nicknamed the “Golden Orator of Moscow.”