Alan Pfeuffer's life is an adventure on both sides of the
law. He was a beat cop for 20 years before he joined the
DEA as an undercover agent. Then came a botched trial:
two drug smugglers Pfeuffer had arrested were set free
because of a defense attorney's machinations. At that
moment, Pfeuffer decided to become an attorney. Not one
to follow a typical career path, Pfeuffer became a
federal public defender in Columbus, Ohio. Although he
was an ex-cop, he decided to defend criminals because he
knew that thousands are convicted because of poor defense
representation rather than their guilt. In 2005, Pfeuffer
volunteered to defend two Afghani men suspected of
terrorism who were detained at Guantanamo Bay. In the
summer of 2006, he traveled to Afghanistan in the hopes
of collecting enough evidence to free them both. The
Supreme Court ruled in their favor and both were freed on
technicalities Pfeuffer brought to light. Based upon his
initial success, Pfeuffer has recently been assigned to
two more Guantanamo cases. He just returned from
Afghanistan, where he collected evidence for the defense.
Packed with real-life stories and anecdotes, "Both Sides
of the Law "is the story of Pfeuffer's unusual and
inspired criminal justice and legal careers.
