William Ayers, former Louisville criminal defense lawyer whose Jefferson Circuit Court conviction for tax crimes was reversed by the Kentucky Court of Appeals in 2010, will now have that reversal reviewed by the Kentucky Supreme Court, at the request of the Commonwealth. The Kentucky Supreme Court granted today a “Motion for Discretionary Review,” meaning they will take up whether the Court of Appeals was correct in reversing Ayer’s conviction.
Ayers, who was tried for tax crimes in 2009 by Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom VaDeRostyne, was convicted before Judge Susan Gibson of five count of failure to file tax returns. Ayers claimed on appeal that the trial judge did not adequately protect him from the pitfalls of representing himself (Yes, you read that correctly). This would have involved the trial court conducting what is known as a “Faretta” hearing, at which the judge is to pointedly question any criminal defendant about whether they truly want to represent themselves, and essentially tell them that it is a bad idea. (We all know the Abraham Lincoln quote about that, don’t we?). The Court of Appeals ruled that, indeed, Ayers was entitled to such a hearing, and that the trial judge must be reversed for failing to conduct one. There is not an exception for practicing criminal defense attorneys. Perhaps there will be such an exception after the Supreme Court hears the case. Stay tuned.
