This episode examines The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020), written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, with an all-star cast, including Sacha Baron Cohen, Jeremy Strong, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Mark Rylance, and Frank Langella. The film is based on the 1969 trial of Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Tom Hayden, and other anti-Vietnam War protestors prosecuted for conspiracy in connection with the mass protests —and brutal crackdown by police—at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. (The eighth defendant, Bobby Seale, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, was severed from the case after being bound and gagged in the courtroom on the judge’s order). Our guest is Gerald Lefcourt, who not only is a leading criminal defense attorney, but also was part of the original defense team at the trial and represented Abbie Hoffman for over two decades.Timestamps:0:00 Introduction3:33 Meeting Abbie Hoffman 8:06 Nixon targets the Chicago 7 (then Chicago 8)11:58 The defense team13:25 The egregious treatment of Bobby Seale  22:45. Judge Hoffman: off his rocker25:54  The genius of Abbie Hoffman and the art of political theater30:36 David Dellinger and the MOBE31:59  Abbie, Tom Hayden, and dueling strategies on the left37:21  Abbie: “We have to steal the headlines”41:22  Abbie takes on the CIA43:50  Abbie and Jerry Rubin46:04  The celebrity witnesses48:08  What Aaron Sorkin missed51:33  Abbie’s excellent tennis game55:37  Losing battles and winning wars in political cases59:53 The Chicago 7 trial’s relevance today1:02:31  Abbie’s later career1:07:09  Abbie’s final speech Further Reading:Hancock, Catherine, “Race and Disorder: The Chicago Eight Trial Judge and Prosecutors Meet the Constitution and Bobby Seale,” 96 Tul. L. Rev. 819 (2022)Levine, Mark L. & Greenberg, Daniel eds., The Trial of the Chicago 7: The Official Transcript (2020)Levenson, Laurie L., “Judicial Ethics: Lessons from the Chicago Eight Trial,” 50 Loy. U. Chi. L.J. 879 (2019)Linder, Douglas O. “The Chicago 8 Conspiracy Trial,” http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/Chicago7/Account.htmlMailer, Norman, Miami and the Siege of Chicago (1968)Sims, David, “Aaron Sorkin’s New Film Is the Right Story for This Moment,” The Atlantic (Oct. 16, 2020), https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2020/10/trial-of-the-chicago-7-aaron-sorkin-netflix/616755/Schultz, John, The Conspiracy Trial of the Chicago Seven (2020)Stevens, Dana, “The Trial of the Chicago 7 Is Timely, a Little Sexist, and a Lot of Fun,” Slate, Oct. 14, 2020, https://slate.com/culture/2020/10/trial-chicago-7-review-aaron-sorkin-movie-netflix.htmlWeiner, Jon, Conspiracy in the Streets: The Extraordinary Trial of the Chicago Eight (1993)Law on Film is created and produced by Jonathan Hafetz. Jonathan is a law professor at Seton Hall Law School. He has written many books and articles about the law. He has litigated many important cases to protect civil liberties and defend human rights while working at the ACLU and other organizations. Jonathan is also a huge film buff and has been watching, studying, and talking about movies for as long as he can remember. For more information about Jonathan, here's a link to his bio: https://law.shu.edu/faculty/full-time/jonathan-hafetz.cfmYou can follow him on Twitter @jonathanhafetz You can follow the podcast on Twitter @LawOnFilm