Atlanta attorney Lin Wood hired to defend Cain

By Bill Torpy

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Lin Wood, the Atlanta lawyer hired by Herman Cain to defend him against multiple sexual harassment accusations, is “the pit bull you have chained to a stake guarding your house.”

That observation came from Steve Sadow, another Atlanta lawyer, who calls Wood the “best libel/defamation lawyer in the country.”

Wood, 59, has the track record, working different sides of highly charged cases involving Richard Jewell, JonBenet Ramsey, Kobe Bryant and U.S. Rep. Gary Condit.

Standing at Cain’s side at a news conference Tuesday in Phoenix, Wood said his newest client has been “falsely accused, first by anonymous sources, and then yesterday by Sharon Bialek, who chose to come forward for whatever reason after 14 years, when recollections have faded and witnesses cannot be located.”

Wood, in an interview from Arizona, was hired this week after rumors of a fourth woman bringing sexual accusations against Cain emerged. The lawyer said the campaign hadn’t necessarily thought about bringing legal action against anyone -- at least yet.

“I’m not here to scare anyone off,” Wood said, referring to the prospect of more allegations. “[However] they should think twice, anyway.”

Added Wood, “I’ve been brought in to bring an element of fairness to the accusations being brought against Mr. Cain.”

Wood gained legal fame representing Jewell, the security guard suspected by law enforcement of being involved in the 1996 Centennial Park bombing, which led to two deaths. Jewell sued The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and other news media.

The libel suit against the AJC was dismissed by the trial court. An appeal by Jewell’s estate is pending.

Wood’s reputation, as a fierce and tenacious advocate in the courtroom and in front of TV klieg lights, has brought him a host of celebrity cases.

He was hired by the parents of JonBenet, 6, a beauty queen who was murdered in Ramseys’ Colorado home in 1996. The parents brought suit against a book publisher who suggested the mother, Patsy Ramsey, killed the girl in a fit of rage. That case was settled. Wood represented the woman who accused Bryant, the NBA star, of sexual assault. That case, too, was settled for an undisclosed amount.

Wood also represented Condit, the politician whose name was connected with Chandra Levy, a woman who was abducted and murdered in 2001.

“He was pretty good at scaring CNN, NBC and the New York Post into quick settlements in the Jewell case,” said Atlanta lawyer Jack Martin, who originally represented Jewell during the criminal investigation. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he employs a scorched-earth policy here.

“If your goal is to scare people off, he’s someone you might want to hire. Knowing he’s there, anyone will think twice before making a new accusation.”

Brandon Hornsby, a lawyer who has worked with Wood, said Wood is good at speaking in simple, declarative sentences and in framing a message.

“But I don’t think the message is that Cain is pursuing litigation; I think it’s that he’ll cut to the chase in getting to the matter of truth,” Hornsby said.