Defense! Defense!

The best offense is a good defense.

That's true not only in the sporting arena but also in the well of the courtroom.

"Good defense demoralizes the opposition while raising the confidence of the team or individual under attack." -- Shelby Lyman

As chess guru Shelby Lyman points out in his weekly chess column:

"...the defender may be actually quaking under the table, but the better and more determined the moves he makes under duress, the bigger and tougher he looms behind the board."

The same applies in the courtroom. Oftentimes you find yourself up against two prosecutors -- the one sitting at counsel table and the one wearing the robe. It takes a certain chutzpah to stand up and challenge either one in the heat of battle, but the harder you fight when backed into a corner, the more respect (and fear) you will reap down the road.

Regardless of the result, the very act of standing up to defend your ground is a glorious defense of the Constitution.