Pras Michel’s lawyers asked for a fresh trial for the convicted musician, claiming that his ex-attorney bungled his fraud case by utilizing generative AI to construct closing arguments.
Michel, a founding member of the Grammy-winning hip-hop group Fugees, was convicted of ten federal crimes in April, including conspiracy to make and hide foreign campaign contributions.
He was found guilty of attempting to persuade US officials to abandon a probe into Jho Low, the Malaysian banker suspected of being pivotal to a $4.5 billion fraud scheme.
Michel’s defense was handled by David Kenner, a well-known attorney who has represented Suge Knight, Tupac Shakur, and Snoop Dogg.
However, Michel’s new lawyers, an ArentFox Schiff legal team, claim Kenner mishandled the case by employing a “experimental artificial intelligence program” to construct his closing arguments.
Michel’s lawyers said in a Monday filing seen by Insider that Kenner employed a technology called EyeLevel.AI and was “ignoring the best arguments and conflating the charged schemes.”
The ArentFox Schiff team said, “Michel never had a chance,” and Michel’s legal defense was “deficient throughout.”
Michel’s lawyers said that Kenner used EyeLevel.AI to prepare the closing arguments, which he learned from his former publicist.
They cited an EyeLevel.AI product update from May 10 that stated Kenner utilized the program in the “first use of generative AI in a federal trial.”
“This is an absolute game changer for complex litigation,” Kenner said, according to the press release. “The system sped up hours or days of legal work.” This is a glimpse at how cases may be handled in the future.”
According to AI, their approach “helps lawyers become 10x faster and more effective.”
Michel’s attorneys also accused Kenner and his co-counsel of having an undeclared financial investment in EyeLevel.AI and of using the program for Michel’s defense in order to produce the press release.
The ArentFox Schiff team said that Kenner’s and his co-counsel’s law companies exchange addresses with CaseFile Connect, a technological partner of EyeLevel.AI. According to ArentFox Schiff, these firms are located in Encino, California, and New York City.
According to the lawyers, this “appears to confirm” Kenner’s financial interest in the AI program.
EyeLevel.AI told Insider that Kenner and his co-counsel had no involvement with the initiative.
“Kenner Law and its associates have no financial interest in EyeLevel.” “No one at EyeLevel has a financial interest in Case File Connect,” claimed Neil Katz, CEO of EyeLevel.
According to the business, Kenner and his co-counsel were quoted in its May product update because “they were happy with our AI’s capabilities and provided a quote for a press release.”
Kenner was also accused by the ArentFox Schiff team of providing insufficient defense for Michel, claiming that he was unfamiliar with white-collar crime and outsourced trial preparations and strategy to contract attorneys at a friend’s firm.
They cited six flaws in Michel’s defense, including Kenner’s failure to oppose to hearsay or prejudicial evidence.
Outside of regular business hours, Kenner and the ArentFox Schiff team did not reply to calls for comment.
Michel’s sentencing date has yet to be determined, but he could face up to 20 years in prison.
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