Episode 96
The Prosecutor and the Prosecuted: Two Sides of the Same Coin, Live on Stage
Hosted by Matt Adams
“When you're in the criminal justice system, it's a harsh world. It just is harsh. When I was in the DA's office, I saw it all the time with victims of violent crime … the effect it has on them and their families. I saw it in the United States Attorney's Office when I was prosecuting defendants and their families would be in the courtroom.”One man spent years deciding who gets charged with a federal crime. The other was charged, convicted and sentenced to 14 years in federal prison. This episode puts them on the same stage.
Host Matt Adams sits between two guests who represent opposite sides of the same coin in this riveting episode, recorded at the 2026 Fox Rothschild White Collar Symposium. Matt pulls back the curtain on how charging decisions are made and shows what they look like from the receiving end.
The Prosecutor: Chuck DeMonaco spent about 50 years in the criminal justice system. That included serving as a supervisory federal prosecutor and leading the Exxon Valdez case, followed by decades defending people caught up in the system he helped run.
The Prosecuted: Stephen Keller, author of Pay to Play, built a multibillion-dollar company that helped create the life settlements industry. Then came a raid by more than 100 armed agents, a 168-month sentence and the seizure of everything he owned.
Matt, Chuck and Stephen debate the role of cooperators and whether outsiders can hijack a prosecution. They also dissect the DOJ's 97% conviction rate really means, and its human toll on the people caught up in the system. Matt wraps up the conversation by asking both Chuck and Stephen what they would improve in the criminal justice system if they were king for a day.
For anyone who practices in white collar defense or compliance, this episode offers a candid insider’s perspective on the system’s machinery.
The views expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and should not be considered the views of Fox Rothschild LLP or its attorneys. This podcast is for informational purposes only, is not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship.