Andrew Gardner, Biglaw, Deaths, Rape, Sex

Fried Frank Partner, Accused of Rape, Found Dead

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One of you drew our attention to this item, which is gossipy and engrossing, but not terribly humorous. Suicide and rape (or allegations thereof) don’t lend themselves well to laughs. From New York Magazine:

“It’s bizarre, unfortunate,” Steve Coleman, an Atlanta police officer, was saying about New York attorney Andrew Gardner (at right).

Gardner, 39, was a litigation partner at Fried Frank. He had been an undergrad at Harvard and had gone to NYU for law school. He lived in Armonk with his wife and three kids. And he was found dead, a presumed suicide, on Monday.

This summer, Gardner traveled to Atlanta for a conference, authorities said. He checked into the Westin Buckhead Atlanta. On August 17, a Thursday, he went to Dantanna’s, an upscale chophouse there. At the bar, according to the Atlanta police, he met a 27-year-old woman, a teacher, and several of her friends. They ate dinner and socialized at the bar for a few hours. Then he invited her back to his hotel room, to hear some music, she told police. Inside the room, she claimed, Gardner “became aggressive, took off her shirt, grabbed her by the arms preventing her from leaving, threw her on the bed and raped her,” according to authorities.

Gardner was arrested, then released on $225,000 bail. Last month, he unsuccessfully attempted suicide by slashing his wrists. Yesterday his body was found at Butler Sanctuary, a nature preserve in Bedford, New York. Accordring to NYM, “There were no marks on his body, no bruises. A medical examiner is conducting an autopsy.”
Noted New York litigator Bernard Nussbaum, a Wachtell Lipton partner and former White House Counsel (to Bill Clinton), issued this statement on behalf of the Gardner family: “Mr. Gardner did not commit the crime of rape or any other crime. He was never indicted nor, we believe, would he have ever been indicted. His death is a great tragedy to his family and friends. He was a wonderful human being. He will be missed.”
Update: More information about this story is available here.
New York Lawyer, Charged With Rape, Found Dead [New York Magazine]
Andrew T. Gardner bio [Fried Frank via Google Cache]

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