Last week, a former White House lawyer who served in both Bush administrations, was convicted of attempted murder and other charges, according to The New York Times. The charges stem from the beating of his wife at their home in Connecticut four years ago.

The person in question is John Michael Farren. He also served as the general counsel for Xerox Corporation. He was allowed to miss the trial after he told the court he could not handle the stress from it. Farren was in attendance last week when the jury issued its verdicts. The charges in the case include attempted murder, risk of injury to a child and first-degree assault.

According to prosecutors, Farren choked his wife, Mary Margaret Farren, and beat her using a metal flashlight. He did this until she went unconscious at their home in New Canaan in January of 2010. She was able to escape the home with her two daughters. She was attacked just two days after she served her husband divorce papers.

Farren disputed how serious the attack was during his trial. He also attempted to use a defense of mental health, but it was denied by the judge. Farren could face some 50 years in prison when sentenced. Sentencing is scheduled for September 11.



The verdicts were issued on just the second day of deliberation for the jury. It also came after three days of testimony at the Stamford Superior Court. Farren’s wife suffered broken bones in her cheek and jaw, according to testimony.

She claimed that her husband stood over her, squeezed her neck, and slammed her head into the floor.

She testified that “He said, ‘I’m killing you.’ ”

In a lawsuit filed against her husband, she was awarded $28.6 million for the injuries suffered.

Farren served as general counsel at Xerox in 2007, which was when he was named deputy White House general counsel for President George Bush’s second term in office. He served as the undersecretary for international trade under President George H. W. Bush in the Commerce Department. Farren also worked as the deputy director of the transition team for Bush in 1989. He then worked as the deputy manager for the re-election campaign in 1992.

According to News12 Connecticut, Farren’s family attempted to bail him out of jail last week. Instead, Farren rejected the efforts of his brother and has decided to remain in jail until his sentencing in September.