Witness to a Prosecution - by Richard V Sandler (Hardcover)

About the Book

Richard Sandler, in his role as personal attorney for Michael Milken during the federal investigations, brings this must-read story of the prosecution to readers for the first time.

In this no-holds-barred account, Mr. Sandler shows, with the inclusion of court transcripts and his daily involvement in the investigation, how prosecutors were driven to destroy high-profile figures in the financial industry. This was a strategy that worked to their own personal benefit at the expense of justice. Journalists, always in need of a headline, were hell-bent on demonizing an innocent man whose financing innovation underwrote both the tech and the telecom revolution and gave access to capital for thousands of other small business entrepreneurs and investors.

This book presents the reality behind the prosecution of Michael Milken.

Book Synopsis

2025 NYC Big Book Awards Distinguished Favorite in Nonfiction Book Cover Design
2025 Independent Publisher Book Awards Gold Medalist in Finance, Investment, and Economics

In 1986, the SEC and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York began an investigation into Michael Milken, Drexel Burnham Lambert, and its High Yield and Convertible Bond Department, a department Michael created and was head of. Michael was the most successful and innovative financier of his time. Drexel, an upstart investment bank was also the most successful securities firm on Wall Street, thanks to Michael.

What was the investigation into Michael Milken going to focus on, other than his innovation in the financial markets? Mike was democratizing access to capital for the 99% of companies that could not previously access the public market and created a financial revolution that continues to this day. The high yield bond market grew rapidly from the end of the 1970's from $70 billion to over $2.2 trillion dollars in 2022. He created an industry that gave new businesses and investors the opportunity to create value by financing companies that were too small to access the markets.

Richard Sandler decided to represent Michael as his personal lawyer, and to be responsible for working with the lawyers they hired as well as overseeing the defense. But they could never have dreamed of the chaos that lay ahead.

Neither of them could understand why the government thought it had a compelling reason to investigate Michael. Or why the media would be interested in building the investigation up into a firestorm. Of course, prosecutors want to win in high-profile cases, and prosecutorial witch-hunts and media hype can easily spin out of control, destroying the defendant in search of headlines and publicity as well as personal gain. Whenever the prosecution determines it will have the outcome it wants, no matter what, there is no escape.

But the injustice that Michael Milken faced was to be on a biblical scale. Richard Sandler has, after 36 years, decided to set the record straight. With never-before-seen transcripts of court documents, and a sharp analysis of each move and countermove, Witness to a Prosecution: The Myth of Michael Milken, is difficult to put down. Whether you are someone interested in understanding the criminal investigative process, or you just want to understand who Michael Milken is and what really happened to him, you will find that this is an eye-opening and important book that will be read and discussed for years to come.

From the Back Cover

The untold story of the trial of Michael Milken

For decades, Michael Milken faced unending media scrutiny and condemnation. Until now, many books and articles have been written by those who had no firsthand knowledge of the investigation and could only describe events from the most limited of standpoints.

The true story, accompanied by court transcripts, can now be told. From the moment that the investigation began, Richard Sandler was Mike's personal attorney. He wrote this book in the belief that it was now time for history to reflect upon what really happened. This groundbreaking account details those tumultuous decades.

During the late 1980s and the beginning of the 1990s, journalists, media, and prosecutors who were looking to achieve their own fame set the stage for the prosecution of Michael Milken, with headlines daily chronicling and highlighting each legal development in the case.

In this extraordinary eye-witness narrative, Richard Sandler takes you on a journey through the media hype and criminal investigation process that he and Mike endured for decades, accompanied by the actual transcripts of the court proceedings.

What was the "crime" that Michael Milken was prosecuted for? Democratizing access to capital for the 99% of companies that could not previously access the public market. It was a financial revolution which began in the late 1970s and still continues to this day.

In his book, Witness to a Prosecution, Richard Sandler reveals for the first time the events surrounding Mike's high-profile case, the overwhelming power of the government and media, and the profound toll those decades of litigation took on all who were involved.