aw shucks defense
n.— «The legal strategy is now called in legal circles the “Aw Shucks Defence,” a term coined by the prosecutor, Assistant US Attorney William F Johnson, as he concluded the argument against Mr Ebbers in court. Prosecuting the founder and former head of Worldcom, he told the jury that the essence of Mr Ebbers’ argument was: “Aw shucks, I’m just not that sophisticated.”» —“Blow dealt to ‘Aw Shucks defence’” by Stephen Evans in New York City BBC News Mar. 16, 2005. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
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Sigrin writes from Albany, New York, that she misheard our earlier conversation about the expression shaving yak hair meaning “performing a monotonous, tedious task.” At first she thought we said shaving gnat hair, which she figures is...