TORONTO

Jian Ghomeshi has been alleged to have done a lot of things wrong.

But in his own defence, the embattled former CBC radio host has finally done something right.

Hiring criminal lawyer Marie Henein was smart not just because she is arguably the finest defence counsel in the country, but it also sends a message to the public that up until that point was unclear.

He plans to fight.

Ghomeshi does not have to issue such a statement. Retaining Henein is statement enough.

She goes to war for her clients. And she wins.

The veteran lawyer, who I have nicknamed Hand Grenade Henein and Machete Marie for her tenacity, does not just provide a top defence but a shield around the person accused.

“Henein Hutchison LLP is a leading defence firm recognized for providing clients with dedicated and committed advocacy” it states on her firm’s web page.

Not just law or defence but “advocacy.” If ever a guy was in need of this it is Ghomeshi, who was a radio star last week and now one who is falling fast. It’s as if suddenly the man with so many friends in so many places is all alone.

It will cost him but Marie will now go to bat for him.

As proven in the past with such cases as former attorney general Michael Bryant or NHL hockey agent David Frost, she not only advocates but goes for the jugular.

As reported in several other media, in his book about the death of a cyclist in which Bryant was charged, he wrote his lawyer Henein “channelled Hannibal Lecter” to find a way to win his case.

And just because there is heat in the kitchen, she will not drop him like the PR and crisis management firms seem to have done.

Who will be taking notice is the Toronto Police, which is probing three women who have followed Chief Bill Blair’s request for complainants. They know how well Henein knows the law and how good she is at cross-examination.

No mistake can be made and no reasonable doubt will remain unexplored or unexposed.

“Marie Henein is very meticulous and an effective cross examiner,” said defence counsel and former crown attorney Calvin Barry. “She is highly respected by the bar and bench. I often consult with her on cases I have with high-profile clients and her counsel has never steered me wrong.”

But her situation, and that of her client, is unusual.

He has been fired and publicly shamed and accused. But he has not been charged. Until there was a public call for people to lay complaints, none were made.

Still, Ghomeshi brought a lot of it on himself by introducing an argument on his Facebook page pushing forward his problem was his misunderstood involvement in the BDSM scene. Unknowingly Henein, as reported by the Sun’s Sam Pazzano, already spit out that worry when speaking to lawyers last week.

“As criminal lawyers we represent people who have committed heinous acts. Acts of violence. Acts of depravity. Acts of cruelty. Or as Jian Ghomeshi likes to call it, foreplay.”

She got some laughs but what her new client has been shockingly accused of by nine women and one man is not a laughing matter.

While her client is scarce and has not been seen or heard from since, all the public hears is day after day of accounts from victims in the regular and social media — some anonymous and at least two prominent. Henein has her work cut out for her but Barry says she is one lawyer who is always ready for the uphill climb.

“She is always a formidable opponent in the courtroom, “ said Barry. “She is a credit to the profession and a staunch defender of the Charter.”

Translation: While Ghomeshi does not return phone calls or e-mails and his whereabouts are unknown he has huge representation now.

He has been alleged to have made some mistakes but Barry says hiring Henein was not one of them.