Gracepoint

Tonight's episode of Gracepoint was a great example of why people should not just to conclusions when they hear that someone has been convicted of a sex offense.

Please check it out and really listen to Nick Nolte's characters story.

Gracepoint

The real cost of a 'paid' attorney

I try real hard not to knock private attorney's too badly. I have friends, acquaintances and even mentors who are private attorneys. But every now and again, a "real" attorney in court does something that makes me want to turn to my client and say 'see? THAT's what a "paid" attorney will get you.'

I am sitting in court at a preliminary hearing docket. The judge calls the next case up and it is a case being handled by a private attorney. I sit down to watch because you can almost always learn something from any attorney you get to observe in court.

I hate when I am proven wrong.

The first sign that this hearing was going to go horribly wrong was when the attorney kept referring to his client as 'Defendant' and the COP was calling the defendant by his name.

          RA("real attorney"): So when did you see the Defendant?

          Narc: I didn't see Thomas until I got out of the car and walked closer to the                             group.

         RA: And what did he say to you?

         Narc: Who? Thomas?

         RA: Yes. What did the Defendant say to you?

I wanted to throw a stapler at the back of his head. If someones family takes the time to call you, set an appointment, come into your office, slide into your leather chairs and write you a check with a comma in it, the LEAST you can do, is learn your clients NAME and then use it!

The second sign that this hearing was going to go horribly wrong was when I had to excuse myself before I regurgitated all over the seats. The attorney was setting his client up to get beat to death in the county jail and he either didn't know it. Or he didn't care.

The way that preliminary hearings are set up in our county is meant to help ease the burden of having transport issues all day long due to non-stop drug cases that are pending. One Friday a month everyone hauls on over to the jail and we have hearings in the makeshift courtroom there. Rather than dealing with transport officers who can only transport two people at a time, they can bring up 10 at a time because we never leave the jail. At any given time a person can have their preliminary hearing with at least 9 other people charged with a drug offense sitting there listening to the evidence against them. So why the sick feeling? Well:

          RA: What did you and the Defendant discuss?

          Narc: He said that the drugs weren't his and he didn't know they were there.

          RA: Is that all the two of you discussed?

          Narc (looking nervously at the defense attorney, prosecutor and judge): ummm..

          RA: Didn't the defendant tell you he wanted to talk to you about working off his                   case?

         Narc (still confused as to why the DEFENSE ATTORNEY is asking this                               question) umm...when I initially arrived he said he did not know drugs                           were present.

         RA: Right, but at some point, didn't he tell you that he wanted to help set some                    people up?

         Narc: Do you want me to answer that?

         RA: Yes sir. Didn't the Defendant tell you he wanted--

        DA: OBJECTION judge, relevance?

        Judge (who looks at the RA): Do you want him to answer that question again?

        RA: Yes your Honor.

NO lie, the judge pulled one of these:

I should take this time to point out that EVERY one of the other 9 people sitting on the side wall with orange jumpsuits on are in jail on drug charges because someone working with the narcotics division set them up. And they are paying attention.

I had to get up and walk out. I felt sick, for that attorney, for his client and for the person at the jail that would have to clean up the blood.

And THAT my friends, is the real cost of a 'paid' attorney.

Until next time,

Be blessed, be careful, don't consent and don't confess.

Confused gif's

I received the call at 8:30 a.m.

"Ms. PD I just got off the bus. I am on my way to court now."

I told him to come straight to my office and we would go before the judge together.

He arrived by 8:47 a.m. and we were in court before 9. Unfortunately, the prosecutor was not. We sat, we waited. We sat, we conversed. We sat, I stewed.

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Months earlier I had a motion to suppress hearing (I promise to one day finish that blog rant) which was granted. I told my client he did not need to come to court for the upcoming docket (which was last week) because...well...the state has no case if the state has no evidence!

Well she says she would like my client to actually come to court before she dismisses the case.

I bring to the courts attention that my client HAS come to court and the prosecutor must be thinking of the co-defendant. Not only has the co-defendant NEVER come to court, but he has never contacted his attorney.

*crickets*

So after several awkward moments the judge looks at the prosecutor and says 'do you still want him to have to come to court?' To which she replied, 'yes.'

She's...kidding right? WRONG. The judge turns to me and says 'Ms. PD, have your client here Monday.

I walk out of the courtroom a toxic mixture of confused and angry. I say toxic because the level of angry is quickly out weighing the level of confused. I can slowly feel myself wanting to do some damage as I storm out of the courtroom.

Fast-forward to this morning and my client is present. He had to ride a Greyhound bus through 3 states to get here but he made it. The entire situation, which you would think would have cooled off over the weekend, just got my blood boiling again this morning.

At 9:47 the prosecutor finally decides to grace us with her presence. I let the judge know that she is here and then I take my seat back in the courtroom. A few minutes later one of the senior attorneys in my office motions for me to come into chambers. I enter and when I do, the prosecutor is on her phone and the judge is looking intently at something on his computer. I will admit that for a brief moment I had a scary thought.

"Oh isht, did they find something to hold my client on?! Is THAT why she wanted him here? Oh God please don't tell me I convinced my client to come back only to be arrested."

Alas (yes, alas), there was nothing new on my client. The case being dismissed went something like this:

Judge: 'what about Ms. PD's case is it for dismissal'

(while on the phone, never looking up) DA: yes

I just stood there. 

Really?

That's all we're going to do?

I made my client borrow money from friends and family, pay for a Greyhound bus ticket, catch a cab and then turn right back around and go back to his home state and he isn't even going to be addressed by the people that compelled his appearance?

On a positive note, my client is happy that his case is finally behind him. He was very grateful for the fact that this case ended without him becoming a convicted felon. He appreciates that fact that he had an attorney, a PUBLIC DEFENDER no less, that actually cared enough about him and his case to look for issues, fight the good fight and be angry at the court system on his behalf. He does not EVER have to step foot in this state again, I can still say I won my motion to suppress AND I had enough self-control to leave before knocking anyone upside the back of their head.

Sigh...it's only Monday.

Until next time,

Be blessed, be careful, never consent and never confess.

The mind of a child

Imagine a young man, when he was born his mother held him lovingly as she looked down on her new bundle of joy. In that one little being she imagined all he would bring to the world and all that he could be. When he turned six he was in an accident. Her little bundle of joy was hit by a car and the accident left him in a coma for months. When he woke up, he was not the same.

He would never be the same again.

The body of that six year old continued to mature, his voice deepened as it should, hair grew where it belonged and he sprouted up over his elders. But the mind of that grown man? It stayed six years old.

One day this young man climbs into the car of a 'friend' who takes him to the country, gets him high and then leaves him. The young man walks until he gets to a service station and he asks for a ride. The young woman he asks for a ride says 'no.'

The young man asks if he can use her phone. The young woman says 'no.' What the young man does next lands him in jail.

"Well, that's where he needs to be!" you say?

In jail, a six year old can't prevent a grown man from taking his clothing, his sheets or his food.

In jail, a six year old won't know how to stop someone smuggling in drugs from shoving it into his property, or even his hands when the threat of a cell search looms.

In jail, a six year old will not survive, and if he does, he will not return home the same.

When people ask 'how can you represent those people?' I think of that young man, the one with the body of an adult and the mind of a child. I think of what he can't do, what he won't do, what he couldn't possibly survive.

How can I not represent him?

Until next time, 

Be blessed, be careful, never consent and never confess

~LT 

The least of these

She wobbles into my office on the arm of her much healthier and burly friend. I pull out a seat for her and sit across from the woman who has been charged with a host of drug offenses.

At the end of our meeting I am thankful that the prosecutor on her case is one that will at least listen to me without me resorting to cursing and name calling to get her attention. I explain, with my client permission, my clients situation and why the offer the prosecutor made needs to be tweaked before my client can accept it. My client wants to settle her case, for a host of reasons, all her own, and that is her right. But I can't stand next to her allowing her to enter into an agreement I know she can't uphold.

Luckily, the prosecutor agreed to do what I was asking of her so I called my client to relay the good news. After discussing with my client what the next step in her case was going to be, she also shared some good news with me. Her son has made it on to a sports team. She is so proud of him and he is so happy. But then she found out something that broke her heart.

The sports team has an optional warm-up/training suit that all of the guys on the team will be getting. All of the guys, except one. Her son. The thing that broke her heart wasn't that he wasn't getting the suit, it was the fact that he didn't come home and ask. She feels as if she has done such a poor job as a mother that her son knows not to even come home and ask for anything. They can barely afford the bare minimum. Because the state has granted her an amount of child support (that she is not collecting) that the SAME state deems is more than enough for two people to live, she gets less than $60 in food stamps to feed herself and her growing, sport-playing, teenage son. They are barely making it from day to day. Her son, old enough to realize this, did not want to burden his mother with a request for something that was not a necessity.

I made suggestions, talk to the coach, speak with the principal, request help from the PTA, but truthfully, what I wanted to do was ask her how much the suit cost so I could write a check to the school. I was raised, at home and in church, that you feed, give drink and clothe the less fortunate if you are in a position to do so. I know her son isn't going to school naked but I can also imagine the negative feelings, and possibly negative comments, he is going to have to deal with when the team walks into a venue and he looks like the water boy, not a member of the team. Those feelings will bleed over into his attitude, how he responds to people and, ultimately, authority. Too many bad experiences with a teacher and he is labeled a trouble-maker in school. A label that is hard to shake once it has been placed on you. It won't take long for him to not want to go to school because everyone there expects the worst from him, so he will find some friends he can skip school with. Those same 'friends' will give him something to do in order to occupy his time during the school day. It may be stealing, it may be drinking, it may be getting high.

It may be all three.

He will, inevitably, come into contact with law enforcement. He will either run and get another charge placed on him for resisting arrest or trying to elude a police officer. Or he will cooperate with his arrest and willingly walk into his first felony.

I know what you are saying-you got ALL of that from a kid you have never seen not getting a training suit? I grew up with guys who are now convicted felons because they got tired of wearing K-mart tennis shoes to school. Yes, I got all of that from a kid not getting a training suit.

Despite my christian conviction and my personal moral compass saying 'buy her son the suit', the state bar forbids it. For some reason, I'm sure you could guess a few, the state bar does not permit assisting your client in anyway beyond covering the expense of filing fees in their court case. Thanks, I believe, to the actions of those who have taken advantage of their position and the power they feel comes with it, attorneys who really just want to help their clients in their time of need, cannot do so. I worked with an attorney that broke the rules and would pay his clients electricity bill, rent or grocery bill, state bar rules be damned. But he did not have the discernment to see when he was being taken advantage of. It got to the point where clients would be waiting outside of the office for him to get off work so they could ask for some money. He always relented.

I understand it can be a slippery slope. I know it could possibly get out of hand. But if I want to buy all of my clients' sons a training suit in order to prevent them from becoming future felons, I think I should be allowed.

I still haven't decided what I'm going to do.

Until next time,

Be blessed, be careful, never consent and never confess

Sometimes my clients are part of my #100

98. Of #100daysofhappy I went to jail to see a client today. I walked in SO angry because 1) I just got him out of jail 4 months ago & 2) I am sick and don't want to be at the friggin jail. He walks in and asks if I received his letter yet. With a sniffle I say 'no' and ask him what it says. He wrote to apologize, to tell me that he knows he disappointed me and he was worried I was mad at him. He then (facing 2 new felonies) goes on to say that he can tell I don't feel well and I should go home. After discussing his upcoming court date, the discovery I have so far & fussing at him like he was my little brother, our visit was over. As the detention officer is taking him away, my client calls over his shoulder "Ms. Williams I know you're disappointed in me but I know you're gonna work hard for me. When you get me out I'm gonna take you to Olive Garden." His hard-headed butt made me smile. My clients work my nerve but they are definitely one of the #100thingsthatmakemehappy#100thingsthatmakemeweird

Stand

I was sitting in my office, looking through the jail list, comparing it to my case list to ensure I didn't overlook someone when this song came on:

Stand

For some reason the song made me think of this foolishness:

Public Defender taking a stand

Several of my public defender colleagues have applauded the attorney in the video. They comment on how he was standing for his clients rights, he wasn't going to just 'bow down to the system'; they talk about how he wouldn't let the judge 'bully' him and how his actions are to be commended.

I contest each one of those positions and any other similar to them. In December 2011, when I started my public offender/public defender journey, I embraced the reality that there were going to be some times that I offended people (Day 1) and I was OK with that. I fully embrace that the judge, the prosecutor, local law enforcement and (in some cases) even my colleagues will be angered, offended or flat out pissed off by my actions or words when making a stand for my clients' rights. I would like to think that, if placed in the position, I would have no problem being held in contempt for upholding my clients Constitutional rights.

That is not what I see when I view this video of Mr. Andrew Weinstock and Judge John Murphy. Unlike my colleagues, I see two idiots, not one.

I won't even bother to discuss why the judge was an idiot. Although they are not above reproach, I believe judges should have some extra level of professionalism when they take the bench. I know from experience not all of them do. If I were a judge, I would expound more. I am not. I will leave that topic alone.

But what I will do is dissect the actions of 'one of my brethren. There are many reasons the video of the "Brawl in Brevard" leaves a nasty taste in my mouth. Here are the top 4:

1. His initial response to the judge.
          Judge: What do want to do?
          PD: What do YOU want to do? I'm not waiving.
                    Maybe there was a portion of the video that was cut out between Mr. Weinstock standing up
                    and the judge addressing him. Even if that is the case, I do not, under any circumstances, see
                    how Mr. Weinstock's response to the judge started their exchange off on a good note. You can
                    barely hear Mr. Weinstock explaining that the prosecution has created some kind of situation
                    and now they are looking at the defendant to waive his rights for their convenience.
                    Unfortunately, he does not attempt to make that argument until the judge is pissed at his lack
                    of response.

2. His tone and volume.
          I have had clients hug me, mothers hug me, girlfriends and baby mama's hug me. I have had judges
          commend and prosecutors comment on me NOT backing down about a particular issue with the
          court. I have stood my ground, I have continued to make my argument, I have refused to stipulate to
          evidence, I have required the prosecution to bring a witness 'all the way' from the other side of the
          state. There is very little that I will agree to and I will most definitely NEVER agree to anything that
          eliminates an element of the alleged crime that the prosecution has to prove. With that being said I
          have never, never, NEVER raised my voice to a member of the judiciary.

3. He took the judge up on his offer.
          Really? I don't even think this one needs explanation, but just in case. In the jurisdiction I work in I
          can be called before six different judges.While I do not believe any of them would even extend the
          invitation for me to step in the back so they can kick my ass, you had better believe I would not take
          them up on it. For what? One of two things is going to happen...I am going to kick the ass of a local
          member of the bench and then life for me and my clients (if I got to actually keep my bar card) would
          be hell on earth from that point on. Or....the judge is going to kick my ass and then the local bar, the
          members of the bench, that judge in particular AND future clients (again, supposing I actually got to
          keep my bar card) will see me as a joke. Unless "you want to step in the back so I can kick your ass"
          is the judge's code for "I have some gin in the back and we both need a break from this hellish
         docket" I'm. Not. Going.

4. He left his client alone.
         This is the most important point to me. Maybe I would have a different position if the client had not
         been left in the position Mr. Weinstock left him in. After the "Brawl in Brevard" the judge took the
         bench, the docket kept going and Mr. Rumples (?) is left standing there. In court. Alone. The judge
         comes back and wants to know the answer to the same question he just asked Mr. Weinstock, a
         question that Mr. Rumples now has to answer on his own, assume that he is answering appropriately
         and leave court not clearly knowing whether he has an attorney or not. At the end of the day, for all of
         the applause Mr. Weinstock is getting for 'taking a stand', he did so at the detriment of his client who
         needed him in that moment. Mr. Weinstock, despite popular opinion, was not fighting for his client, he
         was fighting Judge Murphy. Yes, in this case, there is a difference.

Sigh.....we live to fight another day was not supposed to be taken literally in all situations.

Until next time, be blessed, be careful, never consent and never confess.

~LT