A LAWYER'S STORY

A LAWYER’S STORY

For as far back as I can remember my parents always wanted me to become a lawyer. They were enamored by the education, prestige, and earning potential that a well schooled lawyer possessed.

I actually had hopes of making a career playing football, but like most young students I soon succumbed to the wishes of my parents. My plan had been to enjoy my college years and spend an absolute minimum time studying, and a maximum time partying and girl chasing, but soon found myself working in earnest towards my law degree.

I end up graduating with honors and surprised myself as much as my folks. After a short sabbatical I landed a job with a major law firm as a research assistant/ coffee boy. I found myself enjoying the pace, energy, and activity and came to both respect and admire the senior partners. To be truthful I was having a great time.

After passing the bar exam, I was given a small raise and noticed that I was afforded a slightly higher amount of respect around the office. I figured that I had made it, I was one of the good old boys. I later discovered you have to around a long time before you get a corner office and even longer to get your name on the door.

It wasn’t too long after that when I realized that this business was about hard work and long hours. I can tell you now that what may seem like a glamorous business to people on the outside is actually a tough and exacting business on the inside.

At the end of the day, lawyers get paid for results. We get paid well but if we don’t deliver the goods on time and consistently, our clients are quick to move on to greener pastures. Speaking from experience I can tell you that we do a lot of research and home work that never hits our clients billing statement.

I think our profession often gets viewed as a road paved with easy money. Most people just don’t see the small army of research assistants, paralegals, receptionists, secretaries, and office managers it takes to run a successful office.

Try working in an office with a dozen other type “A” personalities, that all want something done by yesterday. There is a good deal of behind the scenes pressure and time constraints that most clients and people outside the industry never see. Overall it’s a very rewarding job, but it sure isn’t an easy one.

Clients come to us for advice and legal assistance and their expectation is that we will always make the right call. I think a lot of clients expect us to give them an iron clad guarantee and there is no such thing. They trust that we will always win the case, or get the judgment in their favor. Unfortunately life, business, and the law are just not that predictable, although sometimes I wish they were. For me it’s always difficult to face a client after things in court didn’t go our way. My boss tried to ease my conscience one day after a particularly difficult decision. He pulled me aside one day and gave me some good advice. “ Some cases you will win and some you will lose. Ultimately their disposition is up to the judge and the triers of the facts. Its your job to present a well planned and researched case that aligns the facts and the law in a manner that best presents your clients case in the most favorable light.”

The truth is we are all human and come to work with the same baggage and concerns as other professions. Perhaps the kids kept us up late with a last minute school project, the new puppy kept us up all night, or maybe we are just plain tired from a 60+ hour work week. We can argue a case brilliantly in front of judge and jury, but may not be able to win a simple argument with our spouse or significant other.

At some point in our career we all tend to hit the wall. Maybe we worked too long of a stretch without a vacation or break, or maybe we just can’t find the joy in what we are doing anymore. In most cases we just push thru it and lawyer on, till retirement and that gold watch, but sometimes it occurs to us that its just time to move on.

For me, I got a job in talk radio. Now I get to make my arguments into a microphone everyday and get to go home after a 3 hour show. I feel like I am still making an impact on people’s lives but I don’t have to worry about the deadlines, juries, and office politics. Not only that, I get to show up to work in shorts and boat shoes everyday. Case closed.

Please feel free to contact me at : pooritalinboy@gmail.com

P.I.B.

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
I’ve been traveling this week and couldn’t help but notice the sound of police sirens in the distance during most of the night. I know we all try to block out the thought of crime and violent crimes as we sleep in our nice homes and safe hotel rooms. The truth is, that crime is rampant not only in big cities but in all American cities. In fact, we may rapidly reach the point where we simply can’t build enough jails. The government has already moved to hiring private companies to manage jails and retention facilities. Also, who wants a new high security prison in their neighborhood?
What is crime and what causes it ? Since the beginning of time man and society have established what is socially acceptable and what is not. Thru a system of laws and morals, people define the behavior that a society as a whole finds acceptable and not acceptable. Sometimes these guidelines vary from society to society, but for the most part everyone is aware of the “rules”.
For as long as there has been standards and laws, there have been those who choose to violate those laws and standards. At some level, we all may break the law at some point, perhaps run a stop sign or travel at 5 miles per hour over the speed limit. However, if enough people choose to violate the more serious of these guidelines, the social fabric of the community tends to break down.
In order to maintain the laws and standards of the society, some type of Justice System must be put into place. It can be as simple as a rag tag vigilante group or as sophisticated as our modern Law enforcement and Judicial system. The main tools we have used to combat crime have been mostly unchanged for generations:
Education: Awareness is good, but you can’t teach morality
Social pressure: only works on people who give a damn
Fines and other financial forfeitures
Imprisonment- that is so costly and has such a high recidivism rate
Capital Punishment- with its negative social connotation, but zero recidivism rate
In the end the only thing that seems to have an effect is to make the fear of punishment greater than the desire to commit the crime. (hence the phrase: don’t do the crime, if you can’t do the time)
If each society has well known laws and standards, that leads to the question as to: What is the Logic, Motivation, or Mindset that causes an individual to act “outside the law” ? Here I have listed my “top dozen” precursors to crime. (in no particular order)
1> Pre-meditated actions: Ahh…The bank robbery, the Scam, drug smuggling, the perfect crime. Unfortunately nothing ever seems to go as planned. The would be criminal knows he may be caught but weighs out the Risk/Reward ratio and decides to take a chance
2> Spontaneous actions: Not premeditated, but acted on when the opportunity presents itself. Also common when the participant thinks he has little or nothing to lose.

3> Criminal predisposition: Some people are just wired to taking the easy way out. They look at every situation with an eye towards taking unfair advantage. The rules only apply to “the other guy”. Steal its Easy money
4> Crimes of passion: Another spontaneous action crime, however they usually have a more compelling reason and is often an action that the individual would not engage in, if cooler heads prevailed (often quite violent)
5> Competing evils: There are situations that present themselves where the individual must decide between two choices that could both be considered illegal, and a split second decision is made.
6> Group or mass actions: Being social animals we sometimes get caught up in group actions. A simple example is when one person crosses a busy street while the crossing light says don’t walk. For some reason the rest of us feel compelled to also cross at the same time. A more serious example is often seen in riots, where a few individuals break windows or cause damage and the behavior quickly spreads. At some level we feel it must be ok..everyone is doing it.
7> Rationalization: Many people can rationalize almost any behavior. These rationalizations include: I deserve that possession more than them, they owe me, and it’s just this once..does that make me a bad person?
8> Mental illness: The individual that commits the crime is judged not to be in control of his/her mental capabilities…In simple terms, they can not distinguish between good and bad…A real lawyer’s favorite in the court room.
9> Inherently Violent: I know the peace lovers find this hard to understand but some people are just inherently violent and it just doesn’t take much to set them off. I don’t believe these folks can be educated or reformed; violence is their answer for most problems and it’s just part of their psyche.
10> Predatory mind set: A close cousin to the inherently violent. These folks are like wild animals, they are predators that like to feed on the poor and helpless in our society. They commit the crime…because the can.
11> Under the Influence: Weather its drugs, alcohol, or other mind altering drugs, many crimes are committed by individuals that are high. Increasingly drug and alcohol are at the root of many of our most serious crimes.
12> In search of drugs: People who spend half their life’s under the influence of drugs, easily spend the other half of their life’s in pursuit of those substances. It’s a vicious cycle that usually ends in a life of crime, imprisonment, or death. The addictions are so strong that they are willing to go to any depths to get their fix.

Fortunately most of the people of the United States are law abiding citizens, and our legal system has its checks and balances. In the final analysis, I guess the issue of crime and punishment is one we will be dealing with for a long, long time.
Please feel free to contact me at: pooritalianboy@gmail.com

P.I.B.

LATE ONE NIGHT

LATE ONE NIGHT

The sound of my footsteps echoed thru the near empty garage. There is something about a cold dark night that makes these high rise parking garages seem even more menacing. I normally park on the 4th floor right by the elevators but some knucklehead had decided to take my assigned spot. Wouldn’t you know I’d end up on the far side of the parking lot on floor 5, on the one night I’ve got to carry a box full of paperwork home to work on.

As I exited the elevator on level 5, I could see the taillights of another late worker heading down the exit ramp along with the shrieking of tires you seem to only hear in parking garages. It must have rained earlier because I found myself dodging oil soaked puddles on the way to my car. I normally would have finished work several hours ago but I was up against a deadline on the Thompson case. We’ve got court on Monday, and since this is a high profile case, I’ve got to be ready. I’m gonn’a nail that sucker.

Shit, I should have called security this morning when that inconsiderate bastard took my parking spot. Now, I’m having to hump all this paperwork halfway across the city just to get to my damn car. I work 15 years to become the top dog in the prosecutor’s office and now I’m parking on the back 9, or in this case the back 5.

To make matter worse there are contractors working on the sprinkler pipes up here, and there is water, dirt, and flashing barricades all over the place. Half the ceiling lights are down, and the place has that Eire yellow florescent glow, accompanied by the faint hum of the remaining lights, vibrating in the wet night air. There are work tools and equipment all over the place. Believe me, after this week, I’ll be glad to be off for a few days. T.G.I.F.

Finally, I approach my car. I hit the remote unlock button on my key chain and my Beamer’s lights go on. I just bough this thing last week and intentionally parked far from the other cars. Wouldn’t you know it, there are only a few cars left on the floor and some son of a bitch is parked right up against my car. A whole empty parking lot, and I’ve got a shitty red van parked right next to me on my drivers side. I set the box down briefly while I open the trunk and throw in my coat, but I decide to bring my homework up front. I quickly pat my pocket to make sure I have my keys before closing the trunk and head for the driver’s door.

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice some movement it the van next to me, and an instant latter the side door slides open and two goons jump out. I reach for the panic button on my keys and set off the car alarm, but these guys don’t even blink. The next thing I know, I take a wicked shot in the ribs, and find myself gasping for air. One guys got me by the hair and the other had both arms wrapped around my waist, as they are trying to pull me into the van. I put both arms out and catch myself just before they can get me through the door, but then I feel a blunt strike across the back of my head. My hand quickly moves to the spot of the trauma and I feel hot sticky blood, just as I feel myself losing consciousness.

I don’t know how long I was out, but when I woke up, I found my hands and feet tightly bound with a pair of those nylon ties. I had lost one shoe in the battle and my hair was all matted together from laying in a pool of my own blood. I tried to yell out but they had a piece of duct tape securely over my mouth, I was panicking because I could hardly breath. For a brief instant, I thought about home and my kids and how I wished I had left work earlier when my wife called and told me she had dinner waiting. It seems like I have missed too many dinners, ball games, and school events over the years, and my wife was showing the strain.

I laid there on the floor of the van and tried to get my bearings and remain calm. I noticed that even though I was blind folded, I could barely see thru a small gap they had left just above my right eyebrow. By moving my head around I could make out the images of the two thugs sitting up front in the van, talking and laughing, as we passed under some well lit road signs. From my vantage point on the floor, I also noticed that I could get a quick glance out the front windshield and was able to pick up on a few road signs as we went under them as well. I knew we were on the interstate headed north

I can tell you, I was a little disappointed in myself. Despite my training I allowed these guys to push me into this van. I have to admit that I was not prepared for the suddenness and viciousness of their attack. I broke the two first rules of self defense. I should have been more aware when I noticed the van parked that close to me, and I should never have allowed them to wrestle me into the door. I knew one thing for sure, I had no intention of finding out what’s next on their agenda.

I was still fading in and out of consciousness but was able to overhear the two guys talking up front. I could tell these guys were professionals, because they were cold as ice, and acting like it was just another day at the office. I quickly came to the realization that when we arrived at the destination they were taking me to, it wasn’t going to be pretty. If I was going to make it out of this little joy ride alive it was going to have to be on my terms, not theirs.

Even though I had lost a good deal of blood, I had the presence of mind to try and escape. Fortunately I always carry a small Benchmade folder in my pocket and with a little effort I was able to retrieve it and snap open the blade with one hand using the thumb stud. Just about then, goon #2 looked back to see what I was up to and I pretended to be still knocked out. I still had not cut all the way thru the plastic ties around my wrist, when he decided to come on back and pay me a visit while checking on my restraints.

I figured this might be my only shot at getting away, so when he reached for my wrists, I let him have it both barrels. My wrists were already locked together so I figured a double hammer fist would be in order, and served one up right to his temple. I swear that blow would have knocked out 98% of the world’s population, yet it only seemed to daze old Godzilla. If you don’t at first succeed, try again. So, In the ensuing struggle, I grabbed two good handfuls of his hair and gave him a little fresh air, via the van’s side window. Where are my manners? Damn, I knew I forgot something, like opening the window first. Well, since he was already half way on his way out, I grabbed the door handle and showed him the door. Now, that’s gonn’a leave some road rash. I was pretty sure that the thud I heard right after that was his body being caught by the rear wheel.

At this point goon #1 is craning his head back to see what has happened to his criminal in law brother, and the van is swaying from one side of the road to the other. I thought for a second about using the knife to cut the rest of the way thru the plastic ties, but as the saying goes…there is no time like the present, and opportunity was knocking.

I had the answer, with one quick leap, or should I say hop, I placed myself right behind the driver’s captain chair. It was one of those high back, swivel deals with the arms that fold down. Just as I reach for the guy’s hair, I get a big fat elbow, right in the kisser, for my efforts. Ok, no more mister nice guy, I’m getting tossed around like a rag doll and I need to latch on to something.

I still have my knife in my hand in an ice pick style grip, with the plastic ties still holding tight. The van sways hard right than left, just as I throw both arms over this guys nogg’in and dig the entire 4” blade deep into his shoulder, right under his right ear. The last thing I hear is a deafening scream, probably magnified by the fact that my face was about an inch and a half from his pie hole. The guy lurches hard to the right and with it goes the steering wheel, and then the whole van.

Around two, 360’s latter the van comes to a rest on its side and I’m still lashed to the now very dead driver. The windows are all smashed out and there is glass everywhere. My research papers were scattered all over the van and for 100’ down the road. The dark van is now illuminated with the familiar flashing red lights of the local sheriff’s car. I could hear someone approaching as they crunched the broken glass. It was a sight for sore eyes when the deputy climbed into the van, with gun drawn. He recognized me immediately from the last time he testified in court, and cut me loose from my ex-traveling buddy. I told him about the events leading up to the accident and my suspicion that these guys were hired to keep me out of the courtroom.

As the paramedics were bandaging my head and arm, the deputy confirmed that these guys were hired guns, and part of the Thompson organization. Just as he was closing the door of the ambulance the deputy stuck his head in and said. “Councilor, I believe justice has been done. Consider this case closed.”

P.I.B.