Cats in the Cradle

I’m going to do it again.  I’m going to not be funny.  I know I promised a slightly humorous take on things, but as soon as I said so, things took a turn for the serious.  Today, I have only an observation that leaves me with questions. 

Last week, a cat met an unfortunate end.  You can read about it here.  As it turns out, a wrinkle in Missouri animal abuse laws forecloses any criminal charge against the cat’s owners.  Once word of the cat’s demise got out, it spread like wildfire.  Facebook lit up.  Online petitions acquired over 1200 signatures.  Candlelight vigils were held.  The switchboard was clogged with concerned citizens.  People responded passionately in whatever way they thought best.

During the same week, a man was charged with trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. In the last few weeks, defendants have been charged, pled or been found guilty of rape, statutory rape and child molestation among other things. There is a STILL an unsolved case in which an  infant was put in a plastic shopping sack and left on the side of the road.  No Facebook posts.  No online petition.  No candlelight vigil.  Why?

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not trying to minimize what was done to this animal.  What is legal and what is right are not always the same thing.  It seemed to me an interesting contrast though.  How is it that the death of a cat elicits a more active, passionate response than the exploitation of our children, or sexual violence? 

Show me what a society finds outrageous, and I can tell you what that society values. 

If you want to get passionate.  If you want to DO something about sexual violence and/or child abuse…give your time, treasure and passion to organizations like this (MOCSA) and this (Synergy Services).

Zimmerman Telegram

I can’t resist.  I just can’t risk being the only human being on the internet that didn’t post about the George Zimmerman verdict.  Trayvon Martin’s death is a tragedy that could have been avoided.  The conviction of George Zimmerman is a tragedy that was avoided. 

The verdict doesn’t mean that Trayvon Martin’s death is acceptable.  It isn’t.  It doesn’t mean that George Zimmerman’s actions that night were okay.  They weren’t.  It doesn’t mean that racial prejudice, profiling and gun violence aren’t real issues to be addressed.  What it means is that the system of justice we created for ourselves worked.  We didn’t get the verdict that the media expected.  We didn’t get a verdict driven by popular opinion.  What we did get is a jury of regular folks doing their best to apply the law to the facts as presented in court.  They did what the rule of law and a free and just society demand; they held emotion in check, ignored the media frenzy, and did something that was likely uncomfortable for all of them.  They honestly admitted that they had reasonable doubt…and they acquitted him.  From what I’ve seen, it was the right call.  I don’t know what happened that night.  Neither do you.  I’ll not second guess other prosecutors, but I’m not sure there was ever a time in this case when reasonable doubt didn’t seem to be an insurmountable legal obstacle…IF a jury applied that standard. 

It’s not supposed to be easy to obtain a conviction and deprive a citizen of their liberty.  In fact, it’s supposed to be hard.  The criminal justice system has the highest legal standard known to the law.  Beyond a reasonable doubt is a tough standard to meet.  Ask any prosecutor.  I have had more than one juror tell me (after the trial) they believed the defendant “did it”, but they just weren’t sure beyond a reasonable doubt (or words to that effect...no one says “reasonable doubt” except lawyers, right?).  Its hard to be upset with that…not impossible, but hard.  Even jurors professing a “hang ‘em high” attitude usually sober up very quickly when the power to actually do so is placed in their hands.  That is as it should be.  It is not a light or easy thing that we are doing in the courthouse. 

I am reminded of a passage in Zechariah 7:9 that often comes to my mind as a prosecutor.  “Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another.  Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or the poor.  In your hearts, do not think evil of each other.”  If ever we reach the point of finding ways to convict the accused of “something” just to avoid a riot, discontent or criticism, we will have lost any semblance of true justice.  Fortunately, at least in Sanford, FL, these six women left our justice system alive and well.  

Future Former Fantasies

Future former fantasies

Former locker room picker-upper?  Former unskilled construction labor?  Former movie-theater projectionist?  If I’m ever interviewed on CNN or Fox News, it’s a fair bet that none of these jobs will be plastered under my name.  They don’t say much about me save perhaps to tell you that in my school days I was willing to do anything to keep working on my 1977 Camaro, get free movie tickets and pay for a date with that girl I’d had my eye on.   It always interests me that so many TV commentators are qualified as experts simply by putting “Former Prosecutor” under their names.  Why?

It says something.

They were once entrusted with the power of the State.  They once devoted themselves to service.  They once sought to make sense of tragedy, explain the inexplicable, comfort the inconsolable and restore the irretrievable.  They had once taken the vow of poverty and despaired of ever paying off their student loans.  They were counted among the warrior monks of the law, slaying the giants and monsters that are indeed lurking in the shadows.

I am hard pressed to think of other professions for which being a “former” one doesn't raise more questions than it answers.  Former priest?  Hmmm.   Former doctor?  Forgot to count sponges, huh?  Former computer programmer?  Windows 8,  eh?  It just doesn't seem to help.

It never fails…whether the Zimmerman or Arias trials, a terrorist attack or some other tragic event that finds its way in to the legal system…the former prosecutors will be there to chime in.  I suppose the good news is that since being a former prosecutor qualifies you as an “expert”, I might still get my own show on cable and pay off those student loans.

In the meantime, there remain giants to be slain.

WELCOME!

Welcome!  If you have landed here, you likely suffer from insomnia, mistyped a search for a local defense lawyer, or you’re my mom.

I have no great mission to declare, no cause to support, no awareness to increase. Thankfully for most, the criminal justice system is a bit of a mystery.  I simply thought it might be interesting for folks to have a peek behind the curtain.  People often enjoy the courthouse “stories” and have questions about the people, the process and results of our criminal justice system.  We do have a cast of characters and stories unrivaled by anything you've seen on TV or read in a book.  Hopefully, I can present them here with a little humor.  In doing so, I don’t mean to imply that that any case or individual is taken lightly.  Our business impacts real people with real problems for which the system struggles to find real solutions.  That said, if you can’t appreciate the humor that presents itself in even the most serious situations, life can be quite desolate and bleak.  Personally, I enjoy the humor in things and it is rarely in short supply.  If nothing else, I will amuse myself briefly in the writing of it all. 

If you've always wondered about __________, ask me the question and (eventually) I’ll do my best to answer.  There won’t be any mention of names, no “inside the courthouse” gossip, no reasoned treatise on the death penalty or other controversial issues of the day.  I very much like my job and I have every intention of keeping it, thank you very much. 

What I will tell you is that there is no better job in the world for a lawyer than being a prosecutor.  Talk to any attorney you know, regardless of how much they make or what kind of car they drive;  if they've been a prosecutor, they will likely tell you that it was the best job they ever had.  The other ones would too, if they’d ever done it.  

Since we ARE lawyers, I am compelled to tell you that this is in no way the official blog of any Prosecutor’s office, the State of Missouri, any law enforcement agency or even a talented writer.  The observations and opinions are mine alone.  Moreover, I shall relate only the facts and details that are already in the public domain whether by court-filing or otherwise.  Hopefully, I can provide a little context, and perhaps some edutainment value in the process.    Feedback is welcome until you hurt my tender feelings and I block you forever. 

Enjoy!