Feedback

I was pleasantly surprised to receive an email that was sent to everyone in my office, from the chief of the entire office, congratulating me on my trial victory, and complimenting me on my preparation and presentation of the witnesses and evidence. I responded by thanking him, and asking what he thought I could have done better or should have done differently. Today he came and found me and told me that I did very good and he didn't think I could have done anything better! He asked me if I was nervous, and I told him no! He said I looked very confident.

I am so thankful for a job that I love, that I apparently do well, and where I am appreciated. I wish I didn't have to leave in May!

Trial Notes

I'm starting to feel back to normal, well, kind of. I'm still behind in my reading for school, and am trying to get caught up on that this weekend. But the whole trial-rush thing appears to be behind me. It was very cool at work yesterday to have so many people tell me "Congratulations" for getting a guilty verdict. I also asked my boss for feedback on my performance, and he only said good things, which pleased me. I called and spoke with the victim in the case and informed him of the outcome. Because some personal information about the victim's life was revealed during the course of the trial, my boss thought doing a press release might embarrass him so thought we wouldn't issue one. On his suggestion, I discussed it with the victim and found out that he is very much in favor of a press release, even if his name is used, because he wants people to know that they cannot do this sort of thing to someone. After relaying that to my boss, it appears that we will issue a press release about this case after sentencing.

I took a lot of notes during the trial. Here's some of them, in no particular order:

The case was about computer intrusion- the defendant broke into the victim's email account, changed the password, prevented the victim from accessing his own account. (Then proceeded to do bad things with that account.) Anyway, one of the things discussed was the existence of a file shredding program on the defendant's computer. The file that was shredded was an incriminating image file that the defendant had emailed to people in his effort to ruin the victim. I thought it was highly amusing that on cross exam, the defendant's attorney asked our computer witness what shredding programs are used for, and he answered, "destroying things that people don't want others to know." The attorney suggested some things that might typically be shredded, such as sensitive financial information or porn. The expert agreed and said that there was porn on the defendant's computer, but THAT had not been shredded! LOL

The defendant's attorney called 6 witnesses, including the defendant, during his case in chief. The first of these witnesses was a lady, I'm guessing early 60s, with6-8 inch long fingernails. (I am NOT exaggerating!) The defendant's theory (one of them) was that he was conducting a personal investigation of a variety of crimes in the community, some involving "big names", and he was selectively prosecuted because of this investigation. This witness was there to talk about shenanigans that apparently happened with some lawyer and judge, in relation to a criminal case involving her son.

This son was another one of the witnesses. The crime he was involved with? Child molestation. He had apparently just gotten out after serving 6 years. Nice huh? Nothing either of these 2 said had anything to do with the crime the defendant was charged with here. It was all about this whole other conspiracy thing going on the side.

The defendant himself did the most damage to his case. He told so many blatant lies and got caught. One that I caught was this- during a search of his home, a document that had been printed out from a web site was found. He claimed that it was used to investigate the victim for some misbehavior in a certain case. That case was in 1999. I noticed the page was printed out in 2001. We asked the defendant to verify that date, which he did. And no explanation was ever given. Very bad for him.

There had also been a deposition in an earlier case in which both the defendant and the victim were present. At some point, the victim became aware that the defendant had a loaded weapon on him at the time. When asked about it, the defendant's reason for why he had the weapon with him at the time was because the opposing party was known to carry a gun as well, and he feared she might try to kill him. So, of course, we asked him, what was he expecting? To have a shoot out with her right in the middle of a crowded law office?

The defendant admitted he was "investigating" the victim. There had been some murdered prostitutes in the area, and in his effort to tie the victim to the crime, he claimed to have obtained the shoeprints and cigarette butts of the victim. When we inquired HOW exactly he did this, he said he paid some local homeless people to help him. Ok, can you say CREEPY?!?

The defendant apparently kept all his notes about his "investigation" written in some code. He claims this notes were taken in the search of his home and never returned. He refused to answer a question about what languages he knew, because he feared this would allow his notes to be interpreted. What a freak!

Before the judge announced his verdict, he spent about a half hour going through all of his findings. In the end, he said the defendant was an "intellectual vigilante" and that there was no reasonable doubt that the defendant was the one who had committed this crime. Considering it was a petty offense for a computer crime, it was a fascinating case that ended up involving violence, murder, bribery and sex. Sounds like a good one for movie of the week....

I Got A Conviction in Federal District Court!

How incredibly cool is that! :) Just a law student, but have 3 convictions in federal magistrate court, and now a conviction in federal district court! My trial wrapped up this afternoon after 2 full days. It was such a great experience and I enjoyed every second of it, even though I'm so physically and mentally worn out I feel like collapsing.

I'm too tired to really post anything more. Hopefully I'll be up to it tomorrow. Just had to post about the outcome. Could not have gone any better! :)

I'm in Trial!

Ok, how cool is it to be able to say that? And I was kept in court last night until 6pm!

My trial was set to start at 10am yesterday. However, I logged into the court's website when I woke up, just to check and see if anything had been filed since Friday. I wasn't expected anything, but with this defendant, you can never be sure of anything. I was shocked to see that 10:30pm on Monday (a court holiday), the defendant had filed to substitute an attorney to represent him (instead of representing himself), and that the attorney filed a motion to dismiss the case.

I had no idea what was going to happen because I thought the judge could easily continue this case once again to give the new attorney time to prepare for trial. I didn't think it likely the motion for dismissal would be granted, but I was doubting I'd actually have trial yesterday. The judge, however, would have none of the defendant's shenanigans and did not delay the trial. The new attorney opted to sit in as "co-counsel", not wanting to commit malpractice by proceeding without being fully prepared.

It was so cool- here I was in this gorgeous courthouse, in a beautiful 7th floor courtroom (not "lowly" 6 floor magistrate courtroom- lol!), giving my opening statement. As the day continued on, my boss and I took turns with our witnesses- I had 8, he had 5. He has to finish on his last one this morning before we rest and the defendant begins. I have no idea what to expect from him, other than to know it is likely to be long- he loves to talk!

I'll also be doing the closing, whenever we get to that. Each side was given 7 hours to present its case, and we've only used 3 hours of our time so far (defense has used a bit over 2). I suppose we could finish today, but I kinda think it will be tomorrow before we're done. I think I'd prefer that, just so I can go in completely fresh and focused, instead of having to do the closing after a long day of testimony. Either way, I am totally enjoying this! It just feels so normal to be doing this- I love that I'm not bit nervous about it too.

Well, I gotta run. My trial resumes in about 2 hours!~

Just to Clarify

I received some email from non-law types, asking me a couple questions about my last post. I admit that it is easy for me now to think only in legal terms, forgetting that they may not be familiar to all. Sorry! Anyway, here's the answers:

What does it mean to "submit on the ticket"?

I've never heard an official explanation for this, but basically, when you are in court, and the judge asks your opinion about something, and you want to say that you agree with a certain document (ticket, probation report, plea agreement, etc.), you say that you "submit on" that, meaning whatever that says is what you want to submit to the judge and have him/her to do.

I had already forgotten that the phrase struck me as odd when I first started this internship because I quickly saw how it was being used.

What is a non-magistrate judge?

Let's work backwards. A magistrate judge is appointed for a term of 8 years, by other judges in the federal district court. You might consider them to be a step below the regular, non-magistrate judges. The district court judges (what I referred to as "non-magistrate"), on the other hand, receive a lifetime appointment after being nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

I'm not sure exactly how cases are assigned between the judges, but I know that for my work in the misdemeanor unit, I always appear before one of the 3 magistrate judges in our court. I'm not really sure why this case and trial is before the judge who has it now. But in my view, because it is, it is a little more serious.

Yeah, I've Been A Slacker

Ok, I know I haven't posted in a week. I may have slacked on posting, but it's only because I've been so incredibly busy. (Yeah, yeah, what else is new?) I did have some cool experiences this week, so let me recap a few of them.

First of all, I had my big monthly court day this past Thursday. It's always kind of like a circus because so much goes on, so quickly, but it's easily my most favorite day of the month. You never know exactly what to expect, which I think is one of the reasons I like it so much. Much more challenging when you have to think on your feet!

All the people who are there to appear on their violations start showing up around 9am. From 9-9:30, they are all supposed to check in with the court clerk, and then speak to me, if they want to give me a reason why the government should consider reducing their fine. I have total discretion to do so or not. (How much fun is that for a law student??? But of course, I'm always fair and reasonable!)

During this time, I was speaking with a defendant at the government's counsel table about his violation. All of a sudden my eyes shift to the man who was walking into court, and up to the clerk. He was wearing leopard print cat ears! I just looked at him, stopped talking, and almost fell out of my chair! WTF? I then had to go to the clerk myself, and tell her the reduced fine I had agreed to, while leopard boy was standing there. The clerk, court reporter and I exchanged looks and just tried not to laugh. Unfortunately, he didn't need to appear, so I wasn't able to see what the judge would have said. He left without incident, seemingly oblivious to what was on his head.

The big excitement for the day, however, was the bench trial I had for a parking violation at the VA hospital. I know that sounds like a snoozefest, but it was both the most frustrating and the most fun I've had in court yet. Generally, these trials last less than an hour- I bring my witness (the officer who issued the citation) and have them tell me what happened, and then the defendant, without an attorney, tells their version. There is a little bit of cross-examination, but I never object to anything during the whole process because first, I know the pro per defendants don't really know what they are doing, and secondly, I don't want to seem like a bitch, and finally, I don't think it's really necessary.

If I tell you that this "little" $25 parking violation turned out to be a 2+ hour trial, would you believe me? The defendant had parked his oversized camper truck diagonally over two parking spaces. I began with my direct exam of the officer who issued the ticket. Then the defendant, who I believe to be a wanna-be actor, got up to cross. Instead of just asking a question, he started basically presenting his case. I gave him a little leeway, but when I could see he wasn't going to stop, I stood up, "Objection, your honor. Defendant is testifying." "Sustained." Ok, that was cool.

That really didn't seem to deter the defendant much. He got out his several theories (the officers had unfairly sought to ticket him, the slash marks on the second space denoting it as a no parking area were too faded to believe they were current, the officer did not announce a warning over the hospital PA before ticketing his vehicle, his intention in parking that way was to be considerate to other people and not have his vehicle block them, the paint from the previous striping had leeched up through the asphalt and confused the striping, etc., etc., etc.) while keeping me hopping and objecting the entire time. The objections I remember making are: "ambiguous", "argumentative", "asked and answered", "counsel testifying", "improper characterization", and "irrelevant". But I made most of them numerous times and I'm sure I probably lodged at least 4 dozen objections. At several points, I was so frustrated, I just stood up and declared, "Your honor, OBJECTION!" The judge, who had to be getting tired of the defendant's shenanigans kept sustaining them. Mind you, this is all over a $25 parking ticket!

After going round and round, back and forth, the defendant at one point started some argument, then cut himself off. "I don't want to waste the court's time," he said. In a non-professional move on my part, I couldn't help but mouth, "TOO LATE" to the court clerk and court reporter, who had been making "WTF is he doing?" faces at me for over an hour. Eventually, the judge declared him guilty (maintaining my 100% conviction rate) and asked for each side's request for fine amount. I submitted on the ticket ($25 plus $25 fee and $10 assessment). In yet another eye rolling moment, the defendant said he thought "time served" was appropriate. When the judge said that he had never been arrested, the defendant explained he meant his time in court. UGH. This guy would not give it up. The judge gave him a $25 total fine. It won't surprise you to hear he then announced he would be appealing. OMG!!!!!!!!

I forgot to mention that earlier in the morning, a large group of students from Bullard High School came into the courtroom to observe. There seemed to be 3 shifts of them, coming in to watch, at various points, so I estimate 100-150 students were watching me in action. As I left the courthouse that morning, a Fresno Unified bus was parked in front, with all the students inside. I crossed the street in front of it, making my way to the garage. As I walked away, I heard one of the students call out, "Hey Gov-a-ment........" Too funny!

Ok, so that was Thursday. Yesterday I went to a Stalking seminar down in Visalia. It was actually very interesting and even though it made for a very long day, I think it was helpful and actually eye opening in many ways. I have no doubt I will be using some of that information soon (and no, not to stalk anyone, you pervs!).

So, looking ahead to the coming week, I'm going to be super busy again. Tomorrow is a federal holiday, so I don't have to work, but I am going to go in for a bit and just get all my last minute stuff ready for my trial that starts on Tuesday. This will be the biggest trial I've had so far, as I have 14 witnesses and it is expected to last about 3 days. It will be in front of Judge O'Neill, my first in front of a non-magistrate judge. While my boss is doing the trial with me, I'm doing the opening, closing, and I believe questioning 9 of the witnesses. The defendant is quite the sly one, and loves to talk, so I'm sure this trial will probably be even more interesting than the one I had last week.

Because of the trial, I will miss my Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon classes this week (Remedies and Evidence). I hate missing classes, but I wouldn't miss the opportunity to do this trial for anything! My Wills and Trusts class doesn't meet this week, so that leaves me with only one class I'll be going to this week (Legal Process on Tuesday night).

Now, I need to get working on my Legal Process assignment (doing one Performance Exam) and doing some work on my opening and closing. Going to be an interesting week.

Roman Holiday

My daughter is in Rome with a group from MIT. Her Roman History professor is their tour guide. I'm so jealous! Here's a couple of my favorite photos from when I was there a few years ago. The first is of the Pantheon. Leading up to arriving at the site, you meander through these narrow Roman roads, which are lined with tall buildings. You kind of get this closed in feeling and suddenly, it just opens up to this huge square with the Pantheon sitting there. I remember my breath just being taken away! There are so many things in Rome to be impressed with, but this was at the top of my list. It's hard for me to explain how much I loved it, but I feel compelled to see it again someday.

Something else I loved almost equally as much was the typical Roman neighborhood portrayed by this photo. At first, I was kind of surprised by the amount of graffiti and general "dirt" of the city, but Rome just isn't the scrubbed clean kind of city. It didn't take long to fall in love with the real-ness and the beauty of it though. I suppose I crave both the spectacular as well as the normal everyday beauty that one finds there. Sigh.....

"The Geritol Lunch Bunch"

That's what my buddies who work security at the federal courthouse called the protesters who were out doing their thing in front of the courthouse today at lunchtime. A group from Peace Fresno was out there staging some sort of demonstration. Doesn't bother me (and doesn't really interest me), but honestly, when I see people holding signs that read, "Raging Grannies", all I can do is laugh!

What Is Wrong with People?

Corpse Wheeled to Check-Cashing Store Leads to 2 Arrests

By BRUCE LAMBERT and CHRISTINE HAUSER

Published: January 9, 2008

Even for the once-notorious Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, it may have been a first: Two men were arrested on Tuesday after pushing a corpse, seated in an office chair, along the sidewalk to a check-cashing store to cash the dead man’s Social Security check, the police said.

When Virgilio Cintron, 66, died at his apartment at 436 West 52nd Street recently, his roommate and a friend saw an opportunity to cash his $355 check, the police said.

They did not go about it the easy way, the police said, choosing a ruse that resembled the plot of “Weekend at Bernie’s,” a film about two young men who prop up their dead employer to pretend that he is alive.

“Hell’s Kitchen has a rich history,” said Paul J. Browne, a police spokesman, “but this is one for the books.”

There was no sign of foul play in Mr. Cintron’s death, he added.

The roommate, James P. O’Hare, and his friend, David J. Dalaia, both 65 and unemployed, placed Mr. Cintron’s body in the chair and wheeled it around the corner, south along Ninth Avenue on Tuesday afternoon, the police said. The men parked the chair with the corpse in front of Pay-O-Matic at 763 Ninth Avenue, a check-cashing business that Mr. Cintron had patronized.

They went inside to present the check, but a clerk said Mr. Cintron would have to cash it himself, and asked where he was, the police said.

“He is outside,” Mr. O’Hare said, indicating the body in the chair, according to Mr. Browne.

The two men started to bring the chair inside, but it was too late.

Their sidewalk procession had already attracted the stares of passers-by who were startled by the sight of the body flopping from side to side as the two men tried to prop it up, the police said. The late Mr. Cintron was dressed in a faded black T-shirt and blue-and-white sneakers. His pants were pulled up part of the way, and his midsection was covered by a jacket, the police said. While the two men were inside the check-cashing office, a small crowd had gathered around the chair. A detective, Travis Rapp, eating a late lunch at a nearby Empanada Mama saw the crowd and notified the Midtown North station house.

Police officers and an ambulance arrived as the two men were trying to maneuver the corpse and chair into the check-cashing office.

The two men were taken into custody and questioned. The police said they were considering charging them with check-cashing fraud.

Mr. Cintron’s body was taken to a hospital morgue. The medical examiner’s office said its preliminary assessment was that he had died of natural causes within the past 24 hours.

Fall Grades

The last of my grades for the fall semester was posted this morning. Here's the final tally:

Evidence 89 (2nd highest in class)
Community Property 87 (Highest in class)
Advanced Research & Writing 85 (2nd highest in class)
Remedies 81
Wills & Trusts ok, not so good, but still way above passing

I'm very pleased to have had my best semester ever, and moreso that it happened during my most stressful semester ever. After this, and the whole moot court/medical drama this summer, I'm feeling like I do my best under extreme stress. I've always known that I hate to be bored, but didn't really know the extent of it!

In other news, my trial is 2 weeks from tomorrow. I spent a lot of the day today calling my witnesses and doing other prep work. I only work 20 hours a week, so that doesn't give me much time to get everything ready. I'm started to get excited about it again though. I'm still set to do the opening, closing, and 8 of our 14 witnesses. Fun!

I Should Be Excited

The trial I was supposed to have last September which was continued until this month was confirmed today for the 22nd. When I started this internship, all I could think about was this trial. Now that it is actually going to happen, it doesn't even seem like it matters. I'm just feeling really sad. My daughter leaves to go back to school on Sunday and other issues have come up that make it even harder for me to have her go. I'm having a hard time thinking about anything else. : (

Someone Important Was in the Courthouse Today

Yes, folks, the owner of Seabiscuit, Man'o' War AND the Ford Motor Company was in the courthouse this morning. She was trying to persuade the security staff to let her in, as she needed to see a judge because someone took all her things from her. Um, yeah, ok. I'll have to get back to you on what happens with that.

Four and a Half Months

It's too long, and it's too short. While I'm more than ready to be done with law school, I hate the thought of leaving my internship at the US Attorney's office. I love what I do and the responsibilities I have there. I wish I could just stay.

I remember when I first interviewed for this position, after hearing the description of everything I'd be doing, I was scared! I couldn't imagine HOW I would do it. But I told myself not to worry that I'd figure out how later. Of course now, I just laugh because nothing I do is hard or scary at all. It really is just fun.

I feel so at home in the courtroom. The good news is that it looks like I'm going to have a number of trials before I leave, including one that will probably last the better part of a week later this month. I just hope I will be able to return to this courthouse once I'm a lawyer someday.

Happy New Year!

This greeting card is 99 years old, but I loved the "dawning of a new year" that it depicted.

When I think about 2008, I realize how different it is going to be from the last couple of years. My law school experience will be over in 4.5 months. I'll be taking the bar exam. Hopefully, I will pass and begin working as an attorney.

It's going to be a year filled with firsts and lasts, and of finding ways to not leave certain things behind in the process. I'm excited, hopeful and anxious. Let's go!