Out of Control Judges

There are good and even GREAT judges but...

   I have a case which has been ongoing for almost two years.  That is very long by the new standards set   by the legislature.  However, having said that, this case has LOTS of complex issues that most of the parties have been attempting to address in a diligent fashion.  The original judge on the case was always well prepared and didn't hesitate to sternly correct any party if necessary.  He was in control of the facts and very conscious of his role.  Sadly, it was his turn to return back downtown where he will serve one of the other benches (criminal, civil, probate, or family - and any one of them will be lucky to have him).  What that meant for our case was that it had to be reassigned to the judge who was taking over all of his cases.  This new judge was a former Assistant Attorney General (who are the attorneys for CPS) so needless to say, she has a professional bias towards the Department.  This was her first hearing in this case and despite the fact that she said she reviewed the file, it was clear that she did not do so or didn't do so thoroughly.  One of the attorneys made the observation that the report contained information contrary to what a witness testified to UNDER OATH previously!  Despite that, the report was admitted without redaction.  Despite the recommendation of the Department to give the parents more time...and DESPITE the fact that the case worker testified that one of the parents had done everything asked about him, the new judge ordered that the attorney for CPS file a motion to terminate the parents rights and went on a rant about what was in the children's best interests...after apparently not listening to the attorney for the children who stated that they wanted to go home to their parents.  What happened to listening to evidence, considering legal arguments, examining the file (when you aren't the original judge), and trying to do the "right thing"?

Divorce....I never wanted to be a family law lawyer!!

Best image I could find...that was clean!!






    So...I work in Juvenile Court and I handle both delinquency and dependency cases.  Delinquency cases are those juveniles who get in trouble with the law and are prosecuted in Juvenile Court due to their age (less than 18).  Dependency cases involve Child Protective Services (CPS) where the kids have been removed from the home of the parents due to allegations that they are unfit parents.  However, due to the fact that nowadays, most mothers just have kids with whomever...without the benefit of marriage and sometimes, without the benefit of even knowing the Dad's name, we (Juvenile Court attorneys) end up doing lots of family law and custody stuff.  For those who have kids without marriage, we end up (if we are lucky enough to get the decent parent) doing custody orders so that the decent parent can protect the child/ren from the non-decent parent.  For those who are married and have kids with the spouse (fairly rare), we might do a legal separation or divorce work.  We don't actually draft the divorce paperwork (because we don't get paid through our contract to do so), but we end up reviewing the paperwork and then after it is filed, we join the case with the dependency case, arrange for the custody and parenting time orders and then make sure that all appropriate paperwork is done.  For those who are having babies without benefit of marriage, we need to generate special orders of paternity, join them to the dependency, and then arrange the custody and parenting time orders and custody paperwork to be able to end the case.  I have had all sorts of "wonderful" issues from parents swearing that he was the father despite them both swearing in other courts that he wasn't the father (the dependency judge was HIGHLY annoyed when he discovered that little gem) to mothers who have babies and then disappear so that the father (the decent one, so to speak) had to have me publish in the paper so that I could get custody orders obtained...bleh!!

Techno-geek!

NO, THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE LAW EITHER.

            Ultrabook!!!!





I am such a techno-geek!  I always have to have the latest and greatest tech thing...whether it be a new smart phone (and I LOVE my smart phone) or the newest iPod (so far, I have resisted but my willpower is weakening...I just love the new clip on the Nano - don't need a touch, got me a smart phone....and an iPad...:)).  My newest burning desire is for the new Ultrabook!  It is so thin and light.  It has a solid-state hard drive (and the price is reasonable) and it is lightning fast!  It is a 128 SSD with 6GB memory.  It is "instant on" and I actually saw one in person so I know how light it really is.  My laptop is not really that old but I WANT IT!!!!

help me before my wants cause my wallet to dry up.....

BREAK from the LAW world.

10 Fun Questions About Me That You Never Knew!

I saw this on a friend's blog and thought ... what a freakin' cool idea

1. Book or movie and why?

Book. Sorry movie fans, but authors spend literally months figuring out things and there is sooo much more detail in the books. Movie directors think, how can I explain this plot and do it in a way that spends the least amount of money. There is, of course, one exception: the second Twilight book (yep, I read 'em ... oh great now you think less of me because I read teen horror) I thought Bella was waaaay too moody and darn near didn't make it through the book. The movie didn't suck ... as much.

2. Real book or e-book?

Hmmm, I have an iPad (with both the Kindle and Nook apps) and I DO like being able to immediately get a title but I also like the feel of paper in my hand so I guess I'd say both!

3. Besides ????, what's your favorite thing to do when you get some extra time?

The friend put "crafting" but since I 1) don't craft and 2) couldn't if my life depended on it.....I'd say that reading is my number one thing to do.  It relaxes me and makes me forget about life.

4. Funniest thing you've done in the last 5 years?

Geez, I don't know.  Probably have to ask my kids.  I'm sure that I amuse them on a daily basis (one is a teenager and the other is approaching "preteen" status.)

5. How would your best friend describe you?

Overworked (either with the job or kids' things); sometimes argumentative; love to laugh and have fun; dependable.

6. Would your choice of party be a catered meal or barbecue out back?

Catered definitely, especially if I don't have to lift a finger.  BBQ out back if it is totally catered.  Again, don't want to have to lift a finger (not cooking nor cleaning up)

7. Favorite kind of car and why?

 McLaren F1.  I LOVE the gull wing doors, it's an extremely fast Mercedes, what's not to love!!?!?!?!

8. What's your favorite season and why?

Autumn. Having grown up in Arizona, where there is NEVER cold weather, I love the crispness of Fall. I like crunchy leaves in the yards and scarecrows in peoples entryways and who doesn't like candy?  Although having grown up in Az where there is really NO WINTER either, I guess I'm not qualified to judge about winter....:)

9. What specific lesson have you learned - Spiritual, educational, occupational?

I wish I could say that I've learned lots of lessons but then I do something dumb and realize that maybe I didn't learn the lesson after all.  Biggest lessons I learned were from my kids:  be nice to others, "don't say anything if you can't say anything nice", etc

10. What's one place you can be found at least one time every week?

I wish I could say the Barnes and Noble but the more honest answer is the grocery store. I've even had weeks when I can honestly say I've been every DAY!  Sometimes even more than once a day!!


Thanks for stopping by

Nature v. Nuture?

Family IS important!

   For a long time, the "thinkers" have debated the question of nature v. nuture.  Well, in the last almost six years, I have seen some powerful evidence for nuture.  I have seen kids who were despised by their parent or parents (and I mean that only in the biological sense since not many of them EVER qualified to actually parent anything more than a small toadstool).  These kids who grow up without love are angry and/or detached.  They have no ability to love themselves or anyone else.  They cause trouble because in the end, any attention is good even if it is bad attention.  They turn to drugs and/or alcohol to ease the pain inside and they will never really understand what their problem is and where it started.  I have seen kids born to drug or alcohol addicted parents who, when CPS stepped in and took their kids away, grew "a pair" and did the right things.  They never blamed their kids for their problems, always managed to let the kids know that 1) they were loved; 2) Mommy and/or Daddy would be back; and 3) that they (the kids) were VERY important to them and everyone else.  Granted, these parents are more rare in the messed up world of Juvenile Court but I thank God, everytime I run into one.  It restores my faith in humanity.  Second argument for nuture over nature.  A friend of mine has adopted two wonderful children after dependencies went south and the parents rights were severed.  One child was born to a drug addicted mother who never acted like she loved her baby and this child after having grown up in a wonderful loving home is kind, thoughtful, smart, etc just like her adopted parents.  The second child was born to a parent who didn't have sense to do anything right (elevator doesn't go to the top floor) and this child is a gifted math student who's teachers can't keep him challenged enough. 

I say:   NUTURE!!!!

I wanna be de judge....

Otherwise known as the judge or the person in the "black dress"




I have decided that I want to be a judge.  I know that I am currently just a "flunky" with clients who lie to me or clients who haven't decided if smoking dope is worse than going to high school but...really, how hard could it be?  Walk in and everyone has to stand up....I sit down and tell everyone else that they can sit down.  Everyone has to defer to me and call me "your honor".  You can't interrupt me (as the judge) or I can tell you to shut up, yell at you or if I get really testy, fine you or put you in jail.  I don't have to be right, I just have to sound like I am right.  I don't have to be polite because....I am the judge and I can put you in jail if I feel like it.  If I decide that I want to go on vacation, I just don't schedule things during that time or if I decide that your hearing is inconvenient, I just tell my JAA (judicial admin. asst) to reschedule it.  I can take as long or as short a time with your case as I want and you can't do anything about it...cuz I'm the judge.

Clients.....part deux

Ok, so there are clients and there are clients!  With kids, it is either the delinquents in detention who desperately want you to get them out and are willing to lie or do anything to get out.  That may or may not be a good idea since when they are out...they tend to do "stupid" or criminal things that get them right back in detention.  Other kids have horrible things happen to them and although they are "damaged", they still can have child-like glee about deciding whether or not their new name (on their adoption birth certificate) should be "Godzilla" or not (true story).

Adults who have had their kids taken away fall into two categories generally.  The "I'm pissed off at CPS but I'll do anything to get my kids back" and the "I'm pissed at CPS and they can't tell me what to do, they're my effing kids".  The second ones are the kind that generally won't stop smoking dope or wanting to beat their kids when they do something wrong (and telling their CPS therapist that).  Getting pregnant by the same jerk who beat them up before is generally "frowned upon in this establishment" and yet, they ask with child-like confusion, "could this hurt my case?".  I so badly want to say, "Gee, you think?" but then that would be the problem...they don't think.

So, usually they don't get this button....

Can't live with 'em, can't shoot 'em....

My Favorite Client?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Oh, for the days when I represented the "State of Arizona" as a criminal prosecutor.....I didn't have needy clients who called to "chat" with me and repeated the same things over and over...and over.  I didn't have clients who thought that I had all the answers (yeah, don't know HOW they ever thought that!).  I didn't have clients who called to leave lengthy messages on the weekend and then got upset when I didn't call them first thing in the morning.  I didn't have clients who disappear on me and then leave me answering to the judge, "no, Your Honor, he/she didn't tell me that they were leaving the state / country (fill in the blank)"...even if they did tell me, I couldn't tell the judge anyway but judges don't like to be reminded that there is such a thing as attorney / client relationship and that I have to refuse to answer if it would violate that right.  They think that the "black dress" entitles them to answers.  I didn't have clients who didn't do anything that CPS told them to do and are honestly surprised that they aren't getting their kids back.  Bleh!

However, as I remember, I did have victims that called me all the time and thought that I could and would send the S.O.B. to prison for life (when I had already explained that life in prison wasn't an option for a simple burglary and neither was the death penalty).  I did have cops who called to gripe that I hadn't issued their case (when it was a crappy case that a defense attorney could win blindfolded).  I did have witnesses disappear on me and leave me to explain to the judge why the "almighty State" couldn't find them...

S.O.S., different address...sigh