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A fine lesson A few months ago, my 17-year-old niece, Katie, got a speeding ticket. She asked her mom for $85 to pay her fine and court costs. Her mom, a single parent, reluctantly went for her purse, but I stopped her from getting her checkbook. I told them about the first time my dad made me go to court to learn how the judicial system works. I also volunteered to take Katie to court. Well, the horrified look on Katie’s face said it all. Katie went on the offensive, using the old “but I’ll miss school if I go to court” routine. “This will be educational,” I told her, “and you’ll be the talk of the school.” Katie wanted to know what she had to wear to court. I told her to wear her Sunday best. Court day arrived, and we left her house at 7:30 to be early for a 9 a.m. court date. I could see Katie was beginning to fret. We got two front row seats in the courtroom and sure enough, all types of offenders arrived. Katie asked me to rehearse what she was to tell the assistant district attorney and asked for what seemed like the 1000th time, “How do I look?” When the ADA showed up, she announced where each type of offender should line up. I shoved Katie to the “guilty with no attorney” line. Poor Katie looked closer to 12 than 17. When it got to be our turn, Katie launched into her script. The ADA knew exactly what our mission was and listened to Katie mumble through her story and confession. The attorney asked Katie if she accepted a reduced fine to pleading to a lesser offense, and with a meek “yes” reply, we were off to the clerk’s office to pay the fine. As we left the courthouse, Katie asked, “Is that it?” All I could say was, “Yep.” She said that she couldn’t wait for all her school friends to ask her about court. And I got my reward: a warm hug and a thanks. Peter G. Ellis Jr. |
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