The Case of the Bruised Hand I conducted a mandatory settlement conference in a civil case where a woman sued a restaurant chain for $25,000. She couldn’t find a lawyer to take her case, and so she represented herself. That is always a tip-off as to the frivolous nature a case. She felt she was entitled … Continue reading Amusing Frivolous Lawsuits
We have outstanding full-time certified court interpreters in Orange County. Our staff interpreters are primarily Spanish and Vietnamese. Orange County has a wonderfully diverse population. I regularly have certified on-call interpreters in my court who speak Mandarin, Persian, Arabic, Russian, Romanian, Samoan, Tongan, Tagalog, and Sign Language. It is very difficult to become certified as a court … Continue reading “Unpredictable” and “Problem” Court Interpreters
Things I had to unlearn I am frustrated by how many things I have had to unlearn over the years. There is so much information that I thought was true, but was not. For example, I mislearned in elementary school that honest George Washington confessed to chopping down the family cherry tree. I mislearned in college … Continue reading The Bald Eagle and the Great Seal
I was presiding over my heavy high-volume misdemeanor arraignment calendar, handling around 150 criminal cases each morning. (According to our computers, I deal with 25,000-30,000 cases each year. A few judges call me "Big Lots," for "high volume, big discounts.") I called an assault and battery case. The man standing in front of me looked very … Continue reading U of U Football Player vs. BYU Judge
In Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll presented an insightful dialogue between Alice and the smiling Cheshire Cat. (My friends nicknamed me “Cheshire” because I resemble the Cheshire Cat in several ways, especially the perpetual grin.) “Alice was a little startled by seeing the big Cheshire Cat sitting on a bough of a tree a … Continue reading Alice and the Cheshire Cat
I am continually amazed at how often people make bad situations worse. We see this very often when people flee the scene of an accident, evade a police officer, or fail to show up for their traffic tickets. I was presiding over a misdemeanor jury trial. The defendant was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence, violation of … Continue reading Another Entertaining Dumb Criminal Makes Matters Much Worse
As a rookie D.A. I was assigned to West Court in Westminster, California. (Coincidentally, that is also where I began my judicial career.) The Stanton Police Chief personally invited me to go on a police ride along with his officers. Stanton had a small underfunded, understaffed, underpaid, and under-equipped police department. (A few years later, … Continue reading My One and Only Hair-raising Police Ride Along
After serving in West Court in Westminster, California for twelve years, I was transferred to Harbor Court in Newport Beach. The area surrounding West Court is one of the poorest in the Orange County. The area surrounding Harbor Court is some of the richest in the country, if not the world. This area is the setting … Continue reading The Real Rich Criminals of Orange County
The internet contains lists of “Famous Last Words.” Some of the last words are true, some are exaggerated, and some are false. I have tried to verify this list. General John Sedgwick: “They couldn’t hit an elephant at this distance.” Civil War Union General John Sedgwick was at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia, … Continue reading Famous Last Words
The Defendant Inadvertently Confesses During Trial I presided over a jury trial where the defendant had sold drugs to an undercover police officer. As we started with testimony, the prosecutor called the undercover officer as his first witness. As the officer walked up to the stand, the defendant jumped up, pointed at the cop, and … Continue reading 2 More Dumb Criminals
The London Edition 