The courtroom felt really tired that afternoon. You could really feel it. When you have hearings they can make a room feel that way. People start moving in their seats lawyers start loosening their ties and police officers change the way they are standing. Everyone is waiting for the case they are all hoping the courtroom will get to it quickly and it will not take a long time. The courtroom is waiting for the next case to start.
This thing did not look special, to me. I mean the thing just did not stand out. Anything. The thing was just ordinary.
The criminal was brought in quietly. This man was probably in his forties. He was about height and had a pretty average face. There was nothing, about him that stood out. He was wearing a jail jumpsuit. His hands were held together. His eyes were looking ahead. The criminal did not look scared. The criminal did not look confident either. He just looked empty like the criminal had accepted whatever was going to happen to him.
The judge looked at the file. He was holding the file in his hands. He glanced at the file to see what was inside the file. The file was very important, to the judge.
This file is really thin. It does not have a lot of pages. The file being thin is usually a sign. Thin files, like this one often mean that the cases are rushed.
The lawyer started to talk.
The man explained the charges in a way like it was no big deal. He said the facts were simple and easy to understand. The evidence was good and strong. The case had been put off for a time. He wanted a decision to be made quickly. The way he spoke made it seem like the case was already finished like the decision had already been made.
The judge was very quiet. He listened to what people were saying. The judge did not say anything he just listened.
No nodding. No interruption. Just listening.
The lawyer was done talking. Then the judge asked the lawyer a question that was really easy to understand. The question the judge asked was simple.
The man asked how long the defendant had been in jail. He wanted to know how long the defendant had been locked up. The defendant was the person on trial. He asked about the time the defendant had been, in custody.
The lawyer gave an answer. This all happened in eight months. The lawyer was very fast, with the answer. It only took the lawyer eight months.
The judge raised his eyebrows a little.
It took eight months to deal with this case. That feels really wrong because the file is so small. The case had a small file and it still took eight months, which feels wrong.
The judge looked at the papers again this time he did it slowly. He stopped at one paper then he stopped at another one. The judge leaned forward. He read the documents very carefully. The room became very quiet. Nobody even noticed that it was quiet now. The judge kept reading the documents the documents were very important, to the judge.
The man asked the lawyer another question. He wanted to know more, about what the lawyer was saying so he asked the lawyer another question.
The man asked why the medical report was not there. He wanted to know what happened to the report. The medical report was supposed to be ready. It was missing.
The lawyer stopped for a moment. He was not sure what to do. The lawyer looked really unsure of himself.
That one second was important. He said it did not matter. The defendant would not answer questions the police wrote down.
The defendant moved a little to one side. The defendant changed his position.
It was slight barely noticeable.. The judge did notice it. The judge saw the movement, the small change. The movement was almost unnoticeable. The judge caught it.
The judge looked at the defendant. Asked the defendant if what the defendant was saying was really true.
The man had a confused look, on his face. He just looked so confused. The man was clearly confused.
The man said no. The man said nobody asked him. His voice was calm. The man meant what he said. The man was not fighting about it. The man was just telling us what was true.
The courtroom is really different now. Something about the courtroom has changed. The courtroom looks different, to me.
The lawyer tried to step but the judge raised his hand gently. There was silence.
The judge asked the police officer who was standing behind the defendant to come forward. The police officer was standing behind the defendant. The judge wanted the police officer to step forward.
The person asked if they had been given an evaluation. He wanted to know if a medical evaluation had been offered to them. The person was wondering about the evaluation.
The police officer looked really uncomfortable. He did not seem to be, at ease. The officer was clearly feeling uneasy.
The person said that he thought the thing had been taken care of. He was not really sure himself. The thing was dealt with when the person first came in.
The judge did not react.
The person just wanted to see the report. He was looking for the intake report.
The court staff searched everywhere. They moved a lot of papers around. Several minutes passed by and the court staff were still searching. The minutes seemed to be going slowly as the court staff continued to search through the papers.
The public leaned forward now. People had a feeling that something was not quite right, with the situation. The public felt that something felt off.
The report was finally brought to the judge. He read the report quietly. The judges face tightened, a little bit. The judge looked up at the people, in the room his eyes fixed on the report that the judge was holding. The judge was still reading the report.
The report said the defendant had chest pain when he was arrested. The defendant had chest pain. That is what the report said. It also said that no doctor looked at the defendant. The defendant did not get to see a doctor that is what the report showed about the defendant.
The judge put the file down slowly. He did this with a lot of care. The file was down, on the table now. The judge had moved the file from his hand to the table.
The man asked the defendant if the defendant had any health problems. The defendant was asked about the defendants health issues. Did the defendant have health issues that is what the man wanted to know about the defendant.
The man nodded his head in agreement the man showed that the man understood what was being said by nodding.
The man spoke up for the time without needing to be asked twice. He told us that he has heart problems. The man said that he asked for help times. The man said that no one paid attention to him.
His voice wasn’t angry.
It was tired.
The judge leaned back in his chair. He looked really tired. The judge was going to make a decision, about the case. The judge was thinking carefully about what he was going to say.
The lawyer tried to explain something to me. He said that delays are something that happens sometimes. The lawyer said that the resources they have are limited. The lawyer also said that the delay was not done on purpose, by the lawyer.
The judge stopped the man. The judge did this to him. The man had to stop because the judge told him to. The judge was, in charge. The judge stopped him.
The man said that just because you intend to do something it does not mean you are not responsible for what happens. He said intention does not erase responsibility. What he means is that people are still responsible, for the things they do even if that was not what they intended to happen with their actions. The man is saying that intention does not erase the responsibility that people have for the things they do.
The courtroom was silent.
The judge spoke slowly now carefully. He said the court has a duty to protect the rights of people the rights of those people who are accused of crimes. The court has to make sure that people are treated fairly. Holding someone, in jail for months without giving them the care they need is just not acceptable the judge said about the court and the people who are accused of crimes.
The defendant stood there quietly breathing in and out in an uneven way. The defendant was not making a sound just standing and breathing unevenly like the defendant was trying to calm down or something.
The judge made a decision then and there, on the spot. The judge did not. Think about it for a long time. The decision was made by the judge on the spot.
The man, in charge said that the defendant needed to see a doctor away. So he ordered that the defendant be taken to a hospital with some guards to watch him. The hearing was put on hold for a while. It will not happen until the defendants medical issue is taken care of. The defendants medical evaluation is the important thing right now.
The lawyer looked really stunned. He just stood there the lawyer did not know what to say. The lawyer was completely taken aback by what had happened.
The police officers looked at each other for a moment then they nodded at each other. The police officers seemed to understand what the police officers were thinking.
People did not get upset. They were talking quietly. Then they stopped talking all of a sudden. The public stopped talking about the thing that the public was talking about.
The defendant closed his eyes. He just shut them tight. The defendant did not want to see what was going on. The defendant wanted to block everything out.
Not relief. More like release.
The man did not say thank you. The man did not smile. The man just nodded slowly like someone who had finally been treated like a person.
The judge got to his feet. Stood up. He was standing now. The judge was looking at everyone, in the room. The judge stood up. That is what he did.
He did not lecture. He did not threaten. He just reminded everyone in the room that justice’s not just about punishing people but it is also about showing care to people. Justice is, about care.
The man got up. Walked away. He was gone. The man left the place.
People did not get up. Leave right away. They just sat there for a moment thinking about what happened. Some of the people looked really angry. Some people looked like they felt uncomfortable. Some people even looked like they were ashamed of themselves. That is what the people looked like the people who were sitting there.
That case did not end that day. The court was still thinking about the case. The people, in the case had to wait to find out what would happen with the case.
No verdict. No sentence.
Something important happened to me. It is still, on my mind. This thing that happened is really important. I want to talk about the important thing that happened.
The system is really slow now. The system does not work fast as it used to. This is a problem, with the system.
And in that moment when everything stopped a man was not a number in a file he was a real person, with feelings and thoughts the man became a person again.
Sometimes justice isn’t loud.
The truth comes out when someone finally notices what everyone else ignored. This is what happens with the truth. The truth shows up when someone finally notices what everyone else ignored.
And that moment stays with you longer than any ruling ever will.