Life 18 Aug 2005 10:52 pm
Rolaids Relief
Independence Day 2005 brought everything but the feeling of independence. It started a new journey of dealing with emotions, government, and a way of life so foreign to me. Today is the day that relief finally came. An independence of some sort. An independence that couldn’t come with anything but experience.
Bright and early, Joel and I got our first taste of Municipal Court. Cold and uninviting, the courtroom reaked of the guilt and the lies that would be demostrated there that morning. As we walked in, a lady with her son and daughter walked in ahead of us. The lady sat on the bench beside the metal detector and said, “hold on while I put my shoes on as they won’t let me in without them.” I couldn’t imagine showing up to court with no shoes. Joel and I both found it odd that they need to put the dress code on the back of the subpeona. We even laughed originally. I guess they have to post it for such people.
We found our seats on an empty bench in front of an older couple which I immediately pegged as the “other family” in our case. 6:50, roll call was taken. It was then that my suspicions were solidified that this woman and her two kids were “it.” He stood about 6′, medium build, dressed decently for court (kakhis and t-shirt) with glasses. Tattoos up one arm with a few on the back of his neck.
Within the next 30 minutes, our docket was called. The couple I had pegged stood up as well as Richard, and Joel and I. We approached the bench and the prosecutor immediately started talking to the judge asking for an extension. We were all rather surprised to hear of an extension. The other couple immediately spoke up mentioning their $40K worth of damages. That through the judge into a tizzy. $40K is a little too much for municipal court so they were told that they have to go to civil court as he didn’t have up to date insurance. The judge continued stating that he wanted to try the DUI case and the criminal mischief charge. Richard immediately said that he wanted to plead guilty to which the judge advised him to speak with a public defender and asked that we sit back down. A few minutes later, Richard and public defender approached the bench. Back up to see the judge, we strained to hear all that was said. With three officers, a prosecutor, a public defender, and Richard and us, it was hard to hear. Richard again said that he would plead guilty and that this was something that he needed to take responsibility for and that he had begun to do so by enrolling in a year long drug/alcohol rehab program. The prosecutor gave the judge our estimates for damage and quickly reminded the judge of the “fear factor.” Though I never received an “I’m sorry” from Richard, I actually felt that he had tried to deal with the issues. A victim of his own volision, he was still somewhat a victim. The judge ultimately assigned him 45 days in jail after he graduates from rehab, $400 fine, $191 court fees, $959 restitution, and a new court date in December to go check into how his rehab is working. We walked about nearly an hour later knowing that for the most part that this chapter of our lives was coming to somewhat of a close. Mind you we’ll probably never see the $959 and we’ll still have to pay our deductible, I really don’t mind as much as I did. Knowing that admission of guilt was there seemed to soothe over the emotions of anger and frustration.
Later today the commander that Joel had been speaking to regarding our police report called to tell us that they had found the report and that it was ready for him to pick up. What great news. Mom always said to give it three days and three days it was.
So as my typical routine, I dealt with my emotions by cleaning in hopes of working through them. I’m really pleased with the outcome. Joel has just learned to let me clean and work it out. But I feel so much better now and maybe now with a clearer head I can give a better description of my feelings.
Relief. Sadness for a man who is so lost. Thanksgiving for God’s grace. Great joy. Tired and relaxed for the first time in a few days. My relief didn’t come in the form of ROLAIDS today. Relief came today in the finalization of court, the admission of guilt, and closure that came with it. Real independence.