I have been representing a young African-American male in a felony juvenile case since December of 2008. We set his case for trial a few months ago. And today was the jury trial date. From first impression, it looked like a case that should have been the subject of a plea bargain. But my client’s mother insisted on his innocence and gave us every resource to investigate and fight the case. She stood by him even though she did not have a lot of means. A few days ago, I learned that she was dying with cancer. I was surprised. She never told me anything about it. Not once did she use it as an excuse for anything that was happening. She paid all of her attorneys fees and never gave any hint that she was struggling with any other issue.
After some digging, it looked like my client was victimized by the alleged “complaining witness.” I made my argument to the state and presented my client’s truth to an honest prosecutor. And, the state dismissed the case this morning. Within minutes of having the case dismissed, my client’s oldest sister (now his legal guardian) received a call from a family member informing them that their
mother had passed away. On this day, July 14, 2009, she died and was under sixty.It shocked me. Frankly, I am still in shock. Because the last time I saw her, she was uncompromising in her principles. She was standing her ground and was ready to fight. Her son could have easily been a victim of the system. A different parent would have caved under the pressure of mounting financial obligations and mortgaged his future and hope to pay for their temporal contentment. But my client’s mother stood on truth. To her justice was not an elusive concept about which to theorize and postulate. It was tangible and worth much more than a little sweat from her brow. No matter what the cost or the consequence of paying that cost, justice should never be place on layaway. My client's mother could not wait. Thankfully, her righteous quest for justice was SUSTAINED!
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