Serendipity

HOW DO COURT RECORDERS KEEP STRAIGHT FACES???? These are from a book called "Disorder in the American Courts" and are things people actu ally said in court, word for word, taken down and published by court reporters that had the torment of staying calm while the exchanges were taking place. ATTORNEY: What was the first thing your husband said to you that morning? WITNESS: He said, 'Where am I, Cathy?' ATTORNEY: And why did that upset you? WITNESS: My name is Susan! _______________________________ ATTORNEY: What gear were you in at the moment of the impact? WITNESS: Gucci sweats and Reeboks. ____________________________________________ ATTORNEY: Are you sexually active? WITNESS: No, I just lie there. ____________________________________________ ATTORNEY: What is your date of birth? WITNESS: July 18th. ATTORNEY: What year? WITNESS: Every year. _____________________________________ ATTORNEY: How old is your son, the one living with you? WITNESS: Thirty-eig...

For the past month, we have been living under a great wave of turbulence in our lives here.  On the 8th of May, this place we've called home since February of this year, was shown to a possible buyer, who in fact did end up buying the place only two days ago. However, since the 8th, the landlord has done nothing but leave nasty little messages on our cell phone, left a nasty note in our mailbox...all telling us to get out...and now the new owner has stepped up to the plate and begun a similar attack. Our original lease wasn't due to expire until the end of August, rent has been paid before it was due (a month beforehand) and our security deposit was paid in full at the time of the signing of the lease.  With all that has transpired, the original owner has used the deposit against us, saying we won't get it back...or won't get it back until he does a walk through after we vacate.  Thing is, this past Tuesday, he was in here...and saw that this place is in the same cond...

Does this look like a "dangerous" dog? In the ongoing saga of the dog tales ...we seem to be on a roller coaster that is going faster and faster...downhill.  When you get that moment where you can sigh and say, "What a relief" you hope that it's the end of the whole situation and now we can move forward. I'm here to tell you that it's not the way it is.   Last night, we took Sammy to a 'safe' place, a few counties over, where his ordeal should have been over and we could tend to the other pressing issue at hand...packing while finding a place to move to. All-in-all, I guess it was just too much to ask to think that this would end the problem.   (Dog removed from this county = an "alive" dog.  Right?) Well...not exactly.  My daughter called the humane office this today on her lunch break to tal k to the officer handling this case, and ended-up speaking to his supervisor.  The supervisor heard how my daughter had given the do...

Sammy and Jack Let it never be said that all townships are the same, that every single person in them is a good person and does only good deeds.  I'm here to tell you what we are experiencing right now. Back about 4 weeks ago, my daughter's younger AmStaff was let out by accident by yours truly about 7 in the morning.  I immediately grabbed the leash and went to get him, as he had traveled next door onto the neighbor's property.  These neighbors have 2-3 dogs, all of which are chained outside 24/7 and Sammy went up to their Yorkshire terrior and began just sniffing him.   I called to Sammy and in the next second the dogs were fighting.  I hurried over to them, and grabbed a hold of Sammy, put the leash on him and then did my best to get the two dogs apart.  By then, the owner came out and she worked with me to get them separated...we'd get one dog to let go and the other dog would clamp on. Within minutes though, we had the dogs separated a...

screen grab of one of the letters sent to the District Attorney It wouldn't be until after the sentencing that Shawn found letters that had been sent to the District Attorney's office of a "murder plot for hire" that had circulated Wende Correctional Facility in the weeks prior to Rhonda Bilby's murder. Here was information that would have been the key to PROVING Shawn's innocence. So why was Shawn never told about them?   These letters were and are key instruments to prove that Shawn had no part in the murder of this woman. In the interview below, the ADA Baker states that Shawn DID know about them and didn't want to pursue the issue as part of his defense.  It's a lie. I remember when Shawn found those letters...he was extremely angry that he hadn't been told about them and I am literally the first person he called when he found them.  He was excited too...this would mean the difference between life in prison or freedom!

Does this look like a murderer? From the beginning, there have always been unanswered questions in Shawn's case...why was he targeted to take the fall...there was no proof of his guilt--and plenty of reasonable doubt --yet here is a county that was driven to convict him at all costs. In 2008, a new set of eyes looked at Shawn's case through eyes that were far removed geographically.  KJ Mullins, a Canadian journalist wrote two stories about Shawn's case that appeared on a website called Digital Journal: A Global Digital Media Network : Murder In A Small Town Op-Ed: When Rumours Swirl Both take a look at the thoughts, the facts as were known then (and now) and asks a lot of important questions . In the years since, nothing has changed except that Shawn has taken a more active role in his case, determining what will be done and how, along with having a lawyer who is willing to pull out the plugs and fight against a county that is Hell bent on keeping the truth burie...