The trial was yesterday.

The boys wanted to plead guilty and the assistant DA called me out of the courtroom to give my consent - she was prepared to go for the whole nine yards of a trial if I wanted to prosecute to the fullest.

The plea deal was that they would plead to malicious wounding of livestock. They would each get a year in prison with six months suspended for the accomplice. The DA thought that if there was any chance of turning around the lives of these young men, it was this. They had been in Juvie before, but a lot of kids think the justice system is playing pattycake. They won’t be going to little kid jail anymore. This is the real thing. I think there was a quote in “Office Space” about this sort of thing. Luckily, there won’t be any pounding because the kids will be seperated from the violent population and do most of their time with drunk drivers and druggies. I was all for that - I wouldn’t wish prison rape on anybody so I’m happy the boys will be protected from that. But hopefully the real time will make them rethink their futures. If not, this does count as a prior offense and one strike so they will get a whole new set of sentencing guidelines if they reoffend. Another condition of the guilty plea was that the triggerman give up the right to own a crossbow.

Justice was served, but Sally and I agreed that it should be lenient justice. I hope something good comes out of it.

As an aside, the trial prior to mine was of a broken-down sixty-three year old man who was stopped with a cigarette pack full of crack cocaine. As he was being arrested, he broke away and tried to run - with his hands handcuffed behind his back. The arresting officer, a fit-looking man in his mid twenties was trying not to laugh on the stand, but the guy, looking back at the pursuing officers, ran into a tree and knocked himself out. Heh.