The Lawyer
-A.H
Lying is what he is known for
both at work and at home, as he walks through the door.
Being liable for the freedom of others is not a big deal,
he lies through his teeth then requests an appeal.
His lies do not affect his appearance at all,
he’s still handsome and charming and dark haired and tall.
It is no big deal that he lies to his family,
he figures it’s just a part of reality.
Everyone is oblivious to his criminal actions,
he’s much more deceitful than anyone imagines.
He wins every case by lying with no remorse,
but he’s losing his family, his wife wants a divorce.
He is working profoundly to win this one case,
and all of his efforts are over a tape.
This tape, oh there’s two,and the things the tape captured,
he wishes he could undo.
See although everyone thinks that he is so grand,
he is truly a sorry excuse for a man.
The briefcase he carries, is worth so much more
it withholds evidence that cannot be restored.
Nothing is more important, than winning a case,
it means so much, he lies directly to his child's face.
He is such a liar, that he should not acquire
a bit of the privilege to call himself a father.
For the hearts being broken, there is no cure
his son just wishes the things his dad says were the least bit pure.
Weeks have gone by, things are not looking good,
because being both a criminal and lawyer is something that cannot be
explained, and much less understood.
Lying is what he is known for, yet he will always be
that dark haired and tall and charming man,
because that is the only thing outsiders will ever see.
Brad Smith
Bradley Smith was the name everyone knew. As well as being the most famous attorney in the firm, Smith was perceived as the most handsome, charming and intellectual man that would ever step foot into a courtroom. None of Smith's coworkers knew him personally, as he preferred to keep his relationship with them based solely on any current cases. If anyone at the firm truly knew Smith personally, they would no longer be oblivious to the fact that his wife wanted a divorce, he lies to his child and is, in reality a criminal.
Smith's life was going to be altered by a specific and the most current case he has encountered, Case 39. Case 39 would cause an intertwine between both his personal life and career, because of its content. This case was going to be fought not only for his client, but for his own freedom.
Smith was the ideal man, on the outside, there was no denying that. However, the truth is that Bradley Smith and his current client, Earl Nelson both participated in the rape of a fifteen year old girl whose name is Alexia Johansen. The two men taped the event while it took place and afterward, Smith and Nelson presumed that making a copy for each one to keep was the most intelligent thing to do. Both Nelson and Smith were satisfied with the work they had done, and even more satisfied with the fact that Alexia chose not to go to the police, so they generally got away with the crime committed. Weeks passed, then months. Still no one had come forward to redeem closure for the rape of Alexia Johansen.
Nelson became more and more narcissistic over the weeks. As the power he obtained by this crime remaining unnoticed fueled him, Nelson struck again; but this time alone. March 14th, 2015 he went out and made the biggest mistake of his life. On this day, Earl Nelson was arrested for the rape of another underaged girl, Nicole Pressley. Shortly after his arrest, Nelson learned that Mr. Bradley Smith would serve as his court appointed attorney. Nelson called Smith at all hours, in order to ensure his “perfect lawyer” was working on case 39 to his full potential, and not handing prosecution his freedom on a silver platter. Day in and day out, Nelson called Smith, until finally, he remembered...the tape. Nelson began to think, and at this point, blackmail was his most convenient and predominantly the only option he had in order to ensure that Smith put as much importance into this case as every other. At their next attorney/client meeting, Nelson made a proposal that Smith could not afford to deny. “Win my case and the tapes never make it out. Lose, and we’re both going down. All it takes is a few seconds for me to ruin your life.”
Ruin. Your. Life. Those words stuck with Smith all day, all night, all week. Smith had an epiphany. His life would be destroyed, ruined, he would have nothing. He would definitely lose his family for good, lose his freedom for good and lose himself, for good. From the date of Case 39’s opening, Smith realized that sleep was no longer an option. He had to work the case, he had to find any loophole, he had to convince the grand jury and himself, that Earl Nelson was innocent. With the case at its peak, Smith began to neglect his wife Amanda, and son, Kevin. Lying became Smith’s most valuable trait, working Case 39. Soon, Smith’s wife Amanda became flustered with the constant phone calls to her home at all hours of the day and night from Nelson. She constantly wondered why this specific case was so important to him, that leaving at all hours of the night to meet with his client became of the norm. Smith assured her it was just another case, so that no further suspicions would arise, but that did not serve as closure. Amanda and Smith began arguing daily over the amount of time being spent on Case 39. Then finally, “I’m leaving you.” The words shot out of Amanda’s mouth faster than Smith could even react. His head kept repeating the phrase, I’m leaving you, I’m leaving you, I’m...the repetition stopped. These words stuck with him like glue to paper.
Case 39 eventually cost Smith his family. The next day, Amanda moved out and took Kevin. Smith came home to an empty house each day, just to see case 39 starring him in the face. Each day, Smith recalled every single lie he ever spoke to his son, which broke him down until he realized, he was reaching rock bottom.
Time flew, like a bird in the sky. This was the day, trial day. In this moment, Smith had to prove to himself that he deserved to be a free man. Nelson was quiet the entire time the trial took place. Finally, Nicole took the stand. Nelson stared at her, almost as though in this moment, he regretted not only ruining this young girl's life, but ruining his own. Nelson stared at Nicole, so deep into her soul that it became obvious; she was completely uncomfortable. Smith questioned her, as did prosecution and vice versa with Earl Nelson. The jury went into deliberation after the closing arguments were given.
The jury deliberated for hours, which could either be extremely good, or bad. Exactly two times, the jury revealed a “dead-locked” verdict. In this moment, Smith knew the deliberation was bad, very, very bad.
The jurors entered the courtroom, for the third time and the room grew so silent, anyone could so much as hear a pin drop.
“In Case 39, of Nicole Pressley v. Earl Nelson, we find the defendant guilty of rape, in the first degree.” Smith felt his heart drop out of his chest and onto the middle of the courtroom floor. The judge demanded that the defendant be escorted out of the courtroom by two officers who had to put in a great deal of effort to restrain Nelson. Smith could not focus on his surroundings, all he could hear over and over was “ruin your life.”
The voices soon became unbearable.
Smith collected his items and drove home. No more than an hour and a half passed until there was someone knocking at the front door. Smith opened the door.
“Bradley Smith, you are under arrest for the rape of Alexia Joansen. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do, can and will be held against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford….
The words faded. And in that moment, so did he.
My tale about an attorney, Bradley Smith, conveys modern day society in many ways. For example, lying and cheating are two characteristics that are not acceptable in today’s society, however it is somewhat normal for husbands to cheat on their wives because it happens so often. Going back to previous era’s such as the 20’s, many men cheated on their wives although divorce was not something that would be accepted in that society. My character and his wife went through the divorce process in my tale, which represents how many marriages in today’s society have ended up. I also tried to choose a scenario that represented semi-contemporary events that include divorce, cheating, and rape. All of these things occur constantly in today’s society which plays a role in the “modern-day” aspect of the assignment.
I chose this character and career because I have actually considered being a criminal justice major and becoming an attorney, so the career itself interests me. Although I would obviously aim to be a more credible person than whom my character portrayed, I thought my storyline was much more real-life based than if i were to have a perfect person that obtained a perfect job, with a perfect family. The truth is that although my character was or seemed like the perfect and ideal man on the outside because of his looks, Smith was truly a distasteful person as his actions represented. Another reason I chose this character was to challenge myself. I figured many people think of an attorney as a credible, helpful and innocent person. However, I intended on going against everyone's already-perceived judgements of an attorney. I gave my character intelligence, which is sort of a need when being an attorney in order to excel (which he does) but i did not give him the traits necessary to be a genuinely good person.
Another reason I chose my character, Bradley Smith as being an attorney and committing the crime he did (rape), is because it is a topic that interests me, as well as the career. I enjoy this topic because there are so many factors that are of great importance and disagreement when the topic is brought up. In court cases, depending on exactly the case, people involved, social status, economic status, situation and how experienced your attorney is, verdicts ultimately vary.
There is always a factor that could be argued when it comes to the discussion of rape, which just makes it that much more interesting, as there is always something to be said and information to be learned. I have also always enjoyed watching t.v shows like Criminal Minds, Law and Order, The First 48, because they incorporate the characteristics of criminal justice directly into the show whether it is through a court case, or arresting a criminal, the entire process is informational and could possibly be used later on in life. These shows show that you cannot simply commit a crime, and get away with it, because your past mistakes will almost always come back to haunt you. These shows generally convey morals as well, from showing you how deceiving looks can be to portraying ways in how your past never goes away. I included those two morals in my tale, as well as “lying and cheating will get you nowhere.”
I chose a person that would seem ideal in today’s society because I thought it would fit well with the many issues in today’s world.Moral(s):
- appearances are often deceiving
- bad deeds will always come back to "haunt" you
- lying and cheating will get you nowhere