Well, I met somebody face to face and I had to remove my hat,
She's everything I need and love but I can't be swayed by that.
It frightens me, the awful truth of how sweet life can be,
But she ain't a-gonna make me move,
I guess it must be up to me.
. . . . .
And if we never meet again, baby, remember me,
How my lone guitar played sweet for you that old-time melody.
And the harmonica around my neck, I blew it for you, free,
No one else could play that tune,
You know it was up to me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Daily Dylan~~~~~~~~~~~~
When love (possession) goes bad. Man, family court. Where even to begin. I'm now working with a committee on the City Bar to lobby the City Council to try and create more family courts, more judges' positions and more victims' services.
Was in Kings County (Brooklyn) Family Court today on an Order of Protection/Child Support case that I took on as part of my pro bono stuff through the firm. Incredibly upsetting on both the macro and micro level. Macro level is the fact that it was a 9:00 call and most people were not called until the end of the day. A lot of these folk are working hourly jobs that won't hesitate to fire them if they miss time, so that is not cool.
Second, and most awful is the fact that there are no seperate waiting areas for petioners and respondents in family court. Now, you don't get an attorney appointed to you when you fill out a complaint seeking an order of protection in family court, There are great not-for-profits like InMotion and Network for Womens Services that will either provide representation or try and hook you up with a firm providing pro bono representation, but not everyone finds those services, and not enough lawyers are volunteering to staff all the cases who do (any lawyers reading this, please take on an uncontested divorce or an order of protection case, it's not something that is going to require memoranda of law at all, just fact witness preparation). Anyway, since there are not a lot of petitioners represented by counsel, and no separate waiting areas, the people who have been abusing these women and their kids for years can stare them down and threaten them more or less with impunity up until they are called to appear. I've seen claimants just freak and leave rather than sit there and feel victimized further. Anyway, there is a victims' services office on the second floor where you can sit and await your case call, but no one knows it's there! Also it is small and crowded and in general unwelcoming. For a court that is supposed to provide a refuge in a terrible time, Kings County Family Court is a shithouse. Brooklyn should be ashamed to put its citizens through that.
On the level of the case, so sad that this woman and her child have this man in their lives at all. He's a terrible human being. I was so mad by the end of the hearing that I just seriously, damn, felt like throtelling him. By the time I gave him my card and told him that before he said anything to my client or went anywhere near my client to just say it to me instead, I really wanted to just hurt him. At the end of the day, bullies are the biggest cowards of all. This guy so didn't give a shit about the child. The kid was a chip through which to manipulate my client. Fuck him, he is going to jail if he comes near her or her son for two years, and he now has a nice bill to pay for support every month. Dickless wonder. Damn. I know I have to do this part of my job, wouldn't dream of not doing this part of my job, but one day of an abuse hearing is far more stressful than the entire 3 months of getting ready for, and then going through the MLB arbitration. Don't think I am man enough to do this for a living exclusively.
Hope all is well in your worlds.
JPK
She's everything I need and love but I can't be swayed by that.
It frightens me, the awful truth of how sweet life can be,
But she ain't a-gonna make me move,
I guess it must be up to me.
. . . . .
And if we never meet again, baby, remember me,
How my lone guitar played sweet for you that old-time melody.
And the harmonica around my neck, I blew it for you, free,
No one else could play that tune,
You know it was up to me.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Daily Dylan~~~~~~~~~~~~
When love (possession) goes bad. Man, family court. Where even to begin. I'm now working with a committee on the City Bar to lobby the City Council to try and create more family courts, more judges' positions and more victims' services.
Was in Kings County (Brooklyn) Family Court today on an Order of Protection/Child Support case that I took on as part of my pro bono stuff through the firm. Incredibly upsetting on both the macro and micro level. Macro level is the fact that it was a 9:00 call and most people were not called until the end of the day. A lot of these folk are working hourly jobs that won't hesitate to fire them if they miss time, so that is not cool.
Second, and most awful is the fact that there are no seperate waiting areas for petioners and respondents in family court. Now, you don't get an attorney appointed to you when you fill out a complaint seeking an order of protection in family court, There are great not-for-profits like InMotion and Network for Womens Services that will either provide representation or try and hook you up with a firm providing pro bono representation, but not everyone finds those services, and not enough lawyers are volunteering to staff all the cases who do (any lawyers reading this, please take on an uncontested divorce or an order of protection case, it's not something that is going to require memoranda of law at all, just fact witness preparation). Anyway, since there are not a lot of petitioners represented by counsel, and no separate waiting areas, the people who have been abusing these women and their kids for years can stare them down and threaten them more or less with impunity up until they are called to appear. I've seen claimants just freak and leave rather than sit there and feel victimized further. Anyway, there is a victims' services office on the second floor where you can sit and await your case call, but no one knows it's there! Also it is small and crowded and in general unwelcoming. For a court that is supposed to provide a refuge in a terrible time, Kings County Family Court is a shithouse. Brooklyn should be ashamed to put its citizens through that.
On the level of the case, so sad that this woman and her child have this man in their lives at all. He's a terrible human being. I was so mad by the end of the hearing that I just seriously, damn, felt like throtelling him. By the time I gave him my card and told him that before he said anything to my client or went anywhere near my client to just say it to me instead, I really wanted to just hurt him. At the end of the day, bullies are the biggest cowards of all. This guy so didn't give a shit about the child. The kid was a chip through which to manipulate my client. Fuck him, he is going to jail if he comes near her or her son for two years, and he now has a nice bill to pay for support every month. Dickless wonder. Damn. I know I have to do this part of my job, wouldn't dream of not doing this part of my job, but one day of an abuse hearing is far more stressful than the entire 3 months of getting ready for, and then going through the MLB arbitration. Don't think I am man enough to do this for a living exclusively.
Hope all is well in your worlds.
JPK
VIEW 8 of 8 COMMENTS
Nah, I don't chat on the MLB boards. I confine my arguments to SG and in person confrontations
Glad to read (see Josie's journal) that your Dad is doing better.