maybe ...

maybe i should rename this blog - 'once a month' or 'irregular blogging'
it really wasn't my fault - oh what's the use i keep forgetting or can't think of anything to write

over the last month i have spent the best part of two weeks in court on behalf of a friend - a year after they first made allegations of historical abuse - a long process

because the first few days the family and the victim were not allowed in court as they were witness's - i started to make notes so when they were allowed to hear about it i could tell them all - eventually this ended up with me spending six days sitting listening to every word and making notes (special permission from the judge)

the first thing i learnt was that i really am as shallow as i thought i was - keeping the concentration going for that long was very difficult for me - second thing i learnt was that i find it really hard to write that much for that long - six hours a day of writing caused hand ache and cramp - i so missed my computer

sadly the verdict was not guilty on all counts - personally i think not proven would have a fairer verdict

an interesting (and frustrating) point of weirdness about law and stuff didn't help our case - a year or so ago i went with the victim to the police station - victim had a brief discussion with a police officer who made notes on a computer and passed that on to an officer in a specialist team who then got in touch with the victim to make a proper statement

during the case the defense barrister made a big deal of a phrase used in those intial notes that didn't match the statement that the victim made - the implication being that the victim had lied

now here is the the thing - at the point where those notes were made by the police officer at no time did the victim see those notes - didn't get to correct any wording - didn't sign them off
- the jury asked to see the documents and were told that as they had not been submitted as evidence or an exhibit they could not view them - and yet any paperwork used in the case has to be disclosed to the defense and during the court they can and did refer to it a lot

the same thing happened with another bit of documentation - in this instance a police officer had made an error in a word used - the victim asked that it be re-wrtten - the police officer crossed it out and the victim intialled it - in court the defense made much of the fact you could still read the word and sighted it as another example of the victim changing their story

i think it is fairer to assume that a crossed out word is a mistake not a lie

all week i kept musing about becoming a barrister - but soon relaised thta by the time i had trained and qulaified i would be near to retirement age so decided against it - maybe i was just the actor in me responding to the theatre and drama of a court room - back to lunching and light shopping

now that i am home i have finally caught up on all those things that pile up while you are away - why is that? why can't the world recognise you are not here so there is no point in sending stuff or asking questions

i also finally get to play with my shiny new laptop and faster sexier wireless network - very groovy

just glanced out of the window and saw two huge pigeons - hmmm they might be something else - they look a bit clean and tidy to be pigeons - maybe dove type birds - they are huge like big ducks just clomping over my garden and munching stuff - which reminds me - i guess it will soon be tidy up the garden week - spring is on the horizon and it needs some serious attention - i don't do cold weather gardening

off in search of some coffee