So I arrived on time with 17″ laptop and speakers, ready to show the video, put all the papers in order, and the jury was all there. We got word that yet another judge, Judge Gill, wanted a pre-trial hearing. All rise. So here he says he is the senior judge for the area, having been here for over 30 years. And he asked the prosecutor about about other pre-trials: none. Any deals been discussed: none. I said no one even took my statement. He said he had read the file, and he knew that.
He directly asked the prosecutor if she could offer any deals. She said she offered AR and I had turned it down. He asked me if I knew was AR was. I said yes, that accelerated rehabilitation was an admission of guilt, only eligible if I pay $100 for a criminal background check, and if I jump through hoops in one year my file is expunged. The judge responded “no, no and no.” He said there is no admission of guilt, he can waive all fees, and all I have to do is check in once with probation and never appear again so long as I don’t get charged with a crime in the next three month.
I responded that if there was no admission of guilt, and no criminal record I would be interested. He directed the Marshall to get the form, and we took a five minute recess. The form was very simple, there was no admission of guilt, I only had to say I was not guilty of a long list of felonies and hate crimes. Number 8 was about fees. I waited for the Judge to ask how to fill out the part about fees, and the Prosecutor went to get “the victim” Lisa Meneguzzo.
Lisa sat in the back of the court, all rise, I told the Judge I was not indigent so I could not fill out number 8. He said to leave it blank, and Isigned the form, and the marshall brought it to him. He examined it, and asked if the “alleged victim” had anything to say. Lisa talked about how traumatized she was by being locked in my shop, and how her mother also was traumatized being on the phone (I don’t know if Lisa even knows there was a surveillance tape).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvGuXYlmF1c (from 17:35 to 17:46 she is there)
The judge listened patiently, and asked her to go back to her seat. He said that in his 30 years he has also been traumatized, and that going through a trial will not help with such trauma. In fact, it will probably make it worse. He suggested seeing a therapist or taking it to civil court or both.
So I had to go to probation. I knew the administrator since she had previously been in the Clerk’s office. But as I was waiting I saw the jury all pass by a few at a time, I acknowledged them all with a smile. Also Lisa and her mother passed. Then I went in and filled out the paperwork. Took maybe ten minutes. The form says the case remains open until 6/21/13 and will close after that if I am not “convicted of offenses which risk incarceration. No Additional Conditions.”
So I called the shop on my cell phone on the way out of the courthouse, and a scary Lisa Meneguzzo was waiting for me in the parking lot, like a bully from school. She said: ‘You didn’t win this one”. I was on the phone, but I said , well, yes I did, I feel good about it. She said “no you didn’t.” “You’ll get yours”. I said “Hold on a sec, I want to take a video, and I turned my phone cam on her as she drove away.
I went back in and asked a Marshall to give her a call and tell her to leave me alone. I don’t like police, and I certainly never want to see her again. I don’t know what I will do if she ever comes in my shop again, but I assume I will just have to call the police and keep my mouth absolutely shut.
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