Life as a Public Defender
BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. -- It is 9:30 a.m., our trial is set to start now, and Mr. Hanks isn't in the courtroom. I keep looking at the clock. I assume he's running late because he was either walking to court or taking a few city buses. I'm not nervous because I know a jury will not be hearing our case today.
Since the moment I met Mr. Hanks he wanted to go to trial. He was adamant that he did not misuse 9-1-1 nor did he give an officer false information about an incident he was involved in. Mr. Hanks had called the police one time to report an argument with a store owner who he said had threatened him. I believed him and I was ready to defend him. Mr. Hanks is an older gentleman who patiently waited over a year to have his day in court. What he doesn't know is that there's been a change of plans. I haven't been able to tell Mr. Hanks about it because he doesn't own a phone.
Ten minutes flies by as I excitedly wait for my client. Then the judge, who is anxious to get started on another trial, asks me what is happening in the Hanks case. "I believe the state has an announcement your honor," I hear myself say. The prosecutor is addressing the court but I'm not listening anymore. I know the state is telling the judge that they are not going forward with the case and they are dismissing the charges against Mr. Hanks. I was not told why they were dropping the case but I do know that for some reason the store owner wasn't listed as a witness.
I can only think about how I wish Mr. Hanks were here. I know he'd be so proud.
I have nothing left on the docket so it's time to leave. As I start my way down the courthouse hallway there he is, Mr. Hanks rushing around the corner. The minute he sees me his eyes grow wide and a worried look takes over his entire face. He must be thinking the worst, that there was a warrant out for his arrest because he was late for his trial.
The look on his face triggers the words to just burst out of my mouth, "You won Mr. Hanks, you won. They dropped the case."
His reaction is immediate. His shoulders slump down into a relaxing state, a twinkle starts flickering in his eyes and his lips start turning up into a huge smile. In the middle of the hallway Mr. Hanks wraps his arms around me, kisses me on the cheek, and says, "Thank you sweetheart, thank you."
He then turns around and walks into the nearby bathroom. After savoring that brief moment I rearrange the bag over my shoulder and continue on my way. It's back to the office and about 150 other client cases that are waiting to be prepared for their day in court.
The high profile trials of Manuel Noriega, Timothy McVeigh, OJ Simpson and George Zimmerman are among the important legal stories Kim Segal covered as a journalist for over two decades. While working as a producer for CNN, she began attending law school at night, and was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2005.
At 46, she left her television career for a position as a Public Defender in Broward County, Florida.