Lessons from a Zoom meeting

I just finished a Zoom meeting with a client.  He is a lifer.  Unless we win his appeal, he likely has decades left on his sentence.

He wanted me to raise certain issues when arguing his appeal. I told him I didn’t think I would raise them. He was upset and fought hard for his views.

He never got rude. He never threatened. He just spoke his mind.

And then, he let go and we had a good conversation about his case and his life.  He was articulate, thoughtful, funny, polite, and sincere.

Society too often labels felons or people for one act on one day, often in a matter of seconds.  This young man was the antithesis of what we associate with young felons serving time in prison.  He was very much like the boy next door, or like the young man working hard at the corner store.  He was a young man with a bright smile and manners.

This young man demonstrated more thought and more respect than a lot of older people who aren’t living in such a high stress environment.   This young man is living his days in what can be a hellish, demeaning, and deadly environment.  He clearly is not letting himself be defined by his location.

By the end of the Zoom, he was laughing and smiling. By the end of the call, my heart was breaking just a little bit.  I could see the hope and the spirit that lies in this young man who likely will die an old man in prison, because of a few seconds one day.  I truly saw the reality and the desperation of his circumstances.

This young man symbolizes the errors of our criminal justice system.  He reflects the failures of our society, that we can condemn such a person because of a few seconds of a young life.

Lee