Everyone Does It
In this case study, Case 6: “Everyone Does It”, an individual has been interning at a defense attorney’s law office during the summer. He/ She was given the opportunity to “sit at the defense table, help prepare notes for Thomas Deffens, the attorney, and also had the opportunity to sit on interviews with clients and witnesses. He/ She also had the opportunity to read police reports and evaluate evidence in the police evidence room with Mr. Deffens” (Braswell, Miller, & Pollack, 2006). The intern went to the courthouse with Mr. Deffens and soon realized that attorneys spend every morning there whether or not they have a case or not. The reason they are there is due to docket call. Docket call is when the “judges assigned the indigent cases” (Braswell, Miller, & Pollack, 2006). Mr. Deffens takes court appointments along with his private clients. While at the court house you realized that Deffens is very flirtatious with a women named Julie. Julie is the court administrator for Judge Anderson. Later on, the intern went back to the court house to file papers and Deffens asked the intern to drop something off to Julie. It was an envelope with her name on it, nothing official. The intern soon realized that it was not sealed, the flap was left open and you see five ten dollar bills and a note that read “Armstrong”. After reading that note, you made a connection with the name Armstrong. Deffens had received an appointment for a case named Armstrong and the money was a type of compensation or “kickback” for the appointment. The intern then talked to Deffens about what he/ she found and he basically tells the intern that it happens all the time and everyone does it. He also tells the intern how everyone is webbed in this somehow; Judge Harris pays Judge Townshend’s wife seventy-five thousand dollars a year for two days a week and he, Deffens, buys lunch and