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Counselor! Counselor!

My notes from court last week; thought somebody might find them interesting:
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I know I’ve written about this before, but there has to be a better way to handle FAPA (Family Abuse Protection Act) and Stalking Order proceedings. Yes, due process requires that the respondent get an opportunity to be heard. But does this necessarily mandate an adversarial trial-type proceeding? It is so unproductive. Seldom does either party have counsel. And emotions inherently run high, almost violently so. Although Judge Barbrady does his best to patiently direct the proceeding as something resembling a trial—opening argument, direct, cross, redirect, closing argument—more often than not it is merely argument. Rather than the orderly questioning of witnesses, you get a shouting match.

I saw the worst of them this week. 20 or so people filled the courtroom. Each side called four or five witnesses. And everyone was very angry at everyone else. Not helping matters was that either was or at some point in their lives had been hooked on methamphetamines. After ten weeks of drug court, it’s not hard to mistake. Not that Judge Barbrady or I had to guess at it: everyone admitted to it and cast accusations at each other of being worse in it. Things reached a nadir when one of the petitioner’s witnesses called out several of the respondent’s witnesses and suggested that everyone in the courtroom march down and take a polygraph and a UA right that minute. Meantime both petitioner and respondent were shouting at her from the counsel table, and finally Judge Barbrady lost his patience, silenced the courtroom, ordered the witness to step down and told all assembled that they were being “ridiculous and inhuman.� This was 45 minutes in; he’s a very patient man.

And somehow, from this Jerry Springer-esque circus, the poor judge is supposed to find the facts and decide whether a preponderance of the evidence supports the petitioner. It’s a joke. Obviously the major problem is the lack of legal representation. An adversarial proceeding would be alright if handled professionally. As it stands, the DA only sends volunteers to help out petitioners with their initial filings; nobody shows up to the latter hearing to help make the order stick. And respondents can’t get an appointed attorney because it’s a noncriminal matter. Neither side can possibly find this process satisfactory: respondents never feel they’ve gotten a fair hearing, and for petitioners it can be emotionally devastating. I’ve seen one break down and cry at the end of it. It’s a system in dire need of reform.