Felonious, Much?

Hey-o!  I’ve just wrapped up one whale of a day that saw an unconventional rite of passage; as of now, I am now qualified to take the lead defense on minor felony cases!  For those of you who aren’t Oregon lawyers involved in court-appointed defense, “minor felonies” refer to any Class C felonies that aren’t sex crimes.  For those of you who aren’t Oregon lawyers, “Class C felonies” are crimes that carry a maximum sentence of 5 years incarceration and a $125,000 fine (ORS §§ 161.605 & 161.625; don’t say I don’t cite my sources).  These include third-degree robbery (robbery alone and without a weapon; ORS § 164.395), second-degree burglary (entering a non-dwelling house with intent to commit a crime; ORS § 164.215), or first-degree theft (stealing over $1,000 worth of property, a firearm or explosive, a companion animal, livestock, anything during a riot, anything through secured transaction, or substances used for making meth; ORS § 164.055).  Normally, this kind of certification takes at least nine months of practicing misdemeanor cases, but my time as a court-certified law student who tried jury cases got to be applied to this requirement.  All that was left was for me to co-chair one felony case with a certified lawyer, and the certification would be mine.

Shown above is the courthouse where it all went down.  If you’re thinking to yourself, “that doesn’t look much like a courthouse,” congratulations, your common sense is tingling!  You see, the usual Tillamook County Circuit Court is currently closed due to potential health concerns (long story, don’t worry; no one got hurt or anything), so court needed to be held at a different venue.  In this case, the venue was the mess hall of a former naval airbase.  It’s not exactly a grand hall of justice (and the makeshift courtroom reminded me more of my high school auditorium), but you make do with what you can when you’re in a small farming community.  All things being said, the local judiciary did a great job of sprucing the place up, and it will be a satisfactory court until the circuit court is back in circulation.

The trial itself was novel enough; I’ve sat through and participated in plenty of misdemeanor cases, but this was the first felony trial I followed from start to finish, let alone participated in.  For starters, the jury pool was 3 times larger than anything I had done voir dire with before (this makes sense, since felony trials in Oregon have twice as many jurors empanelled as misdemeanor trials).  The case, from voir dire to conclusion, was quite fascinating (I won’t go into details because the details are highly technical, but I will say this: the trial was shorter than anticipated, there was some brilliant lawyering on display, and the trial ended favorably for the defense).  With the trial complete, my rite of passage was too; hello, minor felony certification!  Afterwards, I helped co-chair an arraignment.  This was also…interesting (I won’t share any details because of privacy concerns, but let’s just say it was the kind of case/client I hope to not deal with in my immediate future).  With court out for the day, I went home with some hope and pride in my heart (and some errands on my agenda—everyday life doesn’t stop for career milestones, unfortunately).

The lunch hour brought some intrigue, as well.  When I was walking to the Benmobile from the mess hall, an elderly couple approached me and asked if this building was where they had to pay their taxes.  I gave them my best answer (“Maybe?”) and advised them to ask inside.  They then asked if I was an attorney.  When I answered affirmatively, they suddenly seemed to get uncomfortable and hastily walked away.  Apparently, attorneys are kryptonite for elderly taxpayers.  Dare I call this…a power of attorney? *rimshot*

*deafening silence*

Please drive home safely.

Anyhoo, because I was getting tired in court, I set out to get some coffee to tide me over (lawyers didn’t get free coffee, but jurors did—lucky ducks).  Some driving around and exploring brought me to a nice little café that also functioned as a greenhouse, nursery, and gift shop (because Oregon).  You never know what you’re going to find just looking around for a cup of joe (I should know; I once discovered a whole small coastal town while once looking for some coffee/tea).  It’s funny how every day can bring an adventure (albeit a small one) by just wandering around like a seasoned surveyor/idiot.

Pure Oregon, baby.

The day was short, but it sure was eventful.  I’m now minor felony-certified, which means I have much more potential for assigned cases…and therefore more potential for challenging work.  When I start receiving cases next month, I’ll be getting crimes a bit more serious than what I’ve handled in the past (mostly disorderly conduct and trespassing).  I’ll do everything I can to live up to the challenge and make sure that my clients get the kind of excellent legal representation I’ve seen from my fellow consortium members.  I’ve got big shoes to fill, but I’m ready to grow!