Also... this is the part the gets a WIDE variety of responses. You will soon understand why.
Fast forward 3 years. I had not been on any dates since my less-than-pleasant experience with Dave. I was taking Salsa dancing class instead of tennis. And, I was in my upper division Social Work classes- one of which happened to be basic criminology. One of our projects for this class was to observe and analyze a real case in a courtroom. There were a few specific requirements, but the primary objective was to record as much detail as possible while in the courtroom.
Like any good college student, I waited until the week before the assignment was due to get started. It happened to be the week before Thanksgiving. I drove to the courthouse first thing in the morning and asked the court worker where I could find a case in progress. After hours of listening to deposition after deposition, but no actual cases I was starting to wonder if I'd be able to complete my paper. I decided to take matters into my own hands and just peek in all of the courtrooms that were open.
I walked around the hallways and as far as I know found the only courtroom with a case in progress. There was a sign outside the door that said, "Please be quiet when entering the courtroom. Closing arguments in progress." Success!!
As slowly and quietly as possible, I opened the door and took my place in the observation section of the courtroom. I felt slightly awkward since I was literally the only person in the room that was not directly involved in the case. But I was determined to use this case for my assignment. And... I didn't really have any other options. The prosecution gave their closing argument first and as the details of the case were summarized, I was intrigued:
The location of the alleged crime was my university (this made me wonder if I'd ever seen anyone involved)
It happened at the high school that happens to be on our campus (so I figured I probably hadn't ever run into anyone involved).
The defendant was being charged with 2 counts each of 2 different sexual crimes against 2 minors (it wasn't called assault, but basically he was being charged with behaving inappropriately with them).
The defendant was a P.E. teacher at the high school & they were at the university's health center in our Student Union building... where I spent much of my free time.
The prosecuting attorney reviewed details of the case and by the time he was finished, I was convinced the guy was guilty and was wondering whether or not we had ever crossed paths.
By the time the prosecution finished their closing arguments, it was time for lunch and the judge called a recess.
When we all returned, it was time for the defense's closing arguments. By now, I'd gotten a better view of the defendant but still couldn't decide whether or not I recognized him from campus.
The defense outlined some facts of the defendant to demonstrate his character:
David ---- (what was Dave's last name, again?? Did I ever know it?)
He was a lifeguard (There could be more than one Dave/David who was a lifeguard who attended my university... right? I'm sure of it.)
He was a girls' gymnastics coach for many years (umm... I don't think there could be more than one David, from my university, who was both a lifeguard and a girls' gymnastics coach... did I really go on a date with the defendant in this case???)
At that point, I blank out a little bit on the remaining details of the case. The defense finished their arguments and left me unable to decide whether or not Dave was guilty. I was stunned. I was shocked. I was relieved that I had not gone on a second date with the man who was now a defendant in this case. The jury went into deliberation and as I left the courthouse Dave & I looked at each other, but I will never know if he recognized me. The jury was still out the rest of the week so I will also never know the verdict of the case.
Of all the courthouses and courtrooms I could have chosen for this assignment, I ended up in the one with my old date as the defendant. And I thought that stuff only happened on television.
It was slightly traumatic at the time, but is now a distant memory that I share with an animated reenactment usually ending in more stories and a lot of laughter.
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