Attorney Evel Basterd and I go way back--high school, different high schools, but those years, the early-70s. Basterd's reputation for misanthropy was well-fixed even in those days. Years later I inquired of his office as to why a certain serial pedophile was not being prosecuted and my effort was rewarded with a letter from the Basterd, himself, telling me to mind my own business. The pedophile in question molested again, and was prosecuted and finally put away by prosecutors elsewhere in our State.
Basterd's career is just about as ignoble as mine, his mentor sacked him when he showed signs of instability on the job--then a couple of years ago his son accidentally shot him in the back at a skeet range. Evel Basterd is now wheelchair bound, a paraplegic. The recording of the 911 call from the son at the scene of the accident was something of a sensation. Here, was a bit of media in which a clearly distraught son called for help while Evel Basterd is heard in the background berating and accusing the son of intentionally trying to kill him.
I had never seen Basterd try anything until last Friday. Can I say it, here was this evil bastard, wheelchair bound, but absolutely terrific in trial. Focused, barely an extra word spoken, utterly impressive. And while I think, legally, he, his client and their claim is full of shit; I'm the one wondering if Judge Irishname is about to pile another big financial obligation on my back.
As I told my attorney, Saint Lester--truly the epitome of a Good Lawyer--I don't feel negligent in the sense of a professional breaching a duty of care towards a client. I believe that I did let Pedro down. I let him down, because there was more I could have done for him, that I did not do. There was professional help I could have found for Pedro, that I did not find for him. The trustee Monee Grubber, his bankruptcy attorney, Joe Haircut--all they saw was a guy getting what they saw as a windfall that the bankruptcy laws entitled to the trustee. They did not see a payment of compensation to a rape victim--inadequate to the purpose but representing to Pedro, his youth, his innocence and his faith. I saw that, and in your State Court last Friday I saw how my carelessness played out in Pedro's life. I've laid awake, since. Guilty.
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At a little past noon today, December 4--Judge Irishname handed down a malpractive verdict against me--expressly concluding that an email from me critical of Pedro's bankruptcy attorney for among other things failing to take advantage of available "exemptions," overrode his bankruptcy attorney's instructions and the US Trustees orders--therby causing Pedro to commit bankruptcy fraud! Pedro tried to avoid the adjudication of bankruptcy fraud in federal court making the exactly the same arguments he made before Judge Irishname, the federal bankruptcy court and the bankruptcy appellate panel rejected this claim as preposterous. Judge Irishname apparently doesn't remember the evidence because he tried to set a further hearing on damages that is, until the attorneys reminded him that this was all part of the September trial. Irishname will order a copy of the transcript and issue an Order imposing damages against me--my guess $300,000. The Sainted Lester says we are off to the Court of Appeals. Stay tuned!
ReplyDeleteWell it took some time, but Judge Irishname finally hit me with a $330 K verdict minus the $95K net that Pedro received. Now, as a nearly indigent Bad Lawyer I need to figure out how to pay for the transcript so I can figure out how to appeal this judgment.
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