At first I loved that job, sitting wide-eyed as people aired out their dirty laundry. I covered some memorable cases, ones that might earn mention in this blog at some point. But eventually I couldn't get over the feeling that my life consisted of writing about people who were more important than I, that all these cops and lawyers were out there doing something big, while all I was doing was I was contributing to their glory. Plus, all those calls to families of murder victims got old; my ear still rings from all the receivers slammed down in my ear.

In any event, I eventually decided that I wanted to be the person other journalists wrote about, so I went to law school, eyeing a career in criminal law. Somehow, when it (law school) was all said and done, I had forgotten my dream and found myself in a prominent civil firm, pushing a lot of paper and taking a lot of depositions. I was working in the firm's Towson office but, young and single at the time, I longed for life in the city. I requested a transfer to the firm's downtown office, and got my wish -- sort of. There was one string attached. I would have to join the firm's asbestos department. Ugh!

I suddenly seemed miles away from my dream, and decided it was time to rekindle it. I send out resumes, including one to the Office of the Public Defender. I soon got an interview, then a job as an APD (Assistant Public Defender) in Howard County.  I did a couple of stints in the agency's city office, but eventually was transferred to Balimore County, where I carved out my little niche. I have since left that office, and now am in private practice, handling mostly criminal cases (but a few civil ones, too), and have been loving life ever since. 

In this blog, I will try to let you experience the life of a criminal defense attorney up close and personal. I will share plenty of war stories, mixing in complaints about prosecutors, judges and pompous colleagues, and observations about the criminal jsutice system. It is a life that isn't for most people, but folks I meet always seem interested in the stories I have to tell, so hopefully someone somewhere will find this stuff interesting. 

In any event, I look forward to my future as an Examiner.