Dear Darklings,
WE GOT IT!!!!!!!!!
We got the Restraining Order against Crazy
Son!!!!!!!!!!
We were up early Friday morning like at 6 a.m. no coffee,
just shower dress, let the dogs out and then took them over to my sister’s house Brian
said he’s baby sit them and then we left a bit after 7 a.m. before any traffic
back ups Oh it was cold! We had to be in
court by 9 a.m. to have the mediation done.
Doyle wanted to park on the Street and use the Handicap
parking placard that I have because of my back so our parking would be free, I
was a bit worried but Doyle put the break lock in place to prevent theft. And we walked 2 blocks to the court house, we
were there before the building opened, since we were in the sun we waited and
slowly people started showing up, all with cases.
Finally at 7:45 they let us in, and we got coffee in the
snack bar then went to the 3rd floor near Dept. 5 and waited some more. I won’t go into all the other folks and
their problems but needless to say there were some strange ones. It was 9 a.m. Dept 5 opened its door but No
Crazy Son, I thought for a bit we might be home free but as the various clerks
and lawyers were checking in at about 9:20 Crazy Son showed up with a skanky
“friend” in tow---DAMN! I thought. I was wishing for a no contest but he wanted
to put up a fight.
We did not have our previous Judge he was out ill, instead
we had a woman Judge with dyed blond hair, a pasty white face bright red
lipstick and that looked like she had seen Hell and took a whizz in it just for fun, she looked to
be in her 60’s and with a no-nonsense look to her face, with the first two cases
I realize she was a “Judge Judy” type, I thought maybe our “goose was cooked”
but then I began formulating a plan depending upon the outcome of the
mediation.
Well the mediation was interesting as it was one woman
acting as mediator, and she had us at one corner and she put Crazy Son and
“friend” down a hall where he couldn’t see us and we couldn’t see him. She talked to us first and told us that the
Judge would like to see if there was a way in which mediation would work
instead of going to court, I explained to the mediator that would be impossible
with Crazy Son’s mental outlook and explained that to her, she understood and
said she would talk to him, well we couldn’t see him but we could hear him and
from the sound of it he wanted his day in court to prove what liars we were and
that he was the victim.
The mediator came back to us and asked if we would still be
interested in mediation or take a chance on getting a restraining order,
intimating that my request might be rejected.
I advised the mediator that other people including the Police Dept. have
tried to mediate with Crazy Son to no avail.
That he’ll behave for a day or two and then go right back. I told the mediator that the Restraining
Order is what will be needed to keep him behaving and explained how he got
arrested some time ago and was put on probation because his Dad got a
lawyer. The Father doesn’t want his
crazy son arrested and neither does Crazy Son, he is cognizant enough to know
that and he’s in fear of being in Jail.
So to court we went.
We had to wait a bit for a few cases,
when we went back in there was no place to sit except for one empty seat
next to Crazy , I looked at him and gave him a laser stare and he quickly got
up and instead with his “friend” stood in the back, while Doyle and I sat.
Finally we were called and sworn in, the Judge asked a few
questions from me and I clarified them, she then asked if what I have written in my
statement (all 13 pages) is true and correct and I said Yes it is your
Honor. (No one else in the court
addressed her as “Your Honor” but Doyle and I did) I caught a slight smile on her face when I
addressed her as such.
She then skimmed over the pages and then asked me who were
so and so and I said the son’s parents, ages 85 and 80 respectively. She asked me if I was concerned about safety
and I said yes, that during the last altercation that we had we also became
concerned not only for our safety but for the parents safety as well when their
son turned on them aggressively and we called the police.
The Judge then asked Crazy Son’s response and he said that
he’s the victim, that we had harmed him and his family, and that we were
telling lies about him and we didn’t belong on the block and he admitted to
using foul language and that he shouts real loud but that he’s doing it to make
his case to the entire neighborhood that Doyle and I don’t belong there and
that everything in my statement 90 percent of it is lies made up by us. He claimed to have proof that I didn’t own
the house and had murdered my Great Aunt but he didn’t have it with him but he
has it but needs to find it and wants more time to prove his case.
The Judge said “O.K. I’ve heard enough” and then she asked
me again “Do you stand by your statements and declare it to be the truth” and I said “Yes I do, Your Honor”. It was hard projecting self-confidence, my hands
were clammy and sweaty. But I sat at the table with my hands folded in front of
me intently listening to the Judge and not looking left or right but focused on
her. Doyle did the same, either looking
at his hands folded at the table or at the Judge.
She then said “I’m granting a 3 year Restraining Order,
issued today….” And she included everything I wanted with two minor exceptions
because we live across the street from each other the distance is 40 yards, not
100, and she was only issuing it for 3 years, although I did ask for 5, when
she said “I’m only going to do it for 3 years but you can renew it on Nov 6,
2018” I said “Thank you your
Honor.” As far as I was concerned
VICTORY!!!!!!!!
She didn’t want me commenting, so I was careful. I had to remember “Judge Judy” to not
respond to Crazy Son, to not shake my head in denial, to not elaborate except
to answer the Judge’s questions.
Then she said that we are to wait in the court room for our
papers and to not leave, we were dismissed I said “Thank you, your Honor” and
got up and put my paperwork away. Crazy
Son just sat there and said “What??!!
Are We done??!! I have proof!!” The judge said “You don’t have it with you,
the Order is so issued, remain in the court to receive your papers from the
clerk.”
Crazy Son was pissed!!!!!
Really Pissed!!! Doyle and I sat
down in the next available seat and this Middle Eastern fellow that was next to
me looked at me, smiled and whispered “congratulations” and I smiled and
whispered back “thank you” then pointed to the Bailiff and put my finger to my
lips and he understood.
By this time my bladder was demanding relief, the Judge
heard one more case and then called a 5 minute recess and I said (because now
we can talk) “Thank goodness my teeth are floating” and the Middle Eastern
fellow agreed. So I quickly dashed to
the bathroom and so did Doyle.
I came
out and the clerk was looking for me, he had papers in his hand and was looking
around and I said “I’m So and So, is that for me?” He smiled and said yes and walked me to the
foyer of the court room and explained a few things to me, I asked if I had to
have Crazy Son’s copy served on him and the clerk said no if he can grab Crazy
Son before he leaves, well Crazy Son was dashing out the door of the court
room, but the clerk grabbed him and I quickly went into the court room as a
safe place, I could see and hear though
the glass panel that Crazy Son was still pissed, but his “friend” was trying to
calm him down before he got too loud.
He didn’t want the paperwork, he was refusing it, but I heard
the clerk say to him “I’m serving this on you, if you refuse then you
are in contempt of court and could be arrested, you follow what the Judge has
ordered” Crazy Son took the paperwork
angrily and left. I was still in the court room but the Judge still had not
come back so people could still talk. Doyle was no where to be found so I assumed that he was still in the Men's Room.
The Middle Eastern fellow and two African-American ladies
said that I handled myself real well up there, how did I do it? And I said that it took me two weeks to
properly fill out the paperwork I had to make sure that it was all correct and
the only way to do it was to make copies of the original forms and write my
responses in pencil and then walk away for a day from it and then go back to it
with fresh eyes, I said that my
statements totaled 13 pages and it was all time dated and if police were called
or not and I had all my police I.R. reports as well as photographs, I was
ready.
I said that what really did Crazy Son in was that my initial
cause for the Restraining Order showed that he used “Racial Hate Speech” and
threatened not only myself and Doyle but
also he was threatening his parents and that the first thing the police officer
did was a welfare check on the parents.
The ladies asked me what kind of “hate speech” and the Middle Eastern
fellow listened in and I apologized for what I was going to repeat and told
them. They were all shocked and I
apologized again saying that I knew the language was extremely offensive. But they were of an age that they understood
that this language also offended me, and should never be said in public-----now
exceptions can be made if it’s in a novel or a film to show a type of character
or if it was written in a time period where such speech was common. But Never in Public like that.
They asked me why did Crazy Son want me and Doyle out of the
house and I said that he wants my deceased Great Aunt back so he can continue
to put up magical charms against her, but insists that I killed her and buried
her body in the back yard. The Middle
Eastern mans’ eyes got wide and the women did their best to not burst out
laughing. They all said to me You did
good, God Bless you!! And I said God
bless all of you”
Then Doyle showed up, he said he couldn't go into the Lobby because Crazy Son was talking to the Bailiff, then the Bailiff acted as a barrier between him and Crazy Son. I said we could leave I had the
paperwork, so we went out into the foyer but the court clerk held us back and
said that Crazy Son and his skanky “friend” was still in the lobby and for us to
wait just out of sight and he kept checking, then he said that they finally
moved to the elevator and got in it and the doors were closed, I said that we
would wait in the Lobby for a few minutes to make sure that they have left the
building and the clerk said that would be good.
Then he asked me if I ever worked in a law office and I said
No, and told him where I did work and am now semi-retired His eyebrows went up and he told us “I read
your statement, you had him boxed up, you might have missed your calling.” I said “Not really, I preferred the more
quiet aspect of my life.” He smiled at that, then he had to go into
the court room but wished us a great holiday time, and we wished him the same.
Doyle and I waiting for 5 minutes in the lobby before taking
the elevator down, he had earlier come
out of the bathroom and had seen Crazy Son talking to the Bailiff, but stayed
way back out of the way and then came into the court room looking for me, as we
came out the Bailiff was still in the lobby and Doyle asked him what was Crazy
Son asking him about and the Bailiff
said that he was asking if he, Crazy Son, could appeal and the Bailiff said to him “No,
you didn’t have your proof, you screwed yourself, there is no appeal, no
modification.”
The Bailiff said we had done all the right things, even
better than a lawyer, I said “Well I saw
how the Judge was handling the cases, the first one was a quick learning
experience, so I knew what I had to do.”
The Bailiff looked at me, smiled and said “Very Smart!” Then the down elevator came and we said our
good byes and he gave us a tiny salute as the doors closed.
Oh I wanted so much Leap into the Air and say “WE DID
IT!!!!!” but we were decorous. Not until we got into our car, our stomachs
growling, our heads aching, our bladders asking again to be let free, did we cheer
ourselves, I said to Doyle “all I want to do is drink coffee and hug our dogs!!”
Well not quite in that order, bathroom, aspirin, hug dogs
after we let them out for their potty break.
We got home just before Crazy Son, Doyle and I went into the
house and did what we had to do, Doyle looked out the front parlor room window
while Crazy Son was pulling his parents recycling bins in, but Crazy Son paused
and gave the house “the finger”. Doyle
laughed. I knew Crazy Son couldn’t see Doyle
but I said for him to get away from the window.
I was having a bout of nerves unable to make lunch, and
calm down after all this, so Doyle packed the dogs in their little doggie
carriers and we went to a Chinese restaurant that would allow our little doggie
companions as long as they remained in their carriers and put the words “Service
dogs” on them.
I had noticed that
before we left Crazy Son had rode off on his bike after complaining to his
sister who was visiting and checking on the parents, she just laughed at him and said “serves you right!” and went into the house as Crazy Son rode off
pissed as hell, most likely to complain to his druggie buddies and Frankly as Rhett
said to Scarlet, I don’t give a damn!
We went to bed early that night, exhausted, we can now get on with our
lives, I have things to do, and a graveyard to pack. And planning to take a good friend to Lunch
to celebrate a birthday.
Either way it had been a busy day and a tiring day but in
its own way a fruitful day and that is one I’m going to take to the Bank. It has been two nights now, and I don’t care
if the rain is coming or has arrived or whatever it plans to do, it doesn’t
matter, we can relax and be at peace.
It has turned cold here, like a light switch it turned from
mild to cold, now it has the feeling of London of Sherlock Holmes or Charles
Dickens, of an Agatha Christie novel, of fog, of tea and mystery. And I’m loving it and as the Nina Simone song goes Feelin' Good!
Later Darklings
Doyle and I live such exciting lives, a little dueling does wonders!
