Theo described the armed robbery with the water pistol. When he finished he asked, “What will happen to Woody?”
“He’ll probably get the death penalty in this town.”
“Come on, Ike. They can’t convict him of anything, can they?”
“Does he have a good lawyer?”
“Public defender.”
“Some of those guys are good. I don’t know much about Youth Court, Theo. I was far away from my youth when I got busted.”
“Plus, you were a tax lawyer, right?”
“Right. I stayed away from the criminal stuff, that is, until they came after me. How are your grades?”
“Perfect,” Theo said immediately. He had learned that anything less than straight A’s would prompt a mini-lecture on the virtues of studying harder. How many adults were carefully watching his grades? Too many.
Ike took a swig of beer and asked, “How are things over at Boone and Boone?”
“The same. Everybody’s working too hard.” Ike had been a partner with Theo’s parents before he was born.
“And your mother?”
“She’s fine.” Ike never asked about Woods Boone, his brother. “Can I ask you a question, Ike, something that might be sort of off-limits?”
“Maybe. What’s it about?”
“A long time ago you got into trouble.”
“It’s not something I talk about. I might explain things one day when you’re older, maybe not.”
“Okay. I’m not asking about what you did wrong, if anything. My question is this: Did you have to post bail to get out of jail?”
Ike took another drink and studied the ceiling fan for a long time. Theo was suddenly worried that he had ventured into forbidden territory.
Ike said, “My situation was different. I knew the police wanted me, so I went with my lawyer down to the station. I was photographed and fingerprinted, all that jazz, and placed in a cell for about an hour. Then I was released on personal identification. So, no, I wasn’t forced to make bail.”
“Bail seems so unfair. I found an article about it online. This legal scholar wrote that people with no money get stuck in jail for crimes that are not that serious. Shoplifting, bad checks, small drug cases, expired driver’s licenses, stuff like that. This is while they are presumed to be innocent and long before they go to court. A lot of men lose their jobs and a lot of mothers are separated from their children just because they can’t make bail.”
“He’s right about that. It’s been a problem for a long time. Did this scholar offer a solution?”
“It’s pretty obvious. Cut out bail for small crimes and let people go home. He says that virtually all of them will show up for court anyway. Keep bail in place for those charged with violent and serious crimes.”
“And you like to read stuff like this?”
“Yes I do.”
“Most kids your age are reading comic books or playing video games, and you’re reading about problems with our legal system.” Ike was amused and took another sip of his beer.
“Yes, and the more I read the more problems I find.”
“Our legal system is pretty good, Theo, better than most, but it could work much more efficiently if we would fix the problems.”
“Bail reform, long prison sentences for nonviolent guys, mass incarceration, wrongful convictions, electing judges. I’m finding all kinds of stuff about how messed up our system really is. It’s depressing, Ike, especially for a kid who wants to be a lawyer.”
“So, what are you going to do about it?”
“I don’t know. I’m only thirteen and my parents will not let me go to law school until I finish college.”
“Sounds cruel to me.”
“Worse than cruel. So, I suppose I’ll just keep reading about the problems until I’m old enough to do something about them.”
“Who says you have to wait? Take Woody’s case. Watch what happens to him. Study our Youth Court system and you’ll find plenty of problems. I’m told that our juvenile prisons are in really bad shape. We’re talking kids here, Theo, youngsters like you, so why not get involved to improve things? I’ll bet you can find several groups active in Youth Court reform.”
“I’ve already run across a couple.”
“There you go. Get involved now. Don’t wait ten years. The problems are just getting worse.”
Theo sipped his ginger ale and absorbed Ike’s words. “I don’t know. I’m pretty busy right now.”
“You sound like your parents. Not happy unless they’re talking about being so busy. You’re thirteen, Theo, not forty. Don’t fall into the trap of planning every moment of every day and keeping an eye on the clock. You know who John Lennon was, right?”
“The Beatle?”
“That’s him. In his lyrics he said a lot of wise things. One I remember goes something like this: ‘Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.’ Get it?”
“I guess.”
“If you see a problem, Theo, think of a way to fix it and do it now. Don’t spend all your time making plans.”
“What are you trying to fix, Ike?”
“Nothing. I don’t see any problems, plus I’m too old. Now beat it so I can finish this pile of paperwork.”
“See you next Monday.”
Chapter 16
On Tuesday morning, Theo stood in front of his locker with a looming sense of dread. He was tired because he’d stayed up the night before reading legal articles on America’s broken bail system. The more he read the more frustrated he became and he couldn’t go to sleep. Sometime after midnight he finally dozed off, with his laptop still open.
A soft voice behind him said, “Um, Theo.”
He turned and found a slight, dark-haired boy he didn’t know. The kid was immediately uncomfortable, switching his weight back and forth as he struggled to find words, and glancing around. He was either frightened or intimidated.
“What’s up?” Theo said. He recognized the boy as a seventh grader but did not know his name. He was holding a piece of paper that at first glance did not appear to be anything related to schoolwork.
“I’m Roger, and the police gave this to my mother last night before they took him.” He sort of shoved the paper at Theo, who took it and with one glance recognized the problem.
“A Rule Three Summons,” Theo said. “For Animal Court.”
Roger said, “I hear you’re good at handling these cases.”
“What’s the name of the defendant? I’m having trouble reading this.”
“Rufus, our pet rabbit. He’s a French Lop.”
Okay, thought Theo. In his Animal Court career, he had been involved with two dogs, including Judge, a spitting llama, fainting goats, a delinquent parrot, and an otter that feasted off fat goldfish. But never a lop-eared rabbit. “Says here the infraction is for a ‘recurring nightly disturbance.’ Any idea what that might be?”
“No clue. Our family lets Rufus roam free in the house. My parents don’t believe in caging animals. He has a pet door to the back patio. Sometimes we don’t see him for a few hours but he always comes home, especially when it’s time to eat. He’s a good rabbit, Theo, a member of the family. We’ve had him for five years. What’re they going to do to him, Theo?” His lip quivered and his voice cracked and Theo was afraid the kid might start bawling right there in the hallway. It was obvious that Rufus’s arrest had rocked him and probably his family.
“Well, it depends on what’s proven in court. If Rufus is found guilty and considered a public threat or nuisance, Animal Control can keep him.” And they can also put the rabbit to sleep forever, but Theo wasn’t about to go that far. Roger was obviously fragile and couldn’t take such dreadful news.
“He’s just a lop-eared rabbit, Theo, not a dangerous animal,” Roger said, his voice rising. “None of this makes sense.”