Successful criminal defense often includes a wild ride
When my clients open up to me, they often are telling me their deepest and darkest secrets?that they have shared with few others. Psychological professionals and priests in the confessional booth often find themselves in a similar boat. The lawyer, psychological professional, and priest must all be ready to deal with the psychological roller coaster or new or reopened psychological discomfort, envy and even trauma that can come from hearing and dealing with these topics. On top of that, as a lawyer, I need to be psychologically prepared for viewing pictures of decedents in homicide cases, alleged assault victims, and explicit images in child pornography cases, which are the same images that will be offered into evidence at any trial, there also to cause potential psychological trauma to everyone in the courtroom who sees them.
Even after some of my clients pay me hard-earned income to represent them, some of them may want to avoid coming face-to-face with the seriousness of their cases. One client for whom I obtained a spectacular felony case result went a good while not responding to my calls or emails, wanting to avoid thinking about the risks in his case. I reassured him that the best way for us to defend his case was for us to come face to face with all essential aspects of his case and defense preparation, even the ugliest sides. I reassured him that I would never judge him and would be there to help him feel on firm ground in his defense, but of course with no overly-optimistic rosy pictures. Well before our jury trial date, I assembled a gathering at my office, as I often have done, with other lawyers (and it's even better when non-lawyers also join) to help prepare my client’s testimony and to help crystallize our defense. With several in the group being fellow alums of the Trial Lawyers College, they and I knew?that?after my client had bared his soul and shed his skin to us, that we needed to provide him support and encouragement to help replace his skin and strengthen his soul....
(Continued at katzjustice.com/defending-like-life-depends-on-it )