The Summer Job - 73. Justice

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Phillip arrived a few minutes after one thirty and parked in the big lot behind the courthouse. It was a complex of several buildings on a beautifully landscaped campus. There was the ornate old courthouse, complemented by a new Justice Court and a Youth Court in separate buildings.

He rushed to the Youth Court building and entered glass doors into a big lobby. He instantly spotted Richard and his dad, Miles Dannager, Wally Garner, Marty Oswald, Mr. Campbell and several other men he did not know.

A bailiff at the door said, “Please sign in, sir.”

Phillip signed the register, was given a visitor sticker and asked to remember to sign out.

When he arrived to join the group, Mr. Campbell said, “Gentlemen, this is Phillip Wright. He’s a fourth member of the Lost Boys Trust Board. Most of you know him, but I’ll introduce everybody to make sure. Phillip, this is Artie Shaw, Marty Oswald, Mike Lee and Walter Lance. We are volunteering to be foster parents.”

As Phillip was shaking hands, Miles Dannager said, “Richard was just telling us about your idea for the Farmer properties. I like it a lot. This Foundation of ours wasn’t built just for these kids. Chuck intended for it to be a going concern. We are funded well enough to get it started immediately. When I argue for the Trust, I’ll present that as part of our plans.”

Phillip asked, “Do you have any instructions for us, Counselor?”

Dannager grinned and said, “Yes. I want the board members and the prospective foster parents to sit together. We will be calling on some of you to answer questions. The first part of the trial should be… dramatic. Sit back and watch the show. Once that matter is disposed of, and it will be disposed of, then we will make our case.”

Wally Garner said, “Whatever happens at the beginning of the hearing, don’t speak out or object. That’s our job, and we’ll make sure things proceed accordingly.”

A voice came over the intercom and said, “Youth Court Part 2018-06-B will be heard in courtroom A in ten minutes.” It repeated and Dannager said, “That’s our case gentlemen. We’ll see you inside.”

Phillip noticed that Stacy Scott was signing in at the desk, as were several other people he did not know. The man behind her in a suit carrying a briefcase caught his eye. He checked in with the bailiff, showed him his ID and received a different kind of visitor’s badge. It was the same color as Mike Lee’s. He was a cop of some sort, and the suit screamed Fed.

Richard said, “Hey Phillip, Dannager wants you to sit with the rest of the Board of the Trust.” He followed Wally Garner and Jens Van Houten, and they entered the courtroom. He sat with Van Houten, just behind Dannager and Garner.

As people came in, Phillip pulled out his phone, set it to silent and texted to Richard: I think I spotted a Fed. Remember to set your phone to silent.

Richard winked at him from where he was sitting and did just that.

At about a minute until two, the defendants, looking spiffy and neat in khakis, were led into the courtroom, and they sat on a bench by the defense table.

On the prosecutor’s side, a young man approached and sat at the table. He was joined by a middle-aged woman and a young man in his twenties.

A stern looking Bailiff came out and said, “All rise. Youth Court is in session, the Honorable Anthony Drummond presiding.”

All the people in the courtroom stood, and Phillip noticed a look of concern on the face of the lady standing at the prosecutor’s table. That had to be Sturgis. Behind the prosecutor's table, Phillip was surprised to see Timmy’s mom, Karen Callahan.

Phillip recognized the Judge. He had been at Reverend Curtis’s church service Sunday morning. The Judge took his seat and brought down his gavel. “Youth Court is in session. I am subbing for Judge Gerald Turner. He was detained with another matter. Please begin.”

At the Prosecutor’s table, the young man stood and said, “I am Jerry Martin for the prosecution, your honor. With me are Mrs. Emily Sturgis, Director of our local CPS office and her Deputy, Mr. Amos Weatherford.”

At the Defense table, Dannager stood and said, “Miles Dannager for the defense, your honor. Wallace Garner is assisting me, your honor. He is a specialist in custody matters.”

Judge Drummond raised an eyebrow and said, “Mr. Dannager, I’m quite certain that it has been some time since you have argued a case in Youth Court. It’s good to see an attorney of your caliber looking out for these young men.”

Dannager said, “Thank you, your honor.”

Judge Drummond said, “In the interest of brevity, if it is all right with the prosecution and the defense, we will dispense with the formal reading of the charges. All eight defendants are charged with one count each of possession of marijuana and prostitution. Mr. Dannager, how do you plead for your clients?”

Dannager said, “We plead no contest, your honor.”

Judge Drummond said, “Very well, counselor. The defendants have been Adjudicated Delinquent. In their favor, this is the first arrest for all of them. Also in their favor, and I quote from the detention report, ‘All eight of these boys have been quiet and polite. We have had no problems with them, and their behavior has been exemplary.’ In a report from Grayson Middle School, these boys have been attending school and have decent grades.”

Drummond turned to the boys and said in a kindly tone, “Boys, if you must appear in front of a judge, that’s the kind of report you want him to see.”

The Judge said, “It has come to the attention of the court that these boys’ parents have been involved with the manufacture and sale of methamphetamine and were all arrested Saturday morning by the Sussex County Sheriff’s Department. Several of them were out on bond for drug and alcohol offenses. They had neglected the boys needs for medical care, and had left the boys to fend for themselves over weekends. It is my ruling that the boys’ parents are to be further charged with child neglect and that these boys be placed in foster care.”

“Mr. Martin, I see that the District Attorney’s office has recommended foster care, counseling, 200 hours community service and period of one year probation. Is this correct?”

The Prosecutor said, “That’s standard for these cases. The only difficulty is the matter of foster care.”

Judge Drummond asked, “Mrs. Sturgis, as the Director of CPS for this county, do you concur?”

Mrs. Sturgis said, “No, your honor. I do not. Foster Care would be extremely difficult to arrange for such troubled young men. They are in obvious need of extended in-patient psychiatric care. My recommendation is that they all be placed in a faith-based drug rehab program.”

Judge Drummond said, “May I see your paperwork?”

Mrs. Sturgis handed a file to the bailiff who took it to the court reporter who stamped it as an official document. The bailiff then took the file to the judge, who lay the file out on his blotter.

Judge Drummond, put on a pair of reading glasses, opened the file which had eight bundles of papers separated with paper clips, one each for the eight boys in court. He made a show of looking through one of the stacks.

Mrs. Sturgis allowed a slight smile. The Judge would rubber-stamp her recommendations and she would make a cool twenty thousand under the table.

Drummond looked up from the document and said, “Bailiff, please arrest Mrs. Sturgis. The charges start with eight counts of perjury and taking bribes. There is an FBI Agent in Court, he too would like to have a word with you.”

Mrs. Sturgis looked shocked as the Bailiff snapped cuffs on her.

Drummond continued, “Mrs. Sturgis, when I said Judge Turner was detained, I wasn’t kidding. There are serious State and Federal charges that attach to taking bribes while doing the State's business. Bailiff, remove Mrs. Sturgis from these proceedings.”

The Bailiff marched her out the back of court, where she was immediately served with a federal arrest warrant for several hundred charges of bribery and Deprivation of Rights under color of law. It was a toss up whether she was in deeper trouble with the State or the Feds.

Drummond said, “At this time, I order that our local CPS be thoroughly investigated by the State Attorney General’s office. All detention of suspects adults and minors by Security Concepts, LLC be immediately suspended and any cases, past or present, involving Mrs. Sturgis and detention at any Security Concepts facility be reviewed.”

He signed the order he had prepared and said, “Ladies and gentlemen, as officers of the court, it is incumbent on all of us to root out corruption to preserve public confidence in our system, especially when it comes to the treatment of minors. It had been our policy for decades to avoid detention of minors by the state where possible. The change in policy made by CPS and the use of private detention has, in my opinion, invited corruption and abuse.”

“While I find it embarrassing professionally that we had to air our dirty laundry here in public this afternoon, it was necessary to preserve the integrity of our courts and associated agencies. Hopefully, we can learn from this boondoggle and undo some damage done.”

“Anyone who comes before a court can only hope for justice and mercy. That’s exactly what these young men are going to get. Mr. Garner, you filed a very interesting amicus brief in this matter. I want to see you, Mr. Dannager, Mr. Jens Van Houten, Mr. Phillip Wright and Mr. Weatherford in my chambers. Court will be in recess for thirty minutes while we confer.” Looking at the wall clock, Judge Drummond pounded his gavel and said, “We will reconvene at three.”

One of the Bailiffs spoke to Mr. Dannager and had the group follow him to a conference room. When they all took a seat. Amos Weatherford, Sturgis’s deputy, looked shell-shocked.

Judge Drummond entered the conference room and took a seat at the head of the table. He said, “There were too many of us to fit in my chambers, so I borrowed this room. Let’s get right down to business.”

“Mr. Weatherford, contrary to what Mrs. Sturgis stated in court, there are foster families available for these boys. I am aware that she has been very stingy awarding foster care certificates. We have six men who were awarded certificates before her taking over at CPS who have volunteered to take in these kids. Would that be acceptable?”

Weatherford said, “Your honor, if those certificates are older than seven years, we will have to renew them, but for our purposes here today they should do.”

The Judge said, “I received an amicus brief on a new foundation that has been set up here very recently. It is well funded and offers an excellent alternative to punitive sentencing. Have a look at this and tell me if CPS would have a problem with working with them.”

Judge Drummond slid Wally Garner’s brief across the table. Then he turned to Phillip and said, “I live across the street and one house down from the Scott’s and know their boys, Kelly and Casey. I wasn’t surprised when they appeared before Judge Sonja Walker. I was amazed to see them in church this Sunday. If you can get a pair like Casey and Kelly straightened out, you are the sort of resource we need.”

Phillip replied, “With boys their age, it’s all about the sort of people they are around. Peer pressure works both ways.”

Judge Drummond smiled and said, “That makes a lot more sense than to send them to a barn in Georgia.”

Amos Weatherford looked up from the brief and said, “This is extraordinary. The Lost Boys Foundation has a plan of care for every boy. They will enroll them in a health care plan and all eight of them will receive evaluation, treatment and have their medical needs met. This is better than anything the state has to offer.”

Judge Drummond said, “As the senior CPS representative here, do you have any problems proceeding with the foster care placements.”

Weatherford shook his head and said, “Of this group, there is one active-duty police officer, two retired, the director of the Y and the director of Grissom Park. I can’t imagine any better placements.”

The Judge said, “All eight will be doing their community service in Grissom Park, and they will be on standard youth probation.”

Miles Dannager said, “All of them will have various doctors and dentists’ appointments over the next few weeks. I think we have them covered.”

Weatherford closed the file containing Garner’s brief and said, “I’m sold. I hope we can do further work with the Lost Boys Foundation. This is exactly the sort of shot in the arm our teen foster care system needs.”

When court resumed, the sentence was handed down with the blessing of CPS. Each boy got foster care placement, 200 hours community service and youth probation.

Jeremy Aubrey was placed with Jens Van Houten, and Richard got a little brother a foot taller than he was.

Frank Ballard was placed with Arty Shaw, and Seth and David got a new neighbor at their grandmother’s house in Old Town.

Tony and Angel Bernardi were placed with Marty Oswald, who looked twenty years younger and had tears in his eyes.

Cade Brock and his best friend Kevin Sutton were placed with Daniel Campbell and would spend a lot of time at the Y with their foster dad.

Miguel Gomez was placed with Mike Lee, who lived a few blocks over from Phillip’s house.

Dale Moss was placed with Walter Lance, the director of Grissom Park.

The Lost Boys were finally found.