Actually, in the military, it’s called confinement.
This past week I had two trials. Both were drug use cases by young airmen; one was cocaine, the other marijuana. These substances are generally frowned upon by the Air Force.
I gave the closing argument in both cases. Used a theme centering around choices and consequences. Well, things went very well, and both received the sentence I asked for. Three months confinement for the cocaine case and one month for the marijuana case. There were also other military specific punishments, but I won’t bore you with that.
The trials kinda felt like the 100 mock trials I had done before, but when I turned around during the close to point at what is usually a fake defendant, there was a real person. I have no sympathy for people who use drugs in the military, it jeopardizes the mission, etc; however, when you look at a 20 year old airmen who is about to face a pretty miserable future, you can’t help but have some sympathy for the situation.
And if that wasn’t ‘real’ enough, at the end, after I get the sentence that I want and people are busy complimenting the case I put on, the defendant is being lead out of the courtroom in handcuffs on his way to confinement in Germany.
I love getting in the courtroom, and it feels great when I put on a good case and get the result I wanted. But, when it’s all done, I realize it’s not a game.
Lowly Maggot 