So far at the Commonwealth’s Attorney Office, I have continued working on translating the Commonwealth’s Attorney Office website from English to Spanish. I am still getting back into my Spanish comprehension and have so far gotten one of the pages finished. I hope to get the rest done very soon. The interpretation of certain information from Spanish to English or vice versa helps me understand the judicial system from another perspective. It could be hard for individuals who only speak Spanish to get a good grasp of the court system and how it works when everything is usually in English. I think that the assistance of an individual who can either speak or write in Spanish not only builds on their resume for other job opportunities but is a skill that can help others.  I will always try to broaden my mental Spanish dictionary, so I can use it in life situations; whether in court or other instances.

When I sit in on a hearing, it is usually a mix of either; status hearings, criminal cases, sentencing/probations, and any other disputes that the judge must decide on. Depending on the judge and the division, I usually hear about drug related cases and more status hearings. These are interesting to watch, which is what I enjoy seeing when I go to the Circuit Court. The Defense, however, does come prepared to argue their case. The Prosecution and Defense always refer to evidence and documents that they have obtained over the course of the case. If the case is taken to trial, this results in a more longer, detailed, and 50/50 trial where the jury will have to deliberate on their decision a lot tougher than they originally presumed. When I’m not in court and I’m in the Attorney’s office. I am usually calling victims and letting them know about their next court date. This process, to me, seems critical as am talking to someone I have never met, and they are a victim of a crime. I make sure that I speak to them in a calming matter and let them know when the defendant will have to appear in court again. I’m excited to learn more about the criminal justice system next semester!

Last week I went to the Circuit Court where I sat in on a case where Kim Baird was the prosecutor that dealt with a man being charged with possession of drugs; the judge was Ernesto Scorsone. By the time I left, they were in the middle of cross examination where Ms. Baird asked the man questions. I thought the way she handled herself and how she managed to have a question after every statement he made was impressive and almost seemed easy for her to do. That was very intriguing to me. The other day I sat in on case hearings and with retired Judge Thomas Clark. It went by very fast and some criminals had interesting cases. I also came back to the office and began working on translating the Commonwealth’s Attorney Office website from English to Spanish, which I am still working on at this point.