Week 2

Week 2 has stepped up the intensity level because of the more independence I get. Last week was basically shadowing William and getting familiar with his case load. This week I met some other people in the office and began helping them with their case loads. The most exciting thing that happened this week, was when I was asked to prepare a case binder for an on going murder trial. I was given the case by the head of the department, which is stocked full of details of a pretty gruesome murder. Not expecting what I was getting myself into, I have found myself engulfed by the images and details of the case. The client turned himself into police and admitted to the murder, which was interesting because he had been on the run for six months. What makes this interesting is the fact that he didn't leave a nine-block radius. This case enthralls me and I get excited every morning I get to organize it.

William is doing an excellent job making sure I get a taste of everything in the office. I am also working on Puyallup Tribe cases, which are completely different than what I have been involved with so far. Their laws are totally different, which is interesting because of how close we are in distance to the tribe. For example, with William I am allowed to go to court because it is open to the public, whereas with the tribes I am not allowed to go. Carolyn the lawyer on these cases is petitioning with the tribe to see if I might be able to go to at least one before my internship is over.

Lastly the one thing I learned is not all lawyers are created equal. On Friday William and I met with a client who is new to him, but has been with another lawyer at DAC. When she first came into the room she told us how upset she has been at DAC for not getting this case over with. She then went on to say all the lawyers at DAC were lazy and not willing to work. William didn't take offense and told her that wasn't the case. By the end of the appointment he had solved her issues with working with a lawyer, and we were actually laughing. It was nice to see that through the many unpopular stereotypes of lawyers, there are some that don't fit that mold. I can't judge for all, but William is teaching me techniques to become successful in whatever field I decide to go into.