How I Was Called To The Legal Profession

March 22, 2017

One summer night before starting my senior year in high school, I was riding my bike home from a friend’s house. Out of nowhere a police cruiser abruptly pulled up onto the sidewalk, cutting me off.  It was so abrupt that I nearly fell off my bike and hit head first into a pole.  The officer stormed out of his car, and commanded me to stay put.  The officer then proceeded to inquire who I was and demanded my identification.  Luckily, I had my driver’s license in my pocket.  Just as I am handing the officer my license, three more police cruisers arrived on scene.  The first officer continued questioning me saying, “where did you come from,” “what route did you take,” and “where were you going?” By this point I was overwhelmed and confused to say the least.  As I recounted my route of travel and tried to answer the officer’s questions quickly, the officer kept insisting I was not telling the truth.  Thankfully, a more experienced officer chimed in and explained to the overzealous officer that I was telling the truth.  The first officer wanted to take my picture and then requested that I get into his cruiser. The officer wanted to take me to the scene of the crime so that the victim could determine if I was the perpetrator!  I politely requested that he call my parents, assuring him that they were awaiting my arrival! You see, I played varsity basketball, was the incoming Student Government President, and had just began putting together plans for my Eagle Scout project, oh and the Rodney King riots had just ended!  The encounter ended, not with me being taken to the referenced scene, but rather with a stern warning that I had better continue on the route and get home.

Ask yourself the following question out loud, and then answer it.  “Do I truly believe in innocent until proven guilty?”  Now let me ask you, have you ever seen someone being placed into the backseat of a police car and thought to yourself “hmmmm… I wonder what that innocent person did?”  No, why not, you do believe in innocent until proven guilty don’t you?  Recall high school me above, he chose to become a lawyer to protect the rights and liberties of citizens, an extraordinary and calling for sure.

 

Darrin Johnson is an associate with the Law Office of Robert Eckard & Associates. Darrin’s practice areas include criminal defense and business litigation.

The Law Office of Robert Eckard & Associates (LORE) has not been retained for any matter by you until such time as a duly executed retainer is signed by you and an authorized agent of LORE and any retainer deposit paid and returned to us.  Nothing contained herein is intended to create an attorney client relationship or be considered legal advice, as such, no conflict of interest shall be presumed in the event LORE is later retained by an adverse party.  See Rule 4-1.18 et. al., 2006 Florida Supreme Court.

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