Clearing the Decks

On this my last day in court before my great Ukrainian adventure, I worked in chambers in the morning dealing with a number of last minute matters given to me by the clerks. From mid morning through late afternoon I handled a moderately large calendar of about 120 criminal and miscellaneous arraignments. These were mostly retail theft, assault and numerous minor offenses. I did handle two domestic violence and child abuse cases, with the defendants in custody. One of the defense attorneys was checking his calendar to schedule a disposition hearing in December and apologized that he was unavailable because he was taking his wife on a trip to Central America. He said, "But I would gladly trade places with you and go to Russia, Judge." We have arranged for a substitute judge to handle any emergency matters halfway through my trip.

The temperature in Salt Lake City today is in the 60's, with clear blue skies and the trees bedecked in bright fall colors. I have high windows in my courtroom, letting in all of that warm sunlight. Beyond the windows is a park where there are frequently football or lacrosse games in progress during the last hour or so of the court day. Sometimes I look out over the spectators in the courtroom and marvel at the unusually rapt attention they are giving me. Then I turn around and realize that someone is scoring a goal. The next twenty-four hours will be a shock. The weather forecast for Kyiv is rain on Friday and Saturday and snow on Sunday, with the highs below 35 degrees Fahrenheit. I intend to dress warmly.

I should finish my trials by 4:30 p.m. Tonight, I will finish my packing, and try to get a good nights sleep so that I can arise early to get to the airport.