Theodore

AINE 12

"Good morning everybody." bati ng Judge ng makapasok siya sa chamber. It's a fine Tuesday morning pero yung paligid sobrang tensyonado.

This is the last day of this Murder case. Halos dalawang taon din ang ginugol ko sa  kasong to bago kami makarating sa araw na pinaka-inaasam-asam ng kliyente ko. My client is 34 years old now and he's been in the jail for almost 10 years. I was hired to be his client 2 years ago. Ayoko sanang tanggapin pero naawa ako. This family has been through a lot. Lahat ng ari-arian nila ay nabenta na nila, even the goats, chicken and their cows na nasa bukid nila. 

When I first heard about this case on the TV years ago, estudyante pa lang ako. At first, I got angry with the guy on the television. 23 pa lang siya ay pinatay niya ang kanyang girlfriend dahil raw sa selos. I thought I would never hear about this case anymore until that moment happened when I saw this woman outside the justice hall.  May kasama siyang isang lalaki na kasing-edad niya, ang hinuha ko ay asawa niya. They were both crying... hindi ko alam pero gusto ko silang lapitan which I did and the rest is history.

I smiled to Cresencio, my client. He's been through a lot. Yung kawatan at mukha niya ay malayo sa edad niya. He looks like he's 40 or 50. The life in jail hit him hard. I held his hands and uttered words of encouragement. 

Sarado na sana tong kaso na to years ago pero may isang materyal na ebedensyang nakalap ang pamilya niya. Pero dahil wala ng natira sa kanila ay wala na silang perang ipangbabayad sa isang abogado. PAO represented him way back pero hindi ibig sabihin wala na silang ginastos doon. They have to pay for his foods and essentials inside, plus the fare, the effort, the emotional stress and everything that endured for the past years. 

"Attorney, kahit ano po ang maging hatol nila saken, masaya na po ako dahil kahit papano ay tinulungan niya po ako. Hindi ko alam kung paano ako magpapasalamat sa inyo." maluha-luhang sabi niya.

I smiled. "Mamaya tayo mag-usap. Dito na si Judge. Pakinggan mong mabuti kung paano niya sabihin sayo na wala kang kasalanan." I pressed his hand a bit more.

Alam ko sa puso ko na ako ang mananalo dito. I looked at the other side of the court. There they are! The victim's family are also crying. 

Sorry

Gusto kong sabihin sa kanila. I know how hard it is for them to lose their daughter, pero masakit rin namang magkaroon ng kamag-anak o anak na nakakulong for a crime that he did not commit. I know my client is innocent...

Nagsalubong kami ng tingin ng abogado nila. He recognized me. He nod at me so I nod back. He's Atty. Consolacion... a respected lawyer dahil na rin sa nature of the cases that he handled. He's also known for being an expensive lawyer.

Mayaman ang pamilya ng biktima. Their daughter left their home at went to my client years ago upang magsama sila pero hindi siya nito pinayagan na iwan ang pamilya dahil malaki ang repesto ni Cresencio sa kanya. So he had to make her return pero hindi na ito nakabalik. Instead, they found her lifeless body in the same town he lived before.

"So we are now on the judgment day. This case has been to stressful for both the parties, I know. So di na tayo magpaligoy-ligoy pa."