My Town Monday: COURT!!!

This is the first San Diego Courthouse. Well, actually it's a replica. The original was built in 1847, but burned in the Old Town fire of 1872. You can visit this replica courthouse for free at Old Town Historic Park. It's open daily, 10-5. Seriously, if you are EVER in San Diego, you want to visit Old Town for shopping, eating, gazing. You'll get a sense of what the town square was like back in the 1800s.




In more RECENT news, this is the courthouse DH and I went to for our Small Claims case against the Twenty-Two-Year-Old-Who-Totaled-DH's-Car-And-Lied-About-Running-The-Red-Light.

It was our first time in Small Claims court. I basically went in the role of supportive wife. And mystery writer. And nosey citizen. And annoyed citizen that a liar could perjure herself and might actually get away with it. And, still, I was a bundle of nerves.

Here are my thoughts about the experience. There is A LOT of tension in Small Claims Court. A lot. It's like the entire courtroom is saran-wrapped in it. There is A LOT of lying going on Small Claims court. Enough to give you a stomach ache. Your best bet to prepare your statement ahead of time. Be succinct and articulate. The lawyer-Acting-As-Judge hears a TON of cases in a day, so make your case easy on the ears. Take the time to prepare some evidence, too.

Also, if you ever need story ideas, go hang out in Small Claims Court. The place is rife with them.

DH put together a binder with his statement, her statement, photos I took of the intersection and more. Yes, yes, he included those photos I took of the damage to her car when I played Sherlock Holmes and snuck over to her apartment building. Those photos may even have clinched the case because DH used them to show how her running a red light was the only way to explain the damage to both cars.

This is where the winners go to celebrate with a coffee and a hot dog. Yes! We won! JUSTICE PREVAILED!

Now that you've heard my good news, please trundle over to Travis Erwin's blog. He's our Fearless Leader for My Town Mondays. Along with his own MTM, he'll have a list of participants.

EDITED TO ADD ANSWER TO BINA OF JUST ANOTHER DAY'S QUESTION: How did the Twenty-Two-Year-Old-Who-Totaled-DH's-Car-And-Lied-About-Running-The-Red-Light react to the verdict?

short answer: I don't know.

long answer: The lawyer-judge (because in Small Claims Court your "judge" is a lawyer with 10+ years experience) listened to DH's side, listened to the other side, asked a bunch of questions, then said she needed to think about it some more and we'd get the verdict IN THE MAIL! Seriously! We sat through FIVE cases before ours. And no one breathed anything about verdicts coming via the postman. Anyway, the Twenty-Two-Year-Old questioned the mail thing. The lawyer-judge said again (somewhat snappishly) that she needed more time to render a decision.

And, honestly? I think it was at THAT second the Twenty-Two-Year-Old suddenly realized that repeating "It's just his word against mine" and looking smary might not cut it.

In terms of payment: She did have liability. So, Geico will send us a check for the value of DH's car, the towing charges, the cost of a rental car and the court costs. In fact, they cut the check yesterday. So, perhaps we'll receive it today. When the postman knocks....for the second time. :) Ha!


sources:
http://www.sandiegohistory.org/societies/firstcourthouse/
my life