Morgan Simpson Observation

On September 11, 2015, Morgan Simpson (heretofore referred to as “Simpson”) and I attended the General District Court of Pitt County. We observed criminal court from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. in District courtroom 4 with the honorable Judge Dean presiding. We opted to attend this court simply because it worked with our schedules; we were not required to miss classes or work to observe. Upon our arrival to the courthouse, the limited number of parking spaces near the court was all occupied. We were required to park by Town Commons on First Street. That was the first indication that court was going to be packed. The other indicator was the line of individuals waiting to go through the security checkpoint. The line formed at the security scanner was

Instead of giving us directions, he took us to the front of the line and had us go through security. When he did, I noticed the individuals in the line were looking at us in a questioning or unfriendly manner for essentially cutting the line. I assumed the security officer did this because he thought we might have been representing someone as we were both in professional attire: slacks, a blouse, and a blazer. Simpson accidentally left her pepper spray on her key ring, so the female security officer operating the security scanner gave her two options: return the mace to her car or have it confiscated. Simpson opted to leave it in their custody because we did not want to be any later than we already were. The female security officer directed us downstairs for district court room 4, but once downstairs we were still confused as to where to

The credit union’s legal counsel cited case law and North Carolina definitions as part of her argument. During their time, Judge Teague stepped out for three minutes to consider the facts before making a decision. When he returned, we were not required to stand again and he spent another four minutes making notations before sharing his decision. Looking around the courtroom, it appeared that most in attendance were disinterested in the unfolding of the case. The assistance clerk of court and the trial court administrator were yawning and resting their heads on their fists; they were more interested in what the little girl was doing. The bailiff spent most of that hearing on his cell phone. The other lawyers were talking amongst themselves. A few rows ahead of me, a little girl was reading the numbers on the clock behind us, waving and talking to me, and later, leaning down and whispering with her mother. Judge Teague was seen propping his head on his hand as he listened to all the facts.
The following case related to an attorney obtaining his contingency fee from defending a man involved in a car accident. According to Saltzman et al. (2014), a contingency fee arrangement is one in which a lawyer will represent an individual not able to pay their legal fee on the condition that the other party will