Where else can you find drama? Embezzlement? Fraud? Office backstabbing and kindergarten behavior? Easy… Right here in Rural Colorado. Yep! And that’s just in the DA’s side. We won’t even think about what goes on on the jail side of the building.
Monday… the air conditioning is acting up. It recycles the air and so smells from one part of the building invade other sections. This would have been fine except for the fact that some one in the staff area bathroom had the bowel movement from hell. Ten minutes later, you could smell it in our office and at the front door. Awwwgh…
Tuesday’s saga…. The “HR/Victims advocate” walked in wearing a perfume that just ripped my lungs up. Asthma. I had to call Dan to bring me my inhaler. Meanwhile, the ADA was dodging phone calls from lawyers, and was late for court yet again. I think he’s been on time once. I dealt with my asthma, Pattie goes off for an interview because she wants out of this office, and life is quiet for a few hours.
We have a 17yo that stole a car in Texas, and got caught here. We can’t hold him because he’s a juvenile. So, we send him to Pueblo Youth Center. We tell Texas where he is. They can’t understand why we can’t hold him, because in Texas, he’s an adult. (sigh) They are on the road to pick him up in Pueblo when we get a call that he is now in Colorado Springs, as they ran out of room… I get a half assed message to that effect, and tell Dee, who tries to call Texas in route. She finally gets a hold of the Texas base who relays the info to the traveling sheriff.
One of the ex-DA’s stopped in to visit. He is now a private lawyer. They were chatting about what idiots the ADA and DA were. He of course left crayons and a a coloring book on the desk of the ADA who plays solitaire instead of working on his cases. Oh that went over like a lead balloon!
After lunch, I get back to find that Pattie has laid into the HR gal about the perfume while I was gone when she asked rather snottily where I was. (I left a little early for lunch) When I next see the HR gal, it is obvious that she has “washed off” her perfume. She tried to tell Pattie that she had worn the same perfume all the time. I told Pattie, no, and that she had washed, as my nose is rather sensitive to scent.
Meanwhile, we are working on cases that the ADA has ‘finished’. He let an arson case go, dismissed almost 20 tickets without fines being paid, (keep in mind that the DA’s office generates money via fines) and
allowed felonies to be pleaded down to misdemeanors. (One of them had 4 separate files generated in 2 days) Pattie gets a phone call from the woman who had from the job I have. The benefits company won’t pay her as the DA’s office hasn’t paid them. (although the DA’s office took out the money from their paychecks) Apparently, this is history repeating itself. In fact, the CBI was here the other day to get testimony on the previous time that this same thing happened. Pattie and Dee are going to be monitoring their pay stubs to see if they are being robbed of the interest that should have been accruing if the benefits had been paid. The DA prior to the one in office now, spent 3 of his 4 years in office screwing up the budget to the point where people couldn’t cash their paycheck, bills weren’t being paid, etc. Oh, and this guy is running for office again and is the BEST candidate for the job!
The local sheriff and all of his staff detest the DA and ADA. They hand them case after case that should go straight through the court system and end in convictions, and the lawyers botch them. Which means that the same offenders are out on the street faster than we can process the paperwork. Remember that comment I made that the same 4-5 families do all the crime? Well, part of that same bunch got off scott free Tuesday.
Then extradition case to New Mexico. A woman who is 8 months preggers was wanted in New Mexico. So, we were going to send her. However, she had 2 cases here pending that needed cleared before she could go. New Mexico was on their way to pick her up and guess what ADA hadn’t cleared the cases…..
Wednesday. A quiet day. 11 tickets, a hysterical man in the outer office, a report from Dan and Karen and lots of boredom. The hysterical man had a dog which got into a dog fight at one of the bars. The owner of the other dog kicked it and stabbed it in the skull with a knife. Dog gets taken to the vet, and the man waits to see if he is going to get charged with having a violent animal. Unfortunately, the vet is the most expensive one in the county and won’t release the dog until the bill is paid. Someone liked this guy. The cops and DA dropped all charges and some Samaritan paid the nearly $300 vet bill. Then the cops took him out to pick up his dog, which will live.
Dan and Karen came by with a map showing the area they could cover with a cheap repeater and that equaled nearly 95% of the county. The sheriff and head deputy were in heaven. This county has a long history of communication issues due to geography. That may have just been solved.
Today started out ok. Then Pattie did something to piss off the ADA and the next thing we knew, Pattie was being sent home for being rude and childish. (right…) So, I had the office to myself for most of the day. I also learned that my stint of work at the office will be over by July 11th. My replacement comes in next week and will train in Trinidad. (hmm…. interesting….) By 3pm, Mike decided to go home. In order to cover his tracks, he let the rest of us go home too. Wheeee!
Tonight we are having a wake for Tirion/Sir Starhelm. Dan is making his meat roll things. Fun bit is he is in the kitchen pounding away with the meat tenderizer in beat to the music. Tomorrow Dan and I are invited to a 4th of July party that will be as much business as fun. Pauline lives up on this ranch with Mike and Gloria, and that is where the party will be.
Oh! Almost forgot. Dan and I both got paid today. I had my Starry Skies column in the Huerfano Journal, and Dan had both his Tech Savvy article as well as one about the ARRLS field day. (ham radio play day) http://huerfanojournal.com/extra.php
I’m really enjoying writing for the Journal. Dan is also publishing his articles on his LiveJournal. http://ujoronen.livejournal.com/
See ya!