Dead Baby Case

I admit it: I'm somewhat of a cultural snob. I take pride in avoiding mass interest stories and shows, especially reality tv. In the case of some reality shows, I'm convinced that watching for more than 10 minutes actually lowers one's IQ. I've noticed Wifey falling off a bit after watching all of "Millionaire Matchmaker."

I blame this snobbery on a professor of mine, John Paul Russo. Professor Russo was English Chair when I was at the U. He spoke in a clipped New England accent, the product of Boston Latin, Harvard B.A. and Harvard PhD. As fas as anyone knew, he was asexual, but lusted for the Classics.

I used to try to convince him that Jim Morrison was every much the poet as Byron or Shelley, and he'd laugh --advising me to be "like a giraffe, taking only from the tops of trees," and leaving the lower growth for less majestic animals.

So it was with the Casey Anthony trial. I avoided reading about it or watching any of it --figuring it was best left to overweight housewives to obsess over while doing their housework...and THEN: my sister called Wifey to tell her to watch, since some expert was testifying, and he had a speech impediment that made him sound like Elmer Fudd.

My family has a long and ignoble history of thinking some things that aren't funny are, and this prompted the call about the fumfering scientist. Well, Wifey was infected, and, next thing I I knew, our TV was tuned to the damn trial, with small breaks only for U Verse recorded "Millionaire Matchmaker" episodes.

Still, I avoided the case, until the verdict yesterday: my office roommate Stuart and his Dad and I watched in the office. Not guilty! Whatever.

Honestly, the only thing that got to me is that the murdered toddler looked a lot like D1 when she was that age, with those big, soulful eyes. Other than that, hey --it's a local family tragedy. Stories of crime visited upon others get me much more riled up --when strangers get killed by psychopaths. I figure the Anthony family gets their own hell...

And, as a lawyer, I DID have to learn about the defense lawyer, and I was impressed. I've long known that the best trial lawyers are street guys, not ivory tower types, and this dude Baez takes the cake. Homestead High dropout, GED, Miami Dade College, FSU, and then the 3rd crappiest law school in Florida, which is saying something, as we have some PRETTY crappy law schools! (I still think the one founded by the Catholic pizza guy, Ave Maria, I think it's called, will hold the crappiest of all title for years to come).

So Baez, who couldn't even get admitted by the Florida Bar for 8 years after he passed the exam, won big! The Florida Bar is the one that welcomed Scott Rothstein!
And all the experts, including such luminaries as some fool named Jarvis who teaches at Nova Law (a few levels less crappy than St. Thomas, Baez's alma mater) now have egg of their face, as Baez Colombo-ed his way to an impressive win.

We lawyers are a cynical lot. We refer to birth injury cases as "bad baby" ones, and cases like the Anthony one as "dead baby" ones.

So at least my tv will be safer for awhile, now that the case is over.

And, I look forward to the resumption of properly erudite programming. College football will be back on in less than 2 months. Professor Russo would be proud of me...