Last month the Travis County District Attorney’s office dismissed all charges against Michael Scott and Robert Springsteen – the defendants in the yogurt shop murders. What an extraordinary outcome. I can only imagine how those two must feel. It’s also hard to imagine how the attorneys must feel after such a struggle with so much at stake.

There are challenges that occur in our lives that define who we are, for better or for worse, and this was certainly a huge challenge for the attorneys involved. I spoke with my close friend, Carlos Garcia, over the weekend and he told me about the experience.

Carlos was lead counsel on Michael Scott’s trial team. For the past two years he has worked on that case to the almost complete exclusion of everything else. Both his law practice and his personal life have suffered. At one point he told me he felt like he had missed two years of his youngest daughter’s life. As he put it, “I would often work at the office until 7:00 PM or so and then go home where I’d work until 1:00 AM. Some evenings my only contact with Samantha was having her in my lap while I reached around and worked on my computer.”

Carlos’ focus on Michael Scott resulted in his law practice being supported almost entirely by his partner, Nicole True. Nicole handled all new cases and well as their 100 plus existing cases. The financial burden became extreme as cash flow diminished.

There was an emotional toll, and not one that you would necessarily expect. Keeping all the attorneys involved in the case working in an effective fashion proved difficult. There was disagreement regarding strategy and how to proceed at times. There was discord and in-fighting. And there was unethical behavior to the point of a grievance being filed against one of the attorneys on the trial team.

When it comes to our legal system and how it is designed to work, it doesn’t matter whether you believe that the defendant’s were guilty or innocent. What matters is that both sides were zealously represented and treated correctly in a court of law. What matters is that someone has the intestinal fortitude to step up to a challenging situation and not back down when things become difficult…so, kudos to you Carlos for doing your job in spite of all the obstacles and hardship. You definitely stepped up to the challenge. You make all of us that practice criminal defense look good and I’m proud to call you my friend.

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