Under the byline of Daniel W. Hurley in The Voice for the Defense comes an article entitled Shazam!. The following excerpt gives a bit of the flavor of the crowing he's doing. Shannon; J.D., say it ain't so! Stamping of feet? Whining? Shrill and vitriolic responses?
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One thing we are experiencing this year in our legislative effort is the apparent reward for coalition building and increased credibility with our senators, representatives and their staffs. This process has taken several sessions but is now starting to payoff. [Our lobbyists] have served us well in the past several sessions by focusing our battles on solid public policy arguments rather than to promote legislation that only benefits the size of our wallets. Our opponents have lost credibility by stamping their feet and making shrill and vitriolic responses when faced with an opposing viewpoint. Our opponent's solutions to the problem, i.e. mandatory minimum sentences and bigger and more costly prison systems, have turned out to be big mistakes. Our senators and representatives in Austin who have been in the halls awhile remember those who have suggested costly and ineffective solutions to our crime problems.

Our opponents have said we have not been much of a force in the most recent past legislative sessions. I hope they continue to miss the places we have centered our efforts. They have also whined about not getting the attention and the ear they deserve on issues near and dear to their hearts. Shazam! Maybe our methods are effective and the advice and counsel we are following is headed down the right path.

[This message was edited by BLeonard on 04-07-05 at .]

Thanks, Ben, I needed a good laugh.

Shazam? You must be kidding. Actually, I've tried again and again to get on the mailing list for the Voice, but they won't send it to me.

Sadly, there used to be a time when TDCAA and TCDLA really worked well together at the Legislature. Back in the early 90's, we all recognized that there were actually very few things that prosecutors and defense attorneys disagreed about. They were core procedural issues, and there was a respectful difference of opinion and a good debate on the issues.

But over the last 10 years, things have changed. The defense bar has adopted a "spy vs. spy" attitude about the Legislature. they stopped having coffee with us and talking about the bills coming up, and instead took a "see you in court" attitude.

That's a shame, because there really is no sneaking around at the Capitol; everyone knows what everyone else is up to.

So, it's fine by me that the defense bar is apparently so smug about how great their lobby team is doing, and how us prosecutors "continue to miss the places they have centered their efforts."

Whatever.

Rob, the same trend (though not to as great an extent as in some other jurisdictions) is at work here in little Tarrant County. The old hands maintain the respect and, yes, friendship of the good old days but a newer cohort of lawyers on both sides of the docket seem to believe that no battle is too small to fight to the death.

I wonder that no one had the heart to tell the author that the word is spelled S-H-A-Z-Z-A-M. Maybe he feared a lean and hungry copyright lawyer?

By the way, I can't get a subscription to The Voice either. My peeks at the magazine are on the sly.

[This message was edited by BLeonard on 04-08-05 at .]

To get the Voice, you have to be a member, and they don't let prosecutors be members. I figured they would send it to me if I asked, being the director of lawyer training entity and all, but I can't get it either! It is that kind of stuff that is unfortunate, and that is why we as an association open our seminars to whoever wants to come, and why our web site is open to all.

We'd do better by cooperating, that is for sure.

rob

Just gotta remember, life is too short to associate with some. Just deal with them when forced.

I for one salute our lobbying team at TDCAA. I appeared to testify before the legislature back in 1997 at the request of former State Legislator Ron Wilson. Although Rob and I didn't agree on the law change proposed, it was a respectful disagreement, and in the end, all sides came to meet in the middle for a change that accomplished my purpose and didn't tread on the ground Rob was trying to protect.

During the legislative session, our guys are working very, very hard for us and for the law abiding citizens of the State, including defense attorneys, whether they choose to recognize it or not. Defense attorneys have families, children and are victims of crime as well.

One other interesting observation is that in the 90's, I attended several Rusty Duncan seminars sponsored by the TCDLA. Other prosecutors were there as well. I found the change in curriculum and point of view not only interesting but educational. There was a poster for sale at the TCDLA booth, an old west style poster that basically said: "Gunfighters don't charge by the bullet.". I took this to be a reference to a "flat fee" vs. an hourly rate, in other words, the client gets charged one fee whether the case is dismissed or goes to trial.

I guess the same slogan applies to us, since we are paid a salary (sort of) and we are not paid per case we handle or per outcome.

Shazzam indeed!

P.S. Wasn't it the character Gomer Pyle that used to say "Shazzam" all the time?

OK, three things that will show my age:
1) Yes, Gomer did use the word "Shazam!"
2) "Shazam!" made its debut as the magic word homeless newspaper boy Billy Batson would shout to transform himself into Captain Marvel, a crime-fighting super hero.
3) "Shazam!" does have only one z....but I remembered two.

Didn't Shaquille O'Neal more recently bring kids Shazam, a rapping genie, in his ground-breaking movie Kazaam? For a quick review of that Disney classic, read this review.

So, for 100 bonus points, who directed this little gem?

[This message was edited by John Bradley on 04-11-05 at .]

That would be "Hutch."

Arrgh! The nuerons don't fire the way they used to.

All bonus points to David. For more information on Mr. Glaser and his amazing career, check out his official website.