EDUCATION IS EVERYBODY'S BUSINESS.

PREFACE: I’m not in charge of much of anything anymore, but I like the blog’s name, so I’m keeping it, and I am, indeed, a Wahoo for life!  I am in the last month of a self-imposed gag order following my 24 vote loss for re-election to a 3^rd term as Mayor, and am itching to comment (as a private citizen/resident) on local community issues. But, we’re not there yet. There are other things to comment on. Things like a favorite subject: education.

The last few weeks have been filled with graduations: college, high school, middle school to high school, elementary to middle, pre-school to kindergarten. Kindergarten – a German word and idea meaning, literally, children’s garden, is a concept born in late 1700 Germany as an educational approach for pre-school children of working families. Starting as a program of playing, singing, drawing and social interaction, the traditional concept has, through time, transitioned into a much more rigorous form of preparing children for the ‘system demands’ that begin in 1^st grade. I learned a new term while serving my community: kindergarten ready. I am not a trained educator, but even I understand this word. And it has little to do with a garden.

In our current world, children must come to 1^st grade with certain basic skills. Some districts are fortunate to have families and support systems such that a vast majority of their children can hit 1^st grade in stride and begin a successful educational journey. Some do not. My home district found itself in this latter category a few years back as the local demographics changed. The district found itself with a substantial number of students from non-traditional home situations – single parent homes, children cared for by grandparents, aunts and uncles, big sisters/brothers, and court-appointed guardians. Stability was absent as kids were shuffled from place to place, school to school, nightmare to nightmare. For some, English was not their base language. For others, illegal drug activity was a part of their every-day environments. Basic traits as diligence, curiosity, self-discipline, hygiene were not priorities at home.

Schools are ‘graded’ and classified on the basis of arbitrary testing schemes devised in the state’s education department bureaucracy, and students’ performance on these tools are advertised and create perceptions of school systems in their communities. When children enter a system unprepared it, naturally, takes extraordinary effort by those educators to get these children to an acceptable testing level. If I remember the number correctly, I was advised that less than 20% of the children entering my home district’s kindergarten were ready, while neighboring districts were experiencing 80-90%. Imagine the effect this difference has on the reported school scores! It would look to the uninformed like the system educating the kids that were not ready to start on arrival was a ‘failing system’ when, actually, the student by student success was amazing. It is pretty simple: It takes half a glass of water to fill a glass already half full whereas it takes a whole glass to get an empty glass to the same level!

So, what has my home district done to address the situation it found itself in? A number of innovations and programs a little out of the box. It created and operates a pre-school at the high school facility as one ingredient of the recipe to make sure kids become kindergarten ready.  It works with faith-based groups to facilitate ‘Whiz Kids’ groups where local church volunteers work with elementary students weekly on reading, homework, story-telling and general knowledge. It partners with local municipal governments to place school resource (police) officers in every school and to operate an after school middle school program. It has involved itself in other non-traditional programs to address the need.

My point is this: educating our children is everybody’s business – our collective future depends on it. Support your local schools. Do not believe what you hear or take as gospel what the press reports – look deeper. Get involved and make a difference. Turn challenges into successes.

Case in point – a 2011 graduate of my alma mater recently obtained her undergraduate degree from a major state university with 4 - count them - 4 academic majors. She was awarded a Fullbright scholarship to pursue her masters in England. She is African-American. Her mother was a single parent who made a living and supported the family as an exotic dancer, and her father was not around and in prison. Non-traditional family + perhaps difficult childhood + Erlanger-Elsmere Independent public education = unqualified success. Fight on you Juggernauts, fight! Carry on to victory…

Congratulations to the Class of 2015!

Commment on THE current event of the week.

HOOS IN CHARGE?

Preface: I’m not in charge of much of anything anymore, but I like the blog’s name, so I’m keeping it, and I am, indeed, a Wahoo for life!  I am in the last month of a self-imposed gag order following my 24 vote loss for re-election to a 3^rd term as Mayor, and am itching to comment (as a private citizen/resident) on local community issues. But, we’re not there yet. There are other things to comment on. Things like fundamental changes in American society.

I have been giving a great deal of thought to the issue of same sex marriage lately, and knew when SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States) accepted the case to review it would be a hot button matter. Decisions from several of the Circuit Courts of Appeal were direct opposites, and those are the kinds of cases SCOTUS often hears – to try to bring uniformity into the Federal Courts. The late (and great, in my opinion) Judge John Heyburn in the Western District of KY decided that KY’s ban on same sex marriage violated the U.S. Constitution, but then held his decision in abeyance while it was appealed. The Sixth Circuit reversed him. SCOTUS affirmed Judge Heyburn’s decision.  May he rest in peace.

Several months ago I had the privilege to assist a woman in a parenting matter who was legally married to another woman in a state that issued same sex marriage licenses. They were local residents and the parenting dispute was with a third person. I became more acutely aware of the status these folks face in the KY court system and of KY appellate decisions touching the subject. I think it safe to say that many of my brother and sister officers of the Court of Justice in this Commonwealth were waiting for the ruling and are not shocked.  

This is my take on the issue. It is not necessarily my religious belief. It is my lawyerly belief. And while not pretending to be either a religious scholar or Constitutional scholar, I know enough about both to form opinions.

In my opinion . . . . . .

The Bible, written by humans, inspired by God, assembled by committees, and refined through the ages by scholars, tells us that God created man then, from a man’s rib, created woman to be the man’s companion. A man shall leave his father and mother and ‘cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh.’ Genesis 2:24. The betrothed make a covenant to each other and to their community and is divinely blessed. Many of us believe marriage to be embraced and preferred by our religion. The Bible, however, discusses many aspects of relationships. For instance, David and Abraham, pillars of Judaism and Christianity, practiced polygamy. Traditional monogamy is, obviously, a main subject of discussion, but more unusual topics as celibacy and castration are discussed as well.

There are some who argue that our society must avoid using ancient biblical texts to influence today’s morals, as there are texts that endorse other social institutions, such as slavery. This writing is not meant to be a study in theology. Instead, my point is that ‘marriage’ has many meanings in diverse cultures, including the Judeo-Christian culture in which I live.  What individuals believe in the USA depends in large part on how they were raised, what form of religion they identify with and how their communities have influenced their beliefs over the years.

Had the institution of marriage remained the sole province of religion, there would not be the uproar we experienced this week. Everyone would be free to marry or not as their beliefs dictated. Their religious institutions would influence and, perhaps, control their individual actions.  The institution of marriage did not, however, remain in the province of the church, mosque, synagogue, temple or whatever. Laws were enacted.

Faith, beliefs and spirituality is one thing. Law is another. Our country’s founders did their best to make sure this country would be governed by the rule of law, not by the whim of a monarch. They also did not want religious leaders to enforce their particular beliefs on all of the people. Many had been there and done that with experiences in certain protestant denominations, the Church of England and, of course, the Roman Catholic Church. The founders tried their best to allow people to believe what they choose, to worship how they choose, but not to impose these beliefs and faiths on all the people by force of law. When the Constitution was written, some states had already embraced particular denominations as the ‘official religion’ of the state.

The framers of our United States Constitution set up a 3-part government - executive, legislative, judicial – to ensure a balance of power with one part being a check on the other. Legislators write the law, the executive enforces it and judicial branch interprets it. A main source of contention in political rhetoric is and always has been the distinction between Courts and Judges writing the law and interpreting what the written law means and is to be applied. Think Marbury v Madison – Google it if necessary. Judicial review.

Article IV, Section 1 of the Constitution states: Full faith and credit shall be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. . . Section 2 states: The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states.

Wary of the excesses of monarchy from what they had recently escaped, and cognizant of the influence of the clergy, the newly independent people of this country then adopted a series of 10 amendments that addressed many of these excesses.   The Bill of Rights was a set of principles restricting what the central government could do to the individual.

The 1^st Amendment states: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

The 10^th Amendment states: “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

In 1802, a mere 11 years after the Bill of Rights were adopted, Thomas Jefferson wrote this in a letter to the Danbury Baptists, a group concerned with the dominance of the Congregationalist Church in Connecticut:

Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should "make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof," thus building a wall of separation between Church & State. Adhering to this expression of the supreme will of the nation in behalf of the rights of conscience, I shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights, convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties.

As indicated before, and nonetheless, some states established official religions and gave other denominations privileges and rights others were denied. They argued that the 1^st Amendment applied only to the federal government. Applying this concept to the extreme one state could make the Roman Catholic Church the official state religion and in another the Southern Baptist Convention, while a 3^rd state could make Buddism official. Imagine the chaos! (Think, in modern terms, of Sunni vs Shia Muslim denominations.)  In 1947, SCOTUS issued an opinion interpreting the application of the 1^st Amendment to the states.

Justice Hugo Black wrote for the majority (of, again, a divided court – not a novel concept) in Everson v Board of Education:

"The 'establishment of religion' clause of the First Amendment means at least this: Neither a state nor the Federal Government can set up a church. Neither can pass laws which aid one religion, aid all religions or prefer one religion over another. Neither can force nor influence a person to go to or to remain away from church against his will or force him to profess a belief or disbelief in any religion. No person can be punished for entertaining or professing religious beliefs or disbeliefs, for church attendance or non-attendance. No tax in any amount, large or small, can be levied to support any religious activities or institutions, whatever they may be called, or whatever form they may adopt to teach or practice religion. Neither a state nor the Federal Government can, openly or secretly, participate in the affairs of any religious organizations or groups and vice versa. In the words of Jefferson, the clause against establishment of religion by law was intended to erect 'a wall of separation between Church and State.'" 330 U.S. 1, 15-16.

The 14^th Amendment, adopted in 1868 as this country was recovering from and adjusting to life following the Civil War, states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

So, the rule of law teaches us this:

1.      Kentucky cannot pass a law to prefer one religion over another or one set of religious beliefs over another.

2.     One man-One woman marriage is a concept based on some Judeo-Christian beliefs.

3.     Kentucky law that permits opposite sex couples to obtain an official recognition of their marriage – a marriage license - yet denies that same privilege to same sex couples is law that prefers one particular religious belief.

4.     Kentucky law that permits opposite sex marriage licenses and denies same sex licenses denies to same sex couples living in the jurisdiction of Kentucky equal protection of the law, violating the 14^th Amendment.

5.     Kentucky Law that refuses to recognize same sex marriages performed in a state where it was legal (such as NY) and refuses to give those couples the same rights and privileges KY law affords opposite sex couples with a marriage license violates Article 4, Section 1 of the US Constitution by refusing to give full faith and credit to the law of the other state, and Section 2 by denying KY citizens the privileges and immunities of other states.

6.      The 10^th Amendment reserving powers to the states not delegated by the Constitution does not apply because the Constitution delegated the power to prohibit state religious preference to the US, and the power to enforce equal protection of the law to the US.

Therefore, I was not surprised by the SCOTUS decision in Obergefell v Hodges, et al. Our Constitution was written for people having fundamentally different beliefs on topics of importance to them. While our Constitution does not adopt one theory of marriage, it does give all people the right to equal protection of the law, and denying one group a license afforded to another group does just that – it denies equal protection.

Had I been a member of SCOTUS, I would have voted with the majority.

That is my opinion, for what it is worth.

 

" . . with fava beans and a nice chianti."

 “. . . . . with fava beans and a nice chianti.”

Those memorable words were spoken by Hannibal Lecter in the classic movie Silence of the Lambs. They came to mind on both legs of my 1^st airplane trip in a decade, to and from San Francisco for meetings of the Southern Conference of Bar Presidents, the National Conference of Bar Presidents and the ABA Commission on Disability Rights.

I was more than a little anxious about flying to the West Coast. I prefer to drive where I go for a lot of reasons, some of which include having reliable transportation at the destination site, taking apparatus with me to use in hotel rooms to make my life a little more manageable, and enjoying seeing the countryside. Driving to San Francisco would have been a budget breaker for both me and the KBA. So, I decided to break out of my mold and book a plane flight. I did a great deal of internet research. I spoke with people that I know and trust who fly on a regular basis. All my sources assured me that Delta does a good job in accommodating passengers with special needs. I can assure you from this experience that ‘good job’ looks different depending on your perspective.

As promised, I was able to drive my four wheel Pride Mobility scooter literally to the doors of the airplanes. From there, the able baggage teams put my scooter into free wheel mode, rolled it outside the boarding ramps and took it to the baggage compartments underneath the airplanes. I stood up from the scooter, turned around and sat on a contraption the airline calls an ‘aisle chair.’ This is where our favorite cannibal comes into play. I was strapped head to toe on to this contraption. The seat is about a foot wide and feels like a metal bleacher. The foot rests are so close to the seat that my legs had to be tucked under them. The back is straight as a board. I was told to cross my arms across my chest. If I had the awesome mask, I would’ve looked like Hannibal when he was restrained. It might have been as uncomfortable as I have been in a long time.

But wait… There’s more! The attendant then had to lean me back and roll me across the threshold of the airplane (rattle, rattle, thump, thump), make a 90° turn and take me down the aisle of the airplane to my seat. Fortunately, the seat was close. Nonetheless, the way airplanes are configured these days left barely enough room for my shoulders to pass down the aisle, and my knees and elbows routinely banged the seats I passed. On two or three occasions the contraption tilted to the left or right and it felt like I was headed to the ground with no way to protect myself. They managed to keep me upright but it was spooky. When I got to my seat on the first leg of the trip, I was unstrapped and had to scoot from the aisle chair to my designated seat. There was nothing available to use my arms with to stand up or adjust so my clothes were twisted from the strapping and scooting, and I was basically stuck in one position for the duration of the four hour flight. Fortunately, the personnel at CVG were professional, courteous, and did the best job they could do. I am sure that having been a Delta hub gave the local personnel a lot of practice.

When I got to San Francisco, they brought another version of the contraption back to my seat after everyone had left the plane. (FOLO - first on last off!) Since there was nothing for me to use to stand up, I had to scoot from the completely uncomfortable airplane seat uphill onto Hannibal’s chair, endure being strapped up again, and rolled out to the area right outside the airplane door. There, they unstrapped me and almost allowed the chair to tip over. I caught myself by putting one hand on the ramp wall and the other hand on my scooter, which had suddenly arrived from underneath. There was nothing available for me to use to stand up so I had to rely on the available personnel to pick me up and put me on the scooter. All three of the people were under 5’10” and less than, I estimate, 175 pounds. No one could get my carcass high enough so that my rear would sit squarely on my scooter seat. The best they could do was to drag me from the unstable chair (that was falling over as they moved me because no one held the chair) and get one cheek on the scooter. From there another short person put his hands under my shoulders from the rear and tried to pull me further on to the seat. I wound up having to do it myself which took about 15 minutes. I could have directed the personnel on a couple of things that would’ve made life a lot easier but only one of them spoke English, and that English was broken. The flight attendants looked thoroughly embarrassed that this was the best SFO could offer. The pilot, watching the scene, shook his head and turned away.

For the trip back home I was privileged to fly first-class on the redeye. The entire process was to be repeated, at least in theory. FOLO was in play again so I was the first person down the ramp. This time, the people sent to assist me were shorter and thinner than those who participated upon my arrival. Since it was 10:30 at night Pacific time, I guess the ‘first team’ had gone home for the day. I tried to tell the fellow to move the aisle chair away from my scooter while I stood up and turned around, but the language barrier was even more impossible this time. He finally put the chair right next to my seat and motioned to me to scoot from one to the other. I remembered how this it worked the last time but could not educate him. So, I followed his instructions and scooted from my scooter chair to the aisle chair, which promptly tipped over with me on it, only to be saved by the wall of the ramp that the scooter and I fell into. The fellow looked surprised and did his best to set the back up straight. I only had one cheek on the contraption and could not explain this to his satisfaction. He strapped me into the chair – or at least he tried to. While I was setting on this chair leaning to the left, I realized that he didn’t know how to buckle the belts. He had to call for assistance. I sat there for five minutes while the entire set of passengers stood on the ramp behind me, waiting to get on their airplane, so Larry, Darrell and his other brother Darryl could figure out how the straps and belts worked. Finally, they got me onto the airplane (with me holding myself up right by my arms pushing on galley walls and seats.) This time we turned left into the first-class section, going down the aisle face first. When we got to my seat (first row – at the bulkhead) they suddenly realized that the first-class armrests do not raise and that I was going to have to be picked up over the armrest to get into the seat. Beautiful. The CVG-based flight attendants were great, offered reasonable suggestions and were helpful but the guys there to help me were in a full sweat and thoroughly confused. After another 10 minutes or so of really untrained and unprofessional effort on their part, I convinced them how to raise me high enough to get over the armrest. They did it, and once I got my legs straightened underneath me I was able to assume a comfortable position in the slightly better and wider first class seat. By then, I was completely worn out and in a sweat myself, having been at the mercy of incompetence for about 20 minutes at that point.

The flight back from the coast had the benefit of the jet stream and took a little over three hours. When we arrived home the caring flight attendant came up to me and said “don’t worry, Tom, we have the posse coming.” About the time that all of the other passengers were in the baggage area retrieving their belongings, the local personnel arrived and very efficiently moved me from my seat to the aisle chair, strapped me up again and moved me the 10 yards or so to my waiting scooter. Again, upon strapping me, I was very efficiently and quickly moved to my mobility machine and was soon on my way. I was completely relieved that my brief periods of restraint were behind me. I will never watch Silence of the Lambs the same way again.

Because I’m a glass half-full kind of fellow, I did get to and from San Francisco, I attended some excellent meetings, picked up some great ideas and learned a lot, ate some great food and visited with some great friends, visited fisherman’s wharf and took a boat ride around Alcatraz, and attended the Giants – Orioles game at their beautiful new ballpark. I got to see my nephew Josh and his cute, active and funny daughter Aiden, got to catch up with an old friend and had a couple Anchor Steam libations.  I was a speaker in a program on bar outreach to disadvantaged members that went over very well, I am told. I will attempt to forget the fact that I had to wait approximately 8 hours over five days for handicap accessible taxis to arrive to take me places. I changed flights and came home a day early because of that. I also learned how to anticipate this stuff happening and make plans so that it doesn’t happen again.

I admit to being embarrassed that I held up the boarding twice, inconveniencing the other passengers and worrying the flight crews. Some people in my situation might react with anger and harsh language. Having prepared myself for the worst (while hoping for the best) I simply tried to smile, remain calm and press on toward the goal no matter what the obstacles.

I knew there was a reason why I drive to most places. I just thought I’d share this experience so others, perhaps, can see the world from my perspective and plan appropriately for trips with their loved ones who may need assistance. It will be a long time before I fly again.

President of the Kentucky Bar Association - Wow!

I have this service ethic that drives me to do things that help others. It seems to be part of me and I cannot shake it. So, once again, it seems that I am Hoo’s in charge of something.

On Thursday, June 20, I took the oath of office as President of the Kentucky Bar Association for 2013-2014. It is a position I sought. I wasn’t sure I would get there, but somehow I did. I sought the position because I think I can make a positive difference in the professional lives of my brothers and sisters at the Kentucky Bar. I have my chance.

I have been told that I am pretty good at things that do not pay. Yes, it is volunteer work for the KY Court of Justice. I am beginning year 9 on the KBA Board of Governors – 6 as a Governor, 1 as Vice President and 1 as President-Elect. I have two to go, as the Immediate Past President has duties, too. As President I will preside at the 7 regular board meetings and executive committee meetings and at any special meeting, will attend all of the KY Law Update sessions around the Commonwealth, and will be the ‘face’ of the profession for a while. I will set the agenda for the year, appoint committee chairs and members, and arrange for the 2014 annual convention to be held in Covington next June. The duties seem endless, but the quality of the KBA staff makes it all manageable. The KBA staff is simply awesome and make allthe volunteers look good.

Many have asked ‘what is the KBA and what does it do?’ Fair questions. Even some attorneys are not sure.  Kentucky’s Constitution makes the Court of Justice the Commonwealth’s 3^rd branch of government, co-equal with the executive and legislative branches, and imposes the duty of running this branch on the Supreme Court (SCOKY). A portion of these duties have been assigned to the Court’s agency, known as the KBA. SCOKY has issued Rules that establish the KBA and regulate the practice of law. Rule 3.025 states:

The mission and purpose of the association is to maintain a proper discipline of the

members of the bar in accordance with these rules and with the principles of the legal profession

as a public calling, to initiate and supervise, with the approval of the court, appropriate means to

insure a continuing high standard of professional competence on the part of the members of the

bar, and to bear a substantial and continuing responsibility for promoting the efficiency and

improvement of the judicial system.

Everything the KBA does falls under this Rule. Subsequent Rules flesh out details of the mission. The first duty the rule mentions is discipline. The KBA is like an umbrella under which the entire system of disciplinary prosecution falls. One arm of the KBA is the Office of Bar Counsel – the prosecutor. Another arm is the Inquiry Commission -  the grand jury. A third arm is the group of hearing officers – the trial judges. The fourth arm is the Board of Governors – the appellate court. The ultimate decision-maker is the Court itself, as only SCOKY has the authority to issue discipline. By the time an attorney’s case gets to the Court for resolution, there have been several layers of filters and due process hearings.     

The Board of Governors consists of 2 elected representatives of the 7 SCOKY districts. (14) The 4 officers (VP, Pres.Elect, President, Immediate Past Pres.) and the 4 lay members appointed by the Court for discipline cases make the total 22, but since the Past President handles only consensual discipline (‘plea bargains’) 21 people hear appeals from hearing officer decisions and default cases.  Since the Board has this judicial function, its members are not made aware of any discipline case before it is formally presented to the Board. This is why Board members cannot answer constituent questions about individual cases. The President, therefore, becomes the presiding judge in appeals and defaults that come before the board.

The professional competence aspect of the mission is carried out by the Continuing Legal Education Commission, another arm of the KBA. The annual convention, the regional seminars, the on-line offerings are all efforts to carry out the mission. The Ethics Committee works on and issues advisory opinions on ethics issues of general importance and its Hotline advises individual attorneys on prospective actions. The KY Lawyers Assistance Program (KYLAP) provides completely confidential help to attorneys facing problems with drugs, alcohol and mental illness. The Board provides free computerized legal research for its members. The Board has administrative responsibilities to approve department heads, and sets the budgets of all aspects of KBA operations. The Executive Director, the Chief Bar Counsel and all other managers serve at the pleasure of the Board.

The efficiency and improvement aspects of the KBA mission are illustrated by the KBA effort to address inadequate court funding. The KY Bar Foundation and the IOLTA (interest on lawyers trust accounts) commission raise money to give to justice-related organizations such as legal aid and law schools. The KBA publishes a magazine, issues newsletters, and conducts elections for judicial nominating committees. The KBA has committees on diversity in the profession, and on domestic violence and children, and legislation. Leadership and SCOKY work together on issues of immediate concern to the Court and justice system.

The President of the Kentucky Bar Association has substantial and ongoing responsibility for all this and more for a year. It is a big job. I believe the President also has the responsibility of using the ‘bully pulpit’ to set the tone, set the agenda and influence the conversation among members of the Kentucky Bar. What follows, delivered at this year’s Convention in Louisville, was my first attempt.

"Mr. Chief Justice, members of the Supreme Court, members of the Kentucky Court of Justice, Judge Heyburn, Judge Russell and members of the Federal judiciary, my brothers and sisters of the Kentucky Bar, friends and family: 
 

I am proud to be a Kentucky Attorney and proud to be an officer of our Court of Justice. Collectively, Kentucky attorneys are the most outstanding group of people I have encountered. You routinely stand up to be counted. You take on difficult or unpopular causes with professionalism. You seek help when needed, and always offer assistance to those who seek it. You are leaders in your communities, in your churches and civic organizations and you teach your children well. Our Commonwealth depends on us to be as good as we can be, and, day after day, Kentucky attorneys rise to the occasion. Kentucky attorneys serve.  I am blessed to be among you.

So, tonight, let us celebrate being Kentucky attorneys! Let’s take a minute to feel good about who we are, what we do, and the service we provide. Let’s acknowledge and give thanks for our many blessings.

It is an honor and privilege to be here with you tonight, and I am humbled by the opportunity to serve as your President for the next year. I know that I have been blessed. In taking the seat at the head of the table, I am standing on the shoulders of so many great people who set examples for me, who offered me guidance and assistance, and who became lasting friends and revered colleagues in the process. Some are here – some are not – but I remember and thank them all. I extend hearty thanks and congratulations to Doug Myers and Maggie Keene, who have replaced the pavement on the road before me and removed the potholes. Kudos to Bruce Davis and Buzz English for solid, professional leadership.  Great men such as Bob Hobson, Bob Turley, Dick Roberts and Jack Ballantine who schooled me as a rookie on the KBA Ethics committee. Great women such as Marcia Ridings, Beverly Storm, Jane Dyche and my classmate at the UK College of Law, Judge Jennifer Coffman – all fearless trailblazers for women in this profession. Joe Savage and the late Bill Moore, teaching litigation skills at UK, and my professors like Bob Lawson and Bill Fortune who showed us all what real lawyers were like. Governors such as Charlie Moore, Mike O’Connell, John Rosenberg, Bo Fugazzi, Margo Grubbs, Will Wilhoit and Jim Harris (who will always tell you “Roll Tide!”) who all provided lessons in professionalism, humility, humor, common sense and friendship. And to our President-Elect, Big Bill Johnson, who I am honored to work with, we all are at your beck and call when needed.

Many of you know that it is likely be an imposter speaking to you now if the University of Virginia was not mentioned. I am a son of Mr. Jefferson’s University, try to be one of its Honor Men, and am a loyal Wahoo. I bleed orange and blue. Not sure how I got there, know I could not get in these days. But, I received another blessing in 1970. Believe it or not, the School of Engineering and Applied Science was an awesome training ground for this attorney, as competence (Rule 1.1), diligence (Rule 1.3) and communication (Rule 1.4) were demanded in my exacting civil engineering discipline. Plus, my late fluid mechanics and engineering economics Professor, Charles Echols, also happened to be an attorney licensed in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and really opened my eyes to many possibilities.

Life is an educational journey and I have been fortunate to have so many great schools and teachers. I thank them all. The greatest teachers in my life have been my parents, my sister, my 2 children and, now, my 3 grandchildren.

I Believe that down deep, in our heart of hearts, Kentucky lawyers want to help people, to assist them in difficult times, and to make our communities a little better. To do this, we train, study, attend CLE sessions, watch and listen. The result is a bar that does its best to provide excellent legal services for fair and reasonable compensation.  The KBA exists to assist all of us in this endeavor and to fulfill its mission as set forth by SCOKY. To maintain a proper discipline among members of the bar in accordance with the Supreme Court Rules and the principles of the legal profession. To initiate and supervise appropriate means to ensure a continuing high standard of professional competence. To bear a substantial and continuing responsibility for promoting the efficiency and improvement of the judicial system.

I think your bar association is in good shape. The BOG, at least during my 8 years, has been a hard-working bunch of talented volunteers and has faced and addressed several crises. I told Steve Smith upon replacing me on the Board that we rarely meet on Saturdays – wrong! We spend money miserly, are doing more with less, embrace and implement technology as quickly as possible. We are trying to provide quality services within our means. Everyone knows that certain costs are out of our control – retirement, health care, utility charges – but all discretionary costs are under constant scrutiny. Our by-laws and internal policies have been reviewed, revised and brought into today’s world. Any appearances of impropriety – imaginary or real – between OBC and BOG have been addressed and resolved. We have sought and obtained significant changes to the Rules of the Supreme Court which have modernized our discipline system and addressed the rapid changes we face. The Board’s Rules Committee has been real busy in the past few years. We volunteer for duty and work hard.

The KBA staff – your KBA staff, is beyond compare. Period. (applause)

Here is more reason to celebrate tonight - 78/17000=  0.5% with active discipline charges. 1% serving disciplinary suspensions. Only 4 discipline trials conducted in last 12 months. We do the right things and follow the rules.

There are many challenges that await your KBA. Budgetary pressures come from all sides. A few lawyers do not take their licenses seriously enough to defend themselves - Curious - 22 default cases brought to BOG for consideration in the last 12 months. 21 attorneys have been disbarred in the last 2 years – so there are still a few folks who make real bad decisions. The suicide problem rears its ugly head in every corner of our Commonwealth and must be addressed.

We are much more than wage earners, than legal technicians, than paper pushers. We are the stewards of our profession, our justice system, and in many ways, stewards of the quality of life in our communities. We are our home town’s sentinels, our brother and sister’s keepers and have a duty to help, even if just to observe and report. We can save lives and prevent bad decisions if we just do the right thing. So – if you see something, say something.

In his remarks upon assuming this very office, my good friend Buzz English coined a few phrases that struck a chord with me. With his permission, I will again stand on his shoulders:

Somewhere, tonight, a Kentucky lawyer will take a call from someone with a Family or personal crisis, and take some of the burden as her own. We are compassionate.

Somewhere, tonight, a Kentucky attorney will be making a decision to seek public office – as city council member, county commissioner, Mayor, Judge-Executive, member of the General assembly, Judge of the Court of Justice, or another position of service and public trust. We are committed.

Somewhere, tonight, a Kentucky attorney will take an ‘after-hours’ phone call from a jail from a person who was just arrested and needs help. Another Kentucky attorney, serving as a Commonwealth’s Attorney, will take a late night call from a police officer seeking guidance in a tragic circumstance. We are duty-bound.

Somewhere, tonight, a Kentucky lawyer, serving as a judge, will be called upon to review a warrant request and will insure that the Constitutional requirements are satisfied. We are professional.

Somewhere, tonight, a Kentucky attorney will consider whether or not to lend her talents in service to a community organization such as a church, a Lions Club, a site-based council, a soup kitchen. Our communities matter to us.

Somewhere, tonight, a Kentucky lawyer, serving as an adjunct professor at Chase, Brandeis or UK, is deep in preparations for the class that will be taught next semester to try to help the next generation become Kentucky attorneys and, like me, to learn so much from the exceedingly bright students. We care about the future of our profession.

Somewhere, tonight, a Kentucky attorney will be deep in preparations for a trial, a hearing, an arbitration, a mediation, in a sincere and professional effort to obtain the best possible result for the client, ignoring more pleasurable activities. We are diligent and thorough.

Somewhere, tonight, an abused, dependent or neglected child in our Commonwealth will turn to our Court of Justice and Kentucky lawyers for protection and relief. We serve.

Somewhere, tonight, an attorney is burning the midnight oil crafting an agreement that will assist 2 young, unmarried people co-parent their child. It is a legal aid case where this volunteer lawyer is providing pro bono service. We are competent.

The list goes on forever, and the ‘Party never ends.’ The Kentucky lawyer will answer the call, do the right thing, and make our Commonwealth a little better day by day, case by case.

 Service is our ethic, professionalism is our calling, and honor is our duty.

One last thing – U of L has had a unprecedented athletic year – Sugar Bowl champs, National Champs, National runners-up, and now the College World Series. We have experienced  2 years of U of L Brandeis alums at the helm of this organization– its time to share the wealth, don’t you think? GO BIG BLUE!

Thank you for your support and your kind consideration.

 

Tis the season to examine your perspective,

We are taught that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey and hailed as the Messiah, the king, the great hope. Five days later he was executed. The public perception of him changed dramatically during that short period of time. How he was viewed depended on the perspective of the viewer.  The mental impressions of the viewer are a product of location, position, and current events.

There was a period in time during the last 60 years or so that I experienced life from a perspective different than I do now. There was a period of time when I saw things through eyes about 6 feet off the ground and I listened with ears positioned at about this same height. I experienced a portion of my life while on the move. It didn’t take very long to get from here to there and I was able to make the decision and move at the drop of a hat. Opinions were formed, positions were developed and impressions were obtained on those bases.

Experience has shown that things change, even in ways that you never would have expected. Life turns on a dime. My friend and brother Mike Wells writes about things that he learned on the way to the courthouse in North Carolina. I have learned many things along a similar path and along treks to the city building, to my office, to my home and to various stadia about the country.

Experience has also taught me that a change in perspective can be a blessing as well as a curse. How you see something, how you look at something, the impression you gain from the experience depends in large part on your point of view, your perspective. This note will discuss the change in my perspective on things that affect my everyday life. I hope that it will provide some insight on how the reader sees things in his/her own situation.

In the mid-1980s and out of the blue I developed some sort of neurological condition that caused some scarring in a small portion of my brain. I’ve seen it on at least 2 MRI scans. One doctor called multiple sclerosis. Another doctor called it aspartame poisoning. Each saw the situation from a different perspective and I fault neither but believe the latter. The end result was a disruption in the movement of the right side of my body in the front from the rib cage down to the toes. The condition that caused the scarring disappeared and the brain scarring is the same as it was in the late 80s. Nonetheless, as I aged the ability to use the affected parts worsened for a number of reasons which I will not go into here. About 10 years ago my mother purchased an electric scooter for me to use in trying to get on with the activities of my daily life including, but not limited to, moving from one courthouse to another, one conference room to another, one office to another, one meeting to another and, importantly, going and coming from athletic venues. At this point, some 26 years after the original diagnosis, I use a power chair to get around inside my home and office, and the scooter to get around outside. My perspective definitely changed!

 

A few years before I started using the scooter I had a difficult time getting into and out of, and using several public facilities because my mobility was limited. When I began using the scooter, some places became impossible. For instance, I could not get into the courtroom in Gallatin County because it was on the second floor with a set of narrow steps and no elevator. I had to enter the Campbell County Courthouse through the basement, navigate a maze, and find the elevator. The beautiful Boone County courthouse was also inaccessible and there was no elevator. That was especially distressing because I had tried many cases in that classic, old courtroom and loved going to the monthly motion dockets and seeing old friends. When the Kenton Courts were in the Kenton County building, I was able to get around okay. Kenton eventually moved into the new Judicial Center. Despite an actual warning and alert from me befoe the facility was built, the contractors and architects put a set of 7 or 8 steps to get into the front door, failed to install a ramp, and instead put in a wheelchair lift that my scooter barely fit into. That situation was so impossible that shortly after the facility was opened somebody had to spend almost $1 million to put in an elevator to lift me and others similarly challenged a mere 6 feet. That is ridiculous, but it is what I dealt with.

 

The next set of examples illustrate how perspective can affect outcome. I defended a young man on a misdemeanor charge in Gallatin County but since the courtroom was inaccessible, the judge and prosecutor were kind enough to accommodate me by grabbing the tape recorder and coming downstairs into an unfinished, dirty, cobweb filled room near the front door and we tried the case while they sat on window sills. I was trying a breach of contract case in the Grant County courthouse when the elevator went out of order the night before day 2 of trial and the judge and staff packed up and moved the jury and all the necessary apparatus to the Grant County library a couple of miles away to finish the case. I represented a man in a collection case in Boone County and the trial judge moved the trial to the adjacent County Administration building because we could not use the courtroom. I represented a lady in a child support mediation in Campbell County. We were directed to the mediator’s office a few blocks away from the courthouse and upon arrival realized that the only way in had three steps. It was 95° outside but I called the mediator inside and asked him to come out to my van with both parties to mediate the case in my vehicle (with the air conditioner running!) All of the people involved in these situations were helpful, understanding, and at times a bit embarrassed with their facility. I can’t help but wonder, however, if the accommodation made for me had some impact, however small, on the outcome of the matter. You never know what small things will affect a juror, a judge, or witness. The reason courtrooms are the way they are is to instill a sense of decorum and competence to the process.

In each of these instances, I was doing my professional best to complete the assigned tasks competently, without raising a stink, and in what I perceived to be the best interests of my client and the Court of Justice. I refused to let situational impediments affect my performance. My task was to get the job done, no matter what obstacles were in the way and that single-minded purpose affected how I saw the situation. (That is my built in offensive lineman mentality – get the job done any way you can within the rules and keep quiet.) Similarly, each of these instances was fraught with the possibility that some bias or prejudice could come into play in affecting me, my client and the outcome. For instance, the opponent in each instance may have believed that I was getting some kind of special treatment that I didn’t deserve; a juror could have believed that I had no business disrupting the normal course of proceedings that the juror had become used to during his term of jury service; a judge may have been put out by the fact that something was being done outside of the judge’s comfort zone. It depends on the perspective with which each participant viewed the situation.

Other examples of perspective arise from my passion for watching live athletic events. Having been a player, coach, and an official at various levels I can be classified as a former jock. My condition prohibits me from participating these days so I am now a spectator. Modern venues, built after the ADA was enacted, by and large have great seats for those in wheelchairs, on scooters, and with mobility issues. The older facilities, however, leave a lot to be desired and what average Joe thinks about the situation depends upon his perspective.

One of my alma maters is the University of Kentucky. I was in law school at UK when Rupp Arena opened and have spent many hours watching the Wildcats, the Sweet 16 and other events in that venue. When the mobility left, so did my ability to attend most events there. There are handicapped viewing areas at the top of the lower section in each end zone and one small section at the top of the lower arena behind the home team bench. These viewing areas were retro-fitted into the arena. When I called to get tickets to UK games the ticket manager told me none were available because with the baby boomers aging, there were about 5000 people on a waiting list for a handful of tickets. Average Joe can get tickets to most any game either from the box office or from scalpers. I can’t. My home state university has essentially excluded me from attending basketball games.

I called the ticket office at the University of Cincinnati a few years ago after the school’s President fired the very popular and successful basketball coach because no one was going to the games and I thought I might get in. When I asked for tickets to the best games on the schedule, they were sold to me without hesitation. Then, I dropped the big question. I have to use a scooter. There are no handicap seats in 5/3 Arena the as I have been there before the mobility issue developed. Where do I sit? The nice lady said ‘don’t worry, we’ll take care of you,’ and gave me instructions. I buy the cheapest ticket and am permitted to sit on the floor about 6 feet behind the basket and watch Big East basketball up close and personal. I enjoy watching the game down there and seeing all the people I have read about, the columnists and other media types, the broadcasters, etc. I have developed some very good friends over the years I’ve been attending. Several people have conditions similar to mine and we have become compatriots.

Seats on the floor at the end of the court might seem exceptional but, again, it depends on your perspective. If you want to actually watch the game, there are large portions of the court that you cannot see. Cheerleaders get in the way. The big screen on the scoreboard helps but if I want to watch the game on TV I will stay home. I have to get there no later than an hour before game time in order to get a spot on the floor where I can actually see most of the court. That turns a 2 ½ hour event into a four hour event. The people at UC could not be nicer and I enjoy my time there. I better enjoy the experience as I can see less than half of the game. Like I said, it depends on your perspective.

My previously robust social life has dried up for several reasons. One of these reasons is that I typically cannot go into anybody’s house for any reason without preparation and accommodation. Nothing can be spontaneous. Unless the house was constructed with a handicapped person in mind, the house is typically completely inaccessible to someone in a wheelchair or on a scooter. There are steps everywhere. First floor, guest bathrooms are teeny. Doors are narrow. This basic inaccessibility limits my socialization to public facilities (and not all public facilities!) and my house. New restaurants are usually fine. Neat restaurants in restored buildings are usually nonstarters for me. I have attempted patronizing well-known establishments in Covington, Cincinnati, Lexington, Louisville and a few other cities but was unable to get in the door. That is extremely frustrating. From my perspective if the establishment does not want my business enough to make the facility acceptable, I will take my business elsewhere. In this economy, I cannot imagine a business turning away paying customers, but several do. From their perspective, the handicapped must be a pain they are not willing to address. If the facility fits into exceptions in the accessibility laws, the businesses do not have to make their facilities accessible. Many fit into the exceptions. Therefore, many people are excluded from some of the trendier, exciting new establishments.

I have changed my mind many times after examining my opinion and the perspective from which it was developed. Imagine Holy Week from Jesus’ perspective. Imagine it, again, from Peter’s. Compare their perceptions to ours. It makes a difference.    

Reading - the 'Great Escape'

The politial campaiugns of 2012 were very trying for me The same commercials, over and over, were maddening. One way I maintained some sense of sanity was consuming literature.

Overall, I think 2012 has been a good year for me. As it comes to an end, it has been interesting to think about the things that have happened, the experiences that I’ve had, the people I have met and my personal accomplishments. I thought it might be interesting to take an inventory of the books that I consumed in 2012 for pleasure. I have this self-image that I don’t read enough, but upon reflection I was surprised by my accomplishment

As busy as I am, I do not have a lot of time to sit and read. I do, however, spend a considerable amount of time in my Toyota Sienna and I like to listen to audio books. I estimate that about 60% of my book consumption was listening. Since I love to listen to a good story, it is a very relaxing and enjoyable pastime.

The Inner Circle by Brandon Meltzer was the second book I have read by this author. (The 1t was The Book of Fate) It is an interesting story that centers around a book stored for decades underneath a chair in a particular room of the National Archives in Washington DC that is visited from time to time by sitting US Presidents. I have been to many of the places talked about in the book and have a good picture in my mind’s eye as the story unfolds.

Unbroken by Laura Hildebrandt is an epic story of the greatest generation and one family’s World War II Odyssey.

Alex Cross’ Trial by James Patterson told the story of the racial strife in the deep South in the middle of the last century and provides an interesting view of how far we have come and how far we have yet to go.

I read two books from one of my favorite authors, David Baldacci, a fellow Virginia alum. Hells Corner speaks of a particular area in a park across the street from the White House where a former CIA agent, John Carr, now calling himself Oliver Stone hangs out. There is an apparent attempted assassination of the British Prime Minister and Stone enlists assistance of his Camel Club Associates to figure things out. This was at least a third of his Camel Club series of books that I have read and I enjoy them all. Zero Day  is a story involving John Puller, a decorated combat veteran and military investigator called into rural West Virginia to examine what appears to be a simple murder of a member of the military and his family but explodes into a serious conspiracy.

Retired Justice Donald Wintersheimer of the Kentucky Supreme Court authored his professional memoirs of his time on the court called Secrets of the Supreme Court of Kentucky. The Justice, a longtime friend, discusses many of the cases decided during his tenure on the court and how the court worked at that time.

Continuing with the legal theme, I read Stan Billingsley’s Alice v Wonderland, a satire of Kentucky’s system of imposing discipline on KY attorneys, a subject with which I am intimately familiar. It may have been in 2011.

The Litigators was a John Grisham story involving small firm urban attorneys. In the characteristic Grisham fashion, the story has several characters, and a main character who winds up slaying dragons. I usually enjoy Grisham books and I enjoyed this one because he speaks a lot about what I do and the people I work with in stereotype.

Killing Lincoln, by Bill O’Reilly, is a work of historical fiction that deals with John Wilkes Booth and others involved in the conspiracy to assassinate the great president. Again, most of the scenes of the book were areas of the country where I have spent a great deal of time and it was fun being able to put the scenes in context.

1776 is a book by David McCullough that deals with that fateful year of American history. It focuses mostly on the military campaigns of George Washington and British General George Howe, the reactions to the American rebellion by King George III and Parliament, and the support of the American troops, or lack thereof, by the colonial Congress.

Fall of Giants by Ken Follet was another epic story chronicling the lives of American, British, German and Russian families leading up to and through World War I and the Russian Revolution. Not knowing as much about that era as I should, I found this to be a great read and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am looking forward to the sequel.

Manifest Destiny was written by my good friend Rick Robinson and tells the tale of a KY Congressman involved in international politics and intrigue. Attaboy, Rick! You write good stuff!

Frances Mayes’ Under the Tuscan Sun was a gift from Hillary that I am nearly finished with. I love the descriptions of Tuscany, the people and the food of that Italian region.

Finally,The Frontiersman by Alan Eckert is a book that I have had on my shelf for decades. This is the second time that I consumed this book, but this time I listened to it and I’m glad that I did. The book is basically the life and times of Simon Kenton and talks a lot about Northern Kentucky, the settlement of the Ohio River basin from Pittsburgh to Louisville and the Indian tribes and personalities here at this time, including Tecumseh. I’m glad I listened because the Indian words were pronounced so well by the reader and I remember having a hard time with these words when I read the book first time. I believe that everybody who lives in this area and has any curiosity about how this area came to be what it is should study this book. It is detailed, exquisitely documented, and meticulous but still tells great stories.

Something tells me that perhaps I read or listened to a few more books this year but I cannot remember for sure. For instance, I have a memory of Dan Brown’s Lost Symbol. I do not know if I read it this year, if I started it, if I completed it or if it was a couple of those. I will have to look at it again. Sometimes I’ll start a book and get several chapters into it before realizing that I already read it.

I regularly consult and refer to my volumes of Prof. Dumas Malone’s series on Thomas Jefferson. I guess I have been through each of those 6 volumes 3 or 4 times.

Like many people, I think, I have started not but completed several books and intended on completing my read in the next few months. My friend Don McNay sent me a copy of his book Wealth without Wall Street. Another friend, Kevin Murphy, wrote a book about his experiences with cancer in his family titled Surviving Cancer after surviving cancer.

Finally, my monthly and bi-monthly reading includes the ABA Journal, Trial published by the American Association for Justice, the Advocate published by the Kentucky Justice Association, Lex Loci published by the Northern Kentucky Bar Association, the Bench and Bar published by the Kentucky Bar Association and the CBA News published by the Cincinnati Bar Association.

2013 goals include completing the books already started, Benjamin Franklin by Walter Isaacson, the Racketeer by Grisham, Ken Follet’s sequel titled Winter of the World and whatever Baldacci, Meltzer and Patterson books strike my fancy. I guess I like to read!

How about you? I have a lot of books, tapes and CD’s you can borrow. The great escape – reading!

The view from my scooter - Obama v Romney

From all reports Kentucky will vote overwhelmingly for Mitt Romney and so it doesn’t matter much who I will vote for. I enjoy the issue debate but not the advertisements and hatchet jobs.  Living in Northern Kentucky, with the Cincinnati Media, I have been receiving phone calls, watching TV spots and listening to radio advertisements all year. Facebook is full of opinions. People ask me about it. I’m sick of it.  I wish I could vote tomorrow and get it over with.  I have no valid excuse to obtain an absentee ballot so I will wait for another month and exercise my constitutional duty.

Here is my take.  The President came into office four years ago on the tidal wave of hope and change.  Four years later I do not observe the much in the way of change and hope depends on whether you see the glass is half empty or half full.  I see the world through optimistic eyes and always have the hope that things will get better.  Therefore, I’m not a very good judge on the hope meter.  On the change meter, however, the indicator has not moved much.

Despite having a democratic majority in the senate, where Federal Judge appointments are confirmed, the President has not filled open seats on the Courts of Appeal and the United States District Courts.  The size of the Federal government has grown to the point of being obnoxious.  It seems that the IRS is one of our region’s, and perhaps the country’s, largest employers, and that frightens me.  Federal agencies, not Congress, still make most of the law in this country, applies it and interprets it.  That is not the system of government that the founding fathers intended, in my opinion.

Brave American soldiers are still on the ground in Afghanistan, waging war and being killed.  In my opinion, enough is enough.  The President is not bringing them home fast enough for me.  Perhaps they’re not being brought home with all due haste because there are no jobs for them here and at least, while on the Federal payroll, the soldiers have an income.  How many millions of dollars per day of our money is being spent to support these brave people?  There is a readily identifiable budget cut.

The dialogue in our capitol is as partisan as ever. The country is divided. There still is a culture of finger-pointing and name calling.

I am a big Michele Obama fan. She, however, was not elected. She leads by action and example. Her husband should follow her lead.

If this President is re-elected, the senate remains in democratic control and house in republican control, I see 4 more years of the same old same old.  That is not good enough for me.
The alternative, Mr. Romney, is not an exciting candidate from a traditional point of view.  I believe he is more of a moderate than a conservative and that is OK with me.  I view myself as a moderate republican.  Campaigns are largely about rhetoric.  I believe firmly that actions speak louder than words.  Romney has been successful in almost every endeavor he got involved with.  He was a successful republican governor in a Teddy Kennedy democratic state.  He rescued the Olympics. He had a successful business career.  Largely, his career has been quietly affective.
Romney has a track record of success.  It is easy to predict that he will be successful in future endeavors.  To the contrary, the President had almost no track record before taking office and, in my humble opinion, still doesn’t have much of a positive track record.  We gave him 4 years for hope and change. I am not confident in his ability to lead this country through its current economic woes to a prosperous future.  I am willing to give Mr. Romney the same four years the country gave the President.  If he doesn’t do any better than the President has done, I will keep looking and try somebody else.

I will vote, whether it counts or not. That’s the view from the seat of my Pride Mobility Victory 4-wheeled scooter.