Here we are ten-and-a-half months after my scooter hit-and-run accident. Yesterday, I went to court to watch the wheels of justice inexorably grind their way towards… well, justice, I hope. Actually, not much happened yesterday.

My assailant’s case went to the Grand Jury back in June and I assume they pretty much said, “yeah, the people want this guy to stand trial.”

Apparently though, Mr. Robert Dukes (the defendant) didn’t agree. He failed to show up. I however, did.

Soon after arriving, I was called over by the DA handling my case. He asked me questions about the accident and I gave him my estimate of damages. He thanked me and we went back inside.

I sat in court for about 30 minutes while the judge went over initial motions from various attorneys. He also swore in a new D.A. before announcing that he would be recessing for 30 minutes to address the jury pool for an upcoming trail.

While in recess, the DA I spoke with earlier called me over and said that I could leave if I wanted to. He said that the defendant hadn’t shown up for court, so a warrant would be issued for his arrest. He said that when Mr. Dukes was picked up, the DA’s office would basically be offering him a deal were he would serve 12 months probation, during which time, he would be required to pay me my damages. The DA indicated that he would be sending me a letter that outlined the terms once an agreement had been setup. I asked how the court would know if the damages were paid. He said that I’d need to inform the court if I hadn’t been paid by the end of the set time period. After that, we thanked each other for their time and I left.

So, now I’m in a wait-and-see period. If there are any Police officers out there reading this (Greg), it’d sure be great if you could maybe mention Mr. Robert Dukes’ upcoming warrant to some of the officers on the Alton Park beat. Any help would be appreciated.

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