Last Day of March in Book Seven: Reconstruction 2020

Good News:
One of the biggest professional worries we were facing stems from timing. According to the laws of the Nation and the State; there are specific deadlines required in any and all criminal matter. We have X amount of days between arrest and filing an indictment. We have Y amount of days between filing an indictment and initiating trial procedures. We have Z amount of days between initiating trial procedures and conclusion of the case. That kind of thing. It is important to American jurisprudence to prevent any government actor from detaining any American citizen for an undetermined amount of time. Obviously, corruption and exceptions exist; but these deadlines ARE important to maintaining a balance between “suspected of criminal activity” and “innocent until proven guilty.” THAT BEING SAID in these times, trying to maintain that balance while also keeping in mind COVID management creates difficulties. We are trying our damnedest to be ever more thoughtful as to how we use our jail space. In other words, if we can at all help it… cite and release. Jails are already a massive place for germs and disease and we don’t want to see a massive explosion in COVID because of poorly made decisions regarding detention facilities. ON THE OTHER HAND, whether a person is in detention or not- they still have legal rights to the speed and deadlines of their case. Even though the courts are closed and we’re all supposed to be not going into the office if we don’t have to (though my staff is already back to going back to the office for the most part.... which I obviously disagree with). So… what to do?
Iowa Supreme Court finally released a Guiding Memo about how to handle these deadlines. Current date for “we’re going to pretend everything is okay now” is set for April 20th. All deadlines and timing requirements are suspended and reset back to zero. The clock will resume FROM ZERO on April 20th. So… phew. That’s… good news. Complicated news. Because I don’t like the idea of (for instance) someone being arrested and being required to wait a month before action is taken on their case.... but that is also where attentive or ethical prosecutors and law enforcement can make a difference.

Bad News:
Despite the fact that many in and around the area still aren’t taking COVID seriously, I choose to. My doctor cousin in Colorado is working with patients and going without proper PPE. My nurse friend in Ohio hasn’t seen her newborn in weeks as she’s trying to limit her exposure. My surgeon friend in New York is extremely shaken by all of this, as one can imagine. I know that my own limiting actions in Iowa don’t affect them… and that isolation really only works if everyone is doing it properly and we’re not… but in these times… I honestly need to feel like I’m helping somehow. And the repeated mantra is TO PREVENT MEDICAL OVERWHELM STAY HOME. So yeah… maybe this isn’t as heroic or active as storming the Bastille… maybe this isn’t marching in Selma… but if what I’m told to do to support my loved ones is to stay home- I am going to do that as much as I can.
So, even though it isn’t really that much of a sacrifice, I’m cancelling my plans to see MBFITWW this next month. Honestly, we both probably need some time with someone else at this point. He’s already a kid mostly living in isolation and reluctantly admitting to loneliness and that was even before COVID. But I think of it this way… both he and I have shitty immune systems and are already on a number of medications, breathing assisted devices, and that shit. Even if the odds are 20% that visiting him might expose him to higher risk of illness; I’d rather not risk it.

Good News:
Due to my In Home Office Set Up, I am actually getting quite a lot done. Frankly, a Work From Home situation due to COVID is providing a lot more productivity than most of my previous Work From Home experiences. That being said… there are specifically some things that are going to require my presence in the office. So, after reviewing CDC and WHO suggestions, I am also pushing for Staggered Shifts in my office. Whether that is officially adopted or not, it is how I shall proceed. Some of why I need to go in is superficial in its way. My WFH set up involves the Surface Tablet they connected to my work PC and while the Surface is great for e-mails and document review… when I get into the complicated or involved motion practice items, the surface simply is not enough to do that well. I need the PC at the office with its multiple screens and ability to handle complicated multi-tasking. But perhaps the biggest item is communication. You see, if EVERY attorney and EVERY defendant communicated through e-mail… I’d be over the moon. For multiple reasons. If we discuss it, I may forget. If you e-mail me I’ll have a record to remind me. AND a record to provide should you claim something different was agreed to in court! But alas, e-mail is not as universal nor as standard as it should be. As my interviews in the public sector have evidenced. There are still some attorneys that, due to their age, essentially refuse to learn computers. There are still some defendants that, due to poverty or paranoia, refuse to give a government agent their e-mail. So… I still have to deal with phone messages to the office. And the requirement to return those phone calls. That, more than anything, is where the frowny face and productivity blocker jump in. While I don’t mind other attorneys or judges having my personal direct line information… I’m not as thrilled to return phone calls to Domestic Violence Victims or Criminal Defendants on my cell phone and thereby potentially expose myself to an increased number of phone calls to my private line from people I very much do not wish to hear from.

And I think that is one of the interesting things about being an “essential government service that is not allowed to shut down or reduce hours” during these times… but with all the strange caveats of “okay, but the courts are shut down” and the “okay but most government agencies in our county are shut down now.” Because… I got the official order okaying WFH. GOOD. Maybe if Iowa had taken this more seriously… and seen how it was affecting other countries and states… we wouldn’t have had 88 new cases in 24 hours this weekend. I mean… remember a week or two ago? When people were saying “Only 3 cases, not a concern” whereas I was saying that this virus spreads fast? Yeaaah. People were like, “There aren’t even 99 confirmed cases, so we don’t even have 1 per county” and yet between Saturday and Sunday we had a little short of 99 cases confirmed in 24 hours? SO.... finally got the WFH Order… and now I’m trying to make sure that I can still go into the office if/when absolutely necessary because I work in an industry that is still requiring a lot of productivity. I mean, obviously, it would be great if my outgoing message could be “Thank you for calling the Assistant County Attorney. Due to the current global pandemic, all courts are essentially closed. Iowa’s Governor anticipates a return to normalcy on April 20th. Until then, please consider all matters continued to May when the State will be happy to discuss your case with you.” But of course… timing. Even if the courts have officially allowed us to hold deadlines in abeyance, the public isn’t exactly on board with that. Especially when you consider that Juvenile Court and Magistrate Court are technically still open and active.

Bad News:
There may be something more seriously wrong with Nala… but she is intelligent enough that I’m not entirely sure that it isn’t a call for more attention. You see… I’ve discussed already how she’s been whining a lot more than usual. So I set boundaries. If I am working and she is simply sitting there and whining at me… she either goes to the kennel or goes outside. If she went outside, comes back in, and immediately goes back to whining… she ends up in the kennel. Baby steps, right? lol. But lately, she’s been limping heavily. Afraid to jump down from anywhere. Honestly and legitimately giving signs that there IS something wrong. I performed a touch and feel test to her front legs. No blood, no holes, no discernible injuries. The closest I could make out was that it is possible that her right front leg is now out of place. And of course, there are always potential elements hurting a dog that are more medical (marrow, cells, etc) than a simple touch and feel test.
Clearly, a veterinary appointment is the way to go. I’d rather take her into the vet for the vet to tell me that she’s faking it for attention as opposed to not go into the vet and have a dog in excruciating pain. Earliest they can see us is Thursday. It is… odd. I’m hoping that something IS found but I’m also hoping it is something small enough that it can be helped with maybe Doggy Aspirin and limited walks for a short period. I know it is a bit hypochondriac to leap to cancer so quickly but my childhood dog almost died of oral cancer when he was only 3 years old so… it is a memory and a worry that is very much within me.

Interpersonal:
I am trying to keep my COVID Personality Issues limited. I only have true ire for those in power who are unwilling to act or those in public who continue to spread irresponsible conspiracy theories. Those are the only two people that I believe are truly worth my ire and anger in this time. Otherwise, I am trying to keep in mind that everyone is afraid. Everyone has loved ones that are at risk right now. Everyone is trying to figure out how to navigate these new, scary, unprecedented times. So I am trying to default to understanding and emotional support. Which… as one might expect… can be difficult to maintain when faced with someone who passionately disagrees with that response and perspective.

I don’t want to belabor the point but I also can’t understand it. There are very few things that are openly appreciated as global. Climate Change could have been one… but the US fucked that right up. But COVID is truly being accepted and experienced as a global issue. Whether the nightmare ripping through Italy right now or the muted (likely oppressed) reports coming out of Russia… whether the horrors of mass graves in Spain or the horrifying non-response out of Sweden… whether the tragic death toll in New York or the general fear for safety and economy in Las Vegas. This is an issue that we are all experiencing and facing. There is, or should be, nothing we have experienced in my lifetime that should so easily promote a spirit of understanding and togetherness. “We’re all in this together, even if apart.” I won’t probe much deeper into this right now because I’m hoping I don’t have to. Just… if we can’t be supportive and understanding to each other now… while all of this is going on… I’m afraid that my worst judgments of the species are true. There ARE wonderful exceptions right now. There are millions of people proving that Humanity has hope, understanding, compassion, and a potential for greatness. There are millions of people proving that Humanity is a cesspool, selfish, angry, with a potential for disaster. It is always the way. But perhaps these are the times that make it more clear.

I used to want to save the world. To end war and bring peace to mankind. But then I glimpsed the darkness that lives within their light. I learnt that inside every one of them there will always be both. The choice each must make for themselves—something no hero will ever defeat.
- Diana of Themiscyra
(Wonder Woman - 2017)