He pointed at me, eyeing my cast and my swollen, bruised face.
“And months into this case,” he continued, “the State still hasn’t carried out the court-ordered psychological evaluation of a mentally suffering, dying defendant, who remains incarcerated. That order came from a judge. It was not unclear. It was not optional. And it was bluntly ignored by the State despite repeated requests from my client’s family. At this point, Your Honor, we are no longer talking about mistakes. This isn’t just disrespect toward the orders of this court and the judges who issued them. This is a severe violation of due process rights under the Constitution. And, dear God, let’s not even talk about discovery, which was treated like an optional trip reimbursement insurance rather than a legal requirement. I’ll be honest, Your Honor, I’m not even sure where to begin here.”
He glanced at Belmont, a disgusted look on his face.
“But let’s start by putting an end to the State’s Wild West show.”
Judge McKenna flipped through the papers in front of him. He stopped and looked up over his glasses.
“The court-ordered psychological evaluation still hasn’t been completed by the State?”
“Your Honor,” Belmont said quickly, “the State didn’t refuse the evaluation. There were scheduling issues, and the medical transport presented complications. We intended to complete it soon.”
The awkward silence that followed lingered just long enough for Sean to use it. “Your Honor, may I be excused?”
Judge McKenna nodded.
Sean stepped forward and extended his hand to Goldberg. The shake was firm.
“Good luck, Goldberg,” Sean said.
Goldberg answered with a single nod.
Then Sean hurried over to us. He leaned in. “Sign now.”
That was it. I watched as he turned and walked out.
Goldberg’s team moved immediately. Two of the lawyers slipped into the public benches, ordering people to make room. The other two sat next to Lacey.
One of them reached out, offering his hand. But she didn’t look at him. Didn’t move. So he withdrew his hand as if nothing had happened. Like she was completely normal.
“Your Honor, may I?” Goldberg asked.
He stepped closer to the bench. Belmont moved at the same time, asking if she might join as well.
“May we speak in chambers for a moment?” Goldberg said. “I have serious concerns that need to be voiced.”
After a beat, the judge nodded and stood.
“Good idea. Counsel,” he said, “with me.”
We all watched as the three of them left through the side door.
The moment they were out of sight, the room broke into loud conversations.
“What’s going on?” Dylan asked.
“I’m not sure,” I said. “But I have a feeling we should sign.”
Dylan nodded.
I signed the papers quickly before I had time to second-guess anything.
Time slowed. Minutes passed. Or hours. It was hard to tell. It all felt surreal.
We spoke with our new lawyers quietly for a while. Asked questions, hoping for something to hold on to. All they told us was that Robert Goldberg would explain everything soon. They were now Lacey’s new counsel. Things would be made right. And Goldberg was well-connected in the highest places. Places that could make or break judges and AGs.
Then the door opened again. Everyone stood as the officer said, “All rise.”
