They Must Be Monsters by Matthew LeRoy & Deric Haddad

Author:Matthew LeRoy & Deric Haddad
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Manor Publishing House
Published: 2018-07-05T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter

23

In a low-lit courtroom in downtown Los Angeles, Michael Ruby stood before Judge Gaye Herrington for his competency hearing.

“This case should go before a jury,” Judge Herrington concluded, ruling that Michael would be tried as an adult. “This evidence needs to be examined and analyzed. That won’t happen in a juvenile court.” The gavel came down.

A cry bellowed from the front pew, the despair of Evelyn Ruby imagining her son spending his life in federal prison. Evelyn had prayed for Michael to be tried as a juvenile, where guilty meant ten years with a shot at parole.

Michael was led away, his hands cuffed across his waist. He paused and looked at his folks, giving them a reassuring smile. He didn’t share his mother’s fear; he’d gotten just what he wanted.

At Eastlake, Michael had learned a good deal about the system. His fellow inmates had told him how things work—that the path of the juvenile courts would be rough for a seventeen-year-old accused of molesting little girls. A juvenile conviction might be a lighter sentence, but any term would devastate a kid like Michael. He would never survive as an accused pedophile.

“Bro, you can’t let one person make this decision,” Buzzkirk had told him. “If you let a judge make the call, you’re dust. You think a judge is gonna look at those girls and set you free? No way. No chance. Get it to a jury, man. Whatever you do, whatever you have to say, get it to a jury. It’s the only way.”

And Buzzkirk was right. Michael’s fate needed to be in the hands of twelve people, a group of adults from various backgrounds and life experiences, people who could look at the facts objectively and make an informed decision about his future. They would have to agree unanimously, all twelve of them, which meant that he only needed one reasonable person to see how ludicrous the accusations were.

From the media circus surrounding his competency hearing, Michael knew his case was big time, a bellwether for a district attorney’s office looking to prove their “McMartin conspiracy.” The DA would assign a hotshot prosecutor. The daily proceedings would be covered by every network and major newspaper. The public would see it every day; thus, the system—those out to destroy Michael—would be held accountable.

“I want people to see my case,” Michael told his folks during a visitation at Eastlake. “I want people to know what’s happening to me. This is wrong. They shouldn’t be able to do this to me...or anyone. People need to know about this.”

Due to the nature of the charges, Judge Herrington recommended that Michael retain more experienced counsel. Tommy Allen, a South Bay attorney and fellow parishioner at Rolling Hills Covenant Church, stepped in, replacing Richard Cherry. Because the case was so large, involving so many alleged victims, Allen requested that a second attorney be assigned. Judge Herrington agreed and offered James Hallet, a seasoned public defender. Hallet requested that Allen also be court-appointed, lifting the financial burden from the Rubys, who could never afford such fees.

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