First Bench Trial[]
Shortly after Daniel secured his job at Maldini's, he became involved in a situation with his manager Freddie Fox. as Daniel was returning from bennies after getting his Banshee fixed, he got a glampse of a traffic stop being underway next to the restaurant, where Freddie was getting involved. Daniel did not get too much detail as to what happened, but shortly after, he got a call from Trooper. Everrett Stone, requesting he come to the MRPD Jail Cells.
As Daniel entered the premises, he announced himself sarcastically. Unknown to Daniel at the time, Supreme Justice Allison Thomas was standing right next to him when he made the naive statement. Justice Thomas held Daniel accountable for the rudeness, Daniel apolagized genuinely, elaborating that the rudeness was not his intention at all.
As Daniel pivoted from the altercation, he went to proceed with representing Freddie. Allison caught wind that there was an individual in police custody, and swiftly offered a bench trial. Daniel was stunlocked, he had a decent amount of experience shooting from the hip in the cells, but was not prepared to be before a Judge and an audience anticipating him to come out victorious. Though Daniel was nervous and reluctant for the Bench Trial, as he knew he did not have a good case, he still wanted to do the trial, as it would be a big stepping stone for progressing the legal process and the court in the county.
Upon arriving to the Court house, Allison requested Daniel got all of the prosecutions evidence handed to him and his client. Trooper Stone transferred two screenshots to Daniel, one picture of an illegal gun being on Freddie's person, and an illegal phone dongle that was marked for police seizure. Daniel discovered that there were three charges that the UPD were prosecuting Freddie for (x1 Possession of contraband in the 3rd degree, x1 Criminal possession of a class 1 firearm, and x1 Disobeying a Peace Officer). Daniel advised Freddie to plead Guilty to the possession charges, and not guilty to the Disobeying a Peace Officer Charge. Freddie complied .
Upon the bench trial being in session, the Prosecution had multiple officers testify on their behalf, they were all giving stories that aligned with their case and seemed credible and well formulated. Allison allowed Daniel to cross-examine the witnesses, this was Daniel's chance to pick apart the Prosecutions case and undermine their credibility to get a not guilty verdict for his client. Daniel failed miserably, he was at a loss for words and could not articulate innovative questions, he was asking questions that had already been asked and answered and was not covering the ground that was necessary to have a successful case. This blunder was a consequence to the immense pressure that was on Daniel to perform. First of all, there were 60+ people present in the audience of the court room, watching as a relatively unknown lawyer attempted to argue his case. Daniel knew the pressure was on him, but folded.
The verdict of the trial was Supreme Justice Allison Thomas finding Freddie Fox guilty of the accussed charge. Daniel was completely aware of his faults, and was utterly heartbroken he let down his client, and most of all the people rooting for the david against the goliath (UPD). In the end, this bench trial was a critical learning experience for Daniel, and his experience as a Lawyer. Even though his efforts resulted in a loss, the experience and knowledge acquired from the experience would be utilised in his future consultations.