The second pretrial was yesterday afternoon. Again, I went, though I can't actually be present for the discussions. I can only get an update from the prosecutor and the victim's advocate after the fact.
I was surprised by this one. At the previous pretrial, motions for discovery were filed, meaning that all the evidence to be used at trial would be made available to the defense attorney. I assumed that the hand-over of the evidence would happen between that pretrial and this one. It didn't.
After yesterday's pretrial, I got the report that the evidence was given to the defense, and the third and final pretrial is scheduled for January 7th. At that time, the defendant will either admit to some or all charges or deny them all. There may be some bargaining that happens if I am present to participate. For example, he may be willing to admit to lesser or fewer charges. In that case, the prosecutor will be running back and forth between rooms to carry out the negotiations. I will still not be in the same room where the discussions are taking place.
If he denies - the trial will be scheduled.
If he admits to the charges or if some sort of plea bargain is agreed to, then there will be a lengthy sex offender evaluation performed (like 6 weeks or more), after which there will be a disposition hearing scheduled (I think). I'm kind of getting the process information as we go along, rather than any type of comprehensive overview at the beginning.
My daughter is fine. She is mostly concerned with the fact that she STILL cannot play with her best friend. She did pass the offender on the street the other day walking home from the bus, but he didn't say anything to her - just frowned at her. She was okay with that.
My own tension level has increased. This is just one factor of many, but I now have big knots in the muscles of my shoulders, and the result is a severe and painful stiff neck. Sleep is difficult. Driving is painful. By the time the kids are in bed for the night, I can hardly move. So, I can't get anything done in those precious hours. I have to stop the intake of ibuprofin, as it is now upsetting my stomach. I've been eating it like candy.
I lost my pocket calendar, so I'm totally messed up schedule-wise. We missed a counselling appointment and got a notification in the mail that her case would be closed if we didn't call back within 10 days. I called back. The therapist is off on medical leave and her voicemail is not taking any messages. I need to contact someone else in the facility. Ugh. Now, the 10 days have passed, and I find myself not really caring. My daughter is doing great, for now. I'll call them again when I get a chance, but I'm not going to worry about it too much.
The holidays are upon us. If I can manage to get the tree decorated and the shopping done, I'll be thrilled. All will be well.
Happy Holidays, everyone! The next update will likely be after the first of the year.
In July 2008, my babysitter called me. She was in tears. My 7yo daughter and her best friend had told her that they were being sexually abused by the best friend's 13yo brother, who was also my daughter's before-school babysitter for most of the last school year. Bottom line: I paid him to spend time alone, in my house, with my daughter. I thought I knew him. If this blog saves one child, I will be thrilled. If you are new to the blog, read the old stuff from the bottom up. It's worth it.
