Hannah Overton Will Be Home for Christmas

Readers may remember that I’ve followed the Hannah Overton case for some time.  Her capital murder conviction was rightly overturned in September.  But her release did not come until yesterday’s bond hearing.

The three month delay in her release is hard to excuse.  But part of the delay was her defense team’s wise and successful effort to get Judge Jose Longoria recused.  He presided over the 2007 trial and has demonstrated he cannot be trusted to be a fair judge of this case.

One result of said recusal is the success of yesterday’s bond hearing.  Bond was set at a reasonable $50,000 with no onerous conditions.  So, finally, Hannah Overton is home with her family after seven long years.

Nueces County DA Mark Skurka has said he intends to retry Overton for capital murder.  But a development during the bond hearing would make much a foolish task even more difficult:

Arguably the most dramatic moment of the hearing came when Hannah’s attorneys revealed that one of the state’s star witnesses at trial, Dr. Alexandre Rotta—who had treated Andrew on the night he was brought to the hospital in 2006 in a coma—had recently contacted Hannah’s defense team. Dr. Rotta told Hannah’s attorneys in an email that seven years after Hannah’s trial, her conviction still kept him up at night. This complicates matters for Nueces County District Attorney Mark Skurka, who has vowed to retry Hannah on capital murder charges. The fact that key prosecution witnesses such as Dr. Rotta— along with Dr. Edgar Cortes , another physician who examined Andrew on the night he was admitted to the hospital—now question Hannah’s conviction casts doubt on whether Skurka can win his case . . . .

Skurka would be wiser to clean up his office.  Yet another indication of the corruption of the Nueces County DA’s office has come out.  Eric Hillman is suing said office.  The former prosecutor claims he was fired for following the law:

Eric Hillman prosecuted drunk driving cases, but, when he uncovered a witness who had the potential to help someone he was prosecuting, he claims his bosses told him not to share that information with the other side.

 He did and the lawsuit he filed Monday claims it cost him his job.

"It is unlawful to fire or terminate an employee because they refuse to commit a criminal act and that's exactly what happened here," said Hillman's attorney, Amie Pratt with the Gale Law Group.

Prosecutors are required by law to share any evidence that may help the defense.  This legal requirement was also alleged to have been violated in the 2007 Hannah Overton trial. 

Was that violation inadvertent and isolated?  I think not.  And I am not alone.

[Hillman’s] attorneys say this case could point to bigger problems in the pursuit of justice in Nueces County.

"Nueces County seems to be in favor of withholding evidence from defense counsel which is a huge problem," Pratt said.

Christmas and Aloneness – an excerpt from Pilot Point

I’ve mentioned that Christmas and other holidays can be difficult times for those dealing with aloneness, difficult family situations, and past traumas.  Mother’s Day used to be my bad holiday. (And do read my post last week if you are among those not looking forward to Christmas for similar reasons.)

One of the plots of my novel Pilot Point is how Clayton Hays and his friend Bowie Smith deal with their aloneness – and they do not deal with it very well.  One Christmas opens a window to this.

The following excerpt from that Christmastime is short and simple.  We see their reluctance to accept an invitation to a family Christmas; it reminds both of the families they do not have.  Bowie instead has arranged to work cattle on Christmas Day.

We also see Bowie adding logs to a dying fire.  That does not seem a significant moment at first.  But his words as he does so end up echoing through the novel – and through Clayton’s struggle.

---

         Kim, Bowie, and Clayton were playing poker over at Bowie’s. He had a fire going, but it was dying from neglect—the three were so intent on their cards.

         The armadillo on the rafter had a red elf cap on, and there was a picture up of Santa wearing a cowboy hat with his sleigh being pulled by longhorns. Those were the only Christmas decorations Bowie had up.

         After a hand, Kim asked Bowie, “What are you going to be doing Christmas?”

         “Nothin’ much.” He shuffled the cards.

         “The wife says you’re welcome to stop by for Christmas dinner. So come on over.”

         “I appreciate that, but I don’t know if I’m going to have time. I’m going to give the Hunt land workers Christmas by taking over for them. Most of them have families to go to, and I don’t. So I figured I’d stand in for them so they can have the day off. Seven-card stud.”

         “That’s awful nice of you. I didn’t know you were doing that for us. I appreciate it. The offer still stands though.”

         “I thank you.”

         “How about you, Clayton?”

         He shrugged his shoulders and kept looking at his cards. “I don’t have any plans.”

         “Well, come over for dinner at my place then.”

         “Thanks, but I’d feel out of place. Christmas is a time for family and…” his voice faded.

         “Keep it in mind anyway. Janet’s cooking and hospitality can make anyone feel like family.”

         “Okay.”

         When they finished the hand, Bowie looked over at the fire. “Hell, there’s only one log left burning and barely at that. We’re so busy with cards, we weren’t paying attention.” He got up and walked over to the logs he had piled to the side of the fireplace. He leaned over. But before he picked one up, he looked back at Clayton with an expression both wry and yet as serious as a long winter.

         “One log can’t keep a fire going. A lone fire dies. You’d think we’d know that.”

         Clayton watched him as he turned back to the fireplace and put three logs on. They watched as the fire began to grow strong again.

         Bowie came back to the table. And they went back to their cards.

         When the cards came around to Clayton, he asked Bowie, “What kind of work are you going to be doing Christmas.”

         “Oh, mainly just feedin’ and docterin’.”

         Clayton shuffled the cards and began dealing them. “Five-card draw.”

         After losing some more money, he asked, “Could you use a hand on Christmas?”

         “Sure, are you offering?”

         “Yeah.”

         “We haven’t won that much money off you, have we?” The three chuckled.

         “I appreciate that,” Bowie then said without any bluster, looking at Clayton.

---

Pilot Point is available at Amazon.

Check out (and like) the Facebook page for Pilot Point for more information and updates.

Pilot Point Gun Show Tour Resumes!

First, apologies for not writing a more normal post this morning.  Trust me that I had a post or two in mind with all the craziness going on in the world.  But today I am a bit swamped.  I am happy to report that, unlike the world, my craziness is a good craziness.  Nonetheless, busy is busy (as work is constantly interrupting me as I try to type this!).

One reason I am busy is later today I go set up my table for the Aransas Pass Gun Show tomorrow.  Yep, the Pilot Point Gun Show Tour resumes tomorrow Saturday at the Aransas Pass (Texas) Civic Center from 9 to 5.

But I know most of you are not within driving distance to meet me and buy my novel tomorrow.  And, with less than two weeks until Christmas, some may be a bit busy taking care of their naughty and nice lists.  If so, may I make a suggestion? ;)

Yes, my novel Pilot Point is an appropriate gift for both the naughty and nice.  Or at least I think so.  Click the "Pilot Point" link below to find out more.  Better yet, go to and "like" my Pilot Point Facebook page.

May God bless the remainder of your Advent season and preparation for Christmas.

Letter of C. S. Lewis Discovered

The discovery of a personal letter of C. S. Lewis is getting some attention.  It was found inside a secondhand book.  In the letter, Lewis opines on the subject of joy.

What I find most surprising about this news is that it is expected that the letter will fetch well over a thousand pounds at auction.  Why my surprise?  There are a great many letters extant from C. S. Lewis, many of which are published (and which I must start reading someday for their insights and his masterful counsel).  He was a prolific letter writer indeed.

As documented by Lyle Dorsett’s Seeking the Secret Place, Lewis committed himself to answering virtually all incoming mail.  He felt it an important calling, and with all the mail he received, it was a laborious and often taxing one.  And these were not perfunctory letters that he wrote, at least not for the most part.  With some, he regularly gave counsel to help people through their troubles.

Having wrestled with studies at Oxford, I cannot imagine how he could have fulfilled all his academic and other duties and then thoughtfully answer mail as he did.  The man surely had more endurance than I do.

Not just the recipients, but us today as well are blessed with his labor and wisdom in so generously fulfilling what he as saw as his Christian calling to answer mail.

And, really, one cannot put a price on that.

Protesters Block Road . . . and a Driver is Arrested. HUH?

Sometimes an event is so head-scratching and/or outrageous that it puts even me at a loss for words.  Perhaps, Jim Hoft says it best, “It’s an Obama world.”

The short version of what has me at a loss follows.  In Dekalb, Illinois, “Black Lives Matter” protesters blocked Lincoln Highway.  When a driver had the green light, he slowly tried to get past the protesters.  A pregnant woman was slightly injured. (Aside: And I smell an exaggeration of injuries here.  That sort of ruse in an old trick in the Leftist playbook as is provoking or creating an incident.)  The protesters stormed the car.  The driver turned into the police parking lot to seek refuge.  Police had to restrain oh-so peaceful protesters from attacking the driver.

Now here are details that have me shaking my head.  The protesters were blocking traffic right by the Dekalb Police station.  Why did not police remove the protesters, forcibly if necessary?  And, yes, police allowing this behavior is a problem across the nation.

And then, after an incident for which police and/or those directing them share responsibility by their inaction, it is the driver who is charged and in danger of jail:

The woman was taken to Kishwaukee Hospital in DeKalb with minor injuries, treated and released, while Wittke was charged with reckless driving and failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, Petragallo said. The more serious charge, reckless driving, is punishable with probation or up to a year in the county jail.

Expanding to the big picture, what we have here is an undermining of the rule of law at every level of government, from the President to police chiefs.  And we have a very unequal application of law enforcement.  If you are an illegal or a looter – or a traffic blocker – probably nothing happens to you.  But if you are law-abiding citizen asserting your lawful rights, God help you.

As I tell friends, it is better to be an illegal alien criminal under Obama than a law-abiding U. S. citizen.

In such an atmosphere, it will not take much for a backlash, perhaps in the form of vigilante justice, to get very ugly indeed.   Take blocked traffic.  That induces a lot of rage as it is.  Combine that with the (correct) perception that the powers that be side with those intentionally blocking traffic rather than with you the driver trying to go about his or her business . . . it could get ugly fast.

Similar warnings could be said in other areas of civic life.  The continual undermining and perversion of the rule of law by all levels of government has this country too close to a tipping point.

And perhaps I best stop there except to urge prayer.

-----

The organizer for the above protesters could be a poster child for a lot of things, none of them good.

The protest organizer, a Grad student at NIU, says that he is planning more protest when NIU classes resume in January, but told the Daily Chronicle he’ll be leaving town after he graduates because, as he claims, some people said “racist” things towards him and the other protesters including giving them the finger.

He blocks traffic . . . and is unhappy that drivers call him names and give him naughty gestures.

I've got nothing. . . . nothing printable at least.

Obama Endorses Blocking Traffic?

It is bad enough that several police forces are not doing their duty to clear major roads and even interstates of protesters intentionally blocking traffic.  But now it seems the current President of the United States is encouraging protesters to block traffic:

During an exclusive interview with BET aired Monday, President Obama commented on unrest over the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, saying the protests were “necessary” and noting that “a country’s conscience sometimes has to be triggered by some inconvenience.”

Now perhaps Obama was not referring to blocking traffic.  But what else could he have been referring to?  The only significant “inconvenience” caused by the Ferguson, I Can’t Breathe, Black Lives Matters etc. protesters (other than looting, burning, and assaulting, of course) is blocking traffic on major roads.   And a President is saying unlawfully inflicting such “inconvenience” is justified?

But I’ll tell you what.  Obama has the opportunity to clarify himself.  He can come out and say something like this: “Although the concerns and grievances of the protesters should be expressed and heard, blocking traffic and making it difficult for people to go to work to earn a living and to go home to their families, and endangering the lives of those in emergency medical situations, is not an acceptable way to protest.”

If Obama says something like that, I will post it here.  I’m waiting . . . . . .

Advice on Surviving Christmas

Sarah Hey, with her unique wry sense of humor, has offered some advice for those for whom Christmas is a difficult, even depressing time of year.  I particularly approve of the following:

Try to build a new season other than “Christmas” into your life, called “Advent”—a time of preparation by various acts, thoughts, words, and invitations for Jesus to take fuller Lordship and Friendship of your heart and mind and the entire self. This season of Advent allows you to build new traditions other than the ones you see on television or amongst friends—traditions like quiet days of reflection, time set aside for you to talk and be and listen to Jesus, worship, and so on and so forth.

I remember my dear Grandma used to get all into Christmas as soon as Thanksgiving was over.  I suspect she overdid it.  For each St. Stephens Day – if not Christmas afternoon – she would have an angry post-Christmas letdown, a fit really, which included throwing out the Christmas tree.  You could almost set a watch by it.

Many get completely burnt out on Christmas just as the real Christmas season begins.  I think skipping Advent contributes to that.

And if doing Advent and Christmas at a pace you can handle well means you give out gifts late, just let people know you are a twelve days of Christmas person.

Much of the tenor of Hey’s advice is that it is okay, perhaps necessary for some, not to do Christmas non-stop.  It’s okay to turn down parties, avoid the malls, etc.

I cannot recall ever having issues with Christmas although I certainly have had reason to due to difficult past family events.  Heck, I get insufferably Christmasy by St. Nicholas Day, if not before.  But I did for some years in my twenties and thirties have issues with Mother’s Day.  When I went to church, it was Mother’s Day this and Mother’s Day that (Slightly idolatrous in hindsight.). And I could hardly escape Mother’s Day after church as finding a table for my customary lunch was difficult at best.  I recall even a place where I was a regular patron booting me from a small table!

Mother’s Day reminded me again and again how single I was and how much I was not experiencing family.  It made me feel very much left out.

So I began avoiding it all by vacationing on Mother’s Day weekend (including no church).  And I thoroughly enjoyed those vacations and was recharged instead of dragged down.

I’m fine with Mother’s Day now.  But I still very much understand why withdrawing a bit from some holidays may be advisable for some.  Although I am now quite attached to the church calendar, to paraphrase Jesus, it was made for man, and not man for it.  And, besides, the very early church had just one big celebration each year, the Pascha.

So if you need to deemphasize Christmas this year, it’s okay.  Do feel free to do so.  Some may not understand, but rest assured that many do . . . and that God does.