These stories are from a writing assignment during the workshop. The students visited Roanoke Circuit Court and spoke with a judge and lawyers about an actual case. The students did not attend an on-the-record hearing.
By Jamaica Pannell
The date is June 23. It is 3 o’ clock in the afternoon, but where are the client and his attorney? Roanoke Circuit Court Judge Charles Dorsey waited for information of the mishap.
Sarah Timmers, the client’s attorney, had given Prince Darius-Aaron Daniels, the defendant, the wrong date. She scheduled him for a June 28 hearing.
The Dorsey said that it does not happen often, though he too at times has been late or confused.
The judge has decided not to issue a warrant for the defendant’s arrest because it was his attorney’s mistake, Dorsey said.
Daniels was charged of withholding a firearm at William Fleming on Jan. 8.
The incident began when a school resource officer filed a complaint saying that her son had been threatened by an unknown source. The only evidence to go by was a vehicle they were able to refer to.
Based on an inventory of the parking permit, school officials were able to locate the precise car. They then quickly identified its possessor, Daniels.
J. Bowdel, a resource officer at the school, notified the principal and searched the vehicle. Before the search, Daniels confirmed he had a weapon -- a 6-inch revolver -- in his automobile. Investigators also found marijuana.
