(upbeat music)
Malweni Aba.
Good morning, your honor.
Your cars been towed?
Yes, by that one night,
back in December I took my daughter to,
I took my daughter to an appointment
and they had like an emergency,
like a meeting.
And I paid for the meter
for like an hour and a half I think
and I literally was there for like four hours.
Anything else you want to tell me?
I'm not working right now
and I'm going to start working in June
and I haven't been able to pay the tickets.
Alright, just let me say this to you, okay?
You explained one parking ticket,
and I know that you had put money in the meter,
and you had enough money in the meter
to park until 9:37 in the morning on December 18th.
They issued you a ticket at 10 o'clock, at 10:07,
so you were there a half hour after that.
That's one ticket, and I understand that.
If that was the only ticket that you have,
I understand that.
But, what you didn't tell me
was that you had 11 other tickets.
So I'm sympathetic to the fact
that maybe you don't have any money.
But you didn't even make an attempt,
you didn't pay one of these ticket, not one.
I didn't, I thought that maybe they weren't,
like so far,
by the months it goes up.
I just wasn't aware that I had all them tickets.
You got the tickets, you didn't pay them.
You said forget it, you know.
Nothin's gonna happen.
Next thing you know your car got towed.
When did the car get towed?
December, I'm not sure.
Last December?
Yes.
And the car is still in the tow company?
I believe so, yeah.
Do you know the expenses that you are incurring?
Yes.
Why did it take you so long to come here today?
Because I want to buy a new car,
so I went to the DMV
and they told me that I owe a lot of money.
Nothing that you're telling me that makes sense.
Nothing.
Alright I'm upset,
not at you,
but for you.
Because I'm not sure you realize
the predicament that you put yourself in.
Your car got towed,
this is now May.
Your car was towed in December.
January,
February,
March,
April,
May.
Five months.
Approximately 150 days.
The tow companies usually charge $30 a day for storage.
You probably owe $4,500 for storage to the tow company.
Did you know that?
No, I didn't.
You came in here today, with all of these tickets.
You give me one explanation,
I put money in the meter for one ticket.
Forget the red or whites,
forget all the other tickets,
forget the fact that the car's been towed,
forget the fact that you paid $30 a day storage.
You don't address any of those things.
You get a narrow perspective about this big.
Did you think,
"Oh I'm going to tell the judge about this one ticket
"and he's going to feel so sorry for me
"he's going to dismiss everything." D
Doesn't make any sense.
I didn't think it was gonna be like that.
I just want to know like what I can do.
No you can't register a car now,
that's why you came in right?
Well, I want to settle this situation
so that it won't happen again.
So that you can register a car?
Yes.
What can you afford?
I want to see if I can at least do like half of it,
I don't have any money right now.
But I'm willing to go on a payment plan,
and hopefully pay it
when I start workin' in June.
I already have a job I just,
the training doesn't start until June so.
Do you have any children?
Yes.
How many?
Just one.
How old?
She's one year and six months.
What's her name?
Mia.
I'm going to help you get a new start.
But promise yourself, don't promise me.
Promise yourself
you're going to be more responsible in the future.
I will.
Particularly when it comes to this,
I mean these are not crimes of moral turpitude.
This is just,
pure negligence.
Makes absolutely no sense what you did.
Just abandoning the car,
so I can't let you go scot free.
But it's not going to serve any useful purpose
for me to fine you something that you can't pay,
because you're not going to do it.
Cause whatever I say to you today
you say, "Okay I'll try,"
and you're not going to be able to do it.
So I'm going to do what I think makes sense, okay?
I'm going to fine you $100.
Okay.
How much time do you need to pay it?
At least two weeks.
Alright, I'm going to give you a month.
Okay, thank you.
And if you can't pay it,
we're not changing our phone number,
be sure to call.
Okay.
I understand that maybe
you won't be able to do that in a month,
you hear?
So if you can't,
call up and say I need more time.
Okay.
You promise to do that?
Yes.
You gonna to keep this promise?
Yes,
I am.
Alright, think of your little daughter, okay?
Alright,
good work.
Alright, thank you sir.
We've all heard the expression
don't bury your head in the sand.
It refers to the common, but mistaken belief
that ostriches bury their heads in the sand when frightened
to avoid being seen.
Avoiding a problem hoping that it will
eventually go away on it's own
only prolongs the inevitable.
I promised this young lady
that I would help her get a new start.
I hope she uses this opportunity
to lift her head out of the sand
and learn how to deal with small issues
before they become big problems.
Brandon Kelly.
Good morning your honor.
Good morning.
Attorney Val Saltmen for the defendant.
Okay, we have the cities public defender here today,
so everybody got to be on your best behavior.
This is
complaint number
A18
066.
Charges Mr. Kelly with public drinking.
Counsel do you want to be heard on this?
Your Honor, I think the facts speak for themselves.
He was drinking with friends.
The facts speak for themselves?
If the facts speak for themselves he's guilty.
But you see, but Your Honor,
in this situation--
You just said he was drinking.
I know, but as I've often said,
that the response to an open container ordnance
should not be arrest, hand cuffing,
and taking to central station
where he's been since 2:00 p.m. yesterday afternoon.
Counsel.
Yes?
Did your client spend the night in jail?
He did.
Did you get room service during the night?
I mean, obviously there's no room service.
No room service?
Your honor, I disagree, they get cereal bars.
I did not get a cereal bar actually,
I did not get a cereal bar.
You didn't get a cereal bar?
I did not.
You did not?
No, I did not get a cereal bar.
One of the police officers
must have probably confiscated that.
(Defendant laughing)
One of the cell officers ate his cereal bar.
Yeah man, they did.
Alright, so you were drinking from a,
lets see what he was drinking.
What were you drinking,
what were you drinking?
Natural Ice.
Natural Ice.
Yeah.
I don't know,
he's drinking from an open container,
not a closed container of Natural Ice, right?
He's arrested, put handcuffs on you?
Yup.
Put you in the station wagon?
In the police vehicle?
Yeah, yup.
Brought you down to the station?
Yeah.
Put you in the cell?
Yeah.
They didn't slap you around a little bit, did they?
Nah.
No see, Providence police they don't do that.
That's right
I'm just checking them, okay?
Mr. Kelly, your counsel made an
impassioned plea on your behalf.
And I'm going to accept her plea.
She feels that you were punished enough
by spending a night in jail.
So based on the recommendation of your counsel,
the matter is going to be dismissed.
Thank you, thank you Your Honor.
Good luck to you.
For the record,
I have launched a full scale investigation
into the inmates missing breakfast bar.
It's bad enough that he had to spend the night in jail.
But then to be denied a nutritious breakfast snack?
That's Geneva Convention violation stuff right there.
And also for the record,
despite the vicious allegations,
it wasn't me who took it.
I had my usual pretzel roll
breakfast sandwich this morning
and I have a receipt to prove it.
So there,
now back off!
