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Role Models in High Places
Admit it or not, authority figures wield great power among the young.
The court rules required that a parent or guardian be present when a minor entered a plea to a traffic offense. In Texas, a moving violation was a crime, albeit a petty misdemeanor. So I first met the young man accompanied by his mother, who asked for a word with me in private.
The boy’s father was out the door before she finished the second syllable of “pregnant,” leaving her a single mom with a decent job that took every one of the 40 hours required on paper and sometimes more. She could not keep both the job and her rowdy son locked down. Would I try to talk to him?
Of course I would. I was all of 31 years old but I had made my way as much without adult supervision as without a high school diploma. I knew what it took: a prize you can keep your eye on for years.
So I didn’t chew him out about the ticket. I tried to engage him in a conversation about life choices. He seemed engaged.
He was either impressed by the majesty of my office, I figured, or he had never seen a grown man prancing around in public wearing a black nightgown.
