The halls of justice

I had occasion today to visit the County Court House on the Square. An actual courtroom, to be exact, for the hearing concerning friend Georgene Lockwood's challenge of incumbent Carol Springer's nominating petitions. (Later note: too bad but Georgene lost the case; there are comments worth reading at the above link, but I'm disappointed in the Courier for not updating the story online!)

I had not been in a courtroom since my divorce from my first husband, some 50 years ago, and so looked with interest at the setting: rich dark wood in severe lines as we searched on floor three for the hearing.

A mysterious door covered with Venetian blinds (above) and a door with a combination lock (below).

And, down the hall, this elegant old safe.

A hallway bench that turned out to be a lot more comfortable than the courtroom seating.

Finding the crowd told us that we had reached our goal.

Entering the courtroom. Two stories high, the room is designed to dwarf and awe the ordinary citizen.

The judge appeared as if by magic from his own door.

The severe theme was carried out on the window wall and the interior wall as well (below).

A reminder that this is, after all, the West, where a man's best friend is likely to be his hat -- underneath the unpadded folding seat is a brass hat holder.

But a real problem for my old bones: out of these attractive grills came blasts of the icy air keeping the room comfy (maybe) for four people: three lawyers and the judge, all wearing dark suit jackets. Even if my teeth hadn't been chattering, it was impossible to hear the proceedings. So I left long before the evidence was complete and finally warmed up.

Linkage: #1 is more pelicans, this time from Alone on a Limb; his birds are out at sea. Tombo has been "spelunking" again in the catacombs of Prescott and found more elaborate graffiti. BTW, he linked to some great pictures of the area by local photographer Brandy Young over at Flickr. Finally, go visit k, who has four posts on her recent visit to the Everglades. A gator, of course, but also interesting epiphytes (be sure to scroll down).