Pliers Bidacker Member
Posts: 24
Joined: Jul 2004
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Wednesday March 09, 2005 1:52 AM
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I hope I can stay anonymous here with this one but it is my favorite. Acouple of the players will recognise themselves.
Players:
AngryApp: Civilian Corrections employee who tested positive on TB conversion test.
AngryWife: His wife. An East Bay Black nationalist. (really) She's running the show. AngryApp was a quiet artistic guy.
DrLiar: Chief med officer at the prison.
Judge Lefty: Rabid AA turned WCJ
5 or 6 court reporters
Pliers Bidacker: Yours truly, erstwhile AA
Dude works at the prison and tests positive on the skin conversion test. Not active TB, just positive for exposure. This was about his 25th comp claim.
We sit down and start discussing preliminaries about the case and the court reporter calls for a break. She disappears with the judge for about an hour. Judge calls counsel to her office and says the court reporters are boycotting the proceedings for fear of potential contagions.
Now this is really a problem. What with 25 claims, this guy has a perpetual gripe and his wife is there. Indeed she had ostensibly cobbled up two federal discrimination claims that were pending and had survived demurrer. (I later found out that a prisoner must have done them, the prisons are full of guys working on their habeus petitions who become pleading practice geniuses.) Well....here...he may have had a legitimate beef. (Corrections argued he was exposed in Africa or the plane ride, civilian=no presumption).
Judge Lefty: Well gentlemen, what are we going to do about the court reporter situation?
Me: {Throwing my pen} Dammit, judge. I am post renal transplant and immuno suppressed and I have to sit next to the asshole.
Defense Counsel: {attempts to stifle laughter-fails}
Judge Lefty: That's very interesting Mr. Bidacker, but it does not solve our court reporter problem.
Turns out, the medical officer gave an impromptu lecture for the ct. reprters on the difference between exposure and active TB and one volunteered.
Trial starts. Blah, blah, blah
DrLiar: We screened 1800 prisoners and there were no detected cases of TB.
Pliers: Doctor, how many undetected cases? (my best cross-x Q? ever)
AOE/COE found. Re-imburse for skin conversion test. Mileage to/from test, 1 day of IDL and whopping 15% fee. about 9 bucks.
What stuck me was the judge could order me to dance the Lindy and I'd do it, but she couldn't give orders to the court reporters.
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