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That Time When I Pleaded the Fifth…
There wasn’t a sound to be heard as the attorney asked me the question for the second time. I sat still and upright in my chair before answering her.
There wasn’t a sound to be heard as the attorney asked me the question for the second time. I sat still and upright in my chair before answering her.
“I’m going to invoke my Fifth Amendment privilege.” I looked down at my hands in my lap and waited for someone else to speak.
The silence continued until a child in the back of the courtroom went into a coughing fit. When he did catch his breath it scared him and the wailing began. The woman holding him climbed over several people and exited into the hallway.
I appreciated the distraction and took a moment to gather my thoughts. Shifting slightly in the sturdy wooden chair, I could hear it creaking beneath me.
The attorney stepped back and it was like a movie in slow motion, going in reverse. The judge held up her gavel but did not use it. She motioned for me to stand up as she said,
“The witness may step down. Be seated in the gallery until your name is called.”
The witness. It still sounded funny to be called that, even though I had been testifying as an expert witness in trails related to real estate for almost a decade.
