The Arms Dealer
Guns do not
kill people.
People kill people.
I only sell guns.
I don’t make
the laws. If you want
an AR-15 or a Glock,
you can come
and see me. Follow
the laws, the regulations
and they are all yours.
Even arms dealers
have patrons
and even a patron saint.
Thank you, St. Adrian
for your prayers,
your support,
your martyrdom.
All others
pay cash.
The Attorney
Obey the law, we say.
We talk about these
volumes of statutes
as if they were
the only law. I tell my clients
we have a story to tell,
a tale of trying to do right,
the right thing, a path
we want the jurors to walk
with us. In high school,
I owned the stage,
each deep soliloquy,
every starring role
and memorable dialogue –
all were mine. Now,
the drama has shifted
to the jury box, keeping
them rapt in my arguments
for one man’s redemption.
St. Genesius, you represent
all who stand in court
or on the stage.
Everything I learned
within the high school’s
proscenium arch is with me
today in the courtroom:
presence, stance, projection, tone.
Each time my voice rises
and falls, the defendant’s fate
waits on the silent applause
of this audience of twelve.