STATE vs Client.
In February, 2005 Client was arrested on I-85 and charged with trafficking in cocaine along with his co-defendant, R. P. Over 400 grams of cocaine were found buried in the backseat of the car, in a secret compartment. Client was speeding, which was the probable cause for the traffic stop. Client insisted that he did not know the drugs were there, but it looked pretty doubtful that his story would be believed.
Mr. Henry became Client’s court appointed lawyer. Client was extremely poor, but was finally released on bond and returned home to the Bronx until trial. Client rode the bus to Greenville, SC each time his case was placed on the trial docket. Several times his case was not reached and he returned to New York. His bondsman paid for a motel room at least once to help him out. When his case was finally reached, Client slept on the pull out couch in Mr. Henry’s office the night before his trial started. The trial lasted two days. The judge made him stay in jail after the first day of trial.
Client’s defense was that R. P. was the guilty party and that Client had only ridden to Georgia to find work and then got a ride back in a car rented by the co-defendant. The co-defendant skipped his bond and was not in court for the trial. In addition to Client’s testimony and lack of any prior convictions, Mr. Henry used the fact that R. P. got out on a $150,000 bond with help, while Client struggled to get out on a $5,000.00 bond, which showed that there was a criminal enterprise that R. P. was involved with but Client was not.
Client would have been sent to prison for 25 years if convicted on the trafficking in cocaine charge, but the jury accepted Client’s testimony and returned a not guilty verdict. When Mr. Henry drove his relieved and excited client to the Greenville bus station, Client received a call on his cell phone. His fiancée had just given birth to their baby girl. An incredible day!