Inspire, Spring 2010

he only way to change the way you think is to read. It’s 1:48 p.m. on a Thursday, and I’m sitting in a courtroom. This is the third time I’ve heard the judge give the same speech in as many days. “You can do your time with a bad attitude, and you’ll have lots of company. Or you can do your time with a view toward getting out.” He speaks with the authority of the black robe he wears, and his tone is slightly patronizing, honed by years of presiding over similar criminal cases. Then, as usual, he concludes, “I recommend that you read anything you can get your hands on. Education is the best insurance policy against reoffending, and by the time you get out, you could have the equivalent of a graduate degree.” His final words are the most important: “The only way to change the way you think is to read.” Fortunately, he isn’t talking to me. As the prosecutor in the case, I’m comfortably seated in my customary spot next to the jury box. Unfortunately, there is no way to know what the young man in the orange jumpsuit and leg shackles is thinking or what he will do with his time over the 78-month sentence. As he usually does, the judge suggests the defendant begin his journey by reading To Kill a Mockingbird . In many ways, the suggestion puzzles me. After all, the courtroom’s endless parade of gang members, methamphetamine cooks, and crack and powder cocaine dealers bears little similarity to the wrongly accused Tom Robinson from Harper Lee’s classic novel. And regrettably, few attorneys have much in common with the noble and courageous Atticus Finch. Despite the repetition, the judge’s words still strike a chord within me. I’m reminded not only of the importance of a well-rounded education, but also of Paul’s admonition in Romans 12:2: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.” Cross-Examination I graduated from Cedarville in 1997 with a B.A. in English and a minor in philosophy. Needless to say, my undergraduate coursework was comprised heavily of writing, writing, and more writing, by Josh Hanks ’97 A Redemptive Verdict 14 SPRING 2010