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Michael Steven Gorbey

You may remember the story of a man arrested in January in Washington DC, Michael Gorbey. He was found dressed in a flak jacket with a samurai sword, a loaded shotgun, various knives and accoutrements. He claimed to be on his way to meet Chief Justice John Roberts, who is also a Master of my own dear Middle Temple, albeit a junior one. Three weeks later, police looked in Gorbey's van and found a massive bomb.

Gorbey plans to defend himself, and the trial is scheduled to start today. He hails from Rapidan, West Virginia, and no connection whatsoever has been mooted with terrorism. The trial, all the more because it is really the trial of something that did not happen, offers to provide a picture of how Washington DC is policed, and also a slice of American criminal procedure.

It used to be said that a person who defended themselves had a fool for a client. Despite that received wisdom, many people have followed the lead of Helen Steel and David Morris (who took on McDonalds and won in the English High Court) and defended themselves. They have, literally, acquitted themselves well on the whole.

On very serious criminal trials in the US, the number of self-representatives has always been low, but it too seems to be rising. One reason is cost, and another must be the increasing familiarity of citizens with an ambient and demystified law, whether people wear wigs in court or not. I wonder if distrust at the quality of state defenders is a third.

The last big trial I remember this happening in was the Washington sniper. The rap sheet, which is a great site, presumably has its own opinion on the subject, but I wonder what Atticus Finch and m'learned friends would say.

Given that no one was hurt, and despite whatever mental state Mr Gorbey may be in, it will be interesting to watch his effort and I intend to blog on it occasionally. If you want to join in, feel free, though the usual rules apply-- no anonymous posting, no personal abuse, no comments that any wandering juror or friend of jurors could be misled by and no ghouls any worse than myself. That last criterion obviously sets the bar very low indeed.

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