sir.”
“Then give me one reason I shouldn’t send you to jail.”
Walter’s voice trembled.
“I don’t have one, Your Honor.”
I couldn’t stay silent any longer.
“Yes, he does!”
Walter turned sharply toward me.
“Margaret, sit down.”
I’d lived next door to Walter for 30 years.
And I’d never seen him look so frightened.
“Your Honor, he made me promise never to tell anyone. But I can’t let him go to prison without you hearing the truth.”
I reached into my purse and pulled out a folded piece of
paper.
“Please. There’s something you need to know.”
The judge allowed me to speak.
I pointed at a young woman in the back row. She had a little boy asleep against her shoulder.
“Her name is Sarah. She’s raising three children alone.”
Sarah looked up, confused.
“Her husband left two years ago,” I continued. “She cleans offices, but sometimes she barely earns enough to feed her children.”
Walter closed his eyes.
“Margaret, please.”
“Those things he stole weren’t for himself,” I said. “He was taking them to Sarah’s house.”
Sarah
