Behind the Robe

A Novel

Readers who enjoy courtroom drama, criminal justice system, will enjoy Benchmarks: A Novel. Lourdes, a passionate public defender applies to be a judge at the urging of Carlos, her husband, the boy she lived in high school who is now a veteran with a chip on his shoulder. As a Latina Lourdes believes she has not chance and is shocked when the governor calls to appoint her. Walking in to court, sitting behind the high bench, flags behind her, "Can I do this job? Can I treat prosecutors fairly? Am I a token minority? How can I deal with my friends now that I'm now longer a defender, but decider. Life goes on. Carls turns to drink to deal with his PTSD and less than honorable discharge. Will their marriage survive. Lourdes' husband, Carlos, a veteran with a less than honorable discharge . Molly, Lourdes' best friend, also a public defender and the main character in my previous book, My Name is Molly, has now been clean about six months. Will she keep her addiction to alcohol and bad men under control? The reader will see what it's like to be a trial judge from the mundane, which robe to choose, to among decisions that change lives: Should a juror be excused for bias? Do the police have probable cause to justify a midnight search of someone's home: Should a minor be granted an abortion against her parents' wishes? Should the person standing before be put on probation or sent to prison, and if prison, how long? There's more to it than"All Rise, the Honorable Judge Lourdes Velasquez presiding."