Georgia is a college football traditional powerhouse. Just mention the word Athens, or the phrase “between the hedges” and college football immediately comes to mind. Coastal Carolina on the other hand is better known for its baseball program. The Chanticleer football team has only been in existence since 2003. Officially, that is. But before that, there was club football.

Dave Bennett, current Coastal coach, gives Andy Lanier, a Georgia fan from Blakely, Ga. credit for starting football at the South Carolina college.

Lanier organized and coached club football at Coastal in 1987-1988. Club football was not sanctioned by Coastal and the team had to rely on donations for equipment. After he was turned down by the University of South Carolina and Clemson, Lanier called on Georgia. Equipment manager Howard Beavers donated the uniforms and equipment for the Chanticleers’ first football team.

After Mr. Beavers, Coach Dooley and Georgia were so generous, Lanier said, we just had to become the Bulldogs. That was my preference anyway.

Today’s’ game is a great opportunity for Coastal. It is the first meeting between the teams; a meeting come full circle.

The alternate title to this post could be: No thanks, I have a paralegal and he’s not in jail. Better yet, it could simply be this. If he’s so smart, why is he in jail too?

In case anyone is wondering, here is the law:

§ 16-15-10 Bigamy

Any person who is married who shall marry another person shall, unless:

(1) His or her husband or wife has remained continually for seven years beyond the sea or continually absented himself or herself from such person for the space of seven years together, such person not knowing his or her wife or husband to be living within that time;

(2) He or she was married before the age of consent;

(3) His or her wife or husband is under sentence of imprisonment for life; or

(4) His or her marriage has been annulled or he or she has been divorced by decree of a competent tribunal having jurisdiction both of the cause and the parties;

On conviction, be punished by imprisonment in the Penitentiary for not more than five years nor less than six months or by imprisonment in the jail for six months and by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars.

Networking and bonding with someone who thinks more like you do is easier. Men bond on a golf course and talk about sports, not emotions, said Kelly Cauble, who initiated the luncheons. Women naturally weave emotions into their bonding rites.

This month’s lunch was held at the county jail last week. The women toured the J. Reuben Long Detention Center. Speakers included an undercover police officer, a prosecutor and a magistrate judge – all women.

Horry County Sheriff’s Capt. Susan Safford, a 20-year veteran, said murders in Horry County were so rare when she began her job that jail workers knew the details of each one. Now, she continued, the jail houses 40 people charged with murder and she knows none of the details.

By the way, that’s Paula Gardner in the center of the picture.

J. Reuben Long has received a lot of attention lately. A major addition was recently completed.  The jail is now more secure and bond hearings are held more efficiently. Unfortunately, the jail now holds more people and the “if you build it, they will come” syndrome will eventually take over. It will soon exceed maximum capacity, again.

I’m glad the women toured the jail. No doubt they were shown the new security features, courtrooms and told about bail hearings. I‘m sure they were told that the jail primarily houses two types of inmates: Those sentenced to serve ninety days or less and those waiting for trial. I hope they were also told that the majority of the inmates have been waiting for their trial for months. Some have already waited for years. Some of these inmates are innocent. Most of them will wait much longer before they are taken to court.

Again, I’m glad the women toured the jail. Maybe the next tour could be a look into why it takes the state so long to take these cases to trial.

I’m thankful for:

1. The officer who remembers the oath when he testifies;
2. The prosecutor who remembers that justice, not a conviction, is the goal;
3. The judge who follows the law; and
4. The defense lawyer who does not poach clients at any cost.

That was last year and I’m still thankful for those few people.

As I typed those words though, I felt compelled to write a few more.  I’m thankful for criminal defense lawyers who fight the good fight every day.

Happy Thanksgiving.

And if you are a lawyer battling a drug problem, or an alcohol problem, or a mental health problem or an emotional problem or any other demon that might get in the way of your helping your clients, I hope you will get help while your license can still be salvaged. Your problems are not going to get any lighter if you ignore them. Pick up the phone and call a friend.

That is solid advice.

I decided to write about this for two reasons. First, it ties in with my last two posts (here and here). Second, it’s important: Don’t be that lawyer. If you are a lawyer reading this and think you have a problem, pick up the phone and call a friend. If your lawyer friend has a problem, get with him and get him help.  The South Carolina Bar has a program called Lawyers helping lawyers and it is on the bar website. It is completely confidential.

Bennett ends his post with this:

And if you’ve already alienated all of your friends and you don’t have anyone left to help you, then please: pick up the phone and call me.

That is a good way for me to end this one. My number is (843) 248-7135.

A true friend is one who, when he finds out you are in trouble, will drop what he is doing and do what he can to help. Want to know how many genuine friends you have? Get charged with a serious crime.

That’s a pretty good description and my friend fit it to a tee. I remember the late Chief Justice Bubba Ness told me one time that you would only have five true friends. His definition of a true friend was someone who, if you asked for help, answered with where are you? A true friend is on his way to help you.

I knew my friend had many friends, but I had no idea how many. Over the course of the last year, I lost count of the number of people that called or stopped to check on him. When he pleaded guilty, the courtroom was packed with friends, mostly lawyers, supporting him.

My friend didn’t know anything about facebook or social media; he didn’t even know how to turn on a computer. He made his friends the old fashioned way, he earned them. That’s the way real lawyers do it.