Chapter 23 - The plea
David’s cases resolved two years after the kitchen incident.
Not on the same day.
Not one magical courtroom.
The assault-related case reached agreement first.
David pleaded to a felony-level offense reflecting serious physical harm caused during domestic violence, under a negotiated resolution that dismissed less supportable counts.
He received a custodial sentence.
Measured in years, not decades.
Part suspended under conditions.
Mandatory intervention programming.
Firearm restrictions according to law and supervision terms.
Protective orders.
The financial case resolved through a combination of plea terms, restitution, and civil property accounting.
Not all $144,650 became criminal restitution.
Some went through divorce accounting.
Some through Margaret’s settlement.
Some was classified as joint benefit.
The amount David personally owed me after all credits and offsets was lower than the headline number.
That bothered strangers.
May you like
I learned to stop needing strangers to understand accounting.
Consequences are not more real because the number is dramatic.
