Dissecting the E10 case

There are so many things to unpack in E10 but for me the most important one here is the case, similar to E09 were it was also the case.

The E10 case is very meaningful. It informs us how the human mind is vulnerable to many factors which can lead to actions we may regret later.

№1. Let's begin with the FL's mother

She was right that at the time, it was the best decision she could ever make. For sure one reason was the school ranking, but her mother didn't appear to be that kind of person. It did influence her decision, but what really topped and mattered to her were:

She was fighting against a formidable foe: the bully's father.
Their bully daugher will definitely targer the FL.

I'm sure it is safe to say that no family member, most especially immediate family, will want to take a huge risk in such a scenario. Even if they win, we cannot predict what other things might happen. They could get back to her later when they least expect it. Or, ask someone to send the white truck of death.

The FL's mother had no choice but to drop her threats to keep the FL safe from that bully family. No doubt at the time she secretly hope that they'll reap what they sowed. 25 years later, they did, and in a very ugly way, as sad as it may be.

№2. The murder / accident

Was it murder? Was it an accident?

How many of us can truly be honest and admit that you viewed it as murder? I did. I even asked, "That's their new case? Are they going to take it? How are they going to cover it up? Is this finally an example of the ugly side of being a lawyer?"

However, to everyone's surprise, there was more to the case than meets the eye, and I think we can all agree that the decision was very fair.

It wasn't a single case, rather there were two: attempted murder and road accident. It was fairly treated as such.

Since the victim did not die, it was attempted murder. And the autopsy showed the victim died because of the road accident, she only had to pay for that crime and her being neglectful by not looking at the road while driving.

They did not frame it as "revenge". Why? Because that will make their argument weaker.

They did not even point out that the primary perpetrator of severe bullying was the victim, they did mention it but it was all but in passing, the focus was never on that. Why? Again, the case must never be framed as revenge, otherwise the road accident can be twisted as part of the plan and they can accuse her that she's lying about not looking forward while driving.

As the ML said, it was balanced logic and emotion. The FL successfully controlled the floor and kept everyone from thinking otherwise.

I pride myself that I'm good at logical arguments, LOL, people around me during my school years kept telling me to become a lawyer. But, the FL? Or, whoever wrote the script? I cannot do that. That was on a whole different level. And this why I saw the beauty of her style. If ever we will need one and she's real, we'll pick her even if we must pay a fortune.

№3. Bystander

This one is very sensitive.

There are reasons why one chooses to be a bystander and the most common is this: pick the battles you can win smoothly.

If the FL intervened, she would have become another target and there's nothing they can do about it. Again, the bully's father is no joke, they holt so much power and influence at the time. The parents even let their daughter bully others. How can you fight a family like that?

So, people choose to be a bystander because they know it is a fight they cannot win. It is not enough to just win, it should be smooth. It you win and later gets bullied outside of the system or through the system, ensuring this time there is no evidence linking the bullies, then there is no worth to winning.

At the same time, it is also wrong not to do anything. By "anything", they should at least give an anonymous tip. If nothing happens out of that tip, then it's out of your hands. You did your part the safest way possible in a serious situation like that.

It's bad if nothing happens, but again, pick the battles you can win smoothly. And in that particular case, school bullying, that's an adult problem and task. If they don't act on an anonymous tip, then the problem is not you, it is the adults and the system they created.

In other words, if there was anything the bullied's schoolmates did wrong, it wasn't so much as being a bystander on the face, i.e. not physically intervening or telling their teachers or parents, it was that no one gave an anonymous tip.

Sure, giving an anonymous tip could also lead to more intense bullying. But at that situation? What more can they do other than what she already experienced? The only thing the bullies can do at that point is to slice her up.

For that particular case, an anonymous tip would not make them bystanders. It will become the problem of the system and society.

Which brings to:

№4. Giving a chance

This was the FL's entire argument: to give her a chance.

Adults failed to protect her.
Society failed to set centres for the bullied.
The system failed to address the issue when it mattered.

So, why should she be condemned as a murderer? And especially in her case when it was in fact two separate cases?

The FL isn't justifying her attempted murder, she simply shed light on the bigger picture because everyone was too focused on a very small part of that big picture.

You cannot will never solve the puzzle and see what it is about if you are only looking at one or two pieces if it. We need to put all the puzzle pieces together, no matter how painful it may become to see and understand the bigger picture, the message that is hidden.

And that message is, in this particular case, a woman crying her heart out for justice and ended up committing attempted murder because it was the only way for her to cope with her PTSD.

It isn't about justifying the criminal act, it is about giving an appropriate punishment for the given circumstances.

Because if she wasn't bullied:

she wouldn't develop PTSD
she wouldn't take medicines which hampered her education
she wouldn't be working as a delivery driver
she wouldn't commit attempted murder
she wouldn't accidentally hit her while driving

Like what their schoolmate said, and what the FL said, she would have been the top student and the one working as an attorney, or even an associate judge.

The bright future she would've had was stolen from her.

So for attempted murder and road accident, it is only very fair that she only receive punishment appropriate for it and not be branded as a murderer, criminal, which would inly lead to less opportunities later on.

What's done is done. Her future was stolen. She committed attempted murder. She hit someone, ironically the exact same person. She was bullied. No one helped her, not even an anonymous tip. And even if there were, the adults didn't act and the system failed her.

There is nothing else, she already paid for the sins of mankind (figuratively speaking) when she didn't ask for it.