Today's Enjoyment:

• Reel of the Day: The importance of letting go…

• Trending Loveable Stories: 

  • Defendant Turns Tables on Judge

  • 87-Yr-Old Fights Intruder Then Feeds Him

• Quote: “He who has felt the deepest grief…”

Reel of the Day 📽️

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Defendant Turns Tables on Judge

Let's dive into the remarkable journey of Sarah Gad, a woman who refused to let her past define her future. She's a shining example of resilience and determination, transforming from a drug addict and convict to a successful attorney.

Sarah Gad's story is one of transformation and redemption.

Once trapped in the clutches of drug addiction and the prison system, she chose to rewrite her life's script by pursuing a career in law. Today, she stands tall as an attorney, guiding others toward their own success stories.

One such tale is that of Ben Richardson, who walked free from the Hennepin County Jail after his murder charges were dismissed. This marked a significant triumph not just for Richardson, but also for Gad, as it was her first murder case.

Recalling the judge's words, Gad said, "The judge was convinced that he was innocent. There was no case against him."

However, Gad's path to becoming an attorney was strewn with obstacles.

A car accident in 2012 led her down the dark path of opioid addiction, resulting in seven non-violent felony drug convictions between 2012 and 2015. She served time in jails across Pennsylvania, Hennepin County, and Cook County.

Her stint in Cook County Jail, which she refers to as "27 days in hell," was especially distressing. But it was here that she crossed paths with Kathleen Zellner, a renowned attorney who stood by Gad and offered her a position at her law firm.

Working alongside Zellner proved to be a game-changer for Gad.

She found the work fulfilling and was motivated to attend law school after assisting in proving the wrongful conviction of a man named Mario Casciaro. She secured a place at the esteemed University of Chicago Law School, funded by a settlement she received from Cook County. Yet, she had to confront a Hennepin County judge who held the power to send her back to prison.

Recalling the judge's decision, Gad said, "The judge gave me the benefit of the doubt because I got into law school. I started law school wearing an ankle monitor."

Gad's journey culminated in her graduation in 2020, and she received her license to practice law in August 2022. Her encounters with the criminal justice system, jails, and addiction have all shaped her into the attorney she is today.

In just one year, she has managed 21 cases, none of which have gone to trial.

Her transformation was recognized by attorney Kathleen Zellner, who said, "I saw her potential to make a significant impact on society and guided her in that direction. She has evolved from a criminal defendant to a defender of the legally oppressed. All she needed was a second chance."

(Click here to watch the full story)

WOW

87-Yr-Old Fights Intruder Then Feeds Him

Marjorie Perkins, an 87-year-old woman from Brunswick, bravely fought off a home intruder last week.

The intruder? A teenager who broke into her home in the middle of the night, threatened to stab her, then attacked her. Perkins was asleep when she woke to find the teenager standing over her.

"He said, 'I’m going to cut you,'" Perkins recalled. "I thought to myself, 'If he’s going to cut, I’m going to kick.' So I jumped into my shoes."

Perkins described how the teenager started hitting her, and she used a chair as a shield.

"I was hollering for help out the window. … Thank God I had the chair between us. It would’ve been worse," she said.

Despite her cries for help, no one heard her, and the teenager continued to attack, punching her forehead and causing a bruise. Perkins fought back, kicking at him and using the chair to push him away.

Eventually, the teenager grew tired and went to the kitchen.

He had broken in by moving the side panel of an air conditioner and squeezing through the gap. Perkins had locked her front door before going to bed.

"I kept saying, 'You need to get out. You need help,'" she said. "He said he was awfully hungry and hadn’t had anything to eat for quite a while. And I said, 'Well, here’s a box of peanut butter and honey crackers. You can have that whole box.' I gave him two containers of Ensure and I gave him two tangerines."

While the teenager was eating, Perkins quickly dialed 911 on her rotary phone.

The teenager left before the police arrived, but a police dog tracked him down a few blocks away. He was taken into custody and faces charges including burglary, criminal threatening, assault, and consuming liquor as a minor.

Perkins revealed that the teenager had mowed her lawn about ten years ago.

"He did a darn good job," she said*. "I hope he gets help."*

After the attack, Perkins had a worker reinforce her air conditioner with screws to prevent another break-in and urged others to do the same.

(Click here to read the full story)

Quote of the Day 💭

On This Day In History…🗿

Did you know on this day in 1693, the French monk Dom Pérignon allegedly invented Champagne? It’s also when he supposedly uttered the now iconic one-liner, “Come quickly, I am drinking the stars!”

Fast-forward to a little over 300 years later in 2007, and the U.S. space probe Phoenix just launched, likely while people were toasting with champagne. It landed on Mars just a year later and one of its most notable discoveries was the existence of water in the form of ice underneath the planet's surface.

Notable Birthdays

• 1900 - Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was born to Claude Bowes-Lyon, Lord Glamis (later 14th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne in the Peerage of Scotland), and his wife Cecilia (née Cavendish-Bentinck). You might know her as Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother.

• 1901 - Louis Armstrong was born and raised by his mother Mayann in New Orleans, Louisiana on a street known as “The Battlefield”- a moniker reflecting just how dangerous it was at the time. Armstrong only acquired a 5th-grade education. He dropped out of school early to go to work. It was “an early job working for the Jewish Karnofsky family that allowed Armstrong to make enough money to purchase his first cornet.”

• 1961 - Barack Hussein Obama II was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to father Barack H. Obama, Sr., and mother Stanley Ann Dunham. He became a state senator for Illinois in 1996 and quickly rose to become President Barack Obama just 12 years later. On November 4th, 2008, he was elected to serve as the first African-American President of the United States.

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Can You Spot The Cat?

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