A trial was currently taking place in a cozy courtroom in the state of Nebraska, and the prosecution was just about ready to call his first witness to the stand. He approached an elderly woman named Mrs. Williams with a look that was authoritative but curious at the same time.
“Mrs. Williams,” he started out by saying, “do you know who I am?” The question lingered in the air, waiting for a response from her.
Mrs. Williams kept her cool and smiled knowingly at the prosecution as she continued to look at him. She calmly replied, “Of course, I know who you are, Mr. Rawley,” indicating that she was familiar with her interlocutor. “I have known you ever since you were a young toddler. You are, to put it bluntly, not what I expected. You are a liar, you have cheated on your wife, you manipulate others, and you gossip about other people behind their backs. You think you’re some kind of big shot, but if you had half a brain, you’d see that you’ll never amount to anything more than a mediocre pencil-pusher. You’ll never rise above your station. Oh, yes, I do recognize you, all right.”
The prosecutor’s mouth fell open in shock when he heard the news. He was taken aback by Mrs. Williams’s frank and critical judgment, which he had not anticipated. He swiftly pointed across the room to Mrs. Williams and asked, “Mrs. Williams, do you know who the defense attorney is?” He was looking for a way to recover control of the situation.
Mrs. Williams showed no sign of being shaken, and she turned her penetrating stare to the defense attorney, Mr. Carbuncle. “Of course, I do,” was her unhesitating response to my question. Since he was a young boy, I have known Mr. Carbuncle. He is a slob and a bigot who abuses alcohol and has a problem with it. In addition to the fact that he is one of the worst lawyers in the county, he is unable to keep up regular relationships with anyone. On top of that, he had an affair with three separate women while he was married, one of which was your wife. He cheated on his wife. Absolutely, I am well aware of who he is.
The discoveries made by Mrs. Williams gave the defense counsel, Mr. Carbuncle, the appearance of being on the verge of collapsing from the shock. Because the judge could tell that the atmosphere in the courtroom was tense, she commanded both the prosecution and the defense attorney to approach the bench for a hushed discussion.
“If either of you brats dares to ask Mrs. Williams if she knows who I am, then I’ll have no choice but to put both of you behind bars for life!” the judge warned in a quiet but agitated voice.