Minor female: The lawyer lady there told me to just tell my story and how bad everything was. She said that everyone would listen closely to what happened and how hurt I am. So, here goes.

Everyone calls him the defendant. But Tom was my lover and I was his lover. I spent most of my summer trying to get him to let me be with him. He didn’t entice me. I fell in love with him the day he moved in across the street. When school started, I was afraid that I would never be with him. But that day when I skipped, I didn’t knock. He didn’t entice me. I simply walked in and surprised him. Yes, we had sex. Well, sort of. We did some sex things together. He took my clothes off and I took his clothes off. I was on his…

Prosecution: Objection!

Minor female: Wait! This is my court time, right? Didn’t you say that? Your Honor, don’t I get to say what I want?

Court: Proceed.

Minor female: So we made love in his bed because I wanted him. I was wanting him all summer. He kept saying that what I wanted was illegal and dangerous. I don’t care. I’m me. I’m a girl and I love him. I had to make him be illegal with me. It was me, not him. I was with him that first day, and many times later because we were lovers. He and I were being illegal together because we love each other. Even now.

I know we broke the law. What I don’t understand is why he has to go to jail but I don’t. Just because I’m 12 doesn’t mean that I don’t know what illegal is. We both broke the law. For that matter, why is it illegal for me to love him? Or him to love me? Why is love illegal? Just because you’re the cops and you’re the lawyer, and you’re the judge, does that make it that you all are legal and I am not? Why can’t I be a private person and love who I want? Why do I have to go to school even when I don’t want to? Why is it that liberty and justice for all does not include him? Or me? What is so wrong and illegal if he puts his…

Prosecution: Your Honor! This cannot continue in this manner.

Court: Young lady, you have the right to address this court to give your victim impact statement. However, you must refrain from socially offensive speech. Your statement must…

Minor female: Is what I want to say offensive? Why? Isn’t sex a natural thing? Why are social people so against it?

Court: We are a society of rules. These rules are called laws and we all agree to obey them. Children must go to school because that is how society works. It is an efficient way to grow children into law abiding adults. What the defendant… what Tom did was to break some of those rules and must be punished. I am the one who decides how to punish him. But I, too, must follow rules that are created for people in my position. One of those rules that I must follow is to listen to you and try to understand how you were hurt. But I am not going to…

Minor female: Who says I was hurt? By Tom? Never. By the cops? By the lawyer lady? By you? How do you decide that I am hurt when I say that I am not?

Court: Fine, then. You were not hurt. But when you explain your feelings, our society… the cops, the lady prosecutor, and even me… we don’t need to hear private things such as you wish to drag into public view. If you wish to illustrate how you were hurt, then please do so without being so graphic. Do you understand what being graphic means?

Minor female: Okay then. How I was hurt. The cops broke his door in and scared the sh… scared me very much. They threw Tom onto the floor and bloodied his face. I saw that which hurt me more than anything I’ve ever seen in my life. That’s the first hurt I have. Then the cops pushed me into a chair and put a blanket on me and I was so scared that my face was going to get smashed like his that I peed on the blanket. They made me sit there in my embarrassing. That was hurt number two. They took me to the police station and called my Mom. When she got there, she began screaming at everyone which scared me more. Hurt number three. I had to make a recording and take some pictures that I never wanted to do. I had to talk about graphical things that I really didn’t want to talk about with anyone except Tom. It wasn’t too much a hurt but I just wanted to go home. Then I had to go to the hospital where they… well, I don’t want to be graphical, but they did some things to me with q-tips which is hurt number four. When we did go home, Mom screamed at me for skipping school because the damned… because the cops told on me. That’s hurt number five. Later, I had to leave school and talk to the lady lawyer. That was a good thing because I got out of school. Good thing number one. Finally, yesterday, the lady lawyer and Tom’s lawyer all yammered about private person things that he and I did. Your Honor, how would you feel if you and your husband had some lady lawyer describe what you and Mr. Judge do in bed?

There’s more hurt, though, Your Honor. You are going to put Tom in jail. You are taking away my lover from me. I will never see him again. Never. He might die in your prisons from bad guys you put in there. And that, Your Honor, is the worse hurt you can do to me.

You said that we are a society of rules we call laws. You, the cops, the lady lawyer and my Mom all agree to obey them. And me, I agree to obey most of them. But I do not agree to any of your laws that stop me from sex with anyone I love. Your laws are wrong because it’s not liberty and justice for me. It’s not liberty and justice for Tom. You say that Tom hurt me. He did not. You have. You are hurting me now. And taking Tom to prison to die is hurting him. It’s your witness, counselor.

Court: Miss Ortega, this is not a cross examination. We are simply here to listen to your victim impact statement which is well taken by this court and will be consider carefully. But a law has been broken and some sort of punishment is required. If you are finished, you may step down.

Sentencing will be scheduled for…. January 10th. We are adjourned.