The Attorney Client Privilege ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By Dick Eiden

Dick is a poet, attorney, and political activist living in Vista, California. 

The Attorney Client Privilege

It was a great gig representing Tony and his crew,
except the midnight phone calls. "We're having a meet, 
we need our lawyer. Get your sleazy ass down here." 

I don’t care he calls me names, the money is good, 
I got bills, and I think he likes me.  
But I hate the threats. Most lawyers don’t worry 
about their kneecaps, or walking out 
to get the morning paper on the driveway.
I get it - don’t fuck up! You don’t have to remind me.

And the late night phone calls. 
I go to sleep between nine and ten
so getting out of bed and driving down 
to the Bada Bing at 1 a.m. is no fun, 
even when dancers flash titties 
as their lawyer walks by, half-asleep
on the way to the office. 
I keep the hookers out of jail. 
I know their real names.
 
They aren't all hookers of course - 
students, artists, aspiring actresses, 
models. 

So the boys talk some business
and I try not to listen unless they need advice 
about something I don't want to know.
It's all hypothetical, of course, stuff 
you’d never really do, right? 

But if nobody believes that hypothetical shit -
their lawyer was present, Consigliere I guess
they think they can just tell the cops
"my lawyer was present" and that 
will put things to rest. 
We'll see.

                                                                                                                                     April 2018
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