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This website is dedicated to the memory of Jimmy Robinson. I first met
Jimmy back in 1977 when I was still a young lawyer. I had been appointed
by the local superior court to defend his mother, who was charged with first
degree murder for shooting his stepfather. She had entered a plea of self defense.
Jan had been a single mother of three boys when she met Virgil Hornbuckle.
Although they shared a love of camping and the outdoors, Virgil's alcoholism
gradually got the best of him. He was a big man, and when he got drunk he got
angry, and when he got angry he used Jan as his punching bag. One night when
Virgil came home drunk and stoned he was particularly belligerent.
They lived in a double wide with the master bedroom at one end and two small
bedrooms at the other. That night when Virgil started beating her, Jan ran from
the master bedroom through the trailer to Jimmy's room. She threw open the door
and saw him sitting on his bed, holding a shotgun, trying to decide whether he
should use it to protect his mom. The image drove home what the violence was
putting Jimmy through, and she grabbed the shotgun, ran back to the master bedroom,
and shot Virgil in the groin. The buck shot severed the main artery pumping blood
down his leg, and Virgil bled to death before the ambulance could arrive.
At trial I called a series of witnesses, well-known locals who could testify about
Jan's good character and reputation for honesty. And sandwiched between each character
witnesses I called an owner of one of the local taverns to testify that Virgil had a
reputation for violence when intoxicated and that they had each barred him from their
establishments because of his belligerence.
The surprise witness was Mrs. Ada Hornbuckle. The big doors in the back of the
courtroom opened gingerly and a little white haired lady slowly made her way down
the aisle. When she settled down into witness chair, I began by asking her, "I can't
help but notice that your name is the same as Jan's, are you related?" "Yes," she
replied, "I'm her mother-in-law, Virgil's mother." "And why are you here?"
"Well, I have always known that Virgil got violent when he
drank, and I knew that eventually someone was going to kill him
in self defense. I'm sorry it had to be Jan."
But calling the victim's mother to testify on Jan's behalf was not the highlight of
the trial. The best witness was Jimmy Robinson, who was 16 at the time. The jury
loved him. He took the stand in his letterman's jacket. He was every mother's
dream -- good looking, polite, an honor student, student body president, and an all
state wrestler. He was the reason Jan had not left Virgil. She wanted to make sure
that Jimmy had the opportunity to graduate from high school before they went on the
run, because she knew Virgil would follow them.
The jury returned a verdict of not guilty.
I work hard for my clients, and I throw my heart into their cases, but I'm no hero.
Jimmy Robinson thought I was a hero. He thought I'd saved his mother's life. And he
decided to become a lawyer -- just like me.
Jimmy graduated the next summer, and for a graduation present, Jan let Jimmy and a
friend travel to Reno, for the Nevada State Fair. They were standing in a crowd when
a drunk driver lost control and crashed through the crowd, killing the boy who wanted
to grow up to be just like me.
I don't get to be a hero very often. This website is dedicated to the memory of
Jimmy Robinson.
Dean Brett
