#i hold nothing but contempt for our court system but that's beside the point

[arctic-hands]

Doubly glad my number wasn't called for jury duty today because my period started and I'm so bloated I wouldn't have been able to button up my one Professional Shirt and I don't know what I would have worn to not get me held in contempt of court

[funniesandboxes]

Even though he's a cop, Nick still experiences speciesism.

Oh what is this lovely present the angst angles have blessed me with.

—-

It had always been there.  Existing in the background the whole time.  Nick was well aware of for it.

From the whispers at the academy from those he did better then, to strained smiles by more senior offers.  To the carefully worded reporting in articles and news casts, and the masked dirty looks officers from internal affairs give him time to time.

It was always going to be there.  Becoming the first fox officer on ZPD was not going to change.  Ever.  It guest meant everyone was a little more tight lipped in the face of progress.

But it was always background noise.  

Or at least it had been.

“Your honor, I ask that evidence against my client that was handled by Officer Wilde, be removed from the case.”  The defense attorney declared, after asking Nick three questions about the case.

“Objection!”  The DA snapped, bolting up from their seat.  “Grounds for such a demand.”

“On the grounds that Officer Wilde, tampered or planted evidence against my client.”

“What?” Nick snapped in his seat at the stand.  His eyes wide in shock, and a feeling of dread coiling in stomach.  

He should have known something like this might be coming after the defense lawyer’s questions.  He’d been in the conning game enough to know what game the other lawyer was getting at.

“Your honor!”  The DA pleaded out.  “That is an outrageous claim.”

“Officer Wilde has been reported to Internal Affairs twenty time within the last month and half.”  The defense lawyer argued back.

“All of which have been thrown out, or found not to be true, repeatedly.” The DA returned angry.  “Officer Wilde is not on trail here, Councilor, nor is his character.”

“Enough!”  The judge roared loudly.  

The whole court room fell quiet in the instant.  Nick watched as the judge looked between the two lawyers as the considered their points.  They glanced and Nick breifly as Nick tried to make himself small under the glares of the jury.

“Granted,”  The judge said firmly with a beat of their gavel.  “Evidence found or handled by Officer Wilde, will be removed form the case immediately.”

The world stopped, the outrage and arguing in the room muffled into nothing and Nick’s blood ran could.

–

“It’s no big deal,” Judy assured Nick outside the courtroom. “The DA can still nail this guy.”

The waver of doubt in her voice does not go unnoticed, as it was there case, and there was barely anything Nick had handled that the DA could use.  Their suspect was going to walk.  All because he was a fox and a judge let that be reason enough.

“Happens to the best of us,”  Wolford stated easily.

Nick glanced up at the wolf, who was doing his best to make it seem like it happened every day.  Like it was some badge of honor everyone had.  But everyone knew that was lie.

“It’s just one case, Nick.”  Del Gato points out.

–

It is not just one case.

It was pawful after pawful.  The move spread like wild fire as a completely valid excuse to just toss everything out the window.  Defense lawyers had field days when every they saw Nick’s name in the file.  Wasting no time wave that get out of jail free card for their client.

Nick just knows it’s going to happen every time he enters the courtroom to find the defense attorney gleaming at him.  And it hurts every time a judge let’s it stand, because it was allowed in x, y, and z case.

–

Nick stopped handling evidence in attempt to stop the courtroom madness.  As much as he possibly could, at least. He made sure to never been left alone with anything, or made sure someone was constantly watching him if he had too.  

It was a plan he suggest to Bogo.  One the buffalo begrudgingly agreed to.  Really, the cape buffalo made it seem like his horns were being ripped from his head before agreeing, because it beat the alternative.

Every officer who knows the fox, has their objections.  Judy of course being the loudest among them, the whole issue get’s her worked up.  But Nick know’s it’s all unavoidable, had been since the day he was born, he was use to it. 

Still despite their objection, they all knew it was the right course of action.

–

It doesn’t stop suspects from grinning widely when Nick arrest them.  Does stop them from basically sing about how they were going to walk.  All of it thanks to the “fox copper”.

–

“Maybe I should just quiet.”  Nick mused out loud late one night.

“Nick! No!” Judy snapped in return.  Her chair squealed in protest as she turned to look at the fox.

“It would be a lot better for everyone.”  Nick argued sharply.  

Snarling at thought of how true it would be.  No more suspects walking because he was simply there.  An untrustworthy, shifty fox tampering everything by simply existing.  It’s all nearing a breaking point, and something has to give, and Nick is quiet sure it’s not going to be the system.

“It won’t help the fox kit we meet the other day, who wanted to be just like you,”  Judy countered easily after a moment.  “Won’t help any of the fox victims the actually talk to use because your a fox.  You’re need here more than ever.  Besides I would have have a partner.”

Leave it to Judy to never been wrong, or talk him in or our of things.

“Aah, I hate it when you make a point,”  Nick grumbled with a smile pulling at his lips.  

The rabbit turned away happily.

–

It’s almost become a routine.  

Nick get’s called to the stand.  The DA asks Nick their questions, as detailed as they can get, cover the most ground before the defense has a go.  Then the defense goes, and if they hadn’t already thrown something out, they’d ask a few standard questions, then go for what they could get thrown out.  Sometimes the judge would think, sometimes they would just agree right away.  The DA would sigh, and Nick accept it.

“Your motion is denied, councilor.”  The judge said with a sharp bang of her grovel.

Nick turned sharply at the words, looking at the judge like she said aliens were invading.  A gasp from the crowd followed as well.  Nick turned back was staring at the judge as well in amazement.

“Your honor,” The defense started, ready to list their reasoning.

“Denied, councilor.”  The judge repeated firmly.  “I will not let speciesest motions like that stand in my court room.  Try another like that against Officer Wilde, or anyone else and I’ll hold you in contempt.”  The judge growled out.  “Now, are you finished with the witness.”

The defense stood their blinking for a moment, before fumbling to collect themselves.  “Yes, your honor.”

“Thank you, Officer Wilde,”  The judge said pleasantly as she turned towards Nick.  “You can return to your seat.”

Nick was in such a daze he was later amazed he walked back to his seat next to Judy without falling over.

After that, Nick handling evidence was no longer a problem.

—-

AN:  I had to go with a happish ending for this.  But yeah!