Book Excerpt from Chapter 1 “Find Strength in Yourself.”

“When the video ended, there was silence in the courtroom. Everyone in the room was dumbfounded by what we had just seen; everyone except the defendant herself. She stood there, head held high, smiling and looking as proud as an Oscar nominee who had just watched a clip from her nominated film.

I looked the defendant in the eyes and asked her, “Do you feel good now?” She smiled as if to say yes. I looked at her again and said, “How embarrassing.” The tough-girl facade suddenly melted. She looked back at me with tears in her eyes and an expression of shame on her face. I felt for her because I felt shame too. Here was this bright, beautiful woman who did a really stupid thing that stole her strength and identity as a woman”