Letter from America – Poppy Mulligan on her criminal law journey

Poppy Mulligan

Masters at Cornell University

Cornell Law School surpassed all of my expectations. I was nervous to come into an Ivy League environment for many reasons, but the most significant was that I knew that Cornell sculpted and cultivated some of the most talented students in America. Truthfully, this intimidated me and I wasn’t sure if I could keep up. Upon reflection, I think I was out of my depth but I’m so grateful that was the case. I was surrounded by some of the most talented young lawyers from around the globe and they inspired me to work harder, think bigger and compete in my own way.

I was afforded some incredible opportunities throughout my year at the university. Most notably, I travelled to Johannesburg, South Africa to research a paper on whether the death penalty in Sub-Saharan Africa was a colonial construct. However, the reason I came to Cornell, and my overarching goal, was to fight for a place in the highly competitive Cornell Capital Punishment Clinic. A clinic is an opportunity for students to work for real clients and assist legal teams working on their cases in exchange for the credit of a law school course.

I knew that I was at a distinct disadvantage because I was an international student and therefore had less experience than the American J.D (Juris Doctor) students that I was competing with. To counteract this, I enrolled in the classes taught by the professors who organized this clinic to try and showcase myself. Specifically, one of the professors instructed the trial advocacy course and I knew that litigation was one of my strengths.

Over my first semester I worked hard in my classes, annoyed my professors with questions about the clinic at every mixer and finally was accepted into the clinic during my second semester. This experience challenged the boundaries of my work ethic. I studied hard throughout my masters and I was no stranger to a 4am library session to prepare for a class, but the clinical work brought a different kind of pressure and motivation to my studies. I was no longer working for my grade or to impress a professor. I was working for someone who was sitting in a cell day in and day out. Suddenly working throughout the night to finish a motion for the court or compiling and summarizing trial transcripts didn’t feel like a burden to complain about amongst my peers. It was a responsibility that I recognized and treasured.

Death row

The first time that I looked a death row inmate in the eye, I calmly shook his hand and felt a wave of empathy crush me. This man was a shell of what I can only imagine he was before he was incarcerated years prior. He was quiet, soft-spoken, and juvenile in his speech and descriptions. He was self-contained, impressionable and all I could think was, how could he possibly be capable of committing the crimes that he was accused of.

I share this anecdote not to project a belief about this particular persons guilt or innocence, but merely to explain that regardless of culpability, this was a person who was suffering and needed help. Help that we were able and willing to give. When I say that I aspire to defend death row inmates I am met with two reactions: one of sadistic interest – every detail itching to be disclosed and the gruesome crimes are begged to be unpacked or I am met with a disgruntled face and an expression of moral indignation against my choice.

The reason why I aspire to work in this particular area of ethically challenging and intense criminal defence work is hard to put into words. There are many attorneys and academics far more qualified and experienced than me who have explained more eloquently why this work is so important. The traditional answer is that every person deserves a defence and those who work as criminal defence attorneys challenge the justice system to ensure that the rule of law is upheld and personal liberties are protected.

It’s challenging to articulate why I personally want to do this work but all I can say is that right now, it’s just a feeling. It was the feeling of empathy I had the first day I walked into death row. I saw the conditions, I saw the people locked up in cages and I knew in that moment that if I was one of the few people emotionally capable of doing this work, I needed to do it because these inmates need anyone and everyone they can get.

One of the driving forces for me is that when you work on a death row case you unpack someone’s life from birth to the present. You know every turn they made, the impressions people had of them along the way and you build up a picture of this human being. When you unpack a life with that level of detail you see the circumstances these people were born into. You see the lack of opportunity and support during their development. Additionally, the majority of inmates suffer from severe mental illness or intellectual disability.

These hardships are not offered to excuse the crimes that may or may not have committed but it does contextualise these people’s situations. I believe no one is born evil which I understand is a controversial belief but I stand by it. These are people who started off just like you and me. After my experience at the Legal Aid Society so boldly forced me to confront my privileges, this thinking filtered through into the defence of these incarcerated individuals. I always stop and think: this could have been me or any one of the people I love and value if we were placed in these circumstances and with these debilitating struggles.

After this experience, I secured a fellowship with a capital defence firm based in South Carolina and I am currently working for them remotely. After I complete the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice in March 2019 I will be heading out to South Carolina to continue to work for inmates incarcerated on death row. I am humbled by this opportunity and excited to devote this year to assisting these individuals in any way that I can.

After my fellowship is complete next summer, I will be joining Pinsent Masons as a trainee beginning in 2019. I am excited to explore the new opportunities that a firm of this size and international reach can offer me. In the long term, I would like to explore working in America but I am open to any and all opportunities that may come my way.