GONE LAY DOWN

GONE LAY DOWN A client with some municipal warrants came to my law office a few years ago. He said he should "gone lay down," meaning go to jail, to clean up his petty "criminal" record. After I told him that municipal violations were not then "crimes" under Missouri law, he perked up. His "gone lay down" metaphor morphed into a "let's beat this stuff" resolution that contrasted sharply with his earlier despondency. We did beat all that stuff, by making a deal, and his record was cleared. Just goes to show that a little exact knowledge at the right time can energize, even the catatonic who would ordinarily "gone lay down."