Josiah Graham - Bachelorette 13 - **Sleuthing Spoilers**

I think it is him, also.

Why law?

I grew up in the church where I performed various Bible verse recitals and spoken word. Since a very young age, I knew that I wanted to have a career where I could utilize those oratory skills. However, it wasn't until I started to have brushes with law enforcement where I acquired a sense of passion for criminal justice. When I was 12 years old, I was arrested for a Burglary in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and went through the Broward State Attorney's Office's diversion program in lieu of being prosecuted. When I went through this program, I met a Judge, that, after looking at my grades, pulled me to the side and said, "What the f*** are you doing man!? You're a straight 'A' student and you don't belong here!" Those words had an indelible impact on my life. Ever since that moment, I knew that I wanted to become an attorney and I vowed to align my career path to reach that goal.

What was your biggest challenge in law school?

From elementary school through college, school had always been pretty easy to me. Every single semester I was on some form of Honor Roll or Dean's List without putting forth much effort. School was a piece of cake. I made the mistake of approaching law school with that same lackadaisical approach without fully realizing that everyone around you is either just as smart as you, if not smarter. For the first time in my life I had to actually work hard to excel.

What is the biggest lesson law school taught you?

Law school taught me that hard work truly pays off. In law school, everyone is on an even playing field and enters school with relatively similar undergraduate GPA's and LSAT scores. You are graded on a curve system where you compete with your classmates. In order to exceed in law school, you have to put in countless hours of studying. It is a quite humbling experience.

Describe an experience in legal training/practice you feel is unique to to Black men?

As a criminal attorney, I have the unique perspective of not only having been arrested as a juvenile, but also being a black man working in a system that disproportionately affects other black males. Diversity is crucial in every form of the criminal justice system. From police officers, to judges and most importantly, prosecutors, it is critical to have minorities, particularly African Americans, serving in various capacities. In the office for which I work, there are roughly 230 attorneys, six of whom happen to be black males. Everyone takes their life experiences into their jobs and everything else that they do. So when I am confronted with a set of facts in a case, I find that being who I am and where I am from may give me a certain unique perspective. Not to go off subject, but that is why it is absolutely critical for our judiciary to reflect the community that they serve. In Broward County, one of the most diverse and liberal counties in the country, where Blacks make up about 26% of the population, of the 90 Judges on the bench, only 6 are Black. Six percent is a disturbing figure.

What has been the most rewarding aspect of your legal career thus far?

The most rewarding experience during my legal career has been being able to take part in my office's Expungement Workshop. In Florida, if someone is arrested for a crime that is later dropped or dismissed, that person may be eligible to have that arrest wiped off of their record like it never happened. However, this process can be quite costly because some attorneys charge upwards of thousands of dollars to perform this service. Our office has begun performing this task for free and has serviced about 800 people. Words cannot describe the feeling of witnessing a mother break down into tears after telling her that her decade-old case will no longer haunt her because she qualifies for expungement.

Conversely, what has been the most challenging aspect?

The most challenging aspect of my legal career has been coming to grips with the alarming rates of young Black men making horrible decisions. It's one thing to make a dumb decision at a young age and subsequently learn from it, but everyday I see Black men with so much potential screwing up their lives.  

What advice would you give a young black man wanting to follow in your footsteps?

You can become whatever you want in life and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. However, it takes more than wishful thinking. If you put in the work, anything is possible. Also, don't succumb to negative influences. Once you get to a certain age and your peers suddenly realize that it's not cool to be unintelligent, those same people will begin to look and speak to you differently. Many of my close childhood friends are either now dead, in prison or convicted felons. They all tell me that they wish they would've seized the same opportunities presented to all of us.  

Link

Wow such a great interview! We've just begun to scratch the surface learning about him, but I already have so much admiration for him. I am really looking forward to learn more about him. I hope he goes far.

He might be too smart for his own good going into this show. He is quite impressive and I wish him well.

In addition to Florida State’s team victory, Graham was named Overall Best Advocate for the competition.

http://news.fsu.edu/news/business-law-policy/2014/04/07/black-law-students-association-wins-national-mock-trial-competition/

Great interview. I hope he makes it far so that I can see more of him.

If she doesn't pick him it's 'her loss'. He seems like a gem. I just hope he doesn't let these people manipulate him into acting a fool.

^^^me too! Very inspiring and intelligent. Rachel may have met her match.

He's smart that I think he might get a bad edit like Taylor maybe

He may be smart but if the chemistry is not there and she is not feeling it she is to let him go. It's 30 and 29 will be going home alone. IMHO

I am happy that her casts are older and have real jobs. Seems like tptb made an effort to cast specifically for her.

ETA: Gosh, i hope he does not get a bad edit. He is an assistant state attorney making an effort to impact change in his community

reason wrote:He may be smart but if the chemistry is not there and she is not feeling it she is to let him go.  It's 30 and 29 will be going home alone. IMHO

Unless, like Rachel, he is targeted as the next lead and she has to drag him along to the end. I might be able to live with that!

@sprite I can get behind that thinking.