is "subpoenaed" even a word?

In high school, I dreamt of a career in litigation. Somewhere between Ally McBeal and Law and Order, I pictured my life a steady stream of challenging cases where, naturally, I'd maintain a strong winning record and make the 40 Under 40. Then came Willamette. A fantastic University with, not-so-coincidentally, a world-renowned Law School. As any overly ambitious Freshman with a pipe dream does, I declared first semester: Political Studies. My future was so bright, I busted out the shades.

Now it may have been the 200 and 300 level classes I insisted on taking in addition to the part-time barista job I needed, student government responsibilities, pledging a sorority, holding down a crazy piano rehearsal schedule to maintain a scholarship, and an admittedly demanding party schedule that, when added to the overwhelming amount of reading I quickly realized it would entail until I was successful enough to have a staff of paralegals to do the research for me, made me realize Law simply wasn't in the cards. At all. And besides, there was a really cute boy in my rhetoric class. Done! Second semester I re-declared: Rhetoric and Media Studies.

Now don't get me wrong--the few classes I took in formulating an argument, the mechanics of a speech and logic have served me well. I can win any discussion-slash-argument with my husband, even if I'm dead wrong. He'll leave the conversation scratching his head, undoubtedly asking himself how 'it' happened...again. Poor guy. But I never got to the classes that covered the actual trial. And I certainly never had need to spell the word subpoena.

And yet yesterday, in the midst of an otherwise normal day of princess tea parties and baby-coos, I was served.

If you've read this blog before, you may recall a post I made a year ago about a girl named Angie. If you need a refresher...

• http://www.katu.com/news/111703314.html
• http://www.kval.com/news/local/123065608.html

This is what the public thinks of her. The Saving Caylee website has a page about her case, as does half a dozen websites that refer to her as a selfish murderer. It may be because I know her as Angie and not Angelica May Swartout, but my opinion differs.

Which is why I'm now a defense witness in an Aggravated Murder Trial. In all honesty, I have no idea whether those words are supposed to be capitalized, but it seems to me they should be given the weight they carry.

So as I'm swimming through my days of tea parties and baby-coos, I am occasionally finding myself thinking about how soon I'll be trading in my princess dress for a suit, and my dress-up heels for something a little more grown up.

Wish her luck, and me some cojones.