by Alina Bootwala
Friday, June 3, 2025
I got my first ever client! Like, a real-life client in the flesh. So far working for the Department of Justice and Correctional Services of the Cree Nation Government has involved research and training to become a certified Gladue report writer. I have yet to do an actual Gladue report for a real, living, breathing client. I’m excited but nervous.
Monday, June 9, 2025
Hi, I’m back! After lots of back-and-forth, calls and emails, I finally got through to the right person. I still don’t understand why they couldn’t just give me an appointment over the phone. It really reflects the bureaucratic hurdles you have to go through when contacting someone in a detention facility.
Unfortunately, I’ll have to conduct the interview over a video call because of scheduling constraints. I was really hoping to do it in person. I can’t imagine what it must feel like to unearth all your life traumas to someone you’ve never met, especially through a screen.
Wednesday, June 11, 2025
I finally got a time slot with the prison to conduct my first interview!
Thursday, June 12, 2025
Another little update, I’m preparing my questions to ask my client, and I feel dismal. How do I even begin to ask him such personal questions? It feels almost wrong to pry into someone’s life like this.
Friday, June 13, 2025
TODAY IS MY 25TH BIRTHDAY. My frontal lobe is now fully developed, so today is the perfect day to conduct a Gladue interview. I’m sweating bullets. I just hope I remember to ask everything I’m supposed to. What if I miss something important? What if he doesn’t feel like opening up to me?
Oh, also I’m in Toronto, visiting Eunice with Silvia and Lucie. Honestly, I can’t imagine doing law school without them. There’s nothing like meeting friends who change the course of your life for the better. I’m truly blessed. Omg, the cameras for the interview just turned on.
20 mins later
I’ve been sitting here in front of my computer, staring into a small, empty space. This feels so wrong. Am I even supposed to be here? I know I received the training, but shouldn’t someone have a background in psychology or social work to do this?
What if I re-traumatize him? What if I phrase something incorrectly or speak in the wrong tone? What if he doesn’t want to talk about his life’s trauma in this cold, barren-looking room?
He doesn’t even get to choose when he talks about his own life; it has to be scheduled by the detention facility.
I’m starting to feel this heavy sense of dread. The reason I went to law school was to help people. But am I actually helping right now?
Okay. Breathe. He’s here. I’ll update you once I’m done.
Same day right after the interview
Alina, that was intense, what the hell just happened, and what did I just hear? Man, that entire process was so draining, and I’m sure he feels even worse than I do. I don’t even know if I got all the information I need. Sigh. I feel so lucky to have been dealt the cards I have. So many of the outcomes in our lives depend on the parents we have, the people who influence us, and the circumstances we’re born into. We like to believe our actions are the reason for our success, but so much of it is shaped by factors beyond our control. I don’t have the most experience with legal work, but I doubt it gets any more real, tangible, or personal than going through the process of writing a Gladue report.
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
I’m back from the dead, kicking and alive. I transcribed the interview, and honestly, that was worse than conducting it. Also, by worse, I mean emotionally difficult. It’s not like writing a research paper or a legal memo, where you’re mostly emotionally detached. This is a completely different experience. As I listened to the recording, I could feel my heart sinking, a wave of dread and even guilt washed over me.
Today, I have my secondary interview with my client’s great-uncle.
One hour later
Somehow, this has left me feeling even worse than when I interviewed my client. He told me so much about the family and their history, and now I truly understand how my client ended up where he did. Criminal offences don’t happen in silos. Most people don’t just wake up one day and decide to commit an offense, it’s the result of a society that has stripped people of their culture, values, land, and identity.
Some people think, Oh, they should just stop drinking or doing drugs, as if it’s a simple choice people can just make? That kind of rhetoric, one I’ve heard far too often, completely ignores the internal battles and external factors, which lead to addiction. If I were dealt the same cards, would I have made different choices? Would I have been able to escape it? There’s only so much we can attribute to individual agency and personal choice. Larger systemic forces have made it so that choosing a path toward healing and success is often the one of greatest resistance. Gladue reports aim to shed light on this. Although Gladue reports are not a perfect method, they center the individual’s life story within the legal process and add a much-needed layer of humanity, something the legal profession as a whole could benefit from.
Thursday, June 19, 2025
I transcribed the interview today, and this one was even harder than the last. I ended up calling last year’s intern to ask if there was something wrong with me. Why was it taking me forever to transcribe these interviews? Maybe I didn’t have thick enough skin for this? Turns out, I’m just human. I almost forgot there for a moment. Last year’s intern was really sympathetic and assured me that it was equally emotionally taxing for her.
Friday, June 20, 2025
Something amazing happened during my interview with my client’s great-aunt: I discovered something positive about his life. I had really started to feel like everything was just doom and gloom, so finding something hopeful in my client’s life felt like a breath of fresh air.
Friday, June 27, 2025
I spent the week writing the report, and it’s officially done! I did have to re-interview my client because I initially overlooked the section about his attitudes toward the offence. I had been so focused on gathering his life story, family history, and connection to Cree culture, that I felt hesitant to bring up the offence itself. I was also afraid of accidentally making the interview all about the offence, and I felt a sense of discomfort asking him about it. Then the video call abruptly ended due to the timer, and I thought maybe I could piece together his perspective from the information I already had and the indirect questions I’d asked.
Turns out, there’s no way to sugar-coat it. Sometimes you just have to ask the uncomfortable questions to the best of your ability. My supervisor told me I needed to schedule another interview, and to my relief, he was very patient and understanding. Throughout the process, he’s been consistently kind and responsive. I’ve been messaging and calling him to keep him updated on everything that transpired. In the end, I managed to schedule another interview and got the remaining information I needed.
Monday, June 30, 2025
The lawyer representing my Gladue client is incredibly kind. I called him over the phone because the name of the prosecution listed on the file was outdated, and he had already forwarded it to the current prosecution lawyer on the case. While I was on the phone he also said, and I quote, “You did a great job on the report. I can see the effort you put in and your work will make a difference in the sentence the court ultimately imposes”.
I may or may not have squealed with happiness.
Later, my supervisor told me that this level of kindness and responsiveness from defense counsel is rare. Needless to say, I felt blessed.
Although my experience began with a wild goose chase it ended on a positive note.