2009.06.25
For many summers interns have helped Commonwealth's Attorney
Jill Deegan,John Alexander, Joel Branscom, Bryan Alphin, Meghan Spellman and Hillary Griffith in the Botetourt County Commonwealth Attorney's office.
Since his election in the mid 90s Commonwealth's Attorney Joel Branscom has used interns at the office both during the school year from law school students at Washington and Lee University and college students during the summer. Hillary Griffith, Assistant Commonwealths Attorney said, "I was an intern in the Botetourt office in 1997." Branscom interned with Roanoke Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell during his college years.
Last summer Meghan Spellman of Blue Ridge, who is a rising senior at Virginia Commonwealth University in print journalism, served as an intern and this summer Bryan Alphin of Buchanan a rising senior at William and Mary majoring in Government is interning this summer. Spellman plans to go into intellectual law in the future and Alphin may go into the political arena. Last summer he interned at the office of former Senator John Warner.
The interns sit in on circuit court cases, have ridden along with law enforcement, she with the state police and he with a deputy sheriff, but their summers have been different. Branscom had a high profile case last summer with the death of a young man who was an aid to Sen. Webb. She also sat in on an autopsy. She went to Roanoke Courts and spent time with Branscom's mentor and Botetourt native Don Caldwell, the Roanoke City Commonwealth 's Attorney. She also shadowed Ann Gardner, Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney in Allegheny County.
Alphin has had a quieter summer thus far, but has been to interesting cases in drug enforcement and other legal matters in Botetourt County Circuit Court, he has also been to a Salem hit and run trial and spoken with Judge Clifford Weckstein. He has been to federal court in downtown Roanoke as well. Bransom is working as a special prosecutor on a south side case so Alphin has been assisting in that arena.
Spellman explained, "It's never a dull moment when people are involved."
Alphin remarked, "I enjoy this a alot and I have been able to see how the judicial system works in Botetourt and the Roanoke Valley."
RSS feed 