Character of Counsel
In the past year, the FTC has tried to bury us with unreasonable deadlines and burdensome paperwork, to the point where our lawyers had to work through holidays, weekends, and even acute illness. One said he never saw anything like it! But Jim Turner obligingly labored along, pushing us as need be, laying stone upon stone to build our case, always giving credit where it was due (as in crediting co-counsel on documents). He went out of his way to appease the FTC lawyers and judge, never complaining or asking for time extensions. He strove to be beyond rebuke for our sakes. He and Betsy encouraged us, during the times we were exasperated to the point of saying "no more!" They proved to be true counselors, giving us comfort and hope when we needed it most.

At the deposition we were inconveniently dragged to in NY, Attorney Turner treated the FTC lawyers with the utmost respect, despite his 30 + years seniority and obvious experience over them. He did not react to the rudeness of the lead FTC attorney. He remained kind and courteous, and chose not to object much at all to their line of questioning (though he could have, he chose not to play that game).

 
His has been a long and successful career, one of personal outstanding accomplishments, a fact most likely unknown or at least certainly unrecognized by the FTC. While they proudly flaunted their position as Complaint Counsel, Mr. Turner's demeanor was humble, as was that of our other lawyers there, Chris and Betsy.  
This we saw again in court: the genteel, gentle giant of a man, sitting quietly or standing hands behind his back, while the FTC lawyers dramatically flapped about, mockingly condemning us with all their might. The judge even reminded the lead FTC lawyer that there was no jury to perform for! As to patience, early on in the litigation process, God brought my attention to Ecclesiastes, Chapter 8, verses 3-6, beside which I wrote the name Jim Turner:
"Do not be in a hurry to leave the king's presence. Do not stand up for a bad cause, for he will do whatever he pleases. . . Whoever obeys his command will come to no harm; the wise heart will know the proper time and procedure. For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, though a man's misery weighs heavily on him."
 Strangely, it turned out to be the FTC lawyer that rushed the court proceedings, fled the courtroom as soon as he could, and exasperated the judge. (If it was a fair fight, our team would have won on every count, rather than lose on every point!)

 
The FTC never listened to our witnesses. From day one, Jim Turner listened to our testimonies with care and compassion, beginning with my personal story about my mother (soon to be posted). I had written and emailed it to him, simply entitled A Personal Story, hardly daring to hope that he would have or take the time to read it. He valued it, and used it as part of our initial response to the FTC. . . which allowed me, and my deceased mother, a voice!
 He took our case, and has been working with the utmost diligence for us, because he righteously cares about truth, and the issues at stake: individual liberty; freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom of assembly.

 

Mr. Turner has always shown us great respect and trust. He questions us only to sincerely understand where we are coming from, answers all our questions with patient kindness, and always, simply, exhorted us to "tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth" in court.

   
Some with us along the way have asked in frustration why Attorney Turner has remained so calm and gracious in the face of the arrogant behavior of the FTC. It is with gratitude as we reflect on this; we are grateful for a defense counsel so mature in wisdom and possessing attributes of Christ to represent us.