Lawyer saves teen client who appeared ready to leap from courthouse roof
An Idaho lawyer says he was acting on instinct when he chased his teen client and grabbed the youth as he appeared ready to leap from the ledge of the courthouse roof in Ada County.
Nampa, Idaho, lawyer Ryan Henson tells the Idaho Statesman that he didn’t think of the danger at the time. “The big scare was after the fact,” Henson said. “I could have gone over with him.”
The incident occurred on March 26 when Henson was discussing a guilty plea to grand theft and a probation sentence with his client, who has autism spectrum disorder, the story says. The youth began to run, accessing the roof through an outdoor smoking lounge. The teen vaulted over two five-foot retaining walls, and Henson followed.
“He hesitated once he got up on the ledge, and I think that is what allowed me to catch up,” Henson told the newspaper. Henson grabbed the teen and marshals arrived to handcuff the youth. Henson’s client was taken to the county jail and returned to the courthouse this week, where he entered a guilty plea without incident.
