Then I made my big mistake. At the time I was nineteen, had long untidy hair, and regarded myself as part of the sixties' 'youth countercultrue. As a result, I want to appear cool and unconcerned with the incident, so I said, 'How long have you been following me?' in the most casual and conversational tone I could manage. I thus appeared to them to be quite familiar with this sort of situation, and it confirmed them in their belief that I was a thoroughly disreputable character.
A few minutes later a police car arrived.
'Get in the back," they said. 'Put your hands on the back of the front seat and don't move them.'
They got in on either side of me. I wasn't funny any more.
At the police station they questioned me for several hours. I continued to try to look worldly and au fait with the situation. When they asked me what I had been doing, I told them I'd been looking for a job. 'Aha,' I could see them thinking, 'unemployed'.
Eventually, I was officially charged and told to report to Richmond Magistrates' Court the following Monday. Then they let me go.
I wanted to conduct my own defence in court, but as soon as my father found out what had happened, he hired a very good solicitor. We went along that Monday armed with all kinds of witnesses, including my English teacher from school as a character witness人證. But he was never called on to give evidence. My 'trial' didn't get that(=so) far. The magistrate dismissed the case after fifteen minutes. I was free. The poor police had never stood a chance. The solicitor even succeeded in getting costs awarded against the police.
magistrate
n. civil officer acting as a judge in the lowest courts 地方法官
conduct
vt. direct the course of; manage 處理；主持；引導；指揮
defence (AmE defense)
n. the act of defending in court the person who has been charged 辨護
solicitor
n. (esp. in Britain) lawyer who advises clients on legal matters and speaks on their behalf in lower courts （初級）律師
witness
n. a person who gives evidence in a court of law; sth. serving as evidence or proof 證人；證據
trial
n. the act or fact of examining and deciding a civil or criminal case by a law court 審判
dismiss
vt. (of a judge) stop (a court case) 駁回，對……不予受理
cost
n. (pl.) the cost of having a matter settled in a law court. esp. that paid to the winning party by the losing party 訴訟費
award award sb, sth,
vt. give by a decision in court of law; give or grant by an official decision 判給；授予