These are two completely unrelated stories, aside from the fact that they're both extremely well-written and interesting. I thought I'd put 'em both up before staggering off for bed on a long, long weekend.

First up, the Times has a great profile on U.S. Attorney Thomas O'Brien, an ex-fighter jock turned lawyer. As noted in the previous post, I rarely get enough chances to tackle federal stuff, but this is a fun read. Before he was going after gangs and allegedly crooked O.C. Sheriff Mike Carona, O'Brien was a RIO in an F-14, like my childhood hero, Goose. It's always a pleasure to see what Mr. Glover's up to.

And second, this isn't a courts story, but my deskmate and former co-blogger Rick Coca's got a great one on Hector Cazar, one of the paramedics involved in the Winnetka shootout.

CANOGA PARK - Just two days after helping to rescue police Officer James Veenstra, severely wounded in a Winnetka shootout that left a fellow officer and four other people dead, firefighter/paramedic Hector Cazar was experiencing deja vu.

And as in the harrowing minutes when gunman Edwin Rivera, 20 - who had killed his father and two brothers - opened fire on police early Thursday morning, Cazar, who has an aversion to firearms, found himself trying to safely remove a gun to help an injured officer.

The rest is here. I enjoyed it, not just 'cause Rick's a great writer, but because you rarely hear about the paramedics in crisis situations. We talk to cops all the time, but this is a nice reminder that the LAFD plays a vital role in the heroics, as well.