Presumed Innocent

Rusty is observant and thoughtful, and he continually assesses the people around him, looking to understand their character and those traits that define them. This focus on understanding others’ character also serves as a way for Rusty to reinforce his sense of control and navigation within the complex legal and political environment of Kindle County. In the opening pages of the novel, Rusty identifies the mayor as having “the character of a tyrant” (11). He concludes that he doesn’t like Tommy Molto because “[m]ore and more, like everyone else here, I find myself persuaded that there is something sinister in Molto’s character” (325). Rusty’s fixation on others’ character also reveals his underlying fear of being misjudged or underestimated in the courtroom and by those in his personal life, highlighting his struggle with maintaining a consistent identity.

Sandy, Rusty’s defense lawyer, offers a different, more nuanced perspective. Rusty respects Sandy—he has observed Sandy and realized that like himself, Sandy is an observer. As he watches Sandy watch Raymond, he realizes that the other man “shows very little, just absorbs. I have the same sense that I did when we were in Horgan’s office that Sandy’s calculations are not about facts or strategy but character. He is trying to figure Horgan out” (268). Sandy’s approach to understanding character suggests that moral decisions are not made in a vacuum but are influenced by the complexity of each person’s experiences and pressures. Because he respects Sandy’s powers of observation, he pays attention when Sandy is inclined not to judge Larren Lyttle for his participation in Carolyn’s bribery scheme. Sandy tells Rusty, “[N]ot all human misbehavior is the result of gross defects of character. Circumstances matter, too” (382). Sandy’s assessment of Judge Lyttle’s behavior is more forgiving, forcing Rusty to see that character isn’t always the sole determining factor. This shift in perspective challenges Rusty’s belief in static character traits and opens a broader view of the complexities of morality, tying into the theme of The Connection Between Law and Politics.

Rusty also worries about the character of his eight-year-old son, Nat. As he watches Nat play tee ball, he reflects, “This summer he is changing, beginning to acquire some worldly focus. He seems newly aware of his powers, and of the fact that people regard the manner in which you do things as a sign of character” (213). Here, Rusty’s concerns about his son’s character reflect his own anxieties about upbringing, privilege, and moral integrity in the face of power. In Nat’s case, Rusty is keeping a careful eye on his character because he worries that his son, who is becoming handsome, will fall into “arrogance, or even cruelty—traits the beautiful people I have encountered have” (124), like his father. Rusty fears that Nat’s handsomeness indicates a weakness of character, and, by using his father as a reference point, he shows how inextricable his relationship with his son is from his relationship with his father, connecting to the theme of The Effect of Parenting on Adult Children. Rusty’s assessment of Nat’s evolving character is also rooted in his unresolved trauma from his relationship with his own father, and his fears about the inheritance of both appearance and flaws.