The Leviathan

In one of my cases for the clinical program, our clients had won a very large judgment against their landlord at trial just before I was assigned. After getting an appeal dismissed, I had to file for an execution, which tells the state to enforce the judgment. You do this be sending a certified copy of the judgment and a nice letter to the local sheriff. He then takes the creditor's land (by force, if necessary), auctions it off, and hands the proceeds to you. No amount philosophy reading could so forcefully drive home the point that political power is ultimately founded on the capacity to project violence.

You can even see the sheriff's report in the registry of deeds:

This execution was this day at thirty minutes past nine o' clock in the forenoon placed in my hands for the purpose of taking the lands of the within named judgment debtor(s) Firstname Lastname.

And at said time I seized and took all the right, title and interest which the within named judgment debtor(s) Firstname Lastname had (not exempt by law from attachment or levy on execution) on November 15, 2006 at thirty minutes past nine o' clock in the forenoon, (being before the time the same was taken on execution) in and to the following described real estate and is bounded and described as follows, viz:

[property description]

and I have levied this execution thereupon. (And immediately afterwards, by direction of the creditor's attorney [Me!] I suspended the further levy of this execution on said real estate.)

We've told the sheriff to hold off on the police auction for the moment for strategic reasons, but that's at our discretion. I could write a letter on Monday, and people with guns would go take some person's house away.

I for one am terrified.