by Monica Chamness
Staff Writer
The old saying that the family that plays together, stays together rings true for Shirley and Susan Haag.
Daughter Susan, an assistant state attorney, is part of a fitness-conscious household and participated with her mother in a 5K parents run at her alma mater at Smith College. Their jaunt through the hilly terrain is what propelled Susan into athletics. Since then she has participated in a number of events.
Having recently returned from the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C., the younger Haag completed the 26.2 mile race in about four and a half hours.
“There were over 14,000 runners who finished and I came in at the middle of the pack, a little closer to the top” said Susan.
She finished 339th in the women’s 35-39 age group.
Her endurance resulted in more than $1,500 in pledges for the St. Jude’s Children Hospital. She was given medical bracelets representing the sick children she was running for. When she became weary, glancing down at the bracelets gave her that extra boost to continue.
Although Susan maintains she took no extra steps to train for the marathon, she is an avid biker, swimmer and has competed in a number of similar events in the past. This year alone she’s completed 22 physical endurance events, including triathlons, Half-Iron Man competitions and the MS150 bicycle race.
“I always assumed I could never run that distance,” she said. “I had only run 13 miles up until this year. I had really fallen off the running track. I just down-loaded a training program and got someone to do runs with me. It’s perseverance. I don’t think it has that much to do with being in shape. The mind can convince the body to do more than it wants to do. I was thoroughly amazed when I got to the 13-mile mark and still had something left. Most people hit the wall at 20 where the body uses up its glycogen stores, you start to hallucinate, your muscles cramp and you give up. I didn’t have that but my knee bothered me the whole way. You forget you’re running.”
“People motivate you because there are so many cheering you on,” said Shirley.
Throughout her nine-year tenure with the State Attorney’s Office, Susan has covered special prosecution, white collar crimes and repeat offenders. Now she’s back in special prosecution where she handles cases involving public corruption, drug trafficking and homicides.
Shirley is the judicial assistant to Judge James Ruth, processing civil, criminal, traffic and J1 (first appearance) cases for the last six years.
Susan incorporates her family’s input into her maneuvering of a case.
“I would go home and use my mother and my sister as a sounding board,” said Susan. “I would tell them what my fact pattern is, what do you find most persuasive, what is it that you don’t find critical. I kind of use them as my jury. If you’ve never been arrested and you don’t have a family member that does criminal law, there’s a lot out there you don’t know.”
Susan is the one who encouraged Shirley to delve into the legal community. Experienced in clerical and secretarial work, Susan was hesitant about shifting gears so late in her professional life.
“I worked for an attorney when I first came to Jacksonville but never had a legal background,” said Shirley. “It’s more fun being at the courthouse than at a private practice. There’s never a dull moment.”
Because both are employed at the Duval County Courthouse, they can talk shop whenever the need arises.
“When we talk about our jobs she understands because she’s in the field,” said Susan of her mother.
Frequent, direct contact on a professional basis is rare for the two, however.
In keeping with her physical fitness goals, Susan has organized a corporate run and e-mails those in her office to take part in the Law Day Run.
Susan’s staff was quite supportive of her efforts in the Marine Corps race and a former colleague ran the race with her. She spotted several other local lawyersparticipating in the race, too.
And State Attorney Harry Shorstein, a former Marine, does the MS150 challenge with her every year.