Nicholas Clookey '27 has always wanted to be a lawyer. He hasn't changed his mind since he's been at Siena, but he is changing sides.
It's a gut-wrenching story that rocked the Knoxville, Tennessee community in 2016. A scorned teenager shot and killed his high school girlfriend because she ended their relationship. The devastating, and gruesome, incident was featured on Dateline in 2018 in an episode titled "Noises in the Night." Clookey watched the episode, as a middle schooler, and it confirmed his desire to be a prosecutor. It wasn't just because they caught the bad guy; it's because of who helped put the bad guy away.
"My aunt and uncle live in Knoxville. My aunt is the district attorney in Knox County and my uncle is a prosecutor. He was actually interviewed for the Dateline episode. When I saw him on TV, I remember wishing I was the one being interviewed. Something about that experience lit a fire for me. It's been my passion ever since."
Pre-law was his only choice, but the "where" presented too many choices. Clookey considered attending a big school down south, but as deadline day approached in the spring of his senior year, Clookey still wasn't sure. That's when the Plattsburgh native took the advice of his all-time favorite high school teacher.
"He was my U.S. history teacher sophomore year. He had recently graduated from Siena, and he was always talking about how great Siena is. I actually came to Siena on decision deadline day and committed without even taking a tour."
Clookey, a criminal justice studies major in the 3+2 program with Albany Law, took restorative justice with Annie Rody-Wright, J.D., director of the Criminal Justice Studies program, his freshman year.
"Before I took the course, the term 'restorative justice' just struck me as soft. I thought it was a way for criminals to avoid consequences. I even asked my aunt and uncle about it and they said, 'That's a Northern thing.' But of course the prosecutors are going to say that. And I think because they were so dismissive about it, I went into it with an open mind. I decided to be a sponge and absorb everything I could."
That course taught Clookey to look at the system differently. It was the next course, the Inside-Out class (read more, above), that changed everything.
"Every one of my classmates on the inside was put on a path to be incarcerated at a young age. Hearing their stories, it made me want to fight for them. The scenarios that led them to prison... those cards never should have been dealt to them in the first place."
Remember that bracelet that each student left the class with? Clookey wears his every day, even during puppy yoga. Take a closer look in the picture above. The purple bracelet never leaves his left wrist.
"Most of the incarcerated grew up in a different area than me with different options. They never had the opportunity to live my life. That's why I've shifted my perspective so much."
Maybe Clookey will still get his Dateline moment. But he won't be the prosecutor. He's looking forward to a career as a defense attorney, as soon as he breaks the news to his aunt and uncle.
"They're probably going to laugh at me. They'll accuse me of turning into one of those sympathizers. That's how a lot of people view us. But I'm just forever grateful to Siena for helping me find this path. My experience inside and out of the classroom has been amazing. I love being part of this community."
