Courtroom Drama
There was an ominous silence when the jittery defendant rose in 
the courtroom. He explained in a tremulous voice what led him to
repudiate his confession made at the police station on the night 
of the crime. The audience began to buzz excitedly until the judge
demanded a cessation of the noise. Although the district attorney
bristled with anger, the defendant kept insisting that his right had
been violated because he had not been told he could see a lawyer before
confessing. 

Skid Row--The presence of so many bars has turned our neighborhood
into another skid row.
(disreputable part of town, inhatibated by derelicts and people 
"on the skid")