Stephen Marino got to the law by way of engineering, architecture and an old Suzuki motorcycle—with a stop in handcuffs along the way.

He had an inkling of his final destination early on.

“When I was 7, my mom made a cake, and she put a little sign on it that said: 'Do not touch icing,'” he said. “I had a huge sweet tooth. She said,'”Do you see that sign?' I looked at the sign. And I looked back and said, 'Is the sign in script?' She said, 'Yeah.' I said, 'I don't read script.'”