by Kenneth Eade
Templeton walked up to the witness box, her eyes flashed to the Judge and then to the jury, and then she raised a semi-shaky right hand as instructed by the Clerk, took the oath, and then her seat.
“Ms. Templeton, you are the current president of the Orange Grove Homeowners Association, is that correct?”
“Yes, I am.”
“And you became president of the Association upon the death of the victim, Barbara Densmore, is that correct?”
Templeton looked like a baby whose mother was force feeding her.
“Yes. I was the vice president before Barbara died.”
“Ms. Templeton, did Mrs. Haskins fall behind in her homeowners association assessments last year?”
“Objection! Irrelevant!” Brent called out.
“Your Honor, It’s foundational. I will connect it up,” said Chernow, flashing a glare at Brent.
“Overruled.”
Templeton testified that Nancy had fallen behind in her HOA assessments, and that the Association had initiated foreclosure on her home. Then came the real motive for murder.
“When Ms. Densmore was alive, did you witness any hostilities between the defendant, Mrs. Haskins and Ms. Densmore?”
“Well, yes I certainly did.”
“Can you please describe these hostilities?”
“Well, Barbara was making her usual rounds, looking for violators of the Orange Grove regulations, and Haskins got into it with her.”
“What do you mean by got into it?”
“Well, Barbara tried to give her a citation for an overgrown lawn and Haskins ran into her house, yelling, ‘shove your ticket up your you know what,’ and gave her the finger!”
“Move to strike as irrelevant, Your Honor.”
“Mr. Chernow is establishing a foundation, Mr. Marks. I will allow it, subject to him connecting it up later,” said Judge Curtis.
“Your Honor, if giving the finger is a motive for murder, then most everyone in this courtroom would be on trial,” said Brent. A few people on the jury chuckled and smiled and there was laughter in the galley.
“Objection!” yelled Chernow. “Argumentative and improper!”
“The jury will disregard the question and Mr. Marks’ comment,” Judge Curtis said to the jury.
“Counsel, please approach the bench.”
Brent knew the Judge was sharpening a hickory stick for him, and for just reason. He and Chernow approached the bench, out of earshot of the jury.
“Mr. Marks, I understand that it’s difficult not to comment, but I allowed this evidence in as foundational and you know that your remark was not only argumentative, it was improper as well.”
“Yes, Your Honor.”
“Now please gentlemen, I’ve known you both for many years. You’re both good lawyers. Don’t compromise your ethics on this case.”
Templeton then revealed that Nancy, on another occasion, told both her and Densmore that she wished them both dead. After a good deal more of irrelevant testimony, Brent was given the witness for cross examination.
“Ms. Templeton, you testified that foreclosure proceedings had been initiated on Mrs. Haskins’ home by the HOA. Isn’t it true that the very day before Ms. Densmore died the Court set aside those foreclosure proceedings?”
“Yes.”
“So there were no more foreclosure proceedings on Mrs. Haskins’ property at that point, is that correct?”
“Yes, but we were going to start them again.”
“Move to strike after ‘yes’ Your Honor.”
“Granted. Everything after ‘yes’ is stricken and the jury will disregard it.”
“And when Mrs. Haskins ‘gave the finger’ to Ms. Densmore, that was about a year ago, wasn’t it?”
“Well, yes, but…”
“Move to strike, Your Honor.”
“Motion granted. The jury will disregard everything after ‘yes’.”
“And when she made the comment that she wished you were dead, it was even more than a year ago, isn’t that correct?”
“Yes, it was.”
“And in that one year period, you never heard about any other ‘incident’ between Ms. Densmore and Mrs. Haskins, isn’t that correct?”
“That is correct,” Templeton answered, reluctantly.
“In fact, besides the words you heard over a year ago, you’re not aware of Mrs. Haskins ever taking any action to threaten the life of Ms. Densmore, are you?”
Frances frowned in frustration and said, “No, I suppose not.”
“Move to strike as non-responsive and request that the witness be ordered to answer the question, Your Honor.”
“The witness shall answer the question, if she can. It calls for a yes or no answer.”
“No.”
“Thank you, Ms. Templeton. You were at Barbara Densmore’s home the night she died, weren’t you?”
“Not before she died. After I heard about it, yes.”
“And you got in using a key that Barbara had given you, is that correct?”
“Yes.”
“You went there to go over the books and records of the Orange Grove Homeowners Association, is that correct?”
“To secure them.”
“Ms. Templeton, it took you an awful long time to secure them, didn’t it?”
“Objection, argumentative.”
“Withdraw the question, Your Honor. You were at Ms. Densmore’s home more than once that day, weren’t you?”
“No, I was not.”
Brent was drawing at straws, but maybe he could fish up some reasonable doubt for the jury by pointing to Templeton as a possible suspect. Templeton tightened her eyebrows and crossed her arms.
“Didn’t you go there in the afternoon and come back at night because you forgot to get the books the first time you went over?”
“That’s absurd.”
“Answer the question please.”
“No!”
“Didn’t you go there the first time to clean up every trace of ricin?”
“No!”
“Objection, Your Honor,” shouted Chernow.
“Sustained!” responded the Judge.
“And didn’t you plant the ricin covered wrapping and flower food package in Mrs. Haskins’ garage…”
“Your Honor!” objected Chernow.
“…which you accessed through the open side door?”
“No!” shouted Templeton.
“Objection sustained! Mr. Marks. The jury will disregard the last two questions and answers of this witness. Counsel, please approach.”
After another good chewing out from the Judge, Brent said, “No further questions, Your Honor.”
“Mr. Chernow?”
“No questions, Your Honor.”
“Mr. Marks, do you anticipate calling Ms. Templeton during your case-in-chief?”
“I don’t think so, Your Honor, but I don’t want to close the door entirely, depending on what happens in Court.”
“Do you have her under subpoena?”
“No, Your Honor.”
“Very well. Ms. Templeton, you are excused. Mr. Marks may call you back, but at this time you are free to go, and the witness exclusion order no longer applies to you.”
Chernow next called the EMTs who responded to the 911 call made by Barbara. They testified that they had found the victim in her office, on the floor, that she had a faint pulse and was not breathing. They tried to revive her, and kept up the attempts at CPR throughout her ride to the hospital in the ambulance, to no avail. On cross examination, Brent had but one question for the lead EMT, a matter of fact, young looking fireman named Ted Clinton.
“Mr. Clinton, did you see any cut flowers when you were at the victim’s residence?”
“Flowers?”
“Yes, flowers.”
“No, we didn’t see any flowers.”
“Thank you. No further questions, Your Honor.”
* * *
Brent stopped into the bathroom on the way out of t
he courtroom for the lunch break, and saw Bradley Chernow at one of the urinals.
“How’s it hangin’ Brad?” he asked, smiling, as he took a urinal on the same wall.
Chernow grimaced, zipped up his pants, hit the flush on the urinal, and turned to Brent and said, “The great Brent Marks. You think you’re a super hot shit lawyer, don’t you? You think because you kicked my ass in law school, this is going to be a walk around the block for you, huh?”
“What are you talking about Brad?”
“Mr. Chernow to you, Marks. You haven’t tried a criminal case in what? Five years?”
“It’s been a few years, yeah,” said Brent, zipping up.
“Well I have news for you, Marks. Criminal law has changed a lot in the last five years and you’re on my turf now.”
“I doubt whether it’s changed much in 250 years Brad,” said Brent, washing his hands. “And whatever has changed, I can look it up,” he said, ripping off a paper towel, drying off. “Do I think I can kick your ass? Is that what you’re so emotional about? It’s a promise!” he said, crumpling up the paper towel into a little ball and making a perfect basket in the trash can.
* * *
Brent dodged a few reporters who were gathered outside the Courthouse entrance on his way to meet Angela across the street at their usual café for the lunch break. In the middle of her salad, Angela popped the question that most lawyers dread hearing during a trial.
“So how’s it going?”
“The trial?”
“Well, yeah, what else is going on but the trial?”
“Angela, asking a lawyer how the trial is going in the middle of it is like asking a husband if his wife is cheating on him. He’s usually the last to know.”
“Very funny.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
“The People call Doctor Ignacio Perez.”
Dr. Perez was sworn and took the witness stand. He faced the jury and “grandstanded” to them. Brent thought that it was only the second time he had seen Dr. Perez without a ham sandwich in his hand.
“Please state your name for the record.”
“My name is Dr. Ignacio Perez.”
“Dr. Perez, what is your current occupation?”
“I am a medical examiner for the county of Santa Barbara.”
Perez spoke to the entire jury as if he were their personal physician, and he was explaining something to them about their medical examinations. He had a very calming bedside manner, which he used on the jury.
“Can you please summarize for the Court, your education and experience?”
“I am a certified medical examiner, currently serving with the County of Santa Barbara. I hold an M.D. and a PhD from Georgetown University School of Medicine, an A.B. from Dartmouth, and a medical license from the State of California, where I am board certified in clinical, anatomic and forensic pathology. I am a Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Medicine, and I have worked as a Chief Medical Examiner for the County of Santa Barbara for the past 20 years.”
“In how many trials have you testified, Doctor?”
“Not sure exactly. Over 50.”
“Could you just give us a brief description of what forensic pathology is?”
“Yes, of course. Pathology, the larger field, is one of the medical specialties, and it has basically two subcategories; anatomic pathology and clinical pathology. Anatomic pathology deals with the study of disease. So it involves performing autopsies, looking at surgical specimens under a microscope, those kinds of things that the observer can actually see.
“Clinical pathology is performed in the laboratory, usually by clinical pathologists who head up a hospital laboratory and serve as consultants to hospital physicians in the interpretation of tests.
“Forensic pathology is a special area in pathology. The word forensic comes from the Latin word forum, which was the Roman courtroom. So, it is a type of pathology that is practiced by experts who clarify medical or scientific questions that come up in the courtroom. Most forensic pathologists work in a coroner's office or medical examiner's office and investigate sudden or unexpected deaths.”
“How many autopsies have you done in your career, Doctor?”
“I’ve done many in the course of my career. Many hundreds.”
Chernow had Perez disclose that he was being paid for his testimony, as part of his salary from the County, and that he had testified in both criminal and civil cases, for both the plaintiff and the defendant.
“Dr. Perez, please tell the jury what materials and reports you viewed in preparation for today’s testimony.”
“I reviewed my own autopsy report.”
“Showing you a copy of People’s Exhibit 1 and can you identify Exhibit 9 as your autopsy report?”
“Yes, that’s my report.”
“And, showing you what has been marked for identification as People’s Exhibit 10, can you identify this document?”
“This is the death certificate for Barbara Densmore.”
“Dr. Perez, as a result of your review, and your examination of the body, do you have an opinion within a reasonable degree of medical certainty what caused Barbara Densmore’s death?
“Yes, I do.”
“Objection, Your Honor, lack of foundation,” Brent interjected.
“Sustained.”
“Dr. Perez, would you please tell the jury the results of the autopsy?”
“As a result of my autopsy on the body of Ms. Densmore, I discovered fluid in her lungs and lesions in the trachea. Along with reported symptoms immediately before her death of coughing up white foam mixed with blood, it lead me to believe that she died from ricin poisoning.”
The men on the jury looked queasy and nauseous from listening to the doctor’s testimony. One of them appeared to be turning color.
“In this case, in my opinion, the ricin was inhaled, which explains the lesions in the trachea and fluid in the lungs. Inhalation of a dose of ricin the size of a few grains of salt is enough to kill an adult human being.
“Ricin is derived from the castor bean. Once in the body, it inhibits protein synthesis, causing cell death.”
“Is there an objective test for ricin poisoning?”
“Yes, there is a urine test that can be performed by the Centers for Disease Control.”
“Was that test performed in this case?”
“Yes. We drew a urine sample for testing and sent it to CDC. They are the only ones who do the testing. Since we knew that would take a long time to get the results, I also asked the police to examine the environment for the presence of ricin to confirm my diagnosis.”
“Did you eliminate other possible causes of death?”
“Yes. I ran a full toxicology report on the victim’s blood and also tested for influenza. Ricin symptoms can be similar to influenza. It also has symptoms that can be comparable to anthrax poisoning, so I ran blood tests which ruled that out.”
“Are the results of that testing contained in Exhibit 11, the toxicology report?”
“Yes, they are.”
“Your Honor, I move that People’s Exhibits numbers 9, 10 and 11 be admitted into evidence.”
“Objection to Exhibits 9 and 10, Your Honor. May we approach?”
Once at the bench, Brent objected to Exhibit 9, the autopsy report and Exhibit 10, the death certificate, on the grounds of lack of foundation, because it recited the cause of death as ricin poisoning, and that had not been established yet.”
“Exhibit 11 will be admitted into evidence. The defense objection to Exhibits 9 and 10 is sustained, without prejudice.”
“Dr. Perez, did you get the results back on the urine test?” asked Chernow.
“Yes, we did.”
“What were the...”
“Objection, Your Honor, lack of foundation, hearsay, best evidence.”
Chernow gave Brent a dirty look and he winked back at him. He was being a pest, it was true, but the results of the test had only recently been made available
to both sides and neither Brent nor Jack had had the opportunity to question the chain of custody. Brent knew, of course, that the results were positive for ricin and that they would be allowed into evidence, but he threw out the objection “just in case.”
“Counsel, please approach.”
Brent hit the bench with his argument right away. “Your Honor, I haven’t had the opportunity to interview the witness from CDC and neither has my investigator. We didn’t have the test results at the time of the prelim, so the defense should be given the opportunity to question the witness from CDC before allowing the results to even be mentioned.”
“He has a point, Mr. Chernow.”
“Your Honor, the defense has been grandstanding for the jury since the beginning of this trial….”
“Excuse me, Your Honor, but this is a murder trial.”
“Gentlemen, I’ve had just about enough of your bickering. I know it’s a murder trial Mr. Marks. And Mr. Chernow, what is this whining all about? One would think the two of you were kids fighting in a sandbox. I’m going to sustain the objection, and let you recall Dr. Perez after you have established a foundation for the results, if you choose to do so.”
Chernow limped back to the counsel table, went over his notes, and said, “Thank you, Your Honor, no further questions of this witness at this time, subject to our right to recall him.”
“Cross examination?”
“Thank you, Your Honor.”
“Dr. Perez, isn’t it correct that the symptoms you observed; lesions on the trachea, blood mixed with foam in the mouth, and fluid in the lungs, are symptoms you may also expect to find with tracheal cancer?”
“Well I suppose you could, but it wasn’t…”
“Thank you Doctor, move to strike after could, Your Honor.”
“Granted. The jury is instructed that Dr. Perez’ testimony stands at Well I suppose you could.”
“Couldn’t you expect to find the same symptoms for lung cancer?”
“I suppose, but…”
“Move to strike but, Your Honor.”
“Granted. The jury will disregard but.”
“And you didn’t test to rule out tracheal cancer, did you?”
