by James Ross
“That’s not good,” J Dub sighed. “We might be in for trouble.”
“Order in the court!” the bailiff shouted as he stared at Curt and J Dub.
“Unless the appellate judges look at the law and can’t be bought,” Curt whispered.
“Let’s hope that there is justice in this world,” J Dub said softly.
“Right now, we just need it in the State of Illinois,” Curt said in an understatement. The two brothers stared at each other.
Chapter Ninety-Seven
“Now what’s going to happen?” J Dub blurted to Denny and Dominic Miles as the whole group gathered for lunch after the oral arguments were heard.
“We scored a lot of points in front of the appellate judges today,” Dominic stressed.
“If I would have been a juror I would have voted for the other side. I thought that we got killed,” Matt stated vehemently.
“Not really,” Denny bickered, “you don’t know how this system works.”
“I think that we got a pretty good idea during the first case that was argued today,” Curt disputed.
“Yeah, open your wallet and peel off the cash,” J Dub added. “It looks like all of the judges are out for themselves . . . especially Judge Bremsky.”
“Look, I’ve been a judge,” Dominic squabbled. “That’s not how the system works. At the appellate level they are way above that. The law comes into play.”
“Believe me, we scored some points today,” Denny included. “The law is on our side on this one.”
“Then how long is it going to take for them to make a ruling?” J Dub asked.
“Maybe another six to twelve months,” Denny answered.
“There’s no way!” J Dub hollered. “I can’t stand to be controlled for this length of time and held hostage by the court system.”
“They will take their time to make sure that they get it right,” Dominic assured the group.
“You know J Dub, Lew held you hostage for a lot longer than that,” Curt said in a consoling tone. “Just hang in there.”
~ ~ ~
Well Over a Year Later During the Summer of 2004 . . .
The voice on the other end of the line said, “J Dub, why don’t you and Curt and Marcia be at my office later this afternoon. I’ve got some news to tell you.”
“Is it good?” J Dub inquired.
“I’d rather tell you in person,” Denny continued.
A few hours later J Dub and Curt climbed the same staircase that they had so many times in the past. Marcia had been sick of the situation for years and let the guys go by themselves. Fear and trepidation occupied every step until J Dub stuck his head into Denny’s office.
“How bad is it?” J Dub blurted as he got right to the heart of the matter.
“Here’s the ruling,” Denny stated as he raised a brief into the air. “The appellate court reversed Judge Bremsky’s decision.”
“Hallelujah!” J Dub shouted. The three men traded high-fives and hugs. A genuine feeling of success invaded the office. “Where do we go from here?”
“Judge Bremsky is under strict orders from the appellate court to hear the case. We’ll get our day in front of a jury.” Denny enjoyed being the messenger of the good news.
“Finally!” Curt exploded.
“You know, it’s been over six years,” J Dub added. “Let’s get ’em!”
~ ~ ~
Over Two Years Later During the Fall of 2006 . . .
After the three appellate judges reversed Judge Bremsky’s order the case was sent back to his court with strict orders to hear the case. A jury was convened. The legal proceedings continued. Lew and Grady had used up all of their stalling techniques. Denny Sneed and Dominic Miles were ready for the action and felt that the evidence would clearly sway the judge and jury this time.
The statute that dealt with property that was unlawfully detained originally came on the scene as a tool to help landlords evict tenants that failed to pay rent. In this particular case, Lew had unlawfully possessed the property because of the forged contract. He had entered into a contract with the estate based upon a forged power of attorney document. The fact that none of the money that he had given to George Pierce ever made its way to the Morton Estate was icing on the cake. That meant that no consideration had been given for the property either.
Dominic Miles presented another theory to Judge Bremsky and the court. He argued that since the forged document had occurred nearly two decades earlier, a continuing tort situation existed. A continuing tort would be a crime that went on and on. He used that to counter any Statute of Limitation problems that the estate might encounter.
The evidence and deposition testimony that had been entered into evidence was damaging. Dominic Miles asked Judge Bremsky’s court to grant a court order so that the heirs could regain title to their property and retain possession of the property. After that was granted, Judge Bremsky also determined that the heirs to the Morton Estate were entitled to any money that had been earned on the property from the time that it was unlawfully detained. To add insult to injury, the court ruled that the heirs were also entitled to punitive damages plus court costs and interest.
Judge Bremsky’s court did not take this matter lightly. The fact that the property had been unlawfully detained for nearly twenty years and that the forgery had continued for such a long period of time made the case qualify for priority status. When everything was said and done the property was awarded back to the Morton heirs. They also received a multi-million dollar judgment. J Dub received a significant monetary judgment from Lew and Walter due to the shoddy accounting. Norman was ordered to forfeit all of the golf course property.
On the day that the decision occurred, Lucille and Matt Morton were in the courtroom. J Dub, Marcia and Curt were also in attendance. When the gavel came down the victims jumped for joy and truly felt vindicated after all of the years of deceit. During the congratulatory handshakes, Judge Miles turned to J Dub. “They’ve got another surprise coming.”
“What could top this?’ J Dub asked.
“Nothing for you personally,” Judge Miles acknowledged. “But you remember what I said in my office, don’t you?”
“ . . . About what?” There had been so much legal language that had been said that had confused J Dub. He was at a loss for what was next.
“About what gets my juice flowing,” Judge Miles said with a smile.
J Dub beamed. “You said that catching bad guys does it for you.”
A wry grin came over the face of Dominic Miles. “If this wasn’t enough of a blow to these guys, then I want to let you know that I contacted my brother, Brett,” Judge Miles whispered.
“And, what is he going to do?”
“That group of U. S. Attorneys is a small fraternity. It’s even a smaller fraternity than the Miles family,” Judge Miles murmured.
J Dub grinned. “You didn’t, did you?”
The smile on the face of Dominic Miles wouldn’t go away. “We gift-wrapped a criminal case for them. Lew and Walter and Norman have got another surprise on the way . . . and if we can figure out a way to get to George Pierce, then he’ll get a shocker too.”
J Dub exchanged handshakes with Denny and Dominic. “I want to thank both of you for taking the case when no one in town would touch it. You were willing to work through the complexities and get to the bottom of what happened,” J Dub said. “Anything that you make on the deal is well deserved. Every other lawyer in town wanted the case handed over to them on a silver platter. No one wanted to work on it.” The three men hugged. It was highly likely that they would be business partners in the coming years.
Chapter Ninety-Eight
The Summer of 2007 . . .
The estate received the court order and swiftly took possession of the property. The appeal process didn’t appear to have much traction behind it. A by-product of the courts’ decision paved the way for a flurry of lawsuits. The title company, which Lew had sued, filed a countersuit that
included George Pierce, Norman Pierce, and Walter Hancock as accomplices to the forgeries. The bank that had granted the loan to Norman Pierce filed a civil lawsuit against him to recover the money that they had loaned to him to purchase the property. Norman, in turn, sued Lew, who had sold the property to him.
Lew could not accept defeat. He felt as if he had been victimized by the actions of George Pierce and Walter Hancock. He turned around and sued both of them for forging the signature on the power of attorney that had been used to close on the original contract. The irony of the situation was that Lew had knowledge of the inventive scam in the first place.
Acting on the information that was provided by Dominic Miles, the feds quickly re-opened the investigation that had abruptly ended several years before. George Pierce was in the Virgin Islands and seemingly protected since he was out of the country. Norman, however, had been a partner in the title company. The investigators were all over him.
The walls closed in on Lew this time around. It didn’t look like anybody was going to be able to help him out. After Lew had sold the golf course he had bought a yacht with the money that he had received from Norman. After the dismissal of the charges by the U. S. Attorney’s office, the IRS had instructed Special Agent Booker to keep tabs on all the financial transactions that Lew Zerrmann had made. Booker had traced the flow of money from the sale of the golf course through Lew’s bank account and to the purchase of a yacht. The yacht was docked at Harbour Town Marina off the coast of South Carolina, in Hilton Head.
Through the grapevine it was learned that Lew had prepared to leave the country. The feds had traced George Pierce to Tortola in the Virgin Islands. Getting him out of there was another thing. They also learned that he had been staying in a home that was owned by Lew Zerrmann. It made sense that Lew would attempt to flee to that destination and probably use the yacht as transportation.
Wiretaps revealed that Lew planned to leave Hilton Head with Monty. The government wanted to prevent that from happening. J Dub got wind of the plan from Booker. After being in a partnership with Lew for the length of time that he had, J Dub had a vested interest in having a final word with Lew.
The plane that Lew and Monty chartered landed just before dawn at Savannah/Hilton Head International airport. It was right after daybreak on a muggy morning in June when the two of them jumped into a rental car and hop scotched over to I-95 in South Georgia. Within ten minutes they were over the Savannah River and into South Carolina. After traveling another eight miles they took a right onto US-278 for the twenty-five minute ride to Sea Pines Plantation on Hilton Head Island. The live oaks that were draped with Spanish moss, and the banyan trees, pines, and palmettos provided a canopy over the road. In a matter of minutes they had parked the car and strolled past the various shops at Harbour Town. The cloudless sky indicated that another brutally hot day was in store for the people on Hilton Head Island.
The marina itself seemed to take the shape of a key lock. For the most part, it was circular with an opening onto Calibogue Sound. All of the docks were concrete with ramps that led to individual slips. Virtually all of the boats at the marina were backed into their individual locations. Harbour Town’s various gift shops, condominiums and multi-family units surrounded the marina. The infamous Harbour Town Lighthouse marked the entrance to Calibogue Sound as the boats exited the marina.
Lew and Monty strolled around the circular dock toward Lew’s new, eighty foot Hatteras Motor Yacht. The vessel was gorgeous and its interior was elegant with wood paneling and crown molding in all its staterooms. Every new and modern electronic convenience in the world was standard. Marble flooring and ebony cabinets added ambience. The master bedroom and bath featured a king-sized bed and whirlpool jets in the hot tub. A global positioning satellite system tracked its whereabouts.
As they walked leisurely, Lew turned to Monty. “I don’t know what in the world Grady was doing. He wouldn’t listen to me. He sold me out, Monty. I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“Hey, at least nothing came out about the hooker,” Monty rationalized. He wanted to make sure that his tail was covered.
“Those bastards may have gotten a judgment, but they’ll need a lifetime to collect,” Lew announced to Monty. “They’re going to need to find me first.”
“Fat chance of that,” Monty declared. “In another thirty minutes we’ll be in international waters.” The entrance to Harbour Town Marina dumped into Calibogue Sound just minutes from the Atlantic.
“This screwed-up country of ours,” Lew started. “A guy works his ass off for all of his life and then the courts come and take every last penny away.”
“It doesn’t seem right, does it?” Monty did his best to ingratiate his friend.
“Can you believe that ridiculous court decision?” Lew ranted. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I can’t believe the disrespect that the judge and jury gave toward a successful businessman like you,” Monty agreed.
“I’m fed up with this country,” Lew fumed.
Monty looked toward the sky. The slight breeze tempered the rapidly rising heat. “It’s a beautiful day to hit the seas.”
“I’ll never be back,” Lew stammered.
“Why do you say that?” Monty asked. “You seem so bitter.”
“They took it all. It’s not right,” Lew stated with his own twisted interpretation of events.
“But you killed someone and got away with it. I took the fall for you on the money laundering and kept you out of prison. You’ve had all of the toys that money could buy,” Monty rationalized. “It’s been a good run for you.”
“Who gives a rat’s ass. Let’s beat them to the punch and get out of here,” Lew urged. “I’ve had enough of this country.”
Monty jumped onto the rear of the yacht and continued to the front. Lew walked to the rear of the yacht. Before boarding, Lew stopped. He was about to leave American soil for good. He looked at Calibogue Sound and then at the yacht. He nodded his approval. “It doesn’t get any better than this,” he yelled to Monty right before he leaped onto the rear of the yacht.
J Dub walked around the circular dock from the opposite direction. He wanted to come face to face with the guy that didn’t even have the guts to thank him for all of the years of hard work. In fact, they hadn’t spoken since the day in Walter’s office when Monty had done Lew’s dirty work. Even on that day, Lew didn’t say a word.
“Are you going to run to the islands since you didn’t win?” J Dub yelled to Lew. He continued to walk right up to the rear of the yacht.
The voice startled Lew. It was a voice that he recognized from the past. He turned to stand face to face with J Dub. “It’s business, J Dub, just business.”
“I’ve heard that one before. You were the one that taught me the ropes in business and how to win,” J Dub said coolly.
Lew laughed in his face. “I used you like a mule.”
“You’re going to run now and try to hide, aren’t you?” J Dub asked.
Lew did not reply.
J Dub fired one question after another. “What’s wrong? Don’t you like to be on the losing side? Can’t you take a little of your own medicine?”
Lew’s temper started to boil. “You haven’t collected a dime yet.”
“I’ll go to hell before I let you leave,” J Dub hollered.
“Screw you!’ Lew retaliated as he pulled a gun out of his pocket and pointed it squarely at J Dub.
A calm look and tranquil feeling enveloped J Dub. He started to cackle quietly at Lew and the absurdity of the situation. Booker had told him how he had laughed in Lew’s face when Lew threatened him on the morning of the IRS raid at Lew’s house. As J Dub peered at the revolver, he did what he had wanted to do for years. He taunted Lew. “Put that down. You’re a bully and a crook, not a killer.”
“Get out of my life, kid, before I blow your head off!”
J Dub called his bluff. “You don’t have the guts to pull the trigger.” J Dub sto
od steadfastly with both feet firmly planted on the dock. “You never have been much of a man.”
Lew glared at J Dub. “You’re taking a big chance,” Lew stressed. Other than the day in the pro shop, this was the only time that Lew could remember that J Dub had stood up to him.
J Dub snickered again. “No bigger chance than going into business with you.”
“Your problem was that you never could figure out how to gain control,” Lew chastised his ex-partner. He steadied the gun at J Dub.
J Dub stood strong and erect. “But I learned how to win. I decided a long time ago that I wasn’t going to lie or cheat or steal to succeed like some people I know.”
A momentary pause froze the two men in time. They stared into each other’s’ eyes. The silence was broken by a voice out of a loudspeaker. “ . . . Stop! Hands up! . . . FBI . . . IRS. You’re under arrest for obstruction of justice and tax evasion!”
An endless number of uniformed agents pounced out of nowhere with guns drawn. All of the weapons were trained on Lew. The commotion startled Lew. He had his sights on fleeing the country. The sudden turn of events shocked him.
J Dub laughed out loud at Lew. “But I learned my lessons well. One of the things that you taught me was to always have backup,” J Dub sneered.
Special Agent Booker appeared on the dock. Beside him was Lois. She had worn a dark pair of sunglasses to apparently hide her eyes from the glare. Lois removed her shades to reveal eyes that resembled a raccoon. She had been beaten about the face. Her eyes were nearly swollen shut. Her face was puffy.
“You lied under oath, Lew! Drop it!” Booker yelled.
Lois screamed at the top of her lungs. “There is no way you’re getting out of here! Take a good look at what you did to me, you pig!”
Lew was still in a daze. He was trapped. Agents surrounded him. He peered out to the water. He returned his eyes to J Dub. Lew glared back at Booker. The gun dropped from his hand onto the deck of the yacht. Agents started to scurry about.
Booker shouted again. “ . . . Lew! . . . Lew!”
