Lone Witness

by Rachel Dylan

  “Of course.”

  Patrick looked into Peter’s light blue eyes and took a deep breath. This should go off without a hitch, based on the conversation they’d had last night. “Officer Gray, you testified that you and Officer Wall were the first officers to arrive at the crime scene, is that correct?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “And you’ve continued to be involved as an active participant in the investigation?”

  “Yes, sir, I have.”

  “At any point in time, have you experienced anything in the investigation that would lead you to believe the prosecution of Ricky Wade is unwarranted?”

  Peter frowned. “Could you rephrase the question?”

  That was strange. Patrick had thought it was a softball question. Maybe he had said something weird. “Sure. Let me ask it this way. Do you have any reason to believe that the investigation against the defendant is biased?”

  Peter didn’t immediately answer, but his eyes diverted to the defendant and then back to Patrick.

  Patrick’s stomach clenched. He could shut this down now, but Ashley would just pounce. He couldn’t tell if Peter was truly confused or if something more sinister was going on.

  “That’s a difficult question to answer,” Peter said.

  “Do you have any specific knowledge of bias in the investigation?”

  Peter shook his head. “Nothing specific.”

  This was going off the rails. He could stop now and watch what Ashley had to say. Then he could either try to clean up or figure out another strategy. Rule number one was don’t ask a question you don’t know the answer to. He needed more time to see how this train wreck was going to play out. “No more questions.”

  “Ms. Murphy, do you have more questions for Officer Gray?”

  Ashley stood up. The tiniest of smiles crept across her pretty face. “Yes, thank you.” She walked up closer to the witness stand. “Officer Gray, I think it’s apparent to anyone watching in this courtroom that you’re uncomfortable with this line of questioning.”

  His face starting turning red. “I didn’t say that.”

  “You didn’t have to say it.”

  “Objection,” Patrick said. “Does the defense have a question or is this just more commentary?”

  “Sustained,” Judge Turner said.

  Ashley nodded. “Officer Gray, isn’t it true that you do have direct knowledge about misconduct in the Atlanta Police Department regarding this investigation?”

  Peter looked down. “I think misconduct might be a strong term.”

  “Well, I don’t want to put words in your mouth. Why don’t you tell the jury about any concerns you have about the investigation?”

  “Objection, vague,” Patrick said.

  “Overruled.”

  Patrick knew that was a weak objection. He was just trying to break up the line of questioning any way he could. He feared he was about to watch his entire case blow up.

  “You can answer the question,” Ashley said.

  Once again, Peter looked down. What Patrick didn’t know was whether this was feigned hesitancy.

  “It was pretty apparent to me that everyone was taking advantage of this opportunity.” Peter fidgeted in his seat. “It’s not every day that you have the little brother of the head of one of the most powerful gangs in Atlanta in custody for double homicide.”

  “Can you elaborate on what you mean by taking advantage of the opportunity?”

  Ashley was like a great white shark. Blood was in the water, and there was no way she was going to leave hungry.

  Peter clasped his hands in front of him. His face had gone from red to pale. “It seemed to me that we were operating as if the defendant’s guilt was a foregone conclusion.”

  “How so?” Ashley asked.

  Peter cleared his throat. “I don’t think we seriously considered anyone else for the crime. Ricky was the only suspect we had, and then we pushed hard to get to this trial.”

  Ashley shifted and turned toward the jury. She didn’t say anything. It was just a theatrical move to make them ponder Peter’s statements. She wanted it to sink in.

  “Thank you for your candor, Officer Gray. I know this was a bit difficult for you given the circumstances. That’s all I have.”

  “Anything else for this witness, Mr. Hunt?” the judge asked.

  Patrick had to make a split-second decision. Did he push Peter any more to try to clean this mess up? The risk was that he could just make it worse. The practical response would be to let it go, but Patrick’s gut was screaming otherwise. If he was wrong, he’d pay the price, but he had to go there. There was no other option.

  “Just one more thing.” He stood up and walked up to the witness. “Officer Gray, have you been approached by Juan Wade or anyone connected to him?”

  “Of course not,” Peter said quickly.

  Too quickly.

  “I want to remind the witness that he is under oath. Would you like to revise your answer?”

  Peter looked up at him, this time making direct eye contact. “No. I have not.” His voice sounded unsure, though. It didn’t have the same commanding ring as his other answers.

  “No further questions.” Patrick had planted the seed that Juan was behind all of this, but that was only minimal triage.

  This was easily the most awful day in court he’d ever had. And the worst thing was that he’d never seen it coming. What could possibly be next?

  Chapter

  Eighteen

  Sophie waited for court to recess for the day so she could talk to Patrick. She couldn’t believe what she’d seen play out on the stand. Officer Gray had to be in Wade’s back pocket. It was the only explanation that made any sense. He was a newer officer and probably more susceptible to a bribe or threats.

  There was no doubt in her mind that she’d seen Ricky Wade shoot and kill two people on the night of October seventh. She refused to think that he could just walk away free and clear. There had to be a way to make sure the families got the justice they deserved.

  Sophie looked over at Cooper. “I have to talk to Patrick.”

  Cooper nodded. “I had a feeling you’d say that. We can keep our seats until he’s done packing up.”

  Most of those in the audience had left or were exiting now. The media presence was still around, swarming like bees. She didn’t plan to let any of them get close to her, and she knew Cooper would help in that effort.

  Patrick made eye contact with her, then started to walk their way. “Let’s go to one of the conference rooms so we can talk,” he said.

  A few minutes later, she was seated across from Patrick at a table in a private room. Cooper was right outside the door.

  “I assume you were blindsided in there?” she asked Patrick.

  He loosened his navy striped tie. “Yes. I spoke to all of them last night to ensure there would be no surprises. Something happened. Either he lied to me last night, or someone got to him between then and now.”

  “Wade’s people,” she said flatly.

  “Who else?”

  “We have to figure out a way to salvage this thing,” she said.

  Patrick sighed. “I know you want to help. The prosecutor in you can’t resist, but it really isn’t best for you to take on second chair right now.”

  “I agreed with you on that throughout this whole process, but we’re in uncharted territory now. It would seem that you could use my help to brainstorm a way through this.”

  “That’s the thing, Sophie. If we’re being realistic, I don’t think there’s a way we can get a guilty verdict. There are just too many holes. Too many threads of suspicion.”

  “Put me back on the stand as a rebuttal witness,” she offered.

  “So Ashley can skewer you again?”

  “No. So I can convince the jury of what I saw that night. All of this other conspiracy theory stuff is just smoke and mirrors. If they believe me, then they should convict. That should be our play.”

  “It�
�s not that simple. And your credibility has already been called into question just by the fact that you’re a prosecutor who supposedly wants to get to Juan through his brother.”

  “If you’re right and we’re toast, then we have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Please give me a chance to try to make this right.” She needed this shot to be able to sleep at night and wanted to do whatever was in her power to know that she had tried her best. She couldn’t control the jury’s decision, but she planned to make them have to think long and hard about it.

  He leaned in toward her. “This means Ashley will take another run at you.”

  “I’m ready for that. More ready than I was last time.”

  “All right. I’m going to trust you on this one.”

  “I won’t let you down.” She stood up and gave Patrick’s shoulder a squeeze before exiting the conference room to find Cooper. He wasn’t far, right outside in the hall. But he also wasn’t alone. Keith stood next to him in what appeared to be an intense conversation.

  “Keith.” She strode up to the two men.

  “Sophie, I’m glad I caught you. Cooper told me you were speaking to Patrick.”

  “Yes, trying to do my part to save this case. I’m going to take the stand again tomorrow.”

  “Good, good. Whatever you can do. For obvious reasons, we don’t want or need a loss on this one. It would be a huge embarrassment for our office.”

  Great, more pressure that she didn’t need. She already understood how high the stakes were.

  Keith took a step toward her. “I actually wanted to talk to you about something else if you have a second.”

  “Sure.”

  “In private?”

  “I’ll wait right over there.” Cooper pointed just down the hallway before walking away, leaving her alone with Keith.

  “Is everything okay?” she asked.

  His blue eyes narrowed. “I’m not sure. Remember the update you gave me the other day about the Shelton case?”

  “Of course.”

  “I’m concerned that you’re going down a rabbit hole. I spoke to Whitney briefly, and she says it’s not abnormal for their senior employees to move money between accounts, especially given their level of investments. They also tend to have quite a bit of liquid income.”

  “So those numerous deposits of less than ten grand over time didn’t give her any pause?”

  Keith shook his head. “No. She thinks it’s quite normal, and I tend to agree.”

  She couldn’t hold back anymore. “With all due respect, sir, I can’t help the feeling that SIB wants me to back off. And even more than that, that you want me to back off.”

  He frowned. “Sophie, you need to remember who you’re talking to. I don’t appreciate your tone or your insinuation. You work for me, not the other way around. Don’t forget that.”

  She had to fight to hold back her anger and frustration. After all that had happened today, this was the last thing she needed. “I’m sorry. I was out of line.” Or least that was what she was going to say for now.

  His eyes softened. “Put this out of your mind for now and focus on your testimony. Let the jury see the real you, Sophie. I’m confident that if they do, then Wade will go to prison.” Keith turned and walked away from her.

  Something wasn’t right. What she didn’t know was whether Keith was just trying to protect his friend or if something more was amiss. She had no intention of offering a plea to Shelton, because she had to find out what was really going on with him and why SIB was so concerned.

  Cooper found himself holding his breath as Sophie took her seat in the witness stand for the second time. He was no lawyer, but he knew enough to realize how important this additional testimony was going to be.

  It was all on Sophie’s shoulders to turn this trial around and convince the jury of Ricky’s guilt. He believed deep in his gut that she was more than capable of pulling it off.

  He could tell she had been extremely nervous the first time she testified, but he didn’t sense any of those nerves now. Not from her. He was another story. His stomach was in knots as he waited for the first words to come out of her mouth. He would do anything in his power to protect her, and he felt incredibly vulnerable right now with her up there and him in the courtroom audience.

  She was fiercely determined to tell her side of the story and combat the rumors that the defense attorney was hurling around. He had a strong suspicion that Juan had gotten to Officer Gray, but there was nothing they could do about it now. The jury had heard the testimony, and there was no turning back.

  He wondered whether Patrick was really up for this task. Cooper didn’t understand enough about the law to know whether these missteps were Patrick’s fault or if it could’ve happened to anyone. There was also the thread of jealously he felt toward the man. Sophie had said there was nothing between them, but he couldn’t help his emotional response.

  Patrick cleared his throat. “Thank you for coming back again, Ms. Dawson. I appreciate you taking the time out of your schedule.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “And just so we’re on the same page, you were in the courtroom yesterday and heard all the testimony that was presented, correct?”

  “Yes, that’s right.”

  “Then let me cut right to the chase. Ms. Dawson, are you aware of any bias of any type in the investigation that was conducted in this case?”

  “I am not aware of any, and I don’t believe there was any.”

  Patrick took a step closer to the witness stand. “Why do you say that?”

  “Because this investigation wasn’t a black hole. I was there that night, Mr. Hunt. I witnessed the unspeakable tragedy—two people shot—right before my eyes. I described the shooter and gave his license plate number. Then I identified the defendant in a lineup. It was all by the book each step of the way.”

  “Objection.” The defense attorney interrupted Sophie. “Your Honor, I think Ms. Dawson is forgetting that she isn’t the prosecutor in this case. It sounds to me like she’s presenting an argument, not answering the state’s questions.”

  “Ms. Dawson, just answer the question presented to you, please,” the judge said.

  Patrick took a step closer to the jury box before looking back at Sophie. “Ms. Dawson, you are a prosecutor, correct?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Do you believe that your job had anything to do with how you identified the suspect?”

  Sophie turned and looked at the jury. “Absolutely not. One thing had nothing to do with the other. I wasn’t a prosecutor that night at the Quick Stop. I was just a person who had worked a long day and wanted a snack.”

  Cooper smiled as Sophie hit on the key points and themes that she hoped to get across.

  “All I can do is tell you and the jury what I saw. And there is no doubt in my mind that I saw Mr. Ricky Wade shoot and kill two innocent people.”

  “Ms. Dawson, if there was some bias in the APD against the defendant because of his brother, would that impact you in any way?”

  “No. I’m certain about what I saw. I didn’t know when I identified him who he was. I didn’t learn that fact until after the identification.”

  Patrick turned to the jury. “Let me make sure everyone on the jury understands this. When you made your eyewitness identification, did you have any idea who the suspect was?”

  “None. I made the identification based on what I had seen. Once I made the identification, I was told later that the man I had identified as the suspect was Juan Wade’s brother.”

  “Nothing further,” Patrick said.

  Now it was time for Ashley Murphy. Cooper had no idea what her game plan was.

  “Ms. Dawson, isn’t it a bit disingenuous for you to try to mislead the jury into thinking that your role as a prosecutor didn’t cloud your vision?”

  Patrick shot to his feet. “Objection, argumentative.”

  “I’ll allow it,” Judge Turner said.

  Sophie gave a
slight smile. “Ms. Murphy, being a prosecutor has shaped who I am today. I believe in the justice system. I also believe in telling the truth. It’s what I expect out of every single witness I put up on the stand, and it’s certainly what I expect from myself. Your client was the man who shot the two victims.”

  “And you’re sitting here, under oath, testifying that you were not told my client’s name until after you identified him as the shooter. Are you certain that’s your testimony?”

  “Yes. Quite certain. Absolutely certain, in fact.”

  “What would you say if I told you that Officer Gray is ready to testify otherwise?”

  Sophie didn’t miss a beat. “I’d say that Officer Gray has been compromised by Juan Wade.”

  The courtroom erupted at Sophie’s accusation.

  Judge Turner banged his gavel. “Everyone in the courtroom needs to stay quiet, or I will clear it out. Don’t test me on this.”

  “Ms. Dawson, it’s your contention that the APD wasn’t biased but that one of their officers has supposedly been corrupted by my client’s brother?”

  “Yes.”

  “How can you have it both ways? Claim that the APD was aboveboard in one breath, but admit, even point the finger at one of the officers for corruption of another type?”

  The defense had cornered Sophie. Cooper was curious how she would respond.

  “Ms. Murphy, I never said the APD was completely above reproach in all circumstances. My only claim was that in this investigation, I knew of no bias or ill intent, and that I made my identification without knowledge of the suspect’s identity. I understand that you might want to confuse the issue because it’s beneficial to your client.”

  “Your Honor, I move to strike Ms. Dawson’s last response,” Ms. Murphy said.

  “On what basis?” Patrick asked.

  “It’s nonresponsive.”

  “Of course it’s responsive,” Patrick replied.

  “Overruled,” Judge Turner said.

  Ms. Murphy’s cheeks turned red. She walked back toward counsel’s table and picked up her legal pad. Cooper didn’t think she was actually reading anything but simply buying herself time.

  “I’m done with this witness.”