St. Claire and McGuiness answered simultaneously. “No, Your Honor.”
In the first skirmish, McGuiness had clearly won the war of perception. The only positive result was that for the time being, the bail remained high, and Jamison was able to watch St. Claire shuffle slowly from the courtroom in handcuffs and a belly chain.
Chapter 17
When the arraignment ended, the only person in the courtroom without an elevated pulse, Jamison thought, was Alex St. Claire. That thought alone raised the prosecutor’s heartbeat. He had seen only a few individuals like that and all of them were like reptilian predators.
What set St. Claire apart was his uniqueness. Not only did he think he was smarter than everybody else in the room, he was probably right. But Jamison knew that even the smartest people make mistakes and the person who caught the mistake didn’t have to be as smart as the person making the mistake—as long as he was determined and had a little bit of luck. At this moment, Jamison didn’t feel very lucky, but he was determined as hell.
With less than a week to go before the preliminary hearing, Jamison’s objectives were limited because it wasn’t like a trial. It was simply a proceeding to decide if there was enough evidence to justify a trial. He didn’t have to prove his case beyond a reasonable doubt. The ultimate question of guilt or innocence was for a jury to decide.
But McGuiness would be permitted to cross-examine Beth Garrett. Other than that, Jamison expected no surprises. If McGuiness had anything to reveal he wouldn’t do it at the preliminary hearing. He would save all his evidence for the trial where there would be little time for the prosecution to investigate or respond. To Jamison, the process was like playing cards when the other guy got to look at your hand while keeping his own cards close to the vest. Worse, guys like McGuiness only played those cards when all the bets were down and there were no second chances.
With the preliminary hearing now only days away, Jamison sat with O’Hara at the long table in the sheriff’s office waiting for the detectives assigned to the murder investigations to arrive. Detective Washington stuck his head in, walked over to the side table, poured a cup of coffee, and settled his bulk into a chair across from Jamison. Longworthy dropped his lanky frame into a chair, flopped a yellow legal tablet on the table, and yawned. He didn’t say anything, but his face had the haggard look of a man who was finishing a late shift.
Longworthy nodded to O’Hara and Ernie, moving his eyes past Jamison. Jamison noticed the snub just as he had noticed it the last time they had gathered around the table. He was also aware that Longworthy intended for him to recognize it. Maybe it was because he had refused the murder charges. Maybe it was simply because he was a lawyer and it was obvious Longworthy didn’t like lawyers. Whatever the reason was, Jamison recognized there was nothing he could do about it.
Slowly Jamison looked around the table at each detective. He took his time before he spoke, and then spoke deliberately to insure there would be no mistaking the gravity of what he had to say. “Gentlemen, I need your help on this case.” First, he had to assure them he was on their side.
“I think St. Claire committed all the murders,” he began. “But right now we have no physical evidence that ties St. Claire to any of those victims. All we have is a similar pattern to the Garrett case.
“We haven’t turned up a relationship, not social or school or doctor–patient, nothing that will help us prove that St. Claire even knew our other victims. Clearly he had a history with Garrett, but we don’t have anything that shows that the other crimes were based on a relationship of any kind either with St. Claire or Garrett.
“All the DNA tests are negative except for Garrett. So we have no evidence that Ventana, Johnson, or Symes were in St. Claire’s house or his car. And topping all that off is that Garrett’s blood tests came in negative for the heroin-barbiturate cocktail found in the other murder victims, and there were no similar narcotics found at either of his houses. So there it is. We don’t have squat that I can see.
“I got this back a few days ago.” Jamison reached into his file folder and pulled out several pages from the state crime lab. “There were two separate types of hair found on each body. The good news is that the hairs on each body all match in terms of texture and color. And we know one other thing.” Jamison looked around the room. “The hair doesn’t match St. Claire. It didn’t come from him. One strand on each body came from an African American person. The other strands came from a dog. And that, gentlemen, is a piece of evidence that we can’t explain, but Tom McGuiness will be more than happy to. He’ll put his hand on the shoulder of his lily-white client and tell the jury that St. Claire doesn’t have a dog. The second thing he’ll say is that maybe the crimes were committed by a black man who has a labradoodle.”
Detective Washington broke into laughter. “Well, you can blow a hole through that. No self-respectin’ black man would be caught dead with a labradoodle. That’s a white boy’s dog. Black man would have a dog that takes a piece out of your ass just lookin’ at him.”
Jamison leaned back in his chair. “Yeah, thanks, Washington. I’ll keep that in mind when I call you as an expert witness on black men and their dogs.”
Washington kept the grin on his face. “Just tellin’ you, my man. Just tellin’ you. You asked for help.”
Longworthy pulled his legal tablet closer to him and began drawing circles on it while speaking. “The hair doesn’t mean shit. The most important thing is that it was planted. And we know that one woman stopped in the middle of nowhere just like Garrett, and she had to have a reason. We know that two other women left with somebody they opened the door for, and they had to have a reason. Best guess is that they either knew the perp, or he was somebody they thought was a cop or someone like a cop.”
Longworthy stared at Jamison as if the conclusion was obvious. “Garrett stopped because she thought she had to, because she thought St. Claire was a cop and that damn well explains why these other women let him in the door or stopped for him. You don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to . . .” His voice trailed off as he looked at them.
The silence lingered for a few moments before O’Hara decided he needed to assert himself. “T. J., that isn’t going to nail him and you know it.”
O’Hara stole a quick glance at Jamison to be sure it was all right to push his point. “Remember, the other victims were all killed by a combination of heroin and barbiturates. Nothing like that was in Garrett’s system and we didn’t find anything like that in the search. Don’t forget, this guy has Tom McGuiness for a lawyer and all of you have gone up against him before. Without real proof that nails St. Claire to each case, you know McGuiness will get the murder charges thrown out and walk St. Claire out the door before the ink is dry on the order.”
O’Hara’s eyes lasered in on Longworthy. “T. J., maybe you’re right and the hair was planted. That would be my guess too, but we still have to show St. Claire planted it so that Matt can make this case hang together. So let’s stop pissing on the DA’s office and piss on St. Claire. Can we all do that?”
Just then the door to the conference room opened and Sheriff Bekin stuck his head in. “Thought you boys might like to know St. Claire has posted bail. He’s walking out of the jail right now. Big television bunch are waiting outside. Guess they got the news before you did.”
Relishing Jamison’s startled expression, Bekin was unable to conceal a tight little smile as he eyed the prosecutor. “Maybe the DA’s office ought to have the newspeople give you a call when they find something out about your case?” he added sarcastically before pulling his head back from the open door.
Longworthy picked his pen up from the legal tablet he had been drawing circles on and stalked out of the room. Jamison started to say something when O’Hara put his hand on Jamison’s arm. “T. J.’s all right. He’s just pissed that we can’t seem to nail St. Claire.”
But Jamison’s mind had already moved beyond T. J. and Bekin. He was mentally plodding through what
he had to make his case and what he didn’t have. Jamison sat back. The list of what he didn’t have was far longer. Unless they came up with more, a lot more, the only way they could win the murder cases was to win the Garrett case—the pattern was there and they all knew it. What Jamison didn’t know was how much St. Claire’s lawyer knew and what he would do about it. As quiet as the investigation had been, three savage murders made a lot of legal noise.
Chapter 18
There was no way for Jamison to keep Elizabeth Garrett from being questioned in detail at the preliminary hearing. Not only was he concerned about the emotional trauma to Beth, he knew McGuiness’s primary objective would be to damage her credibility as much as possible while revealing little about the defense case.
This left him with no options. Without her testimony, he had no case. He decided to outline the basic essentials of the charges with her testimony and wait to see how McGuiness would attack her. Mercy and compassion were not part of the deal.
Alex St. Claire walked confidently into the courtroom as if he was preparing for surgery. He had a swagger to him that projected confidence; he knew he was the principal actor and all eyes were on him. His carefully tailored dark blue suit and subdued maroon silk tie contrasted with his tan, which hadn’t seemed to fade during his days in custody, the very image of a man who had no need to drag any woman into submission.
Tom McGuiness followed his client and settled himself at the counsel table. McGuiness gave a nod to Jamison and opened his briefcase. He handed a blank legal tablet to St. Claire. It was a common defense practice that allowed the client to keep busy and the attorney to avoid the distraction of the client constantly pulling on the attorney’s sleeve, trying to offer his thoughts. But Alex St. Claire wasn’t the usual client and McGuiness wasn’t going to treat him like one. He would pay attention to what his client wrote.
St. Claire leaned forward trying to get a clear view of Jamison and O’Hara, who sat next to him as his chief investigator. “Good morning, Mr. Jamison, Investigator O’Hara.” Jamison acknowledged him. O’Hara ignored him.
When Judge Patrick Sullivan had been assigned the preliminary hearing, Jamison didn’t object. Sullivan was neither a really good nor a bad choice. He would do his job and everybody knew what was going to happen at the end. When Jamison finished presenting his evidence the defendant would be bound over for trial. The only issue was how much damage would be done to Jamison’s case before the hearing ended. From his chair behind the bench, Sullivan called the case for purposes of the record. “Everybody ready to proceed?” Jamison and McGuiness answered they were. “The People may present their case.”
Jamison stood. “The People call Elizabeth Garrett.”
O’Hara left the courtroom and signaled to Ernie. Within a minute Ernie escorted Elizabeth Garrett from the hallway into the courtroom, whispering into her ear to raise her right hand. Elizabeth tried to keep her eyes on the judge as the oath was administered, but, as if magnetically drawn, when she caught the profile of Alex St. Claire she turned her head to face him.
St. Claire would not fail to miss any opportunity to burnish himself in the eyes of the court and tarnish Elizabeth. Instead of outrage at the ordeal she was putting him through, St. Claire’s expression was one of compassion for the woman accusing him. Matt Jamison knew it was all for show, and for the moment the show belonged to Alex St. Claire.
Elizabeth walked slowly to the witness chair. The collective intensity focused on her by each person in the courtroom must have been almost suffocating. She looked like a cornered animal.
Jamison moved quickly to the events leading up to her abduction. Elizabeth Garrett related to the court what she remembered. Nothing in her opening testimony differed from what she had said previously and repeated to Jamison when he had gone over the details with her the day before. But McGuiness made a point of establishing what she couldn’t remember. He followed the basic rule of a careful defense lawyer: don’t concentrate on the strengths of the DA’s case, only the weaknesses. His final question slid out of his mouth like the tongue of a rattler. “One more thing, please, Ms. Garrett. You and Dr. St. Claire had a previous relationship, didn’t you?” McGuiness waited politely until Garrett nodded her head. “By nodding I take it your answer is yes?” He waited just a beat. “That was a romantic relationship, wasn’t it?”
Garrett looked down. “Yes, but I was young and—”
McGuiness interrupted, his voice polite but firm. “A simple yes or no, please. I’m sure Mr. Jamison will give you the opportunity to give a further answer . . . if he decides to go into that.”
McGuiness returned to the counsel table and flipped though his notes, leaving Garrett on the stand to watch him. He then looked up at her, followed by a glance at the members of the news media sitting in the front row, a practiced apologetic look on his face for making Garrett go through any further embarrassment, but Jamison knew it wasn’t over.
“And that romantic relationship included sexual intimacy with Dr. St. Claire. Is that right, Ms. Garrett?”
Garrett’s face reddened. Her parents were sitting in the back of the courtroom. “Yes, but again—”
McGuiness held up his hand. “We don’t need the details of the liaison, Ms. Garrett. I have no desire to embarrass you. Thank you.” McGuiness started back toward the counsel table and then turned to face her once more, as if he had forgotten something. “One more thing, please, Ms. Garrett.” McGuiness allowed his gaze to slide toward Jamison and then to the press. “Those relations with Dr. St. Claire? They were all consensual, weren’t they?” He waited, allowing Elizabeth’s long silence to permeate the courtroom. “You must answer, please.”
“Yes.”
McGuiness repeated the answer as if it needed clarification. “Yes they were all consensual?”
“Yes.”
“Thank you.” McGuiness sat down at the counsel table, turning his face toward Jamison. “Nothing further, Your Honor.”
Jamison recognized that McGuiness wanted him to open the door and explain the previous relationship, which would justify the defense attorney’s coming at the witness, slowly opening her up. It was a temptation to allow her to talk about what really happened, but it wouldn’t solve anything because it would allow McGuiness a chance to take more blood. One time going through it all was going to be bad enough. He decided he would wait until the trial.
“Nothing further of this witness, Your Honor. Ms. Garrett may be excused. The People are prepared to submit the case subject to any evidence the defense wishes to present.”
McGuiness rose from his chair. “We have no wish to prolong this hearing but will the prosecutor stipulate that no physical evidence of sexual activity was found, no semen or prostatic fluid or any hair from my client’s body?”
“We will agree, Your Honor, that at this time we have not received back any test results that would conflict with the proposed stipulation.”
McGuiness acknowledged the stipulation. “Your Honor, it’s clear that this case involves two people who have a long romantic history and we all know how complicated that can be. We realize the court has a very limited role here and it isn’t your job to decide guilt or innocence. Still, the weakness of the People’s case is quite evident. It would seem obvious that no sexual assault took place. We would ask the court to find insufficient evidence to support the charge of attempted rape. With that, we will submit the case to the court to determine if there is sufficient evidence to set a trial.”
Jamison stood. “Your Honor, while it is true there is no physical evidence, the circumstances are not only consistent with intent to sexually assault, there is also no reasonable alternative explanation. Certainly the evidence would support a strong suspicion of attempted rape. I will submit it.” Jamison sat down heavily.
The motion to dismiss the attempted rape charge was denied, but Jamison had seen the judge look at him over the top of his reading glasses. Judge Sullivan didn’t have to say anything. His expression telegraphed
the message that Jamison better have something more for trial to make his case. The lines were drawn.
Sullivan addressed McGuiness. “The trial date, Mr. McGuiness? Have you and Mr. Jamison discussed a date that works with your schedule given that your client is out of custody?”
McGuiness glanced over at Jamison, then delivered his blow. “Your Honor, Dr. St. Claire has been exposed to this terrible experience and the emotional toll on him has been substantial. He is the victim of vicious rumors of which I am sure the court is well aware. He wants this over with as quickly as possible and so do I. We request the earliest possible setting within the minimum statutory time. I am sure the prosecution wants this over quickly as well, although I suspect not for the same reasons.”
The judge frowned. “Mr. Jamison, Mr. McGuiness, I have an open date in a little over three weeks. It is well within the statutory time.” Sullivan knew he was calling McGuiness’s bluff. It was too little time to get ready in a case of this magnitude and he felt certain that McGuiness would quit posturing and accept a more reasonable date outside the statutory time.
McGuiness spoke up before Jamison was able to respond. “Your Honor, we appreciate the court’s effort to accommodate the concerns of Dr. St. Claire. That date will be acceptable to the defense.” He turned to Jamison. “I am sure that Mr. Jamison also wants to get this trial over with so that the cloud is lifted from Ms. Garrett?”
Jamison felt his stomach flip. The short setting on the preliminary hearing was one thing, but with St. Claire out of custody he did not have any reason to expect that McGuiness would try to set the trial so quickly. Three weeks was barely enough time for the Garrett case, and he needed more time for the murder cases to come together if possible so he could gain real leverage against St. Claire. Despite efforts to keep the suspicion quiet that St. Claire committed the murders, rumors had been churning in the community and press that St. Claire was the focus of suspicion. The linchpin of the murder cases was the Garrett case—that was what linked St. Claire because of the pattern. Prove St. Claire kidnapped Garrett and it would be clear that St. Claire was the primary suspect in the murders. Jamison knew if he lost the Garrett case, then without more evidence he wouldn’t be able to make the modus operandi connection to the murders.
Fractured Justice Page 14
