A Matter for the Jury

by Peter Murphy

  ‘My Lord…’

  ‘No,’ the judge said. ‘We have lost enough time already. Let us proceed. We will take a short break after examination in chief, Mr Schroeder. I am sure the witness would welcome it, and you can have a few minutes to pull your thoughts together for cross-examination – if Mr Hardcastle has not appeared by then.’

  Ben bowed to the judge and resumed his seat. He turned behind him to look at Barratt, who was rolling his eyes.

  ‘I swear to God, I’m going to bloody kill him for this,’ he whispered.

  ‘Tomorrow,’ Ben replied. ‘Today I need you to take notes for me.’

  43

  ‘My name is Jennifer Doyce.’

  Dr Walker had steered Jennifer Doyce into court in her wheelchair, bringing it to rest in front of the bench, so that she could be seen by judge, jury and counsel, as well as by the crowd of reporters and onlookers in the public gallery. The trial had been building momentum in the media. All the daily newspapers were giving it extensive coverage, and a BBC television crew had been spotted outside the Town Hall just as she was arriving. She was dressed in a beige sweater and brown slacks, a blue scarf around her neck, and clutching a white handkerchief. Jennifer was still only twenty-one years old but she looked at least twice that age. She was pale, gaunt and haggard, and the very last thing on earth that she needed was to re-live the events on board the Rosemary D in front of an audience – any audience, let alone an audience of journalists. Dr Walker had offered to tell the judge that the pressure would be too much, that it was not advisable for her to give evidence, but she would not hear of it. What Jennifer was about to do was not about her. She was giving evidence for Frank. It was a trial for his murder, and it was the last and the only act of love she could now perform for him. She could have turned her gaze on Billy Cottage with a slight movement of her head, but she did not once acknowledge his existence.

  ‘I believe you have written your address down for his Lordship, and you need not give it to us. But is your home in St Ives?’

  Her voice was quiet, but steady and determined. Ben had taken Martin Hardcastle’s seat in the front row, pushing aside Hardcastle’s unopened brief, so that he could sit alongside Andrew Pilkington. Unobtrusively, he ran his eyes over the jury. They were tight-lipped, obviously moved by Jennifer’s appearance, and hanging on her every word.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘How old are you?’

  ‘I am twenty-one.’

  ‘Do you have a job?’

  ‘Yes, I am a trainee librarian. I work in Huntingdon.’

  Suddenly, Ben looked at the jury again. They looked like men who might use a public library, or at least have children who would use one. Was there any chance that…? But he caught no glimpse of recognition.

  ‘When did you first meet Frank Gilliam?’

  The question prompted the first use of the handkerchief. Ben gazed fixedly at the note he was making. It was going to be a long morning. Andrew Pilkington was giving her whatever time she needed. Dr Walker had taken his seat behind Andrew and would tell him if Jennifer needed a break; otherwise, he would continue at whatever pace Jennifer wanted. That was all right, Ben thought, initially; the longer the examination in chief lasted, the more chance there was that Martin Hardcastle would put in an appearance. But the thought did not last long. The problem was that Barratt Davis had been absolutely specific about Martin’s condition, and Ben quickly concluded that his appearance now might not be in anyone’s interests. Unlike Martin Hardcastle, Ben did have some notes for a cross-examination of Jennifer Doyce. Like any junior, part of his role was to understudy his leader, and to be ready with his suggestions when his leader consulted him. He had not been consulted. Ben was no longer surprised by that. But it meant that he would probably be responsible for the cross-examination on his own. It was a disturbing thought and he had to fight to subdue his nerves. Still, he was confident that he knew the points he would have to make, and he had anticipated correctly that he would have to tread gently. He could now see exactly how gently.

  ‘I met him about three months before this happened, some time in October.’

  ‘How did you meet?’

  ‘Through friends. I would go out with my friends on a Saturday night and someone introduced us.’

  ‘And how did your relationship develop?’

  She smiled thinly.

  ‘He asked me out. We started going out together. We would go to see a film, go out for coffee, go dancing sometimes.’

  ‘Yes, I see,’ Andrew said. ‘I believe that Frank was training in management at Lloyds Bank in St Ives, is that right?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘How old was he?’

  The handkerchief came up to her eyes again. There was a pause.

  ‘He was twenty-three.’

  ‘Did you love him?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Pilkington paused again, this time for a prolonged period. He glanced over his shoulder at Dr Walker, but the doctor shook his head, and he waited. At length the handkerchief moved down again from the eyes to the lap.

  ‘Miss Doyce, I don’t mean to embarrass you, but I must ask, for the jury, about the events leading up to the 25 of January.’

  ‘I’m not in any way embarrassed,’ she replied.

  Ben looked up again. She was angry now, but controlling it. Well, she had every right to be angry. He followed her eyes. They were strong, and fixed on Andrew Pilkington.

  ‘Thank you. During the early part of January, did you have a conversation with Frank about sexual matters?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Had you had a sexual relationship of any kind before that?’

  ‘Not really. We had kissed and cuddled, that kind of thing.’

  ‘I see. During January, what did you discuss?’

  She sat up in her chair.

  ‘We agreed to exchange our virginities.’

  ‘To exchange…’ Andrew smiled, momentarily thrown off balance. ‘I’m sorry, I haven’t heard it put that way before.’

  Some of the tension was broken. The judge and jury permitted themselves a chuckle. Jennifer smiled also.

  ‘That’s the way we thought of it. People usually say that the woman surrenders herself to the man, but it wasn’t like that for us. It wasn’t just me surrendering myself to him. It was something we both wanted.’

  ‘Yes. Was there some discussion between you about where the… exchange… would take place?’

  She smiled again. ‘Yes. Frank told me he had heard about this boat which was moored up at Holywell Fen.’

  ‘The Rosemary D?’

  ‘Yes. The word had spread that it was used by couples who wanted somewhere to make love. A girl who worked with Frank had been there with her boyfriend. We thought there wouldn’t be many people who wanted to go there during the cold weather. We didn’t have anywhere to go, you see. We were both living with our parents.’

  ‘Yes, I see,’ Andrew said.

  She continued as if she had not heard him.

  ‘Of course, now, I wish I had just asked someone, one of my friends. I’m sure I could have arranged…’ She seemed to come back from a distance. ‘I’m sorry. What were you asking?’

  ‘No, that’s all right. Did you make plans to go to the Rosemary D on the night of the 25 January?’

  ‘Yes. It had to be a Saturday night, because that’s when we always went out. We didn’t have much chance during the week.’

  ‘How did you plan to get to the boat?’

  ‘We planned to walk from St Ives. It’s the only way, really.’

  ‘All right. Please tell the jury about the earlier part of the evening, before you got to the Rosemary D.’

  ‘Frank picked me up from my house at about… I think it was about 8 or 8.30, and I seem to remember that we went to Jack’s Café and had something to eat.’
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  Ben paused in his writing and looked up.

  ‘You seem to remember…?’ Andrew was asking.

  She shook her head in frustration. ‘There are some parts of the evening I am still blank about,’ she replied. ‘It’s been coming back to me in patches. I remember getting dressed before leaving home, choosing what I was going to wear and so on. I remember leaving the house with Frank. I think the police checked with Jack’s… but anyway, I think that is what happened.’

  Pilkington nodded. ‘What do you remember after leaving your house?’ he asked.

  ‘I remember being with Frank in the Oliver Cromwell,’ she replied. ‘I remember that because it was something we had talked about when we were planning the evening. We had to walk past the Oliver Cromwell to get to the meadows, and we thought we might need a couple of drinks before we set out, just to steady our nerves, so we planned to call in there on the way.’

  ‘Do you have any memory of what time you arrived at the Oliver Cromwell?’

  She shook her head.

  ‘No. It wasn’t all that long before it closed, I do remember that. We didn’t stay very long, and I remember Frank saying it was getting on towards closing time and we should be on our way.’

  ‘Please describe where you went when you left the Oliver Cromwell.’

  ‘We turned left outside the pub and walked to the end of Wellington Street, then we were about to turn right into Priory Road, when we realised that we had both run out of cigarettes. We must have smoked our last ones in the Oliver Cromwell.’

  ‘What did you decide to do?’

  ‘We were about to go back to the pub because they had a vending machine, but I noticed there was a light on at the corner shop in Priory Road, and there was a girl who seemed to be working. The door was locked, but we knocked on the window, and she heard us and she let us come in to buy cigarettes.’

  ‘What kind of cigarettes did you buy? How many?’

  ‘Woodbines. We each bought a packet of ten.’

  Andrew Pilkington nodded.

  ‘Thank you. Now, before we come on to your walk to the Rosemary D, there is one other matter. May the witness please be shown Exhibit Five?’

  Jennifer was lost in a torrent of tears before Paul had even reached the witness box. Dr Walker reached forward and tapped Andrew on the arm. He instantly nodded his agreement, and turned towards the bench.

  ‘My Lord, I wonder whether we might have a short adjournment?’

  ‘Certainly, Mr Pilkington,’ Mr Justice Lancaster replied. ‘Fifteen minutes, members of the jury, please.’

  * * *

  ‘I don’t envy you this one, Ben,’ Barratt observed, as they left Court 1 and found a haven in the Square away from the prying eyes of the press and public. ‘And it will be you, by the way, won’t it, Jess? She has just come back from the George.’

  ‘He’s stopped throwing up, at least for now,’ Jess replied matter-of-factly. ‘But he is still in a bad way, and I don’t see that changing significantly in the near future.’

  ‘I’m sorry, Ben,’ Barratt said quietly. ‘I didn’t realise how bad things had got. I shouldn’t be doing this to you.’

  ‘Don’t worry about it,’ Ben replied. ‘Oddly enough, if this had to happen on one day of the trial, today was probably the right day. We don’t need very much from Jennifer, and we can do it all wearing kid gloves. I have my notes. I am ready.’

  ‘I know that, Ben,’ Barratt said. ‘But it is still not something that should have happened. I was too loyal to Martin. I can’t say I wasn’t warned. You mentioned it, Merlin told me. God knows, there has been enough gossip going around about him for the last year or two. I didn’t pay enough attention. I was too loyal. It is a weakness we solicitors have.’

  Ben grinned. ‘I’m not sure that’s necessarily a weakness, Barratt,’ he said. ‘I’m all in favour of loyalty in the right circumstances.’ He paused. ‘And actually, I have to say, Martin was handling this case pretty well until today.’

  ‘That’s all very well,’ Barratt replied. ‘But when I retain a Silk, I prefer him to do the whole case pretty well.’

  Ben took a deep breath.

  ‘I suppose what I’m trying to say is that we need to postpone the inquest on this situation until after the trial. I know you are going to have a few things to say to Martin, and to his clerk, no doubt. But we need to have him with us for the rest of the trial, Barratt – if only for the sake of appearances. It wouldn’t look good if leading counsel suddenly disappeared half way through. We have to present a united front to the jury.’

  Barratt smiled. ‘It’s all right,’ he said. ‘I’m not going to cause a scene. I can wait. But I’m not going to take any more of that “I’m-a-Silk-and-you’re-not” nonsense any more, and I hope you won’t either.’

  ‘I am officially emancipated, as from today,’ Ben grinned. He turned to Jess. ‘How is Billy today?’

  ‘Very quiet,’ she replied. ‘I only had a minute with him, but I couldn’t get a word out of him. He seemed to be lost in some little world of his own.’

  Barratt nodded. ‘Wonderful. Just what we need when he’s about to give evidence. Well, I suppose we ought to get back. We are not going to get to cross before lunch, are we?’

  Ben shook his head. ‘Not at this rate. And I don’t think there’s any need for Jess to keep running back and forth to the George. Let’s just leave him alone until this evening.’

  ‘Thank you, Ben,’ Jess said gratefully.

  * * *

  ‘It’s my gold cross and chain, which was given to me by my grandmother,’ Jennifer said, handing the piece back to Paul.

  ‘Can you think back, Miss Doyce, and tell the jury whether you were wearing that gold cross and chain when you left your house on the night of the 25 of January?’

  ‘Yes, I was.’

  ‘This may seem an odd question. But how is it that you can remember that?’

  ‘Because I always wear it, wherever I go. I always have, ever since my grandmother gave it to me, and I will wear it again as soon as it is returned to me.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Andrew said. ‘Now, please tell my Lord and the jury where you and Frank went after you had bought your Woodbines.’

  ‘We walked a few yards to the end of Priory Road, through the little gate on to the meadows. Then we walked along the river until we came to the boat.’

  ‘How long did the walk take?’

  ‘It must have been almost an hour,’ she replied. ‘It’s a good walk up to the Fen.’

  Andrew smiled. ‘Forgive me for asking this, Miss Doyce. But it was a freezing cold night, and no doubt it was going to be very cold on the boat. Did you think…?’

  She smiled back. ‘We just wanted to do it,’ she replied simply. ‘We were determined. We had heard that there were good blankets on the boat, and a paraffin heater. We were wearing jumpers and heavy coats, and we had flashlights. We thought we were well enough prepared. We couldn’t get the paraffin heater to work, though. I think it must have run out of fuel.’

  ‘If you can now picture yourself arriving at the Rosemary D,’ Andrew said. ‘What did you do?’

  ‘We both got our flashlights out. Frank climbed on board first and helped me to jump on to the deck. He opened the door. The first cabin is like a living room and a kitchen. Then you come to the bedroom. Fortunately, there was no one there. We had been worried about finding another couple there and having to either wait for ages out in the cold, or go back home.’

  ‘I’m sure,’ Andrew said. ‘What did you do once you were in the bedroom?’

  ‘As I said, we tried to get the heater to work, but it wouldn’t. So we decided to keep all our clothes on. We were a bit nervous, so we each smoked a cigarette. We may even have smoked more than one, just talking, you know, waiting for one of us to start things off.’

  ‘Ye
s.’

  Again, it was as if she did not hear him. ‘And I remember…’

  ‘Yes. Go on.’

  ‘I remember Frank making a joke. He had just taken his rubbers out of his coat pocket, you know, and we were a bit nervous still, and he said he hoped he would be able to… you know… in such a low temperature…’

  The jury shared a smile. But the handkerchief was up at her eyes again, and Andrew allowed her another pause.

  ‘Then what happened?’

  ‘I undid my coat and went to lie on the bed. I remember that suddenly, I didn’t feel nervous any more. I unfastened my stockings at the top and pushed my knickers down. Frank came and lay down, partly on top of me, partly by my side. I helped him unbutton his trousers…’

  ‘It’s all right,’ Andrew said. ‘Please go on.’

  ‘I found his… his penis, and I started rubbing it. We were still giggling and I was teasing him, saying I hoped he would be up to it. I remember… I remember Frank saying he should get his rubbers, and I remember saying to him, “no, let me touch you for a little while before you put it on”, and he was saying, “all right then, but not too long”, and we were still giggling, and I could feel him getting hard, and then…’

  She fell silent, seeming to have lost all contact with the courtroom. After some time, she returned.

  ‘I’m sorry.’

  ‘That’s quite all right, Miss Doyce. You had just said that Frank had begun to get an erection.’

  She had been looking across the courtroom, somewhere above the jury’s heads. But she suddenly turned back and stared at Andrew.

  ‘And then it happened.’

  ‘What happened?’ he asked.

  ‘I heard this noise. It sounded like someone opening the door to come into the first cabin. I thought, “well, it’s probably just the wind”. But then I heard someone walking very fast through the first cabin, bumping into the furniture, then this shadow appeared…’