Delayed Justice

by Cara C. Putman

  “Then let’s focus on the thing in front of us: getting Tiffany through the hearing.”

  Ten minutes passed in the anteroom as Tiffany quietly ran colored pencils up and down a sheet of paper. Jaime tapped her phone against her teeth as she glanced at her watch. “I’m going to see if I can find Chandler. He should be here.”

  Madeline nodded from where she sat next to Tiffany. Her voice seemed locked in her throat as she tapped her fingers against her skirt-covered legs. “Tiffany needs Aslan.”

  Jaime nodded even as she thought that all of them could use the dog’s steadying presence. She glanced again toward the judge’s chambers, but the door was still shut, so she worked her way to the room’s exit. When she reached the hallway, she looked up and down but didn’t see Chandler or Aslan. The door opened behind her as she pulled up his number and hit Call. Tiffany slid up next to her and leaned into Jaime’s side.

  She led Tiffany to a bench lining the wall. “Aslan is on his way. You okay, kiddo?”

  The little girl nodded, but Jaime could feel her tremble.

  She breathed a prayer over her. Please, God, be with her. She shouldn’t have to go through this.

  At least Jaime could make sure she didn’t get through it alone. The child had experienced too much through the abuse and the investigation. Now to have to testify at the grand jury proceedings . . . it was all too much.

  CHAPTER 46

  FRIDAY, OCTOBER 19

  The northern Virginia area created a love-hate relationship for Chandler. Nothing reinforced that complex relationship as much as trying to find parking when time was of the essence. Walking would have made sense if he’d been at work, but the office would be closed for at least one more day before they could begin the process of reopening. Jake hung on to life, but in intensive care, his status a harsh reminder of everything that had happened Wednesday.

  Chandler had to find a way to keep his angst and frustration from bleeding into Aslan.

  Aslan had to do his job and bring presence and calm to Tiffany.

  He led Aslan up the steps and into the courthouse’s lobby. There was a layer of dark green marble or stone topped by a beige layer that ran to about his shoulder height, topped by beige paint to the high ceiling. The marble floor caused every sound to echo and be magnified. The security officer waved him to a stop.

  “That animal can’t go inside.”

  Chandler fished in his jacket pocket for the paperwork showing Aslan was a trained comfort animal. “He’s here to support an eight-year-old who has to testify before a grand jury.”

  The man glanced at the papers. “I need more than this.”

  “All right.” Chandler pulled out his phone and called Jaime, noticing he’d missed her call. “We’re caught at security. Do you have anything from the judge that shows Aslan is needed in court?”

  “It was an oral order.” She paused. “Let me talk to the officer.”

  He handed his phone to the officer, who was looking more impatient by the moment. The man nodded and grunted acquiescence.

  “Miss Nichols, I’ll need you to meet them here and take responsibility for them.” He handed the phone back to Chandler. “She’s on her way. As soon as she arrives, I’ll let you through.”

  Time seemed to drag as he waited for Jaime.

  The elevator doors opened, and she burst out as if pushed. “I swear it stopped on each floor.” She turned to the guard. “Arthur, they’re with me. My client needs this dog before her competency hearing.” Jaime glanced at her watch. “Which starts in five minutes.”

  “All right. Because they’re with you, I’ll let them through.” Then he proceeded to tell her what paperwork she’d need for the next time, while Chandler read anxiety in Jaime’s clenched fists.

  She hurried them toward the elevator. “Tiffany’s so fragile.”

  “We’ll get there. She won’t be alone.”

  “That’s right. I won’t let her be, which is why we have to get Aslan up there.”

  He shook his head. “No. I mean God will be with her. She won’t be alone.”

  Jaime stilled and her eyes met his. “I’m trying to believe that.”

  “That’s where we all start.” The doors dinged open, and he held them for her. “Let’s go take care of our girl.”

  His words echoed in Jaime’s mind. Our girl. She liked the sound of that even as she wished that Tiffany had never needed their help. The elevator opened on the courtroom’s floor, and Aslan stepped out, his nails clicking against the floor.

  Savannah straightened from where she’d been leaning against the wall. “Thanks for coming.”

  Chandler nodded and leaned down to pet Aslan. “Where’s Tiffany? He’s ready to go to work.”

  Aslan tipped his head, ears flopping, almost as if he understood the words.

  “We’ve had her waiting in a room with coloring books and a cartoon.” Jaime gestured for him to follow her. “Come this way.”

  They walked around two corners, and then she rapped lightly on a door. When it opened, Madeline stood there, worry filling her gaze. Then she saw Aslan and her shoulders slumped. “He made it.”

  Jaime put an arm around the woman’s shoulders. “Of course. Now where’s our girl?”

  Tiffany looked up, her tongue stuck between her teeth, the picture of concentration. Her face lit as if candles illuminated it from within when she saw the dog. She tossed her colored pencils down and sprang to her feet. “Aslan!”

  The dog glanced at Chandler, then at Tiffany. “Release.”

  Aslan bounded to Tiffany’s side and let her maul him in her excitement. Savannah stepped toward the door. “They’ll be expecting us in court. Time to move this show.”

  In moments the hearing was called back to order. “This time we are here for the competency hearing for Tiffany Ange.” The judge pulled his glasses from his round face and smiled at the little girl. “Tiffany, would you mind coming and sitting in this chair over here?” He gestured to the witness chair.

  “Yes, sir.” Her voice was small.

  “Thank you. I understand you have a dog with you. He can go with you.”

  “Okay.” Tiffany looked at Jaime, eyes round and big. “Do I have to go?”

  Jaime knelt in front of the girl. “Yes, but Aslan and I will be here the whole time.”

  “Promise?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Jaime squeezed her shoulders. “You’ll be fine. I promise nothing bad will happen here.”

  Tiffany stared at her for another moment and then walked to the witness chair, Aslan half a step behind her after a single voice command from Chandler.

  The judge waited until she was settled, her sneaker-clad feet kicking over Aslan’s back. “How old are you?”

  “Eight.”

  “Where do you live?”

  “Arlington.”

  “Do you know what a lie is?”

  “Not telling the truth.”

  “And what is the truth?”

  “What really happened.”

  “Today we need to ask you some questions about something that happened to you. Can you tell me the truth?”

  She looked at him. “Yes, sir.”

  “Why?”

  “Because if I don’t my mom will be upset, and Miss Jaime will be disappointed. I know it’s important to tell the truth.”

  The judge nodded. “It’s very important. Especially when you’re in court.” He considered the little girl. “Does either attorney have any questions?”

  Grant stood. “I do, Your Honor.” At the judge’s nod, he turned to Tiffany and held up a sheet of paper. “What color is this, Tiffany?”

  She looked at him with crinkled eyebrows and nose. “Green.”

  “If I told you this was blue, would I be telling the truth?”

  “No, it’s green.”

  “So calling it blue is a lie?”

  “Yes. It can only be one color at a time.”

  “Do you know if it’s wrong to tell the truth in a cour
t like this?”

  Jaime frowned as she realized what he was trying to do. Stay focused, kiddo.

  Tiffany looked at Grant like he was crazy. “No, I can’t tell a lie, but I can tell the truth.”

  He tried to get her to explain what a lie was (not the truth), and how it differed from the truth (one was true and the other wasn’t), but after several minutes the judge called a halt to the badgering.

  “I deem Tiffany Ange fit to take the oath because she understands the difference between the truth and a lie.” The judge looked down at his court reporter. “Let’s take a fifteen-minute break and these proceedings will transition to a probable cause hearing. If I find probable cause for the charges to proceed, it will then move to the grand jury.” The judge turned to Tiffany. “Young lady, you may step down and take a break.” He stood and left the courtroom, his black robes billowing around him.

  Lacy Collins, the Commonwealth’s Attorney, stood and turned to Savannah. “I need to see you in the hall now.”

  Madeline looked at Jaime as Tiffany made her way back to them, Aslan trailing at her side. “What’s happening?”

  Chandler leaned into Jaime’s side. “I’m going to take Aslan for a quick lap.”

  She nodded, then focused on Madeline. “Tiffany did what she needed to convince the judge that she can tell the truth and understands the difference between that and a lie. Next she’ll tell the judge what Corey did to her. After that will be the grand jury.”

  “When will that happen?”

  “We’ll see how Tiffany’s holding up.”

  “Will the public defender ask her questions?”

  “Possibly.”

  Madeline’s nostrils flared and her shoulders stiffened, so Jaime hurried on. “But it’s not guaranteed. I often wouldn’t because I didn’t want to tip my hand to the prosecution.” Even a few days earlier she could have anticipated Grant’s strategy. Now she had no idea.

  The fact that Tiffany had survived the competency hearing was a win. Now the young girl just had to survive two more hearings.

  CHAPTER 47

  FRIDAY, OCTOBER 19

  The judge called the hearing to order as Savannah leaned into Jaime. “Lacy is concerned about Madeline.”

  “Why?”

  “She thinks we need to get the mother out of here.”

  “Okay.” Jaime drew the word out as she tried to consider what the Commonwealth’s Attorney was truly concerned about. “Is she afraid Madeline’s going to coach Tiffany?”

  Savannah shrugged. “I’ll escort her out. Tell her the judge has cleared the room for purposes of the probable cause hearing.”

  “At least Tiffany has Aslan.”

  “Yeah.” Savannah tapped Madeline on the shoulder and nodded toward the door.

  Jaime watched them walk out. As she turned back to the judge, her gaze ran over those gathered in the gallery. What had she just seen? Her uncle? Yet when she looked again, he was gone. She blinked a couple times and looked again. Yep, definitely not there. Maybe Grant’s “warning” was making her imagine things.

  “Ms. Collins, you may call your first witness.”

  “I will only have two, Your Honor.” First the dignified woman walked Detective Thomas through why the police had been called to investigate the alleged sexual abuse.

  During her testimony, Jaime and Chandler took Tiffany and Aslan back to the anteroom where the child had waited earlier. Madeline flipped through a magazine in one corner, while Aslan yawned as if completely uninterested. Chandler smiled at Jaime over the dog’s head.

  Tiffany looked around the small room. “How much longer, Mommy? This is taking forever.”

  Madeline glanced up as if interrupted from a good dream. “I’m not sure how these things go. You’ll have to be patient.”

  “We’ll have lunch when you’re done.” Jaime started digging through her bag. “Would you like some gum?”

  “I’d like a Snickers.”

  Chandler burst out laughing as if caught off guard by her assertion. “I don’t have one of those. Do you, Jaime?”

  “Nope.” She tried to engage Tiffany in some coloring, but the little girl was clearly reaching the end of her patience. Jaime texted Savannah. The natives are restless.

  Run her to the restroom. When you’re done, we’ll be ready for her. Detective Thomas has done a good job.

  Okay.

  Five minutes later they returned from the restroom, and a sheriff’s deputy waited inside the room for them.

  “The CA has called her.”

  “Thanks.” Jaime knelt in front of Tiffany. “Now you get to tell the judge what happened to you.”

  She raised her eyebrows and frowned at Jaime. “Does this mean we have to talk about colors again?”

  “No.” Jaime tweaked her nose. “The nice lady will ask you questions, and Aslan will be at your feet like last time.”

  “Okay.”

  This time they used the door from the anteroom into the courtroom. Judge Thatcher smiled at Tiffany as she walked in with Aslan at her side. “Welcome back, young lady.” After Tiffany climbed into the witness chair, he swore her in again. Then he turned his attention to Lacy. “You may proceed.”

  “Thank you. Tiffany, you did so well earlier.” Lacy gestured toward where she sat in the witness chair. “We’ll talk for a few minutes if that’s all right.”

  “Okay.” Tiffany waited until Aslan was settled at her feet before looking at them. “I’m ready.”

  “First the judge is going to ask you to repeat some words.”

  “Young lady, do you remember what the truth is?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Do you promise to tell the truth here?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “All right. Then listen carefully to the questions you’ll be asked.”

  “Okay.” Tiffany looked at Jaime, her eyes appearing so big in her face. “You’ll stay here?”

  “I’m not leaving.” At Jaime’s words, Tiffany seemed to relax, and her feet grazed the top of Aslan’s fur.

  Lacy stood and cleared her throat. “Young lady, can you tell me your name?”

  “Tiffany Ange.” The girl rolled her eyes as if that question was too easy.

  “I want to talk about Mr. Corey.”

  “The man who hurt me?”

  Grant popped to his feet. “Objection, Your Honor. She’s stating an opinion.”

  Lacy braced her hands against the table. “Try to be a little more original, Grant. Of course it’s her opinion. She’s eight.”

  And then Lacy skillfully and carefully asked a series of questions about how Tiffany knew Corey, leading to what Corey did to her. Then she asked what happened when Corey hurt her. “What happened?”

  “When I went to bed?”

  “Yes. Was your mommy there?”

  “No, she was cleaning the kitchen.”

  “Why?”

  Tiffany frowned as if thinking hard. “Because the dishes were dirty. Corey said he’d help me get ready for bed, but he hurt me.”

  “Why didn’t you get your mommy?”

  “He said he’d hurt her if I did.”

  Lacy paused as Tiffany ran her shoes across Aslan’s back. After a moment passed, Grant cleared his throat, and Tiffany jolted. Lacy gave her a soft smile. “Tiffany, what did the man do to you?”

  “He hurt me.”

  “How?” The word was soft but direct.

  Tiffany swallowed, and then the story began to flow with her tears. Through it all Aslan never moved, even as Lacy asked follow-up questions. “What else happened?”

  “I pretended to be asleep. As soon as he left, I told Mommy.”

  Jaime’s vision clouded with tears. Why hadn’t she done the same thing when Dane hurt her? Maybe it could have stopped with one instance of violation rather than repeated encounters.

  “What happened next?”

  “Mommy called the police, and I met Aslan.”

  Lacy smiled as the dog glanced up at his name. �
��What did you tell the police?”

  “That I didn’t want him to hurt me again.”

  When Tiffany’s words stopped, Lacy let a minute of silence fall on the room. Then she turned toward the defense table. “Is the man at that table the one who hurt you?”

  Tiffany nodded, her shoulders hunched as if to protect herself, then said yes in a very small voice. Tiffany’s feet rubbed Aslan as if her life depended on his presence.

  “I have no further questions.”

  The judge looked at Grant. “Do you have any questions?”

  Grant looked at his legal pad where he’d scratched notes throughout Tiffany’s testimony. He pulled his reading glasses off his nose and then tapped the frames against his chin. He glanced at the scowling man with the air of James Dean seated next to him, then at Tiffany. “No, sir.”

  “Then I will certify this case to the Circuit Court that probable cause has been established and turn this matter over to the grand jury. The grand jury is scheduled to convene at two. Ms. Daniels, do you believe your client can handle answering questions one more time today?”

  Jaime wanted to beg Savannah to say no. No child should be asked to do something like that. She’d already bled her story out. But Savannah looked from Tiffany to Aslan. “If the dog is allowed in, I think she’ll make it.”

  “All right, I’d like to try.” He turned to Grant and the defendant. “You are both excused.” After the two men left, he waved Lacy and Savannah up. “You too, Miss Nichols.” Once they were all clustered by his bench, he pushed the microphone out of his way. “Normally, attorneys are not allowed in the room with the witnesses. However, because of Tiffany’s age I will allow you to select one person to accompany her and ensure she is not harassed in any way. Whoever it is, I will appoint as her guardian ad litem for the purposes of the grand jury.”

  Savannah turned to Jaime. “It should be you, Jaime, since she’s most comfortable with you.”

  Ms. Collins nodded. “I agree. I can’t do it because of my role, but someone needs to be in there for the child alone.”

  “All right.” Jaime looked at the judge. “Your Honor, do I have authority to end the grand jury hearing if it is too much for my client?”

  “Yes. As the GAL you will be there solely to look out for her interests and well-being.”