“And why hasn’t Joey received that money? After all, if my client actually did carry out a hit on her own husband in exchange for $1 million, she would have already received that money from Francesco Veraldi, and she already would have paid Joey Caruso that money. She’s been out of jail this whole time. Don’t you think, ladies and gentlemen, that if she had the money for Joey, and she just hadn’t paid him yet, that Joey would get wind of that and would have already had her killed? I mean, think logically about this scenario, ladies and gentlemen. Think logically about it.”
“So, I think that I’ve established that you can just go ahead and discount the witnesses for the prosecution. They were clearly lying. Gianni Ricci came in to lie in exchange for immunity for his role in the bounty deal. Enzo Degrazio was lying for some other reason. I don’t know what the reason is, but it’s very clear that he was lying. So, let’s just stipulate that both of the prosecution’s star witnesses were lying. That out of the way, it’s time to look at the evidence that the defense provided, and these witnesses were damning.”
“First, you saw the testimony of Coretta Taylor and Bianca Cassavettes. They both told their stories about how Vittorio raped them. He drugged them and had sex with them while they were unconscious. That’s really disgusting behavior and it showed how low Vittorio’s character was. These women had no motivation to lie. None whatsoever. Oh, Ms. Hughes tried to make it look like they were lying, but she didn’t get very far, did she? And then you saw the testimony of the officers who came to the Degrazio’s house several times in response to calls regarding domestic disturbances. Officers came to the house three different times. Three different times. That shows, right there, that the Degrazios had a violent relationship.”
“Finally, you saw the testimony of my client. Ms. Hughes desperately tried to trip her up, but my client was unshakeable. Absolutely unshakeable. Ms. Hughes didn’t break her down. Her story was that solid. And her story was powerful. She testified that she didn’t cook dinner, and that Vittorio came home that night, totally drunk and angry after having lost money yet again at the casinos. She said that a fight broke out, and that Vittorio, completely drunk out of his mind, threw a belt around her neck and strangled her. She had no choice but to try to save her life. No choice. She reached into her lampstand drawer, brought out a gun, and shot Vittorio. It was her life or his, ladies and gentlemen, and she chose to live. She chose to live. Any one of you would do the same.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, the facts of this case dictate a finding of not guilty. Not guilty. And I also wanted to remind you that the prosecutor has the burden of proof in this case. The state has the burden of proof. The state, who provided completely inadequate and lying witnesses, has the burden of proof. And no way did the state meet that burden. No way.” I shook my head. “No way. I also wanted to remind you that the state must prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. That means that if you have any doubt in your mind about my client’s guilt, then you must acquit. If you think that it’s even a faint possibility that my client actually did kill her husband in self-defense, you must acquit. My client gets the benefit of the doubt in this situation. I ask for a finding of not guilty. That’s the only verdict that would be just in this situation.”
“Thank you again for your service. I know that you will go and deliberate and do the right thing. I know it, because I know that all of you are not the kinds of people who will make a woman pay for saving her own life.”
At that, I went and sat down.
After we gave the jury our closing arguments, Judge Reiner dismissed the jury. He gave instructions on the elements of murder, and instructions on the elements of self-defense, and then he thanked them for their service and sent them on their way.
On the elements of murder, he told the jury that “if you believe that the defendant knowingly killed the victim, Vittorio Degrazio, and killed him after deliberation, then you must find the defendant guilty of murder in the first degree. However, if you believe that the defendant killed Mr. Degrazio because she felt that lethal force was necessary to defend herself, and that her belief that this force was necessary to defend herself was reasonable, then you must find the defendant not guilty. That said, if you believe that Ms. Degrazio was the initial aggressor, then you must not find that the defendant was justified in killing Mr. Degrazio, unless Ms. Degrazio withdrew from the encounter, and Mr. Degrazio pursued it further after her withdrawal.”
After Judge Reiner gave the instructions and thanked them, the jury filed out to deliberate.
And it was time for me to wait.
At 6 PM, Judge Reiner informed everybody that the jury was still deliberating. They had gone out at 3 PM, so they had been at it for three hours. “You might as well go on home,” he said to Ally, her second-chair Sheldon Hatch, Gina, and me. “We’ll be in touch when the jury has a verdict.”
I sighed. I wanted there to be a verdict that day, but I couldn’t possibly force the jury to come back with their decision just because I wanted them to.
“What does that mean?” Gina asked me. “Why can’t they make up their minds?”
“I don’t know. I do know that we picked a decent jury and we left it all out on the table. I will have to admit that I’m a bit worried just because of the fact that Ally really dug into the fact that you owe Joey Caruso so much money. It does look like you had a reason to go ahead and take that million dollar bounty from Francesco Veraldi. Especially since you didn’t have a good answer for how you are prepared to pay Joey back.”
Gina looked worried. “Do you think that they’re going to find me guilty?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know.”
We left the courtroom, got the elevator and took it down. I left the courthouse, found my car, and sat in the front seat.
I left it all out on the field, but what if it wasn’t enough? What if Gina got convicted, and ended up stiffing Joey, which, in turn, makes him so angry that he turns on Nick to spite me? What if Nick ended up spending the rest of his life in prison because of all this mess? What if he got the death penalty because of it?
I couldn’t think about that. That thought couldn’t possibly enter my mind. It wasn’t going to happen like that. Gina was going to be found not guilty, and that $3 million that Enzo gave her as bond money would revert to her. She would use that money to pay off Joey, and Joey’s son would be spared, and Nick would be, too. It had to happen that way.
It just had to.
Chapter 22
The next day, I went to the prison. I needed to see Nick and let him know how things went with the trial. I still hadn’t heard back about a jury verdict, and I was on pins and needles, so I needed something to take my mind off of it.
I got to the prison and he came out. I chose to go ahead and visit him as a regular visit, with guards around, because I hated seeing him in leg irons and handcuffs before.
He smiled. “Damien,” he said, “I didn’t know that you were coming today. If I would have known, I would have baked you a cake.”
“I wanted to see you and tell you how things went with the trial.”
He sighed. “Listen, Damien,” he said. “If things don’t go your way, they don’t go your way. Really, I’m okay either way.”
I wanted to tell him that I wasn’t okay either way. I wanted to tell him that he was my brother and that I needed him to get out of this hellhole. I wanted to tell him that seeing him spend the rest of his life in prison would devastate me beyond measure.
I didn’t say any of that, though, because the guard was around and listening to every word we said.
“Well,” I said, “how are things going right now?”
“Good. You gonna come back and see Jack, Connor and Tommy sometime soon?”
“Sure. As soon as the trial is completely over and the verdict is read. I just wanted to see you because-“
“I know. I’m the one who has the most at stake in the trial.” He nodded his head. “You know, it’s funny. The first year in thi
s place, every second seemed to drag on like a lifetime. I never thought that I could get used to this place. The food, the pissing in front of everyone, the hard beds, the fights, the guards watching your every move. But it’s been 17 years, and I can’t even imagine what life is like on the outside. Would I even recognize it?”
“Well, you might not. We didn’t even have smart phones when you went inside.”
“I know. Those smart phones sound pretty cool, though, and I hope that I can get one.”
“You will. That will be the first thing I get for you when you get out. That and an electric car. That’s another thing that I don’t think that you even know about.”
“I’m sure I don’t.” He shook his head. “The world went on without me, man.”
“You’re going to get out,” I said. “If it’s the last thing I do, I’m going to make sure that you get out.”
He nodded his head, but he looked sad. “We’ll see.” Then he looked around. “Well, I think that I gotta get back. You come and see the other guys next time, okay?”
“I will, buddy. I will.”
I watched him being led away, and I felt a pang. What if things went sideways? Could Joey ever be trusted, even if he got the money that he needed? I just didn’t know.
I went back to my car, turned on my phone and saw a text message.
The jury was back with a verdict.
Chapter 23
My heart was pounding as I sped back to Kansas City. I knew that they were going to wait for me to arrive, but that didn’t make it any easier on me. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Like I was swimming underwater and I couldn’t surface.
I realized at that moment just how terrified I was that everything was going to go down the tubes. That Gina would be convicted, and she couldn’t pay Joey, and Joey was going to rat on Nick as revenge on me. If that happened, I would be devastated. Absolutely devastated.
I got to the courthouse and didn’t even wait for the elevator. I took the stairs, two at a time, and arrived in the courtroom to find that everybody was already there. “I’m sorry,” I said, “I was visiting a client in Cameron.”
“Well, you’re here now, counselor,” Judge Reiner said. “Get on in here and get your verdict.”
I took my place next to Gina, who looked absolutely terrified. “Here we go,” I whispered. “Are you ready for this?”
“No,” she said. “But it is what it is.”
Judge Reiner addressed the jury. “In the case of State of Missouri v. Gina Degrazio, has the jury reached a verdict?”
“We have your honor,” the foreman said.
“Will the defendant please rise?”
I drew a breath and stood up. Gina followed, getting unsteadily onto her feet.
“In the case of State of Missouri v. Gina Degrazio, on Count One, Murder in the First Degree, how does the jury find the Defendant?”
“The jury finds the Defendant Not Guilty, your honor.”
Gina started to crumple and shook her head.
“And this is the unanimous verdict of the panel?” Judge Reiner said.
“It is, your honor.”
“Very well. The Defendant is free to go.”
I realized that I had been holding my breath, and I let it out slowly. I closed my eyes. Thank God. Thank God. Thank God.
Ally came up to me. “Well, looks like you got another sleaze back on the street,” she said. “Congratulations.”
Gina looked like she wanted to kill Ally. “What’s her problem?” she asked me.
“Nothing. She hates me, that’s all.”
“Whatever. Anyhow, Damien, great job. I’ll-“
“You’ll get your bond money back and then you’re going to go and see Joey ASAP.”
“Goes without saying.”
“I know, but I’m saying it anyhow.”
Gina and I left the courthouse and got into the street. “I’m going to be paying Joey a visit in a week,” I said. “I know that it might take a day or two for you to get that bond money back. You need to make sure that you get it to him.”
“I will, I will.” She took a breath. “Anyhow, Damien, thanks. I couldn’t have done it without you.”
I nodded my head. I broke every ethical rule to get this verdict, but hopefully the ends would justify the means.
A week later, Tom Garrett, who I assigned to monitor the Joey-Gina-Nick situation reported back. “The mobsters who were after Antonio Caruso, Joey’s son, were paid yesterday, so Antonio is out of the woods. I heard that Joey is pretty happy with the outcome. So, it looks like your guy Nick is going to be fine.”
“I hope that you’re right,” I said. “I just hope that Joey is as good as his word.”
“He will be. Prison code. He has no reason to break it anymore. Relax. It’s going to be okay.”
“I hope that you’re right.”
I also found out that the mold clients settled their case with the slum-lord, Robert Weismann, for $30 million. He really wanted to keep the entire situation out of the papers, which was why he settled it so quickly. As for Gina’s liability for the buildings, her lawyer successfully managed to convince the court overseeing the case that she had been coerced into the arrangement, therefore she should be held harmless in the suit. Gina was able to show just how it was that she was duped, so the court agreed, and Gina didn’t have to pay any of the damages.
I was happy about this. Extremely happy. Those people deserved that money, after they went through. I looked at their happy faces in the paper, and my heart soared. It was a great ending for them. All of them. They could get their lives together, and that was all that mattered to me.
In the meantime, I picked up a new murder case. A prominent New York City artist, Marcus Jackson, was in town for a showing of his work. He was found murdered in the back of his gallery.
Dill Halloway, a diminutive gay man, came into see me. “I heard that you’re one of the best lawyers in the city,” he said. “My husband was arrested for the murder of Marcus Jackson. Needless to say, the media has been crawling all over our loft. I need you to represent him. He’s innocent, and you need to prove it.”
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Description
A prominent artist from New York City, in town for a show, is found brutally murdered in the back of an art gallery. A prominent gay art dealer stands accused of the murder. He fears he might have done it. He doesn't remember if he did or not. Damien must get at the truth, which is made more difficult by the fact that even his client doesn't know the truth about what happened.
In the meantime, Damien throws himself into getting his three best friends out of prison. These men mean everything to him. But getting the three guys out means that they must leave Connor O'Brien behind. Damien can't stand for this to happen, so he risks everything to make sure that Connor can be freed with the others.
With the hairpin turns and lightning fast pace that you've come to expect from a Rachel Sinclair legal thriller, "Reasonable Doubt" is not to be missed!
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Also by Rachel Sinclair
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[Damien Harrington 01.0] The Alibi Page 21
