The Last Chance Lawyer

by William Bernhardt

  “For his business?”

  “As I told you before, she could be very valuable to him.”

  He felt his stomach churning. It was disgusting, even to think about. Worse, it gave Gabriella a strong motivation to eliminate Sanchez.

  “Sanchez knew I wanted to adopt her,” she continued. “He could tell lies about me, try to ruin everything so he could have Esperanza for himself.”

  “You were present at the shootout, right? The police say they have video taken from a security camera and you’re in it. True?”

  She nodded her head slowly, almost robotically. “I was there.”

  “Why?”

  “Because Emilio asked me to be there. To bring him a package.”

  “What was in the package?”

  “I do not know.”

  “Guns?”

  “I do not know. I did not kill Sanchez.” Her teeth clenched. “But I would have, given a chance. I would have done so happily, if I thought it made Esperanza safe.”

  He was glad attorney-client privilege prevented the police from recording this particular phone conversation. “The police have found a gun they’re calling the murder weapon. They say it belongs to you. Do you own a gun?”

  “Of course I own a gun. You have seen my neighborhood. Only a fool would not own a gun.”

  “Did you take it with you to the Trademark meeting?”

  “That would get me killed. It was hidden in my bedroom. Strictly for emergencies, if crazy gangbangers invade our home.”

  “The police say your prints are on it.”

  “Of course my prints are on it. It was my gun.”

  Good point. Somebody planning a murder would have the sense to wear gloves. “The police say they found the gun in your backyard. Hidden under a hedge.”

  “And you believe that?”

  “I believe they might’ve found it there. I find it hard to believe you would’ve put it there. You’re not stupid.”

  He spotted the slightest trace of a smile. “Thank you for giving me that much. If I had wanted to dispose of a weapon, I would’ve taken it farther than my backyard. The police searched my house the night of the shooting. They found nothing. Then magically two nights later they find a gun. It is a frame.”

  “Was anyone else present when the police searched the first time?”

  “Yes, a friend. Ramon Alvarez.”

  “Why was he there?”

  “I think he is...sweet on me. Trying to be protective. But I wasn’t interested.”

  “Do you mind if I talk to him?”

  “No, if you can find him. He seems to have disappeared.”

  “Could he have planted the gun?”

  “I doubt it.”

  Maria jumped in. “We should bring a motion in limine. Get a hearing. Try to keep out the gun evidence.”

  “We can try.” He turned back to Gabriella. “Is there anything else you can tell us? Anything that might help explain this confusing situation?”

  “Is it confusing? This is what happens in our neighborhood, in our part of the world, all the time. People turn to gangs because there is no other way to survive. They can’t get good jobs. They can’t get into good schools. They can make more money faster with the gangs. The gangs compete for territory. People are killed. Lives are ruined.” Her eyes seemed glassy. “I don’t care about me. I care about Esperanza. You must protect her.”

  “We’ll do everything we can,” Maria said.

  He knew she was trying to keep Gabriella from becoming despondent, but he couldn’t help thinking he had to be honest with her. “I’m sure you realize that these charges are...not going to help the adoption.”

  “I assume these charges terminated the adoption.”

  “No. But they don’t make our chances better.” Now he was soft-pedaling the truth. There was no chance of adoption by a woman facing capital murder charges.

  He took a deep breath. “We we’ll do everything for you we possibly can. We will leave no stone unturned.”

  “What happens next?”

  “You’ve already been booked and had your first appearance. Next there will be an arraignment. It’s purely a formality. They’ll read the charges. You’ll enter a plea. But given the gravity of the charges, they may call a grand jury.”

  “Why a grand jury?”

  “Florida law requires it for murder charges if...” He swallowed. “If they pursue the death penalty.”

  She remained stone-faced. “Will they?”

  “For a violent gang shooting? Almost certainly.” He kept talking, moving forward as quickly as possible. “But the grand jury, too, is largely a formality.”

  “Will I have to testify?”

  “I will not permit you to testify. There’s no point. It’s the prosecutor’s playground. I’m not even allowed to go in. I don’t know that you ever need to testify, but you’re certainly not testifying in any arena in which I am not present.”

  “Then we won’t win.”

  “Not with the grand jury, no. Grand juries almost always return an indictment. Why shouldn’t they? It’s not as if there’s been a real trial, or they’ve heard both sides of the case. They’re just deciding whether the prosecution has enough evidence to proceed, and since the prosecutors will be in there explaining the case to them, the prosecutors get what they want. After that, it’s discovery and a long wait for trial.” He took a breath. “I want you to identify everybody you know who was involved with Emilio. Or Sanchez. Anyone who knew Esperanza well. Anyone who might have an interest in the outcome of this case.”

  After some thought, she gave him a list of names, although she knew little about most of them. Garrett was supposed to be a crack researcher. Time for him to go to work.

  “After the grand jury, I’ll ask for a bond hearing. Try to get you out of here. But given the seriousness of the charges...” He let the sentence trail off.

  “If Esperanza were free, that would be different. If she is going to be detained somewhere—it would not be right for me to be free.”

  Even though it appears to be killing her, he noted. “I’ll try, just the same.”

  “I...have not led a blameless life,” Gabriella said slowly, as if measuring each word. Her eyes welled. “I have made mistakes. But Esperanza is blameless. She is without sin. She has so much potential. All I wanted was what was best for her, to be able to care for her and give her the childhood she deserved.” Gabriella leaned forward, pressing her hands against the Plexiglas divider. “Do not let these people destroy her future. Not the government, not the gangs, not those who would sell her skin for money. Protect that little girl.” Tears spilled from her eyes. “She’s counting on you.”

  He nodded. “I know she is.”

  Chapter 15

  Dan joined Gabriella for the arraignment. It all went according to rote, another constitutional formality that was basically a waste of time. The arraignment was originally designed to prevent the police from locking someone up for indefinite periods of time without charging them. Now it was just rigmarole.

  The DA’s office assigned the case to Jazlyn. She charged Gabriella with both first-degree murder and, in the alternative, felony murder or manslaughter. Death penalty possible.

  Gabriella entered a plea of not guilty.

  After the marshals hauled Gabriella back to lockup, he took a moment to chat with Jazlyn. “Good to see you again. Wish the circumstances were better.”

  She nodded brusquely. “Agreed.” Her manner seemed considerably colder than when he’d seen her last. Granted, this was not a date and they were not on his sailboat, but he got the sense that something more was going on.

  “Has someone given you grief about having dinner with me?”

  She seemed startled. “No. Why? Have you said something to someone?”

  “Of course not. I was just...wondering. You do realize Gabriella is completely innocent here, right?”

  That seemed to ruffle her feathers. “No, I do not realize that at all. If s
he were completely innocent, I would not have charged her. I charged someone whose prints were on the murder weapon, who was at the scene of the crime, and who left the gun in her backyard.”

  “No one is stupid enough to hide the gun in their own backyard.”

  “This is where we differ. I see far stupider every day of the week. I don’t want to shock you, Dan, but some defendants are not criminal masterminds.”

  He tilted his head. He had to grant her that point. He’d seen far stupider too.

  “We’ve already got a grand jury in session. If you have no objection, I thought we’d hit them with this case.”

  He nodded. Normally he would drag his heels, trying to buy time, realizing that speed was rarely to the defendant’s advantage. But this was a different situation. He had a pending adoption hearing for a little girl who had no chance if Gabriella went up the river. “Sounds good to me. Any chance you’ll let me sit in?”

  Jazlyn smiled. “You know I won’t.”

  “You can’t possibly consider this a fair hearing when the defendant isn’t represented.”

  “I’m okay with the defendant testifying. I just don’t want you around.”

  “If I can’t go in the room, neither will she.”

  “As I expected.”

  She turned on her heel and walked away without another word.

  BACK AT THE OFFICE, Dan gathered everyone for a planning session. He wasn’t sure what the protocol was regarding designation of duties. He didn’t want to come off as the would-be bigshot who acts as if he’s running the firm ten minutes after he joins. But someone had to take the lead.

  “I think we can assume the grand jury will indict. I want everyone to focus first on the bond hearing, and second on the motion in limine.”

  Jimmy shook his head. “Both losers.”

  “But you’ll still help, right?”

  “Of course. Superman never says no.”

  Whatever. “Garrett. I know you’ve already started investigating. I got a list of potential witnesses from Gabriella. I’m hoping that by tomorrow you can give me enough background information to know who I should talk to first.”

  Garrett nodded. “I will get on it immediately. Fortunately, I don’t need sleep.”

  He squinted. “Everybody needs sleep.”

  “Not me.”

  “I don’t want to work with a sleep-deprived zombie.”

  Garrett smiled. “I’m a wizard. Jimmy’s the zombie.”

  His eyelids fluttered. It would be a while before he got a grip on this team. “We need some research, too. Is there any precedent for releasing a defendant accused of first-degree murder on bond in this jurisdiction?”

  Jimmy was not optimistic. “Virtually none.”

  “We can raise the money. We can bring in character witnesses. Maria, any thoughts?”

  She was staring at her cellphone. Most annoying thing in the world. “I’m going to focus on the trial,” she replied, eventually looking up. “I know you have your motions planned and it would be malpractice not to pursue them. But this is going to trial. Which means I need to start using my superpower. Strategy.”

  He did not disagree. “Have you learned anything about Esperanza?”

  “Yes. She’s been placed in protective custody. The Office of Refugee Resettlement places non-citizen kids in shelters till they can be released to a family member.”

  “Esperanza isn’t a refugee. And her parents are dead.”

  Maria nodded. “Still falls under their jurisdiction. She’ll be held at the ORR facility in Tampa until they can process the paperwork to deport her.”

  “You still think they will?”

  “Some would argue it’s the merciful thing to do. Deliver her to her nearest relatives. Which by the way, now that Jorge Sanchez is dead, is his little brother, Diego, believed to be taking over the reins of the cartel.”

  “We can’t let that happen.” He felt his throat tighten. “Can you get us in to see her?”

  “It takes time. But I played the lawyer card. Said we needed to speak to her in connection with a murder case.”

  “Will that work?

  “Eventually. There’s an immigration agent assigned her case. Jack Crenshaw. Nice guy. Immigration and Customs Enforcement—ICE. He’s helping. He doesn’t like what’s happening to Esperanza any more than we do. He just can’t do anything to stop it.”

  “Judge Hawkins issued a stay pending the adoption.”

  Jimmy brought him up-to-date. “She withdrew it. At the request of ICE. Their argument is that the adoption hearing is hopeless now, so they might as well deport.”

  “Did the judge dismiss the adoption petition?”

  “No, the petition is still pending, but...”

  “Hopeless?”

  Jimmy shrugged. “Certainly doesn’t look good.”

  Wonderful. “The grand jury convenes at ten a.m. tomorrow morning. I want to be there when they’re called, even if they won’t let me inside. Just to keep an eye on things. Can we meet again tomorrow morning at eight to see where we all are?”

  Maria blanched. “Must it be so early?”

  He nodded. “I’ll bring your avocado toast.”

  Garrett agreed. “I’ll be awake.”

  “Because you never sleep. Right.”

  “Maria has more trouble with mornings than I do.”

  “Not anymore,” she insisted. “I have a new phone app that monitors my sleep.”

  Of course she did.

  He thought for a moment. He wasn’t one for giving Gipper-esque pep talks, but he felt something was called for. He decided to keep it simple. “Let’s keep one thing in mind. We are representing Gabriella. We care about her, and we won’t let her be railroaded. But our original client was Esperanza. Everything we do is ultimately in her interest. We have an obligation to that little girl. Let’s make sure we live up to it.”

  Chapter 16

  “How the hell did she get a lawyer?”

  Shawna didn’t know what to say. She was beginning to think she’d made a huge mistake. It seemed such a small thing at first. She’d worked at the clerk’s office for twenty years and never made much more than it took to survive. And then a possible upgrade magically presented itself. Take a little money, provide a little harmless information. She didn’t see that it could hurt anyone. And she’d be padding that college fund so Morgan had some hope of fulfilling his med school dreams.

  But now she was having serious second thoughts.

  “Everyone is entitled to a lawyer.” She ran her fingers through her white hair. “Supreme Court said so.”

  “Everyone is entitled to a defense—meaning some government flunkey. Some court-appointed desperado. Not the best damned lawyer in the city.”

  “Hey, don’t kill the messenger.”

  “Don’t tempt me.”

  Shawna didn’t know what to do. She really wanted to go. She was scared, right down to her core. “Well, then, I’ll be gettin’ back to—”

  “I want to know every move this man makes. He and his little friends.”

  “I can certainly pass along anything that happens in the clerk’s office.”

  “That’s not enough.”

  Shawna felt a tingling sensation trickling down her spine. There was too little space between them, but she didn’t think this was the time for a lecture on personal space. “I don’t know what goes on elsewhere. None of my business, really.”

  “Make it your business.”

  “But how—”

  “You know anyone in the courtroom?”

  She thought for a moment. “I know Ken pretty well. He’s Judge Le’s bailiff.”

  “Good. He can tell you what goes on. Even in chambers.”

  “He’s supposed to keep all that confidential.”

  “You want that nephew of yours to know how you plumped up his college fund?”

  “No...”

  “Then you get your friend Ken to talk. What about the consultation room?”

/>   She stuttered a moment. “T—There’s a little closet near the courtroom where lawyers go to talk in private.”

  “Anyone stationed in there?”

  “No. That’s kinda the point.”

  “Could you plant a listening device?”

  She looked stricken. “What?”

  “Cheap and easy bug. You can run it from your phone.”

  “I couldn’t get that past the metal detectors.”

  “I can. Just activate it whenever anyone enters the room.”

  “This is making me very nervous. Maybe we should just—”

  The hands around her throat choked off the end of her sentence. “I need to know everything this lawyer does. You have no idea how much is at stake. How much money. How many lives.”

  Her trembling was so intense she couldn’t speak.

  “You will do this. Or little Morgan will be missing more than a college fund. He’ll be missing an aunt. Have I made myself clear?”

  She nodded. The hands released. She crumbled to the floor.

  “I’ve put too much work into this. I’m not going to see it fall apart now. You keep me informed. So far, they aren’t anywhere near the truth. That probably won’t change. But if it does...” The sentence trailed off.

  “If it does?” she whispered.

  The laugh was chilling. “Well, who the hell is going to miss a few lawyers?”

  Chapter 17

  Dan was at the courthouse when it opened, just after the team staff meeting, and well before the prospective grand jurors arrived. He knew they would indict, but he thought he might learn something by reading the jurors’ faces, which he did when they entered and later during bathroom breaks. He was still there four hours later when they departed. As they left, the jurors were stiff and glassy-eyed, as if they’d just sat through a long binge-screening of a Netflix series they’d already seen eight times. But they also appeared somber, as if moved by the gravity of what they’d heard.

  Not a good sign for the defense.

  Jazlyn emerged in the hallway surrounded by four other people he recognized as members of her office, all men. He watched them huddle and chat for a few moments, then disperse.