Deliver Us From Evil (22 page)

“As I recall, the main issue of our discussion, or our ‘heated argument,’ as you prefer to call it, was my deep disappointment in Mr. Kramer.”

“Would you care to expand on that for the court, please?”

“Very simply, I considered Jack Kramer a man whose temper clouded his judgment. I was there the night Moreno Valley defeated our basketball team. I was in the locker room when Kramer mercilessly laid into our star player for what he called, ‘losing the game.’ Later that same night, I privately reprimanded Mr. Kramer. I warned him about his excessive attitude.”

“But, you are talking about an incident which happened more that eight months ago! Why, all of a sudden, did the subject come up on this particular Sunday?”

“It so happened, Scott Mallory, one of the boys, showed up late that day. We had planned to leave the rectory at 12:00 noon, sharp. Scott, for whatever reason, was held up. He got there at 12:20, and in the meantime, Jack Kramer was beside himself with anger. When Scott finally did show up, Kramer lashed out at him. He chewed him out in front of everybody. At the first opportunity, meaning that when Kramer and I were alone, I reprimanded him again. I told him, ‘Jack, this just won’t do! You’ve got to learn to control your temper!’”

“I see.”

“As Mr. Kramer had testified earlier, he was planning a career in the priesthood. He had already made plans to join St. John’s Seminary in October. I was to be his sponsor.” He paused. “I told Jack that because of his erratic behavior, in all good conscience, I could
not
recommend him for the seminary. I told him I was withdrawing my sponsorship of him. This made him very angry.”

“So,
this
was the essence of your argument, Father Reiniger?”

“Yes. It was.”

Berkoff crossed to the jury. His eyes scanned them momentarily, then he looked back at Father Reiniger. “I’m a bit mystified. Father Reiniger,” he said, with a light, glib inflection, “we’ve had two witnesses, Jack Kramer, himself, and Willie Groda, who have both testified in this courtroom, that an argument was all because of Kramer accusing you of sexually molesting a ten-year-old altar boy.”

Ramsey suddenly spoke up. “Objection, Your Honor! Calls for speculation and hearsay!”

“Overruled. You may continue, Mr. Berkoff.”

“Did you or did you not argue, because of Kramer’s accusation?”

Silence.

The prosecutor glanced at Judge Baylor. “Will you please instruct the witness to answer the question, Your Honor?”

“Please answer the question, Father Reiniger.”

Reiniger was evasive. “Well, I don’t really”

“It’s a simple question, Father Reiniger. A simple yes or no, will suffice.”

“I really don’t remember.”

“Are you telling us, the subject of Kramer’s accusation, never came up?” Berkoff said, pressing on.

Reiniger shrugged. “Oh, it may have. As I just told you, Mr. Berkoff, I really don’t remember.”

“You don’t remember! How very convenient! Well, let’s move on, shall we?” He crossed back to the witness stand. “Perhaps you
do
remember, all of you eating your supper around the campfire, that night?”

“Yes. I do.”

“Two of the boys wanted to turn-in early, so they left. As did Willie Groda, who returned to the dining hall. That left you, Kramer and Danny Novak at the fire. Correct?”

“That is correct.”

“And you asked Danny Novak if he wanted to go for a ride in the motorboat?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“And so, even though Kramer tried to quash the idea, you and the boy took off. Correct, so far, Father Reiniger?”

“Yes. That is correct.”

“How long were you out on the lake?”

“Oh, about an hour I would say. It was dark when we got back.”

“What happened after you returned to the dock?”

“We went to the small beach, nearby.”

“Okay. We won’t go into all the sordid details, Father, but after having tied the boat up, and you and Danny went to the small stretch of sand near the dock, what happened then?”

“I suggested we go in for a swim.”

“As I said, we won’t go into all the sordid details, but you
did
sexually molest the boy on the beach that night. Isn’t that true, Father Reiniger?”

“Yes. That is true.”

“For the record, was it
consensual,
sir?”

“No. It was not.”

“And so, you forced yourself on the boy. Is that not correct, sir?”

“That is correct.”

“What happened after that,
God
only knows,” Berkoff said, disgustedly, “and I mean that, literally. But, the boy possibly threatened to expose you, so you had to do something about it. And so, you killed him. Isn’t
that
what happened, Father Reiniger?”

Reiniger’s voice was cold, even. “No! It is not! I did not
kill
Danny Novak!”

Berkoff’s patience was wearing thin. “Oh, come off it, Father Reiniger! You mean you have the audacity to sit there and deny strangling that boy! Why don’t you admit it! First, you sodomized Danny Novak, then you strangled him. You loaded his body into a rowboat, then you rowed out into the middle of the lake, and dumped his body overboard!” He crossed toward the jury. “What baffles me, Father Reiniger, is,
why
you didn’t finish the job! You must have known the body would float to the top of the water, eventually. Why didn’t you weight it down? Why didn’t you
finish
the job, Father Reiniger?”

Ramsey was on his feet. “Objection, Your Honor! He’s badgering the witness!”

“Mr. Berkoff,” Baylor said, “you are walking a very fine line. I suggest you change your tactics.”

The prosecutor was back at the witness stand. “All right, Father Reiniger, we’ll give you the benefit of the doubt. We’ll take your word for it. After you sexually assaulted Danny Novak,
what
exactly did you do?”

“The boy was whining, sniveling. I don’t like whining or sniveling. So I left him.” He shrugged. “I just left him.”

“And, where did you go?”

“I returned to the main house. I went to bed.”

For a very long moment, Berkoff stood staring at Father Reiniger. His eyes reflected a combination of contempt and disgust. Then, Berkoff slowly turned and once again crossed to the jury. All eyes were fastened on him, as he began his summation speech: “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the facts in this case are very plain and very simple. On Sunday, September 5
^th
of this year, the defendant, Father Frederick Reiniger, invited Danny Novak and two other young boys for an overnight trip to a Catholic summer camp. From the moment they had arrived, Father Reiniger started his devious plan in motion.” He glanced directly at Reiniger. “Here, we have a cold and calculating individual, who, in his own dastardly way, took advantage of the love and trust these boys had for him. This action was obscene. It was irreprehensible, that a man would stoop to violating a young twelve-year-old boy’s trust, and all to serve his own perverted, sexual needs. Call it child abuse, call it sexual assault, call it whatever you like, ladies and gentlemen, but I believe this man is guilty. The motivation is clear. The boy threatened to expose him, and to cover his tracks, he chose the ultimate: Murder.” Berkoff returned to the jury. “The evidence given in this courtroom, demonstrates beyond all reasonable doubt, that the defendant, Father Reiniger, is guilty of the crime for which he has been accused. I’d like to see this man spend the rest of his life in prison, without the possibility of parole. He deserves the same compassion he gave his twelve-year-old victim. None! I thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen, for your attention.” Berkoff returned to his seat at the counsel table.

“Mr. Ramsey? Your closing statement?” Judge Baylor said.

Ramsey rose from the table and crossed to face the jury. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, in summation, I ask,
where
is the evidence against my client, Father Reiniger? He has made it very clear in this courtroom today, that yes, he is guilty of molesting Danny Novak. He does not deny that allegation. But, there is not a shred of evidence that says he
murdered
the boy! At the risk of repeating myself, Father Reiniger, I’ll ask you again. Did you in fact have anything at
all
to do with the death of Danny Novak?”

“No. I did not.”

“Mr. Berkoff has to convince you beyond a reasonable doubt, that my client is guilty. Father Reiniger has testified that when he left Danny Novak at the beach, he was alive and well. Can Mr. Berkoff place my client at the scene of the crime? No! He cannot! True, my client admits to sexually abusing Danny Novak, but did he murder him? Of course not! Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I ask that you consider the evidence given in this case, very carefully. I ask that you
acquit
my client, Father Reiniger. I thank you.” He turned to face Baylor. “Thank you, Your Honor.”

Ramsey returned to his seat. There was an audible stirring throughout the courtroom and Judge Baylor hit his bench gavel. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” he said, in a steady, even voice, “now that you have heard the final arguments in this case, the court requests that you sequester yourselves in the jury room to assume your deliberations. The court asks that you reach your verdict in a fair and open manner, without bias or prejudice. Thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen, for your attention. You may now retire to the jury room.” Once again, he hit his gavel. “Pending the jury’s deliberations and their verdict, this court is now adjourned!”

--18--

It was well after 5:00 p.m., that afternoon, when the members of the jury, filed out of the rear door of the courthouse, and boarded a large bus, leased temporarily from Golden State Lines. They were taken to the California Hotel where they would be sequestered, hopefully, for one night, depending upon whether a verdict would be reached. A wing on the hotel’s tenth floor had been cordoned off and a deputy was stationed at the adjoining corridor.

They had their evening meal in a large conference room, after which several of them stayed to play cards. Because the newspapers and television sets had been removed from the rooms, by Judge Baylor’s orders, there was talk about the trial, but most of the jurors (probably out of fatigue and boredom) opted for an early sleep. Following a hearty breakfast of scrambled eggs, pancakes, bacon and sausage, the next morning, the jury and the two alternates once again boarded the bus and were on their way, back to the courthouse. Escorted by two uniformed deputies, the twelve men and women jurors were led into the jury room to continue their deliberations.

Juries have a certain reputation for being completely unpredictable. As prosecutor, David Berkoff would have said: “You never know which way the jury’s going to go, or how long it’s going to take to get there.” However, to everyone’s surprise, the buzz surrounding the courthouse, around three o’clock that afternoon, was that a verdict had been reached. Within ten minutes of the announcement, the courtroom was once again filled with television and newspaper reporters, jostling each other like a feeding frenzy. Fortunately, a few ‘civilians’ had managed to secure a seat. A hush fell over the courtroom as suddenly, Judge Baylor entered from the Judge’s chambers. The bailiff yelled, “All rise! His Honor, Judge Alonzo Baylor presiding. Court is now in session..”

Baylor, looking officious in his black robe, crossed to the bench and sat down. “Thank you,” he said, “You may be seated.” The gallery spectators took their seats and Baylor threw the bailiff a curious glance. “I have been informed that the jury has reached a verdict. Is that correct?”

“That is correct, Your Honor.”