The Cost of Commitment - KJ2 (42 page)

“That’s not all of it, either. What about Brian Sampson, Wendy Ashton, Jay, and
Time
magazine?” She shook her head sadly. “All of their professional and personal lives were affected. For what? To get me out of a job?” She turned fiery eyes on Peter. “I still don’t get it. I’ve been over this a hundred—no, maybe a thousand times in my mind this past year. It just doesn’t add up. I can’t help feeling like we’re missing something.”

Peter nodded. “I agree. It’s a pretty thin motivation for all the trouble they went to. I’ve done some quiet digging, but I haven’t come up with a single thing yet. Whatever it is, if there is something more, they’ve done well to cover their tracks.”

“So now what? We wait for the other shoe to drop?”

“My hope, Kate, is that whatever it was has been derailed by their arrests. We’ll lock them away for a good, long time, and that will be the end of it.”

“I pray that you’re right, my friend. I pray that you’re right.”

At that moment a side door opened and Breathwaite and Redfield were led in. Both wore business suits and were clean shaven. Neither looked at the other or at anyone else in the courtroom.

The buzz, which had risen several decibels, subsided when the no-nonsense Honorable Judge Andrew T. McGovern took the bench. The reporters, who had been stifled by a gag order for the past year, were practically salivating at the opportunity to hear the case against these former high-ranking officials.

“Okay, folks. Let me make it perfectly clear: I don’t tolerate any theatrics or any fancy shenanigans in my courtroom. We stick to the facts of the case, we don’t try this in the court of public opinion, and we’ll all get along just fine. I intend to have this trial over and done with by...” he consulted his calendar, “January 20. Any unnecessary delays will be frowned upon. Any questions? No? Good. Let’s get down to business. I assume both sides are ready for opening statements?”

“Yes, Your Honor,” all three lead attorneys answered.

“Okay, then, we’re off and running. Mr. District Attorney, the floor is yours.”

“Thank you, Your Honor. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, good morning. My name is Levon Davis, and I am the lead prosecutor in this case. I won’t take up too much of your time. The burden of proof in any criminal case in the United States is on the prosecution, as you no doubt
Lynn Ames

are aware. My team of assistants and I believe that is as it should be; defendants should be innocent until proven guilty.” He paused. “These two gentlemen who sit before you today all sophisticated, spit shined, and polished,” he pointed to Redfield and Breathwaite, “are as guilty as they come.”

He stepped from behind his table, approaching the jury of seven men and five women as he buttoned his suit jacket. “I want to remind you before we begin that their motivation is not relevant here. It’s hard to fathom, after all, why anyone would conspire to have a colleague killed.”

The judge made a warning noise from the bench, which the prosecutor pretended to ignore.

“The real—scratch that—the
only
question here is whether or not these two defendants, William Redfield and David Breathwaite, committed the crimes of which they are accused. Did they, in fact, conspire to have Katherine Kyle, the then spokesperson for the New York State Department of Correctional Services, kidnapped and killed?

Further, in David Breathwaite’s case, did he conspire to instigate a riot in order to cover up his intentions?”

There was an excited murmur among the crowd of journalists who had not, to this point, been aware of that aspect of the case.

“Ladies and gentlemen, if we were playing a basketball game, this is what would be called a slam dunk. The evidence is so compelling, so overwhelming, there can be no other outcome but to find these two men guilty of kidnapping, conspiracy to commit murder, and, in Mr.

Breathwaite’s case, conspiracy to incite a riot. You will hear the defendants, in their own words, implicate themselves in these crimes.

You will hear the testimony of participants in the crimes, eye- and ear witnesses. You will have more proof by the time we rest our case than you could possibly need.

“The defense will try to convince you that everyone is out to get their clients. They want you to believe that the evidence is insufficient, the witnesses unreliable. Hogwash. Let me assure you, when you hear these two gentlemen, in their own words—their voices, in fact—talk about the crimes of which they are accused, it will chill your blood as it did mine.

“Mr. Redfield’s lawyer will try to convince you that he didn’t know anything about it in advance.” The prosecutor shrugged. “Maybe he’s right, maybe he’s wrong. It makes no difference. The fact of the matter is that, regardless of when he knew what, once he was aware of the scheme, he went along with it, actively participating in the crimes—that is part of the definition of conspiracy. Whether or not he had prior knowledge is immaterial to this case.

“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, when the day is over and you have heard both sides, I am more than confident that you will, as is your legal
The Cost of Commitment

duty, find these two defendants guilty of kidnapping and conspiracy to commit murder and, in the case of Mr. Breathwaite, guilty of the additional charge of conspiracy to incite a riot. Thank you for your time.”

“Thank you, Mr. Davis.” The judge pointed to the defense table.

“How about you folks, you ready?”

“Yes, Your Honor.” Defense attorneys for both Redfield and Breathwaite responded.

“Who’s going first?”

“I am, Your Honor,” announced famed defense lawyer Calvin Nepperson.

“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I am Calvin Nepperson, and I represent Mr. David Breathwaite in this very serious matter. Mr. Davis is a compelling man; no doubt about that. The problem here is, he’s built his case largely on the testimony of convicts and ex-convicts—unsavory characters who would say anything in order to get a reduced sentence or other favorable treatment. But don’t take my word for it. All you have to do is pay attention and keep an open mind as the prosecution presents its case. Count the number of convicted criminals and folks with an axe to grind they call to the stand. I want to be honest with you.” He leaned on the railing to the jury box. “I’m not going to argue that my client is going to win any nice guy awards—but the fact that he’s not always very likeable is not a crime. If it were, imagine how full our jails would be.

I’m sure you all could think of a few people in your lives you’d like to see put away. We all have those. The point is, you can’t just go locking up folks because you don’t like them—it’s not the American way. In the end, as you will see, the prosecution simply has no real case. I look forward to proving that to you as soon as the prosecution has finished having its say. Thank you.”

When Nepperson sat down, a man in a charcoal pin-striped suit stood up. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my name is Josiah Green, and I represent William Redfield. Despite the rhetoric that you heard earlier from the esteemed prosecutor, I’m here to tell you that Mr. Redfield’s only crime is that he happened to be at the head of an agency targeted by one man,” he turned around and pointed to Breathwaite, “with a nefarious agenda.”

A collective buzz went through the crowd as Redfield’s apparent strategy became clear: separate himself from his alleged co-conspirator and place the blame squarely on him. The reporters were madly scribbling in their notebooks—whenever defendants broke ranks with one another it meant a better, more interesting story.

“Mr. Redfield operated according to the best of his ability. He was made aware of a potentially dangerous situation at Attica, he evaluated
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all options and acted in good faith to secure a positive outcome with a minimum of injuries.

“The evidence will clearly exonerate Mr. Redfield of any knowledge of a plot to do harm to anyone. No one, in fact, was more surprised than he was when Mr. Breathwaite informed him of the scheme. You will clearly hear Mr. Redfield’s disgust and you will listen as he authorizes steps designed to rescue the hostages.

“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, Mr. Redfield is not the bad guy here. He was just an innocent bystander in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was a man with a job to do and a mission to uphold, and that is exactly what he tried to do. But don’t believe me—you will hear it for yourselves. Thank you for your time.” He looked up at the judge. “That’s all I have, Your Honor.”

“Splendid. Okay, folks. That’s enough for one morning. Let’s adjourn for lunch and the prosecution can begin presenting its case this afternoon.”

Jay arrived just as the lunch break was announced. She reached Kate at the same moment the prosecution’s team exited the courtroom. As Kate started to ask her about her trip, she noticed an odd expression on her lover’s face—one she had never seen before.

“Jay? Honey? Are you all right?”

Levon Davis walked past, followed by two assistants. One of them was an attractive, willowy redhead, who, upon reaching them, stopped dead in her tracks. She sported an expression remarkably similar to Jay’s.

“Jay? Is that really you?”

“S-Sarah?” Jay’s voice quavered.

Kate merely stood to the side, perplexed, watching the scene. The woman seemed somehow familiar to her, like she’d seen her somewhere before. Seconds later, as she was searching her memory banks, she made the connection.

The last time she’d seen the redhead had been six years earlier in a hospital emergency room. Kate had summoned an ambulance to take Jay there after she had saved her from an attempted sexual assault. She and Jay had barely known each other then, and she had asked Jay if there was anyone she could call for her. She had managed to get Jay to give her the name of her college roommate—
And lover,
Kate reminded herself.

“Wow. Um, Katherine Kyle, this is—”

“Sarah Alexander.” When she looked shocked, Kate shrugged. “I remember you from the hospital ER.”

“Oh,” Sarah remarked, obviously uncomfortable.

“Sarah, Kate and I—”

The Cost of Commitment

Sarah touched her on the arm. “It’s okay, Jay. I read the papers and watch TV. I guess it just never occurred to me that you’d come to the trial. I don’t know why. It should have.”

“Hey, so what’s your role here? Are you the big-shot attorney?”

Sarah laughed. “No, just a lowly assistant district attorney trying to get some experience.”

“I don’t believe it,” Jay said warmly. “You were the smartest person I knew. I bet you’re already sitting in the first assistant’s chair, aren’t you?”

“Actually,” Sarah blushed, “I am. I’ll be doing some of the witness questioning in the case.” She looked quickly at Kate. “But not with you.

I’ll have to disclose my relationship to you and Jay and see if I need to recuse myself from the case.”

“Geez, Sarah, I hope not. This case could be a big break for you.” Jay looked regretful.

“Yeah, but there’ll be others, I’m sure.”

“If it helps, I’m not going to be testifying.”

“That might help a little, since my connection to Kate is so slim. You know, a girlfriend of an ex-college roommate might not count for much.”

“Maybe. Hey, can you have lunch with us?”

“No, I’m sorry. We’re going to start presenting our case this afternoon and we’ve got to go over last-minute strategy.”

“That’s too bad. Maybe another time?”

“Sure. Well, I’ve got to go. It was nice bumping into you, Jay. You look great.”

“You, too, Sarah.”

“Yeah, I’m actually doing really well.”

“That’s terrific. I’m really glad to hear that.”

As Sarah turned to leave, Jay touched her on the sleeve. “Sare—I really do want to find the time to catch up.” She looked at her former girlfriend intently. “I...” Jay tried to find the words to explain something she couldn’t—that she had broken up with Sarah just before graduation because she had fallen in love with a near-complete, and no doubt unattainable, stranger, and knew no one else would ever be right for her.

That stranger, of course, had been Kate. Sarah had been devastated by the breakup.

“Jay, it’s okay, really. I’m fine about what happened. I’ve moved on.

I’ve got a wonderful partner, and we’re very happy together.”

“That’s great. I’d love to meet her sometime.”

Sarah looked at her for a long moment. “Yeah, I think I’d like that. I miss your friendship, Jay.”

“Here’s my number. Give us a call.”

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“I might just do that.” Sarah tucked it in her skirt pocket as she hurried off.

When she’d gone, Kate said, “You all right, love?”

“Yeah. You?”

“Absolutely. Is it hard to see her?”

“A little.” Jay bumped Kate with her hip. “I didn’t handle breaking up with her very well.”

“She obviously forgives you.”

“True, but forgiving myself is another matter.” Jay took Kate’s hand.

“How about we get some lunch and you can tell me all about what I missed this morning.”

“Sounds great. Peter will meet us a little later. Naturally, he got beeped in the middle of everything.”

“Some things never change.”

“Nope, and they likely never will.”

It was obvious from the outset that the prosecution had painstakingly built its case. The files and evidence Kate had left with Peter before going to Attica laid the groundwork for proving that Breathwaite intended to have her fired from DOCS. Over the course of eleven days, witness after witness painted a picture of a man who left his position as PIO under a cloud of controversy and became obsessed with ousting his successor, whatever the cost. While the DA handled one or two of the witnesses, it was Sarah who did the bulk of the questioning, the judge having decided that her relationship with Jay did not present a conflict of interest sufficient to warrant her removal from the case.

Marisa, Kate’s former assistant, testified under oath that Breathwaite had recruited her to spy on Kate and to report back to him. Under Sarah’s gentle questioning, she was forced to admit that on several occasions she had intentionally misled Kate in an effort to get her to fail at her duties.