Amethyst Purple Pt. 02

Then turning toward Ted and Martin "If you don't mind escorting me to my office I'd like to run this subject's FBI number through NCIC and see if he has a history. I'd also like to make a copy of this if you don't mind."

"Not at all, we'll follow you. But I'd prefer to hold on to this, no offense intended." Reaching for the report Judge Baker was offering across his desk. Ted said with a grin.

At the District Attorney's office, Ted and Martin sat in front of Reeves' desk as she punched the keyboard on her computer. Several seconds later the printer on her back desk began to whir and sheets of printed paper began to issue from the slot into the output tray. When the machine once again grew quiet she retrieve the stack of pages and turned back to her main desk facing her guests and began reading the information they contained. "He's been all of his adult life and he has a history of peeping and sexual misconduct. He even..."

"What's wrong?" Martin asked.

"Looks like he was arrested just up I75 in Kentucky a couple weeks after the assault here for false imprisonment, rape, aggravated assault and aggravated battery. Let me call and see if we can get more information on the assault."

She picked up her phone and dialed information then called the Whitley County, Ky. Sheriff's Office. A few minutes later, Ted and Martin heard her say "Really!... Yes, I would greatly appreciate it if you could do that. Yes, my number is... Yes, thank you. I'll wait here for his call. Thank you again." Then placed the receiver back onto the phone base.

Looking up at Ted she asked "Have you ever considered taking a job in Law Enforcement? I'm sure the city would appreciate a good detective." Looking back down at the copy of the report she had spread on top of her desk, "I don't know how Sam didn't catch this, he's always been one of the better Detectives the PD has. Looking over it now it all looks to be rushed, not at all what I've come to expect from him."

"He's getting pretty close to retirement, maybe he's just suffering a little burn out in face of that but he's been cutting corners for a while now, I started noticing little things about a year or so ago. In all honesty, it's made defending against his cases a little less intimidating from the Defense point of view. I feel like I'm betraying all the local Defense attorneys pointing that out now." admitted Martin.

"Well, we may be lucky, our guy is still incarcerated in Kentucky. About a week and a half after the assault here he was caught in a picnic area on a lake raping and strangling a nineteen year old girl in the back of his van. His muddy, primer gray painted van. Apparently he was in a secluded area with a girl he picked up hitch hiking on I75, beat her severely and was in the process of raping her when three teen boys who came to the area to go fishing heard her screams and struggles in the van. When they looked into the front windshield, because there were no windows on the sides, they saw him raping her and pulling a strap tightly around her neck. The doors were unlocked and they drug him out the side door and gave him an honest 'redneck ass kicking' according to the Sergeant I spoke to and tied him up until the police and ambulance arrived. The girl didn't die but she received severe permanent injuries, including brain damage due to oxygen deprivation from the strangulation and he's in jail awaiting trial."

The phone on the desk began ringing and Reeves answered then placed the call on speaker. They spoke to the Kentucky Detective for almost forty-five minutes and marveled over the similarity of the two attacks and agreed to fax one another copies of each investigation case file for more in-depth comparisons and arranged for local assistance in obtaining a DNA sample for Knoxville to have a verification comparison made before ending the call.

Reeves then dialed another number. "I wasn't sure if you were still in the office but I decided to try before paging you. We have a sticky situation, do you mind if we came back to your chambers to address this Tar Baby?"

Once the three attorneys were once again seated across the big cherry desk from Judge Miles Baker, Reeves began speaking.

"While I agree that this new information is starting to indicate that Mr. Turner might not be who we're looking for for this case I'm hesitant to completely 'throw the baby out with the bathwater' so to speak because as compelling as it seems to be, this information is not in and of itself conclusive. The State would like for His honor to consider a recess until this new information can be vetted more fully and the leads followed before we continue."

"Excuse me, Judge, but I must object. I understand the State's reluctance to pull the plug on such a severe and public trial but to inconvenience the jury we already have impaneled with what could easily be an extended delay, not to mention leaving my client in limbo for that same possible extended period of time would be unreasonable and unjustifiable. The Defense will be ready to present our case to the jury tomorrow for a verdict. Unless Your Honor decides to initiate a Directed Verdict first." Argued Martin.

Judge Baker considered both arguments for several seconds then spoke to Reeves "The Defense is correct, I won't entertain an extended recess, you've already made your case and rested, you can't expect to put this defendant on storage expecting to bring him back if your other approach fails. These leads should have been followed long before today."

"In that case, Your Honor, The State would like to withdraw charges from this defendant."

"Once again, Your Honor, I object. The state is trying to circumvent our defendant's protection from Double Jeopardy. And no procedural discrepancies exist to justify a mistrial. The only impartial and objective option available to us is to let the Defense continue our case and then let the jury make their decision."

"Again I have to sustain the Defense's objection. At this point the only truly viable option available to us is t0 let the Defense call their final witnesses then charge the Jury for a verdict and trust them to make the best decision, that's what we have juries for, after all.

"Yes, Your Honor."

"Then we'll reconvene in the courtroom at zero nine hundred tomorrow." Judge Baker asserted to a chorus of 'Yes, Your Honor's'.

St. Louis, MO

"Hey, Baby, how was your day?" Marti cooed into her Motorola Cellular Phone.

Five hundred miles east, speaking on a matching Razr flip phone, Ted was pulling at the knot on the tie around his collar. "Long, tedious and eventful. How about yours?"

"Long, Lonely and Boring, actually." Marti pouted.

"Lonely? Was Jordan not with you today?"

"Yes, she was with me but she was somewhere else all day." Marti laughed. "Besides, it's been nearly a week since I was touched by my favorite hands in the world and there's nothing Jordan or anyone else can do about that except you and you're seven hours away from me. Are you going to be able to come see me this weekend?"

"I don't know. I'm sure we'll charge the Jury tomorrow, maybe even midday and there's no telling how long it'll take for them to return a verdict. Although, I expect with the information we got today it should be a slam-dunk."

"Ahhhh, so that must be the 'eventful' part, huh?" Marti posed.

"Yep, the report came back from the FBI's DNA Project that not only clears Turner but has provided a new suspect. A very, very compelling suspect, actually. He's in jail in Kentucky for attempting to do the same thing up there."

"Wow, so are they dropping the charges on Turner?"

"No, they tried but I don't want the prosecution to withdraw charges now just so they can refile later if something happens to sink the other case, I want an acquittal so Vincent can never be considered a suspect again. Double Jeopardy protection."

"Well, if they have this information they should be able to just take arrest warrants on him while he's in jail in Kentucky and bring him back to Tennessee, right?" Marti questioned.

"First, they'll have to get a sample of his blood and DNA to verify what the database has suggested. There could conceivably be some clerical error assigning this DNA profile to the guy in Kentucky mistakenly so it'll have to be verified. That means someone has to drive up there with a search warrant, find a local judge in their jurisdiction who can and is willing to sign the warrant and then convince the local Sheriff to allow them to serve the search warrant in his jail and arrange for a medical professional to obtain the biological samples. After that the samples will have to be brought back here and submitted to the State Crime Lab who will forward them to a private lab that specializes in DNA development and comparison to be assessed. All of this could take weeks or even months to complete."

"So what happens to your trial until all that happens? Will it be put on hold?" Marti inquired.

"Not my circus, not my monkeys, our case will go to the jury tomorrow. Turner will be acquitted and we'll all go home. Or he'll be convicted despite the new DNA evidence, which is exceedingly unlikely, and we'll appeal, definitely win an appeal then ask for a Directed Verdict of Not Guilty, which is quite likely to occur. Either way, the State is on their own regarding the guy in Kentucky, I did my part and pointed them in the right direction with a nudge, it's up to them to follow through or not."

"I'm proud of you, you know. You have vision and a heart for your clients."

"Maybe, but right now my 'heart for my clients' is being drowned out by my growling belly. I picked up Chinese on the way home so I'm going to knock it out and get a shower so I can rest then I'll call you back in a couple hours so we can relax properly."

"Ooohhh, you dirty, dirty boy, I love the way you think. I was actually on my way down to the sauna and hot tub when you called so I'll go ahead and do that while you're resting and be back to my room by, say, ten o'clock?"

"I'll call you then. I love you, Doll."

"I love you more, Babe."

Later that night, after their mutual, marginally satisfying release via telephone, Both Marti and Ted exchanged their customary mutual farewells and drifted off into mutually uncomfortable and lonely sleep.

Friday, June 24, 1993

Knoxville, TN

"Thank you Officer D'Agostino, you may lower your hand and be seated."

"Would you state your name and occupation for the record, please."

"My name is Eddie D'Agostino and I'm a Patrol officer for Knoxville Police Department."

"How long have you been so employed, officer?" Ted asked

"Four years."

"Do you remember answering a couple calls for service for Mr. Turner back in September of last year where he reported being the victim of a burglary and physical assault while he lay asleep in bed and one where he reported his van being vandalized by arson?"

"Yes, Sir, but I only answered the one call. I responded to the arson of the van. When my preliminary investigation indicated that the same suspect may be responsible for both incidents and due to the time expired since the first incident, I advised Mr. Turner to go the next morning and swear out warrants for the assault and I'd pursue the arson. When I found Ms. Augustine and interviewed her I observed what appeared to be burn marks on her face and arms. When I asked her about this she said she was burning brush at her cousin's house and the gasoline she poured onto the pile blew up when she lit it. When I confronted her about Mr. Turner's van and asked her to show me the brush pile she tried to burn, she succumbed and admitted to both incidents. I placed her under arrest and transported her to the Knox County Jail where she was processed and later made bond."

The Prosecution declined to cross examine Officer D'Agostino and he was excused from the courtroom after less than ten minutes on the witness stand.

Essentially the same process was followed with Carla Augustine; she confirmed the description of her relationship with Vincent Turner that had been provided earlier by him then freely admitted to the accusations of assault and arson. She had little to lose by doing so as she had already plead guilty in her own hearing on the charges and was serving a probation sentence. She was excused after less than thirty minutes on the witness stand.

In a move that seemed to confuse some of the jurors, Ted re-called the State's Medical Expert (the truth was that he was a local doctor and was therefore the most available without prior arrangement). His reasoning soon became clear when he presented the FBI DNA report that the doctor confirmed and provided that based on the information provided by the FBI crime lab the collected sample did not match the defendant, Vincent Turner thereby eliminating him as a possible donor for the blood sample found at the murder scene despite the match of the exceedingly rare blood type.

For the third time that morning, the Prosecution declined to cross examine the witness.

Judge Baker explained to the jury what their options were and excused them to deliberate in the Jury Room. Of no surprise to anyone present court was reconvened twenty minutes later with the news that the jury had returned a verdict. Most of the twenty minutes had been spent by the jurors taking turns in the two single seat restrooms before they began to deliberate.

The verdict of 'Not Guilty' was no surprise to anyone present either, not after the morning's revelations and nobody felt as though they had failed, either.

A.D.A. Reeves turned toward the Defense table and spoke to Ted and Martin. "Congratulations, y'all better go home and get ready for O.J.'s call. Since he was arraigned this week he's going to need a good lawyer, from what I've heard about the case against him he's screwed. The way y'all handled this one you might be just what he needs. Unless he's actually guilty, that is."

"No, thank you" Ted responded with a chuckle "Besides, he's got Alan Dershowitz and F. Lee Bailey, he doesn't need us."

Ted and Martin were back in their offices at the law firm being congratulated again before eleven am. The whole office gathered for an extended celebratory lunch at a local steak house.

St. Louis, MO

"I can't believe I let you talk me into crashing y'all's date night tonight. I feel like a third wheel." Marti confessed.

"You didn't crash anything and you're not a 'third wheel'. If not for you we'd all three of us be sitting at home, or in a hotel room, passing the time alone, now we can keep each other company. Besides, didn't you say that Ted might drop in on us tonight?" Jordan countered.

"He won his case this morning so theoretically he could make it. I told him where we were going to be, just in case, though. He said he doubted he'd be able to be here tonight but I know that sometimes he likes to surprise me. I don't know. I don't really expect to see him tonight." Marti lamented.

Jordan adopted a pout "Well, at least have a few drinks, relax and maybe even have a couple dances with Peter. I don't mind and I guarantee he'd love to dance with you.

An hour and a half and several Margaritas later Marti gasped in excitement and her eyes began to sparkle as she looked toward the bar. Giving a little shriek Marti began trotting toward a man facing away as he stood at the bar. "Ted! You made it!" she bubbled as she jumped onto his back, wrapping her arms around his neck and her feet around his waist. She kissed him on the back of the neck and leaned around to take a nip at his right ear before dropping back to the floor and pulling the man's right arm around in excitement. Once the man was facing Marti it took a couple seconds for her to realize she had just accosted a stranger.

"I don't know who Ted is but my God I wish I was him."

"Oh, shit." Muttered Marti, astounded. "I can't believe I just raped a stranger in the middle of a hotel lounge."

"Well, you can't rape the willing, Darlin', if that's any consolation to ya."

Marti broke out laughing and the other three joined her. When her laughter ebbed, Marti explained the situation to the man.

"When he does get here you tell him I said he's the luckiest man in this room. Other than this gentleman right here, that is." Motioning to Peter who stood with his arm around Jordan's shoulder.

"Are you here with friends or a date?" Marti asked.

"No, I'm here for a conference, as the office bachelor I get voluntold for these shindigs. I'm headed back home tomorrow. My name is Gilbert Olson." Shaking the other three's hands.

"There's no sense in you sitting by yourself, besides I can't wait for Ted to meet the first man I've accosted since we met in college when he gets here."

This elicited another round of laughter.

After a couple more hours of laughing, dancing and drinking Marti's spirits began to sink. Maybe Ted wasn't able to make it after all so she sent him a text message. Ted responded by calling her almost immediately, apologizing for not being able to come spend the weekend with her, he wasn't able to get a flight out that day but that he had reserved a ticket on the following day, Saturday. She told ted about her introduction to Gilbert Olson and he laughed as hard as she had, telling her that she should make sure of men's identities before jumping on their backs and leaving hickeys on their necks in the future. Ted said he was going to bed so he could rest before his early morning flight and disconnected the call.

All four of the friends in the lounge were feeling the effects of exuberant alcohol consumption and nearly non-stop dancing and decided to end their revelry. Jordan and Peter had ulterior motives for leaving Marti at the hotel and getting back to their own brand of privacy for the remainder of the evening and Marti, knowingly, didn't begrudge them of their intentions.

Marti hugged Jordan and kissed her cheek then repeated her actions with Peter "Y'all behave and enjoy yourselves" with a knowing grin.

Jordan responded "We won't and we will" with an ecstatic grin on her face before the two turned and walked toward the exit.

Marti turned, leaned up and kissed Gilbert on the cheek and thanked him for his company for the evening.

"Can I walk you to your room?" Gilbert asked.

"I'm afraid that wouldn't be a good idea, I've had too much to drink and I don't need any temptation in my current state." Marti jokingly responded.

"I understand fully." Gilbert countered "I must admit that the past two hours have made up for the entire exhausting week, thank you."

Marti turned and began walking toward the exit to the hotel lobby when a drunk man stumbled into her causing her to twist her ankle and fall to the floor. Gilbert was there immediately, shoving the drunk aside as he stammered his apology and lifting Marti off the floor where she lay. As he stood her up she stumbled again, unable to put her weight on her right foot.

"I'm afraid I've twisted my ankle, I can't walk." Marti Grimaced.

"Here, lets get you a chair and I'll have the bartender call an ambulance for you."

"No, I don't want an ambulance, I just twisted my ankle, that's all. It'll be better before morning. I'm tired and I just want to get these heels off and lay down."

"If you don't mind walking upstairs barefoot let me get them off your feet. Now, come here, put your arm around me and hold on, I've got you. What floor are you on?"

"I'm on the tenth." Marti answered.

"OK, let's get you to your room."

Struggling, they made it to Marti's tenth floor room and she handed Gilbert her key from her purse. He opened her door and walked her to the large bed and sat her on the side. He turned and lay her key and shoes on the room's desk. "Can I get you anything before I leave?"

"No, thank you. I'm just going to get a quick shower and get some sleep." Marti said and fell back to the bed when she tried to stand to her feet.