Jean - The Birth of Venus Ch. 06

Part 6: Punishment for her crimes

All individuals in this story are over eighteen despite the District Attorney's lie.

This story takes place in 1976 before there were cell phones and personal computers.

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Chapter 9

Santa Teresa is a small oceanside city, and the municipal building held most of the city's offices. The police station was across the hallway from the city administrative offices. The door at the end of the hall read Santa Teresa City Court. The police officer pulled me into the police station. A big burly policewoman was managing the front desk and looked up in shock at her compatriot's bloody face.

She said, "Joe, what the fuck happened?"

"This bitch pulled a karate move on me when I arrested her. I think she was going for my eyes, but I dodged. Her fucking nails slashed my face to ribbons. She knocked me down and reinjured my back. Fuck what a day."

"You need to get to the ER and have that wound treated."

"Ellen, I'll go as soon as I get her booked."

Ellen said, "You wouldn't believe how crazy it's been today. You would think it was a full moon. The jail is already crowded, and I don't need any more prisoners. What did you arrest her for?"

"I was on beach patrol. This bitch was nude on a public beach right next to a family with young kids. I saw her drinking and smoking marijuana. She fucked a couple of guys out in the open in exchange for a bag of weed. I followed her from the beach. She was driving erratically, and I pulled her over for running a stop light. Her speech was slurred, and she was obviously intoxicated. She dropped this baggie when I asked for her registration. It's well over the limit for a felony drug possession, so I told her to get out of the car. She stumbled as she got out and closed the door on the strings to her swimsuit. I told her she was under arrest and gave her the Miranda. I asked her to lean over the car. When she turned around, she ripped the strings on her suit. I have it in my pocket."

"Shit! I'm certainly not letting this bitch go after she attacked my brother. I'll just have to cram her in with the others."

"Before you lock her up, I'd like a blood alcohol test done as soon as possible. While you're at it, have them check the sample in case she has some nasty disease."

"You're in luck. I already called in a nurse to collect blood from the other people we arrested tonight. Just give me her suit bottom, and I'll handle it. You can write up the arrest report after you get treated."

"Fuck me. Just what I need. Another long night. My wife is pissed off enough already."

I watched Joe head out the door. I was frightened of the big woman, and my body was shaking. With my hands still cuffed behind my back, I was helpless.

The policewoman glared at me. "I hope they throw the book at you. My brother, Joe, is one of the nicest people on the planet. He spent months in rehab after injuring his back arresting a drunk at last year's Exposition. You'd better hope he's Ok."

"But he groped me. He doesn't have the right."

"You are one dumb cunt. Do you think I'm interested in your sad little story? Save it for the jury."

She led me into a small room. It was bare except for a small table and two chairs. She shoved me down onto one of the chairs. The plastic seat felt sticky on my naked butt. I heard a snap as the burly policewoman fastened my cuffs to the back of the chair.

"I hope you can behave yourself for a few minutes. Everyone is out on the streets, and I must watch the desk. If you're good, I'll try and fix your suit."

"Could I at least have a blanket to cover myself? Maybe you could pull my top back into place?"

"I'm not touching you until I process your body for evidence."

"Oh God, please don't I get a phone call? My aunt and uncle will be worried."

"You'll get your call once you're booked. No telling when Joe will get back from the ER to write the arrest report. Now just sit there like the good girl you aren't and think about how badly you fucked up."

I tried to get comfortable once she left the room, but the cuffs were secured to a ring positioned high enough for a man. I was forced to lean forward in an awkward pose. I couldn't sit up straight, and I couldn't lay my throbbing head on the table. I tried to take slow deep breathes but I was too terrified to calm down. Every minute felt like an hour. It probably wasn't long, but it felt like an eternity before the surly policewoman returned with the nurse. Of course, it was a male nurse.

"Tonight must be my lucky night. I already got to process a cell full of gorgeous women. What's the deal, Ellen? Does Santa Teresa have a law against beautiful women?"

"I don't make the arrests. I just process whoever they bring in, but this bitch attacked Joe. He's getting treated at the ER. The whole town has gone crazy. I don't understand. Usually, we don't get busy until after the Exposition starts."

"Ok, what do we need?"

"Start by collecting a blood sample."

I turned my head when the nurse took the blood sample.

"Ok, now what?"

"Joe says she was having sex on the beach. We'll need a sample from her vagina. I don't want her claiming the arresting officer had sex with her. If you can help point out any bruises and abrasions, I'll take photos."

The big woman dragged me to my feet. "Spread your legs for the nice nurse. You don't want any more charges."

The nurse sat in my seat and pulled on a pair of rubber gloves. He leaned close to inspect my body. He pulled my top up and exposed both my breasts."

"There are bite marks around her right breast. The left looks unharmed."

The policewoman took a couple of pictures. When she stepped back, he used his gloved fingers to inspect my pussy.

The nurse said, "I can see some bruising around the top of her slit. It looks like someone was rather rough on her clitoris. There is a lot of dried semen around her vagina."

Ellen took a series of photos of my most intimate parts.

The nurse said, "I'll collect a sample of fluid while I check for any internal injuries. Ellen, maybe you can hold her steady in case it hurts?"

I squirmed as the nurse worked his finger into my sensitive vagina. He ground his fingertip around in a circle as he drove it deeper. I moaned as I twisted in Ellen's strong grasp.

He pulled his finger out and stared at it. "She's definitely had sex recently. From the amount of semen, I'd conclude it was with more than one partner."

The nurse dribbled a sample into a vial and sealed it. He labeled the sample and added it to a box marked with my name.

"Is she the last? If so, I'll get these samples to the lab."

Sorry, there's one more. I just got a call from the police chief. They caught the suspect who robbed the jewelry store this morning. Unbelievable how stupid some crooks are. She still had the merchandise in her purse when they arrested her tonight. She should be here in ten or fifteen minutes."

"Ok. I'll wait in the lobby. Let me know when you're ready for the next one. As much as I enjoy sticking my finger inside of lovely young women, I hope this is the last. Just once, I'd like to sit down for dinner with my family."

The nurse left the room with Ellen. When she returned, she said, "I fixed your suit. Let's see if it still works."

She pulled my swimsuit bottom out of her pocket. I noticed she had tied the broken string together. She held the suit while I stepped into it. She tied the strings on my hips. The suit was riding very low exposing the tiny triangle of dark pubic hair above my slit.

I said, "You need to tie it tighter. I can see the top of my pubic hair."

"I don't need to do anything. Before you complain, just let me say I'm worried the strings will tear out if I tie it tighter."

Ellen walked behind my back and undid the strings to my top. She pulled the material over my breasts and retied the strings. The string around my neck was so loose, the triangles of colorful fabric barely covered my nipples. The string around my back was also loose. If I leaned forward, I knew the top would fall away from my breasts.

"If you could take off these cuffs, I could tie the suit myself."

"Well, then you're in luck. I'm taking you to a cell. I'll remove your cuffs once we have you safely locked up."

Ellen walked me to a stairway, and we went down a level. The long room had six cells made of steel bars. Five of the cells held one or two men each. As we walked past them, the men begged the policewoman to put me in with them. I blushed at the suggestions the men made about what they wanted to do with my body.

The last cell held four women. Ellen unlocked the cell and pushed me inside. She locked the door behind me. She had me stick my arms out of a narrow opening in the door and unlocked my cuffs. While I retied my suit, I stared at my new companions. The nurse was right. Every one of them was stunning. One sturdy brown girl looked enough like Ray, I knew she had to be related. I figured Manu would make sure she was released soon.

The small cell held a toilet, sink and a bed. All the items were made of steel. I wondered why there was no mattress of any kind. The four women were crowded together sitting on the steel bed. Two of them had their eyes closed. I assumed they were asleep. I was exhausted from being in the sun and drinking.

I also had a full bladder. The toilet was disgusting and in full view of everyone. I had no choice. I squatted over the bowl and let go. My stream of pee made the metal bowl ring so loud the men in the other cells responded with catcalls. One of the assholes asked me to pee on his face. Of course, there was no toilet paper.

I was so exhausted, I sat on the floor across from the bed and closed my eyes. I wondered why every surface in the jail felt sticky. The room smelled of stale sweat and old urine. Santa Teresa might be Paradise on Earth, but the city jail was hell.

I think I fell asleep before the sound of the cell door squeaking open woke me up. I was astonished to see Sonya in handcuffs. Ellen pushed the dark-haired beauty into the cell and locked it. I watched as her handcuffs were removed. Sonya was cursing the policewoman the whole time. The policewoman ignored her and walked out of the cell block.

"Sonya, why are you here?"

"The fucking cops arrested me for stealing from Longs' Jewelry. I haven't been near the place in weeks. They claimed they found over a thousand dollars of diamond and sapphire jewelry in my purse. They even have a crummy video of someone who looks a bit like me stealing the junk."

While we were talking Ellen shoved a slim red-headed girl into the crowded cell. As soon as her handcuffs were removed, she slid to the floor sobbing. The Samoan girl sat beside her and wrapped her strong arms around the young petite redhead.

She said, "Mary, what are you doing here?"

Mary stopped sobbing long enough to look at her friend and say, "Oh Lanuola, it's a horrible mistake. My mother was charged with embezzling Festival funds, and your father says I was helping to launder the stolen money. Please Lanuola, your father is the chief of police. Maybe you can talk to him."

Lanuola said, "This is just crazy. I've known you since we were in grade school at Notre Dame Elementary. You've always been a good Christian girl. You would never steal from a charity. But, Mary, I don't know what I can do to help you. I've been arrested too. They found cocaine in my car. My father was screaming at me that I was contaminated by my mother's bad blood."

The two young women huddled together and cried on the hard concrete floor next to me. Sonya squeezed in next to them and joined me on the floor. I held her tight as we all cried from fear and misery. One of the other women yelled at us to be quiet. Sonya and I fell asleep in each other arms.

We weren't asleep long before we were awakened by the big policewoman banging her billy club on the cell bars.

"Ok, ladies, everyone up. The chief wants you on a suicide watch, so I'm going to check on you every half hour."

It was a little past midnight when the policewoman woke us for the third time. She said, "Jean, come here. Joe finished his arrest report. You can make your phone call now. You're going to need a good lawyer. No actually, you're going to need a great lawyer. Basically, your ass is grass."

She led me to the phone, and I called my aunt.

"Jean, thank God. We were so worried when Michael found my car abandoned on the side of the road. He called Manu, and he said you were in custody. I'm sure it's all a big mistake. Your uncle arranged for the best defense lawyer in town. He'll be in to see you first thing in the morning."

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Chapter 10

First thing in the morning was ten o'clock. I'd had a sleepless night thanks to Ellen's suicide watch. I had a pounding headache and felt nauseous from all the stupid drinking at the beach. A policewoman handcuffed my hands behind my back and led me to the same small room that had used for my exam the night before. She refused the attorney's request to remove my handcuffs. She claimed I was considered dangerous. Instead of removing the cuffs, she locked them to a ring on the back of the chair. The metal chair was bolted to the floor.

After the policewoman left, the attorney introduced himself as Sebastián Ramirez. When I asked, he acknowledged he was related to Miguel, the president of the city council. Santa Teresa is a small world.

"Please, you have to get me out of here. I can't take another night in this place. The policewoman is a monster. None of us got any sleep."

"Jean, do you have any idea how much trouble you are in?"

"The officer groped me. He shoved a finger in my vagina and pinched my clit. I didn't mean to scratch him. I was going for a slap."

"The officer needed six stitches in his face. He'll be scared for the rest of his life. The worst part is that he re-injured his back and is out on disability again. You may have ended his career as a police officer."

"But he attacked me!"

"Two witnesses had an unobstructed view of the whole incident. They heard you threaten him. Both collaborate the police officer's statement that you used some form of karate on him to try to escape."

"Oh God, that's not how it happened."

"No one will believe you. Your blood alcohol level was 0.18 an hour after you were arrested. The police officer has photographs of your wild sex party on the city beach. The DA has enough material from the officer's report to throw the book at you. The only good news is that they passed the Moscone Act last year. You had enough marijuana to convict you of intent to sell which used to be a felony. Under the old penal code, you faced a sentence of 5-15 years with a mandatory 3 years before eligibility for parole. Now it's just a misdemeanor."

"The officer claimed the marijuana possession was a felony. He used that to arrest me. We can get the arrest thrown out."

"Jean, you were arrested for aggravated DUI. You showed signs of being intoxicated, and you were driving more than twenty miles an hour over the speed limit before you ran a stop sign. That qualifies you for a charge of aggravated DUI. Even if you manage to contest the speeding component, the high blood alcohol level also qualifies a charge of aggravated DUI. We have no basis for fighting the arrest. Even if we got the arrest thrown out, you still assaulted a police officer acting in the line of duty. He suffered great bodily injury. Based on the threat you made before assaulting the officer, I expect the DA will also charge you with aggravated assault of a police officer with great bodily harm."

I stared at the table and murmured, "I never threatened him; I just told him to get his hands off me."

"You are looking at a felony aggravated assault conviction with three to five years in maximum security prison. A great bodily injury enhancement subjects you to an additional three to six years in prison on top of the sentence for the underlying crime."

I stared at the table and began to cry. Sebastián kept pouring on the grim news.

"Your uncle said you are a law student. I'm sure you know, you'll never be allowed to practice law with a felony conviction. In fact, finding any form of gainful employment will be difficult. I must warn you, Judge Okazaki is especially harsh on people convicted of assaulting police officers. The DA will pile on other charges and ask for the sentences to be run sequentially. The judge will agree. You are looking at a minimum of seven years and possibly up to thirteen or more years in maximum security. You don't want to get locked up in maximum security. They still use male guards in this state. They'll use any excuse to throw a pretty, young woman like you into solitary. They'll eat you alive."

All my dreams of becoming a lawyer and proving myself to my father were vanishing. I started to cry harder. I remembered the woman working as a busboy in the restaurant. Her lifeless eyes still haunted me. She had only been in prison for three years. What would be left of me after ten?

Sebastián said, "The only hope you have is a plea bargain. Everyone in the judicial system is aware the California Institution for Women is woefully overcrowded. It is possible the DA will offer you a deal. I'm going to ask my cousin if he can use his influence to get the city fathers to talk to the DA about a deal."

I stifled a sob and nodded. "What's next?"

"The jail is overflowing, and the tourists haven't even arrived for the Exposition. The police chief requested the court help reduce the number of detainees. You will be arraigned before the judge this afternoon. We will then learn the extent of the charges. If the DA is going to offer a deal, he'll do it then. If the DA offers a plea bargain, I recommend you accept it."

I was led back to my cell. A couple of the women were gone. One of my cellmates told me Sonya was talking to her lawyer.

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Chapter 11

The policewoman brought us sandwiches for lunch. They consisted of a slice of baloney between two pieces of stale white bread. The smell of food made me sick. I sat on the bed and tried to sleep. Just as I would start to drop off, the policewoman would open the cell door to take a prisoner out or bring one back. Of course, she had to slam the heavy door closed each time. When Sonya returned, I barely recognized the once bubbly teenager. I held her tight. Her body shook with intense sobs.

When Sonya managed to talk, she said, "He said I was going to the state prison for at least two or three years. I can't go to prison. I'm supposed to go to college in a couple of months. My life is ruined."

"Who said that?"

"Sebastián said they found my fingerprints at the jewelry store. They also have a video of someone who looks like me slipping some expensive diamond earrings into their purse. He said the DA was going to charge me with a felony. I haven't been near the store since my dad bought me a ring for graduation. I went in to get it resized. I never went back. They're making a huge mistake."

"Your lawyer is Sebastián Ramirez?"

"Yes, he's my dad's cousin. Do you know him?"

"He's my lawyer also. He told me the DA planned to charge me with several felonies. If I'm convicted, I could get seven to thirteen years in maximum security. I've heard horror stories about the male guards in maximum security. I'm so scared, I feel like puking."

My lip started quivering. Sonya wrapped her arms around me, and we both cried.

The clock said 2:30 when the policewoman came to get me. She was carrying a cattle prod and chains. She made me kneel on the floor outside the cell. She attacked shackles to my ankles and handcuffed my wrists in front of my waist. A chain around my waist was connected to my handcuffs and shackles.