The Warren Files 01: Jim and Donna

While waiting for my boss, I stationed the officer at the door and went looking for Orville Dilbert, the other partner. He was in the other large suite, around the corner from Greese's. As before, I ignored the receptionist and marched into his office. Dilbert was hunched over a computer and simply looked up as I came in.

Dilbert appeared to be Greese's alter-ego. Where Greese was large and overbearing, Dilbert was almost mousy by comparison. It was clear to me this was the man who looked after the firm's bottom line. I introduced myself and showed him my credentials. He almost seemed relieved to see me.

"I take it you know why I'm here," I told him. He nodded his head and almost seemed ashamed.

"Yes, Officer Warren," he said. "I know."

"What's going on around here?" I asked. Of course, I already knew the answer, but I wanted to hear it from him.

"I'm a bottom line type of person, officer," he said. "Greese and his goons run the legal operation. I make sure we stay solvent and legal. At least on paper. It's not easy sometimes."

"I take it Greese uses this to control you?" I asked, tossing the DVD with his name on his desk. He looked at it with disgust before nodding his head.

"Yes," he said. "Normally, Greese lets the senior partners break in the new guys and keep the others in line. Sometimes, he does it himself."

"Is that what happened with Stephen Connor?" I asked. He nodded his head.

"Yes," he said. "Connor refused to let those three thugs fuck his wife and he threatened to report us to the State Bar. So they worked with Greese to set him up. He threatened me if I sided with Connor."

"Who else has he done this to?" I asked.

"The four of them have managed to blackmail every attorney in the office," he said. "Anyone who steps out of line gets a visit from those two gorillas he hired. Greese has lots of friends in the State Attorney's office as well as the Public Defender's office, so he was able to secure Connor's conviction. And in case you're wondering, I have proof right here that he was innocent."

"And you're willingly turning that over to us?" I asked. He nodded his head.

"Yes, officer," he said. "All of it. Everything. Too many lives have been destroyed. Mine included. I want this to end."

"That's good to hear, Orville," said a male voice behind me. I turned to see Bill walk into the room. His badge was prominently displayed on his jacket pocket and he had a piece of paper in his hand.

"Bill, it's good to see you," Orville said. "I wish it was under better circumstances."

"Me too, Orville," Bill said. "Unfortunately, I'm not here as your friend. I'm here in my official capacity. I've brought a small army of federal agents and we're going to be here for a while. I need you to pass the word. No one leaves until we've interviewed everyone. That includes the mail boy. And no one is to touch their computer." Orville nodded his head. "We'll be confiscating all records and computers and you might as well tell the employees to stay home until further notice." He slapped the warrant on Orville's desk.

"And," Bill added, tossing another piece of paper on his desk, "you are to cease operations until the State Bar says otherwise."

"I understand," he said. "I'll pass the word." He picked up his telephone and made the announcement over the intercom. Bill turned to me before speaking.

"It's your show, Oscar," he said. I nodded in understanding. I made my way out and went to the next floor, where agents had already begun interviewing the employees. The same scenario was playing out on the floor below that.

A group of officers and techs had arrived from Fort Apache, so I instructed them to confiscate all the computers, starting with the servers, and all the records per the warrant. I made my way to Jim's office and took pictures. I noticed the small surveillance camera in the fire alarm. I made a note to search the DVDs for video taken in this office.

We were there until late in the evening, interviewing all the employees and gathering evidence. I knew the forensic techs at Fort Apache would be very busy for the next several days looking for evidence of wrongdoing. Finally, all of the employees had left after being interviewed, and the officers handed me their notes and audio.

From what everyone had gathered, the only ones involved in criminal activity were Greese, his goons, and his three senior partners. Bill and Orville caught up to me before I left.

"Ready to call it a day?" Bill asked. I nodded my head.

"Yeah," I said. "I've got a lot to sort out here."

"Yes, you do," Bill said. Orville extended his hand. I accepted his offer and shook it.

"You know, Officer Warren," he said. "I'm really glad this is all over. I started this firm myself years ago. I just wanted to help people. It didn't get like this until Greese came on board. He just took over and I felt powerless to stop him. For what it's worth, tell everyone I'm really sorry about all this."

"I will," I said. "What about you? And your marriage?" He looked down, ashamed.

"I don't know," he said. "There's a slim chance we can fix things, but I honestly don't know." I nodded my head. I understood what he was feeling.

Despite everything Greese and his cohorts did, I felt bad for this man and hoped he would be able to make things right with those whose lives had been turned upside down.

I spent the next few days going through all the notes and audio of the interviews. A number of employees backed up Jim's stories of the gangbangs involving his wife. Several employees told similar stories of gangbangs involving the wives of other low-tier attorneys. All of the stories were corroborated by video evidence Greese had collected on DVD.

A thorough search of the firm's records and computers found evidence of numerous federal crimes, which included racketeering, conspiracy to commit murder, embezzlement and extortion. We determined there was no connection between the firm and MMAS or similar organizations.

Since those crimes were outside our jurisdiction, we handed all of the information over to the FBI and other federal agencies for investigation and prosecution. Orville turned state's evidence and cooperated fully with federal authorities, which had granted him immunity from prosecution. He retired after all the cases were resolved and now lives with his wife on a houseboat in Hawaii.

The evidence we collected from Orville and the statements made on both audio and video proved Stephen Connor's innocence beyond a shadow of a doubt and the State Attorney had no choice but to have his conviction overturned. Thanks to Bill's connections with the State Attorney, all of the lawyers involved in Connor's prosecution were fired and their licenses suspended for life.

After his release from prison, Connor immediately filed a massive lawsuit against the state for prosecutorial malfeasance and he filed a lawsuit against the firm and all those involved in his prosecution. Orville didn't fight the lawsuit against the firm and agreed to Connor's demand. Connor and his wife reunited and are now retired, having bought a small ranch in Montana.

The Whites, by the way, were able to work out their marital issues with counseling and are doing nicely. They also received a hefty settlement from Dilbert and Greese.

Greese, Kevin and Brad had their licenses permanently suspended and were found guilty of numerous charges in federal court after months of investigation. Each of them were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. I smiled at the prospect of them becoming Bubba's "bitch" in the big house.

Donna Winters was tried in federal district court and found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and conspiracy to commit extortion. She was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison, but would be eligible for parole in 15 years. She made parole after 17 years and now works as a waitress. She never remarried and shares a small trailer with a female co-worker. Jim's divorce was immediately granted. Donna insisted throughout that she still loved him, but Jim wanted nothing more to do with her.

Jim also sued the firm, and the lawyers involved. Orville agreed to pay the damages Jim sought against the firm. Kevin and Brad, however, had declared bankruptcy. Jim accepted a position with the Task Force Legal Section and worked there until his retirement. He underwent counseling for several years but is now doing quite well and has since remarried.

As for me, I took the kids to the zoo. And life went on...