The Puppet Master

by Ronald S. Barak

  * * *

  PAIGE NORMAN WATHCHED HER husband, Cliff. Does he really think I haven’t figured out exactly what he’s doing? That doesn’t mean that anyone else has. No one else knows him as well as I do. She honestly didn’t know if he was ever insane, or just playacting. But sitting here in court watching him as closely as she had been, she knew he wasn’t insane now. However, none of this matters any longer. He had to have been insane if he did what he’s accused of doing. We’ve both been through hell. Totally screwed over by the system. I know how to play my part too. I think we may just be able to beat this. Show them all.

  CHAPTER 93

  Tuesday, August 4, 10:45 a.m.

  AP Online News

  Rachel Santana

  NORMAN PUTS GOVERNMENT ON TRIAL

  NO SURPRISE ON THE heels of Judge Cyrus Brooks’s unprecedented ruling yesterday that Cliff Norman could present a defense of justifiable or excusable homicide, it was defendant Norman’s public defender attorney, Leah Klein, who quickly went on the attack this morning in her response opening statement following a rather bland opening statement by District Attorney Vincent Reilly.

  Norman remains his stoic, quiet, vacant self, saying nothing and continuing to show no emotion.

  Not Klein. Perhaps proving that the best defense is a good offense, Klein told jurors in her opening statement—without conceding Norman murdered or raped Senator Wells—that Norman would have been legally justified in striking down political officials for posing continuing economic, but not physical, threats to Norman’s family of man, the public at large, and not uniquely his own family, by failing to prevent Wall Street from causing the current widespread economic downturn gripping, and paralyzing, the country.

  As District Attorney Reilly pointed out, it remains to be seen whether the jury will be willing to apply Brooks’s extension of the justifiable homicide doctrine not only to the murder of a public servant, but also to the after-the-fact rape of her dead body. Expect at least some to counter, however, that nothing less than an acquittal of Norman on the grounds of justified homicide will put an end to the alleged widespread government neglect and abuse that has been haunting the country.

  The prosecution is expected to take the remainder of today and into tomorrow to present its case. It will then be Klein’s turn to back up her opening statement with Norman’s defense case.

  CHAPTER 94

  Tuesday, August 4, 10:45 a.m.–12:00 p.m.

  “LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF the jury,” announced Judge Brooks, “we’re now ready to hear the evidence in this case. As with the opening statement, the people will put on their case first. Then the defense will do likewise. You are to listen carefully to all of the questions and answers you hear. Except to the extent that I may occasionally instruct you otherwise. For example, I might not allow questions I consider to be inflammatory or unnecessary. I might not allow questions of a witness before I consider the witness’s factual or expert background sufficient to justify his or her testimony.

  “Initial examination of a witness by the party who calls the witness is referred to as direct examination. On completion of direct, the opposing party is permitted, but not required, to cross-examine the witness. This process can go back and forth for as long as the attorneys wish. So long as I think it’s worth your time.

  “Mr. Reilly, is the prosecution ready to call its first witness?”

  “We are, Your Honor, thank you. The people call James Ayres to the stand.”

  Ayres approached the witness chair. He was sworn in by the clerk and then instructed to recite and spell his name and be seated. Which he did.

  “Good morning, Mr. Ayres. My name is Vincent Reilly. I represent the prosecution in this matter. I have a number of questions I would like to ask you. Is that alright with you?”

  Brooks chuckled to himself at this beginning. Given the power of the trial subpoena issued to the various witnesses, their appearance was hardly voluntary. And they had no say in what they had to answer.

  “Good morning, Mr. Reilly. I do know who you are and understand you want to ask me some questions. That’s fine with me. I’ll be happy to answer to the best of my knowledge.”

  Brooks was starting to lose his patience. He decided it was harmless to let the jury hear a little of this silly banter. This one time.

  The remainder of the morning was spent with the people’s first two witnesses, James Ayres and Robert Grant. Reilly examined each of these two witnesses on direct. Klein cross-examined Grant but chose instead to reserve the right to call Ayres back as her own witness during the defense case.

  Brooks acknowledged to himself that Klein’s reservation was smart. Technically, a party can call any witness in their own case. Many judges will insist for efficiency’s sake and the convenience of the witness that all examination of a witness occur at one time. But Brooks thought it was unfair to impinge on the attorneys’ strategy and timing. Especially in murder trials.

  Reilly brought out in his examination of Ayres that Ayres was Wells’s former chief of staff; that Wells seemed fine to him when she left her office early in the evening on February fifth in the company of Grant; that he had no idea of any plans she might have had for that evening; and that he never saw or spoke to her again. Klein demonstrated little interest or concern with Ayres’s testimony. On completion of his examination, Brooks dismissed Ayres and told him he was free to go, subject to recall during the defense case.

  Grant was first examined by Reilly and then cross-examined by Klein. He testified on direct about his employment history as a limousine driver; that he had served as Wells’s exclusive driver when she was in D.C. for the four months leading up to her death; that he found Wells to be very pleasant and enjoyed working for her; that most of his driving for Wells was work related but that he did occasionally also drive her to and from social engagements; that on the night in question he picked her up at her office around 7:15 and delivered her to her townhouse by approximately 7:45; that he did not recall Wells behaving out of the ordinary on the ride home or any particular conversation other than small talk; that he offered to walk her to her townhouse door from the parking entrance, as he always did, but that she said it was not necessary, as she always did; that he watched her as she went through the main lobby entrance and out of his sight, as he always did; that he did not notice anyone following her or paying any attention to her; that when he arrived to pick her up at 7:45 the following morning, he discovered that she was dead; and that when the security guard who was with him called 911, he was told that someone had moments earlier already called in her death.

  On cross-examination, Klein tried to find out what Grant knew about Wells’s social life. No doubt hoping to find someone other than Norman with whom Wells had any difficulties that might provide an opening to challenge guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. In keeping with Brooks’s ruling that he would not allow Wells’s reputation to be sullied, Reilly objected to that line of questioning by Klein and Brooks quickly sustained the objection without explanation.

  Klein then all but abandoned her cross-examination of Grant. Brooks then quickly wrapped up the morning session. “You may step down, Mr. Grant. You’re free to go. Thank you for your time. We’ll take our lunch break and resume at one thirty sharp.”

  * * *

  GRANT WAS LESS THAN comfortable as he left the courtroom. He thought he might have been a tad less than forthcoming when Reilly asked him what he and Wells had talked about on the ride home and if he knew anything about her plans for that evening. He knew Wells had inadvertently mentioned Foster to him shortly before her death. But that wasn’t on the ride home, and she had specifically told him she wanted it held in confidence. Grant didn’t think Reilly’s questions were precise enough to compel him to violate that confidence. Klein had come closer to the bull’s-eye and would have forced him to tell what he knew about any of Wells’s social relationships if the judge hadn’t ruled that the question was off-limits. He hoped that he was able to do right by the
senator and that Lotello would let sleeping dogs lie with all of that Foster business.

  * * *

  SITTING AT LUNCH, AYRES thought about his examination in court that morning. It struck him as fairly perfunctory. As a lawyer, he knew that his testimony had just been to lay a foundation for what would follow. Of more concern to him, he wondered why Klein might want to call him back during the defense case.

  CHAPTER 95

  Tuesday, August 4, 12:30 p.m.

  “THIS IS BOBBY HARRELSON. Can I help you?”

  “Bobby, it’s Frank. Were you able to find out anything?”

  “Hey, Frankie, yeah, I did. But not what you were looking for. And I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Bubba.”

  “That sounds a tad ominous.”

  “You wanted to know if Hollister ever hosted Thomas out here. Right?”

  “Exactly. Did he?”

  “Not that I can see.”

  “Damn. I was so sure.”

  “No sir. No record that Thomas has ever played here with Hollister. At least not for the last several years for which we have computer records. But Thomas was here. Just a few weeks ago.”

  “I’m not following you, Bobby.”

  “Well, you seemed so sure that Thomas was here.”

  “I was.”

  “I understood that. So I decided to dig a little deeper. I went ahead and cross-searched under Thomas as a guest instead of under Hollister as a member host.”

  “And?”

  “And … bingo!”

  “Bobby, I’m sitting on pins and needles here. How much longer are you going to drag this out? I got my retirement coming up.”

  “Easy, boy, you got to let me gloat a little. And like I said, I want to be sure you know what you could be getting into.”

  “Bobby, you know that nine iron you got me last year?”

  “Yeah, I remember it. A nice little piece of equipment. So?”

  “If you take so much as another ten seconds to spit it out, I’m gonna come out there and wrap it around your neck! I’m dying here, Bobby. What did you find?”

  “Okay. Drumroll, please. You know Manny Reyes?”

  “White House chief of staff?”

  “The very same.”

  “I don’t know him personally. Obviously I know who he is. What about him?”

  “July fifteenth.”

  “July fifteenth what?”

  “Reyes is a member here. He brings the president out here a lot. On July fifteenth, Reyes hosted Thomas.”

  “Really?”

  “Really. And it must have been pretty private.”

  “Why?”

  “Almost all of the rounds played here are foursomes. It keeps play moving more efficiently.”

  “So?”

  “So someone must have wanted this to be a pretty private affair because it was just the two of them. Reyes and Thomas. Meaning the time for the round only accommodated two players rather than the customary four. Kinda feels like maybe Reyes didn’t want anyone else to know Thomas was here with him. No socializing before or after the round, either. No meal before. And they didn’t hit the bar afterward. I know because I checked. There’s no chits that Reyes signed before or following the round. Reyes got Thomas in and out. Fast. Quietly.”

  “That’s interesting. You’d make a pretty good private dick if you ever get tired of teaching golf.”

  “Hey, Bubba.”

  “Yeah?”

  “You know what you’re doing here?”

  “Yeah, Bobby, I do. But it is pretty sticky. I don’t think you want to know anything more about it.”

  “You got that right, man. I really don’t. And you need to be careful. You’re playing in the big leagues on this one. You watch your tail.”

  “I always do. Thanks for this. I owe you big. But I also want you to forget all about this. And I do mean all.”

  “Already have. You let me know when we’re going to get that round in. I need the money.”

  “Okay. Soon as I can. Hit ’em straight, Bobby. Thanks again for this.”

  Beth, what the hell am I getting into? Only circumstantial so far. And pretty rank at that. But Thomas had a private meeting with White House Chief of Staff Manny Reyes on July fifteenth. Thomas then had a meeting with Abrams only three days later, on July eighteenth. A meeting Thomas denied having until I finessed it out of him. Barely after Reyes and Thomas met, Abrams is dead. Short of the president, Reyes is just about as high up as it gets. Did it go that one more step? Am I getting into another Watergate? What the hell am I supposed to do with all this?

  CHAPTER 96

  Tuesday, August 4, 1:30–3:00 p.m.

  “GOOD AFTERNOON, LADIES AND gentlemen of the jury. We’ll now be continuing with the people’s case. Mr. Reilly, do you have any more witnesses to call?”

  “We do, Your Honor. The people call Dr. Raymond Hwang to the stand.”

  Hwang was the longtime chief medical examiner for the District of Columbia. Reilly wanted to use Hwang both as a percipient fact witness and as an expert witness.

  In addition to laying a foundation for Hwang’s factual knowledge of the case, Reilly had to establish his credentials as an expert. This was routine stuff; Klein offered no resistance, and Brooks readily qualified Hwang as an expert in his field and cleared Reilly to proceed.

  “Dr. Hwang. Was someone in your office called to Senator Wells’s townhouse early in the morning on February sixth, 2013?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why was that, sir?”

  “My office was called by the police that morning because they had received a report that the senator had been found dead in her townhouse early that morning.”

  “Is it routine for your office to be called every time there’s a death in the area?”

  “Not at all. But when the circumstances of the death are less than perfectly clear and routine, my office is often called in. Also, we are typically called even in the absence of uncertain circumstances when the death is of a person of celebrity or public status. In this case, both circumstances applied—the unusual death of a public figure.”

  “And did someone from your office go to the senator’s townhouse early that morning?”

  “Yes, sir. I did.”

  “You did? Wasn’t it somewhat out of the ordinary for the chief medical examiner to make such a call? Especially at that early time of day?”

  “Not really. When our office receives a call concerning the death of someone of the status and importance of a U.S. senator, and where foul play is possibly indicated, I am typically the medical examiner assigned to the matter. When the call came in, it was rerouted to me at my home for that reason. Also, I’m an early-morning person; a lot of the early-morning calls are routed to me as a matter of course.”

  “You mentioned foul play. Why was the assumption made by your office that foul play was indicated?”

  Klein stood. “Objection—calls for hearsay.”

  Brooks denied the objection. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, a witness is generally not permitted to offer the statements of third parties absent from the courtroom for the truth of those statements. This is known as the rule against hearsay. However, that rule is subject to many exceptions.

  “For example, an expert is permitted to rely on the opinions of other experts. In this case, Mr. Reilly has been eliciting testimony from the witness that technically exceeds his fields of expertise. However, Dr. Hwang’s testimony is based not only on his personal examination of the crime scene but also on the opinions of other experts who also personally examined the crime scene. I am allowing Dr. Hwang to rely on noncontroversial opinions of several colleagues in order to expedite matters. For these reasons, I find exceptions to the rule against hearsay to apply and I thus overruled the objection.”

  Again, Brooks was losing his patience. “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury: I hasten to add that I don’t generally interrupt counsel, but I really do want to keep things moving along. With Mr. Reilly’s pe
rmission, please tell us, Dr. Hwang, what you found, what you did, and what you concluded when you went to the senator’s townhouse that morning.”

  “Certainly, Your Honor,” Reilly interjected, no doubt as a face-saving gesture. To give Brooks Reilly’s superfluous and unnecessary permission.

  “I was called by my office at about eight o’clock that morning. I showered and dressed, grabbed a PowerBar, and reached the senator’s residence at about eight forty. A number of people were already there, including a homicide detective by the name of Jeremy Barnet, who I have met before; two forensic people from my office, Tony Ruiz and Susan Larson; and a reporter from The Washington Post, Rachel Santana, who I recognized from earlier cases of mine that she had covered. Detective Barnet had not permitted Ms. Santana to enter the crime scene, but she was right there outside the townhouse complex. I believe two persons associated with Senator Wells were also there that morning: James Ayres, a member of the senator’s staff, and Robert Grant, her driver. Actually, I think Ayres might have arrived a little after I did.”

  Even Brooks’s interruption wasn’t moving things along fast enough. A PowerBar? What flavor, pray tell? Good to know he showered. Wonder what brand of soap he used. Hwang’s almost as long-winded as the attorneys! “Please continue, Dr. Hwang.”

  “The senator’s body was in her bedroom. On the bed. She was undressed and deceased. I preliminarily examined the body. I estimated the time of death was between seven and eleven the night before, February fifth. Not only was the senator dead, but the on-site preliminary examination indicated that she had also been sexually assaulted. The reason I referred earlier to foul play.”

  Brooks had done what he could to expedite matters. He spoke up. “You may continue your examination of the witness, Mr. Reilly.”