SW06 - The Innocent Woman

by Parnell Hall

  By now Marvin Lowery’s composure was gone. He glowered at Steve Winslow.

  “I’d like an answer to that,” Steve said.

  “Witness will answer.”

  “Is that right?” Steve said.

  “Is what right?” Lowery said. Then added irritably, “No, don’t read the question again. Yes, I have no way to prove I didn’t take out more money than that. I know I didn’t and you know I didn’t, and I think the jury knows I didn’t. But I can’t prove it, no.”

  “Similarly, you don’t know whether Frank Fletcher took out two hundred dollars and left a chit saying he’d only taken one?”

  “Objection.”

  “Sustained.”

  “Do you know of your own knowledge how much money Frank Fletcher took from the petty cash box?”

  “No, I do not.”

  “You do know he left a chit in the box saying he took a hundred dollars?”

  “Objected to as already asked and answered.”

  “Overruled.”

  “Yes. He left a chit.”

  “The money you took out—tell me, did you spend it all?”

  “I beg your pardon?”

  “The hundred dollars you took out—for business expenses— did you have a hundred dollars’ worth of business expenses over the weekend?”

  “No, I did not.”

  “Did you have any?”

  “Yes, of course. I took a customer out to lunch. A business lunch. A valued customer. Absolutely legitimate and above board.”

  “You didn’t use a credit card?”

  “No, I did not. I wouldn’t have been appropriate at this diner. For one thing, the amount wasn’t that much. I used petty cash. For lunch and for cab fare.”

  “If it wasn’t that much, I assume you didn’t spend the whole hundred dollars?”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “You had money left over?”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “And Mr. Fletcher—if he didn’t spend the hundred dollars he took out of petty cash, he’d have had money left over too, wouldn’t he?”

  “Objection.”

  “Sustained.”

  “So,” Steve said. “That brings us to Monday morning. You, in the company of Mr. Macklin and Mr. Fletcher, counted the money in the petty cash drawer. You found two chits indicating you and Mr. Fletcher had taken a hundred dollars each. You found another hundred dollars missing. The defendant arrived for work, Mr. Macklin inspected her twenty dollar bills to see if she had any that matched the serial numbers on his list. Is that right?”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Tell me, did Mr. Macklin inspect any of your twenty dollar bills to see if you had any that matched the serial numbers on the list?”

  “No, he did not.”

  “But if you had taken money out of the petty cash drawer and hadn’t spent it all, presumably you had some of those bills in your possession.”

  “Objection. Argumentative.”

  “Sustained.”

  “Did Mr. Macklin compare any of Mr. Fletcher’s bills to the serial numbers on the list?”

  “No, he did not?”

  “He didn’t? Even though there was a chit stating Mr. Fletcher had taken money from the petty cash drawer?”

  “Objection.”

  “Sustained.”

  “Is it correct that the only bills that Mr. Macklin compared to the serial numbers on his list were those of the defendant?”

  “That’s right.”

  “And immediately upon finding that she had two of those bills, you called the police?”

  “I didn’t personally call the police.”

  “Who did?”

  “Frank. Mr. Fletcher.”

  “Mr. Fletcher called the police. They came to your office. They found you, Frank Fletcher, Mr. Macklin and Miss Dearborn. Miss Dearborn was arrested for petty theft. The basis for the charge was that she had in her possession two twenty dollar bills containing the serial numbers on Mr. Macklin’s list. Is that, right?”

  “That is substantially correct.”

  “When the officers arrested Miss Dearborn for having those twenty dollar bills in her possession, did you stand up and say, Excuse me, officer, but I also happen to have some of those twenty dollar bills in my possession, why don’t you arrest me too?”

  “Objection.”

  “Sustained.”

  “At the time of the defendant’s arrest, did the police make any inspection of the money on your person?”

  “No, they did not.”

  “Or any of the money on Frank Fletcher’s person?”

  “No, they did not.”

  “So, is it or is it not a fact that Mr. Macklin was employed solely to catch Miss Dearborn?”

  “Absolutely not. He was hired to find out why cash was missing from the petty cash drawer.”

  “How much was he paid?”

  “Objection. Incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial.”

  “Overruled.”

  “His rate was two hundred dollars a day, with two days guaranteed. He was paid four hundred dollars in advance for the two days, Friday, April 30th, and Monday, May 3rd.”

  “Since the defendant was arrested on the third, am I to assume he received no further compensation? Aside from his appearance here in court, I mean.”

  “Actually, he was paid more.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes. There was provision for additional compensation in the event the case was solved.”

  “Solved?” Steve said. “What an interesting term. And just what would constitute that? Are you telling me if Mr. Macklin’s testimony results in the defendant being convicted, he will get more money?”

  “Not at all,” Lowery said indignantly. “As a matter of fact, he’s already been paid.”

  “Oh?”

  “Frankly, we considered the case solved upon the defendant’s arrest.”

  “You paid Mr. Macklin then?”

  “That is correct.”

  “How much additional did you pay him?”

  “Two hundred dollars.”

  “Did you pay him by check?”

  “No, we paid him in cash.”

  “Really?” Steve raised his eyebrows. “Would that be from petty cash?”

  It took only one look at Lowery’s face to see that shot had scored.

  “So,” Steve said. “Would it be safe to say that on Monday, May 3rd, you, Frank Fletcher, Mr. Macklin and the defendant Miss Dearborn were all in possession of twenty dollar bills matching the serial numbers on Mr. Macklin’s list?”

  A. D. A. Pearson’s vehement objection was sustained, but Steve, having made his point, merely smiled and said, “No further questions.”

  And when Pearson announced that he was resting his case, Steve Winslow promptly rested his.

  8.

  STEVE WINSLOW’S CLOSING ARGUMENT was brief.

  “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” he said. “I’d like to begin by explaining why I put on no defense. The reason is, I don’t have to. I don’t have to prove the defendant innocent. The prosecution has to prove her guilty. She is presumed innocent before we even begin.”

  Steve smiled. “As I’m sure you will all recall. Hard to believe that was only this morning. This trial has moved very quickly.

  “And for a good reason.

  “The prosecution has no case.

  “Search through all the testimony of all of their witnesses and what have they got? Two twenty dollar bills.

  “That’s it. Out of everything you’ve heard today, the only evidence whatsoever liking the defendant to the crime is those two twenty dollar bills. The ones Mr. Macklin has testified that he found in her purse. On the basis of those two twenty dollar bills, the prosecutor would like you to find the defendant guilty.”

  Steve smiled and shook his head. “Well, I can understand why he feels that way. And I can understand why he brought this prosecution. At first glance, it certainly appears damning.” Steve assumed a mock dramatic
voice. “Here are the twenty dollar bills, the serial numbers carefully recorded, placed in the box, two of which subsequently turn up in the possession of the defendant.” Steve raised his eyes in wonderment. “Damning? Hell, it’s a wonder a trial is needed. Why not send her straight to jail?

  “Until you look a little closer at the evidence.

  “Frank Fletcher took a hundred dollars from the petty cash box.

  “Marvin Lowery took a hundred dollars from the petty cash box.

  “Samuel Macklin was paid two hundred dollars from the petty cash box.

  “Now, the police didn’t inspect any of their bills, only those of the defendant. But if the police had looked at their bills, there is every reason to believe several of those in question would have been found on each and every one of them.

  “So, if the only criterion for guilt was possessing those twenty dollar bills, could we say that since Marvin Lowery had some in his possession, he must be the thief?

  “Or the same of Frank Fletcher?

  “Or Mr. Macklin?”

  Steve smiled, pointed to Pearson. “Now, I know what the prosecutor will argue. He’ll say that they had a right to have possession of those bills. That their possession of those bills is accounted for. And the defendant’s isn’t.”

  Steve shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not.

  “Which brings us to the doctrine of reasonable doubt.

  “To find the defendant guilty, you must find her guilty beyond all reasonable doubt. If there is any doubt in your mind that she is guilty, you must find her innocent. Well, I would think that all four people in that office having possession of those bills would be enough to do it right there.

  “But I’m willing to go a little further to help you out, to make your job a little easier.

  “The other part of the doctrine of reasonable doubt is, if the evidence of prosecution can be explained by any other reasonable hypothesis other than the guilt of the defendant, then you must find the defendant not guilty.

  “The only evidence presented is the fact she had those two bills. The prosecutor says she must have stolen them. We say she didn’t.

  “Okay, how else could those bills have come into her possession?

  “Perfectly easy. Frank Fletcher took a hundred dollars out of petty cash on April 30th. We know because he left a chit in the petty cash box. And he paid the defendant her salary in cash. That very afternoon. And that was after he took the money out of the petty cash box, because by his own admission, he paid her her salary just before he went home.

  “Is it reasonable to assume he paid her salary with some of the recorded bills? Well, I can’t prove it, but I don’t have to. All I have to do is show it’s possible. If it’s possible, reasonable, logical, that such a thing could have happened, then you must give the defendant the benefit of that reasonable doubt and assume that it did.”

  Steve Winslow raised his hand. “Now, the prosecutor may say that’s all well and good, but what about the hundred dollars missing from the petty cash drawer? What happened to that?”

  Steve shrugged. “Well, a lot of things. For one thing, the defendant might have stolen it.” He smiled, shrugged again. “Hey, it’s possible. Didn’t happen. But it’s possible. And if you were allowed to bring in a conviction on the grounds that something was possible, well then this defendant would be going to jail.

  “But that’s not the way the law works. If any other solution is possible, the defendant goes free.

  “In this case, the possibilities are practically endless.

  “For one thing, Marvin Lowery could have done it. By his own admission he went to the cash box and took out a hundred dollars. What was to stop him from taking two?

  “The same hold true of Frank Fletcher. What if he took two hundred dollars from the box? And paid the defendant’s salary with some of those bills?

  “And why, you might ask, would he do that? Well, suppose he was the one who’d been stealing from the petty cash drawer. And hiring Mr. Macklin was an elaborate double-bluff on his part to cover up the fact that he himself was actually guilty. Well, it wouldn’t be enough just to hire Mr. Macklin and set the trap. He’d have to have somebody to frame. Surely not his partner Mr. Lowery—that would never fly. But here’s the defendant. Perfect patsy. Slip her some of the bills as part of her salary and let nature take its course.

  “You might ask, why would he want to do that? I haven’t the faintest idea. It’s not my job to know. I don’t have to prove anything.” Steve Winslow pointed at A. D. A. Pearson. “He does. He has to prove everything.”

  Steve smiled. “You can see now why I made such a big deal during jury selection over your willingness to consider this defendant innocent.

  “Because she is innocent.”

  Steve ticked them off on his fingers.

  “She’s presumed innocent.

  “She is innocent.

  “And it’s your duty to find her innocent.

  “I thank you.”

  9.

  AMY DEARBORN COULD HARDLY contain herself.

  “I can’t believe it’s over,” she said.

  Tracy Garvin patted her arm. “I know.”

  “And so quickly. My god, the jurors weren’t gone twenty minutes.”

  “I’m surprised they took that long.”

  “I don’t know how I can ever repay him.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  “I know. I heard what he said, but—”

  “Then don’t worry about it.”

  Amy and Tracy were standing on the steps outside the courthouse. The verdict had been announced minutes before, disposing of the entire case in one day, a consummation not only devoutly to be wished, but beyond Judge Dalrymple’s wildest dreams. Steve Winslow had turned Amy Dearborn over to Tracy Garvin and asked her to wait, saying there were a few details he wanted to take care of.

  Amy Dearborn looked at her watch. “It’s getting late,” she said. “I do want to thank him, but maybe I should come by the office.”

  Tracy Garvin frowned. “He said to wait.”

  “I know that. It’s just...I don’t know. It’s hard to hold still. I want to keep moving.”

  “I’m sure he won’t be long,” Tracy said with a slight edge in her voice. After all Steve had done, it was a little much, this woman not being willing to wait. She was about to say something to that effect when Steve came out the door.

  Amy Dearborn’s eyes lit up. “Mr. Winslow, I just can’t thank you enough. I’ve been going crazy out here waiting to tell you. Where did you go?”

  “I told you, I had some business to take care of.” Steve reached into his pants pocket and, with a bit of a flourish, pulled out some money. “I believe this belongs to you.”

  Amy Dearborn blinked. “What?”

  “It’s not much, I’m afraid, but forty dollars is forty dollars.”

  “Forty dollars?”

  “Yes. Two twenty dollar bills. With quite a history. If you don’t need to spend them, you might want to frame them.”

  “You got them to release the court exhibit?” Tracy said.

  “Of course I did. This money was removed from her person. If she didn’t steal it, it’s rightfully hers.” Steve held it out to Amy. “Here you go.”

  Amy put up her hand. “Please. You should keep it.. After all you’ve done.”

  Steve smiled. “Thanks all the same, but I’d rather not. If it got out I was charging forty bucks for a day in court, it would be hard to explain. I’d rather leave things just as they are.”

  “But you have to be paid.”

  Steve shook his head, “Not for this. You gave me a dollar. Provisional retainer just to make it legal. Well, that’s all the money I expected to see from this case.” Steve held up one finger. “On the other hand, F. L. Jewelry fired you without cause, had you arrested and charged you with theft. That charge was without foundation, has been proven so in a court of law. I would expect a jeweler to have both assets and insurance.”

&nbs
p; Amy looked at him. “Do you mean...?”

  “I think you’re entitled to some compensation for what you went through. If you agree, I’d be happy to file suit in your behalf. In which case, I would feel justified in taking a fee.” Steve held up his hand. “But that’s beside the point, and I wouldn’t want you to file suit just for that reason. But the way I see it, yes, we’re happy you got off. You did nothing wrong, so you should have got off.

  “On the other hand, Fletcher and Lowery did something wrong, so why should they get off? Macklin too.”

  Amy frowned. “Mr. Macklin? Why him?”

  “Why not. He’s the one who came up with the stupid plan in the first place. Planting the twenty dollar bills, and then letting everyone get a hold of them. Some plan.

  “But the point is, in a case like this you file suit against everyone. Because Fletcher and Lowery will try to shift the blame to him anyway, and he’ll try to dump it back on them. You don’t worry about that. You name everyone, and let the jury award damages and apportion blame.”

  “Just what does that mean?”

  “Well, say the jury finds in your favor and awards you a hundred thousand dollars. Then they might decide the fault was ninety percent F. L. Jewelry and ten percent Macklin’s. Then the jewelry company’d give you ninety thousand, he’d give you ten.”

  Amy’s eyes were wide. “A hundred thousand dollars?”

  Steve smiled. “That’s just a for instance. And I would take a third, as my fee. That’s the way these things work. On a contingency basis. I only get paid if there’s a settlement, and then I get a third.”

  Amy frowned. “I see.”

  “So would you like me to go ahead and file suit?”

  Amy exhaled. Shook her head. “Let me call you tomorrow about that. Everything’s happened so fast. I haven’t really had time to think. I’m very grateful, but I just don’t know.” She looked at her watch. “Listen, it’s late, I’ve got to go. I just want to thank you again. For everything. You don’t know what it means. Anyway, I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  “Can I give you a lift somewhere?” Steve said.

  Amy put up her hand. “No, no. That’s fine. Thanks. You’ve done so much already. I’ll be just fine.”

  With that she turned and hurried away down Centre Street.