by Tom Berreman
“Yes.”
“And isn’t it true Ms. Williams contacted the Pacific Business Journal article’s author claiming to have confidential PCI internal memos detailing less than ethical corporate intelligence gathering techniques?”
“That’s my understanding.”
“And isn’t it also true she was strangled in the park where she was to meet with the author, but killed before the meeting?”
“Yes, that is also true. But let me point out the police report specifically acknowledged they found no PCI internal memos on her body or in subsequent searches of her car and apartment. Ms. Walters was nothing more than a disgruntled intern who felt she was not getting challenging work assignments and fabricated the entire thing as a twisted attempt at revenge.”
“Her name was Williams, not Walters.”
Hartwig shrugged his shoulders with indifference.
“Mr. Hartwig, isn’t it a fact you have a history of stealing proprietary trade secrets from Jennco?”
“Objection,” Buchwald exclaimed, “assumes facts not in evidence.”
“Sustained.”
Jason returned to the counsel’s table and retrieved a second document.
“Mr. Hartwig, I have here a confidential internal memo from Curt Jennings to the Jennco product development committee dated May second of last year explaining a sensor was experiencing condensation issues requiring a second washer added to the calibration access portal. Have you ever seen this memo?”
“No, I have not.”
“So, that is your sworn testimony?”
“Objection, asked and answered.”
“Sustained.”
Jason retrieved another document and handed it to Hartwig. “Can you please identify this document?”
“It is a Pacific Coast Industries’ technical bulletin.”
“And what is the date of the bulletin?”
“May fourth of last year.”
“And what does the bulletin recommend?”
“The addition of a second washer to the calibration access portal in PCI’s sensor.”
“Was the PCI sensor at issue a direct competitor to the sensor Jennco was developing?”
“Yes.”
“Were you aware that Jennco’s sensor was not experiencing condensation issues, that Curt Jennings’ purpose for writing this memo was to plant false intelligence to smoke out a PCI mole on his product development committee, a mole who sold Jennco’s sensor design to your company, a mole who later quit without notice when required to take a polygraph exam?”
“Objection,” Buchwald said as he stood. “Your Honor, counsel is testifying. I request you direct Mr. Burke to keep his examination to relevant questions and refrain from suggesting irrelevant and unfounded falsehoods to this Court.”
“Mr. Burke, please keep your examination to questions based on facts known to the witness.”
“Yes, Your Honor,” Jason said, convinced he had done all he could to plant a seed in the judge’s mind that Hartwig was an unethical corporate snake, and it was unreasonable for him to rely on Brent Jennings’ apparent authority that he acted on behalf of Jennco. “I have no further questions for this witness.”
“Given the time,” Judge Kleinschmidt said in response, “we will break for lunch. This hearing shall resume at one o’clock sharp.” That he directed his last comment at Ginsburg did not go unnoticed by anyone in the courtroom.
As people hurried toward the exits to grab a quick lunch Jason remained at the counsel’s table making notes for Brent Jennings’ cross-examination. As he stood to leave an attractive, well-dressed woman approached him.
“Mr. Burke, my name is Sally Gorman,” she said, extending her hand.
“How can I help you Ms. Gorman?” he asked as they shook.
“I was Pacific Coast Industries’ director of shareholder and media relations until I resigned following the Autonohaul accident. And Scott Jorgensen, the company’s former vice president of corporate intelligence, is also here. He is waiting in the parking lot, hoping to avoid running into Hartwig, and waiting for my call. Is there somewhere we can talk in confidence? We have information you will find helpful in your case against that slimy bastard who runs PCI.”
Chapter 59.
After the lunch break, Brent struggled through Buchwald’s questioning with simple, curt “Yes” or “No” responses to questions confirming the facts outlined in Hartwig’s testimony. He appeared to those in the courtroom as nothing more than a young boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar and made no eye contact with Jason or Allison seated less than ten feet in front of him.
Jason smiled as he anticipated his cross-examination when Buchwald presented his last questions.
“Mr. Jennings, why did you sell the technology to Pacific Coast Industries?”
“I believed at the time the Jennco long-range laser sensor was functional, safe and ready to bring to market. But there was a well-orchestrated conspiracy by Jason Burke and Allison Dahlstrom to rob me of the financial windfall I was entitled to after my father died.”
“How did they carry out this conspiracy?”
“After they caused my Jennco ownership interest to fall to fifteen percent they conspired to thwart Louis Hartwig’s offer to purchase the company by not waiving their rights under the shareholder agreement. That cost me three million dollars. Then they continued to cite failed diagnostics as an excuse not to bring the sensor to market, further diluting the value of my meager ownership interest. So, when the opportunity arose to get at least part of the wealth my father intended for me by selling the sensor to PCI, I pursued it.”
“Thank you, Mr. Jennings. I have no further questions.”
Jason stood to begin his cross-examination and was met with steely eyes spewing forth contempt and hatred.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Jennings,” Jason said.
Brent said nothing, his stare growing more intense.
“Mr. Jennings, earlier Mr. Hartwig testified he did not solicit his purchase of Jennco’s long-range laser sensor technology, saying instead you approached him. How was the technology sale to Pacific Coast Industries initiated?”
“Adam Ritter introduced me to Larry Reinhardt, a PCI engineer. It was casual, Adam and I were having a beer after work one day and he ran into Larry. They were frat brothers, and Adam introduced us.”
Jason paused for a moment, certain he had heard the name Larry Reinhardt once before. To stay focused on his cross-examination, he set the thought aside and continued.
“So, you initiated the sale through Mr. Reinhardt.”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Where did you get the schematic and R&D files you sold to PCI?”
“When the board appointed me Jennco’s interim CEO after my father’s tragic accident I gained access to his files. I downloaded a copy from there.”
The timing of Brent’s file download did not make sense. Jason had hoped to elicit his admission that he took the files from Eric’s cabin before it burned. This prompted an unplanned question, a strategy seasoned trial lawyers avoided if possible. Never ask a question unless you know the answer.
“How were you sure the schematic you sold PCI was the current version?”
“Adam Ritter reviewed it, and he confirmed it was the most current.”
“So Ritter introduced you to Reinhardt, then reviewed the schematic before you sold it to PCI. Are you testifying he was an active participant in this transaction?”
“Absolutely not. In my time at the company we became friends, and he recruited me to assist him in the quality assurance department. We’d have lunch a few times a week, go to happy hour every once in a while, stuff like that. He bumped into Larry one night at the bar, there was nothing planned. And when I downloaded the schematic, I asked him in passing if it was current. He said yes, but as far as he knew it was a business related question.”
“You testified earlier you were entitled to a financial windfall upon your father’s death, and that a conspiracy against you kept
it from happening.”
“Yes, that is the truth.”
“And you claimed I intentionally thwarted Louis Hartwig’s offer to purchase Jennco.”
“Yeah, it’s true. You and Allison Dahlstrom.”
“But isn’t it true that Hartwig withdrew his offer after he learned of an agreement granting either shareholder the right to purchase the other shareholder’s stock at book value if they received an offer to sell their shares?”
“Yeah, but you could have waived--”
“And isn’t it also true you possessed the original, executed agreement but failed to disclose it to the other shareholder until--”
“Objection,” Buchwald said. “Assumes facts not in evidence.”
“Withdrawn,” Jason said and continued.
“You also testified failed diagnostics to keep the sensor off the market were part of this conspiracy.”
“Yes, but--”
“But you just told the Court you were Adam Ritter’s assistant in the quality assurance department. How do you reconcile your role in the QA process with the alleged conspiracy?”
“Adam Ritter convinced me approval required additional QA, and he reports to you as CEO, so it had to be at your direction.”
“But didn’t the sale to PCI take place after you learned you and your siblings might lose a controlling interest in Jennco but before the board appointed me CEO?”
“Yes, but--”
“Are you claiming the probate court was wrong when it granted control of Jennco to your father’s wife and their son, and they elected the board that appointed me CEO?”
“I’m not a lawyer, but it didn’t make sense to me.”
“So that gave you the right to sell Jennco’s innovative technology to your father’s worst enemy, the technology over which he toiled for years to bring his company to the forefront of the autonomous vehicle component industry?”
“Objection,” Buchwald said. “Your Honor, counsel continues to testify, and referring to my client as Curt Jennings’ worst enemy is both unfounded and prejudicial.”
“Sustained.”
“I can’t answer what my father might have thought,” Brent continued, ignoring Buchwald’s objection. “But he wanted me to own more than a measly fifteen percent interest in the company he built.”
“If that is what he wanted why did he draft his will to ensure his wife and biological son inherited a controlling interest in Jennco?”
Brent sat in silence, a hate-filled stare aimed at Jason.
Jason let the moment linger before asking his last questions.
“So, you felt ripped off getting only fifteen percent of the company?”
“Yes.”
“And your siblings, Jessica and Joshua, also received a fifteen percent interest in the company?”
“Yes.”
“So, did you share the half million you received from the sale of your father’s technology equally with your siblings?”
Again, Brent sat in silence.
“Mr. Jennings,” Judge Kleinschmidt said. “Please answer the question.”
“That’s all right, Your Honor,” Jason said. “Mr. Jennings’ silence is answer enough.”
Chapter 60.
“Hey boss,” Eric Rogers said as he poked his head inside the open office door. “You wanted to see me?”
Jason and Allison sat at the conference table in Jason’s office following adjournment of the motion hearing for the day. PCI had rested its case, relying only on Louis Hartwig’s and Brent Jennings’ testimonies.
After Buchwald rested his case Jason, noting it was three o’clock Friday afternoon, requested that presentation of his case not begin until Monday. Judge Kleinschmidt agreed, noting however he was testifying before the legislature on Monday in opposition to pending mandatory sentencing legislation. He declared the hearing would resume at nine o’clock Tuesday.
As Jason was leaving the courtroom Henry Mattson approached him. He suggested it might be in their best interests to discuss whether there were common defense issues for their companies to assert. They agreed to meet at ten o’clock Monday morning at Autonohaul’s corporate offices.
“Come in,” Jason said as he stood and approached Eric, a hand extended in greeting. “Sorry for a late Friday afternoon meeting.”
Eric smiled as he shook Jason’s hand.
“I need to apologize for how I reacted the last time we met. I just--”
“No worries,” Jason interrupted. “It’s water under the bridge. We’re in this mess together, which is why I asked you to join us.”
“Thanks,” he replied before turning to Allison as he sat next to her. “Hey Allison.”
“Hey Eric.”
“So, how did the hearing go?” Eric asked.
“Okay. PCI rested its case, relying on Brent Jennings selling them the technology and the testing they performed on the sensor after they bought it. But Hartwig asserted he would have done additional testing if Brent hadn’t assured him the technology passed Jennco’s QA. I did a good job laying the groundwork to argue it was unreasonable to rely on Brent’s authority to sell the technology. But do you want to know the best part?”
“Sure,” Eric said.
“I spent my lunch hour talking with two disgruntled PCI executives who quit when they could no longer tolerate Hartwig’s shenanigans, and they can provide powerful information to help our case. I’m meeting with them tomorrow afternoon.”
“Wow, that’s great news,” Eric said.
“I thought so too. The hearing resumes at nine o’clock Tuesday, and you will be my first, and most important, witness.”
“Bring it on,” Eric said, resolve in his voice. “I made it clear last time we talked I didn’t appreciate being blamed for negligent testing.”
“That’s for sure,” Allison added. “I heard the windows rattle from down the hall when you left his office.”
All three laughed, Eric with a sheepish grin, a little embarrassed he had lost his cool.
“Anyway,” Jason continued, “in today’s hearing, Brent Jennings’ testimony didn’t make sense. When asked where he got the technology files he sold to PCI, he said he downloaded the sensor technology from his dad’s files. We were sure he was the one who stole your research files and burned your cabin, but didn’t have any objective proof to support it. He also testified under oath Adam Ritter reviewed the schematic and confirmed it was the most current.”
After a moment of contemplation Eric responded.
“That makes no sense. I didn’t finish my final R&D testing until after Curt’s accident. He was still alive in the hospital, but there was no reason for me to forward him my final schematic. There’s no way Brent downloaded the current file from his dad’s computer, and Ritter should have known that.”
“That’s true,” Jason said. “But Brent didn’t tell him where he got the file, just to review the copy he had. As CEO at the time, Ritter could have assumed he had access to the current file and gave it only a cursory review.”
“That’s no excuse. After only a cursory review it would be obvious it was not current.”
“Agreed. But Brent also said Ritter introduced him to Larry Reinhardt, his college frat buddy, a casual intro while they were having beers after work. Reinhardt is a PCI engineer, and Brent initiated the sale to PCI shortly after they met.”
“Are you suggesting Ritter was involved in this?”
“I asked Brent on the stand, but he denied it. We need to ask Ritter the same question.”
Jason stood, walked over to his desk, hit the speakerphone button and entered Ritter’s extension.
“Adam Ritter’s office, this is Julie,” a woman’s voice said over the speaker.
“Hi Julie, Jason Burke. Is Adam available?”
“No, I’m sorry Jason. He’s on vacation for two weeks, attending an annual family reunion in Cape Cod where he grew up.”
“Thanks Julie,” he said as he disconnected the call. He entered Ritter’s cell
phone number and received a computer-generated message that the number was no longer in service. Returning to the conference table he turned his attention to Eric.
“Did Ritter mention this family reunion to you?” he asked. “For a two-week vacation planned well in advance, he would have asked one of us to at least keep an eye on his department. Especially during a trial where questions concerning Jennco’s QA are a key element of PCI’s defense.”
“Nope, never said a word to me.”
“Me neither. And I’m not sure why, it’s just a gut feeling, but I’m suspicious of the timing of this unannounced family reunion.”
Chapter 61.
Jason sat in Autonohaul’s corporate headquarters’ lobby, having arrived twenty minutes early for his ten o’clock meeting with Henry Mattson. The austere setting surprised him, no plush sofas, expensive artwork or other amenities often decorating corporate headquarters’ lobbies to impress clients. It was functional, yet comfortable, very much like Jennco’s, sending a message the company used its shareholders’ investment to fund research and development, not extravagant office space.
“Mr. Burke?” the receptionist said. “Mr. Mattson is ready for you, he’s in the conference room right behind my desk.”
“Thank you,” Jason said as he stood. Henry Mattson sat at a conference table in the fish bowl conference room behind her desk, and Jason stepped into the room.
“Hello Jason,” Mattson said as he stood and greeted him with a handshake. “Thanks for stopping by. Can I get you coffee, maybe a soda?”
“No thanks,” Jason said as the two men sat across from each other at the small conference table with four chairs.
“I know you’re busy, prepping for the hearing tomorrow, so I’ll make this short and get right to the point. Jennco’s defense to the joinder motion is evidence PCI misrepresented adherence to the autonomous vehicle testing protocol when we executed our exclusive contract.”
“Yes, that is part of our defense.”
“And as I’m sure you can appreciate, if you can show PCI intentionally cut corners in testing the sensor, you will strengthen my case that PCI executed our contract under false pretenses.”