Page 90 of One of Us Is Guilty

And spoke . . .

‘Members of the jury, have no doubt, this case is unlike any other to have come before this court. The decision you give at the end of this trial will be the most important of your life, because my client’s life hangs in the balance. It doesn’t matter that she has nice clothes, money in the bank or that she has what some of us call privilege. She’s entitled to be treated just like any other citizen. But – let’s be clear – she is not any other citizen. My client in this case has suffered a great injustice. The police have targeted her for this murder. They have not looked at other viable suspects, and instead of investigating what really happened to Molly Green on the night of February seventeenth, they have sought only to make sure my client is convicted of Molly Green’s murder. Take a look at the victim again . . .’

I had not changed the screen, deliberately. I’d left Molly’s smiling, vibrant, youthful face on full display for the jury, so I could hold up a mirror to Riley’s case.

Reframe the story.

Take the DA’s strongest case and throw it back in his face.

‘That young woman deserves justice. This is what our city and our justice system demands. Mr. Riley doesn’t want you to see the truth. He wants Vanessa Vanderpool convicted. He wants to protect the powerful people that surround this young woman’s life, and her death. This is your oath as a juror – you will faithfully try the defendant and render a true and honest verdict according to the evidence. I would ask you to be mindful of that oath. Our society is built upon it. It is a light that will guide you through the trial. You carry that lit torch with you today, and every day for the duration of this trial. Follow that light, and above all follow your hearts. By the end of this case you will know, in your very soul, who reallymurdered Molly Green. And it’s not the young woman at the defense table.’

I took a moment and looked over the jury. The seven women and five men stared at Molly Green’s image once again. This time, I saw something different in their eyes. There was sadness for Molly. Some of them sat up straight, or blinked, and then looked at Molly’s face again.

This time, none of them looked at the defendant with anything approaching anger or disdain.

My strategy was to hold up a mirror to the prosecutor’s case, and let the jury see that the reflection in there was not what Riley wanted them to see. The mirror really showed someone else. The real killer.

So far, I’d built a little frame for that mirror. The surface was dusty and distorted. Throughout the case, I had to sharpen the image. Bring it into focus.

And away from Vanessa.

I sat down next to her, and put a hand on her wrist, patted it. She whispered to me . . .

‘Thank you for that . . .’

I kept my voice low, said, ‘Don’t thank me yet. We’ve got a long way to go. And things will get worse before they get better.’

‘Your Honor,’ said Riley, ‘the People call their first witness, Alison Karim.’

Here we go.

34

Eddie

As Alison Karim took her oath to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, I sat quietly wondering if she would lie.

She finished the oath, and sat down. Judge Tanner, her silver hair expertly blow-dried in a salon most mornings, gave the witness a welcoming smile.

I’d never appeared before Judge Tanner before. I didn’t know her mind. I did know that she’d been a lawyer for some of the most corrupt companies on the planet, and protected them from the law for decades.

I wondered if she had left that mindset behind.

Judges don’t normally smile at witnesses, but in this case Judge Tanner had read the case file and knew Alison Karim was what lawyers call an independent witness. She was just an ordinary member of the public whose everyday life had brought them into contact with a crime. While she clearly knew the victim, they were no more than acquaintances who occasionally passed each other in the hallway. More importantly, she had no connection with the defendant, so whatever testimony she gave would come with a lot of weight.

In other words, nobody was going to be gunning for Alison Karim.

Judge Tanner could welcome her with all the benevolence of her office. This was a witness who would tell the truth.

If things played out the way I’d anticipated, it wouldn’t be the first time I’d seen a judge have their preconceptions blown out of the water.

‘Miss Karim, what is your age, occupation and address?’ asked Riley.

‘I’m fifty-nine, I live in the Duraplex building, apartment twenty-seven, and I work from home as a customer-service assistant.’

‘How long have you lived at that address?’

‘Eleven years, now.’