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“Yes, Your Honor,” Garland said. “Mr. Bosch, isn’t it true that you were serving a suspension at the time you, as you put it, turned in your badge?”

“Under department policy and procedure, I was relieved of duty while my actions were being investigated,” Bosch replied.

“So you resigned to avoid losing your pension, correct?”

“No, incorrect. I resigned because it was a politically motivated investigation based on a false accusation.”

“So you know something about false accusations.”

“Is that a question?”

The judge stepped in when Winston did not.

“Mr. Garland, let’s move on to questions that are germane to the motion before the court,” Leibowitz said. “I’ve cleared my morning schedule to handle this, but my afternoon is booked. I’d hate to have to continue this matter, especially since you labeled it an emergency in your petition for a hearing.”

“Happy to move on, Your Honor,” Garland said. “Mr. Bosch, when did you first meet the defendant Gregory Talbot?”

Bosch asked Leibowitz if he could refer to the official case records, and the judge gave his approval. He opened the binder and went to the chronological record.

“I met the defendant on February eighth, 2001,” he said.

“And what was the occasion for that meeting?” Garland asked.

“I was investigating the murder of his wife — his first wife — and that led me to conduct an initial interview with Mr. Talbot,” Bosch said. “The victim’s name was Jennifer.”

Bosch looked directly at Gregory Talbot as he said his first wife’s name. Talbot did not look back.

“What were the basic details of that homicide?” Garland asked.

“She was beaten to death in the apartment she had moved to when she separated from the defendant,” Bosch answered. “The crime scene was made to look like an intruder had entered the home and attacked her. But that wasn’t what happened.”

“That was your opinion, correct? That it wasn’t an intruder?”

“It was my conclusion based on evidence, experience, and instinct.”

“By instinct, do you mean your gut reaction to what you see and process at a crime scene?”

“More or less, yes.”

“Would you say that you didn’t like Mr. Talbot from the start?”

“At the start I had no opinion. I had never met the man.”

“But it is correct that when you interrogated him, you came away believing he had murdered his wife?”

“I believed he should be classified as a suspect, yes. He was deceptive and — ”

“Thank you, Mr. Bosch. You have answered my question.”

Bosch glanced at the prosecution table. Winston should have objected and asked the judge to allow Bosch to finish his answer, but she had her eyes down and was writing something on a legal pad. Bosch looked at the judge.

“Can I finish my answer?” he asked.

“Let the witness finish his answer, Mr. Garland,” Leibowitz said.

The judge threw a look at Winston but she still had not looked up and didn’t catch it.

“Yes, Your Honor,” Garland said.