AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Then that would seem to conclude this matter,” Judge James said, and stood up.
“All rise!” the man in the two-tone brown uniform ordered.
Everyone stood up.
Judge James left the courtroom.
Sergeant Kenny began to place Daniels in the prisoner restraint system. When he was finished, Kenny and the state trooper led him shuffling back through the satellite courthouse and put him back in the rear seat of the Daphne police car.
Then the convoy left the satellite courthouse complex, went back to U.S. Highway 98, and turned left onto it. Three miles farther along, it turned left onto a two-lane macadam road, and half a mile down that turned into the Fairhope Municipal Airport.
There the convoy drove onto the parking tarmac and up to a Cessna Citation. There was an almost identical Citation on the ramp, and half a dozen other business aircraft.
Mickey O’Hara jumped out of the Lincoln and ran up the line of cars to be in place when Daniels was taken from the Daphne police car.
He was there in plenty of time to see the little ceremony.
The attorney general of Alabama got out of one black Mercury and walked toward the Daphne car holding Daniels. The driver and the state troopers moved quickly to stand behind him.
Steve Cohen walked up to the car. He had ridden with O’Hara in the Lincoln. Matt Payne and Joe D’Amata took up positions behind him. Chief Yancey, several of his officers, and Detectives Martinez and McFadden stood to one side.
At a nod from the man in civilian clothing, one of the state troopers opened the door of the police car and helped first Sergeant Kenny and then Mr. Daniels out.
“Mr. Daniels,” the man said. “I’m Baxley Williams, Attorney General of the State of Alabama. And this is Sergeant Matthew Payne, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, police officer, who has a warrant for your arrest.”
Daniels did not reply.
Williams turned to Matt.
“You may now take custody of the prisoner.”
Matt put his hand on Daniels’s arm. Sergeant Kenny took his hand off.
Cohen signaled D’Amata with a finger. D’Amata took handcuffs from his belt, went to Daniels, and put them on him.
“Sergeant Kenny, you want to help me with this?” D’Amata asked.
Kenny began to remove the prisoner restraint system.
When he had finished, D’Amata said, “Come with me, please,” and led Daniels toward the Cessna Citation.
Matt walked quickly to the airplane, got there first, and went inside.
When Daniels came into the cabin, Matt showed him where he was to sit, the rearmost seat, usually occupied by the steward. Then he took handcuffs from his belt, added one cuff to Daniels’s left wrist, and snapped the other around the aluminum pipe work of the seat.
D’Amata watched.
Steve Cohen came aboard, followed by Mickey O’Hara.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Matt walked forward and knocked on the cockpit door. A man in a blue shirt with first officer shoulder boards opened it.
O’Hara took his picture.
“Any time,” Matt said.
The copilot walked through the cabin and operated the door-closing mechanism.
