The Professor (McMurtrie and Drake Legal Thrillers #1)(66)

After Sheriff Ballard had taken the oath, he sat in the witness chair, leaning back and nodding at the jury. He looked relaxed, his khaki uniform unbuttoned at the top to reveal a thick clump of red chest hair. As Rick approached the bench, the sheriff nodded at him.

“Sheriff Ballard, would you please introduce yourself to the jury,” Rick said, gesturing with his arm to the jury box, where several of the jurors were smiling.

“Specks Ballard,” the sheriff said, smiling back at them and then looking at Rick.

“Sheriff, would you prefer that I call you Specks?” Rick asked, taking a piece of advice his father had given him last night.

The sheriff beamed with pride. “Well, your momma and daddy have for fifty years, I don’t see why you can’t.”

Laughter from the jury box, and Rick smiled, taking the time to look Jameson Tyler right in the eye. Welcome to Henshaw, baby.

Rick slowly walked to the end of the jury box, a good twenty feet away from Specks. He wanted the sheriff to be center stage. “During direct examination, the witness is the star,” the Professor had always said. “You want it to seem like the witness is just having a conversation with the jury. Your only role is to facilitate that conversation.”

Rick paused, glancing at the jury and then back at Specks. Rick knew this would be the high-water mark of the trial for him. The hardest lick Rick could deliver was Newton’s speed, and it was up to the sheriff to drive it home.

“Specks,” Rick began, taking a deep breath. “Did you investigate an accident on September 2, 2009?”



An hour later, Rick sat down, knowing it couldn’t have gone much better. Specks was fantastic, leaving no question that Dewey Newton was going 80 in a 65 at the time of the accident. Specks was most effective when Rick had him get off the stand and diagram the wreck on a chalkboard, showing the jury how he calculated Newton’s speed based on the number of skid marks found at the scene. The last thing on the board when Rick sat down was a big 80, and Tyler had to move it out of the way and erase it before he could begin his cross.

“Sheriff,” Tyler began, “when you investigated this accident, did you learn whether anyone saw it happen?”

“Yes, sir, Ms Rose did.”

“And by ‘Ms Rose’ you mean Rose Batson, correct?”

“Yes, sir.”

“And, isn’t it true that Ms Batson was the only eyewitness to the accident?”

“Yes, sir.”

“And, when you arrived on the scene, you asked Ms Batson to write a statement, correct?”

“I did. I always ask the eyewitnesses to write down what they saw.”

“And why do you do that, Sheriff?” Tyler looked at the jury, watching them as Specks answered.

“Well, it helps us figure out what happened. An eyewitness usually got no reason to lie. They just write down what they saw.”

“And that’s what Rose Batson did immediately after the accident, correct?”

“Yes, sir.”

Tyler walked along the edge of the jury box, nodding his head. “You’ve read Ms Batson’s statement, correct?”

“I have,” Specks answered, shooting a worried glance Rick’s way.

“Well, isn’t it true, Sheriff, that Rose Batson indicated that Bob Bradshaw pulled out in front of Dewey Newton’s rig?”

Rick was out of his chair. “Objection, your honor. Hearsay.”

Cutler cut his eyes to Tyler, who held out his palms. “I’m not offering it for the truth, your honor. At least not through this witness. I’m just offering it to show the sheriff’s state of mind in conducting his investigation.” Tyler was the picture of confidence as he waited for the Judge.

“Overruled,” Judge Cutler said. “Answer the question, Specks.”

“Well, that’s what her statement says,” Specks said.

“You aren’t suggesting that Rose Batson was untruthful in her statement, are you, Sheriff?”

“Oh, no. Ms Rose would never lie. When she says something, you can bet it’s the gospel.”

“The gospel,” Tyler said, smiling at Specks and then the jury.

“Yes, sir,” Specks said.

“I have no further questions,” Tyler said, winking at Rick as he took his seat.

Judge Cutler turned to Rick, who was stunned by the brevity of Tyler’s examination. What was that? Six questions? “Re-direct, counsel?”

Rick started to say something, but stopped himself. There was no way he could counter Tyler’s cross. It was short, effective and went straight to the theme of Tyler’s case. It was the perfect lead in to Batson’s testimony, where the jury would get to see Ms Rose’s statement.

Which Specks called “the gospel”, Rick thought.

“Counselor?” Judge Cutler repeated, scowling at Rick with impatience.

“No, your honor,” Rick said, trying to sound confident. No big deal, he thought. You still got Newton’s speed on the table. Tyler scored the only points he could score. He’s not the best trial lawyer in the state for nothing.

“Very well, call your next witness,” Cutler ordered.

Rick glanced down at the table. He’d placed his cell phone between his notebook and file, and the red light wasn’t blinking. He had asked Powell to roam the courthouse, and text him if he saw any sign of Wilma. He’d also sent Wilma another text this morning, asking her to contact him as soon as she arrived at the courthouse. She’s still not here, Rick thought, staring at the cell phone and feeling his stomach twitch. What was most disconcerting was that Wilma had not made any contact with Rick since her text Sunday night – no returned phone calls, no texts, no nothing. This stinks, he thought.