"I have no knowledge of drugs and," Ochoa said, looking at his Rolex,"I'm afraid I have another appointment."
"Thanks for taking the time to see me."
"It was my pleasure. If I can be of further help to Martin, let me know.
And wish him the best for me."
Nora Sloane was waiting for Betsy on a bench outside the courthouse elevator.
"Did you talk to Mr. Darius?"
"Martin says you can tag along."
"Great!"
"Let's meet after court and I'll set up some ground rules."
"Okay. Do you know how judge Norwood is going to rule?"
"No. His secretary just said to be here at two."
Betsy turned the corner. judge Norwood's court was at the far end of the hall. Most of the people in the corridor were congregating outside the courtroom door. Television crews were grouped around the entrance and a guard was checking people through the metal detector.
Betsy flashed her Bar card at the guard. He stood aside.
Betsy and Sloane cut behind him and went into the courtroom without having to go through the metal detector. Martin Darius and Alan Page were in court. Betsy slid into the chair next to Darius and took her files and a pad out of her attache case.
"Have you seen Lisa?" he asked.
Betsy scanned the packed courtroom. "I told my secretary to call her, but she's not here yet."
"what's he going to do, Tannenbaum?"
Darius was trying to sound casual, but there was an edge to his voice.
"We'll soon find out," Betsy said as Harvey Cobb rapped the gavel. judge Norwood strode out of his chambers. He was clutching several sheets of yellow, lined paper. Norwood was a shoot-from-the-hip guy. If he'd taken the time to write out the reasons for his decision, he was expecting it to be appealed.
"This is a very troubling case," the judge said without preliminaries.
"Someone apparently tortured and murdered four innocent people. That person should not be roaming our streets. On the other hand, we have a presumption in this country that a person is innocent until proven guilty. We also have a guarantee of bail in our Constitution, which can be denied a defendant in a murder case only on a showing by the State that there is clear and convincing evidence of guilt.
"Mr. Page, you proved these people were murdered.
You proved they were buried at a site owned and visited by Mr. Darius.
You proved Mr. Darius knew the three women Victims. You also proved he was having an affair with one of them and may have beaten her the day she disappeared. What you have not shown, by clear and convincing evidence, is a connection between the defendant and the murders.
"No one saw Mr. Darius kill these people. There is no scientific evidence connecting him to any of the bodies or the homes from which they disappeared. You have matched the tires on the BMW to the tracks left at the murder site, but Mr. Darius visited that site frequently.
Granted, it is suspicious that the tracks led up to the hole in the fence, but that's not enough, especially when there is no evidence connecting the BMW with any victim.
"Now I know you'll tell me that Mr. Darius destroyed the evidence by cleaning the trunk of his car, and that looks suspicious. But the standard I must use to deny bail is clear and convincing evidence, and the absence of evidence, no matter how suspicious the circumstances, is not a substitute for evidence.
"Really, Mr. Page, the crux of your case is the information given to you by this Gordon woman. But she wasn't here to be cross-examined by Mrs. Tannenbaum.
Why isn't she here? We don't know. Is it because of foul play or because she made up the story she told you and is smart enough to avoid committing perjury?
"Even if I accept what you say, Mr. Darius is guilty of the Hunter's Point murders only if we accept Detective Gordon's theory. This Henry Waters fellow was named by the Hunter's Point police as the killer. If Waters is the killer, then Mr. Darius was a victim of the man." judge Norwood paused to take a sip of water. Betsy choked back a victory grin.
She glanced to her left. Alan Page was sitting stiffly, eyes straight ahead.
"Bail will be set in the sum of one million dollars.
Mr. Darius may be released if he posts ten percent."
"Your Honor," Page exclaimed, leaping to his feet.
"This won't help you, Mr. Page. I've made up my mind. Personally, I'm surprised to see you force this hearing with such a skimpy case." judge Norwood turned his back on the prosecutor and walked off the bench.
"I knew I did the right thing hiring you, Tannenbaum," Darius exclaimed.
"How long will it take to get me out of here?"
"As long as it takes you to post the bail and the jail to process you.
"Then call Terry Stark, my accountant at Darius Construction. He's waiting to hear from you. Tell him the amount he has to post and tell him to get it down here immediately."
Nora Sloane watched Betsy field questions from the press, then walked with her toward the elevators.
"You must feel great," Sloane said.
Betsy was tempted to feed Sloane the same upbeat line she had given to the reporters, but she liked Nora and felt she could confide in her.
"Not really."
"why is that?"
"I admit, winning gives me a rush, but Norwood is right. Page's case was very skimpy. Anyone would have won this hearing. If this is the best Page can do, he won't get his case to a jury.
"Also, I don't know who Martin Darius is. If he's a husband and father who found his wife and child brutally murdered, then I did something good today. But what if he really murdered the women in the pit?"
"You think he's guilty?"
"I didn't say that. Martin insists he's innocent and I haven't seen anything to convince me otherwise. What I mean is, I still don't know for certain what happened here or in Hunter's Point."
"if you knew for certain that Darius was the rose killer, would you still represent him?"
"We have a system in America. It's not perfect, but it's worked for two hundred years and it depends on giving a fair trial to every person who goes through the courts, no matter what they've done. Once you start discriminating, for any reason, the system breaks down. The real test of the system is when it deals with a Bundy or a Manson, someone everyone fears and despises. If you can try that person fairly, then you send a message that we are a nation of law."
"Can you imagine a case you wouldn't take?" Sloane asked. "A client you might find so repulsive that your conscience would not let you represent him?"
"That's the question you confront when you choose to practice criminal law. If you can't represent that client, you don't belong in the business."
Betsy checked her watch. "Look, Nora, that's going to have to be it for today. I've got to make certain Martin's bail is posted, and my mother's watching Kathy, so I've got to leave the office a little early."
"Kathy is your daughter?"
Betsy smiled.
"I'd like to meet her."
"I'll introduce you to Kathy soon. My mom, too.
You'll like them. Maybe I'll have you over for dinner."
"Great," Sloane said.
"Lisa Darius is waiting for you in your office," Ann said as soon as Betsy walked in. "I hope you don't mind. She's very upset about something and she was afraid to sit in the waiting room."
"That's okay. Does she know Martin's going to be released on bail?"
"Yes. I asked her how the judge ruled when she came in and she said you won.
"I didn't see her in court."
"I called her about the court appearance as soon as you told me to."
"I'm sure you did. Look, call Terry Stark at Darius Construction," Betsy said, writing down the name and phone number. "I told him how to post the bail a few days ago. He'll need a cashier's check for one hundred thousand. If there are any problems, buzz me."
Betsy did not recognize Lisa at first. She wore tight jeans, a blue turtleneck and a multicolored ski sweater.