“That’s right.”
“Prior to that, you, Mr. Fletcher and Mr. Macklin had gone up to the office, examined the cash in the petty cash drawer and discovered a hundred dollars was missing?”
“That’s right.”
“I believe you stated that you were not testifying to hearsay, that you personally counted the money and determined the hundred dollars was gone. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Mr. Fletcher put five hundred dollars in the petty cash box? You personally saw him do it?”
“Yes, I did.”
“You personally counted the money and determined a hundred dollars was missing?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Am I to assume that on Monday morning when you counted the money, there was four hundred dollars in the petty cash box?”
For the first time Lowery frowned. “No, that’s not right.”
“Oh? And why is that?”
“To begin with, that five hundred dollars wasn’t the only money in the petty cash box.”
“I see,” Steve said. “You mean there was already money in the petty cash box when Mr. Fletcher put the five hundred dollars in?”
“That’s right.”
“He didn’t remove that money and replace it with the five hundred dollars. He added the five hundred dollars to it. Is that right?”
“Yes, it is.”
“I see. And how much money was there in the petty cash box before Frank Fletcher put the five hundred dollars in?”
Again, Pearson thought to object, but, as Lowery looked totally unconcerned, he kept quiet.
“There was two hundred and seventy-five dollars,” Lowery said.
“You know that for a fact?”
“Yes, I do.”
“How do you know?”
“I counted it.”
“You personally counted it, or you watched Frank Fletcher count it?”
“Both. I watched Frank count it, then I counted it myself.”
“And there was two hundred and seventy-five dollars?”
“That’s right.”
“And Fletcher added five hundred dollars, making a total of seven hundred and seventy-five dollars?”
“That’s right.”
“He put the five hundred in after you had counted the two hundred and seventy-five?”
“That’s right.”
“Did you count the money after he put the five hundred dollars in. That is, after he added the five hundred dollars, did you count the money again and get seven hundred and seventy-five?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Before that, you had counted the two hundred and seventy-five dollars that was originally in the box?”
“That’s right.”
“Any chance you were mistaken in the amount?”
“Absolutely not?”
“And why is that?”
“Because I concentrated on what I was doing.”
“I see,” Steve said. “And if you were concentrating on counting the money, how can you be sure while you counted the two hundred and seventy-five dollars, Frank Fletcher didn’t substitute some of the bills of the five hundred dollars before he added it to the box?”
Lowery smiled. “That couldn’t have happened.”
“Why not?”
“Because that five hundred dollars was sitting in plain sight right in front of me on the desk?”
“You’re sure of that?”
“Absolutely.”
A.D.A. Pearson made sure the jurors could see his broad grin.
Steve Winslow frowned. He looked mighty displeased with the answers he’d been getting. He rubbed his head. “Mr. Lowery, let me make sure I understand this. Is it your testimony that you personally counted the money in the petty cash box before and after Frank Fletcher put the five hundred dollars in; that you saw him put the five hundred dollars in; that you are certain that it was the same five hundred dollars Mr. Macklin wrote the serial numbers of; that there was no chance Mr. Fletcher substituted any of those bills before he put them in the box; that after he put the bills in, you counted the money in the petty cash box and came up with a total of seven hundred and seventy-five dollars? Is that right?”
“Absolutely. That’s exactly what happened.”
“Is it also your testimony that on Monday morning, May 3rd you personally counted the money in the petty cash box and determined a hundred dollars was gone?”
“That’s right.”
“I see,” Steve said. “Is it then your testimony that when you counted the money on Monday, May 3rd, there was six hundred and seventy-five dollars in the petty cash box?”
Lowery frowned.
“Is that right?” Steve said.
Lowery shifted position on the witness stand. “No, that is not right,” he said.
“Oh?” Steve said. “I thought you counted the money on Friday and determined there was seven hundred and seventy-five dollars in the box. Then you counted the money on Monday and determined a hundred dollars was missing. Granted math was never my strong suit, but even I would expect six hundred and seventy-five dollars would be left. Are you saying this was not the case?”
“No, it wasn’t.”
“And why is that?”
Lowery shifted position on the stand again. He cleared his throat. “You have to understand. We are an active firm. In the process of doing business. It wasn’t as if we could close our doors just because this incident occurred.”
Steve Winslow raised his eyebrows. “Oh, I see. Are you trying to say the petty cash drawer was in use?”
“Exactly.”
Steve smiled. “So. Are you telling me money was removed from the petty cash drawer-”
“Objection, Your Honor!”
“Overruled.”
“Are you telling me money was removed from the drawer between the time you counted the money on Friday, April 30th and the time you counted the money again on Monday, May 3rd?”
Marvin Lowery looked peeved. His eyes were narrowed, and his lips were set in a firm line. “I’m not sure what my rights are,” he said, “but I would like to object to the word removed. You make it sound as if money had been taken surreptitiously, irresponsibly, or for some illicit purpose. Which is not the case. Any money used in the course of business was duly noted and accounted for.”
“Accounted for? Are you talking about a written accounting?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Well, that’s mighty interesting,” Steve said. “That record itself may well be evidence. What sort of record was it?”
“A ledger.”
“A ledger? I see. And by that are you referring to the company’s books, or a separate ledger kept for petty cash?”
“A separate ledger just for petty cash.”
“I see. And was it kept in the petty cash box?”
“It was too large for that. It was kept in the drawer underneath it.”
“The same drawer?”
“Yes, of course. Right underneath the box.”
“I see. So on Monday morning when you counted the money in the petty cash box, you referred to the ledger to see if any money had been withdrawn?”
Lowery shifted position again. “Actually, no.”
“Oh? And why is that?”
Lowery rubbed his head. “As I say, the ledger was under the box. It was a nuisance to constantly drag it out just to make a single entry. It was common practice when taking petty cash to simply leave a chit in the box stating the date and the amount.”
“I see. And that’s what had been done on this occasion?”
“That’s correct.”
“Are you saying petty cash had been taken out on Friday for use over the weekend?”
“That was standard practice,”
“I’m not saying it wasn’t. I’m merely asking if it was done on this occasion.”
“Yes, it was.”
“Money had been taken from the petty cash box and a chit left in its place?”
“Yes.”
“And who had done this, Mr. Lowery? Who took the money from the petty cash box for use over the weekend?”
Lowery cleared his throat. “As if happened, I had a business appointment on Saturday, and-”
Steve Winslow’s grin broadened. “Are you saying you took money from the petty cash box for use over the weekend?”