Probable Suicide

 With the preliminary hearings over , The trial of Alonzo Williams for Murder began....We had gotten 10 of the 12 jurors we wanted...A massive Victory for Nelson and Josie

Who were as good at Voir Dire as it gets....

 Dr. Hazel Baylor of the Medical Examiner's Office was Testifying...

"My personell and myself went back over the scene with a fine tooth comb and we found nothing  specific to a Homicide...So I made my ruling.. I declared Greta Fallow's death , "A Probable Suicide." she said.

 Lt. Tragg grumbled..

"She is never on our side...She always seems to side with the Defense..I'm going to complain bitterly to her supervisor, Doc Gibbons.." he said.

 "But you did say Probable correct? Meaning you aren't 100 percent sure ,is that right Mrs. Baylor?" said ADA Graham..

 "Well yes..but more than likely-" Hazel interjected..

"Just yes or no...You're not 100 percent sure are you?" asked ADA Graham...

"No, I'm not 100 percent sure.."said Hazel...

 "Your honor...On the basis of this being officially written up by the M.E's office as Probable Suicide is enough to reasonably concede that no murder was committed here at all and therefore we move that all charges be dropped against our client.."said Olivia..

 "Our client clearly is no murderer....And I myself observed the scene of Ms. Fallow's unfortunate death and could find no signs of any foul play what so ever... No crime was committed here, except a rush to judgement by an over zealous detective with a history of such..."said Beverly...

 Jazzy, who was representing both Olivia and Beverly smiled and put her head in her lap...That was an obvious sling at Lt. Tragg

who was as usual livid... He stared at Beverly with a white hot hatred...usually reserved for B.L. or Dabnis..

 "Although this was written up by the M.E.'s office as a "Probable Suicide" it is also or it can be up to the Homicide Detective to decide if such is a Homicide or not.."argued ADA Graham...

Just as we knew he was going to argue..

 Alonzo sat with Nelson , Josie ,myself and Dabnis, seething..

"I could kill  Tragg, if not for him, I wouldn't be here...HE KNOWS I DIDN'T KILL ANYBODY!" he snarled..

 "Just keep cool man...We got this.." said Nelson...

 Josie sat on the other side of him..

She whispered in his ear..."He's doing everything we expected...Just wait...We haven't begun our show yet.." she said and smiled confidently..

 The performance they had planned was going to be something to behold..

Dabnis smiled confidently...

 James Hughes sat in the visitor section

 with his arms around his daughter, Brittany...

 Lt. Tragg eyed them both with curiosity...

Judge Reynolds looked excited...He knew the fireworks hadn't begun yet...






II-

ADA Graham, a very talented prosecutor spun a story of Alonzo Williams as a very proud and skilled Attorney and also a man with a chip on his shoulder...A Man who didn't like to take no for an answer..

He said that Ms. Fallow, an old girlfriend of his spurned a sexual advance and poured a drink on him, throwing him into a murderous rage which culminated in him following her back to her apartment and throwing her off the roof..

He showed the Jury photos of her apartment, photos of the roof and one photo of the dead Greta Fallow lying in the street..

He then called Forensic Specialists, CSI personell  and Officers at the scene..

Olivia had questions seemingly tailor made for each witness in cross.

As did Beverly...

And Nelson

 and Josie as well..

Olivia, Beverly, Nelson and Josie disected their testimony, and got them to admit that in their professional opinion, they saw no signs of any struggle whatsoever, but only a messy female's apartment..

They found no blood, nothing broken and only one thing with our clients fingerprints and DNA on it..A drink glass he had drank from ,hours before..

He had already admitted to being there they said.

Attorney Jim Hughes smiled.. He liked what he was seeing..He knew he had hired the right defense attorneys...

 Lt. Tragg felt a little uneasy at Jim Hughes's reactions...

ADA Graham objected vehemently to everything Olivia ,Beverly ,Nelson and Josie was asking, but he was time and time again over ruled..They seemed as though they were prepared for his objections and quoted the law ,point , case and verse to back their questions.  At one point , he just tossed his hands up in the air in frustration..

Olivia and her three young protoge's were well versed in the law and they were prepared for seemingly everything...Even ADA Graham had to admit that Olivia had her team well prepared.

All this and we hadn't begun our defense..

He next paraded 24 witnesses from the restaurant that night ,including the manager , who witnessed Ms. Fallow pour the drink on Alonzo's head...

"This was after a sexual advance was spurned correct? he asked..

 Olivia ,Beverly,Nelson and Josie objected each time, saying move to speculation saying that and getting all 24 people to admit that although they saw they altercation, they had no idea what the altercation was about..

 This frustrated ADA Graham to no end...but he smiled giddly because we had opened up the trap that he had set...He called Olivia and Beverly to the witness stand..

 Each time they were asked a question, Their Attorney, Jasmine Coley vehemently objected, using every legal predicate she could think of...

The Judge found it amusing to say the least...He didn't move to stop her.. So far she had been accurate,legally speaking..

 ADA Graham was visibly frustrated... The Jury was confused and he was losing his argument...He could see it falling apart at the seams...The frustration was evident..

Lt. Tragg was livid...He didn't like Jazzy's tactics and Olivia and Beverly's evasiveness..This wasn't the fun that he thought it was going to be...It was if Olivia and Beverly were deliberately toying with everyone ,just out of principle..

 Calling me and Nelson  to the stand was just as bad..

 Our attorney , Dabnis Coley was a master at this kind of obstruction, objecting everything and like his wife, using every legal predicate he could think of..and yet staying within the reins of the law.

 ADA Graham was so frustrated, he took his suit jacket off and tossed it in the air...and pounded his fists on the table..

 "ADA Graham, would you like a recess ?"asked Judge Reynolds who was amused at the circus this trial had become..

 "No Your honor..Let's continue.." he said.

 He called Josie Boyd to the stand..

Once upon a time these two faced off against each other in court...Now Jazzy was representing Josie ,who had become her dear friend..

She was more protective of Josie than she had been with Olivia and Beverly, using every legal predicate she could think of to block certain questions..

 "This is what they were working out in all of those secret meetings they were having."said Lt. Tragg angrily..

 Judge Reynolds was amused beyond recognition at the circus this trial had become..

Lost in all of this was whether a sexual advance had been spurned...No one that testified had seen or heard any sexual advance.. All they had seen for sure was Ms. Fallow pour a drink on Mr.Williams head..

And trying to get his defense attorneys to testify against him for the prosecution , though novel and creative was a bust....a total bust!

Olivia and Beverly and associates had shredded his entire prosecution....

Attorney James Hughes howled with laughter...He loved Olivia, Beverly, myself , Nelson and Josie..

He thought we were great...Everything we did was perfectly legal and brilliant...He slapped his thighs and laughed so hard, he was shaking..

Lt. Tragg looked very perplexed at James Hughes....

"Is he on board with this foolishness?" he asked..

The Jurors were left confused at the end of the prosecutions case..

ADA Graham was visibly frustrated...He had lost control of his case...Something he had never done before and had lost control of himself..

He was angry, furious and frustrated by the time he did his sumnation..

And the Jury was confused..

Lt. Tragg wanted to strangle Dabnis…

"I COULD KNOCK HIM THE HELL OUT RIGHT NOW!!" he snarled...

He seemingly thought this whole  thing of objecting everytime we were questioned was Dabnis's idea..When actually it was Olivia and Beverly

...They instructed

Dabnis and Jazzy on what predicates to use to object the questions they knew were coming..

It was Nelson who worked with Dabnis on not losing his cool by grilling him, pretending to be the ADA and really going hard at him... It had paid off..Dabnis never raised his voice and never lost his composure and neither did Jazzy...That was left to the ADA..

Lt. Tragg  couldn't bring himself to hate his wife Jasmine...

He actually liked her... He liked Olivia and everybody she worked with ,

with the possible exception of her niece, Beverly.. So pretty, so sexy, but such a smart mouth...

.But he was frustrated with the way this trial was going...Frustrated in how they had turned a brilliant prosecution on it's nose...






III-

 Olivia and Beverly presented partially touched photos of Alonzo Williams and Brittany Hughes,their faces and genitalia blotted out to shadow them from any embarrassment.

"This is what this was all about...Some Photos....Some lowlife took these photos and mailed them to the young lady's father, whom our client works for , hoping to sow discord in their relationship..The person that sent these thought that it would result in our client's employment being terminated and cause a rift in their relationship...The photos did neither...

 "Our client thought that this woman, The Deceased , Ms. Greta Fallow , His ex girlfriend was responsible for the photos.." they said..showing a photo of Greta Fallow in happier times.

They showed photos of his car tires being slashed , of paint being thrown on his house after their break up and of two restraining orders he had placed on her two years before..

They brought up two other boyfriends who also had restraining orders placed against this woman.

 Nelson said.. "She had problems letting go.."

This was met by raucous laughter...

"When my client called her and told her he was coming over and that he needed to talk to her, she thought that they might be getting back together..Which is why she came to the door in a sheer night gown and her bra and panties and kissed him...

She offered him a drink while he waited for her to get dressed.."said Nelson..

"She was innocent of this crime..She did not take and send these photos to our client's girlfriend's father..but because of her past history...you can see why he thought she might be guilty."said Josie,who showed the jury her medicine for High Anxiety and the restraining orders from two other boyfriends.

''We don't know who sent those photos to our client's father..We may never know...but Ms. Fallow did not send them and the argument at the restaurant in which she poured a drink on our client left her so distraught, so anguished  that she may have come home and  taken her life...That is the tragedy...."said Olivia..

 "Calls for speculation.."screamed ADA Graham..

 I pulled in some Monitors with time stamped video..

 The video showed our client leaving the restaurant at 8:45 pm...

 at a gas station at 9:00 pm, gassing up.. His credit card proved that...

Beverly had footage of him at Brittany's apartment complex ,taken by the street cam..

 "That's him at 9:45 pm going into his girlfriends Apartment..."

said Beverly softly..

 ''And he doesn't come out again until 8:30 the next morning...The Murder occurred on the other side of town at around 10:25 pm...No way our client was there..He can't be two places at once."said Nelson.

"This poor woman more than likely committed suicide...If she didn't..If she was murdered...It was not by our client."said Josie.

''Despite all the hoop la..We have given you a story ,backed by FACTS..Not Hearsay and gossip..FACTS!!….Look at the facts....Look at the facts people....Look at the facts, You decide for yourself.."said Olivia.

IV-

 THIRTY MINUTES LATER-

 Judge Reynolds had enjoyed this trial tremendously...everybody involved knew their law, Prosecution and Defense... It had turned into a circus..but he had reigned everybody in..

"Bailiff, read the verdict" he said Smiling..

In the Case of State Of Pennsylvania vs. Alonzo Williams, on the charge of Murder in the First Degree..We find the defendant... NOT GUILTY!

 "Oh My God...Thank God!!  This long nightmare is over!"sighed a relieved Alonzo Williams.

 "I knew you were innocent all along...Olivia, Beverly, guys....You were great, worth every penny and I'm going to throw future business your way...I promise...I enjoyed every minute of that trial...Just enjoyed it.." said James Hughes..

 "Thank you sir..Always nice to be appreciated.."said Olivia..

 "We worked hard for that victory too, staying up all night...working on strategy.."said Beverly..

 "You guys did.."I said..

 "I don't know about you guys, but I'm beat..I just want to chill tonight.."said Nelson..

 "I'm tired...I just want to find my boyfriend and cuddle up with him..."said Josie..

"That's not a bad idea... And Jazzy, Dabnis..how can we ever thank you.?" said Beverly.

 "Yes...We couldn't have done this without your help.."said Olivia..

 "Awwww I was only too happy...:said Jazzy..

Dabnis got a text on his phone!

"Hey listen, if you guys don't feel like going to a bar or club tonight..It's Bee Bee's Birthday...They are having a little lightweight birthday flow on the terrace of their apartment building..We are all invited. Keith and Kahlil said you don't have to bring anything...Just come, they're supplying food and beverages..."said Dabnis.

 "That sounds nice...No bar tab...No crowds....Just us friends, Nice get together...I could do that.."said Beverly..

 "Yeah, so could I..How bout you Jo? You coming through?" asked Nelson...

 "Sure...I'm calling Paris now..Telling him to meet me there." said Josie..

 "How bout you Donnie Ray?  Wanna Stop by?" asked Olivia..

"Sure...it's the perfect wind down...Like Shortcake said...No Bar tab...No crowds, just a nice get together on the rooftop.."I laughed..

"Oh Great!!! This should be nice.." said a jubilant Jazzy.

 Brittany turned to Lt. Tragg...

"Hear me well, Don't you ever come near me again...If a case comes up and you're the arresting officer...I'm going to pass it on...The way most of the ADA's feel about you...You may have to have your case prosecuted out of state."said Brittany...

 Lt. Tragg's mouth dropped..

''Brittany...You got me all wrong baby....I really wish you and I could talk this over.."said Lt. Tragg.

"Save it!" said Brittany as she walked away...

 Lt. Tragg didn't relish being ridiculed by the press today...His first case back and once again, it was a dud..They were waiting to pounce..For once, he went the other way..

 ADA Graham looked at him and shook his head...

"Tragg, Did you ever think of getting into another line of work?  Maybe selling used cars? Because you suck at being a Homicide Detective.." he snarled and stormed off...

"Awwwwwww Geez." said Lt. Tragg, who  quietly slipped out the side exit of the courtroom...

A fitting ending for a snake like him!

EPILOUGE-

 We did something different tonight..We traveled a few blocks to our good friends apartment building and

 Headed to their rooftop terrace

 Where a huge cake was prepared

 Lots of Beer

 and drinks for the ladies,

Two grills operating with Burgers and Hot Dogs cooking and good music was playing , where we celebrated the birthday of our good friend, Beatrice "Bee Bee"Evans..

 "OH MY GOD!!!! THANK YOU GUYS!!!" she said..She cried profusely...Moved by the love being shown her...

 Keith Jones , her boyfriend put his arms around her and kissed

 her passionately....

 "Livy...I'm so glad you guys came...I know you just got out of court...Heard you got an acquittal for Alonzo.."said Yvette..

 "Yes....Girllllll ,It's been a week...Just glad it's over...I'm not going to complain about peace and quiet ever again.."laughed Olivia..who sat down next to Yvette and took her heels off...

 "This is nice...I had no idea these apartment buildings had a rooftop terrace like this...This big.." I said.

 "Nelson and I have to come and visit you guys more often."joked Beverly..

 "This is nice...In the summer , you can sit up here and relax..."said Nelson..

Who had Beverly sitting on his lap, while they both drank beers and ate Burgers and Hot Dogs.

 "Yes."said Josie , who was sitting on Paris's lap , just holding him...

"This is nice..."said Paris..

 "Yeah You guys are the only ones who haven't been  by...You need to stop by sometimes during the week and hang out."said Bee Bee, who was so happy to see everybody..

"Yeah, we can do just like we are doing now...Throw some burgers and dogs on the grill...We have plenty of beer."said Keith Jones.

''A nice chill out spot... I heard that most of the residents don't even utilize it."said Gary Lockwood..who was manning one of the grills...

"Yeah well we do..All the time, don't we Sofia?" said Jade..

''Especially after we've finished doing laundry..."said Sofia..

"I can testify to that.."said Danny Ho..Jade's boyfriend, who had sat over here many a night with her. He was manning the other grill..

"I'm glad you all came out..We really surprised Bee...She didn't know we had planned anything for her birthday...Keith and I started texting everybody a little late.."said Kahlil..

''We got it in time."said Attorney Jessica Sanchez-Burrows..

and her husband, Chip, who like us could walk home from here..We didn't have to drive..

Jazzy

and Dabnis had walked here with us...We were going to be one drunk rowdy crew when we left..

Even Kayla and Ray had managed to make it to the rooftop..

There was about 22 people up here and this rooftop could hold a few more..I'll bet this many folks had never been up here before in the history of this building.. This was just a nice quiet gathering.Just us all, Good music, Good Food, Good friends..We all sat at the tables or the lounge chairs and enjoyed Burgers, Hot Dogs, Cake and Beer and Liquors...

Nobody was talking about any court cases...We were all sitting quietly with our significant other, eating and drinking and talking quietly ,if at all...

There was a grill operating and plenty of Burgers and Dogs for everybody....

''Hey Guys."said B.L. Benz

who showed up with Karen Page...

 ''Hey Everybody!!!" came the voice of Brittany Hughes..

She and her newly freed boyfriend, Alonzo Williams decided to show up too..

We all clapped and cheered for them as they entered the rooftop...

 Down on the street

 Lt. Tragg was off duty and alone

Except for his bottle of Jamesons Irish Gin....He had followed Brittany and Alonzo....

He had seen all of us entering the building and could partially see from the street that we were having some kind of cook out on the roof.. He could smell the burgers and dogs and he knew there was probably a lot of liquor...

He walked away....He had really fouled things up with Brittany...And he wasn't sure himself if somebody murdered that girl or if the crazy broad jumped...A Probable Suicide!

What did any of that matter now? The case was closed and so was the book on him and both Karen Page and Brittany Hughes. He walked away into the darkness of the coming night!