We had been gone so long , working on other cases the past few weeks that it felt like a new place all together.. Kahlil and Jade and I were in the office filing away and archiving everybody's case files..We were finishing up..
"Man, I was by the courthouse yesterday...I was picking up some forms for Josie Boyd..as a favor and I looked in on that Jessie Luther murder trial...That kid is going to jail...His Lawyer, Jeff Pruit is messing up big time......He asked for a fourth continuance and the Judge told him no....So he closed his arguments....Just from what I saw...He made several major mistakes...Including putting Luther on the stand without properly preparing him...Ole Jumpshot Jim made him look like a fool..A guilty fool." I said.
"I thought this Jeff Pruit was a hotshot Defense Attorney...Won that big case a few years ago.."asked Kahlil...
"He got lucky...He won that case...and then he wrote that bestseller and went Hollywood...Technical advisor on that movie and that failed TV show...Hasn't been in a courtroom in five years...This case was a bit much for him....Then you have the ADA "Jumpshot Jim" He wants to be Jeff Pruitt...On the TV, making movies....and of course Lt. Tragg....who loves to hear himself talk on the Television...Between the three of them, I don't know who the biggest ham is..but I'll tell you who the loser is...That kid, Luther..He should have stuck with David Rodney.."said Jade..
It had been three weeks since we'd seen Mr. Rodney...He was happy now, living in Suburban Bayside and Teaching Law at Middleton Law School.
Ms. Yvette , Bee Bee and Sofia walked in, carrying bags...
"Lunchtime guys, come help us with these bags.." she said..
"How's my hot stuff?" asked Bee Bee..
who planted a soft kiss on my lips...
"Keeping it hot for you baby." I said..
"How is my Sugar papi?" asked Sofia..
who kissed Kahlil a little longer..
Kahlil was speechless..
We all had Cheeseburgers..
Some of us had fries..
Others had Onion Rings...
We all had Cokes...
"What's on our dockets?" asked Ms. Yvette.
"Nothin on mine to date." I said as I chowed down...
"No major cases, but I do have to meet with two people for consultations next week.."said Bee Bee.
"I'm free.."said Sofia..
"Same here.."said Kahlil..
"Hey the Luther case should be going to the jury today....If they haven't come to a decision this afternoon..How bout we drop down and check it out?" asked Jade..
''It's Thursday....I'm down for that...It should be good for a laugh...To watch three hams in action." laughed Ms. Yvette..
We all laughed and continued eating our lunches..
II-
FRIDAY MORNING-
ADA James "Jumpshot Jim" Taylor looked exuberent... He sipped his tumbler of coffee and flashed his kilowat smile for the press.. When Attorney David Rodney was fired by his client and celebrity Attorney Jeff Pruitt was hired, it was the best thing that could have happened to him...It launched this case into the stratosphere.. Now the media had latched on to it..Both he and Jeff Pruitt were being interviewed nightly on ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN and MSNBC...FOX as well...It was an atmosphere unlike the NBA Finals, game seven or the NCAA Final Four..
Lt. Tragg was benefiting too just by being involved in the case.. It marked his first return to the TV show, HARD BOTTOM in months...He appeared with Jumpshot Jim Taylor and Jeff Pruitt....The trio pontificating the pros and cons of their arguments...Postoring for the cameras...It was a sensation in a city that seemed to need sensational news...
Lost in all of this was poor Jessie Luther, on trial for murder... He was very nervous..He was beginning to realize what an inept hack he had for an attorney...
Jeff Pruitt had never really wanted to be an attorney...He didn't have the passion for it....Not the kind that the very best have... But his father had been a successful Attorney and so had his uncle.. He graduated from Middleton Law School just barely and took the Bar five times before he finally passed it.. He worked at his father's Law firm for six years with moderate success....Got married and was doing okay...Then he got the Brian Landon case..A High profile murder case that took the city by storm... Suddenly, he was TV, On the news.. Suddenly, his name was known...He worked it hard...and to everyone in the legal profession's surprise..He got an acquittal! This was the break he had been wanting...Now..He was somebody!!! He got divorced..He quit his father's firm and headed out to L.A. He worked at a small law firm to make ends meet and he wrote a best selling book about the case.... This led to a movie deal....He served as a "technical advisor" on the movie.. The movie flopped...It went straight to cable...Not HBO, Not Netflix or Hulu, but Lifetime.... Next he and some friends developed a pilot for a new legal drama, JOHNNY LAW....The show was picked up as a summer replacement.. It lasted all of two episodes before it was canned.. Now, He was back in Philadelphia , running his law practice out of his Condo in center city..He was the lone Attorney...He had no Administrative Assistant, No Para-Legal even..Just him...and this was his first case in five years...To say he was rusty was an after statement.. He could have used a second and third chair..
Lt. Tragg saw Ms. Yvette and us standing in the hallway , drinking tumblers of coffee and talking amongst ourselves..
"I'm taking bets...I've got a dollar on Jeff Pruitt" said Yvette..
"I'll go with Boss Lady, A dollar on Jeff Pruitt."said Bee Bee..
"That's a sucker bet...I got a dollar on Jumpshot Jim." I said.
"I'm going with Jumpshot Jim." said Sofia..
"Uhhhhhhh I think I'll go with Jeff Pruit."said Kahlil...
"I'm going with Jumpshot Jim." said Jade..
"Yvette and crew...What are you doing here? You guys don't have a trial today?" asked Lt. Tragg..
"No, but like everyone else in the city..We are drawn to this trial..We came down to see how it turns out.."said Yvette..
Jeff Pruitt himself was on the phone with his agent..
"Look Sal , I'm waiting for the jury on this case...If I win...Here is another big case and maybe we can shop the JOHNNY LAW pilot to HBO or NETFLIX...I'm tellin you don't give up on it...OKAY...The VERDICT IS IN...Gotta go! Ciao baby." he said..
We all stood in the courtroom...
Judge Geraldine Tracy, who had just presided over our WRONGFUL CONVICTION UNIT case a few weeks before read the verdict..Her eyes got as wide as saucers and she sighed..Shaking her head..
''Bailiff , read the verdict.." she said.
COUNT ONE, MURDER IN THE FIRST DEGREE, we find the defendent - "GUILTY "
COUNT TWO, USE OF AN INSTRUMENT OF CRIME, we find the defendent- "GUILTY"
COUNT THREE, CONSPIRACY TO COMMITT MURDER, we find the defendent, "GUILTY"
"POLL THE JURY!" screamed Attorney Jeff Pruit, mugging for the cameras...
The Jury was polled..
The all said "GUILTY"
"That said, thank you for an outstanding job jurors...You are free to go..Bailiffs take Mr. Luther into custody...Sentencing will be next Friday, a week from now...Court is dismissed.
"HEYYY MAN...I'm INNOCENT...I'M INNOCENT...DO SOMETHING MR. PRUIT...DO SOMETHING!" screamed Jessie Luther as he was handcuffed and taken into custody..
"Kid...I uh, I'll be working on an appeal...Perhaps there is uh a Public defender that might rep you in the meantime, at sentencing...This is my agent calling...I may have to go back out to L.A."said Jeff Pruitt, who seemed like he could care less.
"Listen Sal...I could play Johnny Law...Yeah...I'm about the right age....Yeah, and I just wrote a new Teleplay for it...Oh the trial? Ahhh it didn't work out...I lost...Yeahhh win some lose some, now about the revamp!" said Jeff Pruitt...
"What kind of lawyer are you? Man..I'm in trouble..You're on the phone worried about some damn TV show....Help me man, help mee.."screamed Jessie Luther as bailiffs dragged him kicking and screaming to the elevator that was going to take him to the cooler until after sentencing and then off to state prison...
"Geez Kid, I did what I could..Now cool it.."said Jeff Pruit, still on the phone..
"COOL IT? YOU COOL IT!! THIS IS MY LIFE MAN !!You're a damn hack..You're the worst lawyer I ever seen...I should have kept my original lawyer..."screamed Jessie Luther...but it was too late..He was on the elevator headed for a holding cell upstairs..
THE PRESS SURROUNDED ADA TAYLOR...
"Jumpshot...you really put it in the hole with this one.."said an adoring female reporter..
"Ouuu Jumpshot, you went hard in the paint baby.."said another female reporter..
"Heh Heh Heh...I did...Didn't I?" he laughed..
Lt. Tragg was all smiles... It felt good to actually bring in a winning case for a change...
"Damn it...I hate to lose."said Yvette as she handed me a dollar..
"Oh My God...Please tell me you guys didn't take bets and you bet on Jeff Pruit?" laughed Gary Lockwood, Yvette's boyfriend, who had just walked up..
"Okay..We won't tell you."sighed Bee Bee, passing me a dollar..
"Keep your dollar baby..YOU KNOW WHAT I WANT!" I said raffishly..
"You were going to get THAT, anyway."said Bee Bee, slying laughing..
"Oh My God, The power of hype...The guy hadn't been inside a courtroom in five years.."said Gary..
"You right man...That was a sucker bet.."said Kahlil, paying up..
Gary laughed and looked at me, Sofia and Jade..
"You three little pool hall hustlers.." he said and laughed..
"Like taking candy from a baby." I smiled..
"Let's not rub it in Keith...We don't want them so mad they won't sleep with us tonight.."said Sofia..
"Ohhhhh Nobody is mad over this.."laughed Jade..
"Come on guys...Let's get out of here.."laughed Yvette as we laughed and left the courtroom..
Judge Tracy eyed us as we left the courthouse.....
III-
That afternoon at Ms. Yvette's house, She was entertaining Gary Lockwood...
"Ummmmmmm it feels weird actually being home on a Friday...I'm usually packing an overnight bag and headed to your house.." she laughed..
in between soft, sweet kisses...
"Ummmmm, I remember when I was always over your old apartment...Weekends, Weeknights,didn't matter....I like this better..." said Gary..
as they continued to kiss... It wasn't long before they both were in her bed....Any plans to go out dancing tonight were out the window...
"Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu Gary.....Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.. you are sooo hard...ouuuuuuu" she moaned..
as the soft bed began to move with the weight of their bodies..
"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Yvette....you make me that wayyy...ouuuuuuu" he moaned......
"Ouuuuu you like it daddy?" she asked...
"You know I do...You KNOW that I do..ummmmmmmmmmmph!" he moaned...
'' Yesssss… it certainly feels like it....ohhhhhhhhhh my goodness....ouuu Gary..." she moaned..
The bed was squeaking out of control...
"Ohhhhhhhhhhh my god...baby..you are so soft, so wet." Gary cried out!
"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Gary ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu" Yvette cooed..
"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" he moaned loudly.
"OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH MY godddddddddddddd Gary
OHHHHHHHHHHHHH MY godddddddddddddd!!"she cried out!!!
EIGHT TO NINE HOURS smoothly passed by as they made love under the moonlight...
Tears and sweat ran down the sides of both of their faces...Yvette's legs began to shake furiously and she began to move her head from side to side and cry like a little girl...
"OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH MY GODDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD GARY! OUUUUUUUUUUU HOOOOO HOOOOO HOOOO HOOOO....OHHH MY GODDDD!" she cried out.. "Ouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu Yvette...MS. YVETTE! OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" he moaned..
"OUUUU WEEEE...OUUUUU WEEEEE... AYEEEEEE..AYEEEEEEEEE..OUUUUUUUU WEEEEEEEEEEE !" screamed Yvette.. She was having a very intense orgasm! "UMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!" moaned Gary.....He was cumming like a gusher...... Yvette laughed... "Oh myyyyyy, ouuuuuu!" she said softly....
as she cuddled in Gary's arms and drifted off to sleep...
SATURDAY MORNING..
Yvette and Gary walked to Sam Mother's Diner...
"Two coffee's Sam...We'll decide what we want in a minute.." said Yvette..
"Thanks Sam...and two glasses of water..I need it... Especially after last night..." he whispered in Yvette's ear..
"Oh Hush up smarty." laughed Yvette, blushing a little bit...She knew her neighbors knew she was home..between the bed squeaking out of control and both of their loud moans....She was a little embarrassed...
as two cups of hot coffee was poured...
Judge Geraldine Tracy walked in and sat down next to Yvette and Gary....
"Hello you two...seems like I keep on running into you....Oh let me stop....I didn't just run into you...I heard you dine here and I came here hoping to see you.." she said..
"Really? What is this about?" asked Yvette..
"That kid, Jessie Luther....In five days I am going to have to sentence him to either life or the death penalty....I think he's innocent....but he had the worst legal representation possible...Jeff Pruitt
is not a very good attorney....He's half assed...He got lucky and won a case, a big case a few years ago and I think he found his real passion...Being on Television and in the movies...Show Business..There are a lot of Attorneys , who wind up doing something else... Sportscasters, Talk Show Hosts...what have you....He shouldn't be in court trying anybody's case...
B.L. Benz, who hosts that show,HARD BOTTOM..has a law degree...Has passed the bar...but he's never spent a day in a courtroom and I wouldn't trust him to....
Same with Jeff Pruitt..
He spent most of the trial on his phone talking to his agent in Los Angelas and God knows who else...He was ill prepared...and made many mistakes...Being a Judge, I couldn't say anything...But years ago I was a pretty decent defense attorney myself...I know how these things go... I gave him three continuances...To help him out and he still was unprepared...I couldn't give him a fourth...It wouldn't have been fair to the Prosecution... I mean Jumpshot Jim Taylor was just as bad, but hell at least he tried to be prepared...Look I perfectly understand if you don't wish to get involved in this train wreck...but it's just....I told David about the verdict...He said that he's retired and he plans to stay retired....but he said...that You....You're the best attorney he knows...That you could straighten this out..." she said.
Yvette looked at her softly....
"You really believe he's innocent?" she asked.
"I think so....I think the kid got bad representation....I don't believe he got a fair trial...Though it's partially his own fault...He shouldn't have fired David... His trial was a clown show...The Arresting officer is a clown...The Assistant District Attorney is a clown and his defense attorney was the biggest clown of them all." she said.
"Alright Judge Tracy....I'll look into an appeal...I have to see the trial transcripts, the arrest report and the autopsy report....Then I'll go visit him...I'm doing this for you and Dave...If this little twirp gives me any guff, the deal is off the table...He'll swim alone."said Yvette..
"I can't ask for anything more....Thank you Yvette...I'll see to it that the trial transcripts, the autopsy and the arrest report and case file are all mailed to your office....You'll have it at the latest by Tuesday...Thank you dear." said Judge Tracy who smiled and got up..
"You're not having any coffee Your Honor?" asked Gary..
"No... I got what I came for.." she said, Smiling..
IV-
THREE DAYS LATER-
We all took a trip downtown to The High rise Building that was the headquarters of The Wrongful Conviction Unit...
We sat in the conference room... Ms Yvette addressed us..
"I'll give this to you guys straight..We are going to appeal the Jessie Luther case...He is scheduled to be sentenced in Three Days...Someone who I can not name right now approached me with reservations about his guilt...And as you know...His trial was a clown show...with three clowns, our favorite detective, Lt. Tragg, Philadelphia's most eligable bachelor, ADA Jim "Jumpshot Jim" Taylor and the biggest clown....Defense Attorney Jeff Pruitt...These three were more interested in how good they looked for Television that actual justice... So even though the client, our new client is a priviledged prick at best...He may be innocent and he got a raw deal.....With that said..I have the trial transcripts....I want you guys to look for any mistakes the defense may have made and prosecutorial misconduct.... I've just glanced over this ...I got these yesterday and I've already seen several mistakes on the part of the defense and the prosecution...See if you find them and se if you can find more...I want you to write them down and cite predicates ....Your work is cut out for you...
Jade...Here is the Case file, the arrest report and The Autopsy report...Start a brand new investigation... From scratch....I have David Rodney's notes....Questions he was going to ask the prosecution witnesses...
We don't have much time...We'll start today and we'll meet here tomorrow morning and every morning until this is resolved...We'll have breakfast at our spot in Camden..." said Yvette.
"You know, I had a feeling somehow we would wind up involved in this case...I did...Pass me what you have Ms. Yvette...Let's get started." I said..
"With the case basically over , I probably won't have any problem out of Lt. Tragg, he'll be on to something else."said Jade..
"You Hope!" said Kahlil..
"Yesss, Hope springs eternal." said Jade.
''Until it gets out that we plan to appeal the conviction..and you know it will."said Bee Bee..
''Bee Bee, Little Mamasita, Start working on an appeal...I was given the name of an Appellate court Judge that might be favorable to us.." said Yvette.
"We're on it Boss Lady."said Bee Bee..
"Let's look at those Transcripts." said Sofia...
'' Why don't we just run this through the Wrongful Conviction Unit???.. I mean, we are here." asked Kahlil.
"I thought about that Kahlil...But this case doesn't quite fit the parameters...Maybe if we are rejected in Appellate court, I'll give it a try." said Yvette..
"What if he doesn't want our help?" asked Sofia..
"Oh I'm Betting he will....Anyone want to take a bet?" asked Yvette..
"Not me!" I laughed..
"Certainly not me.."laughed Sofia.
"Me neither."laughed Bee Bee.
"Certainly not I." laughed Kahlil..
"I think you've made your point."laughed Jade..
An Hour later at the courthouse facility known as "The Cooler.." Yvette stood outside of the cell holding Jessie Luther...
who was now a wreck...He had been crying and he looked like he didn't get much sleep..His suit jacket was on the bench, so was his tie.. His white shirt was wrinkled..
''Hello Jessie, My name is Yvette Jones..I'm an Attorney..I will be representing you.." said Yvette.
He checked her out...She smelled good...Her clothing was very expensive..She was pretty.
"You dress too expensively to be a Public Defender.." he said..
"I'm not a Public Defender...I'm a Senior Associate Attorney at MCCLUSKEY/COZEN/CONNOR & PRATT....I have four attorneys , who I supervise looking at your trial transcripts, the autopsy report, the arrest report and case file and drawing up an appeal...We are planning to appeal your conviction.
I have an investigator, a former Homicide Detective...who is doing a new investigation of your case.." said Yvette..
"I-I can pay you...." said Jessie.
"Oh you bet your ass you're going to pay me...Your dad has already wired the money into our corporate account..We've been paid already." said Yvette..
"Jeff Pruitt call you in on this...?" he asked.
"No...I don't know the man....I do know he took a flight to L.A. over the weekend...Apparently you have a friend in a high place who thinks you got a raw deal...They met with me over the weekend and convinced me to take your case..They talked to your dad too.
My four attorneys and my investigator are working hard....You are not to question our methods or give us any trouble in defending you....You give me or any of my people the slightest bit of trouble and we are gone , you're on your own...We'll refund your daddy's money. Do we understand each other?" said Yvette..
"Yes mam!" he said contritely...
"What's with the "Mam"? We are the same age." said Yvette...Smiling for the first time... "You can call me Yvette or Ms. Jones..whatever you feel the most comfortable with." she said.. "I'll see you Friday Morning.." she said and walked out...
He smiled.. For the first time , he had a little hope...Damn she smelled good, he thought.
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