Buckle Up And Settle In

PRELUDE-

The Next Morning we were all in the Courthouse waiting area, bright and early and ready for trial..
Bee Bee and Sofia brought us all tumblers of  coffees from the coffee shop down the street.

"Coffees everyone."said Bee Bee.

"Hot coffees..Come take this off of our hands." said Sofia.

"Thanks ladies." said Yvette smiling and looking at Cynda..  "Well you look like you had a great night last night...You look like you don't even need any coffee." she said.

"Girrrrrrrrrrrrl...you don't even know....I am over the damn moon right now." said Cynda.

"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" said Bee Bee.

"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU SO YOU HAD SOME NIGHT HUH?" laughed Sofia.

"Look at her...just smiling from ear to ear.." laughed Yvette.

"Indeed!" said Jade.

Kahlil and I quietly drank our coffees

we watched as Assistant District Attorney Courtland James walked in with Lt. Tragg by his side.

Neither made eye contact with us.....They just entered the courtroom , which signaled us that it was time for trial to start...

We all entered the courtroom and took our seats at the defense table.

 

 

To our surprise- The Judge was none other than - Judge James Wilson...

"Wellllllllll Hello Mrs. Jones-Lockwood....We Meet again..he said with a wicked smile...

It was Yvette's greatest nightmare....Trying a case ion this guy's courtroom....

"Damnnnnnn, I've heard the way he interferes with a trial." I said.

"Remember all the trouble Olivia and Beverly had with him?" said Bee Bee.

"Well we've got to go on with our trial...This is the hand we've been dealt."said Sofia.

"You're absolutely right Little Mamasita..." said Ms. Yvette.

"Let's buckle up and settle in then." said Kahlil.

Cynda and Jade sat quietly.....

In the Visitors section-

Attorney James Barr sat and quietly watched.

II-

COURTROOM A-

Ironically, the same courtroom, Olivia and Beverly tried their case in, under this judge..

"Good Morning Attorneys and prospective jurors...I am Judge James Wilson...As some of you already know...." he said snidely looking at the six of us..."You'veheard this before but .Due to courtroom crowding of cases , we are going to bypass a preliminary hearing...We know that a crime, a henious crime has been committed so we are going to go straight to trial.. I expect, some of you are tired of hearing this...but it is what it is..We are  trying to wind down our case load.. We will have Jury selection today.. Trial could begin tomorrow morning if we seat a jury today.. We'll start with introductions." he said.

"Assistant District Attorney, Courtland James-your honor."said Courtland James- 

 "Yvette Jones-Lockwood, Lead Attorney for the Defense Your Honor" said Yvette.

"Keith Jones, Attorney for the Defense Youjr Honor." I said.

"Beatrice Evans-Jones-Attorney for the Defense your honor." said Bee Bee.

"Sofia Garcia-Ahmed, Attorney for the Defense your honor." said Sofia.

"Kahlil Ahmed, Attorney for the Defense your Honor." said Kahlil.

Jade and Cynda sat quietly and contritely with us at the Defense table.

"Alright , we will begin with jury selection." said Judge Wilson.

Kahlil and I began voir dire..

We said that only Judge Wilson interferred more than any other Judge...First thing he did was say that we did not need the both of us doing Voir Dire..

"One or the other." he said.

So I deferred to Kahlil..

Then he forbade Bee Bee and Sofia from aiding him.. as they usually did with questions from their laptops and suggestions..

Yvette was livid at the way he was trying to knee cap, so for the first time in a long time..She stood in for both Kahlil and I and decided to do Voir Dire.

This should have helped ADA James greatly but it didn't....Yvette was a master of this game and she got a 9-3 split going our way in jury selection, including the jury foreman..

She looked at Judge Wilson and smiled serenely..

He was as red as a beet..So angry  his hands were shaking...

"Alright, We have a jury....Trial will begin Monday morning at 10:00 am... Attorneys, Jurors be on time and be ready for trial...Court is dismissed." he said, striking his gavel.

He stared at Yvette... God she had beautiful nice shaped breasts...he mused...

That Night...

"Oh My God Vettie Girl, You not only got him, but you're in the exact same courtroom, courtroom A"

said Olivia. 

 "Yessss and he acted the fool just like he did with you guys....He tried to knee cap our process." said Yvette.

Her Husband Gary softly rubbed her back.

"He wouldn't let me and Kahlil do Voir Dire together like we usually do." I said.

"And he wouldn't let Sofia and I aid them in any way.." said Bee Bee.

"He made us shut down our lap tops." said Sofia.

"He did the same thing to me and Bresha." said Josie.

"Made us shut down our laptops and we weren't allowed to whisper anything to Nelson.

"I've never seen a judge interfere in a case as much as he did." said Kahlil.

"You haven't seen nothing yet...Wait until the trial really gets started." said Nelson.

"Oh My God....He's a pain in the ass." said Jade.

"He sounds like it!" said Danny....

''Ouuuu God, A Judge like him would get me thrown in jail for contempt." said Virginia.

"He is contemptuous..." said Jetty.

And in a corner... Cynda and James Barr sat in a corner kissing passionately....

"Cynda is happy...I'm Happy for her." gushed Jazzy.
 

"She faces a hostile Judge and an aggressive prosecutor....but she has good , smart attorneys...It could be worse." said Dabnis.

"You said it Dabnis." said Kayla.

"If Yvette and her crew need any help, I suggest we give it to them....All of these great legal minds right here." said Ray.

"You're right Ray, I'm ready to help." said Jessica.

"So am I." said Chip..

"Vettie just say the word.. We are there for you." said Karen.

"Awwww thank all of you guys...but I think we got this..We prepared hard and we took in account his interference." said Yvette.

"I was covering the trial and I remarked that the Judge seemed a bit biased toward the defense.. Do you know he had one of his staffers call my network and complain about my comments."said B.L.

"Ouuu he disgusts me...I pray we don't have to try a case in his court room." said Natalie.

"I hear you."said her husband, David.

"Buckle Up and settle in, it's going top be a rough ride Vettie."said Brooke.

Sean sat quiet...He thought... "Your time is coming your honor...I'm gonna take you down." mumbled Sean.

"WOW!  " was all Zoey would say..

"Count your blessings" said her husband, Lem.

"Yeah, I can't wait for Cynda to be exonerated." said Renee.

''Me Neither."said Tyrell, smiling atYvette.

 

 "Thanks for the votes of confidence guys...It means a lot to me." said Yvette.

Gary continued to rub her back and her hips.

I did the same to Bee Bee.

She looked at me and smiled...She softly rubbed my hands....

"Let's just enjoy this weekend, this moment right now."said Sofia.

"Yeah lets." said Kahlil.

Jade smiled....

Danny held her in his lap as more drinks arrived.

"Ahhhhh here come the drinks " said Virginia.

"Yesssssssss!" said Jetty..

 

"Ouuuuuu Grab  some drinks, while they are cold." said Olivia.

 

"I'll drink to that." laughed Donnie Ray.

"I'm happy for Cynda....She's made a love connection....but she faces a possible death sentence or life in prison." sighed Beverly.

"Nah, Yvette and the crew aren't going to allow that to happen...They have a bold and aggressive defense planned." said Nelson.

"It's not them...It's that damn Judge... He loves to knee cap defenses.."said Josie.

"You guys helped Adam Clarke tie his tail and you guys tied his tail too...Have faith in Yvette and her crew.

"Yeah...Paris is right."said Bresha.

"Yvette and them will mark his third defeat and then he'll get his funky federal appointment and be out of everybody's hair." said Tony.

"Hope Springs eternal."said Alfreda.

"Yeah!" said  Rockland.

Cynda and James Barr continued to sit in the corner and kiss...

III-

That Night-

At Home...Gary and Yvette took a nice hot shower together..

And then settled in their bedroom...

"Ummmmmmm that was nice Vettie, I'm glad tomorrow is Saturday and neither of us has to get up early." he whispered as he rubbed her back.

"Ouuuuuuuuuuuu yes, me too Brunch is from 10:30 -3:00 and we are leaving at 11:00 AM. " said Yvette.

"That gives us plenty of alone time tonight."said Gary, kissing her sweet lips.

"More than most nights.." said Yvette..

"Ummmmmmmmm yes.." said Gary..

"Yes" said Yvette as they continued to kiss..

"Buckle up and settle in Vettie ,I'm about to ride you like you've never been ridin before."moaned Gary..

"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" she cooed.

Yvette spread her legs wide and eased herself down on Gary...moving up and down and riding him gently..

"Ummmmmmmmmmmmmm!" he moaned.

"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU I'm riding youuuuuu!" she cooed loudly..

"We don't want to wake Jessica up." said Gary.

"If Jessica is lucky...She and Chip are doing exactly what we are doing." said Yvette.

Gary parted her legs and entered her again...She was warm, soft and very wet.. Her body trembled...

She experienced an intense orgasm..

"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU WOUUUUUUUUUUU!" she moaned.

"Vettie...you're my sweet girrrrl." he cried out...

Her head turned from side to side...both of her legs trembled...She wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled as he humped away...She had another intense orgasm while he was doing that,....

"OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH GODDDDDDDDDDD!! OUUUUUUUUUUUU!" she moaned.

"UMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM GIRRRRRRRRL!" moaned Gary...

They made sweet love for the next EIGHT TO NINE HOURS!

Both managing to climax together......

She lie on his chest, breathing heavily, trying to catch his breath...He was doing the same...

They both drifted off to sleep.

TWO WEEKS LATER-

This trial was as contentious as any held in his courtroom in the past few weeks..It seemed like all of these new jack attorneys...Adam Clarke

 Olivia Bennett-Alexander, Beverly West, Nelson East, Josie Boyd, Bresha Billips 

 

Olivia had went so far as to bring him up on charges to have him removed from the trial...Failing at that, she went over his head and had an appellate court overturn one of his rulings during the damn trial.

,and now these attorneys, Yvette Jones and company  wanted to challenge his authority...Something that had never been done before, his entire career..

 

 

They insisted on bringing up DNA evidence that proved the murder victim, Jeremiah Jefferson was indeed the biological father of the defendant, Cynda Townsend. The Product of an illicit sexual affair between her mother , the family maid, and him when he was a college student.

ADA Courtland James argued that none of this had anything to do with the murder and that it should be struck from the record.

The Judge agreed, but unfortunately, the jury had already heard it!

He threatened Lead Attorney Yvette Jones-Lockwood three times with being jailed in the Cooler for contempt.. He told her  the third time.. "You're very close young lady, verrrrry close...You are trying my damn patience." he said.

Bee Bee and Sofia also came close to being jailed for contempt as they repeatedly challenged  ADA

James.

with Predicates, laws from previous like cases and general law.... They came prepared..

The Judge shot down everything....Agreed with all of ADA James's objections and nearly had both girls in tears.He told them he didn't care about any of that...All he cared about was what was going on in this trial today...

Both Bee Bee and Sofia understood how Beverly had felt at that Bail hearing with him..

He didn't like me any better.....but he didn't threaten me...I stayed within his narrow lines...

I grilled Lt. Tragg about how he found the murder weapon in the dumpster behind Cynda's apartment building..

"We got an anonymous tip." he said.

"You got a call from a blocked number about two hours after the body was taken to the morgue....Now don't you find that odd?  A Person has just shot and killed someone and then they drop the gun in a dumpster behind the apartment where THEY live and then someone calls you about it?  I think someone else put it there don't you?" I said.

"OBJECTION, YOU ARE PRESENTING FACTS THAT ARE NOT IN EVIDENCE!" said ADA JAMES....

"I tend to agree..Move on Counselor." said Judge Wilson...

I smiled..."No Further Questions." I said.

I was the only one on our team who hadn't been threatened with being jailed...but I knew I was close.

He had even threatened Kahlil.....Kahlil called Jeremiah Jefferson Jr. to the stand...

He was a hostile witness....He reluctantly took the stand....

"At the time of your father's murder....you said you were miles away at your home correct?"said Kahlil.

"That's right." he said.

"I have a UPS Driver who had a package for you...A Registered mail package that you had to sign for who will testify that he came by your house at that time and rang your doorbell and you never answered.." said Kahlil..

"I-I-I was sleeping ...I sleep pretty hard, I guess I didn't hear the Bell." he said.

"You didn't hear the bell because you weren't there....You were at your father's house, hiding, waiting for Cynda to leave so you could kill him...You didn't want him splitting your inheritance with her..just in case what she was saying was true...That she was indeed your sister.." said Yvette...

"Do you have any proof of this young lady because I'm about to throw you in jail for the night."said Judge Wilson..

"We do!" said Sofia.

Sofia and Jade pulled a monitor into the courtroom..

"This is footage we scraped from the Street Camera on their block... It was grainy so we had it touched up.....There is my client Cynda leaving and as you can see...There is Mr. Jefferson at the door, still alive when she left and got into her car and pulled off... and ten minutes later , there is you Junior, dressed in all black, leaving the residence...after you shot your father...I suspect the murder weapon...the gun was in that paper bag you were carrying, but I don't know."said Yvette.

Bee Bee dialed the uincrypted , formerly blocked number..

The phone in his pocket rang.

"That's the phone you called Lt. Tragg with the tip about where the murder weapon was....Too dumb to ditch the phone huh?" laughed Yvette.

"I-I-I -I am not answering anymore questions without the counsel of my attorney." said Jeremiah Junior.

"I think that's a good idea Mr. Jefferson...The Defense rests !" said Yvette.

Bee Bee stood next to her, with her arm around her shoulder..

It had been a long contentious trial...The four of us had avoided being thrown into the cooler for contempt. But just barely....

Judge Wilson stared balefully at all of us...He was livid.....Now the case was going to the jury....

They would decide.....He wanted a Federal Judgeship appointment and soon...He didn't want to deal with anymore of these young disrespectful attorneys...What he meant was attorneys who were not afraid of him.

IV-

Inside the Judges Chambers- Cynda and her beau, Attorney James Barr were relaxing at the end of the trial...

"That was some trial huh? Almost Three weeks."said Cynda.

"You had excellent lawyers...Fearless. They lawyered the hell out of your trial...I have no doubt in my mind that you'll be exonerated of all charges." said James Barr.

"I wish I had your confidence...but I agree , My Lawyers did the damn thing...but juries are funny...You and I both know that.." said Cynda.

"Ohhhhhhh yes....yes...yesssssssss baby! I know that you have some soft lips..." he moaned..

"OUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU JAMES!" she moaned..

"Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!" he moaned..

"You like to live dangerously....We can't do this in here...not now."said Cynda....

He had her dress off...gazing at her in her bra and panties..

"Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm...OUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" she moaned...

"Come on...fix your clothes, calm down.." said Cynda.... "If I'm acquitted, tonight we'll rent a hotel suite, just the two of us." she said sweetly..She put her dress back on and straightened her clothes  out.

"Ohhhh yeahhhhh!" he said.

We sat out in the courthouse waiting area ,awaiting the verdict....

 

 "You all did great...I'm proud of you guys. You kept your cool...even though I nearly lost mine a few times with that Judge...and we all narrowly dodged a contempt citation and spending a night in the cooler.  It was pretty close a few times for everybody except you Keith...you were the only one he didn't threaten."said Ms. Yvette.

"Just lucky I guess..Right now ,I could use some coffee." I said.

"Jury's are funny, you think they'll come to a decision today?" asked Bee Bee.

"You're Right About that Bee Bee, but we laid our case out pretty bare...Leaving nothing to their imagination." said Ms. Yvette.

''We even pointed at the real killer."said Sofia.

''Yeah...These were pretty intelligent jurors....At least nine of them were."said Kahlil..."And Jade, you did an excellent investigation." said Kahlil.

"Thank you...I thought Junior was the killer from day one." said Jade.

"I just heard someone say the Jury has come to a decision." said Cynda as we headed back into the courtroom...

"ALL RISE FOR THE HONORABLE JUDGE JAMES WILSON-" said The Bailiff.

 

 

We all stood for the Judge.

"HAS THE JURY COME TO A DECISION?" he asked...He was certain this was either a conviction or a hung jury....Since they had come to a decision, he was certain it was a conviction.

"YES WE HAVE!!! " said the jury foreman....He passed the envelope to the bailiff, who passed it to the Judge.

Upon seeing it, he jumped..startled....Then he angrilly passed it to the Bailiff...

"READ IT!  READ IT GOTDAMNIT!!!" he said

"WE THE JURY IN THE MATTER OF COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA VS. CYNDA KELLY TOWNSEND FINDS THE DEFENDENT NOT GUILTY OF THE CHARGE OF MURDER IN THE FIRST DEGREE..."he read...

"WOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" screamed a jubilant Cynda..."THANK YOU, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!   Thank you Ms. Yvette, thank you Keith, Thank you Beatrice, Thank you Sofia, Thank you Kahlil and Thank you Jade..." she said, hugging and kissing each of us.

 

 "You are sooo welcome..."said Yvette.

"We did it...We won the case." I said.

"And more than that...We won our freedom from him."said Bee Bee.

"Oh Yes....I hope he gets his appointment and is sent to another city...Far far away from here."said Sofia.

"He's from New York...Maybe he'll be sent there."said Kahlil.

"We can only hope."said Jade.

"Great Job guys....I'm taking you all to Lunch and it's on me."said James Barr.

Lt. Tragg was already gone..

He and Judge Kelly Ann left the courthouse, hand and hand , headed to Sam Mother's Diner.

ADA Courtland James didn't like losing and he seldom did...but he was exhausted...Glad the trial was over.. He headed to Curleys for a beer.

Judge Wilson seemed to take this case personally for some reason, even though he didn't try it and had absolutely nothing to do with the people involved... It was the defiance of the defense attorneys that had gotten to him...

He stood outside seething in anger for no apparent reason for a long while.

EPILOUGE-

Jeremiah Jefferson was arrested, tried and convicted of the murder of his father, Jeremiah Jefferson Sr.

He was sentenced to Life and is serving his sentence in Stanga State Prison.

Sometime later we met with Cynda and an attorney for the estate of Jeremiah Jefferson Sr.

With her only living sibling incarcerated for her father's murder...Cynda inherited 75 percent of her father's estate...Making her a multi millionaire..The other 25 percent went to her father's charities...

Cynda was ecstatic...

The estate attorney ,Arthur Trout worked out the deal and also worked out a way that some of the money could be allocated to Jeremiah's books at the prison so that he could afford basic necessities.

"Well Cynda , what do you intend to do next?" asked Ms. Yvette.

"You're going to Disney World next right?" asked Bee Bee.

I laughed loudly...

Cynda laughed too... "Actually I am... James and I are getting married next week and we are going to Disney World for our honeymoon." she said.

"Ouuuuuuuuuuu girl, I am so happy for you...."said Sofia, hugging her.

"Congratulations Doll." said Kahlil....

"That's nice..." said Yvette..

"When we get back we have something big, something nice planned for you guys and Olivia's team and the other guys who showed me much love and helped me get through this." said Cynda...

"Ouuuuuuuuu that sounds nice."said Bee Bee.

"Yesssssssssssssss" said Sofia.

''We earned it" said Kahlil.

"Dealing with that damned Judge.." I said.

''Amen to that." said Ms. Yvette, high fiving me.

And across town in the Judge's Office-

''What do you mean some questions have arisen about me? My record is spotless...I should have been confirmed awhile ago.... I'm being patient." he said into his phone..

FOR SLC!