The Anonymous Client

Millburn.”
    “That I did,” Steve said.
    “Why?”
    “Because I want her to testify.”
    “She’s already testified. She was a prosecution witness.”
    “And now she’s a defense witness.”
    Dirkson shook his head. “You can’t do that. She was a prosecution witness. You had a chance to cross-examine her. You can’t call her as your witness just to cross-examine her some more. Unless you have new evidence, unless you have a definite plan in mind, that’s abuse of process.”
    “I’m familiar with the law,” Steve said. “You want anything else?”
    “I just wanted to warn you,” Dirkson said.
    Steve smiled. “Thanks for your concern.”
    Dirkson bit his lip, turned, and stalked back to the prosecution table.
    Judge Graves entered and the bailiff called court to order.
    “Call your next witness,” Judge Graves said.
    Steve rose. “Your Honor, we call Margaret Millburn.”
    Judge Graves frowned, but said nothing.
    Margaret Millburn entered the courtroom from the back. She looked angry and tight-lipped. She strode down the aisle and took her place on the stand.
    “Now, Miss Millburn,” Judge Graves said. “You have already been sworn. I remind you that you are still under oath. Mr. Winslow, you may proceed.”
    “Thank you, Your Honor. Miss Millburn, you have already testified in this case, as to hearing an altercation in the decedent’s apartment?”
    “Objected to,” Dirkson said, “as already asked and answered. I submit, Your Honor, that Miss Millburn has already given her testimony in this case, and unless counselor has some definite purpose in mind, his calling this witness to the stand borders on abuse of process.”
    “I have a definite purpose in mind, Your Honor,” Steve said. “But this is a prosecution witness, and I see no reason to disclose the purpose to her. Some of the questions I am asking are necessarily preliminary, and may in essence already have been asked and answered, but I do have a point, and if allowed to proceed, I intend to connect the matter up.”
    Judge Graves frowned. “You may proceed, Mr. Winslow. But before you do so, let me add my caution to that of Mr. Dirkson. In the event that you do not connect the matter up, I trust you are aware of what the consequences might be.”
    “Yes, Your Honor. Thank you, Your Honor. Now. Miss Millburn, you testified as to an altercation in the decedent’s apartment, is that right?”
    “That’s right.”
    “You also testified that you knew the decedent only slightly. As his next door neighbor, you had seen him a couple of times in the hall. But you’d never spoken to him other than to say hello. Is that right?”
    “Yes it is.” Margaret Millburn drew herself up. “And I know nothing about this case other than what I have already testified to in court, and I object to being dragged through it again.”
    Harry Dirkson grinned.
    “I’m sure you do, Miss Millburn,” Steve said. “And I’m sorry to inconvenience you. I’ll try to make this as brief as possible.”
    Steve Winslow walked to the defense table. He reached into the paper bag and detached the list of names from the metal clipboard. “Your Honor, I ask that this piece of paper be marked for identification as Defense exhibit A.”
    Harry Dirkson stood up. “May I see that?”
    “Certainly,” Steve said, and passed the paper over to him.
    Dirkson took it, frowned, and said, “No objection, Your Honor.”
    The court reporter took the paper and marked it. Steve took it back from him and approached the witness.
    “Now, Miss Millburn, I hand you this paper marked for identification as Defense exhibit A, and ask if you have ever seen it before.”
    The witness took the paper, looked at it, then glared at Steve Winslow.
    “Well?” Steve said.
    “Yes, I have.”
    “I want to be sure of this,” Steve said. “Will you look at the list again? And read it over to yourself?”
    The witness glared at him. Then looked down at the list. A few moments later she looked up. “Yes,” she said.
    “You’ve read the list over?”
    “Yes, I have.”
    “And to the best of your recollection, you have seen this list before?”
    “Yes.”
    “Fine,” Steve said. He crossed back to the defense table, and took the metal clipboard out of the paper bag. “Your Honor, I ask that this clipboard be marked for identification as Defense exhibit B.”
    “Any objection?” Judge Graves said.
    “None, Your Honor,” Dirkson said.
    “So ordered.”
    The reporter