The Brass Verdict

or four-alpha.”
    “And the man being transported, where is he sitting?”
    “In the rear right passenger seat.”
    “Is he handcuffed?”
    “Well, he was when they put him in the car. I shot it.”
    “His hands were cuffed behind his back, correct?”
    “Correct.”
    “Now, is he in the same position and seat in the patrol car that Mr. Elliot was in when you videotaped him about eight hours later?”
    “Yes, he is. Exact same position.”
    “Thank you, Mr. Muniz. No further questions.”
    Golantz passed on cross-examination. There was nothing about the direct that could be attacked and the video didn’t lie. Muniz stepped down. I told the judge I wanted to leave the video screen in place for my next witness and I called Deputy Todd Stallworth to the stand.
    Stallworth looked angrier as he came into the courtroom. This was good. He also looked beat and his uniform looked like it had wilted on his body. One of the sleeves of his shirt had a black scuff mark on it, presumably from some struggle during the night.
    I quickly established Stallworth’s identity and that he was driving the alpha car in the Malibu district during the first shift on the day of the murders in the Elliot house. Before I could ask another question, Golantz once more objected and asked for another sidebar. When we got there, he raised his hands palms up in a
What’s this?
gesture. His style was getting old with me.
    “Judge, I object to this witness. The defense hid him on the witness list among the many deputies who were on the scene and have no bearing on the case.”
    Once again I had the witness list ready. This time I slapped it down in front of the judge with frustration, then ran my finger down the column of names until I reached Todd Stallworth. It was there in the middle of a list of five other deputies, all of whom had been on the scene at the Elliot house.
    “Judge, if I was hiding Stallworth, I was hiding him in plain sight. He’s clearly listed there under law enforcement personnel. The explanation is the same as before. It says he’ll testify about his activities on May 2. That’s all I put down because I never talked to him. I’m hearing what he has to say for the first time right now.”
    Golantz shook his head and tried to maintain his composure.
    “Judge, from the start of this trial, the defense has relied on trickery and deception to-”
    “Mr. Golantz,” the judge interrupted, “don’t say something you can’t back up and that will get you in trouble. This witness, just like the first one Mr. Haller called, has been on this list for two weeks. Right there in black-and-white. You had every opportunity to find out what these people were going to say. If you didn’t take that opportunity, then that was your decision. But this is not trickery or deception. You better watch yourself.”
    Golantz stood with his head bowed for a moment before speaking.
    “Your Honor, the state requests a brief recess,” he finally said in a quiet voice.
    “How brief?”
    “Until one o’clock.”
    “I wouldn’t call two hours brief, Mr. Golantz.”
    “Your Honor,” I cut in. “I object to any recess. He just wants to grab my witness and turn his testimony.”
    “Now
that
I object to,” Golantz said.
    “Look, no recess, no delay and no more bickering,” the judge said. “We’ve already lost most of the morning. Objection overruled. Step back.”
    We returned to our places and I played a thirty-second cut of the video showing the handcuffed man being placed in the back of the 4-alpha car at Malibu Creek State Park. I froze the image in the same spot as before, just as the car was speeding by the camera. I left it on the screen as I continued my direct examination.
    “Deputy Stallworth, is that you driving that car?”
    “Yes, it is.”
    “Who is the man in the backseat?”
    “His name is Eli Wyms.”
    “I noticed that he was handcuffed before being placed in the car. Is that because he was under arrest?”
    “Yes, he was.”
    “What was he arrested for?”
    “For trying to kill me, for one. He was also charged with unlawful discharge of a weapon.”
    “How many counts of unlawful discharge of a weapon?”
    “I can’t recall the exact number.”
    “How about ninety-four?”
    “That sounds about right. It was a lot. He shot the place up out there.”
    Stallworth was tired and subdued but unhesitant in his answers. He had no idea how they fit into the Elliot case and didn’t seem to care about trying