The Innocent Woman

favorably. She goes home, she makes a date, she goes out to dinner. For once, she hasn’t a care in the world.
    “And what happens then? She returns home, and on her answering machine is the voice of the man who used her, abused her, and accused her.”
    Dirkson paused, smiled at his own rhyme. Was gratified when some of the jurors smiled back.
    “Yes,” Dirkson said, “it’s not hard to see how that would be the last straw, pushing this woman over the edge.” He paused, raised his finger. “Though that is no excuse for what she did. What she did was a cold-blooded, premeditated murder. She went out, she hailed a taxi and went down to the office. She let herself in with a key she retained from when she worked there, a key she had never surrendered. She let herself in, closing the door quietly behind her. She tiptoed across the floor, surprised Frank Fletcher in his office, pulled out a gun and shot him.
    “When did she do this, ladies and gentlemen? Right around eight o’clock. The report of the medical examiner will show that the decedent met his death sometime between the hours of seven-thirty and eight-thirty that night. We can place Amy Dearborn’s arrival at the office at approximately eight o’clock.
    “All these facts are entirely consistent with her guilt. She arrived at eight o’clock, let herself in, and killed him.
    “And what did she do then? She robbed the petty cash drawer. Why? Well, the obvious reason is to get the money. The other reason is to cover up the crime. To make Frank Fletcher’s death look like a robbery and murder.
    “Well, it was. But the other way around.” Dirkson frowned. “What I mean is, Frank Fletcher was not murdered for the money. That was the way the defendant wanted it to appear. No, she murdered him, and, as an afterthought, she stole the money. First, because she wanted the money, and, second, to make it look like that was the reason for the crime.”
    Dirkson held up one finger. “Can we prove Amy Dearborn took the money?” He nodded. “Yes, we can. By her very own actions and her very own words.”
    Dirkson smiled. “But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me tell you what Amy Dearborn did then. She’d killed Frank Fletcher and taken the petty cash, leaving the petty cash box and the petty cash drawer open to make it look like robbery was the motive for the crime. What did she do then? She left the office. Why? For several reasons. One, to get rid of the money. Two, to get rid of the gun.”
    Dirkson stopped, held up his hand. “Now, I have to warn you. The defense attorney is going to make a big deal over the fact we haven’t recovered the gun. You’ll see him up here, striding up and down, saying, Where’s the murder weapon? How can they prove their case when they haven’t got the means?” Dirkson shook his head. “Well, if you fall for that, ladies and gentlemen, it’s because you’ve been seduced by television. The shows on TV, they always have the gun.
    “Real life is different. In a large percentage of murder cases, the weapon is never recovered. Why? Because the murderer gets rid of it. Why? Well, sometimes because it can link the murderer to the crime. But not always. Sometimes the murderer will kill someone, and then take the gun with them when they try to escape. Hang onto it in case they encounter resistance, perhaps have to shoot their way out. They dispose of it later, as soon as they feel safe, as soon as they’re away from the scene of the crime.
    “Which is what happened in this case. The defendant took the murder weapon away with her and disposed of it. And why haven’t we found it? Because she didn’t want it found. It’s a big city. She drops it down a sewer, throws it in a dumpster, in the East River for all we know. Chances are that gun will never be found.
    “I don’t want you to get hung up on that point. If the rest of the circumstantial evidence indicates the defendant committed the crime, we don’t need the murder weapon to establish her guilt.
    “Anyway, the defendant left the office to dispose of the money and the gun. But she had a third reason for doing so. To build up an alibi for herself. She went back to her own neighborhood, hailed a taxi and had it take her to the office. She went in, pretended to find the body, and called the police. They arrived minutes later and she told them her story.”
    Dirkson held up one finger. “That story is false. We can prove that by her own words.” He smiled.