JN-8: Turnabout Friendship

Court Record

This is the most important thing for both the prosecution and defense during this trial. Check it whenever you get the chance.

Profiles

Jake Smith
A young and upcoming defense attorney. This is his first trial. Best friend of the defendant.

Jenny Westheaven
Jake's personal assistant. She helps him whenever he's in a tight spot.

Tallaan
The prosecutor in this case. He hopes to crush the rookie defense attorney.

Micheal Darke
Assistant to Tallaan. Related to serial killer Joe Darke.

Peter Sanders
Defendant, and suspected of murder. Best friends with Jake. Former assistant to the victim.

Fred Patterson
Victim. Wasn't on good terms with the defendant right before the murder.

Detective Gumshoe
The good ol' detective. In charge of the case.

Eddy
Witnessed the crime scene.

Riku
Hairdresser at the barber shop where the victim was murdered.

Evidence

Autopsy Report

Victim was killed on 2/15, at 3:00 to 5:00 P.M. Cause of death was four puncture wounds in the victims chest, each a little over an inch wide.

Red Baseball Caps
A stack of red baseball caps were found underneath the front desk where the defendant worked. They also carry the fingerprints of Sanders, but the traces are extremely faint.

Phone Booth

Located right outside the barber shop. Apparently there was a call attempted at exactly 4:01 P.M. The mystery user dialed 911, but hung up nearly instantly afterwards for unknown reason.

Hairdresser's Jacket

Found at the scene of the crime a few feet from the defendant's body. There are many pockets inside, filled with many various objects and junk.

Defendant's Car

Stuffed with a bunch of meaningless papers, save for a few. Many newspaper articles bashing him and interviews with Patterson.

Pair of Scissors
The fake murder weapon. Sanders' personal pair of scissors and his fingerprints are fresh. Covered in the victim's blood.

Unfinished Letter

Written by the defendant, Peter Sanders. An apology letter to the victim, Fred Patterson. Several tears have stained this letter.

Murder Information

A serial killer had been prowling around the neighborhood, leaving a plain red baseball cap on each one of his victims. On February 15th, at a barber shop, Fred Patterson was found lying dead in a puddle of blood, with a red baseball cap placed on his head. He appeared to be in a struggle with the assailant before finally being stabbed twice. There were four holes in his chest, believed to be caused by a pair of scissors that were found at the front desk where the part time manager works. They carry the fingerprints of the defendant, Peter Sanders who is the suspect in this case.

The defendant claimed he was outside trying to call someone at the time, but the hairdresser who was cutting Patterson's hair at the time claims to have just walked out of the bathroom to see Sanders stab Patterson with the scissors.

A potential motive for the defendant is that a while back Sanders was a defense assistant for Fred Patterson for one case. Patterson lost this case, and soon after blamed Sanders for it. Many viewed Sanders as an incompetent assistant after that and no one would hire him.

Synopsis

http://z11.invisionfree.com/court_recor ... =2869&st=0

So far what has happened in the trial.

Day One - Trial

Jake Smith and Jenny Westheaven versus Tallaan and Michael Darke. It's been a heated battle so far during day one of the trial. "Objection!" "Objection!" could be heard back and forth from the defense to the prosecution.

First, Detective Gumshoe gave his testimony which simply explained the basic facts of the crime itself. The defense quickly exposed a contradiction in his statements, and soon the unfinished letter was uncovered to the court. It was an apology from the defendant towards the victim, which is so far the only glimmer of hope for the defense. There were also several damp spots on the letter which are currently being investigated to find out what they are.

The damp spots on the letter were revealed to be tears, but soon after that Eddy, the witness, was called to testify on the stand. The nervous witness told everything to the court, and his testimony was all truth. The contradiction, however, lay not with the witness but with the police department and the investigation team. Sanders' knife, the proposed murder weapon in the case, was revealed to be a false murder weapon! Following right after that, the baliff returned with the results of the mystery phone call. Apparently, whoever dialed the phone called 911, but hung up nearly instantly after making the phone call. Those mysteries still are unsolved, and court is adjourned for the prosecution and defense to discover what really happened at the barber shop!

To be continued..


Order of Turnabout Friendship

Day One - Trial
Day Two - Investigation
Day Three - Trial

That is only the tenative schedule, as more events may occur. Depends what happens.

Last edited by Zeldafan422 on Fri Mar 16, 2007 10:24 pm, edited 2 times in total.

The baliff walked over to the defense lobby and handed Jake the letter that the prosecution handed to him. Without a single word, he went back into the courtroom.





"Court is back in session," the judge announced to everyone in the room. He turned his head towards the prosecution. "Baliff, do you have the results of the damp spots on the letter?"

The baliff nodded his head. "Yes, I do. There appears to be salt, and we are almost positive that these stains are from tears." As soon as he said that, everyone in the courtroom began raving.


Unfinished Letter updated in the Court Record.



The judge nodded. "Very well then. That may currently be the only ammunition for the defense, but we still must hear the next witness." He looked at the prosecution. "Is he ready?"

(Ahh, it took me like a day to realise that we were actually continuing on a different forum. I was trying to sign in with my other account. PM me when it's my turn to start because I'll be out today.)

((You're not supposed to just hop on over and just continue on like nothing happened. We've got 5 trials in the wings right now, and that's all we're supposed to have at any one point in time. If you PM'd a mod or some sort, then fine. But if not...))

---

(I'll pm the contents of the letter later)

*Tallaan's tails droop at the news about the letter, but his face remains somewhat nutral*

Yes, your honor, the next witness is ready

*Turning his attention to the witness stand*

The prosecution calls a Mr. Eddy... no last name appearently... Who saw the murder take place

*A young man, aged no more than 18 approaches the witness stand. His suit is untidily ruffled, as if he had only just enough time to wash it and no more. His shirt was hanging out on the left side and he had forgotten to zip up his fly before buttoning his trousers together. He takes his place behind the witness stand and clears his throat.
"Ahem..." He began. "Would I be able to get a glass of water?"

"Bailiff, hurry up and get this man some water. Witness, I dearly hope you brushed your teeth this morning. If not, get him toothpaste too." He glanced at Tallaan next to him and crossed his arms. "Hurry up and testify to something that helps our case."

---

Jake took the letter wordlessly. It seemed to be from the prosecution. Interesting. He had yet to read it

-Ten minute recess passes-

He sees the witness walk up. and ask his question. "There were water fountains in the hall, you had plenty of time to get a drink...but, Im not the one to answer that" He sees that Mr. Darke asks the bailiff. "Ok, theres you water"

"Anyway, moving on. State your name and occupation"

Uhh...urk, oops. Wasnt the prosecution..or was it the judge, that was suppost to say that? Oh well...

*Looking at Jake with annoyance*

That was my line...

(Got work tomorrow... ugh)

Jenny giggled at poor Jake. He seemed so tense...

"Don't worry, Jake," she reassured him with a wink and a smile. "Now that we know that the damp spots on the letter really were the client's tears, we can definitely use that to our advantage!"

She wanted Jake to relax, even just a little...just to make sure that he wouldn't mess up later on in the trial and...well, say something stupid.

"Now, back to business..." she stated, turning her gaze on the witness stand.

---

*Eddy glanced about nervously, shifting his gaze from the prosecution to the defense.*
"Uh...I'm Eddy...currently unemployed college student..."
"Umm..."
*He took a sip of the sparkling water before him and nervously wiped the gathering sweat from his brow.*

"Its ok, Witness, no need to be nervous." A nervous witness may mean a hard to understand testimony...

He turned to Jenny and sighed. "Well, I just don't want show any weakness to the prosecution. That was my plan coming in here. But, I will try to relax a little"

"That is enough fooling around," the judge sternly stated. "Let us hear the witness testify."

*Looks at the judge with agreement*

Indeed, now, Mr. Eddy, I'd like you to testify about what you saw the day of the murder.

"I'm not sure about the exact time that I saw it...I was just going to shop for...uh...things."

*Eddy briefly looked up to indicate that he was trying to remember the scene.*

"I left my house at about 3:30-ish since the shops were going to close early at around 4:15."

"I had to walk pretty far since my car was out of petrol and I was short for cash, so I ended up taking a shortcut that runs past the barber shop."

"Nice place, but I haven't had a hair cut in a few years so I normally wouldn't pay attention to it."

*Eddy pushed his fringe out of his face to save himself from the prickly irritation and took another sip of the water.*

"It was really cloudy at the time and had started to rain. I actually had my head lowered slightly at the time."

*Eddy cleared his throat and slightly straightened his tie.*

"I heard raised voices so I instictively looked up and saw two people in a heated argument."

"I thought that it was natural, y'know...like the guy had gotten a bad haircut and wanted to give the hair dresser a piece of his mind but before I could adapt to their conversation, I saw one of them slump to the ground and the other run off the phone."

"I ran up as quick as I could and saw that the man was bleeding from four different punctures and there were bloody scissors next to his body."

*Eddy finished off the water in the glass.*

"I saw the other man exit the phone booth, but before I could get to him, he started running faster than I ever could."

*Eddy looked straight towards the prosecution bench.*

"Now that I think about it...he must have been calling the cops to pin it on someone else!"

*Eddy reverted back to his normal gaze.*

"By the time I'd gotten back to the bleeding man, he was already dead...I think."

"I got a look at the scissors before I left...I'd say that each blade was about a quarter of an inch thick..."

Last edited by Eddy on Sun Mar 04, 2007 5:18 am, edited 1 time in total.

[Yo Eddy, could you fix your testimony into statements for the defense's cross examination? Thanks.

Nice job on the testimony. ^_^]



The judge nodded. "Very well. The defense may begin its cross examination."

Eddy, I have one question before we get to the cross-examination. Do you know about what time you saw this murder?

"See now, defense attorney? The Sanders ran out to use the phone after he killed Patterson so he could give himself an alibi." Darke smirked and leaned against the wall. And what kind of question is that? He already told us he didn't know what time it was."

---

"Well...all I could do is take a guess...I'd say it happened at about 3:55 judging from the distance that I had already walked."

*Puts his hand under his chin, looking like he's thinking of something*

Interesting...

"Ok, thank you."



"I saw the other man exit the phone booth, but before I could get to him, he started running faster than I ever could."


"How do you know this man was Pete? I assume that it was kinda dark, because of the clouds, and the fact it was raining. And you had your head slightly lowered. So, wouldn't it be possible that this man wasn't my client?"

You yourself already said that it was the defendant that made the call, Mr. Smith. That and about when the witness arrived at around 3:55, 6-8 minutes could've easilly passed before the defendant made the call.

*Eddy frowned*

"Err...I suppose it is possible. I never actually saw the face of the killer..."

That does not change the fact that it was the defendant that mde the call, according to you, Mr. Smith

The judge paused. "Yes, but who was the defendant calling and why?"

Darke shrugged. "Your Honor, I don't feel that's relevant to the murder."

---

The judge nodded towards the prosecution. "That has yet to be proven. Defense, what are your thoughts on the matter?"

*Glares at Drake with dissaprovement*

When the judge asks a question like that... he'll most likely overrule any objections like that because HE wants to know...

Years of experience... ha... this guy is making stupid screw ups... sigh... why am I paired with the nitwits

"Why could this be relevant to the murder? Because of two reasons. I doubt he would call someone just for his leisure at this time. In fact, why would he call someone? If he is trying to run away, yea, he needs an alibi. But who would he call in this time? I have a feeling that if he called any of his friends, then he wasn't trying to get an alibi. Im sure he saw the witness. You dont just sit there making a call for nothing with a witness watching. And, another thing. How long was this call? Why is this relevant? Because if he took a long time with it, maybe even 5 or more minutes, then that means his claims are invalid, because I doubt it would take five minutes to tell the victim was dead!

"..."

The judge's eyes were wide. "Wow, this is certainly an amazing theory you have, Mr. Smith. What does the prosecution say to this?"

*Thinks carefully about the defence's statement, with two of his three tails slightly drooped and the third was under his chin*

While I cannot fully say his theory is wrong, *Starts smiling towards the defence* There are a few flaws with it.

While I concede that the defendant might have been calling a friend, what I'm questioning is the duration of the call. The defendant could've been in shock towards what he had done and the realization didn't finnally sink in untill after making the call, thus probably taking longer to say what he did then he normally would of.

*He then removes the tail from under his chin and glares at the witness, mumbling to himself quietly enough that he can bairly hear himself*

The judge pounded his gavel.

"Enough!" he said. "While I think that the phone booth is extremely crucial to this trial, I say we get on with the cross examination. Continue, defense."

"The duration of the call has nothing to do with the defendant. Don't you think this witness would have been able to see that the victim was dead and run after the killer in less than 5 minutes? What im saying is, I doubt it took the defendant more than 5 minutes to make this call. Probably less than that. But, we need to try and find out how long this call took place, because if it was more than a couple minutes, than this witness is lying!"

"Defense, quit stalling. As you said, it probably took the defendant just a few minutes to make the call, so what are you trying to prove? First, why would the witness lie? Second, if the call took an hour, what would that change? If you just witnessed a murder, would you follow the killer without a weapon?"

---

"Mr. Smith, under normal circumstances I will penalize you," the judge said. "But in this case, I say we find out." He stared at the baliff, who sighed and muttered something about too much work and not enough pay.

"However..if the call happens to be under a few minutes," the judge glared, "you will face a..BIG FAT PENALTY! MWAHAH- er, excuse me."

He pounded his gavel.

"Continue with the cross examination."

*Looks at the judge then the defence with a look that somethings up, yet he can't put his finger on it. Then Tallaan starts looking through the court record, as if looking for something, still mumbling very quietly*

"Judge, I never said that the call was over five minutes. I'm saying if it was, then it can be concluded that most likely the witness is lying. If you want to penalize me because of your bad hearing, then go ahead. But I did not say that the call was over five minutes."

"Mr. Darke, re-read the testimony. The witness ran up to the body as quick as he could. He then saw the killer exit the phone booth. So, this actually changes things a bit more. The witness did not try to run after the killer, but he did see the killer exit the phone booth right after he checked out the body, which still leaves my claim valid for the time being."

He was being a little cocky again...especially with the judge. Jake then took a glance at the prosecution. Hmm....he must have thought of something...this could be bad, depending on what it is...still, I cant let it bother me...

"Defense attorney, please. Perhaps the witness was thoroughly examining the body? Or perhaps he, being nervous, simply froze on the spot. It wasn't until he looked up that he saw the defendant run away. It doesn't matter, anyway--how long the call took place doesn't change the fact that the defendant killed Sanders."

---

*Rubbing his head as though he has a headache, says to everyone in general*

Everybody... let's just drop the phone call for now... if we keep theorizing on this phone call, we'll be here all day.

*Looks at Jake and says*

If we need to, we can get back to the phone call if needed.

*Then looks at the judge*

Untill then, can we please continue the cross-examination?

The judge sighed. "Mr. Smith, you seem to be onto something. However, I must penalize you for your rudeness to the court. Please remain civlized."

He paused, and sighed.

"Anyway, we shall wait until the baliff returns until we hear about the phone call. For now, Mr. Smith, just continue with the cross-examination."

He pounded his gavel.