This story is part of an ongoing series.
The chronological order of my stories is listed in WifeWatchman's biography.
Feedback and
constructive
criticism is very much appreciated, and I encourage feedback for ideas.
This story contains graphic scenes, language and actions that might be extremely offensive to some people. These scenes, words and actions are used only for the literary purposes of this story. The author does not condone murder, racial language, violence, rape or violence against women, and any depictions of any of these in this story should not be construed as acceptance of the above.
***
Part 22 - Agencies of the Weak Minded
"...
guilty.
"
Mrs. Henry and Mrs. Withers broke down sobbing as they hugged each other, and their husbands were very emotional as well. I shook hands with Jack Muscone. The audience began buzzing, and many reporters scrambled to leave the room to inform their fellow Media outside.
The Court Reporter confirmed with each Juror the guilty verdict, then moved on to Count 2, murder in the first with aggravating circumstances of Wendy Withers, a human being. Peter Blassingame was found guilty of that crime. Count 3, the aggravated rape of Wendy Withers, received a guilty verdict. And on down the line.
I was watching the Defense team most very carefully. Nathan Masterson was looking downcast at having lost. Peter Blassingame looked a bit angry, but mostly reserved. His mother looked totally shocked as she looked around, at the Defense, at her brother Andrew Parsons, and I could see her mouth saying 'What? Guilty? How?"
But it was Parsons, David Rovers, and Gwen Munson that were looking at each other in total shock and anger that I paid attention to. They were half-whispering, then Gwen caught me looking at them. She glanced her eyes my way in warning, and Andrew Parsons turned to see me staring at him. He turned back to face front.
Bus-ted.
Yeah, they game themselves away, I thought to myself. "Munson, Parson, and Rovers." I whispered to Muscone as they furtively looked over at me a couple of times.
The Judge began tapping his gavel. "The Death Penalty phase of this trial will begin in one hour. This Court is in recess until then. Secure the prisoner." After the Jury left the room, Peter Blassingame was also taken out, guarded by Deputies...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Please
do not think that Your Iron Crowbar is an Agency of the Weak-Minded. Apparently Edward Blassingame, a couple of dirty FBI Agents, and Gwen Munson did. And their suppositions had just been redirected.
I had long, long suspected that Edward Blassingame might try something like this. One thing Timothy Geiger had found out while embedded in the Blassingame Organization was that people on Blassingame's payroll had the power to do electronic surveillance. And I knew Blassingame was desperate enough to try something like this. So I began watching for dirty tricks, and soon found them.
Gwen Munson had achieved having a night to study the jury pool... and to pass their names to her confederates. Jurors with children were selected, surprising to most... but not to me. I could see that train boarding at the station.
And then Jack Muscone's FBI experts found the rigged televisions in the Jurors's rooms, wired to be turned on remotely and to receive specific transmissions.
So, the evening before, in the dark of night, Jack Muscone and I went to Judge Watts at his home. We showed our evidence, and Judge Watts issued a sealed warrant to allow us to perform a sting.
I expected that the University Hotel would be under surveillance to make sure any unusual Police activity was spotted. What was not spotted was a gathering at Tower Condos, followed by a line of people being introduced to the underground tunnel between the Condos and the Hotel.
No other rooms on the sixth floor were occupied, so Deputies had the Jurors take a bag of essentials and move to a new room on the same floor. As they left, a TCPD Detective or Officer ranked no less than Sergeant went into the room, each carrying and setting up videocamera equipment. It looked like one person was in each room at all times, just as the Enemy expected to see.
The jurors never saw the videotapes of their children being threatened. But we got it all on videotape. And we were able to trace it back to a source inside the Hotel. Arrests had been made.
The next morning, I showed Judge Watts the videos as well as showed what we did to prevent the Jury from being tampered with. He elected to go forward with the trial and the reading of the verdict. The TCPD and SBI began implementing plans to keep the families of the jurors safe. And a joint TCPD-SBI-FBI investigation to find out who did the jury tampering, and for whom, commenced.
Part 23 - On my honor, I will do my best...
2:30pm, Wednesday, August 21st. Paulina Patterson spared no effort to get the Death Penalty for Peter Blassingame. Now that he was convicted, he was attired in the orange jumpsuit of a convicted felon. And a parade of witnesses testified to what the loss of Wendy Withers and Stephen Henry meant.
The testimony of the parents was emotional and powerful. Mrs. Withers sobbed as she told the Jury that her daughter had always been bright, wholesome, and worshipful of the Lord, that she was not a skank, and that what was done to her was a violation of her body and spirit.
Professor Stephanie Steele testified that Stephen Henry was a very promising future physicist and astronomer, and he was also liked and respected by his professors and colleagues. The Baptist Campus Minister testified about how helpful Wendy was in raising money and food and other items in their drives, and the Glee Club members testified one by one that they had lost a wonderful singing voice as well as a friend in Wendy's murder.
Gwen Munson got her turn, and there was little she could do. Indeed, she was unprepared, having expected an acquittal, and I expected that she was putting more time into her appeals and complaints about Judge Watts than in the Death Penalty phase of the trial. She tried the route of telling the Jury that Peter Blassingame was a young man, and a mother's son, and that his promising life and career were also over, and that the death penalty was unwarranted for what was a first-time offender. Yeah, she said that.
Paulina got the last word. She first told how a promising young woman, a mother's daughter, had been violated in the most brutal way, and then was shot down as she attempted to get Justice for herself and her fellow victims. But what came next was one of the most powerful closing arguments I'd ever heard.
She brought out the projection screen, and the first slide was cast upon it.
"Ladies and Gentlemen," Paulina said, "this is not Stephen Henry. This... is Commander Donald Troy, receiving his Eagle Scout award." Indeed, it was me, tall, slender, titian-haired, in my Boy Scout uniform with my merit badge sash over the shoulder, 51 merit badges sewn upon it, and a white sash with a red arrow with two red bars on either end of it, denoting the Brotherhood of the Order of the Arrow, Wimachtendienk W W. I thought to myself that this photo was one of the very few times my father's face outwardly showed that he was proud of me.
"After earning his Eagle Scout award," said Paulina, "Commander Troy went to college---"
"Objection!" cried out Nathan Masterson. "Relevance!"
"Oh, I'm going to show relevance, Your Honor." Paulina said.
