Mistaken Identity

“He surely was. Detective Della Porta donated his time to civic groups in his area of interest, which was boxing. He was like a big brother to plenty of boxers, and even managed Star Harald, who’s about to turn pro, if any of you heard of him.” Officer Reston turned to the jury and sca

“Officer Reston, I must ask you an uncomfortable question, one that will come at you from left field, as it did me. Was Detective Della Porta involved in drug dealing, in any way, shape, or form?”

The shock on the cop’s face was evident. His dark eyes flared in disbelief, then anger. His tight lips remained pursed, and the effect was that Officer Reston was too mortified to answer.

“Officer Reston, to the best of your knowledge, was Detective Della Porta involved in drug dealing?” Hilliard asked again.

“Of course not,” Reston snapped finally, his voice ringing with anger.

“To the best of your knowledge, did Detective Della Porta ever use illicit drugs himself?”

“No, sir.”

“Officer Reston, you have attended parties at Detective Della Porta’s apartment, haven’t you?”

“Yes.”

“How many?”

“I don’t recall, but there were several, and they were more like get-togethers, not parties. Detective Della Porta had a lot of friends and we used to go over there after the tour, or after a match, to unwind. He liked to cook. He’d cook omelets for everybody on the three-to-eleven.”

“Did you ever see drugs of any kind in use or available at these get-togethers?”

“No, sir.”

“I thought as much,” Hilliard said quickly, with a pointedly contemptuous glance at Be

Officer Reston testified, telling a terse version of the story his partner had, corroborating Co

“I have no further questions at this time,” Hilliard said, and Be

62

Be

“Yes.”

“Hadn’t you been to get-togethers at his house?”

“Yes.”

“So you knew, didn’t you, that his apartment was on the second floor?”

“Yes.”

Be

“Yes.”

“So you knew that you entered into a living room, walked to the left through a bedroom, and at the end was a spare room used as a home office, isn’t that right?”

“Yes.”

“So you knew the clothes closet was in the bedroom?”

“I assume.”

“You assume?” Be

“Yes.”

“If you’d been to several get-togethers at Detective Della Porta’s apartment, having omelets and coffee, you probably used the bathroom.”

Reston paused, his eyes squinting slightly in thought. “Yes. Once or twice.”

“The closet is the only other door in the bedroom, isn’t it?”

“Yes, now that I think about it.”

“So you were familiar with where the clothes closet was in Detective Della Porta’s apartment, weren’t you?”

“I guess so, yes.”

Be

“Yes.”

“In your visits to Detective Della Porta’s apartment, did you ever see that there was construction directly across the street?”

“Yes.”

“They’re building a very large apartment building?”

“Yes.”

“Were they building it a year ago?”

“Yes.”

“Didn’t you see, as well, the Dumpsters out in front for construction debris?”

“I guess, yes.”

Be

“Objection!” Hilliard shouted, rising and reaching for his crutches. “Your Honor, there’s no foundation for this question. Again, it comes out of left field, and is irrelevant and prejudicial.”

“Sustained,” Judge Guthrie said, as Be

“Move to strike the question and answer, Your Honor,” Hilliard added, but Be

“Your Honor, there are no grounds to strike the question. It’s important for the appellate court to see this exchange, should we need to appeal this matter.”

“Motion to strike granted,” Judge Guthrie ruled, his blue eyes flashing behind his glasses. “Move to your next question, counsel.”

Be

“Objection,” Hilliard said from a sitting position at the prosecution table. “The question is irrelevant, Your Honor.”

“Your Honor,” Be

“Objection!” Hilliard barked. “Your Honor, that’s slander! Defamation of the rankest kind, and an obvious attempt to distract the jury from the real issues in this case.”

“Approach the bench, right now, both of you!” Judge Guthrie snapped, snatching his reading glasses from his nose and gesturing to his court reporter. “Kindly place this on the record.”

Be

“Ms. Rosato,” Judge Guthrie whispered hoarsely, “the Court has warned you not to follow this line of questioning. There is no evidence of a police conspiracy in this matter, none at all.”

Hilliard nodded vigorously. “In addition, Your Honor, the very insinuation is prejudicial. The jury is already looking for proof of a conspiracy that doesn’t exist. The only evidence of a conspiracy is counsel’s own testimony.”

“Your Honor,” Be

“Please don’t argue Justice Holmes to me, Ms. Rosato.” Judge Guthrie strained to lean over the dais. “The Court recalls the quotation and though we find it compelling, it is not entitled to precedential weight. You transgressed with that drug reference within the jury’s hearing. The Court has already warned you about such references and it is within this Court’s powers to hold you in contempt.”

“I have to cross-examine this witness, Your Honor.” Be

“This isn’t a conspiracy case, Ms. Rosato.”