A Time to Kill (32 page)

From the balcony of his office, Jake watched the activity around the courthouse. His heart beat faster than normal, and his stomach tingled. He smiled. He was ready for Buckley, ready for the cameras.

________

Noose looked down past the end of his nose, over his reading glasses, and around the packed courtroom. Everyone was in place.

“The court has before it,” he began, “the defendant’s motion for a change of venue. The trial in this matter has been set for Monday, July 22. That’s four weeks from today, according to my calendar. I have set a deadline for filing motions and disposing of same, and I believe those are the only two deadlines between now and trial.”

“That’s correct, Your Honor,” thundered Buckley, half standing behind his table. Jake rolled his eyes and shook his head.

“Thank you, Mr. Buckley,” Noose said dryly. “The defendant has filed the proper notice that he intends to use an insanity defense. Has he been examined at Whitfield?”

“Yes sir, Your Honor, last week,” Jake answered.

“Will he employ his own psychiatrist?”

“Of course, Your Honor.”

“Has he been examined by his own?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. So that’s out of the way. What other motions do you anticipate filing?”

“Your Honor, we expect to file a motion requesting the clerk to summons more than the usual number of prospective jurors—”

“The State will oppose that motion,” Buckley yelled as he jumped to his feet.

“Sit down, Mr. Buckley!” Noose said sternly, ripping off his glasses and glaring at the D.A. “Please don’t yell at me again. Of course you will oppose it. You will oppose any motion filed by the defense. That’s your job. Don’t interrupt again. You’ll have
ample opportunity after we adjourn to perform for the media.”

Buckley slumped in his chair and hid his red face. Noose had never screamed at him before.

“Continue, Mr. Brigance.”

Jake was startled by Ichabod’s meanness. He looked tired and ill. Perhaps it was the pressure.

“We may have some written objections to anticipated evidence.”

“Motions
in limine
?”

“Yes, sir.”

“We’ll hear those at trial. Anything else?”

“Not at this time.”

“Now, Mr. Buckley, will the State file any motions?”

“I can’t think of any,” Buckley answered meekly.

“Good. I want to make sure there are no surprises between now and trial. I will be here one week before trial to hear and decide any pretrial matters. I expect any motions to be filed promptly, so that we can tie up any loose ends well before the twenty-second.”

Noose flipped through his file and studied Jake’s motion for a change of venue. Jake whispered to Carl Lee, whose presence was not required for the hearing, but he insisted. Gwen and the three boys sat in the first row behind their daddy. Tonya was not in the courtroom.

“Mr. Brigance, your motion appears to be in order. How many witnesses?”

“Three, Your Honor.”

“Mr. Buckley, how many will you call?”

“We have twenty-one,” Buckley said proudly.

“Twenty-one!” yelled the judge.

Buckley cowered and glanced at Musgrove.

“B-but, we probably won’t need them all. In fact, I know we won’t call all of them.”

“Pick your best five, Mr. Buckley. I don’t plan to be here all day.”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“Mr. Brigance, you’ve asked for a change of venue. It’s your motion. You may proceed.”

Jake stood and walked slowly across the courtroom, behind Buckley, to the wooden podium in front of the jury box. “May it please the court, Your Honor, Mr. Hailey has requested that his trial be moved from Ford County. The reason is obvious: the publicity in this case will prevent a fair trial. The good people of this county have prejudged the guilt or innocence of Carl Lee Hailey. He is charged with killing two men, both of whom were born here and left families here. Their lives were not famous, but their deaths certainly have been. Mr. Hailey was known by few outside his community until now. Now everyone in this county knows who he is, knows about his family and his daughter and what happened to her, and knows most of the details of his alleged crimes. It will be impossible to find twelve people in Ford County who have not already prejudged this case. This trial should be held in another part of the state where the people are not so familiar with the facts.”

“Where would you suggest?” interrupted the judge.

“I wouldn’t recommend a specific county, but it should be as far away as possible. Perhaps the Gulf Coast.”

“Why?”

“Obvious reasons, Your Honor. It’s four hundred miles away, and I’m sure the people down there do not know as much as the people around here.”

“And you think the people in south Mississippi haven’t heard about it?”

“I’m sure they have. But they are much further away.”

“But they have televisions and newspapers, don’t they, Mr. Brigance?”

“I’m sure they do.”

“Do you believe you could go to any county in this state and find twelve people who haven’t heard the details of this case?”

Jake looked at his legal pad. He could hear the artists sketching on their pads behind him. He could see Buckley grinning out of the corner of his eye. “It would be difficult,” he said quietly.

“Call your first witness.”

Harry Rex Vonner was sworn in and took his seat on the witness stand. The wooden swivel chair popped and creaked under the heavy load. He blew into the microphone and a loud hiss echoed around the courtroom. He smiled at Jake and nodded.

“Would you state your name?”

“Harry Rex Vonner.”

“And your address?”

“Eighty-four ninety-three Cedarbrush, Clanton, Mississippi.”

“How long have you lived in Clanton?”

“All my life. Forty-six years.”

“Your occupation?”

“I’m a lawyer. I’ve had my license for twenty-two years.”

“Have you ever met Carl Lee Hailey?”

“Once.”

“What do you know about him?”

“He supposedly shot two men, Billy Ray Cobb and
Pete Willard, and he wounded a deputy, DeWayne Looney.”

“Did you know either of those boys?”

“Not personally. I knew of Billy Ray Cobb.”

“How did you learn of the shootings?”

“Well, it happened on a Monday, I believe. I was in the courthouse, on the first floor, checking title on some land in the clerk’s office, when I heard the gunshots. I ran out into the hall and bedlam had broken loose. I asked a deputy and he told me that the boys had been killed near the back door of the courthouse. I hung around here for a while, and pretty soon there was a rumor that the killer was the father of the little girl who got raped.”

“What was your initial reaction?”

“I was shocked, like most people. But I was shocked when I first heard of the rape too.”

“When did you learn that Mr. Hailey had been arrested?”

“Later that night. It was all over the television.”

“What did you see on TV?”

“Well, I watched as much of it as I could. There were news reports from the local stations in Memphis and Tupelo. We’ve got the cable, you know, so I watched the news out of New York, Chicago, and Atlanta. Just about every channel had something about the shootings and the arrest. There was footage from the courthouse and jail. It was a big deal. Biggest thing that ever happened in Clanton, Mississippi.”

“How did you react when you learned that the girl’s father had supposedly done the shooting?”

“It was no big surprise to me. I mean, we all sort of figured it was him. I admired him. I’ve got kids, and I sympathize with what he did. I still admire him.”

“How much do you know about the rape?”

Buckley leapt to his feet. “Objection! The rape is irrelevant!”

Noose ripped off his glasses again and stared angrily at the D.A. Seconds passed and Buckley glanced at the table. He shifted his weight from one foot to the next, then sat down. Noose leaned forward and glared down from the bench.

“Mr. Buckley, don’t yell at me. If you do it again, so help me God, I will hold you in contempt. You may be correct, the rape may be irrelevant. But this is not the trial, is it? This is simply a hearing, isn’t it? We don’t have a jury in the box, do we? You’re overruled and out of order. Now stay in your seat. I know it’s hard with this sort of audience, but I instruct you to stay in your seat unless you have something truly worthy to say. At that point, you may stand and politely and quietly tell me what’s on your mind.”

“Thank you, Your Honor,” Jake said as he smiled at Buckley. “Now, Mr. Vonner, as I was saying, how much do you know about the rape?”

“Just what I’ve heard.”

“And what’s that?”

Buckley stood and bowed like a Japanese sumo wrestler. “If Your Honor please,” he said softly and sweetly, “I would like to object at this point, if it pleases the court. The witness may testify to only what he knows from firsthand knowledge, not from what he’s heard from other people.”

Noose answered just as sweetly. “Thank you, Mr. Buckley. Your objection is noted, and you are overruled. Please continue, Mr. Brigance.”

“Thank you, Your Honor.

“What have you heard about the rape?”

“Cobb and Willard grabbed the little Hailey girl and took her out in the woods somewhere. They were
drunk, they tied her to a tree, raped her repeatedly and tried to hang her. They even urinated on her.”

“They what!” asked Noose.

“They pissed on her, Judge.”

The courtroom buzzed at this revelation. Jake had never heard it, Buckley hadn’t heard it, and evidently no one knew it but Harry Rex. Noose shook his head and lightly rapped his gavel.

Jake scribbled something on his legal pad and marveled at his friend’s esoteric knowledge. “Where did you learn about the rape?”

“All over town. It’s common knowledge. The cops were giving the details the next morning at the Coffee Shop. Everybody knows it.”

“Is it common knowledge throughout the county?”

“Yes. I haven’t talked to anybody in a month who did not know the details of the rape.”

“Tell us what you know about the shootings.”

“Well, like I said, it was a Monday afternoon. The boys were here in this courtroom for a bail hearing, I believe, and when they left the courtroom they were handcuffed and led by the deputies down the back stairs. When they got down the stairs, Mr. Hailey jumped out of a closet with an M-16. They were killed and DeWayne Looney was shot. Part of his leg was amputated.”

“Exactly where did this take place?”

“Right below us here, at the rear entrance of the courthouse. Mr. Hailey was hiding in a janitor’s closet and just stepped out and opened fire.”

“Do you believe this to be true?”

“I know it’s true.”

“Where did you learn all this?”

“Here and there. Around town. In the newspapers. Everybody knows about it.”

“Where have you heard it discussed?”

“Everywhere. In bars, in churches, at the bank, at the cleaners, at the Tea Shoppe, at the cafes around town, at the liquor store. Everywhere.”

“Have you talked to anyone who believes Mr. Hailey did not kill Billy Ray Cobb and Pete Willard?”

“No. You won’t find a single person in this county who believes he didn’t do it.”

“Have most folks around here made up their minds about his guilt or innocence?”

“Every single one of them. There are no fence straddlers on this one. It’s a hot topic, and everyone has an opinion.”

“In your opinion, could Mr. Hailey receive a fair trial in Ford County?”

“No, sir. You couldn’t find three people in this county of thirty thousand who have not already made up their minds, one way or the other. Mr. Hailey has been judged already. There’s just no way to find an impartial jury.”

“Thank you, Mr. Vonner. No further questions, Your Honor.”

Buckley patted his pompadour and ran his fingers over his ears to make sure every hair was in place. He walked purposefully to the podium. “Mr. Vonner,” he bellowed magnificently, “have you already prejudged Carl Lee Hailey?”

“Damn right I have.”

“Your language, please,” said Noose.

“And what would your judgment be?”

“Mr. Buckley, let me explain it this way. And I’ll do so very carefully and slowly so that even you will understand it. If I was the sheriff, I would not have arrested him. If I was on the grand jury, I would not have indicted him. If I was the judge, I would not try
him. If I was the D.A., I would not prosecute him. If I was on the trial jury, I would vote to give him a key to the city, a plaque to hang on his wall, and I would send him home to his family. And, Mr. Buckley, if my daughter is ever raped, I hope I have the guts to do what he did.”

“I see. You think people should carry guns and settle their disputes in shoot-outs?”

“I think children have a right not to be raped, and their parents have the right to protect them. I think little girls are special, and if mine was tied to a tree and gang raped by two dopeheads I’m sure it would make me crazy. I think good and decent fathers should have a constitutional right to execute any pervert who touches their children. And I think you’re a lying coward when you claim you would not want to kill the man who raped your daughter.”

“Mr. Vonner, please!” Noose said.

Buckley struggled, but kept his cool. “You obviously feel very strongly about this case, don’t you?”

“You’re very perceptive.”

“And you want to see him acquitted, don’t you?”

“I would pay money, if I had any.”

“And you think he stands a better chance of acquittal in another county, don’t you?”

“I think he’s entitled to a jury made up of people who don’t know everything about the case before the trial starts.”

“You would acquit him, wouldn’t you?”

“That’s what I said.”

“And you’ve no doubt talked to other people who would acquit him?”

“I have talked to many.”

“Are there folks in Ford County who would vote to convict him?”

“Of course. Plenty of them. He’s black, isn’t he?”

“In all your discussions around the county, have you detected a clear majority one way or the other?”