the Onion Field (1973) (44 page)

"Mrs. Edwards, do you remember that on March 7th, 1947, Jimmy was picked up for truant at a theater at 539 South Broad-

"I don't know anything about dates, Mr. Schulman," said the crippled old woman. "I don't remember very well. I don't know nothin about dates."

During the old woman's testimony, there was a disturbance at counsel table. Jimmy Smith was babbling incoherently to no one in particular. "It ain't right. My Nana never had nothin! My Nana never so much as said a swear word, or took a drink, or went to a dance in her whole life!"

"Did you hear that Jimmy pulled a knife?" Schulman asked.

"Only when the truant officer kicked him and pulled a gun on him," the old woman said softly. "And the gentleman I worked for in Beverly Hills said this boy had just as much right to pull a knife as the truant officer had to pull a gun, because they are not supposed to have guns, he said. That's what he told me, Mr. Schulman."

"Thank you. That's all," said Schulman.

Now the tears were spilling from Jimmy Smith's eyes. "You leave her alone! You leave my Nana alone!" he sobbed.

Jimmy Smith could never discuss his great-aunt or think of her as other than my Nana. It was always my Nana, the only thing which was ever truly his.

"Mr. Smith, you will have to speak in a quiet tone of voice," said the judge.

"It's not fair! It's not fair!" Jimmy shouted.

"The jury is admonished to disregard any statements of Mr. Smith," said the judge. "He is represented by counsel, who will speak for him."

"Nothing further," said Ray Smith.

"Defendant Smith rests?"

"Yes, your Honor," said Ray Smith.

Before the final arguments to the jury there was one last witness to testify for the defense-Gregory Powell.

While Greg walked to the stand, Pierce Brooks looked around the room at some of the familiar faces, two of which he had come to pity: a crippled black woman and a sad-eyed music teacher from Oceanside. "Jimmy Smith's aunt was a poor old confused lady," Brooks said later. "I don't know what she ever did to deserve that miserable coward she raised. And I felt sorry for Gregory Powell's father. He was a nice guy. His only problem was he'd never booted his wife in the butt, years before, when he should have."

Greg's testimony was emotional from the start:

"Well, number one, I guess it's pretty obvious I'm a sentimental slob. When I go to the movies I cry when there's a touching scene. I've been asked many times whether I feel remorse about this. Yes, I feel remorse for Ian Campbell's death. I feel more remorse however for his wife and kids. I'll go to prison, if this is the sentence, and I'll stay there and work and try to make up for Ian Campbell's death.

"I still don't feel that I should be on the streets. I honestly can't say and don't know whether I can cope with the stresses and strains that are out there. I feel in my heart that even though I know I am guilty of a terrible thing, that I should be allowed to live, because I feel that there is good that I can do.

"There've been many men in prison who have done good, that have made contributions to society. Whether I am capable of doing it or not, I don't know yet. All I can say is that I will be trying." And then Greg began to weep.

"Are you composed? Compose yourself," said Schulman, whose turn it was to cross examine.

Greg nodded, wiping his nose and eyes with a handkerchief.

Pierce Brooks burned to read a document he had in his hands, a document which had been given to a sheriff's deputy in the jail by an inmate named Segal who had been an aspiring writer and actor prior to his arrest for selling marijuana. The document was a one-act drama authored by inmate Segal in collaboration with Gregory Powell, and Brooks had been holding it for five months.

Inmate Segal thus became the first person to write Greg's version of the kidnapping. It was not the version told in court by Karl Hettinger, nor by Jimmy Smith-nor by Gregory Powell for that matter. It was what Pierce Brooks would call a punk's fantasy, which to Brooks revealed the real Gregory Powell.

"Fate intervened though, for Segal escaped after his transfer to Chino Prison, and Pierce Brooks was unable to get the drama introduced during the trial without Segal's testimony. But Brooks kept it and referred to it often, especially the portions in Greg's own handwriting wherein he would try to correct Segal's atrocious grammar and spelling, and insert the word "cop" in place of Segal's "officer" to make the tale yet tougher.

Brooks isolated certain passages as his favorites, hoping that somehow there could be a theory of law discovered wherein it could be introduced:
POWELL: "Take the punk's gun, Jimmy." Hettinger hesitated, his hand on his gun.

POWELL: Laughed. "Go ahead, punk," he said.

campbell: "For God's sake, he's got us cold."

POWELL: "You know what, man-you should have been a dead man back there acting so funny." Hett started sniveling.

POWELL: "Before we drop these punks off, do you think we ought to take care of business-How much bread do you 2 have?"

campbell: "I have about ten."

Hettinger: "I have about the same."

POWELL: "Boy, you guys are hurtin, we've got five times that amount in pocket change." To S. "We'll knock over a super Market before we leave the valley." "I'll make a deal w/the 2 of you. We'll pull off onto one of these dark canyons-I'll put a couple of slugs in both of your guns. Then stick it in your holsters. I'll shoot it out with you one at at time. If one of you gets me Jimmy will throw your guns in the bushes & split. I need some action and it shore would be a quick way to solve this mess. I don't think the punks have enough nerve to try it.

What about it?"

CAMPBELL: "No thanks, man-I don't want any part of it. Just turn me loose and I'll be happy. They don't pay me enough to try to be a hero."

POWELL: "What about you, Buddy-you were making noise like a hero back there when we picked you up. Are you game?"

Hettinger: "No, if I shot you you might still manage to shoot >>

me.

POWELL: "In other words you're chickenshit-"

Hettinger: "Yeah, I guess I am at that, I never thought I'd get in a position like this-"

POWELL: Laughing. "Well it sure would have saved us a lot of trouble. If either one of you would have gone for it you would have been dead anyway. It may sound like bragging but you punks don't know what an expert shot is-cause if there's any rating above expert I'm about 20 grades above it."
Brooks read on and on, a dreary little drama riddled with "punks" and "Powell laughing" until the moment of arrival in the onion field.

powell: "OK H-Climb on out" He did-P climbed out on the passenger side. As I walked across to the back of the car I could hear Smith speaking.

smith: "Are you kidding-Have you ever heard of the Little Lindbergh Law-"

campbell:
"Yes."

powell:
I raised my gun to cover C as he looked at me- coming around the back of the car & shot him- H screamed.

smith:
"He isn't dead," & he started firing instead into C as he lay on the ground. I ran across behind S & the only thing I could think of was (I've got to get that other cop) (It was like a scream in my mind) I was alone w/1 dead cop laying dead in the road and another hiding close by who I had no way of flushing from cover-I walked back to the other cop laying on the ground--

And now Pierce Brooks looked at Gregory Powell, crying on the stand for the children of Ian Campbell, and Brooks read the last line of the drama where Segal and Greg described his capture:

I was sick for I knew I would never see Max again. Cause I never dreamed that the cops would get me to the station alive-Had I been granted 2 wishes at that moment I think they would have been 1- to have been face to face w/J with a gun in my hand 2-or more important to know what I knew now & just be meeting my wife for the first time-But wishes were useless for I knew I had been born to loose

Scum, thought Pierce Brooks, watching Greg wiping his nose, his shoulders shaking, as Marshall Schulman stood by the counsel table staring at the young man. It was not the killing which now angered and embarrassed the detective. It was the killer's unwilling ness to pay for it with his life, and most of all the unmanly sniveling from him who had edited and co-authored the one-act drama. Scum, thought the detective. Scum. Scum.

"Who are you crying for, Mr. Powell? Yourself?" asked Schulman finally.

"No sir"

"When did you decide to start crying for Ian Campbell and his wife and children?"

"Mr. Schulman . . ."

"After you were found guilty?"

"I think the first regret... that I felt was the night I looked down at the ground and realized the terrible thing that had happened, and I attempted to commit suicide."

"Is that why you asked Chief Fote for a break? You didn't do anything, Jimmy Smith did everything. Is that when you felt so bad?"

"Mr. Schulman, at that time I was thinking of the living."

"Yourself?"

"Max and the unborn baby."

"Why weren't you crying when Chief Fote talked to you?"

"I was."

"He's not here," said Schulman sardonically, glancing at the counsel table. "Mr. Brooks is here. Why weren't you crying when you talked to Mr. Brooks in all those conversations?"

"I wanted to die then."

"You weren't crying then, were you?"

"No, because I was attempting to die."

"When did you first feel sorry for Ian Campbell and his family?"

"Well that is a compound question so I will have to answer it in two parts," said Gregory Powell.

Pierce Brooks dropped his eyes, and smiled and thought, I knew you wouldn't let me down Greg, my boy. You never fail me.

"The outside world was so tough to you," said Schulman, "that after Officer Campbell was shot by you, you tried to kill Officer Hettinger because you didn't want to go back to the institution?"

"Your Honor, I would object to this," said Greg.

"Why, does the truth hurt?"

"Just a moment," said the judge.

"I will ask you also," said Greg, "to cite the district attorney for misconduct, and I would ask for a mistrial at this time!"

"Did you feel remorse when you were emptying your gun at Officer Hettinger as he was running away?" Schulman continued.

"I would object to that as being outside the lines of cross examination," said Greg.

"The objection is overruled," said the judge.

"All right then, apparently I did, sir. I missed him."

"What makes you think you're such a good shot? Because you shot at cans?"

"Mr. Schulman, I have hunted all my life. I belonged to the Junior Sportsman's Club when I was a kid. I don't think you could miss at that range, unless you had some subconscious desire to."

Pierce Brooks shook his head. There it was. What he'd been waiting for. The Hollywood syndrome. Of course, anyone could hit a running man in the black of night with his heart pounding and a dead man at his feet. In movies it was always that easy, wasn't it? Pierce Brooks knew he himself would miss the silhouette target this month at the police academy range. In daylight, stationary, at seven yards.

"I guess you were happy about missing him then. You were so happy you tried to hunt him down like a dog."

"Your Honor," said Greg, "to protect the record, would you caution Mr. Schulman to please stay within proper bounds. I cannot interpose an objection every time because I don't know all of them."

"Do you want a lawyer? The court will give you one just for the asking. For free too," snapped Schulman.

"The jury is admonished to disregard the statement of Mr. Schulman," said the jiidge<

"I guess I should cite him for misconduct at this time," said Greg.

Attorney Ray Smith's desperate final argument to the jury attacked the credibility of Gregory Powell. There was nothing left to the old lawyer:

". . . And Powell asks his father, in substance, 'What's wrong with you, Dad? Why have I been like I have been? What's wrong with you? Boy oh boy! I thought he had sunk to a new low. 'What's wrong with you, Mother? Why am I like this? Why do I smoke marijuana? Why am I a homosexual? Why did I rob people? Why do I take girls out and get them pregnant without benefit of clergy? Why? Why? Why?' "

And Greg's mother, who had been given permission to assist her son during final argument, sat at the counsel table taking copious notes.

During his final arguments to the jury, Marshall Schulman said: " 'Well, we told you we were going to let you guys go, now you know we lied.' That is in effect what Powell was saying to the officers. He was going to torture them a little bit before they go. He raised the gun and shot Officer Campbell right in the face.

"Why does Powell sit here and cry? Because he's hoping you don't have as much guts as he has. You can't blame the murder of a human being on his mother and father. He has his own choice. He has his own free will. He knows what he's doing. Maybe I should've called Ian Campbell's mother and his wife, I don't know. I feel sorry for Mr. Powell's parents, but who's putting them through it? You've got the answer right over there-Mr. Remorseful, Gregory Powell.