Chapter 5 - The Trial Begins
Three months later. November.
The trees surrounding the County Courthouse had turned vivid shades of crimson and amber. The trial of The State v. Harrison Vance had become the most publicized legal battle in the state’s history.
Inside Courtroom 3A, the jury sat attentively in their box. Harrison Vance sat at the defense table, wearing a dark navy suit, his high-priced defense team surrounded by stacks of legal briefs.
On the prosecution side sat Marcus Vance, serving as special prosecutor alongside the District Attorney.
"Call your next witness," Judge Miller announced.
"The prosecution calls Dr. Evelyn Reed," Marcus declared.
Dr. Reed took the stand, taking the oath calmly. She was dressed in a professional blazer, her demeanor radiant with quiet confidence.
"Dr. Reed," Marcus began, pacing before the jury box. "Can you describe the physical condition of the newborn twins, Noah and Grace Mercer, when they arrived at Saint Jude's Emergency Room on the afternoon of August 8th?"
"They were in stage-two hypothermia," Dr. Reed testified clearly. "Their core body temperatures were below ninety-one degrees Fahrenheit. They had severe dehydration, early respiratory distress, and were within approximately sixty minutes of irreversible organ failure."
"And in your professional opinion," Marcus asked, "would those infants have survived if they had remained in the Mercer residence for another two hours?"
"No," Dr. Reed answered firmly. "They would have died."
Harrison’s defense attorney stood up to cross-examine. "Dr. Reed, isn't it true that Mrs. Mercer gave birth at home without medical assistance?"
"Yes," Dr. Reed replied.
"And isn't home birth without professional supervision inherently risky?" the attorney pressed. "Isn't it possible that the infants' condition was caused by Mrs. Mercer’s own medical negligence rather than any action taken by my client?"
Dr. Reed looked directly at the defense attorney. "Mrs. Mercer’s home birth was successful. The infants were healthy at birth. Their critical condition was caused entirely by environmental exposure, lack of nourishment, and freezing temperatures resulting from the main power grid being manually shut off at the external circuit breaker."
"And who shut off that breaker, Doctor?" the attorney sneered. "Can you prove my client touched that breaker?"
"Objection," Marcus stated smoothly. "The defense is jumping ahead. We have the crime scene latent fingerprint analysis ready for submission."
A murmur went through the jury.
That afternoon, Officer David Vance took the stand. He presented high-resolution photographs of the iron chain cut from the front gate, along with forensic report printouts showing Harrison Vance’s fingerprints on the chain, the padlocks, and the main electrical breaker panel behind the Mercer house.
"Officer Vance," Marcus asked his brother. "When you executed the search warrant on Harrison Vance’s corporate vehicle three days after the incident, what did you discover?"
"We found Mrs. Clara Mercer’s personal cell phone, her wallet, the keys to her truck, and the main gate key inside the glove compartment of Mr. Vance's Lincoln Navigator," David testified calmly.
The gallery gasped. Harrison’s lead attorney covered his face with his hand, whispering furiously to his client. Harrison’s composure finally cracked; his face turned flush with dark red embarrassment and anger.
In the second row of the public gallery, Clara sat quietly, holding Marcus’s wife’s hand. She wore an elegant cream sweater, her hair falling softly over her shoulders, looking healthy, vibrant, and strong. Beside her sat Lily, holding a small plush bear that the hospital nurses had given her.
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"Your witness," Marcus told the defense team.
The defense attorney stood up, looked at the overwhelming forensic evidence, looked at the jury’s cold faces, and slowly sat back down. "No questions, Your Honor."
