Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Chapter 1

The First Turnabout

Phoenix Wright stood outside the courtroom doors in the waiting lobby, it was finally time.

Boy am I nervous.

'Wright!'

Phoenix jumped and quickly turned to see his trusted mentor Mia Fey standing behind him.

'Oh, h-hiya, Chief!' stammered Phoenix. Mia was already an expert in dealing with problems inside the courtroom. Mia was the only person Phoenix really knew closely.

'Whew, I'm glad I made it on time. I have to say I'm impressed, Phoenix!' said Mia.

Impressed? With what?

'Not everyone takes on a murder trial right off the bat like this. It says a lot about you.'

Oh, that.

'Um, thanks,' mumbled Phoenix. 'Actually, I owe my client a favour.'

'A favour? You know the defendant?' replied Mia.

'Yeah. He's kinda the reason I'm a lawyer in the first place.'

'You've never mentioned anything like this before!'

'I want to help him out any way I can! I owe him that much...'

Suddenly, a voice shouted.

'IT'S OVER!!'

What the-?

'MY LIFE! EVERYTHING! IT'S ALL OVER!'

Oh boy...

'Er, isn't that your client shouting like a maniac over there?' asked Mia.

'Yep,' replied Phoenix. 'That's him alright.'

'DEATH! DESPAIR! OHHH! I'M GOING TO DIE!!'

'Is he okay?' asked Mia.

'He'll live.'

Phoenix turned towards the sofa against the wall. Larry Butz had flopped down upon it and was wailing like a baby.

'Hey Larry,' said Phoenix.

'Tell them I'm guilty! Gimme the death sentence!' cried Larry.

'Larry! What's the matter?!' asked Phoenix.

'It's her... without her... I'm finished! Who could do this?! Who took my baby away?! Nick, you must know!' wailed Larry.

Your girlfriend? But I thought it was you? That's what the papers say at least. And you.

My name is Phoenix Wright. Here's the story: My first case is fairly simple. A young woman was killed in her home. They arrested her boyfriend. Unfortunately, that just happened to be Larry Butz, my best friend since grade school. There used to be a saying about Larry. 'When something smells, it's usually the Butz.' Normally, this would be true. He's not a very lucky guy. Most of the time though it's not his fault. I know he's good at heart. That's why I took this case. To clear his name.

'It's time, Phoenix,' said Mia.

They entered the courtroom and took their places. It wasn't the first time Phoenix had been here. He watched Mia perform trials many times. Now, however, it was his own turn.

'This court is now in session for the trial of Larry Butz,' said the Judge. The Judge was sitting in his usual position high above the court. In Phoenix's experience, the Judge seemed a bit mad but he usually got things right by the end.

Across from Phoenix sat Winston Payne, the prosecuting attorney for this case. Payne, unlike the judge, was a bit of a pushover. Not that he wasn't intimidating, he just lacked what was needed to win cases.

'The Prosecution is ready, Your Honour,' said Payne.

'The, um, defence is ready, Your Honour,' said Phoenix.

Oh boy...

'Hmm,' said the Judge. 'This is your first trial isn't it?'

'Er, yes it is, Your Honour. I'm pretty nervous to be honest,' replied Phoenix.

'What you do here today will determine whether your client is a murderer or innocent. I hope you get it right, both for yourself and your client,' said the Judge.

'Er, thanks, Your Honour,' mumbled Phoenix.

'Mr. Wright, seeing that you're a new lawyer, I think I should test you to see if you're ready,' said the Judge.

'O-OK,' stammered Phoenix.

Oh boy... Hands Shaking... mind going blank...

'I'll ask you a few simple questions. No doubt you'll be able to answer them quickly and correctly but I need to be sure you can handle this,' said the Judge. 'Firstly, who is your defendant?'

Defendant? That's the person I defend, right?

'The defendant is Larry Butz, Your Honour,' answered Phoenix.

'Good, good. Now tell me: Who was the victim?' asked the Judge.

Let's check the Autopsy Report... Aha!

'That would be Cindy Stone, Your Honour,' replied Phoenix.

'Correct again, Mr Wright. Now tell me: How did she die?'

That's in the Autopsy Report too. Let's see... "Cause of death: loss of blood due to blunt trauma."

'She was hit once with a blunt object, Your Honour,' answered Phoenix.

'Right again! Glad to see you can do your job, Mr. Wright. Let us proceed,' said the Judge. 'So, we'll start with a question for the prosecution. Mr. Payne?'

'Yes, Your Honour,' replied Payne.

'Mr. Wright just explained that the victim was struck with a blunt object. Can you explain to the courtroom what this "object" was?'

'The "object" was this statue known as "The Thinker". It was found on the floor next to the victim's body,' explained Payne.

'I see,' said the Judge. 'The court accepts "The Thinker" into the evidence.'

'Wright,' Mia said. 'Be sure to pay attention to all evidence that you obtain whilst in the courtroom. It is your "ammunition" if you like."

'Okay, it's time for you to call your first witness, Mr. Payne,' said the Judge.

'Okay, the prosecution calls the defendant Larry Butz to the stand,' said Payne.

'Let's hope Larry doesn't say anything unfortunate,' said Mia.

Uh-oh. Larry gets excited easily. Let's hope he stays cool.

Larry Butz walked up onto the stand in front of the courtroom.

'Ahem.' Payne cleared his throat. 'Mr. Butz, is it true that the victim was your girlfriend and recently she dumped you?'

'Hey!' shouted Larry. 'We were a brilliant couple! Like... like Romeo and Juliet! Or... or Cleopatra and Mark Anthony! She didn't dump me. She was just not answering my phone calls or... or seeing me...! Why do you care?!'

'Mr. Butz,' said Payne, 'What you are saying is generally what we mean by "dumped". She had abandoned you and was seeing other men! You do know that she had just returned from abroad with another man just one day before she was killed.'

'What?! Lies! All lies! I don't believe any of it!' shouted Larry.

'Your Honour,' said Payne. 'I have here the victim's passport. As this shows, she was in Paris until the day before she died.'

'Hmm,' murmured the Judge. 'It is as you said. She was not here until the day before she died.'

'No way...' said Larry.

'The victim was a model but didn't receive much income.' said Payne. 'By the looks of things, she had several "Sugar Daddies".'

'Daddies? Sugar?' replied a confused Larry.

'Older men who gave her money and gifts,' replied Payne. 'she took their money and used to fund her own lifestyle. We can see what kind of person Ms. Stone really was. So Mr. Butz. What do you think of her now?'

'Wright,' said Mia. 'Larry answering that question might not be a good idea.'

Good point. Who knows where Larry might put himself if he blurts something out. So...

'Mr. Butz had no idea that she was seeing other men!' said Phoenix. 'That question is irrelevant!

'Oh,' said Payne, clearly deflated.

'Nick!' shouted Larry. 'Why is it irrelevant? That cheating... she-dog. I'm gonna die! I'm going to meet her in the afterlife and solve this!'

'Er, let's continue with the trial, shall we?' said the Judge.

'The accused has a clear motive,' said Payne.

'Yes,' agreed the Judge.

This isn't good.

'Next question!' said Payne. 'You went to the victim's apartment the day she died didn't you?'

Larry Gulped.

'Did you or not?' asked Payne.

'Maybe...' replied Larry.

Larry... Don't make this harder!

'Did you go?' asked Phoenix.

'Er, yeah I went,' replied Larry.

The people inside the courtroom clamoured. The Judge banged his gavel: 'Order! Well, Mr. Butz?'

'Dude, chill!' said Larry. 'She wasn't in. So, like, I didn't see her.'

'Objection!' shouted Payne. 'He is obviously lying!'

'Why?' asked the Judge.

'I have a witness, Your Honour,' said Payne. 'One who can prove Mr. Butz is lying.'

'That would make things simple,' said the Judge. 'Who is your witness?'

'The man who found the victim's body,' said Payne. 'He saw Mr. Butz fleeing the scene just before he made the gruesome discovery!'

The courtroom again clamoured in shock.

Larry was sweating.

Don't sweat! It'll make you more conspicuous!

'Order! Order!' cried the Judge. 'Please bring out this witness.'

'Right away, Your Honour!' said Payne. 'On the day of the murder, my witness was selling newspapers in the building where the murder happened. I call Mr. Frank Sawhit to the stand.'

A man dressed in a purple suit stood at the stand. He rocked side to side with his hands clasped together like a professional salesman who had just sold something particularly profitable.

'Mr. Sawhit,' said Payne, 'You sell newspapers, correct?'

'Oh yes!' said Sawhit.

'Please testify as to what you saw, Mr Sawhit,' said the Judge

My first testimony. Better not screw this up!

Mr. Sawhit began:

'I was selling newspapers, door-to-door when I saw a man fleeing an apartment. He left the door open behind him so I thought he must have been in a hurry. I had a peek in the door to see why he was in such a rush. That's when I saw a woman lying on the floor... dead! I couldn't go inside, I was too scared. I thought to call the police immediately! However, the phone in her apartment wasn't working. I used a public phone in a nearby park. It was 1pm exactly at the time. It was definitely the man sitting over there!'

'Why wasn't the phone working?' asked the Judge?

'There was a power cut at the time of the murder, Your Honour. And unluckily for Mr. Sawhit, the phone was one that doesn't work without electricity,' said Payne. 'Here is a record of the blackout.'

Phoenix took a copy.

'Time for your cross-examination, Mr. Wright,' said the Judge.

Look for lies or inconsistencies right? Let's have a think back to what he said... Aha!

'Hang on one minute,' said Phoenix. 'You say it was 1pm when you found the victim's body, correct?'

'Yes. Definitely,' said Mr. Sawhit.

'Impossible,' said Phoenix simply. 'That is a complete contradiction of the autopsy report! It clearly states that she died sometime after 4pm! At 1pm, she was still alive! So where does this three hour gap come from?'

'Ah! Oh, that... erm...,' mumbled Sawhit.

He was rocking back and forth faster than before now.

'Objection!' shouted Payne. 'He just simply forgot the time!'

'Unlikely,' said the Judge. 'Mr. Sawhit, why were you sure it was 1pm?'

'I... I... That's a good question!' replied Sawhit.

'Well done, Wright!' said Mia

'Wait! I know why I thought it was 1pm now!'

'Testify again then,' said the Judge.

Mr. Sawhit testified again:

'When I found the body, I heard the time. A voice was speaking, most likely from the television...'

'Objection!' shouted Phoenix. 'Hold it right there! As Mr. Payne said, there was a blackout!'

'Oh!' cried Sawhit.

'You couldn't have heard a television!' said Phoenix.

'I... well...' stammered Sawhit.

'The defence makes a good point. Can you explain this Mr. Sawhit?' asked the Judge.

'No, it's puzzling to me too!' said Sawhit. 'Ah wait! I remember!'

'Please testify again Mr. Sawhit. And make sure you get it right this time. These mistakes are harming your credibility.'

'Apologies, Your Honour,' said Sawhit. 'It must have been the shock of finding the body!'

'Very well,' said the Judge. 'Please testify again.'

'I didn't actually hear the time, I saw it. There was a table clock in the apartment, right? The murder weapon! The killer used it to hit the victim! That was what I saw!' said Sawhit.

'That would make sense,' said the Judge. 'Please continue Mr. Wright.'

'Okay,' said Phoenix. He already had spotted Mr. Sawhit's fatal error. 'Bad move Mr. Sawhit. The murder weapon wasn't a clock, it was this statue! Now how is this a clock?'

'Wha-! Y–you with your objections and your evidence! Just who do you think you are!' cried Sawhit. He was holding his fist up in anger now.

'Answer the question, Mr. Sawhit!' said Phoenix.

'I saw it there!' said Sawhit. 'That's a clock!'

'Your Honour,' said a sweaty Payne, 'If I may...'

'Yes, Mr Payne,' asked the Judge.

'The statue is as the witness stated. It is a clock. The neck is a switch. You tilt it and it says the time out loud. And I submitted it as a statue, as it doesn't look like a clock. My apologies.'

'I see,' said the Judge. 'So it was a clock after all. Well Mr. Wright? It appears that the witness was correct. It is a clock after all. Any problems now Mr. Wright?'

'Of course,' said Phoenix. 'The only way he would have known it was a clock was if he held it himself. Yet he clearly said he never entered the apartment!'

'Hmm... That is true,' said the Judge.

'He obviously went into the apartment.' said Phoenix. 'It is the only way he would have known it was a clock!

'Prove it!' said Mr. Sawhit.

'Fine!' said Phoenix. 'I'll go one better and even prove you were the one who killed her! You hit her with the clock and as a result the clock spoke the time! That was the sound you heard!

The courtroom rumbled again.

'Order in the court!' shouted the Judge. 'This is interesting, please continue Mr. Wright.'

'Mr. Sawhit,' said Phoenix. 'The sound must have left quite an impression on you. This is understandable as the statue spoke to you when you hit the victim. You thought it initially only to be a statue. That's why you were so certain about the time!'

'Objection!' shouted Payne. 'W-w-what's the meaning of this? This is all baseless conjecture!'

'Baseless?' said Phoenix. 'Just look at the witness's face!'

Mr. Sawhit was still shaking in rage, fist still raised.

'Grrrr... Ngh...' growled Sawhit.

'Witness,' said the Judge. 'Please elaborate. did you strike the victim?'

'I... I... I never! I... I saw...,' stammered Sawhit.

What happened next was something Phoenix could not have ever imagined. Sawhit grabbed his hair and threw it straight at Phoenix's face where it stuck in place.

'Shutup shutup shutup!' cried the now partially bald Sawhit. 'I hate you! It was him! I saw him! He killed her and should die!'

'Your Honour,' said Payne. 'A-a moment please. There isn't any evidence whatsoever supporting the defence's claims!'

'Mr. Wright!' shouted the Judge.

'Yes?'said Phoenix.

'You claim that this sound came from the clock, do you have any evidence?' asked the Judge.

Got to think this through.

'I do Your Honour,' said Phoenix. 'Mr. Sawhit definitely heard this clock. If you sound the clock now, here in this courtroom, we will find out. May I, Your Honour? Let's listen.'

Phoenix tilted the clock just as Payne had mentioned earlier.

"... Beep!... I think it's 8:25!"

'That is certainly a strange way to announce the time!' said the Judge.

'Well,' said Phoenix, 'He is "The Thinker" after all. Mr. Payne, can you tell me the time right now?'

'It's 11:25...' said Payne. 'Ah!'

'As you can see,' said Phoenix, 'This clock is three hours slow! That matches the time between Mr. Sawhit said it was and the time the autopsy report said it was! So, Mr. Sawhit, now what can you say?'

'Hah! Hah hah!' laughed Sawhit.

Why are you laughing? You're going down!

'You forgot one thing! Whilst it seems like the clock it running slow, what does it prove?! How do you know it was running slow on the day of the murder?! Prove it, or your case is hopeless!'

Ah! How do I prove it? Dammit!

'Mr. Wright?' asked the Judge. 'It seems you lack the evidence to support your claim.'

Nooo!

'This means I cannot allow you to accuse the witness. This ends the cross-examination.'

'Look at this!' cried Sawhit. 'I come all the way down here and get treated like a criminal! Me, a criminal!'

You are sooo lucky Sawhit. I failed you Larry. I'm sorry.

'Not so fast Sawhit!'

'Mia!' cried Phoenix.

'Listen, Wright,' said Mia. 'Don't throw this away! Not like this!'

'But chief, it's over!' said Phoenix. 'I can't prove the clock was slow the day of the murder! Nobody can!'

'Try thinking outside of the box, Phoenix!' said Mia. 'Don't doubt the facts. Assume it was three hours slow and think through it! Ask yourself: "Why was the clock slow?" Figure that out and you'll have your proof! Can you think of a reason why the clock would be slow?'

'Ah! Wait!' cried Phoenix. 'I can prove it!'

'Well, Mr. Wright?' asked the Judge. 'Have you now found evidence to support your claim?'

'Yes, Your Honour.' said Phoenix. 'The victim was on holiday correct? She had only just returned home the day before the murder. As you may not realise, the time difference between here and Paris is nine hours! Meaning that the clock wasn't three hours slow after all! It was nine hours fast! She hadn't returned the clock to the correct time yet! That's why the time you heard was wrong, Mr. Sawhit! Is that enough proof, Mr. Sawhit? Or should I say Mr. Did It!?

Suddenly, Sawhit began frothing at the mouth and then fainted.

Gotcha!

The people in the courtroom all murmured to each other.

'Order!' cried the Judge. 'Well. this case has certainly turned out surprisingly! Mr. Payne, your witness?'

'He... he was arrested Your Honour,' said Payne.

'Very well,' said the Judge. 'Mr. Wright?'

'Yes, Your Honour?' said Phoenix.

'I'm impressed if I may be honest,' said the Judge. 'That was a very quick defence. One of the fastest ever! And you found the true culprit too!

'Thanks, Your Honour!' said Phoenix. He couldn't help feel pleased with himself.

'I can announce my verdict now. This court finds the defendant, Mr. Larry Butz: Not Guilty. Court is adjourned.'

Everyone rose and slowly filtered out of the Courtroom.

It turned out that Frank Sawhit was a common burglar. He used his newspaper salesman status to see when people were out of their house. That day, he saw Larry trying to go into the victim's house but she wasn't in. Sawhit entered and began to look around. Unfortunately, the victim returned home whilst he was still there! Startled, Sawhit grabbed the nearest object he could get his hands on... and killed her.

I won! I can't believe it!

'Well done, Wright!' said Mia.

'Thanks!' said Phoenix. 'I couldn't have done it without you though.'

'No, you fought all your own battles in there!' insisted Mia. 'I haven't seen such a good end to a trial in a long time.

Good to see the Chief is happy. I wonder how Larry must be.

'It's over!'

Larry appeared, tears streaming down his cheeks. 'Larry!' cried Phoenix. 'Why are you like this? You're supposed to be happy!'

'Aww Nick...' sighed Larry. 'Don't worry about me! I'll be dead soon!'

'Good!' cried Phoenix. Larry looked shocked. 'Ah, wait! I mean bad! Very, very bad! You're innocent Larry, the case is closed!'

'But Cindy,' moaned Larry. 'She's gone! Forever!'

But she didn't like you... ah never mind.

'Congratulations, Harry!' said Mia.

'H-Harry?' said Larry.

'Yes you!' said Mia. 'I can see the headlines now: "Harry Butz, Innocent!"'

Larry brightened up; 'Heh... thanks! I owe you one! I won't ever forget this! Let's celebrate! Dinner? Movie? There's a really cool movie out now! My treat!'

'Oh, I couldn't,' said Mia.

What about me? I think the movie looks good...

'Oh hey!' said Larry. 'Take this!' He thrust the statue of "The Thinker" into Mia's arms.

'A present? For me?' asked Mia. 'Wait, this was the evidence!'

'Actually,' said Larry, 'I made it for her myself. 'I made one for her and one for me.

'Really?' said Mia. 'You made this? Well thank you! I'll keep it as a memento.'

'Yo, Nick,' said Larry. 'Can you believe it? I really liked Cindy... And she was playing me for the fool!' Larry broke down again. 'Don't that make you wanna cry?'

'Larry,' said Phoenix, 'Cindy did think a lot of you.'

'Now don't worry about it,' said Larry. 'you don't have to be nice and sympathetic. 'Sokay.'

'Think about it Larry,' said Phoenix. Phoenix showed Larry the statue again. 'this is proof you weren't just some chump to her. Remember, you made her this clock. She took it with her when she travelled. It's a bit too heavy for any old clock don't you think? She'd only take it for one reason.'

Larry was blushing now.

'Well,' said Phoenix,' Make of it what you will.'

'I'm glad you were my lawyer, Nick,' said Larry. 'Really, thanks.'

I hope he's better now.

'Well, I think our work here is done!' said Mia. 'Shall we head off?'

'I guess so!' said Phoenix

'Let's get dinner,' said Mia. 'Let's celebrate to innocent Butz!'

'Okay!' said Phoenix.

'By the way,' said Mia, 'You were saying that you became a lawyer partly because of Butz. You'll have to tell me more sometime! Maybe over drinks?'

And that was the end of my first case. Larry was happy that I was his friend but I'm pretty sure he's not going to pay me unless his present to Mia counts. I didn't know yet, but that clock would soon be back, at the centre of another incident. And my promise to tell Mia about me and Larry's past... would be one I couldn't keep.

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