"Has the jury reached a verdict?," the judge asked.
The jury foreperson, a middle-aged woman, stood up. "We have, Your Honor," she replied. She handed the paper to the bailiff. He took it to the judge. The judge read it, gave it back, and nodded. The bailiff took the paper back to the forewoman.
"The defendant will rise," the judge said. "Madam Foreperson, please publish the verdict," the judge instructed.
The woman unfolded the paper. "We, the jury, in the above entitled action, find the defendant, Darius Jacob Parker, in the crime of attempted murder in the attack of victim, Angela Marie Lopez, guilty," the woman said. The friends were all in the front row behind the prosecutor and squeezed hands. The woman went on. "In the crime of rape in the first degree against victim Angela Marie Lopez, we find Darius Jacob Parker guilty. In the crime of first-degree assault and battery on victim Angela Marie Lopez, we find Darius Jacob Parker guilty. In the crime of attempted murder on victim Nikki Roxanne Larkin, we find Darius Jacob Parker guilty."
Several misdemeanor charges also received guilty verdicts. The judge thanked the jury and released them from duty. He adjourned the court and two court officers took Darius away. A large bandage was still around his neck, where Nikki had stabbed him. He glanced at the group of friends.
The prosecutor looked at the friends. "There was never any real doubt, was there?," he asked them all with a big smile.
"Thank you," Nikki said as she hugged him.