The People of New York v. Buffy Summers

by: Sam Lincoln (sam@cosmic-hippo.org)

Rating PG-13
Summary: An unusual case crosses the desk of Assistant District Attorney Jack McCoy.

Spoilers: Post series finale for Buffy. Set in the current season of Law and Order, but no real spoilers.

Disclaimer: All characters from Buffy are property of Mutant Enemy. All characters from Law and Order are property of Wolf Films/USA Studios. Used without permission, blah blah.

The People of New York v. Buffy Summers: Chapter Five

-135 Campbell Road
-Red Bank, New Jersey
-Monday, June 17

Southerlyn knocked on the door to her cousin Kate Lockley's small house in suburban New Jersey. She did not have to wait long before the door opened a crack and she saw the face of her cousin peering outside.

"Kate, hi, it's Serena," Southerlyn said cheerfully.

"Hello Serena, what brings you down here?" Kate asked.

"I wanted to ask you something about what happened to you in Los Angeles," Southerlyn replied.

"I'm trying very hard to forget 'what happened.' That's the reason I'm working the night shift in the ass end of New Jersey instead of a detective's job in Robbery Homicide." The bitterness in Kate's voice was evident to Southerlyn.

"Kate look we've arrested a girl who claims she's a vampire slayer. I know you've dealt with this supernatural stuff before..."

Kate opened the door the rest of the way. "So you arrested the Slayer, that's funny. Come on in."

Southerlyn followed Kate into the living room. She sat down on the patched second hand sofa that occupied the middle of the room. "So you know about the Slayer?"

Kate sat down in what was once a matching easy chair to the sofa. "I've heard a few things," she admitted.

"What have you heard?"

"That she slays vampires."

"And you believe that?"

Kate shrugged, "It would be silly of me not to, I've staked a couple."

"You've killed vampires."

"For a little while after the LAPD let me go I worked as a freelance vampire hunter. I stopped doing that in a hurry though, too short a life expectancy. So why did the NYPD arrest the Slayer, and which one?"

"Her name is Buffy Summers and she stabbed a man to death."

"Buffy, you arrested Buffy? Oh Angel is going to have a conniption."

Southerlyn glanced down at the piece of paper she held containing the names of the defense witnesses. "So you know who this Angel person is?"

"Yeah he's a...private investigator from LA. From what I gathered he and Buffy dated for a couple of years."

"You were going to say something else, what was it?"

Kate shook her head, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, I didn't at first either. You have to see it for yourself."

"Come on Kate, help me out here," Southerlyn pleaded.

"Ok Serena, go tell your boss to release the Slayer and forget you ever saw her."

"You can't be serious."

"There are things out there Serena, dark things. Things older than humanity. We're powerless in this fight, and our only hope is people like Buffy Summers."

"You know I can't just unlock her cell, even if what you said is true."

"In that case, good luck Serena you're going to need it."

The two cousins rose and awkwardly hugged, "Thanks for you help," Southerlyn said.

"Serena, one more thing. Don't think you're holding the Slayer in custody against her will. If she wants to break out, she will, and there isn't a damn thing you can do to stop her."

-Bellevue Mental Hospital
-Tuesday, June 18

McCoy and Southerlyn walked into one of the interview rooms of Bellevue and found Miller and Agent Finn waiting for them. "Looking to talk deal Donald?" McCoy asked as he sat down from the defense attorney.

"Not unless you're willing to agree to dismiss the charges," Miller replied.

"You know I can't do that," McCoy said.

"Then this is just a social call."

"You're wasting my time," McCoy huffed.

"Come on McCoy, aren't you even the least bit interested in meeting this girl?"

Just then the door opened and a guard lead Buffy into the room. Her hair was disheveled and her eyes had a glassy look about them. She slowly took stock of the room. Her gaze finally settling finally on Agent Finn. "Riley?" she managed to say, "Is that you?"

Riley stood up and walked over to Buffy's side. "It's ok Buffy, it's me." He lead Buffy over to the table.

"What are you doing here?"

"Willow called Giles and Giles called me," Riley explained. "We can talk about it more later."

"Ok Jack, just what sort of deal are you offering? I'm not saying I'm listening, but I'm curious," Miller asked.

"Who's this guy?" Buffy asked Riley in a loud whisper.

"He's your new lawyer," Riley replied.

"Oh, he looks all legal eagle," Buffy observed.

"The same as before. Miss Summers remains here getting the treatment she obviously needs," McCoy said to Miller.

"Oh no you don't!" Buffy shouted. "There's no way you're locking me up in this place!"

"You're hardly dealing from a position of strength Miss Summers," McCoy said harshly.

"I'll show you a position of strength!" Buffy threatened.

"Buffy, pummeling the district attorney won't help your case," Riley warned.

"No, but I can take him hostage and break out of here."

"That wouldn't help either and you know it," Riley said. "We'll get you out of here, trust me."

Buffy stared at McCoy a long moment before shrugging her shoulders. "Ok fine, we'll do it your way...for now."

"If you think any of this little drama is going to intimidate you're sorely mistaken," McCoy told them.

"Who's trying to be intimidating?" Buffy asked. "I'm just telling it like it is. You won't be able to hold me prisoner. I don't care how deep a hole you throw me into. I'll claw my way out." Buffy stared straight at McCoy without blinking.

"All right," Miller said as he cleared his throat. "So you're not willing to deal Jack?"

"If anything I'm even more convinced your client needs to be locked up," McCoy replied. He kept his gaze locked on Buffy.

Miller sighed, "Very well, we will see you in court."

-Office of EADA Jack McCoy
-Tuesday, June 18

"So how'd the meeting at Bellevue go?" Branch asked as he walked into McCoy's office.

"Skoda was right, that girl is so insane she acts sane."

"The odometer's flipped back to zero huh?" Branch sat down on McCoy's sofa.

"I've seen plenty of crazy people Arthur, but never one as convinced she was right."

"still, you have to wonder why the Department of Justice is sticking its nose into this."

"And we're no closer to figuring that out then when they first showed up."

"Unless the girl is telling the truth."

"That's preposterous and you know it!" McCoy snapped.

"Do you have an explanation that's less preposterous?" Branch countered.

"Ok fine, for the sake of the argument let's say that Buffy Summers is telling the truth, and that Nicholas Carstairs was a demon. Does that change anything?"

"I don't know, does it?" Branch rhetorically asked McCoy.

"He was a legal resident of New York City, with no previous criminal record. By law he was an innocent man when Miss Summers killed him."

"So even if she's not crazy you're still going forward?"

"She took the law into her own hands. What if she was wrong? At the bare minimum it's manslaughter."

"I think I'm going to clear my schedule tomorrow, this is going to be a hell of a case to watch," Branch chuckled.

-Superior Court
-Part 43
-Wednesday, June 19

"Good morning everyone," Judge Archer said as he entered the courtroom. "You may be seated." He instructed the small group before sitting down himself. "Let's get this over with quickly, does anyone want to make any opening remarks?"

McCoy stood up. "Miss Summers killed Nicholas Carstairs. She's either crazy, or guilty of murder." McCoy said succinctly before sitting down again.

Miller stood up and adjusted his suit. "Ms. Summers did kill Nicholas Carstairs, the defense is not denying that. However, Mr. Carstairs posed a danger to society and Ms. Summers was justified in her actions."

Judge Archer nodded, "Ok Mr. McCoy, call your first witness."

McCoy stood up, "The people call Detective Ed Green to the stand." Ed walked into the witness box and was sworn in by the bailiff. McCoy then had Ed walk them through the investigation up to the night of the murder. "Tell us about the night of June Twelfth."

"We staked out a club we thought the victim might be at. I saw the victim leave the club with a young woman. My partner and I followed the pair. The defendant ran up to the victim and dragged him down an alley. I chased after them and saw the defendant stab the victim."

"And at that point in time Mr. Carstairs was just a suspect in the murders of Rachel Dietz and Shawna Mills?"

Green looked puzzled. "At the time he was the most likely person who committed those crimes."

"But the only evidence you had was an eye witness statement that placed Nicholas Carstairs with one of the murder victims the night she was killed."

"Objection your honor!" Miller shouted, "Relevance?"

McCoy turned to face Judge Archer. "Your honor, the defense is claiming that Nicholas Carstairs was a threat to society. I am simply trying to show that the guilt or innocence of Mr. Carstairs is far from a sure thing."

Archer nodded, "I'll allow it. You may answer the question Detective."

"No," Green admitted. "We didn't have anything firm linking Carstairs to the crimes, but we did have some pretty strong suspicions."

"Thank-you Detective Green, no further questions."

"Detective Green, in your opinion was Mr. Carstairs responsible for the murders of Rachel Dietz and Shawna Mills?"

"Objections!" McCoy exclaimed, "Calls for speculation."

Judge Archer held up his hand, "Don't bother Mr. Miller I know what you're going to say. Mr. McCoy do I have to remind you how many times you've insisted Detective Green is considered an expert? You're overruled."

"Yes," Green said. "In my opinion Nicholas Carstairs killed Rachel Dietz and Shawna Mills."

"Thank-you. I have no further questions for this witness," Miller declared.

The next witness McCoy called to the stand was Detective Goran. As he had done with Green McCoy had Goran detail the steps of the investigation. "Did you see the defendant kill Mr. Carstairs?" McCoy asked.

"No," Goran replied. "But I did see attack Detectives Briscoe and Green."

"And after you arrested her?"

"We conducted an interview. During the course of the interview the defendant claimed that Nicholas Carstairs was a demon trying to destroy the world."

"Thanks-you detective, no further questions."

"Did you believe Miss Summers?" Miller asked on cross examination.

"No, she clearly was delusional," Goran replied.

"Let's keep the diagnosis to the professionals shall we?" Miller countered. "Detective Goran if you thought the defendant's claims were so ridiculous then why did you order tests to be run on a sample of the victim's blood?"

"I wanted to make sure we had all the boxes checked," Goran replied.

"And not because you thought Miss Summers might be telling the truth? You weren't the least bit curious to see if what she said was true?"

"No, that would be absurd," Goran said.

"But what if Miss Summers was telling the truth, and Nicholas Carstairs was a demon trying to destroy the world. Would that have make a difference to you?"

"Possibly," Goran admitted, "but only if Miss Summers was acting in self defense, which she wasn't in this case."

Miller nodded, "Thank-you, no further questions."

McCoy's next witness was the medical examiner. "The victim was killed by a single knife would to the chest. An examination of the wound showed it matched with the knife the defendant had at the time of her arrest."

"This is a remarkably thin autopsy file," Miller said when McCoy finished his questions. "Why is that?"

"The victim's family collected the body before I had a chance to do a complete autopsy."

"Isn't that a little unusual?"

"The family cited religious opposition to the autopsy. Since the cause of death was readily apparent I didn't see any reason not to grant their request."

"So at best you can say that the victim only looked human."

"I suppose so."

"Tell me, have the lab reports Detective Goran asked for finished yet?"

"Yes, but we're sending them out to another lab."

"And why is that?"

"Because the results we got back were flawed."

"In what way?"

"They weren't even remotely human. There was obviously something wrong with the equipment."

"Or Nicholas Carstairs wasn't human. No further questions." Miller smirked at McCoy as he walked back to his seat.

McCoy's final witness was Skoda, who testified about Buffy's mental state. "She's what I would call an incurable delusional. Her fantasy world is so tangible to her that it's merged with reality."

"So she doesn't know the difference between right and wrong?" McCoy asked.

Skoda shook his head, "She knows the difference, but to her the victim wasn't human so the normal rules of morality don't apply. A person like that on the streets is a ticking time bomb."

"Thank-you Doctor Skoda. No further questions your honor."

"Doctor Skoda, would you say my client is abnormally delusional?" Miller asked.

"Yes actually. I've never seen anyone with this degree of psychosis be so functional. Normally they're completely lost in their head."

"So she's the sanest crazy person you've ever seen?"

"That's one way of putting it," Skoda admitted.

"Now when you were interviewing my client there was a bit of an incident wasn't there?"

"Yes, Miss Summers became agitated and smashed a table."

"Just so we're clear the table in question was constructed from solid metal."

"It was metal," Skoda agreed.

"Didn't that strike you as unusual? Miss Summers is not a physically imposing young woman after all."

"I don't know, I specialize on the mind. You'd have to ask a physiologist if you want a conclusive answer as to what Miss Summers can and cannot break with her bare hands."

"It's certainly extraordinary wouldn't you say?"

"The first time I'd seen it happen."

Miller looked like he was formulating his nest question on the spot, even though everyone in the room knew better. "Doctor Skoda, isn't there another explanation to Miss Summers's claims?"

"You mean like they're true?"

"You said it yourself, she's more functional than is normal. Could that not mean she's sane?"

"If it wasn't for the fact that what she's claiming is ridiculous then yeah sure."

"Thank-you Doctor, I have no further questions your honor."

"Mr. McCoy do the people have anything else?"

McCoy stood up from his seat, "The prosecution rests your honor."

"Very well, we'll pick this up again in the morning. Until then court is adjourned."

-Office of DA Arthur Branch
-Wednesday, June 19

"So how did it go?" Branch asked McCoy. The two attorneys were sitting in Branch's office reviewing the progress of the case.

McCoy shrugged, "We made our case."

Branch got up and poured two drinks. He handed one to McCoy who took the glass.
"What about Miller?"

McCoy sipped his drink. "He didn't question any of the elements of the case. It looks like he's really going through with this claim that Nicholas Carstairs was a demon."

"What if he can prove that?"

"It doesn't matter, we don't know for a fact Nicholas Carstairs was responsible for those murders."

"But if he was a demon..." Branch countered.

"That's irrelevant," McCoy exclaimed. "Nicholas Carstairs was a citizen of this country, he was entitled to a trial by jury."

"He lied about his citizenship though, he claimed he was human."

"Then it's a matter for the judicial system and the police," McCoy declared. "There's no room for vigilantes."

"You'll get no argument from me on that score, but wouldn't you agree that there's a higher law that we're all accountable to?"

"Yes, but..." McCoy started to protest.

"Then maybe this Summers girl is some sort of agent for that authority. Who are we to stand in the way of that?"

"Do you want me to drop the case?" McCoy asked in exasperation.

"If it was up to you would you?"

"No," McCoy said decisively. "The integrity of the system is in jeopardy if there are some cases we cannot prosecute."

Branch nodded, "Good, that's what I wanted to hear. Good luck on cross tomorrow, and Jack?"

"Yes?"

"Bring some holy water...just in case," Branch chuckled to himself.

-to be continued-