1409 ZULU
NAVAL AIR STATION JACKSONVILLE
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA
Commander Meg Austin sits at the defense table in the courtroom. Jury selection had taken only a day, and yesterday the prosecution called the same witnesses who testified in the Article 32 hearing, hearing the same testimony. The only difference was there was a panel of sailors listening to the testimony.
"You may call your nexzt witness," says the Navy judge.
"The government calls Alexandra Galvin to the stand," says Commander Sturgis Turner.
The red-haired girl stands up in the courtroom.
And does not move.
"Miss Galvin, will you please take the stand?" asks the judge.
The girl walks towards the courtroom doors, and a Navy master-at-arms restrains her.
"Let me go!" she protests.
"Order!" yells the judge. "Order in the court!"
The jury and the vistors take a look at this spectacle which had arisen in this courtroom.
"Sasha!" yells Master Chief Petty Officer Henry Lindstrom. "Stop this at once!"
The girl immediately and silently walks to the witness stand. She is sworn in.
"Miss Galvin," asks Sturgis, "you lived with Master Chief Henry Lindstrom, correct?"
"Yes," replies the girl.
"And you told you that he was your father, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"For how long have you lived with Master Chief Lindstrom?"
"Twelve years, I guess."
"When you applied to the JROTC, you had to give a copy of a birth certificate, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"Indeed, it was this birth certificate which has since been shown to be a forgery."
"Objection!" yells Meg. "This court already threw out the forgery charges."
"That is correct, your Honor," replies Sturgis. "I intend to use the forgery to demonstrate the defendant's complicity in this kidnapping."
"Overruled," says the judge.
"What would you think of a man who forged a birth certificate?" asks Sturgis.
"I think he was trying to protect me," says the girl.
"No further questions," says Sturgis.
"Your witness," the judge says to Meg.
"Did Master Chief Lindstrom provide you with a home?" asks Meg.
"Yes," replies the girl.
"And he provided you with water, food, clothes, correct?"
"Yes."
"He made sure you had an education."
"He inspired me to go to ROTC and apply for the Naval Academy, ma'am."
"In general, how did the master chief treat you?"
"Like a daughter," replies the girl.
"No further questions," says Meg.
"The government rests its case, your Honor," says Sturgis.
"The defense will begin its case tomorrow," says the judge, banging the gavel.
Meg and Lindstrom walk out of the courtroom; they notice the girl getting into a car. A light drizzle comes from the clouds above.
"I've been having those thoughts about this situation, ma'am," says the master chief. "I was thinking about what her parents went through these past fourteen years."
"You should have called the police when your daughter brought her to your home," replies Meg.
"Well, Commander, that is water under the bridge. I just want the best for Sa..Alexandra."
ooooooooooooo
1520 ZULU
"Excuse me, Commander Austin," Meg hears as she sits behind the steel desk in her temporary office, reviewing notes.
"Hello there," says Meg as she faces NCIS Special Agent Paula Cassidy. "How may I help you?"
"NCIS recently re-opened the investigation into the murder of Stephanie Lindstrom," says Cassidy. "We wish to ask Master Chief Lindstrom some questions, with your permission, of course."
"I'll discuss it with him," replies the commander.
After Cassidy leaves, Meg checks her voice mail messages. There is a message from General Cresswell, and even a message from the production staff of the Fox television show America's Most Wanted. The Galvin case was first featured over a week ago and then was featured again last Saturday.
She looks at her notes again, hoping to find more people to testify for the defense.
ooooooooooooo
2105 ZULU
LINDSTROM RESIDENCE
"So your daughter Stephanie claimed to be in a cult," says Agent Cassidy, as she sits with the Lindstroms and Commander Meg Austin.
"That's right," replies Barbara Lindstrom. "She didn't want Sasha to grow up there."
"She said something about young girls being married off," added Henry Lindstrom.
"Did she give any names?" asks the NCIS agent.
"No," replies Mrs. Lindstrom.
"Do you have my emergency cell number with you?" asks Cassidy.
"I think so."
"I'd better give it to you anyway. This case is generating too much publicity; the director has some concerns."
ooooooooooooo
DAY 18
1322 ZULU
NAVAL AIR STATION JACKSONVILLE
"You may call your first witness," says the judge.
"The defense calls Matilda Shepard to the stand," says Meg.
A woman in a United States Navy service uniform walks to the stand and is sworn in.
"Tell this court about your post," says the Navy lawyer.
"I'm a commander in the United States Navy," says Matilda Shepard, "and I am senior instructor for the Tyler High School Navy Junior ROTC in Jacksonville."
"And what do you do as senior instructor, Commander?"
"I train the students in drills and marches and military discipline," replies the ROTC instructor. "I take them on field trips to Navy bases and ships and I conduct evaluations."
"During your tenure as an ROTC instructor, did you have a student going by the name of Sasha Lindstrom?"
"Yes, Commander."
"And how was she?"
"She was an excellent student and an excellent midshipman. During her later years in the ROTC program, she even mentored some of the freshmen midshipmen. I helped her apply for the Naval Academy."
"Did Midshipman Lindstrom ever report any family problems?"
"Objection," says Sturgis. "Hearsay evidence."
"Commander Shepard is testifying as a character witness about the girl who was known as Sasha Lindstrom," replies Meg. "She is qualified to answer."
"Overruled," replies the judge. "Answer the question, Commander."
"Yes, sir. Sasha Lindstrom never reported any family problems to me."
"No further questions," says Meg.
"Commander Shepard," asks Sturgis, "did the girl you knew as Sasha Lindstrom ever talk to you about the man who was presumed to be her father?"
"She mentioned that he was a Navy musician," replies Shepard. "I actually met him a couple of times; he is right here in this courtroom. A fine father figure, if you ask me."
"But did she go into detail about her family relationship?"
"No."
"Are ROTC midshipmen required to attach a copy of their birth certificate as part of the application?"
"Yes."
"So then that would mean that the birth certificate for Sasha Lindstrom was a forgery."
"Yes."
"No further questions."
oooooooooooooooo
1349 ZULU
"I play the clarinet," says Senior Chief Petty Officer Jeffrey Morton. "I also conduct evaulations of the band musicians, keep track of inventory, and aide the conductor and the band's master chief.
"And how long have you know Master Chief Lindstrom?" asks Meg.
"I've known the master chief for over ten years, ma'am."
"And what is your opinion of him, Senior Chief?"
"He was alweays willing to help out with the other musicians, to go out of his way to mentor them. He drove them hard during practice, but he never let any of us down."
"No further questions."
"Did Master Chief Lindstrom ever mention having a daughter?" asks Sturgis.
"Yes, sir," replies Senior Chief Morton.
"Did he ever mention that his daughter was living with him?"
"Yes, sir."
"It has been determined that the girl living with him and his wife was not his daughter. Therefore, he lied about it."
"Objection," says Meg. "Argumentative."
"Sustained," says the judge.
"Fingerprint records revealed that the girl living with him is Alexandra Galvin, and that he was not her father," says Sturgis. "What do you think of that?"
"I don't know, sir," says Morton.
oooooooooooooooooo
1421 ZULU
"He's an excellent musician," says Commander Roger Davis. "He always goes out of his way to help the team, not like some other band members."
On cross-examination, Sturgis asks the commander about the forged birth certificate.
oooooooooo
1630 ZULU
"Court will recess until 1500 hours," says the judge.
Meg and Lindstrom leave the courtroom.
"How are you feeling, Master Chief?" asks the commander. "you a bit nervous?"
"Yes, ma'am," replies the master chief petty officer.
"Just answer each question clearly. If there is anything more you want to tell me about the case, now is the time to do it."
ooooooooooo
1903 ZULU
"The defense calls Henry Lindstrom to the stand," says Meg.
Master Chief Petty Officer Henry Lindstrom rises out of the defense table and walks towards thw witness stand. He is sworn in.
"You realize, Master Chief," says the judge, "that you waive your privilege against self-incrimination, and that refusal to answer a question can be construed as evidence of guilt?"
"Yes, sir," replies the master chief.
"You may proceed, Counselor," says the judge.
"State your rank and post for the record," says Meg.
"I am a master chief petty officer and a violin player for the Jacksonville Naval Air Station band," says Lindstrom. "My duties include performing in concerts, practicing, maintaining the readiness of the band, and aiding and advising the conductor."
"And you are married, correct?"
"Yes, ma'am. To my wife Barbara for thirty-six years."
"Did you and your wife have any children?"
"We had a daughter, Stephanie."
"Did Stephanie ever claim to have a daughter of her own?"
"Yes."
"And that girl lived with you and you and your wife raised her as your own daughter, correct?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Explain to this court how that came to be."
"When she was a teenager, Stephanie got involved with drugs. She was about to mess up her life when she decided to come clean. There was this private rehab program. She even made new friends- all of them clean-cut, even avoiding the sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll that was prevalent during the '80's. We thought she had turned a leaf and would go on. But then she started to find fault with us, and then when she was seventeen, she ran away, leaving a note telling us that we were not good enough to be considered her family. You can't imagine how that felt, ma'am. For six years we wondered what happened to her. Then in '94, she came back with this red-haried little girl, looked to be about five years old. She told us that the girl's name was Sasha, and that she was her daughter. She said sahe had joined a nomadic cult.She saw how dangerous they were. She told me that they had girls wed to the cult leader even as early as twelve years of age. She didn't want that to happen to Sasha. She also told us that the cult was tracking her down, and asked us to take care of her daughter. So we raised this girl we believed to be our granddaughter."
"What happened to Stephanie?"
"She ..Stephanie was found murdered near San Diego," replies Lindstrom.
"Defense Exhibit C, your Honor," says Meg. "A homicide report, by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, of Stephanie Lindstrom. Did you ever forge a birth certificate under the name of Sasha Lindstrom?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Why did you do this, Master Chief?"
"So she could go to school and get an education."
"And you provided her with food, right?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"And medical care?"
"We made sure to take her to the doctor on base."
"And you assisted with her education?"
"Of course, ma'am. I fully supported her application to the Naval Academy."
"Why did you raise this girl?"
"She needed our help. We believed her to be all that was left of Stephanie."
"No further questions."
"Master Chief," says Sturgis, "you just admitted to forging a birth certificate."
"Yes, sir," replies the master chief. "I did it so the girl, Alexandra, could go to school."
"Now, you testified that your daughter brought this girl home, claiming she was her mother, with this story about some cult, asking you to take care of her. Has it ever occured to you, Master Chief, to call the police?"
"We asked Stephanie to go to the police," says Lindstrom. "She refused to file a police report, and fled."
"What about afterward? What about bringing the girl to the police station, to at least check out if she was really Stephanie's daughter as she claimed?"
"What could we tell the police? That there is some cult out there. Stephanie didn't even give names or descriptions. Telling the police what she told us hasn't done anything to bring her murderers to justice."
"What about the girl, Master Chief? It never occurred to you to ask them to find out whom this girl really was?"
"We just lost our daughter, Commander! She was all that was left of her!"
"David and Catherine Galvin lost their daughter for fourteen years! Fourteen years, Master Chief. Fourteen years of wondering whether she was dead, or being unspeakably abused. Fourteen years of holidays and birthdays, with their missing daughter shadowing over them."
"Objection, your Honor," says Meg. "Argumentative."
"Sustained," says the judge. "Commander, save your closing arguments for closing arguments."
"I have no further questions, your Honor," says Sturgis.
"The defense rests its case," says Meg.
"Witness is excused," says the judge. "Closing arguments on Monday at 0930."
Master Chief Lindstrom steps off the witness stand, visibly shaken.
"You okay?" asks Meg.
"No, ma'am," replies the master chief. "I'll be off to the enlisted men's club."
Lindstrom leaves the courtroom, his heart still beating irregularly and rapidly.
ooooooooooooooo
2212 ZULU
Master Chief Henry Lindstrom parks his blue Infiniti inside the garage of his Jacksonville home. He steps out of the vehicle, removing his hat.
The living room is dark, with only the outlines of furniture visible.
"Don't turn on the lights," says a voice.
"Who is this?" asks the Navy violin player.
"Look towards the kitchen."
Lindstrom looks towards the kitchen, illuminated only by one fluorescent light. He can see his wife Barbara.
A man with long hair and a goatee is pulling her blond hair and head back, and holding a boxcutter to her throat.
"We cut the phone lines, sailor," says the voice.
"Move any closer and I'll slit this bitch throat," says the man with the box cutter.
"What do you want?" asks Lindstrom.
"Take us to the girl," says the man standing behind him.