Disclaimer: I don't own the Dukes of Hazzard, not making any money, just cheap thrills.
Warnings: Angst
There won't be any action in this chapter, it's time for the trial.
Rating: FRT
A/N: I'd like to thank Jade for her help with the trial. She helped keep me on track in regard to the defense strategy.
If You Love Something Set It Free
Chapter 11
Luke watched Bo tossing and turning in his bed, probably thinking about the trial starting tommorrow. "Can't sleep?" Luke whispered, having grown tired of watching his cousin's battle for sleep.
"Just can't get comfor...aw heck, that ain't true Luke. I can't quit thinking about tommorrow, I just wish it was over with. Wish I didn't have to testify at all. ...Luke I don't think I can do this, I can't figure out how I'm supposed to tell all those people what she did. What if they think I deserved it?" Bo managed to ask Luke, in spite of the lump in his throat.
Feeling that Bo probably needed the closeness, Luke left his own bed and moved to sit on Bo's. Reaching out a hand to brush back the hair from his cousin's face, Luke cursed Kathy Sue for the pain she had caused Bo. "Bo, ain't nobody with any sense gonna think you deserved what she did to you. Look at me cousin, you don't have anything to be ashamed of, she's the one who should be ashamed. I don't blame you for not wanting to testify, guess I wouldn't want to either, but if you don't she gets away with what she did. You don't want that do you?"
"Nah,...you really don't think anybody will blame me?" Bo asked, trying desperately to keep the fear from his voice.
"I won't lie to you Bo. What I said is nobody with any sense, but you know there will be people who think you must have done something wrong. But those people don't matter Bo, or they shouldn't. I'll tell ya cousin, if they can listen to what she did to you and think you deserved it... Well I wouldn't want to have anything to do with people like that. The people that matter, your friends and family they know you didn't do anything wrong, and the rest of them don't matter." Luke paused, considering what to say next, before he could, Bo pulled him in for a hug.
"Thanks Luke, I needed to hear that," Bo whispered, before releasing his hold. "Uncle Jesse and Daisy have been great, but they keep trying to tell me nobody will blame me, and I knew that wasn't true. ...Guess we better both try to get some sleep, huh? Go on back to bed Luke, I'll be okay now, thanks to you."
"You sure?" Luke asked, moving back to his own bed when Bo nodded his answer.
"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you are here today to hear testimony in the case of The People of the State of Georgia vs. Katherine Sue Shelton. Now you will hear witnesses, including the victim testify that Ms. Shelton, committed a series of crimes against her former boyfriend Beauregard Duke. For the record these crimes are: kidnapping, assault, rape and attempted murder. Ladies and gentlemen, the defense will attempt to claim that Ms. Shelton was insane at the time of committing these crimes. They will attempt to convince you that the victim drove her to these extreme measures. Ladies and gentlemen, nothing could be further from the truth. The truth is that Ms. Shelton knew exactly what she was doing and Beauregard Duke is the victim not the cause of these crimes. By the end of this case, we will prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Ms. Shelton is guilty on all counts and deserves to be incarcerated for her crimes. Thank you."
Mr. Williamson finished his opening remarks to the jury and returned to his seat, turning the floor over to the defense.
Mr. Pennington, the attorney for Kathy Sue sat at the defense table for several moments, as though gathering his thoughts. Finally rising to his feet, he approached the jury box. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my esteemed colleague has stated that my client has committed some terrible crimes. He claims that my client was very much aware of her actions at the time of taking them. I submit to you that he is wrong, we will not dispute that these crimes occurred, but we will prove that Kathy Sue was not in her right mind when they occurred. We will prove her innocence as a result of mental defect. How will we prove such a thing you ask? Why with the testimony of the victim himself, by the time this trial is completed you will have no doubt that my client was unaware she was committing a crime, and you will have to find her not guilty. Thank you," Mr. Pennington concluded and returned to his seat beside Kathy Sue.
"Order," Judge Avery called, banging his gavel on the bench in front of him. He wasn't surprised that the defense attorney's remarks had caused an uproar, but he couldn't allow it in his courtroom. "Mr. Williamson, are you ready to proceed?"
"Yes your honor, the prosecution calls Dr. Amos Appleby to the stand." Mr. Williamson waited while Dr. Appleby made his way to the witness stand and was sworn in. "For the record could you please state your name and occupation?"
"Yes sir, my name is Amos R. Appleby and I am a doctor."
"Thank you Dr. Appleby. Now doctor on the date in question did you have any contact with a Beauregard Duke?"
"Yes sir, I did."
"And what was the nature of that contact?"
"I treated him in the emergency room of Tri-County Hospital for a variety of injuries."
"Would you please tell the court exactly what type of injuries you treated Mr. Duke for?"
"When Bo ...uh Mr. Duke was brought into Tri-County he was in a state of shock. He had numerous bruises and small cuts covering his chest and sides. His chest and stomach were covered with welts from what appeared to be a belt. These were not the worst injuries however. Somebody used a knife and cut the initials KSS into Mr. Duke's chest and there was evidence of a sexual assault."
"How did Mr. Duke explain these injuries to you, doctor?"
"He didn't, when he was brought into the emergency room he was as I stated in a state of shock. This was not however physical shock, it was emotional. As a result of the trauma he had endured, Mr. Duke remained in a semi-catatonic state for a period of two weeks. It was only upon awakening from that state that he was able to confirm that he was in fact sexually assaulted."
"Dr. Appleby, did Mr. Duke tell you who had inflicted these injuries on him?"
"Objection, hearsay your honor." Mr. Pennington called out, coming to his feet.
"Your honor this is not hearsay, Dr. Appleby was given this information in the course of a medical examination of the victim, thereby allowing the testimony."
"Objection over-ruled, please answer the question Dr. Appleby," Judge Avery instructed.
"He said that Kathy Sue Shelton had been the one who hurt and sexually assaulted him."
"Thank you doctor, no further questions," Mr. Williamson ended his questioning and returned to his seat.
Rising from his own seat, Mr. Pennington approached the witness. "Dr. Appleby, in your opinion as a medical professional, are these the actions of a sane individual?"
"Well sir, they're certainly not the actions of anybody who's normal?" Dr. Appleby asked, not bothering to hide his irritation with the question.
"Objection your honor, the witness is a medical doctor and is not qualified to judge the defendant's sanity.
"Objection sustained, the jury is instructed to disregard the last statement."
"No further questions your honor," Mr. Pennington stated, turning away from the witness stand.
"Very well, you may step down, call your next witness Mr. Williamson."
"The prosecution calls Lukas K. Duke to the stand."
"Please state your full name and your relationship to the victim, for the record."
"Lukas K. Duke and Bo is my cousin."
"Thank you Mr. Duke. Now Mr. Duke can you tell me, in your own words the events leading up to your cousin's admittance to Tri-County hospital?"
"Yes sir, well the first we knew anything was wrong was when our friend Cooter called and said he had found our car the General Lee abandonded. When I got there, me and Cooter started searching and I found some shell casings that had been fired recently, Cooter had already looked around for Bo with no luck. So when I found the shells, I figured somebody must've kidnapped him and when Uncle Jesse got there we divided up and started searching. The next day me and my cousin Daisy were out searching when we ran into Hobie. He told us he had seen Bo the day before and he was with a girl but he looked sick. Well we knew that Kathy Sue had hurt Bo when they were dating so we figured maybe she was the girl Hobie had seen.
"Objection your honor, hearsay."
"Objection sustained, Mr. Duke please confine yourself to events you personally witnessed."
"Yes sir. Well soon as we got back into the car, we head to the Shelton's, when Kathy Sue opened the door we told her we knew she had been with Bo and that we wanted to know where he was. She wouldn't tell us so I held onto her, while Daisy started looking through the house. A few minutes later, Daisy screamed for me and I was sure she must have found Bo dead. When I got to the bedroom I saw Bo handcuffed to the bed and he looked like he was, well it's hard to describe but he looked lost. Well I was so surprised that Bo was alive that I let go of Kathy Sue, but Daisy stopped her from getting away while I found the keys and let Bo loose. After that I held Kathy Sue while Daisy went and called the sheriff and an ambulance. It was when Rosco got there that I found out about the cuts, Rosco pulled the cover back and after he saw Bo's chest he cuffed Kathy Sue and read her rights to her. A minute later the ambulance got there and they took Bo to the hospital."
"Mr. Duke, when you arrived at the Shelton home, was there anybody else present?"
"No sir, the only ones there were Kathy Sue and my cousin Bo."
"Mr. Duke, Dr. Appleby has testified that Beauregard was in a semi-catatonic state for two weeks. Could you tell us what that was like and what occurred when he woke up?"
"It was awful, he wouldn't talk to anybody and I was the only one he'd eat for. Daisy couldn't even get near him, every time she did he started shaking. It was hell for all of us, but I guess that was what he needed to heal some. After he woke up we found out the reason he was shaking whenever Daisy got near was cause he was afraid she hated him for what had happened to him. A few days after he woke up, Kathy Sue managed to get him alone and I don't know what she said but it got him upset. That night he had a nightmare, I woke up and found him gone. When I went looking for him I found him in the barn, he had used a propane torch to heat up a piece of strap iron and was...he was about to put it on his chest. I was able to stop him, but it wasn't easy and it hurt to know that he was so desperate to be rid of her initials he would rather burn himself to cover those scars she left him with." Luke told the courtroom, trying his best to keep the tears from falling, though despite his best efforts a couple escaped.
"Was there any further contact between Ms. Shelton and your cousin?" Mr. Williamson asked.
"Yeah a few days later, Kathy Sue came to the house when she thought Bo was alone. She told him that if she couldn't have him in this life, she'd have him in the next. Then she took a shot at him, but he ducked and she missed. After that Rosco made her drop her gun and he arrested her,...again."
"Thank you Mr. Duke, no further questions."
"Mr. Pennington, do you have any questions for this witness?"
"Yes sir, I do. Mr. Duke you stated that my client and your cousin were the only people present in the house when you arrived. How do you know that?"
"Well they were the only ones I saw, how do you think I know?" Luke growled, having a feeling where Mr. Pennington was headed.
"Mr. Duke I've been to the Shelton home, it's a rather large home. How can you be certain there was no one else present? Someone who perhaps was the true perpetrator of these heinous acts against your cousin."
"Because Daisy searched the house before she found Bo, if there had been anybody else she would have seen them."
"So you are certain that Ms. Shelton, perpetrated these acts that one could only describe as insane."
"Yes sir, but I don't know that she's..."
"Your honor would you please instruct the witness to answer only the question put to him?"
"Mr. Duke that is enough, you are dismissed."
Luke looked at the judge in disbelief, he couldn't believe the judge was going to let that slimeball get away with twisting the truth like that. When he realized that the judge wasn't going to change his mind, he jumped to his feet and angrily left the courtroom. By the time Luke had finished his testimony it was lunch time and the judge called a two hour recess.
That afternoon when court resumed, Daisy was the first person called to the stand.
"Miss Duke, could you tell the court what you found at the Shelton home on the day in question?" Mr. Williamson asked.
"Well when Luke and me got there, Kathy Sue claimed she didn't know where Bo was but we didn't believe her. So Luke kept her at the door and I started searching, I was hoping I'd either find Bo or something to tell us where he was. When I found him he was laying on a bed and his hands were cuffed to it. He was covered in blood and bruises and he was naked. I was pretty sure that she had forced herself on him and I didn't figure he'd want anybody to see him like that, so I covered him up. When I did he flinched away from me, but he never said a word, just kept staring off into space. I don't know when but at some point I screamed for Luke and he came in with Kathy Sue. Well when he saw Bo he let go of her, and when it looked like she was going to try to leave I stopped her."
"Stopped her how?"
"I hit her, I don't know how many times, as many as it took to make sure she wouldn't get away." Daisy answered, glaring at Kathy Sue the entire time.
"Then what happened Miss Duke?"
"Luke came over and took a hold of her again and I went and called Rosco and an ambulance. Then I went back and stood guard over Kathy Sue, while Luke took care of Bo. After Rosco took her away the ambulance crew loaded Bo up and took him to the hospital."
Mr. Williamson asked a few more questions, similar to what he had asked Luke earlier. Afterwards, Mr. Pennington cross-examined Daisy, trying to paint doubt in the minds of the jury. Being careful, as he had with Luke to steer away from the events in the barn and the attempted murder, knowing that only made Kathy Sue look worse. After Daisy testified, Rosco was called to the stand. Both attorney's questioned the sheriff as to the events at the Shelton home and the events at the Duke farm several weeks later. As soon as Rosco's testimony was complete, the judge adjourned court for the day. When court reconvened the next day they would hear testimony from Jesse and Bo.
The next day when court convened, Jesse was the first person called to testify. As he hadn't been present at either attack and had not been the one to find Bo, his testimony didn't take long.
"Mr. Williamson call your next witness."
"The prosecution calls Beauregard Duke to the stand." As soon as Bo was seated and sworn in the questioning began. "Mr. Duke could you please state your name for the record."
"Yes sir, my name is Beauregard Duke, but I go by Bo," he answered nervously.
"Alright Bo, now I know this is difficult for you, but could you please tell the court what happened between you and Katherine Sue Shelton? In your own words."
"Well...um...me and Kathy Sue started dating senior year. At first it was real nice, but after awhile she started putting me down and then she started shoving me and slapping me. Well I couldn't hit her back, that wouldn't have been right and I guess I started thinking I deserved it, so I just kept dating her. Then my cousin Luke came home from the Marines and when he saw what was going on him and Uncle Jesse and my cousin Daisy convinced me that it was wrong. So I broke up with Kathy Sue, I didn't see her for a couple of months, then a couple of days before she kidnapped me I ran into her. I was on my way home and she's waiting on me..." Bo continued with his testimony, telling the jury everything that had happened to him at Kathy Sue's hands. When he had finished telling them everything, including the murder attempt that happened at the farm, he thought it was over. He was caught off guard when Mr. Williamson asked him another question.
"Bo could you tell us what you were thinking that night in the barn, when you attempted to burn yourself?"
Gasping in surprise it took Bo a moment before he could continue. "I wasn't really thinking straight, mostly I was just thinking that I didn't want to carry her marks no more. She told me earlier that day, that I belonged to her and that nobody would ever want to be with me as long as I had her marks on me. When I had a nightmare about it, about always belonging to her, I just knew that I had to get rid of her marks. I knew it would hurt a whole lot, but I...I just wanted to be free of her, that's all, I just wanted to be free." With those words Bo lost the battle and broke down.
"Your honor I'd like to request a twenty minute recess." Mr. Williamson requested of the judge.
"Court is recessed for thirty minutes. Baliff, help Mr. Duke to the witness room please."
It took all of Bo's energy to put one foot in front of the other as the baliff led him to the witness room. As soon as the door shut behind him, he collapsed into Uncle Jesse's arms. Jesse wanted to tell Bo that it would all be okay, but he couldn't do that. He had never lied to his kids before and he wasn't going to start now. He knew that yes it would be better eventually, but not right now and it would never be okay. Only better and that would take time. So he held Bo in his arms, and allowed him to sob out his fear and hurt. When Bo finally stopped crying, Jesse pulled back from him and tilted Bo's face up. "Feel better now?"
"Yeah, I guess. Thanks, sorry for carrying on like that," Bo apologized, looking away from his uncle in shame.
"You ain't got nothing to apologize for sprout. If anybody's got a right to break down it's you. Now you hold your head up boy, you got nothing to be ashamed of." When Bo finally looked at Jesse on his own, Jesse smiled, letting Bo see the pride shining in his eyes. "You done testifying?"
"No sir, judge just called a recess, give me a chance to calm down I guess." Just then the baliff knocked on the door and told them court was back in session. When Bo returned to the witness stand he was surprised to find that Mr. Pennington had no questions for him. He supposed it was like Mr. Williamson had told him last week , the defense would want him off the stand as soon as possible to keep the damage to their case to a minimum. After that the prosecution rested their case and the judge called recess until after lunch.
Returning from lunch, the defense called only one witness to the stand. "Your honor the defense calls Miss Katherine Sue Shelton to the stand."
"Miss Shelton could you for the record state your full name."
"Yes sir, my name is Katherine Sue Shelton, though I am generally called Kathy Sue." Kathy Sue answered sweetly.
"Now Kathy Sue, could you tell us did you date Bo Duke during your senior year of high school?"
"Yes sir I did, until his family broke us up."
"You say his family broke you up? Kathy Sue, Bo has testified that you were abusive towards him, is that true?"
"Why I don't know what he means by abuse. Of course sometimes I had to punish him, it is a woman's duty to guide a man. To make sure that he makes the most of himself, without a strong woman to push him, a man would just spend all of his time hanging out with his friends."
"So you don't think you were abusive?"
"Of course not, why that is just the most riduculous thing I ever heard," Kathy Sue protested indignantly.
"Of course, and after your break up, when you took Bo to your home. Why was that?"
"We belong together, I had to convince him of that and I knew the only way I could do that was to get him alone."
"Kathy Sue, did you beat and cut Bo Duke? Carving your initials into his chest? Did you rape him?"
Mr. Pennington demanded, shocking the courtroom into stunned silence.
"I had to, I didn't want to hurt him, but he had to be punished for leaving me. Bo understands that though, he knows if it weren't for his family we would still be together. He knows we belong together, that's why I put my mark on him, so he'll never forget."
"What about the rape? Did you rape him?"
"Of course not, that is a viscious lie his family made up. I didn't rape Bo, I made love to him. I just couldn't believe that they would try to take something beautiful and make it into an ugly thing. I know Bo says I forced him, but that's just because he's confused by their lies. You have to believe me, I only did what I had to in order to teach Bo a lesson. I had to make him see that we belong together, and his body knows that even if the rest of him is fighting it." When Kathy Sue finished testifying, Mr. Williamson had ony one question.
"Ms. Shelton, why did you attempt to hide what you were doing to Bo Duke?"
"I had to hide it because others wouldn't understand. They would say it was wrong and illegal. I didn't want to go to prison and be seperated from Bo."
After that both sides presented their closing arguments. The defense arguing that Kathy Sue was not aware that her actions were wrong and therefore she should be found not guilty by reason of mental defect. Mr. Pennington asked the jury to allow this girl to get the help she so desperately needed, help she couldn't get in prison.
Mr. Williamson argued that Kathy Sue was well aware that her actions were wrong, even criminal. Her own testimony had told them that she knew it was a crime. That her attempt to hide the crime was proof that she did not meet the definition for criminally insane. Therefore they must return a verdict of guilty.
As soon as closing arguments were presented, Judge Avery instructed the jury on their duty. Once the jury had left the courtroom to begin deliberations, the judge adjourned the court until the jury reached a verdict.
TBC
Well now that the trial is over, y'all get to be the jury. Is she Guilty which will result in a prison sentence. Not Guilty by reason of Insanity, which will result in her being confined in a State Hospital for the Criminally Insane; or Not Guilty which means she will go free. I know I already asked this in a manner of speaking earlier, however with this being the end of the trial the question is more specific. Majority rules so folks, tell me what you think of the story and cast your vote, please.