For the People Chapter 26
"The People call Captain Delia Burton," Kate announces, and a solidly built blond woman is quickly sworn in. "Captain Burton, are you a member of the Fire Department of New York?"
"Yes, I am," Delia responds calmly.
"And what is your position in the FDNY?"
"I'm the senior arson investigator."
"And did you participate in the investigation of the fire at the Woman's Health Clinic?"
"I oversaw that investigation."
"And what did that investigation involve?" Kate queries.
Delia looks straight at the jury. "The investigation of that fire involved a number of factors including the determination of burn patterns, the recovery of parts of an ignition device, and identifying the accelerant used. Those elements can provide the signature of a particular arsonist."
"And did you identify such a signature?" Kate probes.
"We did. The device used to set off the fire was a detonator assembled from a type of kit that was discontinued in 1992. We found parts of two components unique to that kit. The arsonist also used a relatively uncommon accelerant, carbon disulfide."
"Why is that particular accelerant relatively uncommon?"
"Because it has a very low flashpoint. Almost any heat can set it off, making it more dangerous for the arsonist. It also has an unpleasant odor, like rotten eggs. Unlike petroleum-based accelerants like gasoline or kerosene, it's not something most people would want to keep around. It would also be harder to obtain. The arsonist would most likely need to purchase it from a chemical supplier."
"Captain Burton, are you aware of which other fires this signature, the combination of the detonator and the carbon disulfide was found?"
"Until recently, I wasn't. But in the past few days, our department became aware of a pilot project to create a multi-state registry of arson signatures. A search of the initial entries in that registry revealed two other fires with the identical signature."
"A signature now associated with the defendant?"
"Yes," Delia confirms.
"At this time, I'd like to introduce the People's exhibit 1056, a printout from that registry." Kate glances sideways at Kudrow. "Information regarding this evidence became available to the People yesterday and was conveyed to the defense when we received it."
"Your Honor, the defense has not had time to fully evaluate this evidence," Kudrow protests.
"It sounds as if you've had about as much time as the People had, Mr. Kudrow," Judge Willis notes. "If you want to recall this witness later in the trial for additional cross, I'll permit it. And you're free to call a rebuttal witness when you present your own case. Ms. Beckett, you may continue."
"Captain Burton, where did the other fires with the identical signature take place?" Kate questions.
"One was in a machine shop in Ohio. The other was in a factory in New Jersey."
"To your knowledge, Captain Burton, were either of these locations connected in any way to activities that might draw objections from a religious community?"
"It would be hard to see how, Ms. Beckett. The machine shop was losing money due to a new competitor offering laser cutting. If the arson had gone undiscovered, the owner would have collected enough insurance money to have compensated for those losses. The factory made the packaging for a shampoo that had yogurt in it. It was bombed with lawsuits after people tried to eat the stuff. The owners tried to collect the insurance on that one too."
"Other than the criminal aspects of the arson, was there any connection between the owners of the machine shop and the factory?"
"I don't know, Ms. Beckett. The registry entry didn't contain that information."
"Perhaps the connection can be found elsewhere," Kate replies.
Kudrow pops up. "Objection, speculation!"
"Withdrawn," Kate allows. "That's all I have for this witness."
Kudrow stays on his feet. "Captain Burton, Can you say with absolute certainty that Mr. Duffy had anything to do with the fires in Ohio and New Jersey?"
"I can only say that the signatures match, Mr. Kudrow," Delia responds.
"And wouldn't it be possible for a copycat to use that signature?" Kudrow presses.
"The details of the signature were not publicly disclosed, Mr. Kudrow, and access to the registry requires official credentials. It's also only recently available. So the probability of someone else setting the fires would be extremely low," Delia declares.
"But not impossible," Kudrow insists.
"No, Mr. Kudrow," Delia concedes, "not impossible."
When Judge Willis calls a recess Kate notices a text from Rick flashing from her phone. "Call me! Urgent!" Kate hurriedly leaves the courtroom to contact her husband.
"Kate!" Rick exclaims breathlessly as he picks up the phone. "I saw the update on ZNN and checked out the fire in New Jersey."
"The shampoo packaging factory? How? Delia didn't give its name on the stand," Kate recalls.
"I know. She was smart. The place is involved in lawsuits out the wazoo. If she'd mentioned it by name, she could have been pulled in. But I recognized the story. It was quite a scandal for about five minutes until the news cycle jumped on the next move by a Kardashian. I'm still digging, but I went back and checked out some articles covering the blaze. The factory is owned by a Pennwood Diggsby. He made a big deal of his repentance and devotion to the Church of Everlasting Reward. But here's the thing, Kate. I did a lightning round check on that church. It's a sister institution to…."
"The Enter Salvation Community Church," Kate guesses.
"Got it in one."
"That's our connection to Duffy," Kate realizes. "How about the other one, the machine shop in Ohio?"
"I didn't have a name."
"I do. Delia gave it to me when we went over her testimony. It's Feckner's CNC." Kate spells out Feckner.
"OK, checking now. Ooh, Kate, this guy Feckner claimed to be quite the community activist, or he did before he was charged. Supposedly, he set up an apprentice program for the unemployed to gain job skills in machining. But it turned out that he was looking for free labor so he could cut costs in his own shop. Unfortunately for him, even with that advantage, he couldn't meet the competition. Thus the fire. Oh, wow! Here's the golden egg. Feckner's church provided credibility for his little scam. It's the Church of the Humble Hands. Checking affiliations. Aha! It's another sibling to The Enter Salvation Community Church. Duffy had himself a great hustle, Kate. For a fee, he answered prayers with tongues of flame."
"He went way beyond tongues of flame with the Women's Health Clinic. Fiona Morgan is dead. And no amount of feigned holiness is going to keep him from facing the consequences. Rick, can you put together what you've found and email it to me? I'm going to be putting up the lab techs who identified the accelerant and the pieces of the detonator. Their testimony will back up what Delia said. Judge Willis should adjourn after that. I want to take the church connections to Shapiro so we can figure out the best way to use them."
"So, how late are you going to be?"
"I don't know. It's Thursday, which is Shapiro's busiest day because he leaves early on Friday for the sabbath and can't work until sundown on Saturday. But he'll catch everything up on Sunday if he needs to and be ready early – very early – Monday morning."
"I have to say," Rick considers, "that a day of enforced downtime isn't a bad idea. God's commandment or not, we'd probably all be better off taking one."
"Is this your way of hinting that your pregnant wife should kick back a little?"
"It isn't. I really think Shapiro's got something. But I also think you should grab any chance you have to give yourself and the baby a break. And in case you and Shapiro are too involved in building strategy to eat, I'll keep something warm in the oven. Wow! I guess that makes two of us."
Kate swallows a giggle. "All right, Babe. See you later."
