Episode 1: Turnabout Tickets
Part 1-5: Trial
"Court is back in session." The judge announced, making everyone's mouths go silent. "Bailiff, are the test results back?"
"Yes, your honor. Here you go." He handed her a piece of paper.
"I see… Tristen, it seems like you were correct…"
"Yes! I mean… Good! Hehe." Tristen blushed and scratched the back of his head.
"There was something else also…"
"What is it?"
"There was a new set of footprints and blood found on the dirt road!" The crowd went into an uproar.
(What?! H-How… What?!)
"What a tweest!" Lumos chuckled at the revelation.
(S-Shut up… I hate you…)
"…Mr. Trotter, why did you head back?" The judge asked.
"I'd be best if I'd explain…" Trotter tugged on his necklace.
Witness Testimony – The Road
I… I went back for a reason.
I guess you'd like to learn about it…
I would very like to tell you…
But…
My lips are sealed. Sorry.
"B-But…" The judge stuttered.
"Hold it! I can cross-examine this!" Tristen intervened. (I'll rip the truth from your cold hard hands!)
Cross-Examination – The Road
I… I went back for a reason.
I guess you'd like to learn about it…
I would very like to tell you…
But…
My lips are sealed. Sorry.
"Hold it! Why exactly are your lips sealed?"
"Argh!" Trotter quickly built up sweat.
"Just tell us." Tristen crossed his arms with a serious face.
"Urgh…"
"It's obvious that you have an internal struggle, and I think I know why."
"Huh?"
"You… Are being blackmailed."
"H-How did you know?!"
Tristen smirked. "Because you just told me."
"Grah!" Trotter pulled on his necklace with all his might, making the chain crack a little.
"I think I know who blackmailed you…"
"Who, Mr. Lawful?" The judge asked eagerly.
"Well, obviously it was…" Tristen closed his eyes. "…Gard Cooper! The only other one involved in this case!"
"Objection! Why would he want to blackmail Trotter?!" Erik intercepted.
"Because of this!" Tristen presented the forged construction papers. "This was forged by Trotter for Gard. The only reason he'd do that is if he was being controlled!"
"Objection! Why would that police officer want to do that?!"
(This is gonna be a bold statement…) "Because… Because he murdered Mike November!"
"What… WHAT?!" Erik accidentally backed up to fast, and slammed himself against the wall.
"That's… A bold claim Mr. Lawful." The judge said, even her flawless skin looked a bit stressed.
"I know. And that's why I intend to get to the bottom of this by having the accused testify!"
"…I object." Trotter said quietly. "I… I… I object!" Trotter ripped the necklace off of his personage, and the top buttons of his dress shirt fell open, revealing an open wound. "I object… I object… I…" He fell backwards, off of the witness stand.
"Is… Is someone going to help him?!" The judge yelled, triggering the bailiff to help him back up, and call an ambulance.
"Hmph…" Tristen crossed his arms in thought, as he waited patiently at the defense's bench.
"People of the court, Mr. Trotter would like to continue to testify on this matter through a camera. Any objections?" The bailiff asked.
"As long as he keeps living, no objections." The judge answered for everyone in the court room.
"Alright. Please give me a few minutes to set this up."
Those few minutes felt like hours, but they got through them, and right when the screen lit up with Trotter's face in a hospital bed…
"You were right." He said, feeling the stitches on his chest.
"Hm…? What about?"
"About Gard, stupid. He blackmailed me…" Trotter looked away from the screen.
"Could you tell us about the blood on the road?" The judge asked politely, remembering that she was in the same situation before.
"O-Of course." Trotter smiled at her. "I'll testify."
(Finally. We're getting some answers.)
Witness Testimony – The Blood and The Police Officer
I had begun to run away…
But then something pulled my necklace, choking me and forcing me to go back.
I turned around when it wasn't pulling… And he was there…
He stabbed me with a knife, giving me this cut, and splattering blood on the road.
Just before he was going to finish me off, I started talking. About how I could help.
I only assumed that he killed Mike… I wasn't sure.
But then he had just up and confessed right there.
He said that he'd easily convict me for his murder… And then he said that he'd kill me when I was locked up…
That's why I had to keep it a secret. From everyone. I… I'm sorry.
"You don't need to apologize. This wasn't your fault." The judge blinked her eyes a lot, trying to keep he tears from escaping.
"Your honor… Are you crying…?" Hazel asked.
"What?! No! Mr. Lawful, get on with your cross-examination!"
(Smooth, dad.)
Cross-Examination – The Blood and The Police Officer
I had begun to run away…
But then something pulled my necklace, choking me and forcing me to go back.
"Hold it! How hard was he pulling?"
"On a scale from one to ten? Eighteen." Trotter began feeling his stitches again.
(Ouch… That's gotta hurt…)
I turned around when it wasn't pulling… And he was there…
He stabbed me with a knife, giving me this cut, and splattering blood on the road.
Just before he was going to finish me off, I started talking. About how I could help.
"Hold it! Do you know if he took the knife with him? We could find it if..."
"It's no use. He threw it into a river. It's probably three states away." Trotter closed his eyes and sighed heavily.
(Darn. We could've had evidence against Gard…)
I only assumed that he killed Mike… I wasn't sure.
But then he had just up and confessed right there.
"Hold it! What were his exact words?" Tristen felt something surge in him. Like he had figured something out.
"He said, 'You've chosen the wrong time to negotiate… Right after I just killed your friend back there… You can forge things well right…?' He gave me a devilish smile and told me this…"
(Wait a second… He pulled him back… Stabbed him… And then blackmailed him?! What kinda logic is that?!) "Hold it! What kinda mindset was Gard going through to pull you back, stab you, and then blackmail you?! That seems hard to believe…"
"Well, I told you the truth… Look at my neck." Trotter lifted his head to show very dark violet bruising.
"That doesn't prove what order the words came in." Tristen crossed his arms and closed his eyes and thought. "…I'll trust you on this matter, but there's another problem…"
"What is it?" Trotter touched his stitching again.
"Why would he switch from a high caliber rifle, to a small knife?"
"How should I know?" Trotter felt one of the lines of his stitches.
"I don't know about you, but that guy could've gotten away with it if he used the rifle."
"Well… The police could have looked at the ballistic markings and tracked it back to him." Trotter started tugging on the stitches.
"Then why did he shoot Mike...?"
"Urgh… Agh!" Trotter tugged a little harder on his stitches. "Argh…"
"Gard is still blackmailing you. Even right now."
"…Call him up to the stand." Trotter got up from the hospital bed. "I'll be there with something to bring soon."
"Hm…? I guess we should follow his orders." Tristen scratched the back of his head.
"Bailiff! Hurry and find Gard Cooper to get back here!" The judge yelled, rushing them to get the cop.
The police officer walked up to the stand, and looked at the defense. "I see that I'm being falsely accused of murder and blackmail by the true murderer."
"What makes you think that Trotter is the murderer?" Tristen looked at the one-way glasses.
"Yeah! –I mean, yes… uh… exactly how do you suspect Mr. Trotter…?" The judge blushed at her little outburst.
"Fine." Gard fixed his glasses. "It's time I showed you real evidence."
(This isn't a testimony… This is a game of wits.)
"Take him down."
Game of Wits – Real Evidence
Why suspect me? I'm a cop, while he's a sick burglar.
He was the one who was inside the store, rather than me.
And that doesn't excuse Hazel over there.
Excuse me, but hurry up, I have a meeting to go to.
"Can't you stick around for the grand finale, Gard?" Tristen smirked at the cop, taunting him.
"Perhaps… If you actually seem to be a challenge."
Game of Wits – Real Evidence
Why suspect me? I'm a cop, while he's a sick burglar.
He was the one who was inside the store, rather than me.
"Objection! Need I remind you that the murder weapon is… a rifle?"
"Hmph. So? That man could've-"
"It wasn't point blank. You can't see any gunpowder residue on the picture included with the autopsy report." Tristen smiled. "So, your rebuttal?"
"I was dealing with your father's parking ticket."
"Nope. At the time the bang that happened, you were heading back to supposedly grab your ticket book."
"You hadn't have seen what that fool Trotter was doing. He could've been killing the victim."
"That wouldn't make any sense seeing as how they were best friends!"
"So you mean to say that your father killed the victim?!"
"No! I mean to say that you killed the victim!"
"Your father is more of a suspect than me! The rifle you love oh so much was in the trunk of his car!"
"Hah! You would've had more time than ever to sneak it into the trunk!"
"You would've saw me through the rear-view mirror!"
"I was too busy looking at what Trotter was doing!"
Gard stopped talking, to take in a new breath, and Tristen joined him.
"…Are you two done?" The judge really just felt a migraine coming on.
"No… *huff* what sort of motive would I even have to kill the victim…"
"…Uh… Obviously you wanted to protect-"
"Cops are just used to capture people who break the rules of society and to suck the money out of them until they don't have enough to live anymore… Why would I want to kill someone I could suck the money out of?" Gard smirked.
"Ah… Uh..." (Darn he really has me…)
"Think about it. Retrace your steps through the case, and move to places you haven't even thought of."
(Alright then…)
Thought Route – Gard's Motive
"Okay… Let's think, what started this case?"
Obviously, it was both the cop pulling us over and the robbers storming the place
"Right. What happened next?"
The victim quickly got control of the situation, while his partner, who was wearing a necklace, was supposedly panicking
"Wait… If I recall, what was that necklace mad out of?"
Gold
"He really was in it for the money! But how did he know about this…? Maybe I'm going to a dead end. But, why do I feel so certain about this? Maybe… Actually, why was the victim so confident?"
He had done this before
"Either he has nerves of steel, or he had done this before. I'm sure word spread about him. Gard would be quite respected if he were to take him down. So was this for respect… Or?"
For the Money
"He just said that he wanted to suck the money out of this guy. Just another dead end that would be remedied if there was some sort of lead… Just how did… Ah! Of course! Gard obviously…"
Followed the victim
"To get information. He must have figured out that the victim and his friend were going to invade this store! The best part to him is that…"
The friend's necklace was made out of Gold
"I've got it! And this clears up a contradiction!"
"Gard's motive was to lure Trotter out, and take his Gold necklace!"
"I suppose that if the defense can't come up with a suitable motive-"
"Objection! I know his motive!"
"Hahaha! No you don't!"
"I'm afraid I do!" Tristen smiled a big and hardy one.
"…Please enlighten us, Mr. Lawful." Erik asked, realizing that Tristen may be right.
"Don't mind if I do!" Tristen crossed his arms and smirked. "You were truly in this for the money!"
"Hm…? What do you mean, Mr. Lawful?" The judge asked.
"If you would recall… Trotter's necklace is made out of gold."
"I don't know if you know this… but that idiot wasn't the victim!" Gard yelled, slamming down on the witness stand.
"I know. That's my point. You lured him away by killing his friend and then you assaulted him… With this weapon!" Tristen presented the knife that Trotter had brought up.
"Bah! If that's true, then why isn't he in the morgue right now?!"
Tristen slammed the desk with the tips of his fingers. "Because he negotiated with you! And you decided to blackmail him!"
"Conjecture! All of this is conjecture!" Gard yelled, his glasses beginning to fall off.
"I think not! I'm sure if he searched where that river Trotter told us about, we'd find that knife with his blood on it!"
"N-No you won't!" Gard ripped the glasses from his face, and held them in his right hand.
"Really?! Then let's do it! Your honor, tell the bailiff to send a search team out there to find that knife!"
"Y-Y-You're… Pushing past… T-T-The limit…"
"No! I'm not the one pushing past the limit! You are! Give up! You are guilty here!"
"Shut up! Shut your mouth! Shutupshutupshutupshutupshutupshutup!" Gard crushed the sunglasses in his hand, and clutched the sides of the witness stand.
"Is that search team out there yet?!"
"SHUT UP!" Gard yelled one final time, before he fell to his knees. He huffed and puffed for air. "Shut… Up…" He closed his eyes, and fell silent.
"I know exactly what you did." Tristen began to explain this police officer's plan. "You investigated this mysterious robber. You found out his real name, and followed him, most likely to his house. You heard a discussion with the victim and his friend, Trotter. They're discussion somehow led to Trotter's gold necklace, and then you got greedy. You overheard their plan to rob that store. You set up this whole intrepid plan to get the necklace. The first part involved getting some poor schmuck to pull over in that parking lot, and unfortunately, you pulled over my father and I. This gave you the perfect opportunity… After talking to my father about how he 'disobeyed' the law, you went back to get your ticket book, but instead you pulled out a rifle and shot the victim, knowing that his death would lure Trotter to escape. My father went to check out the scene, and I kept my eyes on Trotter. During this time, you put the rifle in my father's trunk, framing him. Then, you got a knife, snuck around the other side of the store, and caught up to Trotter. You grabbed him by his necklace and pulled him back. You stabbed him, and he fell to the ground. Before you could finish the job though… A miracle happened. You blackmailed the poor fellow who wanted to negotiate. You made him forge this papers, even though they were of no use to you. As a matter of fact, keeping that man alive led to your downfall. You proceeded to throw the knife into the river that wasn't too far away. You made your way back after that ordeal, and went to arrest my father for the murder of Mike November." Tristen crossed his arms.
"…How… Did you know…?"
"How did I know?" Tristen smiled. "…Because you just told me."
Gard stood up and looked at everyone in the room. "N-No…"
"Everyone knows that you are a greedy blackmailing murderer now. No use hiding it anymore, eh?" Tristen's smile grew bigger.
"You… You!" Gard ran towards him, but the bailiffs grabbed him by his arms and handcuffed him. "No…! Get off of me! Let go! I didn't do this! No! Gragh! No…!"
"How's the accused?" The judge asked.
"He is being sent off to the detention center as we speak." The bailiff went back to his post.
"Good work Mr. Lawful. I would have never expected this much skill out of someone so young like you!" The judge smiled.
"I gotta admit too, you surprised me with your amount of skill. Able to get a confession… I wasn't expecting that last twist."
Tristen scratched the back of his head and blushed. "Hehehe, stop it! You're making me blush!"
"Ah, yes. The verdict. I pronounce, Hazel Lawful… Not Guilty!"
Random confetti fell and people cheered.
July 18th
Courtroom Lobby No. 5
2:13 PM
"You make your old man proud, my son!" Hazel patted Tristen on his back in congratulations.
"Thanks dad! Heh!" Tristen scratched the back of his head.
"Nice job Tristen!" Trotter smiled at his new buddy.
"Foxy! When did you get here?"
"I said I was coming! I wanted to see the finale!" Trotter patted him on the shoulder. "I should get back to the hospital. Gotta fix these stitches. Nice job again…"
"See ya later, Foxy!" Tristen waved goodbye at him, as he left through the front doors.
"I am very glad I was able to attend this trial proceeding." The woman smiled as she walked up to Tristen.
"Who are you?" Tristen crossed his arms.
"Hello. My name is Miranda Justine. I am a teacher at Themis Law Academy, and I was hoping if you'd like for me to send in a recommendation for you to come join our school next year."
(And I suppose that's the story of my first case. That recommendation would be accepted, and I would soon be attending high school at this law academy. Who knew my next case would be a mock trial of one done by a legendary defense attorney…?)
Episode 1: END