The Magician (29 page)

“No, sir.”

“How did you get the scar on your face?”

“I fell off my bike.”

Cantor raised himself to his full height, objecting. “Your Honor, the jury is here to evaluate facts, and I just don’t see where the present line of questioning is helpful in determining the guilt of the defendant.”

“Your Honor,” said Thomassy, “I think the district attorney meant to say the guilt or innocence of the defendant. The point, of course, is that the questions directly relevant to the charges have to be seen by the jury in context, and in this case the context is the character and background of the accused. It is common to suppose that a scar on the face or body of a black man or someone belonging to some other ethnic group might be the result of a knife fight or some similar form of violence.” Thomassy read the face of the Negro woman in the jury
box. He had made his point successfully. “I am, your Honor, clarifying the origin of a prominent scar on the defendant’s face in order to eliminate the unfortunate but common substitution of prejudice for objective judgment. May I continue?”

Brumbacher nodded. Cantor remained on his feet.

“Did you have something to add, Mr. Cantor, or will you wait your turn?”

Cantor sat down.

“Did you buy a ticket to the prom?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you go with several friends?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Were the friends you went with all students at Ossining High School?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you dance?”

“No, sir.”

“Would you explain that?”

“I don’t dance.”

“Well, don’t be embarrassed, neither do I.”

There was a friendly chuckle among the spectators.
Son
of a bitch,
thought Cantor, busily scratching notes.

“Did you watch the magic show that night?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you enjoy it?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did you have a fight later that evening?”

Urek paused only a split second. “Yes, sir.”

“What caused that fight? Just take your time and explain it in your own words.”

“It was snowing, see?”

“Yes, go on.”

“After the prom, me and my friends were waiting for a lift in front of the building. It was very cold, see? There was only this one car left, so we refuged in it.”

“You what?”

“Oh. We took refuge in it so’s we wouldn’t freeze while we were waiting. We didn’t figure whatever adult owned the car would mind. We weren’t driving it anywhere, just sitting.”

“Did anyone object to your sitting in the car?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Who?”

“Mr. Japhet.”

“Did you ever have Mr. Japhet as a teacher?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Did Mr. Japhet seem to recognize you?”

“Yes, sir. He said to get out of the car.”

“Was there any other car you could have used for refuge while you were waiting?”

“No.”

“Why didn’t you go back into the building while you were waiting?”

“Well, we didn’t know which of our fathers was coming for sure, and we didn’t want to miss, see? If our ride came and didn’t see no one, it might have left, figuring we already got a ride, and we’d be stuck there.”

“Was Mr. Japhet alone when he ordered you out of his car?”

“No, there was his son, the one that did the
magic show, and the girl he was smooching until Mr. Japhet came.”

“How did you react when you were ordered out of your shelter?”

“I was mad, but I was gonna help him with the suitcases anyway. They was carrying these two suitcases, see, and I figured if I helped them with the suitcases, maybe they would offer us a ride if our ride didn’t come by then.”

“Then what happened?”

“Mr. Japhet said to put the suitcases down.”

“And then?”

“The girl called me a Polack.”

“Have you ever been called that before?”

“No. Besides, I’m not Polish, I’m a Slovak.”

“What did you do?”

“I pulled her hair.”

“What else?”

“Maybe I twisted her arm some.”

“Are you sorry you did that?”

“Sure, but she didn’t say she was sorry she called me what she called me.”

“Then what happened?”

“Well, the Japhet kid grabbed me. I wasn’t going to let him grab me in front of my friends without doing something about it, so I hit him, and that’s how the fight started.”

Mr. Japhet put his hand on Ed’s arm. Ed had put his head down on his crossed arms on the back of the bench in front of him.

“Then what happened? Take your time.”

“Mr. Japhet jumped me.”

“Had you hit Mr. Japhet?”

“I never hit a teacher in my life.”

“What did Mr. Japhet do?”

“He beat me with his fists, and he pulled my hair.”

“Did you hit him back?”

“No, sir.”

“Did you intend to kill Ed Japhet?”

Urek didn’t answer.

Thomassy repeated the question. “Did you intend to kill Ed Japhet?”

“I never intended to kill nobody ever in my life, I swear!”

“Did you have a chain?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Where did you get the chain?”

“I found it outside the school.”

“What did you do with the chain?”

Urek looked down.

“It’s better to tell everything. What did you do with the chain?”

“I hit the windshield of the car—he wouldn’t let us stay out of the snow!”

“Did you break the windshield?”

“It broke. I didn’t think it would, but it did.”

“Are you sorry you broke the windshield?”

“It’s insured.”

“Are you sorry you broke the windshield?”

“Yes, sir.”

“If the insurance had a deductible, would you be willing to pay the deductible?”

“Yes, sir, I promise.”

“Did you go to the Ossining High School prom for the purpose of doing harm to Edward Japhet?”

“No, sir.”

“You swear to that?”

“I swear it’s the truth.”

“Your witness,” said Thomassy.

Cantor’s first question was, “Did you ever kill an animal?”

In a second Thomassy was on his feet and striding toward the bench, his face full of fury. “Your Honor, there was nothing in direct examination about harming animals. The subject of this trial is, did the defendant harm a human being, and I have already asked that question, but if Mr. Cantor is hard of hearing, he’s perfectly free to ask the question again.”

Judge Brumbacher, who had had some misgivings about letting young Japhet get away without testifying, now felt that his tolerance should bathe the other side. He said to Cantor, “I think you should confine your questioning to matters raised on direct examination.”

Thomassy, satisfied, sat down.

Cantor shifted gears, and began again.

“The chain you said you found, did you find it on top of the snow, or underneath the snow?”

Urek did not reply.

“Will your Honor please direct the witness to answer the question?”

“I’m only supposed to answer him yes or no,” said Urek pleadingly.

“Did you find the chain on top of the snow?”

“No.”

“Did you find it underneath the snow?”

“I just found it.”

“Where?”

“Where it was lying.”

“Did you hit Ed Japhet with the chain?”

“I hit him with my hand.”

“Was the chain in your hand at the time?”

“I don’t remember.”

“Do you remember choking Ed Japhet?”

“No.”

“How do you account for the severe throat injuries he got?”

“We were fighting.”

“How do you account—”

“Objection! The witness is not a physician.”

“Objection sustained.”

“If Mr. Japhet hadn’t pounded your back and pulled you by your hair, would you have gone on choking Ed Japhet until he was dead?”

Thomassy didn’t have to object. Judge Brumbacher cautioned Cantor, “Would the attorney for the People please try to ask questions the witness can answer?”

“Did you charge students twenty-five cents a month for protection of their lockers at the school?”

“I’m sorry,” interjected Thomassy, “but that subject was not covered on direct examination.”

“Your Honor,” said Cantor, “direct testimony has attempted to
paint the defendant as a young man who never did anything wrong in his life, and I’m entitled to go into this.”

Judge Brumbacher called both attorneys to the bench. “Mr. Cantor can pursue the question if he is attacking the credibility of the witness. Objection overruled.”

Thomassy closed his eyes to let a moment of time pass. He hoped Urek would not be caught in a lie.

Cantor repeated the question. “Did you charge students twenty-five cents a month for protection of their lockers at the school?”

Urek looked over at Thomassy. He thought he saw the barest nod.

“Yes, sir,” said Urek.

“Was this a duty assigned to you by the school?”

“No, sir.”

“You set yourself up in business on your own?”

Thomassy objected.

“Sustained,” said the judge. “Please rephrase.”

“Let’s just strike that,” said Cantor, then asked, “What happened if any student refused to subscribe to your protection service?”

“They all paid.”

“All?” shot in Cantor.

Urek looked at Thomassy, but couldn’t detect a signal. “Japhet didn’t pay.”

“Did you threaten Japhet for not paying, did you say that something would happen to him or his belongings if he didn’t pay?”

“No, sir, I never threatened nobody.”

The judge was getting impatient with Cantor. “Could we please get back to the night of the alleged offense? The present line of questioning isn’t going to get us finished today.”

Cantor began to feel a sense of deep despair. “You said on the night of the prom that you got into Mr. Japhet’s car because you were waiting to get a ride home, is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“Did you ever .get your ride home from the prom?”

“We walked.”

“Wasn’t that what you intended to do in the first place?”

“In the snow?”

“Was it your father that was supposed to come pick you up?”

“One of them was supposed to, I don’t remember which. They sometimes forget.”

“If I got every one of your parents to the witness stand and asked them if they were supposed to pick you up that night—”

“Mr. Cantor,” said the judge, “I cautioned you earlier.”

“I withdraw the question. Your Honor, frankly, I’m feeling terribly frustrated. The eyewitnesses, the Japhet boy, his girl friend Lila Hurst, the nurse Ginsler, these are all people who should have testified or been made to testify…”

“Mr. Cantor,” said Brumbacher quietly to the two lawyers, “one cannot retry cases from a different vantage point, except on appeal. Hindsight is of value to us all, and I do understand your present frustrations, but may I tell you that out of my long experience, the most telling effect on the jury is the organization of the testimony in the summations, and you have your summations before you. Each case cannot be argued to perfection. Do the best that you can by the rules that govern.”

Cantor tried one last question.

“I remind you that you are under oath and that you must tell the truth on pain of perjury. That means that if you lie in court, you can be sent to jail for lying, whatever the outcome of the present charges. Now, did you attack Edward Japhet after the prom and cause him great bodily harm, yes or no?”

“Don’t answer that question!” shouted Thomassy; then, with every eye on him, said, “I’m sorry I shouted, your Honor, but if the defendant had answered the question as asked, I would have had to argue for a mistrial, and I’m sure we all want to avoid that. If a witness knowingly lies, the court can consider perjury charges. Mr. Cantor made it seem as if there’s some kind of automatic jail sentence. This is no way to threaten a sixteen-year-old witness who feels himself guiltless to the point of being willing to put himself on the witness stand and testify under oath. If Mr. Cantor wants some help in framing a question…”

“I don’t need help,” said Cantor. “I’d also like to avoid hindrance, your Honor.”

“Proceed.”

“Did you attack Edward Japhet after the prom and cause him great bodily harm, answer yes or no?”

Urek closed his eyes.