jury at this time.”
“No objection, Your Honor,” Steve said.
“Very well,” Judge Grimes said. “Bailiff.”
The bailiff took the file of photos, handed them to the first juror, who looked at the top one, pulled it off the stack and passed it along. Within minutes the eleven photos had been spread out and were snaking their way through the twelve jurors and four alternates in the box.
Dirkson watched this with satisfaction. The reaction of the jury was exactly as he had anticipated. Some winced. Some scowled. And by the time they had finished, all of their faces were hard.
When the photographs had been returned, Dirkson again approached the witness.
“Now then,” he said, “did you examine the clothing of the decedent?”
The witness frowned. “Yes and no.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Well, as you can see by the photographs, the clothing had all but been consumed by fire. I examined what remnants remained.”
“Could you describe them, please?”
“Yes, sir. The decedent had been dressed in a long, heavy overcoat. Most of it had burned away, leaving only the charred outline of the fabric. However, there was a discernible bulge that remained. On investigation it proved to be-or at least at one time had been-a pocket.”
“I see. And was there anything in this pocket?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And what was that?”
“The charred remains of what appeared to be a leather object.”
“And did you retrieve that object?”
“Yes, I did.”
“And identify it?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And what was it?”
“On inspection, it proved to be a wallet.”
“A wallet?”
“Yes.”
“And do you have that wallet here in court?”
“Yes, I do.”
The witness reached into his briefcase again and produced a plastic evidence bag. In it was what might have been a wallet, though it was now impossible to tell.
“I ask that this wallet be marked for identification and received in evidence as People’s Exhibit Two.”
“No objection.”
“So ordered.”
“Now,” Dirkson said. “Did you examine the contents of that wallet?”
“Yes, I did.”
“And what did you find?”
“Several papers too charred to be legible, and a gooey mass of what appeared to be plastic.”
“Referring to the gooey mass of plastic-do you know what that proved to be?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Could you tell us please?”
“Yes, sir. The plastic came from several credit cards, which under the extreme heat had melted and fused together.”
“Were you able to distinguish between the credit cards?”
“In most cases, no. But one in the middle of the pack was not so badly damaged and I was able to separate it from the rest.”
“And what did it prove to be?”
“It was a Visa card.”
“And was the name on the card still legible?”
“Yes, it was.”
“And what was that name?”
“Jack Walsh.”
“Do you have that card here in court?”
“Yes, I do.”
The witness reached in his briefcase, produced another evidence bag holding a credit card.
“I ask that this card be marked for identification and received in evidence as People’s Exhibit Three.”
“No objection.”
“So ordered.”
The court reporter marked the exhibit.
“That’s all,” Dirkson said.
“Mr. Winslow?” Judge Grimes said.
“No questions.”
Jeremy Dawson gave Steve a look, but held his tongue.
Dirkson next called the medical examiner to the stand. A thin, white-haired, bespectacled man, he gave his name as Murray Abraham, cited his rather extensive qualifications, and testified to being summoned to the 66th Street Station on the night of the crime.
“And what time did you get there?” Dirkson asked.
The medical examiner pushed his glasses up on his nose with a long finger. “Eleven-oh-two,” he snapped.
Some of the jurors smiled. After the horrors Dirkson had been dragging them through, they were ready for any relief. The prissy preciseness of the medical examiner was affording them the opportunity, and they were gratefully seizing it.
“I see,” Dirkson said. “And can you tell me what you found there?”
“I found the body of a man.”
“Was he alive?”
“He was dead.”
“You pronounced him dead at the scene?”
“Yes, I did.”
“There was no question in your mind?”
“None at all. Nor would there have been any question in yours. The man was dead.”
“Now listen carefully, Doctor. What was the
“The man had apparently burned to death.”
“I see. Did you make that determination then?”
“Certainly not,” the medical examiner snapped. “You said apparent cause of death, and that is how I answered the question. The man had apparently burned to death.”
“Did you subsequently determine the
“Yes, I did.”
“Fine. We’ll get to that in a moment,” Dirkson said. “First, can you tell me what you did at the scene of the crime?”
“Yes. As I said, I made a preliminary examination of the body and pronounced the man dead. I indicated to the officers of the Crime Scene Unit that it was highly likely that the man had met his death by criminal means. Then I waited while the Crime Scene Unit investigated and took photographs, and then ordered the body transferred to the morgue for autopsy.”
“And who performed that autopsy?”
“I did.”
“You performed the autopsy personally?”
