“And after you did that, I advised you to tell what you knew to the police?”
“That’s right.”
“You remember telling me about the woman?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Do you remember comparing her to the woman who worked upstairs?”
“I don’t remember comparing her, no.”
“Did you say she looked
“Yes, I said that.”
“Is it true?”
“Yes, of course.”
“The woman you saw going in looked
“Yes, she did.”
“She
“Objection.”
“Overruled.”
“I didn’t say she
“You subsequently picked her out of a lineup?”
“Yes, I did.”
“How is that possible, if you didn’t recognize her as the woman you saw going upstairs?”
“Well, I knew her.”
“Ah,” Steve said. “Now we’re coming to it. You knew the defendant?”
“Well, not personally. I mean I had seen her.”
“You mean because she worked upstairs from you? You had seen her coming and going from work?”
“That’s right.”
“So when you picked her out of a lineup, you were identifying her as the woman you knew who worked there, not as the woman you saw going into the building that night?”
“That’s not entirely true. I knew she worked there, yes. But she also looked like the woman I saw going into the building.”
“But you cannot identify her as such?”
“No.”
“And the reason you know her is because she used to work there?”
“That’s right.”
“I assume you also knew the decedent, Frank Fletcher?”
“Yes, I did.”
“You saw him going in and out of’ the building as well?”
“That’s right.”
“You knew he was one of the partners of F. L. Jewelry?”
“Yes, I did.”
“You knew that in particular because you sued F. L. Jewelry when their sink overflowed and leaked down into your shop and ruined some of your guitars?”
“Objection.”
“It shows bias, Your Honor.”
“Objection overruled. The witness will answer.”
“That’s right,” Branstein said.
“You sued the decedent?”
“I sued F. L. Jewelry.”
“On what grounds?”
“For negligence. Just as you said. Their sink overflowed, and ruined some of my instruments.”
“Was F. L. Jewelry willing to accept responsibility for this.”
“No, they were not.”
“Tell me, Mr. Branstein, before you filed suit, did you make any effort to settle this in an amicable manner.”
“Yes, I did.”
“What did you do?”
“I told them what had happened, asked them if they wanted to make restitution.”
“Who did you tell this to?”
“Actually, Mr. Fletcher.”
“What did he say?”
“He said his attorneys could talk to my attorneys.”
“Was this said in an amicable manner?”
“Objection.”
“Sustained.”
“What was
“It made me angry.”
“How angry.”
Branstein looked at Steve Winslow a moment. Then he smiled. Shook his head. “Not angry enough to kill him.”
Steve Winslow let that remark sit there a few moments. Then he smiled slightly, said, “No further questions.”
42
When court reconvened after lunch, Harry Dirkson said, “Call Jerome Keddie.”
At the defense table, Amy Dearborn whispered, “Who’s that?”
“That will be the cab driver who drove you downtown,” Steve whispered back. “I was afraid they’d find him.”
“What can you do about him?”
“Challenge the identification. Odds are, he didn’t see you well.” With a big smile on his face he added, “Only if you keep looking so anxious and asking so many question, it won’t matter what the guy says, the jury will believe him anyway.”
Jerome Keddie took the stand and testified to being a New York City cab driver.
“And were you on duty on the night of June tenth?” Dirkson asked.
“Yes, I was.”
“And on that evening, did you have occasion to go to a midtown address?”
“Yes, I did.”
“And who did you take to that address?”
“A young woman.”
“She hailed your cab?”
“Yes, she did.”
“Would you recognize this woman if you saw her again?”
“Yes, I would.”
“Fine,” Dirkson said. “Mr. Keddie, let me ask you this? Do you keep a record of your trips?”
“Yes, I do.”
