no-nonsense air and a steely glare behind gold-rimmed glasses, entered the courtroom and took her chair behind the bench.
'First case,' she said to the bailiff.
'The state versus Edith Stoddard. A bail hearing. Defendant was arrested yesterday on a charge of murder in the first degree.'
'Who's representing the state?' Judge Pryor asked.
Parver stood up. 'I am, Your Honour. Shana Parver, assistant prosecutor, DA's office.'
Judge Pryor looked over the top of her glasses towards the defendant's desk, settled her gaze on Venable.
'Are you representing the defendant?' she asked with surprise.
'Yes, Your Honour. Jane Venable for the defence.'
'Been a while since we've seen you in criminal courts,' the judge said.
'Yes, Your Honour.'
'Ms Parver?'
'Your Honour,' she said, standing behind her desk. 'The state has sufficient evidence to obtain a first-degree murder indictment from the grand jury against Mrs Stoddard for the slaying of John Farrell Delaney. We move that Mrs Stoddard be held without bail until the trial. This is premeditated murder, Your Honour.'
Venable stood up.
'Objection, Judge,' she said. 'The state's case consists of a statement made by my client to two police officers who were interrogating her concerning the death of her boss, John Delaney. She never mentioned Delaney by name. She said 'I killed him.' That's all she said.'
'If the court please,' Parver countered, 'the entire interrogation concerned Mrs Stoddard's relationship with the deceased, John Delaney. It is obvious the 'him' in her confession was John Delaney. I seriously doubt she was talking about John Kennedy or Abe Lincoln.'
Pryor squinted over her glasses at Parver, considered admonishing her for a fleeting moment, then changed her mind. The young prosecutor had a strong point. She looked back at Venable.
'I would have to agree with that, Ms Venable.'
'It's moot anyway, Your Honour. The statement made by my client is inadmissible. She was under great stress at the time. She was scared to death. She had no legal representation -'
'She was given an opportunity to call a lawyer in her Miranda,' the judge said.
'I really don't think she was rational at that point. There are a great many extenuating circumstances in this matter, Judge. As far as bail goes, Mrs Stoddard has a husband who is a quadriplegic. My client is fifty-three years old and takes care of him. I don't believe she poses a danger or threat to society and, I can assure you, she's not going anywhere.'
'Excuse me, Judge Pryor,' Parver said. 'If counsel is suggesting that Mrs Stoddard be released on recognizance, the state strongly objects. I say again, this is a murder-one case. As far as Mrs Stoddard's husband is concerned, she has a twenty-one-year-old daughter who will have to take on that responsibility. And Mrs Stoddard's age is immaterial.'
The judge looked at Stoddard for a minute or two, then took off her spectacles and tapped them lightly against her jaw.
'Where is her daughter?' the judge asked. 'Is she in court today?'
'No,' Venable said.
Parver moved quickly to quell any further discussion of the specific issues of the case. 'We have a motion before the court, Judge. I suggest the counsellor wait until the trial to plead her case.'
The judge smothered a smile. 'Please read the motion,' she said to the court reporter, who checked the stereotape, found the motion made by Parver, and said: ' 'We move that Mrs Stoddard be held without bail until the trial.' '
The judge leaned back in her chair. 'When do you plan to go to the grand jury, Ms Parver?'
'As soon as possible. Hopefully, this week sometime.'
'Okay. I'm going to deny bail at this time. I agree with Ms Parver, Ms Venable. This is first-degree murder. As for the confession, the trial judge can deal with it, if and when it comes to that.'
'One more point, if it please the court,' said Venable. 'Defence would like to request that Mrs Stoddard be kept in the holding cell here in district two until the grand jury rules rather than moving her into the general prison population at this time.'
