Beeson had an unnerving stare as he answered Kelly’s questions. He was a small man with thick black eyebrows that nearly touched in the middle and short, wiry facial hair covering his chin and jaw. His leg was in constant jittery motion, and he leaned forward as he talked, eyes glued on Kelly, as if he couldn’t get enough of her. She wanted to tell him to look at the camera, but she knew Jason would object and accuse her of coaching the witness, thereby drawing more attention to Beeson’s creepy demeanor.
Kelly got through her preliminary questions without incident. Beeson had purchased a total of twenty-three guns from Peninsula Arms. When the ATF agents carried out a search warrant at his apartment, they had found only three of those guns remaining, along with a fourth gun that had its serial number filed off.
Under questioning by the ATF agents, Beeson had cracked, admitting that he was acting as a straw purchaser for felons and others who couldn’t buy guns on their own. Two of the guns he had purchased had been traced to violent crimes. One of them was the MD-9 used by Larry Jamison to kill Rachel Crawford.
That part of his testimony was undisputed. The key would be showing that the clerks at Peninsula Arms knew Beeson was a straw purchaser who would resell the guns to unqualified buyers.
“How did you get your customers?” Kelly asked. “How did you learn about men who needed guns but couldn’t purchase them on their own?”
“Objection, calls for hearsay,” Jason said.
Jason had been sitting back during most of the deposition, watching more like a bemused spectator than an attorney. He had shown up in jeans and a long-sleeved pullover, knowing that he wouldn’t be on camera. It was also, Kelly realized, a subtle form of psychological warfare. This witness isn’t worth dressing up for.
“It’s a deposition,” Kelly responded. “Hearsay is allowed.”
“I’m just preserving my objection for trial, where hearsay is most definitely not allowed.”
“You can answer,” Kelly told the witness. “Mr. Noble is just objecting for the record.”
“How did I get my customers?” Beeson snorted. “The gun store sent ’em to me. I didn’t go looking for ’em.”
“Move that the remarks be struck from the record,” Jason said, his voice monotone, as if it was hardly worth the bother. “There’s no foundation for that other than hearsay.”
“Let’s talk about this sale,” Kelly suggested. “The MD-9 used to gun down Rachel Crawford. When did you first learn that Larry Jamison needed a gun?”
“Objection. Hearsay.”
Kelly blew out a breath and looked at Jason. “Why don’t you just make an objection to this whole line of questioning and quit interrupting every single question?”
Jason gave her a tight smile. “Thanks for the suggestion. But I think I’ll try my own case.”
“That dude Jamison called me,” Beeson said, not waiting for a prompt. “He said he tried to buy a gun at Peninsula Arms but didn’t pass the background check. Said the clerk at the gun store gave him my number.”
“Move to strike,” Jason said. “Hearsay.”
Kelly shot him a look.
“Did he say which clerk sent him to you?” Kelly asked.
“Objection. Hearsay again.”
Give it a rest!
“Nah,” Beeson said. “It didn’t matter.”
“Had this happened before? Ineligible gun buyers calling you and saying they were referred by the store?”
This time Jason snorted at the question. “Let’s see,” he said. “Hearsay-actually double hearsay-leading the witness, relevance… Am I missing anything?”
“You mean other than that class in law school where they teach you to reserve your objections until trial?” Kelly asked.
“Tell you what,” Jason said, his tone friendly. “You stop asking objectionable questions, and I’ll stop objecting.”
Kelly shook her head. In the past five years, she had learned her deposition lessons the hard way-don’t let the men push you around. Always get the last word. “It’s a shame,” she said, “that the rookie has to learn how to practice law on my case.”
Beeson chuckled. “Man, I wouldn’t mess with her,” he said to Jason.
The squabbling continued for several more questions until Kelly got back on solid ground. The phone conversation was only one way of showing that the clerks at Peninsula Arms knew this was a straw purchase. The other was the transaction itself.
According to Beeson, he and Larry Jamison had entered the store together. Jamison had talked with the clerk and inspected the firearms while Beeson looked on. Once Jamison selected the gun, Beeson and Jamison went outside the store, and the money changed hands-the cost of the gun and a 50 percent “handling fee.” Beeson went back inside on his own and purchased the gun, gave it to Jamison in the parking lot, and never saw the man again.
It was, Kelly thought, as good a place as any to end the testimony. Beeson wasn’t the best witness, but Kelly didn’t get to pick them. She already knew how she would explain it in her closing argument.
“Boy Scouts don’t participate in the gunrunning business. The other people who know how this transaction occurred are either dead or taking the Fifth. We don’t pick the witnesses, ladies and gentlemen, we just put them on the stand.
“But is he telling the truth? Consider this-Beeson’s confession earned him a twelve-month prison sentence. What human being lies so that he can spend a year of his life behind bars?”
48
Jason was in full acting mode now. He was so nervous he could feel his heart pounding against his chest. Nevertheless, he pushed his nerves aside and adopted a condescending air, an acerbic tone.
Jarrod Beeson was scum. It was important that every part of Jason’s cross-examination deliver that message.
“You seem to be mighty friendly with Ms. Starling,” Jason said. “Have you rehearsed your testimony?”
“Objection,” Kelly snapped. “That question completely mischaracterizes the witness’s demeanor.”
“I thought we were saving our objections for trial,” Jason said.
“Just ask your questions.”
“Well,” Jason said thoughtfully, “let’s probe it a little bit. Have you been sued by Ms. Starling?”
“Maybe. I dunno.”
Jason smiled. When witnesses tried to play it coy, it only hurt their credibility. “Okay, let me help you. Have you been served with any official-looking legal documents while you’ve been sitting in jail-documents that demand you pay Rachel Crawford’s husband a lot of money?”
“No.”
“Then let’s assume you haven’t been sued.”
“I’ll save you the trouble,” Kelly said, her voice curt. “I didn’t sue him because he’s penniless. It would be a waste of time.”
Jason pondered this for a minute. He could tell he was getting under Kelly’s skin. She was a good lawyer, but she took everything personally. Maybe he could exploit that. “Will you also stipulate that you didn’t sue the gun store because they’re in bankruptcy?”
“That’s got nothing to do with this deposition,” Kelly said.
“Or how about the fact that you sued my client because they seem to be the only ones that do have money?”
Kelly turned to the court reporter. “Strike that from the record,” she said. Then back to Jason. “Are you going to ask this witness questions, or do you just want to pick a fight?”
“All right.” Jason turned back to Beeson. “Do you know Melissa Davids?”
“No.”
