“Can you tell us what CCW stands for?”
“Carrying a concealed weapon—a permit.”
“Did you sell more than one gun at the gun show?”
“About fifteen guns that day. Another dozen the following day.”
“And what was it about Mr. Herman that made him stand out in your mind?”
“He was talking to another customer while I rang up a sale. Something he said just stayed in my mind.”
“And what was the nature of that conversation?”
“Two guys shooting the bull about guns. What they owned. What they liked. What they liked to shoot at.”
“And what did Mr. Herman like to shoot at?”
“Mr. Herman told the other guy that he had a rat problem.”
“Do you know the name of the other guy?”
“No, I didn’t sell him a gun. I never saw him before or since.”
“So you overheard Mr. Herman say he had a rat problem. What did the other guy say to that?”
“He said, ‘Rat problem? You mean like a snitch?’ And Herman over there said, ‘No, a
“What did you take ‘rug rat’ to mean?”
“A rug rat is a kid. A child. At the time, I thought he was just, you know, joking, but when I heard about his wife turning up dead and his kid going missing, I remembered what he said and it got me worried.”
“Did you call the police?”
“Yes.”
Yuki showed the police report to the judge and to Kinsela, then handed it to the clerk along with the sales receipt for the gun. These items were entered into evidence.
Then she thanked Gary Goodfriend and turned him over to the defense for cross-examination.
Chapter 24
JOHN KINSELA GOT to his feet behind the prosecution table and stayed there. He looked bored as he questioned Yuki’s witness from across the room.
“Mr. Goodfriend, you say you sold thirty guns, more or less, at the gun show that weekend. Is that right?”
“Yes. More or less.”
“And presumably you talked to more than those thirty people who bought guns from you.”
“Oh, sure. I talked to hundreds of people.”
“But you’ve told us that you remember Mr. Herman distinctly two years later. Is that right?”
“He’s a memorable person.”
“Memorable because he said he had a rug rat problem. Is that correct?”
“Yes, it is.”
“And as I understand it, you took that to mean that he was buying a gun to kill a child?”
“You could take it to mean that.”
“Seriously? But you didn’t notify the police at that time, did you?”
“No. It just sounded like bull. Creepy bull, but bull.”
“Did the defendant also tell you directly that he had a rug rat problem?”
“Nope.”
“Would it surprise you to hear that, in fact, Mr. Herman’s house did have rodents? And that he hired an exterminator?”
“If you say so, I believe you.”
“Thanks. Now, apart from the overheard conversation, and whatever you two said during the gun transaction, did you have any conversations with the defendant at any other time?”
“Nope.”
“So apart from the joke he made with this ‘other guy,’ you had no additional reason to believe that Mr. Herman meant to harm his daughter.”
“No. Not really.”
“That’s all, Mr. Goodfriend. Thanks for your testimony.”
Goodfriend leaned forward and addressed Kinsela’s back. “Just his reputation as a criminal defense lawyer who is said to eliminate prosecution witnesses. Which means I’m putting my life on the line here.”
Kinsela spun around to face the judge. His face was red and he was clearly surprised by Goodfriend’s postscript.
“Your Honor, move to strike. The witness’s remark is hearsay on its face and highly prejudicial.”
Yuki was ready with a response.
“Your Honor, Mr. Goodfriend answered Mr. Kinsela’s question and now he’s objecting to the witness’s answer.”
“He offered his opinion on my client’s character, which was
“All right, all right. Mr. Kinsela, before I instruct the jury, do you have any other questions for Mr. Goodfriend?”
“No, Your Honor.”
The judge told the clerk to strike Goodfriend’s last comment from the record. Then he instructed the jury that the witness’s characterization of Mr. Herman and his further opinion that his life was in danger were not evidence and that the jurors were not to consider it during their deliberations.
Yuki controlled herself, but she was elated. Nicky Gaines nudged her. He was grinning like a jack-o’-lantern. Another point for the prosecution. Hey: Team Yuki was on a roll.
Chapter 25
I LEFT BRADY’S office and crossed the fluorescent-lit, twenty-by-thirty-foot bull pen/obstacle course, getting hugs and high fives from cops I’d known for a long time. At the front of the room were two gray metal desks butted head-to-head. One of those desks was mine. The other belonged to my partner.
A cute young woman with dark wavy hair, wearing a white T-shirt and tight jeans, was sitting in my chair. She was in deep conversation with Conklin, who got to his feet when he saw me.
“Boxer,
He gave me a gender-neutral hug, but a good one, and then said, “Meet Mackie Morales, our summer intern. Mackie, my partner, Sergeant Lindsay Boxer.”
Morales got out of my chair and reached out to shake my hand. She said she’d heard so much about me, and then she told Conklin she’d be in the file room.
He said, “Wait, Mackie. I’m going to bring the sergeant up to speed on the Faye Farmer case. Stick around for that.”
“Sure,” I said. “Stay.”
It’s rare to meet someone you like immediately, but I felt good about Mackie Morales. She had an open smile, a good handshake, and apparently Conklin approved of her.
“Thanks,” she said. She pulled a spare chair up to our desks, and I asked Conklin what he had on Faye Farmer.
“I was just on my way to notify her parents. Ask them about my list of her friends, her devotees, and her detractors,” Conklin said. “CSIU is down in the ME’s office now, going over the premises for trace after the body went missing.”
“The
