Whether he knew why I was asking or whether he just has a natural
charm, Ray Johnson gave the perfect answer: 'Not yet, Ms. Kincaid. So
far, the only woman in my life's my momma, but I'm still trying.'
I thought I actually heard Claudia Gates's blood rush, but it was more
likely the courtroom's crappy radiator.
I know. I'm a hypocrite. As much as I hate it that a good portion of
my half of the species loses all rational thought when a good-looking
man's in the room, I happily accept these boy-crazed women as jurors
when my cops are hot.
Ray covered some of the same ground as the initial witnesses,
describing the mood of the crime scene and Ken-dra's appearance when
MCT first arrived. Then we talked about what happened after he and
Jack separated from Chuck and Mike.
'When you saw Kendra Martin at the hospital, did you reevaluate your
assessment of her injuries?'
'In some respects.' He explained that Kendra's appearance
substantially improved once the hospital staff cleaned the blood from
her, but she was still in obvious pain, evidenced by severe bruising on
her face and body, a large laceration across her nose and left cheek,
and noticeable discoloration around her neck.
'After you initially spoke with Kendra Martin, did you have an idea in
your mind about what had happened to her that night?'
'Yes, based on what she told me and my partner, Jack Walker.'
'After the initial interview, did you speak to Kendra again about what
happened to her that night?' I asked.
'Yes. After some additional investigation, Detective Walker and I
spoke to the victim again when she was still in the hospital.'
'Were her statements consistent with respect to certain sexual acts
committed against her that night?'
'Yes.'
'Was she consistent in describing the physical abuse that occurred that
night?'
'Yes.'
I could sense Lisa contemplating whether to object. Ray's answers were
technically hearsay, even though they didn't reveal what it was that
Kendra actually said to him. The answers were enough to reveal that
Kendra had been sexually and physically assaulted. But Lisa stayed in
her seat, and she was right to. If she objected in front of the jury,
they might think she was trying to keep information away from them, and
it was information they were going to hear anyway once Kendra
testified.
I continued the pattern of questioning, establishing that Kendra's
statements were consistent with respect to the most material facts.
'Were there some inconsistencies between the two statements?' Yes.
'Did Kendra have an explanation for these inconsistencies?'
'Yes. She admitted that she had omitted certain truthful information
and had included some untruthful information in her initial statement
to us.'
Now, that one was definitely hearsay, since he was repeating something
Kendra had said outside the courtroom and asserting it as truth. But
the information helped the defense, so Lisa wasn't about to object.
Ray then walked through the portions of Kendra's initial statement that
were not true, being careful as we had discussed never to call them
lies. He explained that Kendra initially said she was in Old Town to
go to Powell's Books and did not know how heroin ended up in her
system.
'And Kendra admitted later that those statements were not true?'
'That's correct.'
'Now, Detective, do you know what the defendant has been charged
with?'
'Yes, I do. Attempted Aggravated Murder, Kidnapping in the First
Degree, Unlawful Sexual Penetration in the First Degree, Rape in the
First Degree, Sodomy in the First Degree, and Assault in the Third
Degree.'
'From an investigative standpoint, did the facts as Kendra Martin
stated them in her initial interview indicate that those charges would
apply in this case?'
'Yes.'
'So, in other words, if someone had asked you right after you initially
interviewed Kendra Martin what the suspect might be charged with, those
are the charges you would have anticipated?'
