Cath Staincliffe - Split Second

‘Thomas Garrington and Nicola Healy have attempted to mislead this court, fabricating an account that is not borne out by independent witnesses. Nicola Healy, less than two feet away from Jason, could not even tell you which hand Conrad supposedly held the knife in. There is a simple explanation as to why she could not remember – because Conrad Quinn did not draw a knife and attack Jason Barnes that night; that was the work of Thomas Garrington. Thomas Garrington was at the gate. Ask yourselves why – because he had already used the knife and wanted to make good his escape. It was Thomas Garrington who had the grudge against Luke Murray, it was Thomas Garrington who led the cowardly attack on the bus and it was Thomas Garrington who murdered Jason Barnes. That, members of the jury, is what the evidence tells us.

‘Luke Murray did not deserve to be beaten senseless, confined to being fed by a tube for the rest of his days. Jason Barnes, the only child of his loving parents, did not deserve to have his life cut short for trying to help someone in distress. What they both do deserve is justice. They deserve the truth. They and their families deserve to see these callous perpetrators convicted of the charges before you: murder and attempted murder.

Jason Barnes stood up for Luke Murray; members of the jury, I ask you to honour his name by standing up for him in turn.’

Someone was weeping. Ruby too. Louise swallowed, breathed hard, her pulse choppy. There was a moment’s silence, then the judge invited Mrs Patel to close for the defence on behalf of Thomas Garrington.

Andrew

Andrew sat tight, though a thousand objections came to him as Mrs Patel’s speech unfolded. Her performance was electrifying. Her delivery crisp, perfectly timed.

‘Members of the jury, the charges against the defendant are the most grave in the land. Murder and attempted murder. In evidence we have heard confusing, indeed conflicting, accounts of the events of that December night: an altercation that got out of hand and ended in an appalling tragedy. But Thomas Garrington was not the person responsible for kicking Luke Murray in the head. That was Conrad Quinn, a fact confirmed by Conrad Quinn himself and by Mr and Mrs Barnes. It was Conrad Quinn who delivered those brutal blows, Conrad Quinn who left Luke Murray with a fractured skull and serious head injuries that mean he still lies in a coma today.

‘Thomas Garrington was not carrying a weapon of any sort that night, but Conrad Quinn was. And when Jason Barnes, rightly incensed by the attack on Luke Murray, and remember, under the influence of alcohol, first battered my client, with such force that he broke one of his ribs, then lunged at Conrad Quinn, it was Conrad Quinn who drew a knife. Conrad Quinn used that knife. He ignored police appeals to come forward and threatened Thomas Garrington and Nicola Healy, warning them not to speak out.’

Battered! Lunged! Andrew felt a swell of rage. Beside him Val twitched, made a little plosive sound of outrage. Jason had had a few beers at the pub and the barrister was implying he was drunk and violent.

‘You have heard Conrad Quinn admit to throwing his knife in the river. Is that the action of an innocent man? We have heard no plausible explanation for this action. But if you accept, as I put it to you, that his knife was the murder weapon, then his actions make perfect sense. Conrad Quinn is attempting to fool you, ladies and gentlemen, pleading to a lesser charge – and it is a lesser charge – and falsely accusing my client Thomas Garrington of murder. Don’t be fooled. Trust the evidence.’

Why had he thrown his knife away? Andrew thought. If only he’d kept it, he might have been exonerated; they could have proved it was not the weapon that had killed Jason.

‘There is no forensic evidence to support Conrad Quinn’s reckless allegations. The only witnesses to the knife attack were the defendants and Conrad Quinn. Conrad Quinn blames Thomas Garrington, but both Thomas Garrington and his co-defendant Nicola Healy have told you repeatedly, under oath, that it was Conrad Quinn himself who stabbed Jason Barnes. The burden is on the prosecution to prove beyond all reasonable doubt that the defendants committed the crimes as charged. I say to you that there are many serious doubts about the prosecution case. It falls far, far short of the unshakeable evidence that would be required to convict. The evidence is flimsy, circumstantial, unsound, paltry. Remember, there is not one shred of forensic evidence to support the prosecution case.’

Andrew thought of the snow on the lawn, footprints smeared in the mêlée, obscured by a fresh fall, the snow near Luke sorbet pink.

‘The case for the prosecution turns on a few shouted comments heard by a traumatized young woman on a bus and the self-serving account given by the witness who was the most vicious assailant on Luke Murray. A witness who, I caution you, has every reason to evade the full force of the law. I ask you to use your minds as much as your hearts, ladies and gentlemen, and you will find Thomas Garrington not guilty on all counts.’

Andrew ached again for Jason. Even after so many months. In fact it grew harder. How would he cope if they got off? He understood obsession now, tales of campaigning parents, stuck forever in the mire of appeals and hearings. Life limited and defined by the quest for justice. Could he and Val get the authorities to pursue a civil case if a criminal one failed? What if there weren’t strong enough grounds? There had to be a reckoning; he had to know who had taken Jason’s life. Otherwise he would go mad.

Emma

It was the turn of Mr Floyd, Nicola Healy’s lawyer. ‘On the seventeenth of December, my client got caught up in events that will haunt her for the rest of her days. She had no idea that a spat between teenagers on a bus would spiral out of control.’

A spat? Emma recalled the atmosphere, the ugly menace. But to be fair, she had tried to persuade herself at the time that it was just kids messing about, hadn’t she? Though her gut, the tension in the air, told a different truth.

‘Nicola Healy has sworn on oath to tell the whole truth here today, and that is what she has done.’

Emma could see the girl in the dock, her head bent over, a tremor across her shoulders. Was she crying?

‘She has sworn on oath that it was Conrad Quinn who threatened Luke with a knife, Conrad Quinn who dealt the most devastating blows once Luke Murray was defenceless on the ground and Conrad Quinn who, drunk on bloodlust, drew his weapon and stabbed Jason Barnes. My client is not guilty. And she chose to fight her case here in court so you might judge her. She has nothing to hide. Nicola Healy never touched Jason Barnes. She did not lay a finger on him. Nor did she encourage anyone else to. The murder of Jason Barnes was an appalling crime, but it was a crime in which Nicola Healy played no part.

‘On the charge of attempted murder, my client pleads not guilty too. There is a whole world of difference between a kick that splits someone’s skull, as admitted by Conrad Quinn, and one that barely marks the skin. Nicola was horrified to see Conrad Quinn begin the assault with such ferocity. There had been no plan to the events of that evening, no plot to find and hurt Luke Murray. A random encounter on a bus escalated beyond all proportion and spiralled out of control, driven by the savagery of Conrad Quinn. My learned colleague is correct: these are the most serious charges in the land, and the prosecution must prove their case beyond all reasonable doubt. In the case of my client, they have singularly failed to do so. Nicola Healy found herself in a nightmare that still plagues her. But she is innocent, innocent of murder and of attempted murder. Please consider all the evidence you have heard, and if you do so, ladies and gentlemen, I am assured that you will find that you can reach only one conclusion: Nicola Healy is innocent.’