Parnell Hall - The Wrong Gun

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“Mr. Vaulding, do you have any redirect on the evidence so far, or would you care to wait till the witness is recalled?”

“You’re bringing him back again, Your Honor?”

“I’ve already said so, Mr. Vaulding. You may question the witness then, now, or both. What is your intention?”

“I have no questions at this time.”

“Very well. The witness is excused, but you will return tomorrow morning, having made that comparison.”

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“Very well. Call your next witness.”

“Call Donald Walcott.”

As Donald Walcott took the stand, it occurred to Steve maybe he should have coached him a little. The young man exuded resentment. Steve realized Vaulding probably would have had no problem getting him declared a hostile witness. Still, there was no need to dump it in his lap.

When the witness had been sworn in, Vaulding stood up and said, “State your name.”

“Donald Walcott.”

“What is your relationship to the defendant, Russ Timberlaine?”

“I am engaged to his daughter.”

“And were you a guest at the Timberlaine mansion on the weekend of the murder?”

“Yes, I was.”

“When did you arrive?”

“Friday afternoon.”

“And when did you leave?”

“I haven’t left.”

“You’re still there?”

“Yes, I am.”

“And how long do you intend to stay?”

The witness glared at Vaulding. “Until this matter is resolved.”

“I see,” Vaulding said. “Tell me, Mr. Walcott, the weekend you were staying there-the weekend of the murder-did you have any conversations with your fiancee’s father, Russ Timberlaine?”

Donald Walcott set his mouth in a firm line.

“Please answer the question, Mr. Walcott,” Vaulding said.

When Walcott still hesitated, Vaulding said, “Your Honor?”

Judge Hendrick leaned down from the bench. “Young man?” he said.

Donald Walcott looked up at him defiantly. “Yes.”

“Call me Your Honor.”

Walcott took a breath. “Yes, Your Honor.”

“You have been called as a witness in a court of law. It is your duty to answer questions, unless they are objected to and I rule you need not answer them, or unless you should refuse to answer on the grounds that an answer might tend to incriminate you. Otherwise, you must answer or I will hold you in contempt of court. Is that clear?”

Walcott took a breath. “Yes, Your Honor.”

“Fine. Court reporter will read back the question.”

There was a pause while the court reporter shuffled through his tapes. Then he read, “‘Tell me, Mr. Walcott, the weekend you were staying there-the weekend of the murder-did you have any conversations with your fiancee’s father, Russ Timberlaine?’”

“Yes, I did.”

“Fine,” Vaulding said. “Tell me, in any of these conversations did Russ Timberlaine mention a gun?”

“Objection, leading and suggestive.”

“Overruled. The witness is clearly hostile. Answer the question.”

Walcott took a breath. “Yes, he did.”

“Would that be the Colt.45, the Pistol Pete gun?”

“Yes.”

“Mr. Walcott, we have two guns present in court. People’s Exhibit Three, which is the gun found next to the body of Jack Potter. And People’s Exhibit Four, the gun found in Russ Timberlaine’s holster on his bedside table. We have also heard testimony from Lieutenant Sanders that Russ Timberlaine identified the gun, People’s Exhibit Three, as the original Pistol Pete Robbins gun that he owned, and the gun, People’s Exhibit Four, as the gun he found substituted for it. Now I ask you, in any of those conversations you had with Russ Timberlaine, did he make any claim about a substituted gun?”

“Yes, he did.”

“And what did he say?”

“Just that. That his gun had been substituted.”

Vaulding frowned. “I’d like a little more than that. He claimed, did he not, that he owned the original, authentic Pistol Pete Robbins gun. Is that true?”

“Yes.”

“He claimed that that gun had been taken and a duplicate left in its place. Is that right?”

“Yes.”

“He claimed he no longer had the original gun, he now only had the copy, the fake gun?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“The substitution had happened prior to the time you arrived at the mansion that Friday?”

“Yes.”

“How long before?”

“I’m not sure. I think the week before.”

“The week before you arrived?”

“I think so. As I say, I’m not sure.”

“But it was before you arrived?”

“Yes, it was.”

“Russ Timberlaine mentioned the substitution?”

“Yes, he did.”

“Did he show you the gun?”

“Yes, he did.”

“The gun he claimed had been substituted?”

“That’s right.”

“The gun was a Colt.45?”

“Yes, it was.”

“With the initial R carved in the handle?”

“Yes.”

“Timberlaine showed you the initial R?”

“Yes, he did.”

“Pointed it out to you?”

“Yes.”

“Did the gun have the serial number ground off?”

“Yes, it did.”

“He showed you that too?”

“Yes.”

“Pointed out where it had been ground off?”

“Yes.”

“He showed you this gun and said it was a fake gun, that his gun had been stolen and this gun had been left substituted for it?”

“Yes.”

“He didn’t tell you he had purchased this gun?”

Walcott stuck out his chin. “He most certainly did not.”

“He didn’t mention that he had bought the gun himself at a gun shop on July 16th?”

“No, he did not. And I don’t believe he did.”

“But he did show you the gun and tell you he had found it substituted for the real Pistol Pete gun?”

“Yes.”

“And,” Vaulding said casually, “did he tell you any steps he had taken to identify that gun?”

Walcott had relaxed during the latter part of his testimony as he realized the questions he was being asked were simple, the answers to them were already known and didn’t hurt Russ Timberlaine.

Which is why he tripped on this one. He opened his mouth to answer, hesitated, blinked twice, frowned and said, “What do you mean?”

Vaulding smiled. “Exactly what I said. When Timberlaine told you about the substitution of guns, did he mention if he had taken any steps to prove that there had been a substitution of guns? Did he do anything that would help to identify one gun from the other?”

“Oh.”

“Well, Mr. Walcott?”

“He had not marked the guns in any way.”

Vaulding smiled. “I didn’t say he had, Mr. Walcott. I merely asked you if he had taken any steps to keep them straight.”

“Yes, but-well, the question makes no sense. He only had one gun. The gun that had been substituted. The other one was no longer there.”

“I understand, Mr. Walcott.” Vaulding smiled, but his eyes were hard. “Referring to that gun-the one that was there-did Russ Timberlaine state that tests had been performed on that gun for the purpose of identifying it and keeping it straight and separate from the other gun, should it turn up again?”

Donald Walcott took a breath. He looked at the defense table, as if hoping for an objection.

“Witness will answer the question,” Judge Hendrick said.

Walcott looked around helplessly. “Yes, he did,” he blurted.

Vaulding smiled. “Thank you, Mr. Walcott. Russ Timberlaine told you that he had performed a test on the gun?”

“Yes.”

“What kind of a test?”

Walcott took another breath. “He had had test bullets fired through it for the purpose of identification.”