William Bernhardt - Murder One

“Yes. The victim had suffered a severe contusion to the head, discoloring the left side of his face.”

“Anything else?”

“Yes. There were several broken bones. When the body was chained to the fountain, both arms and one of the legs were stretched in unnatural, painful positions. One of the arms snapped, either when chained up or when removed.”

More than one juror shook his or her head.

“Would it be fair to say, Doctor, that the killer did not treat the victim with much care?”

Barkley frowned “I think it would be fair to say that the killer treated the body with intentional disrespect and cruelty.”

“Let me ask you another question, sir. There’s been a considerable discussion of physical strength in this trial. And in particular, whether the defendant, a small young woman—although one who exercised regularly and was in particularly good shape—could have accomplished the murder. Do you have an opinion on this subject?”

Ben gave Christina a nudge.

“Objection,” Christina said, springing to her feet. “Outside the scope of the witness’s expertise.”

“Not so,” LaBelle replied. “Who can speak more expertly on this subject than the doctor? He knows the precise weight of the deceased’s body. He knows exactly what rigors the body was put through. He knows what the human body is capable of doing. I believe this falls squarely within his field of specialty.”

“Well, it’s a little on the fringe,” Cable said, grudgingly acknowledging that Christina’s objection had some merit, “but I can’t say that it’s totally outside. I’ll allow it.”

Christina sat down, frowning. “Should I have argued more?”

“No,” Ben whispered. “Save your egregious conduct for when it really matters.”

“You may answer the question,” LaBelle told his witness obligingly.

“Thank you.” Barkley turned back toward the jury. “My opinion is that there was nothing involved in this murder that could not have been accomplished by any adult person of reasonable strength.”

“Even moving the body?”

“Yes. Remember, the body was dragged, not carried. A dead body is heavy, but dragging it isn’t that hard, particularly if you don’t care what happens to it along the way.”

“What about chaining the body to the fountain?” LaBelle was asking the hard questions himself, rather than leaving it to the defense. A smart strategy, especially since he and Barkley had undoubtedly already prepared answers.

“Admittedly, that would’ve been harder, but I still don’t believe it was outside the abilities of the average adult. The chains could have been used for leverage; that is, once they were tied to the body and wrapped around the fountain, a sort of rudimentary pulley system could’ve made it possible to get the body in place. And bearing in mind what the killer did to the body, I think it’s fair to assume there was some major adrenaline pumping, which always increases strength. Almost anyone could’ve done it, really.”

“Even a five-foot-three female weighing a hundred and three pounds?”

“Yes. Even her.” For the first time, Barkley glanced toward Keri. “Especially given her overall fitness and the undoubted rage she felt at the time.”

“Objection!” Christina said. This time she didn’t need nudging. “Definitely outside the scope.”

“Sustained,” Judge Cable replied calmly. “The jury will disregard.”

But as Ben and Christina both well knew, the damage was already done. The jury had heard it, and all the instructions in the world would not make them forget it.

“Dr. Barkley,” LaBelle continued, “were there any other indications you uncovered during your autopsy regarding the identity of the killer?”

“Yes. I discovered tiny yet discernible traces of skin under the victim’s fingernails.”

“Skin under the fingernails,” LaBelle repeated. “Tell me, Doctor, is there any way to determine conclusively whose skin it was?”

“There is now. DNA analysis.”

“And was any DNA testing done?”

“Yes. Fortunately, I discovered a sufficient quantity to be testable. My work was checked by an independent agency—CellTech, in Dallas.” He quickly added: “There is no doubt about the results: The DNA matches exemplars taken after arrest from the defendant, Keri Dalcanton.”

The good doctor had rushed ahead, Ben realized, because he and LaBelle both knew the question would draw an objection. If Barkley didn’t do the testing himself, he had no business announcing the results.

“Should I?” Christina whispered.

“Don’t bother. The word is out. And they would only call their CellTech rep to the stand to say the same thing. It’s getting in, one way or the other.”

LaBelle followed up equally quickly. “Is there any possibility of error on these DNA tests, Doctor?”

“Virtually none. The results were checked and double-checked, both by me and CellTech. There’s no doubt about it. Keri Dalcanton’s skin was under his fingernails. There was probably a struggle while she was stabbing him—”

“Objection!” Christina said.

“Sustained,” Judge Cable said. “The witness will refrain from speculating.”

“Let me ask it this way,” LaBelle said. “Was the location of the skin consistent with what you would expect when a man was trying to protect himself from a killer?”

“Of course. Perfectly.”

LaBelle nodded toward the defense table. “Your witness.”

Christina tried to act as if she wasn’t nervous about this, but she knew she wasn’t fooling anyone, least of all herself. Not that she hadn’t spoken out in court before, but cross-exing a major witness in a capital trial was a different matter altogether. She kept humming “I am strong, I am invincible” under her breath, but it wasn’t making much difference. She was terrified.

“Dr. Barkley, you’re the coroner, right?” It was a safe question, surely. How could he disagree?

“Actually no.”

Christina did a double take.

“My title is state medical examiner. That’s the terminology we use in Oklahoma, don’t ask me why. So to call me a coroner is technically incorrect.”

“But the descriptions are the same.”

“More or less, yes.”

Great start, Christina thought to herself. Maybe next I could get his name wrong or something. “As the medical examiner, do you perform autopsies on a regular basis?”

“Of course.”

“How often?”

He shrugged. “On average? Maybe a dozen a week.”

“And when you’re doing your dozen a week, do you normally speculate on how much pain the victim suffered? Is that a standard part of the medical examiner’s work-up?”

“Well … no.”

“Then why did you do it in this case?”

Barkley appeared slightly off guard. “I just answered the questions that were put to me.”

“Yes. And why did Mr. LaBelle want everyone to hear that? Is it relevant to determining how and when the victim died?”

“No.”

“Of course it isn’t. But it makes for a dramatic story, doesn’t it? Certain to fill the jury with contempt and loathing.”

“Objection,” LaBelle said. Christina wondered what had taken him so long. “Is that a question?”

“A good point,” Judge Cable replied. “You’re up there to ask questions, Ms. McCall. Not to give speeches. That part comes later.”

Oh, thank you so very much. “Doctor, your answer to the questions regarding pain and suffering were entirely speculative, weren’t they?”

Barkley appeared indignant. “They were based upon my medical examination.”

“Sir, isn’t it possible that the man went into shock, then unconsciousness, with the first blow? Or with that head blow, which might have come before the stabbing?”