The Advocate - 02 - The Advocate's Betrayal by Teresa Burrell

her husband was dead, but she couldn’t even imagine how she must feel being charged with his murder.
    The court called a drunk driving case. The judge said, “How do you plead?”
    “Not guilty, Your Honor,” the defendant responded.
    His attorney then spoke up. “Your Honor, my client is legally blind. He was not drunk.”
    “And that’s better…how?” the judge asked. “Give him a trial date,” he said to his clerk.
    Four more cases were called before they heard the name “Smith.”
    Sabre stood up, and took her place at the podium. “Sabre Orin Brown appearing on behalf of Betty Smith and for the record, Your Honor, Betty’s legal name is Betty Taylor.”
    “Thank you, we’ll correct the file.”
    The bailiff brought Betty to the podium still in handcuffs. The judge informed her of her constitutional rights and asked her if she understood.
    “Yes, Your Honor,” Betty said.
    “You’re charged with murder in the first degree. How do you plead?” the judge asked.
    “Not guilty.”
    “Before we set a preliminary hearing date and readiness conference, what is the District Attorney’s position on bail?” he asked, turning to the short, thin prosecutor. Sabre had never had a case against him, but knew him by reputation. He was known to be hard on witnesses, even worse on defendants when they testified, but honest and a real seeker of the truth.
    “We’re asking no bail be set, Your Honor. The defendant doesn’t have any real ties to the community. She does not own property here, she has no employment here, no relatives here, and the seriousness of the crime doesn’t warrant release. However, should the court decide to grant bail, we would request a minimum of $500,000.”
    “Counselor Brown, argument?”
    “We disagree, Your Honor. Although my client doesn’t own real property here, she does have her mobile home which has been in the same location for four years. She has her own small business here, and there is no reason to believe she’s a flight risk. My client does not have relatives here, but she does have a very close circle of friends in which I’m proud to be included. She has no prior criminal record. She has never failed to appear in court. In fact, she has never had a prior arrest. She’s no threat to the community. She maintains her innocence, but understanding the court must consider otherwise for purposes of bail, then this would appear to be a crime of passion, and there is no reason to believe any other member of the community would be at risk.
    “My client has just lost her husband and her only means of support is a small business, selling watches at swap-meets which she must now run by herself. She doesn’t have property to put up as collateral, and as we argued before, she’s no risk to the community. Therefore, we ask the court to release Ms. Taylor on her own recognizance.”
    “It looks like we’re somewhere between nothing and a half million dollars. At this juncture, I don’t intend to do either,” the judge said. “I want to know a little more about this woman and about the evidence the prosecutor has against her, so I’ll entertain arguments again at the preliminary hearing. The prisoner is remanded to custody.”
    “Thank you, Your Honor,” Sabre said. She looked at Betty whose face was bathed in disappointment. “I’m sorry, Betty. I’ll come see you tomorrow. Hang in there.”
    Sabre watched as the bailiff took Betty back to her cage. Her heart ached for her. She had to find a way to get her released. She turned to Bob with tears welling up. He squeezed her hand and murmured, “Keep it together, kid.” He let go before they walked out of the courtroom.
    “Damn, I hate seeing her like this. She looks like she’s aged ten years. How long can she last in there?”
    “She’s tough. You said yourself you thought she’s lived a pretty rough life. I wonder what she was like when she was young.”
    “She’s never said much of anything about her past,