DeRosa, who seemed to be making fun of her. She pointed at a bulletin just inside the front door of the courtroom. “I can read the print on that bulletin.” She read out the first line and said, “Can you read it, Mr. DeRosa?”
DeRosa grew angry. “I will ask the questions here! Your Honor, will you please instruct the witness that all she needs to do is answer the questions.”
“Yes, I will instruct her. And I will instruct you. Get on with your cross-examination.”
“Are you a native of this county?”
“I’m a resident, yes.”
“But this is not your home.”
“Objection!” Dixon said. “Miss Winslow’s residence is not in question here.”
“Sustained.”
“Your Honor,” DeRosa said quickly, “I intend to show that this lady does not understand the way we live in this part of the world.”
There was some argument between the two attorneys, but finally Judge Pender said, “You’d better get on with this, Mr. DeRosa, and you’d better be going somewhere with it.”
“You’re from New York, aren’t you?”
“Yes, sir, I am.” DeRosa made a long speech then, indicating that people from the North could not possibly understand southern problems and finally turned to Jenny, saying, “You will agree that things are different in New York and Georgia.”
“Some things are different, but I don’t think the law is different in the North and the South—or it shouldn’t be.”
“My point is that people from the North have a different mind-set. They can’t understand the problems of the South. Your people probably were in the Union Army.”
“My people fought for the Confederacy! My grandfatherand his brothers served under General Robert E. Lee. They all stacked their muskets at Appomattox. My grandmother was a spy for the Confederacy. We only moved to New York in recent years. Until then almost all the Winslows came from Virginia.”
Lewis was chuckling to himself, admiring his daughter and thinking, I hope he keeps at her. The more he tries to get her, the more the jury goes against him.
DeRosa began to talk about the difficulty of law enforcement, and finally he turned to Jenny and said, “The sheriff of this county has a hard job.”
Jenny was angry at the man and spoke before she thought. “I could be a better sheriff than the man who wears that badge! He’s tarnished it, Mr. DeRosa.”
“Your Honor, I ask for a mistrial. This witness—”
“Objection overruled.”
DeRosa wiped his forehead, then said, “I beg for a recess, Your Honor.”
“Very well. We’ll take a thirty-minute recess.”
Dixon nodded to Jenny, motioning to her, and she came to accompany him and Noah to the back of the courthouse, where they found themselves in a room with a long table and chairs surrounding it.
“How are we doing, Luke?”
Luke looked at her, then turned his eyes on Noah. “Well, we’ve got twelve southern white men on the jury, and this is the South. Plus, the defendant is black. No matter what the facts are, there’s always danger.” He started to say more, but suddenly the door opened, and the district attorney came in. “Luke, I need to talk to you.”
“Talk away, Alex.”
“Not here. Alone.”
“You can say anything before my friends that you could say alone.”
DeRosa hesitated and ran his hand over his hair. A worriedlight clouded his eyes, and he said, “This thing’s gettin’ out of hand.”
“Are you ready to dismiss charges?”
DeRosa said, “We’ll change the charge to resisting arrest.”
Instantly Luke said, “All right, but there’ll be no jail time. Probation—and there’ll be no fine.”
Alex DeRosa stared at Dixon, then smiled. “You win this time, but no perjury charges against the deputies.”
“All right.”
DeRosa left the room, and Jenny turned to Luke angrily. “That wasn’t right!”
“It’s better than getting five to ten years in the penitentiary, Jenny. We win.”
“What does it mean, Mr. Dixon?” Noah
DeRosa grew angry. “I will ask the questions here! Your Honor, will you please instruct the witness that all she needs to do is answer the questions.”
“Yes, I will instruct her. And I will instruct you. Get on with your cross-examination.”
“Are you a native of this county?”
“I’m a resident, yes.”
“But this is not your home.”
“Objection!” Dixon said. “Miss Winslow’s residence is not in question here.”
“Sustained.”
“Your Honor,” DeRosa said quickly, “I intend to show that this lady does not understand the way we live in this part of the world.”
There was some argument between the two attorneys, but finally Judge Pender said, “You’d better get on with this, Mr. DeRosa, and you’d better be going somewhere with it.”
“You’re from New York, aren’t you?”
“Yes, sir, I am.” DeRosa made a long speech then, indicating that people from the North could not possibly understand southern problems and finally turned to Jenny, saying, “You will agree that things are different in New York and Georgia.”
“Some things are different, but I don’t think the law is different in the North and the South—or it shouldn’t be.”
“My point is that people from the North have a different mind-set. They can’t understand the problems of the South. Your people probably were in the Union Army.”
“My people fought for the Confederacy! My grandfatherand his brothers served under General Robert E. Lee. They all stacked their muskets at Appomattox. My grandmother was a spy for the Confederacy. We only moved to New York in recent years. Until then almost all the Winslows came from Virginia.”
Lewis was chuckling to himself, admiring his daughter and thinking, I hope he keeps at her. The more he tries to get her, the more the jury goes against him.
DeRosa began to talk about the difficulty of law enforcement, and finally he turned to Jenny and said, “The sheriff of this county has a hard job.”
Jenny was angry at the man and spoke before she thought. “I could be a better sheriff than the man who wears that badge! He’s tarnished it, Mr. DeRosa.”
“Your Honor, I ask for a mistrial. This witness—”
“Objection overruled.”
DeRosa wiped his forehead, then said, “I beg for a recess, Your Honor.”
“Very well. We’ll take a thirty-minute recess.”
Dixon nodded to Jenny, motioning to her, and she came to accompany him and Noah to the back of the courthouse, where they found themselves in a room with a long table and chairs surrounding it.
“How are we doing, Luke?”
Luke looked at her, then turned his eyes on Noah. “Well, we’ve got twelve southern white men on the jury, and this is the South. Plus, the defendant is black. No matter what the facts are, there’s always danger.” He started to say more, but suddenly the door opened, and the district attorney came in. “Luke, I need to talk to you.”
“Talk away, Alex.”
“Not here. Alone.”
“You can say anything before my friends that you could say alone.”
DeRosa hesitated and ran his hand over his hair. A worriedlight clouded his eyes, and he said, “This thing’s gettin’ out of hand.”
“Are you ready to dismiss charges?”
DeRosa said, “We’ll change the charge to resisting arrest.”
Instantly Luke said, “All right, but there’ll be no jail time. Probation—and there’ll be no fine.”
Alex DeRosa stared at Dixon, then smiled. “You win this time, but no perjury charges against the deputies.”
“All right.”
DeRosa left the room, and Jenny turned to Luke angrily. “That wasn’t right!”
“It’s better than getting five to ten years in the penitentiary, Jenny. We win.”
“What does it mean, Mr. Dixon?” Noah
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