The Innocent Woman

8

Steve Winslow’s closing argument was brief.

“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” he said. “I’d like to begin by explaining why I put on no defense. The reason is, I don’t have to. I don’t have to prove the defendant innocent. The prosecution has to prove her guilty. She is presumed innocent before we even begin.”

Steve smiled. “As I’m sure you will all recall. Hard to believe that was only this morning. This trial has moved very quickly.

“And for a good reason.

“The prosecution has no case.

“Search through all the testimony of all of their witnesses and what have they got? Two twenty dollar bills.

“That’s it. Out of everything you’ve heard today, the only evidence whatsoever liking the defendant to the crime is those two twenty dollar bills. The ones Mr. Macklin has testified that he found in her purse. On the basis of those two twenty dollar bills, the prosecutor would like you to find the defendant guilty.”

Steve smiled and shook his head. “Well, I can understand why he feels that way. And I can understand why he brought this prosecution. At first glance, it certainly appears damning.” Steve assumed a mock dramatic voice. “Here are the twenty dollar bills, the serial numbers carefully recorded, placed in the box, two of which subsequently turn up in the possession of the defendant.” Steve raised his eyes in wonderment. “Damning? Hell, it’s a wonder a trial is needed. Why not send her straight to jail?

“Until you look a little closer at the evidence.

“Frank Fletcher took a hundred dollars from the petty cash box.

“Marvin Lowery took a hundred dollars from the petty cash box.

“Samuel Macklin was paid two hundred dollars from the petty cash box.

“Now, the police didn’t inspect any of their bills, only those of the defendant. But if the police had looked at their bills, there is every reason to believe several of those in question would have been found on each and every one of them.

“So, if the only criterion for guilt was possessing those twenty dollar bills, could we say that since Marvin Lowery had some in his possession, he must be the thief?

“Or the same of Frank Fletcher?

“Or Mr. Macklin?”

Steve smiled, pointed to Pearson. “Now, I know what the prosecutor will argue. He’ll say that they had a right to have possession of those bills. That their possession of those bills is accounted for. And the defendant’s isn’t.”

Steve shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not.

“Which brings us to the doctrine of reasonable doubt.

“To find the defendant guilty, you must find her guilty beyond all reasonable doubt. If there is any doubt in your mind that she is guilty, you must find her innocent. Well, I would think that all four people in that office having possession of those bills would be enough to do it right there.

“But I’m willing to go a little further to help you out, to make your job a little easier.

“The other part of the doctrine of reasonable doubt is, if the evidence of prosecution can be explained by any other reasonable hypothesis other than the guilt of the defendant, then you must find the defendant not guilty.

“The only evidence presented is the fact she had those two bills. The prosecutor says she must have stolen them. We say she didn’t.

“Okay, how else could those bills have come into her possession?

“Perfectly easy. Frank Fletcher took a hundred dollars out of petty cash on April 30th. We know because he left a chit in the petty cash box. And he paid the defendant her salary in cash. That very afternoon. And that was after he took the money out of the petty cash box, because by his own admission, he paid her her salary just before he went home.

“Is it reasonable to assume he paid her salary with some of the recorded bills? Well, I can’t prove it, but I don’t have to. All I have to do is show it’s possible. If it’s possible, reasonable, logical, that such a thing could have happened, then you must give the defendant the benefit of that reasonable doubt and assume that it did.”

Steve Winslow raised his hand. “Now, the prosecutor may say that’s all well and good, but what about the hundred dollars missing from the petty cash drawer? What happened to that?”

Steve shrugged. “Well, a lot of things. For one thing, the defendant might have stolen it.” He smiled, shrugged again. “Hey, it’s possible. Didn’t happen. But it’s possible. And if you were allowed to bring in a conviction on the grounds that something was possible, well then this defendant would be going to jail.

“But that’s not the way the law works. If any other solution is possible, the defendant goes free.

“In this case, the possibilities are practically endless.

“For one thing, Marvin Lowery could have done it. By his own admission he went to the cash box and took out a hundred dollars. What was to stop him from taking two?

“The same hold true of Frank Fletcher. What if he took two hundred dollars from the box? And paid the defendant’s salary with some of those bills?

“And why, you might ask, would he do that? Well, suppose he was the one who’d been stealing from the petty cash drawer. And hiring Mr. Macklin was an elaborate double-bluff on his part to cover up the fact that he himself was actually guilty. Well, it wouldn’t be enough just to hire Mr. Macklin and set the trap. He’d have to have somebody to frame. Surely not his partner Mr. Lowery-that would never fly. But here’s the defendant. Perfect patsy. Slip her some of the bills as part of her salary and let nature take its course.

“You might ask, why would he want to do that? I haven’t the faintest idea. It’s not my job to know. I don’t have to prove anything.” Steve Winslow pointed at A. D. A. Pearson. “He does. He has to prove everything.”

Steve smiled. “You can see now why I made such a big deal during jury selection over your willingness to consider this defendant innocent.

“Because she is innocent.”

Steve ticked them off on his fingers.

“She’s presumed innocent.

“She is innocent.

“And it’s your duty to find her innocent.

“I thank you.”