Chapter 10
COURT HOUSE
The day of the trial came. The courtroom was silent as Marlena and Justin walked in.
BAILIFF: All rise. The court is now in session. The honorable Judge Fitzpatrick presiding.
FITZPATRICK: Please sit.
The gavel banged.
FITZPATRICK: Dr. Marlena Evans, you have been charged with breaking-and-entering the DiMera Mansion as well as the kidnapping, torture and murder of Elvis John Aron Banks-DiMera. How do you plead?
MARLENA: Innocent.
FITZPATRICK: Very well. Prosecution, you may present your case.
The prosecutor was a strict looking young woman named Lauren Order. As Justin had warned, the prosecution pulled out all the stops to make Marlena seem like a cold-blooded killer. However, nobody who knew Marlena believed a word that Lauren said. After she had finished, the Judge continued speaking.
FITZPATRICK: Thank you, Ms. Order. Defense, please state your case.
Justin stood up.
JUSTIN: Thank you, your honor.
And, so, Justin began to make his opening remarks. Everybody in the courtroom believed him much more than they had believed the prosecution. After that, Justin called up his first witness.
JUSTIN: I call to the stand Dr. Marlena Evans.
Marlena made her way up to the stand.
JUSTIN: Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?
MARLENA: I do.
JUSTIN: Dr. Evans, could you please describe for the court what you were doing on the night in which Elvis DiMera was kidnapped?
And Marlena did. She recounted every single detail of the night. When prompted to by Justin, she also described where she was on the night of E.J.'s murder. But then, it was time for the prosecution to question Marlena. And Lauren Order was a very tough lawyer.
ORDER: Dr. Evans, in your testimony, you stated that on the night of Elvis DiMera's kidnapping, you had a gun in your hand and were contemplating shooting him. Is that true?
MARLENA: Yes.
ORDER: Aha! You seen? Why would Dr. Evans even contemplate killing another human? She is a doctor, is she not? She took an oath to do no harm, didn't she? Why, then, was she seriously considering killing another human being?
JUSTIN: Objection! Dr. Evans has already stated that she was sick with grief over the pain that Mr. DiMera had caused, not just her daughter, but her entire family. She also has already stated that she dropped the gun and ran from the room before doing anything that she would regret.
ORDER: I object to your objection! Just because Dr. Evans second-guessed herself, it does not dismiss the fact that, seconds earlier, she was plotting to murder another human being.
The judge banged her gavel.
FITZPATRICK: Mr. Kiriakis, I will allow your objection. Ms. Order, your objection is overruled.
Order continued her questioning of Marlena. However, Justin was able to object most of what she said, and Judge Fitzpatrick allowed the objection. This was the case with most of the oter defendants. But, when Sami came up to the stand, Lauren Order went a little too far.
JUSTIN: Ms. Brady, what is your relationship with the accused?
SAMI: The accused is my mother.
ORDER: Objection! The witness is a direct relative of the accused and will, undoubtedly be biased!
FITZPATRICK: Overruled! Ms. Brady is under oath to tell the whole truth.
ORDER: Objection! The witness was not there while the crime is committed, and as she is a relative, she could easily lie for the accused!
FITZPATRICK: Overruled! As I have just stated, Ms. Brady is under oath to tell the truth, and she will be acting as a character witness.
ORDER: Objection! The witness is a pathological liar and is still a relative of the accused!
FITZPATRICK: Overruled! Need I remind you that Dr. Evans is the one on trial here, not Ms. Brady! That is the third time you have objected in the last five minutes! All three times, you have objected to the exact same thing and all three times, I have explained to you that the relationship between the two is irrelevant as Ms. Brady is under oath to tell the truth! If you object for the same reason again, I shall hold you in contempt. Ms Order, you are being very out-of-order! Do I make myself clear?
ORDER: Yes, your honor. Sorry, your honor. The prosecution rests.
Lauren Order might be tough, but Judge Fitzpatrick can be even tougher. After a few more witnesses, the two teams made their closing remarks and the jury went in to deliberation. After only an hour, they returned.
FITZPATRICK: Jury Foreman, please read your findings.
FOREMAN: Thank you, your honor. For one count of breaking-and-entering, we find Dr. Marlena Evans...innocent. For one count of kidnapping, we find Dr. Marlena Evans...innocent. For one count of torture, we find the Dr. Marlena Evans...guilty. And, for one count of murder, we find Dr. Marlena Evans...guilty. We recommend a sentence of life in prison with the possibility of parole in thirty years.
FITZPATRICK: All right. Dr. Marlena Evans, for the crimes of breaking-and-entering as well as the charge of kidnapping, this court finds you innocent. For the crimes of torture and murder, this court finds you guilty. You are hereby sentenced to life in prison with possible parole in thirty years.
Just as Judge Fitzpatrick banged her gavel, a woman who looks exactly like Marlena ran into the courtroom. For the purposes of this scene (and the next) she is referred to as Marlena II
MARLENA II: I object!
