FiFty Fifty

Chapter Fourty -Two

KATE

Kate had never seen anything like it.
Judge Stone called a break for lunch, and had the court cleared. Eddie hadn't
torn the DA's expert to pieces, he'd simply allowed the expert to tear himself to pieces. Kate would never have brought the dog into court, no way she would've had the nerve. The jury liked it, and by the time Eddie and Harry were leaving the court, Kate knew this was as close as it could possibly be. She'd hoped Professor Shandler's testimony would put a target on Sofia Avellino's back.
Now, this was anyone's case. All that could change with the next witness.
On the floor above, they found a quiet room and put Alexandra there, away from the press, with a salad and a bottle of water. Kate and Bloch took the stairs two floors down so they could talk as they walked the corridors. Neither of them felt hungry, and Kate didn't want anyone overhearing, especially her client.
'This thing is wide open now,' said Kate. 'You still feel confident we're on the right side of this?'
'You're a defense attorney,' said Bloch.
'What do you mean?'
'There isn't supposed to be a right side. You just do your job.'
'That's bullshit, and you know it. You know me. And you wouldn't be here if
you didn't believe Alexandra.'
'I guess you're right,' said Bloch.
Sometimes Kate found her friend a little frustrating. In those moments, Kate
just wanted to listen to a long explanation about why she was still doing the right thing, why Alexandra was innocent, and how they were going to win this case. She wanted the words to drown her. Consume her doubts. Wash them away.
They walked and talked strategy for the bite-mark expert. His name was Peter Baumann. No state or federal law enforcement agency could analyze bite marks. They had to go to a recognized expert. Baumann was the bite guy. He had been working with law enforcement for years and was a seasoned expert witness, even if his methods weren't exactly state of the art. Kate knew that prosecutors chose their experts based on two criteria – their seniority and expertise in the field, and possibly more importantly, their ability to withstand cross- examination. There was no point in the DA engaging the best bite-mark analyst
 
in the country only to find that when they got on the witness stand they folded like a hot Hershey bar.
The lunch hour passed quickly, and neither Bloch nor Kate ate. A cup of coffee from a vending machine, or at least something supposed to be coffee, was all Kate could manage. All too soon she was back in court. There was no re- examination of Professor Shandler by the prosecution – Dreyer knew that witness was a lost cause. It's bad when one of your witnesses gets pummeled with hard questions – it's ten times worse when the witness is reduced to a laughing stock. Kate actually thought that Eddie could have achieved the same result without bringing Harry's dog into court – but the dog made the jury laugh at Shandler, and once they did that it was game over.
Peter Baumann didn't look like Kate had imagined him. She thought he would look a lot more like Professor Shandler. Tall, wealthy and good-looking. Baumann was short. Five foot nothing. He was clean-shaven and completely bald. His eyebrows were so lightly colored that Kate hardly noticed they were there at all. When he walked past the lawyer's tables at the front of the court to get to the witness stand, Kate caught an unusual odor emanating from Baumann. It wasn't unpleasant – the smell of dental putty, bleach and cinnamon. He smelled kind of like a dentist's treatment room, which Kate found both strange and comforting. She wondered if she smelled of ink and paper.
Baumann refused to take a religious oath, and instead affirmed that he would tell the truth, and nothing but the truth. Prosecutors liked it when their experts took their oath on the Bible. And for Christian expert witnesses, this was no problem. The atheist experts weren't happy. Prosecutors thought it played better with the jury, and might offend some Christian jurors if their experts were seen to shun the Bible. Some scientists pushed back against this, said they already felt like frauds swearing on the Bible when they weren't in the least religious.
This jury didn't seem to have a problem with Baumann refusing the Bible. He wore a pastel blue suit, white shirt and bright green silk tie. Kate found the tie distracting. You could land a plane with that thing.
'Mr. Baumann, would you explain to the jury your area of expertise?' said Dreyer.
Surprisingly, Baumann didn't make eye contact with the jury. He didn't even turn his head to look at them. His gaze fixed on a point on the back wall, behind Kate. A vague, faraway look in his eyes as he answered the question.
'I am a forensic odontologist, a fellow at the University of Texas, San Antonio, and a member of the American Society for Forensic Dentistry and Bite Comparison Odontology. I have been examining bite marks for over thirty-five years, and providing expert testimony in more than fifteen states across the US,'

said Baumann, with a strong Texan lick to every syllable. Odontology came out Baumann's mouth as O—don—tology, as if the word were too long to be said in that accent, and required considerable effort to spit it out.
'Did you carry out an examination of the bite marks on the victim?' asked Dreyer.
'I did. The medical examiner found what looked to her to be a single bite mark on the victim's left breast area. There are seven different types of bite mark. The particular type I identified is known as an incision bite. This is a skin puncture, made with the teeth. This was not an avulsion bite as no skin was removed. Nor was it an artifact bite, where flesh is removed. This was a simple puncture wound. I was able to identify eight punctures, in an oval pattern, which correspond with anterior teeth marks.'
At this point, Baumann pointed at the screen opposite, and Dreyer's assistant pressed a button on a remote, bringing up a full-color image for the benefit of the jury.
'I took this photograph during my examination of the victim. As you can see, this is a life-sized close-up of the bite. It's oval in shape, and the puncture wounds are clearly defined. There is some hemorrhaging beneath the skin, caused when the teeth closed around the flesh, pinching it in the bite.'
'How did you carry out your analysis of this bite?'
'I took measurements from the bite marks, and then, from the life-sized photograph, I compared those measurements to make sure they matched. Then I was provided with dental impressions of the two defendants in this case. From those impressions I made two master casts, and carried out my analysis on those casts in comparison to the bite marks.'
'How can you be sure the casts are an accurate representation?'
'The casts are perfect. The mold is the same used in all orthodontic practice. It's very accurate.'
'Once you had the casts, what did you do then?' asked Dreyer.
'I carried out measurements, and bite simulations using both casts. I measured canine to canine distance, incisor width, and rotational angles of the incisors. Comparing the measurements on acetate to the life-sized photograph provided a match from one master cast. The simulated bite from that same master cast also produced a simulated bite which precisely matched the bite pattern on the victim.'
'Which master cast was this?'
'Master cast two. This was the cast taken from Alexandra Avellino.'
'From your tests and analysis, what is your conclusion, if any, regarding your
investigation and comparison of the bites and the teeth of the defendants?'

Baumann cleared his throat, leaned forward, and said, 'The defendant Alexandra Avellino bit her father on the chest with enough force to break his skin. That's my conclusion.'
The jury, who had sat silently listening to Baumann's soft, southern gentleman tones, now looked to Alexandra. Some of them with disgust, a few with disappointment.
'Nothing further. Miss Brooks may have some questions, so please remain seated, Mr. Baumann.'