“You do not have to buy into Mr. Grant’s motive in order to convict him. But in the face of all this death, destruction, and traumatic injury, we do want to understand why this defendant did what he did. And he told us.
“Here’s why Connor Grant blew Sci-Tron into smithereens. Because he wanted to do it. And we will prove to you that he could and that he did.
“At the end of this trial, we will ask you, the jury, to find the defendant guilty of murder in the second degree in the deaths of twenty-five innocent people, to guarantee that this man”—Len pointed at Connor Grant—“can never harm anyone ever again.”
Len thanked the jury, and if Yuki could have applauded him, she would have done so.
Instead, she scrawled on her notepad, “Great job, Len.”
“Tremendous.”
CHAPTER 30
JUDGE HOFFMAN PEERED over his bench and exchanged a few words with the bailiff as Len Parisi returned to the prosecution table. Then he looked across his courtroom at attorney Elise Antonelli, who was seated at the defense table beside her client, Connor Grant.
Hoffman said, “Ms. Antonelli, are you ready with your opening statement?”
Elise Antonelli stood and said, “Sidebar, Your Honor?”
Yuki almost said, What?
What was defense counsel up to?
Hoffman signaled to the lawyers to approach, and the three of them walked across the well to the bench.
“What is it, Ms. Antonelli?” said Hoffman. “I can’t wait to hear.”
Antonelli said, “Mr. Grant just fired me. He says that he wants to represent himself.”
Hoffman said, “Fired you? Okay, step back.”
Then, to the jurors, he said, “I’m calling a ten-minute recess. Sit tight.”
The court officers, guns on their hips, grouped behind the defendant. The judge opened the door behind the bench, and prosecution and defense counsel followed him down the corridor and assembled in his book-lined office. Parisi and Yuki took the brick-red love seat, and Elise Antonelli sat in the chair across from Hoffman’s desk.
Hoffman asked Antonelli, “Why did he dismiss you? What did he give as a reason?”
Antonelli said, “Paraphrasing now, he said, ‘I’m sure you’re very good, Elise, but I’m the best person to take my case to the jury.’”
“Really?” the judge said. “While facing twenty-five counts of murder two? What took your client so long to arrive at this staggeringly stupid decision?”
“He never mentioned that he was thinking about this, Judge, until I brought him his wardrobe this morning. I guess he got some jailhouse advice, or maybe he thinks if he defends himself and he loses, he gets a mistrial on the grounds that he’s got incompetent counsel.”
“Is he delusional?” Parisi asked.
Hoffman said, “Elise, don’t answer that. Well, let me ask you, Len. You want to go back to the table, try to negotiate a deal with the defendant?”
“Judge, I’m not opposed to his confession in open court in exchange for twenty-five life sentences served concurrently rather than consecutively with no possibility of parole. I offered this previously and was turned down.”
Elise Antonelli leaned forward in her seat. She said, “Judge, he won’t take a deal. He wants a trial and he believes that he can win. He plans to walk free. That’s what he said. That, and that he has a constitutional right for a pro se defense.”
Yuki recalled only three mass murderers who had defended themselves. Ted Bundy was found guilty and had been executed. Colin Ferguson, also found guilty, was given six life sentences. Only Lee Anthony Evans had defended himself successfully against multiple homicide charges. Connor Grant’s odds of winning were better if Antonnelli defended him, and that would be better for the prosecution as well. Yuki knew that a pro se defendant was a prosecutor’s worst nightmare. Juries tended to feel sorry for them because they were inexperienced. Accordingly, they got away with mistakes, misstatements, and meritless objections. Whether these missteps were calculated or not, they could influence the jury in the defendant’s favor.
Hoffman said to Antonelli, “Oh, boy. I’ll talk with him, alone, and see if I can get him to change his mind.”
CHAPTER 31
YUKI AND LEN went upstairs to Len’s office and tried to figure out what Connor Grant was trying to pull. Whatever it was, Judge Hoffman clearly wasn’t going to tolerate it. Right?