03_Cornered Coyote (21 page)

“Did Maria attend the meeting with you?”

“No, and I thought that was strange. Anyway, we went down to Jeffrey’s laboratory located in the basement of the motel and he showed us some of the things he was working on. Then he told us he had piped a feel-good drug into our rooms using the air-conditioning system. He called the drug Freedom. He told us he had perfected a pill which had Freedom as well as an anti-aging hormone in it and we could buy it from him for $20,000 a year. I think it was Sean who told him that we needed to think about it and asked him if we could meet him in the morning before we all left.”

“Did you and your husband discuss it that night?”

“Yes. We were up most of the night debating whether we should take the drug. We finally decided we would. Jorge felt he was a much better husband and employer when he took the drug. I felt I was a much better mother. I didn’t want to become bulimic again or have Carlos suffer from colic. That night, for the first time, Jorge told me about some of the dangers he experienced when he was in the Amazon. I worried about his safety. As it turned out, I had a right to worry.

“The next morning we went back down to the basement. It was a very short meeting. I remember that four of us decided to buy the drug. Sam, a Native American pediatrician, and Sean, the psychologist, decided not to take it. Both of them said they had seen too many people ruin their lives because of drug use. Several months later Jorge was on one of his trips to the family gold mines in the Amazon. He had forgotten to take his Freedom pill with him. Without the beneficial effects of the drug, he became disoriented. He was camped out in the Amazon jungle when, in the middle of the night, he got up to relieve himself. He never went anywhere without his bodyguards, but that night he did. Jorge was attacked by some renegade natives and killed. His head was cut off. It was simply awful.”

“I am so sorry for your loss,
Senora
Ortega. Why do you think he became disoriented?”

“I think he was suffering from withdrawal symptoms which affected his ability to think clearly.”

“
Senora
, when you met Jeffrey, how did he look to you?”

“He looked like I would expect a brilliant scientist to look. His grooming wasn’t particularly good and his eyes seemed very bright. He spoke very rapidly, but he was perfectly lucid. I know the defense said in their opening argument that he was going insane, but I never thought he was mad, just brilliant. What a shame such a brilliant man like that was murdered.”

“Thank you,
Senora
. One last question. Do you think Maria knew what Jeffrey was doing?”

“How could she not? She ran the motel. She handled the money. She had to know what he was doing.”

“Again, thank you for your testimony and I’m so sorry about the loss of your husband.

* * * * *

Brian walked over to Luisa and spent a long time looking at her and then at the notes on his legal pad.

“
Senora
Ortega, do you hate Maria Brooks?”

There was a collective gasp from the onlookers. Such questions were never asked.

“Yes I do. She...”

“Objection,” Marsha shouted.

“Overruled. You may continue
Senora
Ortega.”

Luisa turned and looked at Maria. “She knew. She had to know. Because of the drug she and her husband gave us, my husband was murdered, and my son will grow up without a father. Yes, I hate her. She is just as responsible for Jorge’s death as Jeffrey was.”

“
Senora
, you have no actual proof that Maria knew about Freedom being piped into the rooms, do you?”

“No. I don’t.”

“No further questions, your Honor.”

“You may call your next witness, Mrs. Sinclair,” Judge Adams said.

“The People have no further witnesses. The People rest their case.”

The judge looked out at the audience. “Since there are no further prosecution witnesses, the defense will begin after lunch by calling their witnesses. Court will reconvene at 1:30.”

Brian had told his secretary he wanted the defense witnesses to meet him in the cafeteria at the courthouse. Although he’d spent a great deal of time talking to them earlier, he wanted to make sure each one of them was clear on what they were going to say as well as find out if they had any last minute questions.

CHAPTER 37

“As its first witness, the defense calls Dr. Mas Fuchida to the witness stand.”

“Dr. Fuchida, thank you for taking time from your busy schedule to be here today. Would you tell the court your background and what qualifies you as an expert witness?”

“Yes. I received my medical degree at UCLA, doing advanced work in pathology. When I received my medical license, I was hired by the County of Riverside and I am currently the Chief Medical Examiner in the County Coroner’s Office. I have conducted over three thousand autopsies and have testified as an expert witness in one hundred and seventy-five trials. My department has been fortunate enough to be equipped with the latest state-of-the-art medical technology.”

“Thank you, Doctor. You conducted the autopsy on Jeffrey Brooks, is that correct?”

“Yes, I did.”

“Could you summarize your findings for the court?”

“Yes. Mr. Brooks died from a gunshot wound to the chest, fired at close range. Further testing revealed a number of drugs in his system, one of which has been found in people who have gone insane.”

“Dr. Fuchida, could that drug have caused his death?”

“No. His death was caused by the gunshot.”

“Doctor, why would someone take a drug if there was a chance of them becoming insane?”

“The substance in question is one of several ingredients found in a well-known drug which is used to treat people who are manic-depressive. We also found the other components of the drug that is used to treat manic-depressives in Mr. Brooks’ system. He was a scientist, and from what I know, a very brilliant scientist. It is my professional opinion that he may have been trying to formulate the drug by himself and he miscalculated the dosage of the ingredients that can lead to insanity. The chemical I found was fifty times stronger than is clinically recommended. I didn’t know the man, so I can’t speak as to whether or not he was insane at the time of death. However, having chemicals of the type I found during his autopsy at fifty times the maximum dosage level is almost certain to lead to insanity.”   

“Did you find any other drugs, or alcohol, or anything else in his system that led you to believe he was taking mind-altering substances?”

“No. There was nothing in his system except the ingredients of a drug used to treat a manic-depressive condition.”

He turned to Marsha. “I have no further questions.”

She approached the witness stand. “Doctor, you said that Jeffrey Brooks’ death was the result of a close range gunshot wound, is that true?”

“Yes. That was the cause of death.”

“So whatever drugs he had in his system did not cause his death. Is that correct?”

“Yes. That is correct. He did not die from the drugs.”

“I have no further questions, your Honor.”

* * * * *

“Dr. Herzog, thank you for taking time from your private practice to come today.  My client and I appreciate it. Please tell us about your medical background.”

“I went to Johns Hopkins University and received a medical degree. I went on to specialize in psychiatry. I was hired by Dr. Seth Rosen who had a large psychiatric practice in Los Angeles. When he retired I took over his practice. I have testified as an expert witness in over two hundred trials.”

“Was Jeffrey Brooks a patient of yours?”

“Yes. He had been a patient of mine for over twenty-five years.”

“Why was he a patient?”

“He suffered from a manic-depressive disorder, sometimes called bi-polar. He was in college when he first came to me. I did a number of tests on him and determined that he had a manic-depressive disorder. The tests confirmed my instincts. I assessed him annually and if necessary, I would change his prescription or suggest a new drug. In my profession there are always new ‘wonder’ drugs. He was very careful to take a daily pill and it levelled out his emotions and mental stability. Once he began taking the pills, his life changed. He found it easier to make friends and he even got married.”

“When was the last time you saw Mr. Brooks as a patient?”

“I saw him approximately two years ago. He didn’t return the following year for his scheduled annual appointment. I assumed he had moved out of the area and was seeing another psychiatrist.”

“Doctor, I believe you heard the testimony from Dr. Fuchida. He stated that the only drugs in Jeffrey Brooks’ body when he died were those that were commonly found in a medication administered to manic-depressive patients. He went on to say that there was a massive imbalance with respect to one ingredient. He testified that one of the chemicals present in Jeffrey Brooks’ body was in such a large amount that it could cause insanity. What is your professional opinion of his statement?”

“Yes. I did hear him say that and I agree with his conclusions. The only thing I can infer from the autopsy results is that Mr. Brooks was trying to self-medicate, that is to say he was making his own manic-depressive drugs and administering them to himself. The fact that no prescriptions from another doctor were found in his office or his home tells me he was formulating a drug on his own to simulate the manic-depressive drug I’d prescribed for him.”

“Objection,” Marsha said. “That is conjecture.”

“Overruled. The doctor is an expert witness. The defense is asking if something was possible in his professional opinion. Proceed, Doctor.”

“Thank you. Jeffrey Brooks was a brilliant scientist. If he was not taking his medication or if it was altered, he could have been in a manic state and believed he was capable of duplicating the drug I’d prescribed. I think that’s what happened to him. It was a mistake on his part and it probably cost him his life.”

“Doctor, I’d like to be very clear on this point. In your professional opinion, if the ingredients of a manic-depressive medicine are altered, can it cause insanity?”

“There is no doubt in my mind that an imbalance of ingredients can result in insanity.”

“Again, Dr. Herzog, thank you. No further questions.”

“I have no questions, your Honor,” Marsha said.

* * * * *

“Defense calls as its next witness, Sean Moriarty.”  

“Mr. Moriarty, thank you for taking the time to be here. Would you tell us about your background and why you are qualified to be an expert witness?”

“Certainly. I am a licensed psychologist, the director of a non-profit organization that helps troubled people, and I am a former Catholic priest. I’ve counseled thousands of people, many with psychological disorders. I travel throughout the country speaking to interested groups on these subjects.”

“Would you tell the court how you met Maria Brooks?”

Sean shifted in his seat and began to speak. “It is difficult for me to talk about this, but I’ll do the best I can. I was a Catholic priest at a church in Santa Fe. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I had molested several young altar boys and I was an alcoholic. When the bishop discovered my transgressions, I was relieved of my duties and kicked out of the church, defrocked, if you will. On the day I was defrocked, I left Santa Fe to drive to my old family home in California.”

He paused and took a deep breath. It was apparent to everyone in the courtroom that revisiting that day was very painful to him.        

“I didn’t know what the future held for me and believed that my life was over. I was drinking while I was driving and almost ran my car off the road. I pulled into the Blue Coyote Motel and was greeted by Maria, who called me ‘Father.’ I was wearing a large cross and my face looked like a road map from all the drinking. I suppose it wasn’t a real leap to realize I was in trouble. I remember falling asleep when I got to my room. When I woke up and went to get something to eat, I made a wrong turn and followed what sounded to me like a generator. I went down some stairs and saw a sign on a door indicating that no one was to enter. Later, I learned it was Jeffrey Brook’s lab.”

“Did you open the door that evening? Did you see Jeffrey?”

“No. I walked back up the stairs, got some food, went to my room, and read a book until I fell asleep. When I woke up the next day, quite late for me, I felt great. I honestly believed a new life awaited me. This euphoric feeling stayed with me for several months and during that time I quit drinking, became the director of an outpatient counseling clinic in Denver, and even got married. My life was wonderful and then things started going downhill. I decided to return to the Blue Coyote Motel, hoping to experience that euphoric state once more. I returned on Memorial Day weekend.”

“If you need to, take a moment. We have all the time in the world,” Brian said.

“Thanks.” Sean took a drink of water and resumed. “Friday night everyone went to their rooms. Saturday was beautiful and all of the guests ended up around the pool, just talking as strangers tend to do when they’re all in the same place. After listening to the others, I realized we were all there for the same reason, to experience euphoria. The thought occurred to me that this behavior is very similar to people who are taking drugs. I’ve done a fair amount of drug counseling, both as a priest, and as a therapist in Denver, and I began to see similarities. Later on that afternoon, I excused myself and went to my room. I had my iPad with me and I did a little research on Jeffrey Brooks. I found out he had been a brilliant scientist and had been fired from Moore Labs for allegedly giving his wife, Maria, an anti-aging drug.

“I decided I’d talk to Jorge, one of the other guests, because I’d overheard that he spent a lot of time in the Amazon. I’ve read that a lot of drug breakthroughs came from plants that grow in the Amazon. I wondered if he might know anything about drugs, and if so, if he had any idea how a drug might be administered to unsuspecting guests at the motel. I was tired and took a nap for a couple of hours. When I woke up I was hungry and went to get something to eat. Fortunately, Jorge was getting some dinner for his wife Luisa and himself. I introduced myself and asked him if he would come to my room after he finished eating, that I wanted to run a few things by him.”