The blue flash drive dangled from the neck cord the judge held in her manicured fist. With her elbows resting on the bench, she slowly swung it back and forth in front of her face, like a pendulum.
‘I don’t know what kind of game you think you’re playing, State. The fact that this video was anonymously sent to the defendant’s mother on the eve of her son’s bond hearing raises eyebrows right out of the gate. At least for me it does. If it hadn’t caused the same reaction for you, Ms DeBianchi, I guess that would be one thing. If you’d shrugged your shoulders and moved on to the next matter on your desk, I guess I’d be sitting here questioning your indifference. You are, I suppose, under no obligation to investigate the source of the video, or find out who the girl was or what became of her.’ The judge paused for a long moment. ‘But you did. And you discovered that she, too, was not a consensual partner in an S&M tape, but rather the victim of a brutal murder that had occurred under circumstances alarmingly similar to your own case, albeit in a different jurisdiction.
‘I don’t know if a jury’s ever going to get to see this video. I don’t know what kind of a defense Mr Varlack will be raising, although I’m pretty sure I see it coming. But at the very least, Mr Varlack had a right to be informed of the video’s existence, had a right to see the video, and had a right to know the name of the victim so identified in it. As the crimes do appear similar, he also has the right to know the names of any suspects the police have identified in Ms Vechio’s murder, including those developed by the authorities in New York, as well as any possible victims from other jurisdictions that have been identified, as this may lead him to develop another theory of his case. If it turns out that someone other than Mr Lunders committed those murders — murders that do appear, as I just said, alarmingly identical to Ms Skole’s murder — that is information that might very well exculpate the defendant. What is the most disappointing factor in all this is that you are a smart woman, Ms DeBianchi, and you knew you had to turn it over, but you didn’t.’
‘Judge—’ Daria started.
‘You didn’t. That being said, Mr Varlack, you can’t just sit on something that you had in your possession till the last minute so you can scream you’ve been done wrong, hoping to engage my ire. Your client’s mother had the video. She has a copy in her possession, I’m sure. You’ve obviously seen the video; according to Ms DeBianchi, Abigail Lunders said she’d shown it to you the morning of the Arthur Hearing. So yes, you are entitled to the information that the state has derived from investigating the video, but you are culpably negligent. The state, remiss as it is, is not legally obligated to hand you your defense. I suggest you put some of those well-paid investigators of yours to work and engage in some defense work yourself.
‘Give him the names, Ms DeBianchi,’ the judge finished with a sigh. ‘Give him the police reports. Give him the video. And I don’t want to hear so much as a whisper of a rumor that you are withholding evidence, or I’ll be the first to file a bar complaint. No conviction is ever worth your character.’
Varlack smelled opportunity. ‘Your Honor, I’d like to revisit bond. You said that was possible if there was new evidence that came to light. I think this surely qualifies.’
‘Yes, Mr Varlack, I did say that,’ the judge replied.
‘Mr Lunders needs to be able to assist in his defense. He doesn’t have a criminal history, not even a traffic ticket. He’d be willing to surrender his passport, commit to an ankle bracelet. And, of course, post a substantial bond.’
‘Of course,’ replied Becker, nodding.
‘Your Honor, Judge Steyn heard all this—’ Daria protested.
But the judge waved her off with a fire-red claw. ‘Perhaps this will prove as incentive for you to be completely forthcoming with the court and opposing counsel in the future. You’re lucky this isn’t happening during trial or post-conviction, because you’d be sitting in a jail cell. Bond is hereby granted in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars. In the event the defendant posts bond, he’ll commit to a bracelet and be placed under house arrest pending trial. We’re done for now.’
The judge swooped off the bench before anyone could utter another word, her black robe billowing in a puff behind her as she quickly strode out the door to her chambers. It slammed shut.
Daria stood at the state’s table, completely stunned. Bond was in the discretion of the trial judge, so there was nothing to appeal. She just had to deal with it.
Talbot Lunders was now out of custody. A free man.
And it was all her fault.