And Justice For All (standard:drama, 3135 words)
Author: MikeK	Added: Sep 23 2005	Views/Reads: 3521/2396	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Bill Rush just wanted to deposit his check and get some cash. How could he know that when Justice got out of law school she ripped off her blindfold and quickly acquired a rather profligate wardrobe.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story

one of the alarms.  Anyway, these two knuckleheads is runnin' around 
like crazy sayin' as how they're going to shoot anyone that doesn't do 
exactly like they say...can you hear me OK?" 

"Go on." 

"Well, this woman lying on the floor next to me, she's cryin' and
carryin' on to beat hell and one of the robbers, the short one with the 
beard, comes over and he tells her to shut the hell up.  You can see 
she's tryin' but without much luck so he slaps her in the side of the 
head with the butt of his rifle.  The other one starts hollering at him 
and I can tell from the sound that he's clear on the other side of the 
bank.  Now the short one is standin' over me." 

"You mean Mr. Speck?" 

"Yea, that one.  He's standing over me so I kick him right in the ... 
Can I say that in court?  I mean where I kicked him?" 

"You kicked him in the groin." 

"That's it.  I kicked him hard to.  As hard as I could.  And as he fell
over I grabbed his rifle and I got up and shot the other one." 

"Mr. Delany." 

"Beg pardon?" 

"You shot Mr. Delany, the other robber?" 

"Yes." 

"And what happened then?" 

"The other one, the one I kicked, I guess he seen what was goin' on and
he grabbed at me, so I shot him too." 

"And then what happened?" 

"I'm not for sure.  My ears was ringing from shooting the one so close
to me on the floor.  There was people runnin' all over the place and 
pretty soon the police grabbed me and threw me to the floor.  Like to 
busted my head open." 

"The police beat you up?" 

"Well I had the rifle.  I couldn't hear what they was hollerin' at me...
I guess they thought I might be one of the robbers." 

"Go on." 

"They took me outside and sat me in one of their cars, all handcuffed
and such and bye and bye they figured out I wasn't one of the robbers.  
But they didn't let me go.  On account of killin' them two men they 
said." 

"So they arrested you?" 

"That county prosecutor guy said it was mostly a formality because men
had been killed.  They let me go the next day." 

"And now you're on trial, in Federal court, not for killing two men who
were committing a felony by robbing a bank, but for violating a man's 
civil rights." 

"Some of the people in the bank were upset.  Some got sick.  It's not a
pretty sight, someone getting shot at close range." 

"Now Bill, the prosecution contends that you violated Mr. Speck's civil
rights.  They say that you took his life after the crisis was over.  
What they're saying is that Mr. Speck was incapacitated to the extent 
that he could not harm you and, understanding that, you killed him.  
And that you killed him, at least partly, because he was a Black man.  
What I want you to do now is focus in on the time frame.  Tell us 
exactly what you're reaction was when Mr. Speck grabbed your leg." 

"I don't know.  It's like a reflex.  Something you do without thinking. 
I got a temper and I'll be the first to admit it, and I wouldn't try to 
tell anyone that I was some hero or nothin' such as that...  I...  I'll 
just be damned if I'll lay down peaceful on the floor and let one of 
them put a bullet in me.  The man had already beat on the woman next to 
me with his rifle.  He grabbed me and I shot him.  I don't know what 
else to say..." 

"Thank you, Bill."  Mr. Bartlett now turned to the prosecutor,
"Councilor." 

Mr. Stanley Kensington, one of the Federal Prosecutors now took his
turn, "Mr. Rush, you have seen the surveillance tape of the incident, 
taken from the bank security camera?" 

"I'm seeing it in my sleep." 

"I take that to be a 'yes'." 

"Yes." 

"And would you describe it as a fair representation of what went on?" 

"I'm not sure what you mean by 'fair representation'?" 

"Well, what we see on the tape is what actually happened, is it not?" 

"Yes." 

"So let me focus on the relevant section of that tape.  The section
where we see Mr. Speck grab at your leg and then gets shot." 

Mr. Kensington with the help of some attendants moved a large TV screen
to the front of the room.  He played a short section of the tape, blown 
up so that the pictures are big but very grainy.  He played the same 
section of the tape three times. 

"It looks to me, Mr. Rush, after many viewings, that you are in total
control of the situation.  Wouldn't you agree?" 

"I don't know how you can tell that." 

Mr. Kensington played the same section of tape again three times.  "The
man, Mr. Speck, grabs at your leg and you appear to look down and pause 
for a moment and then you bring the rifle barrel down and shoot.  
Aren't we all seeing the same thing?" 

"Well the way you're showing that picture, blown up and slowed way down,
I could have just as easy ran home for dinner and come back later to 
shoot him." 

There was a laugh from the gallery and Mr. Kensington was noticeably
perturbed.  "You find this amusing, Mr. Rush?  You find watching a tape 
of a man being executed something to joke about!" 

Bill Rush looked over toward his attorney.  "Can't you object or
something?  He's calling this an execution.  Damn!" 

"That's enough, Mr. Rush." 

"Yes, your honor." 

Mr. Kensington spoke up again.  "Mr. Rush, you do understand that the
law does not allow you to take another persons life because he is 
robbing a bank." 

"I didn't shoot him because he was robbing the bank.  I..." 

"Mr. Rush, you must answer my questions with a 'yes' or 'no' answer
unless you are told otherwise." 

"OK." "Mr. Rush, you don't like blacks do you?  I mean ethnically?" 

"Ethically?" 

"As a race?" 

"I don't think of them that way.  Some I like and some I don't like. 
Same as with most folks.  But you're barking up the wrong tree if 
you're supposin' I killed them men 'cause they was black." 

"Mr. Rush you must answer my questions with a 'yes' or a 'no' answer
unless I instruct you differently.  Is that clear?" 

"Yes, sir." 

"You can drop the 'sir'.  You have a brother named Roy who lives in
Maryland, near Baltimore?" "Yes." 

"And he is a member of the KKK?" 

A buzz emanated from the gallery and the judge pounded on his gavel. 

"I don't know.  He was." 

"Speak up, please!" 

"I don't know.  He was." 

"In fact, he's an officer, is he not?  In the Klan?" 

"Objection." 

"Overruled.  Show relevance, councilor." 

"Mr. Rush, didn't your brother, an officer in the Ku Klux Klan, call you
the other night to congratulate you on...let's see how does it go 
here...oh yes, on blowing away those two Spades." 

"How'd you know that?" 

"Answer the question, Mr. Rush!" 

"Yes.  Yes he did.  But he..." 

"And haven't you attended Klan meetings with him?" 

"Hell no!" 

"No?  On December 23, two years ago, didn't you and your brother attend
a meeting of the Ku Klux Klan?  A simple 'yes' or 'no' answer, Mr. 
Rush." 

"Now see here, dammit!  You want to make out like I'm some kind of
racist skinhead Nazi or some such.  That was supposed to be a lodge 
meeting...  I didn't know..." 

"Order!  Order!  Mr. Rush..." 

"Judge, I ain't like my brother...  He got fifty dollars for whoever he
could get to that meeting.  He didn't tell me what it really was 
because he knows I would not have..." 

"You are directed to give a 'yes' or 'no' answer, Mr. Rush.  I won't
warn you again, is that clear?" 

"No!  It ain't clear your honor.  How can I go right along when he's
trying to make out like I killed a man because he's black.  That ain't 
the truth of it..." 

"Council, approach the bench." 

The judge talked to both lawyers for some minutes and then Bill's lawyer
came over to him.  "I'm sorry, Bill.  I know how you feel but this is 
how it's done.  Mr. Kensington has some more questions and, like we 
talked about before, he's going to be tough on you.  That's his job.  
He has to show the other side of it." 

"But win or lose, he gets paid and goes home.  Why don't he just ask me
straight out if I killed them men because they were black and I'll 
answer him straight out and the jury can believe me or not.  Why all 
this bullshit?" 

"If you don't do what the judge says he can put you in jail.  And he can
finish this without you." 

"Son-of-a-bitch, Ted.  I honest to God ain't done nothin' wrong.  Half
the guys I work with is black.  Why don't they bring them in here 
instead of the ones outside that scream at me whenever I come in or 
leave?" 

"Our time is up.  Now remember, Bill, just answer his questions like he
wants and go on..." 

Bill's testimony resumed. 

"Mr. Rush, you are a pretty good shot with a rifle, aren't you?" 

"I don't know.  I haven't shot one in a long time, at least not before
all...." 

"Do you recognize this?" 

"Yes." 

"It's an M16 rifle, isn't it?  A weapon you're very familiar with?" 

"Me and a couple of million other guys." 

"In fact, according to your service record you're an expert with this
rifle.  The very same rifle used in the bank hold-up.  So when you shot 
Mr. Delany with this rifle at approximately sixty-one feet, right 
through the mouth, you knew what you were doing did you not?" 

"I wouldn't...." 

"Objection.  Is that a question or a statement?" 

"Sustained." 

"There is another shooting much less in doubt, which I want to ask you
about.  You testified, with admirable brevity, that when Mr. Speck 
grabbed you by the leg you shot him.  How far away from you was he?" 

"He had me by the leg.  How far could he be?" 

"Answer the question Mr. Rush.  How far away was he?  A foot?  Two
feet?" 

"I don't know.  I didn't measure?" 

"This is the coroner's report.  It says here that the fatal shot was
fired from a distance not more than four to six inches away Mr. Rush.  
Point blank!  You don't deny that do you?" 

"No." 

"Mr. Rush, this was not a shooting, it was an execution was it not?" 

"Objection, Your honor." 

"Sustained.  Enough of that councilor." 

"Mr. Rush, after you incapacitated Mr. Speck with a kick to the groin,
and then shot Mr. Delany, did you feel that your life was in imminent 
danger?" 

"I don't know what you mean?" 

"Did you feel at that time that Mr. Speck could kill you?" 

"I didn't think about it.  I wasn't going to give him back his rifle, if
that's what you mean." 

"Mr. Rush, if you didn't feel that Mr. Speck could take your life, at
that very moment, then under the law you could not kill him.  So the 
relevant question here is did you feel at that very moment that Mr. 
Speck was going to kill you?" 

"How in the hell could a person know that?  I mean if a man points a gun
at you and demands your money what are you supposed to do, call Legal 
Aid.  Isn't there some presumption under your law that if some 
Son-of-a-bitch sticks a gun in your face he might use it?" 

"But Mr. Speck didn't have a gun.  He was in fact unarmed when you shot
him." "Only because I took it away from him.  And I thought he was 
trying to get it back." 

"Facts, Mr. Rush!  We want to deal in facts!  We know Mr. Speck was
unarmed.  We don't know what he was trying to do or not trying to do.  
And because you killed him we can't ask him can we?" 

"Fine.  I'm all for facts!  I went into the bank to cash my paycheck. 
Just why in the hell did your Mr. Speck stop in." 

"One more outburst like that, Mr. Rush and I'll find you in contempt!" 

"Yes, your honor." 

Mr. Kensington again, "How hard did you kick Mr. Speck?" 

"As hard as I could." 

"And what did he do then?" 

"He fell on the floor." 

"Did he appear badly hurt?" 

"I'm sure he didn't feel like partying." 

"So you grabbed his rifle and shot Mr. Delany.  About how long did that
take?" 

"I don't know.  I did it as fast as I could." 

"In a matter of seconds?" 

"I suppose." 

"So it is not likely the Mr. Speck, having just been kicked in the groin
seconds before, was much of a threat to you.  Isn't that so?" 

"He was a threat to me the minute he came in that bank.  I wasn't there
to rob him." "You're an angry man, Mr. Rush, aren't you?" 

"Objection." 

"No.  No.  I'll answer his question.  I sure as hell am!  The way you
twist everything I say..." 

"And that's why you killed Mr. Speck, isn't it?  Not because he robbed a
bank, not even because he hit Mrs. Blaylock with a rifle; but because 
you were angry!  Isn't that so, Mr. Rush?" 

"Objection, Your honor.  He's badgering the witness." 

"You killed a man Mr. Rush.  You took away the most precious of civil
rights, the right to live, because he was a black bank robber and you 
were angry!" 

"You son-of-a-bitch." 

"No more questions." 

"You don't wand to know what went on!  You don't care what really
happened.  You want to win a case.  I shot both of them because I was 
scared to death and mad as hell!  You're goddamned right!  I was 
angry!" 

"Order!  Order!  Sit down, Mr. Rush!" 

"Them sons-of-bitches give up what ever rights they had when they come
in there to rob that bank.  And they damn well didn't seem to have a 
problem using your deadly force.  You can't have it both ways." 

"Bailiff!" 

"You think a man can't give up his rights?  You point a loaded rifle at
me you better pull the trigger, even if it's just to preserve your 
civil rights!" 

******* 

William K. Rush was convicted of violating Mr. Speck's civil rights.  He
was fined five thousand dollars and given a suspended sentence. 

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