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.He was clearly trying to catchDr.Coleman speaking ill of the Bible, but the psychologist was a religiouswoman and a brainy one, and she easily sidestepped his traps. Why is it so unusual for a teenager to study the Bible? Judge Davisasked. Oh, it s not unusual at all, Dr.Coleman said. What is unusual is thatany therapist would write that someone had an unusual interest, particu-larly a therapist in Duplin County or rural North Carolina where we knowthat they re used to working with a lot of religious individuals. A hundred years ago, there were very few publications other than theGood Book, the judge said. Was it delusional on the part of teenagersthen to study the Bible and to read it constantly? I wouldn t think so at all, Dr.Coleman said. Thank you, Dr.Coleman, the judge said.The CDPL s next expert, Dr.Dudley, couldn t have been more differentthan Dr.Coleman.But the dapper black psychiatrist from New York Cityhad come to the same diagnosis: Bo Jones was psychotic and delusional.Dr.Dudley testified that Bo had an abiding faith that God had puthim on death row for a purpose.When Bo s function was complete, Godwould open the gates and Bo would be freed.Bo s freedom did not dependon a court ruling or a prison break.It would occur through divine inter-vention, just as Moses parted the Red Sea, as Jesus walked on water.He 106 The Last Lawyerwould simply leave.Bo had also told the psychiatrist that God had alreadyselected a wife for him back in Duplin County, and her identity would bemade clear to Bo when he got back home. Dr.Dudley, you have testified that Mr.Jones does not believe he canbe executed, Ken said. What does that mean to you? It means to me that he believes that if taken to a room where an exe-cution is done, and the execution procedure is actually undertaken, that hewill not die, Dr.Dudley said. Does that mean he believes, Dr.Dudley, that if the poison is injectedinto his veins he will not die? Ken asked. Yes, Dr.Dudley responded.On cross-examination, Valerie Spalding focused on that concept. Are believers in the Supreme Being and the all-powerful being, are theydelusional in that belief? Spalding asked. Is that a delusional belief? Dr.Dudley avoided this trap, but his testimony had reached the sameimpasse, the same stalemate, as Dr.Coleman s.Despite all of their claims,all of their evidence, the entire hearing, it seemed to the CDPL team, hadsomehow come down to one question: Did Bo Jones believe his connectionto God meant he could not be executed?The second part of the question was this belief delusional? shouldhave been a simple assumption.But with the Deacon sitting behind thejudge s platform, nothing was simple.Which was exactly why Valerie Spalding would not stop hammeringat it. Are you aware, Dr.Dudley, that there are millions of people livingin the South here who believe that God will take care of them, no matterwhat? Spalding asked. I m aware that there are millions of people who believe that God willtake care of them, the psychiatrist responded. I don t know that there aremillions of people who believe that, therefore, nothing bad can happen tothem. 22The week had begun hot, but a cool front moved in on Thursday as thehearing labored on.Sara and Grace shared a room at the CDPL s lodging,the Country Squire Inn.The inn s rooms were simple and ornamented withpaintings of fox hunts.Intricate gardens and brick pathways overhung withleafy canopies linked the two main buildings.The inn was pleasant, butwhen Grace stepped out of her room in the mornings, the odor of nearbyhog farms hung in the air.The manure smell matched Grace s mood.Everything about DuplinCounty chafed her raw nerves.She d discovered Valerie Spalding was stay-ing in the room next to hers.The thought of Cruella being in such closeproximity was unsettling.More than once, the two teams crossed paths inrestaurants and nodded frosty hellos at each other.During the testimony of the CDPL s two experts, Valerie Spalding hadobjected almost two-dozen times.She objected to questions she consid-ered to be leading, to questions that lacked specificity, to questions thathad already been answered, and Judge Davis nearly always sustained herobjections.Sometimes Spalding didn t object but simply broke in with acorrection to a question.The frequency of her outbursts increased duringKen s examination of Dr.Dudley.Interruptions made it difficult to buildany momentum with a witness, and Spalding s objections were particularlyjarring.She made the most of them, half-rising from her seat, tugging ather short skirt and crying, in a voice suffused with indignation:Ob-jec-tion!Even Sara s conduct grated on Grace.Sara sat immediately behind thedefense table, paying close attention and reacting to everything.When astate witness incorrectly quoted the Bible, Sara rushed out to find a phoneto call her priest to verify the correct passage.Every time the testimonytriggered a notion, Sara leaned forward and whispered into Ken s ear.That s why they had brought her, of course.Sara was the expert on Bo slife history she had talked to more people than anyone else, and hermemory for details was prodigious.But the murmurs interrupted Grace schain of thought almost as much as Valerie Spalding s objections.Keneventually told Sara to write down her thoughts and pass them up.As107 108 The Last LawyerGrace questioned Dr.Coleman, she could hear Sara scribbling and pass-ing notes to Ken.Then Sara prompted a real interruption.The problem began with a filefrom a hospital where Bo Jones s great-uncle had been treated for mentalillness.The CDPL wanted to study the great-uncle s file.Sara had gone tothe clerk of court s office and asked to see the records.A clerk told her ajudge had sealed them.Accustomed to foot-dragging by Duplin Countycourthouse employees, Sara asked to see the file so she could make sureit really bore a judge s signature ordering it sealed.The clerk refused, andword of Sara s request got back to Judge Davis, who was irate.Just before abreak in testimony, he addressed Sara. Young lady, would you stand up please, the judge said ominously. What is your name? Sara stood and told him.She was calm but curious what had shedone wrong? Ms.Sanders, are you an attorney? Judge Davis asked. No, sir, I m a social worker, she said. You work with Mr.Rose? he asked. Yes, sir, she said. Why did you come to the courthouse on Monday and request to seea sealed file from Cherry Hospital regarding the great-uncle of the defen-dant? he asked. I did not know the file was under seal, and I asked if I could see it ifit was here, and I asked if I could pick it up, she replied. I did not know itwas under seal. You are not an attorney? the judge repeated. No, Sara said. I will leave it to the attorneys you work for to explain to you the rami-fications of trying to obtain property that is sealed, the judge said. Mr
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