Part 22 (2/2)
”How did you learn that the eminent-domain lawsuit was filed against you?”
”The paperwork was taped to the door of my house when I came home from work.”
The more Bullock questioned her, the angrier she became.
”Did the NLDC tell you you had to vacate your house at a particular time?”
”They said I had to move out of my home by March 9th of the year 2001.”
”Did they tell you anything about paying an occupancy fee?”
”They said I was going to be required to pay them rent.”
When she learned that the Italian men's club would be allowed to stay, Susette testified, she wrote a letter requesting the same treatment. ”They said I couldn't stay,” she said.
”Who said that?” Bullock asked.
”David Goebel,” she testified. ”I asked if NLDC was going to do anything to help us keep our homes, and he said absolutely not.”
”Do you have any homes between yourself and the Dery property?”
”No, sir, we do not.”
”What happened to those homes?”
”They tore them all down.”
Bullock asked if she would welcome new houses to replace the demolished ones. She said she would, along with new businesses, parking lots, a museum, and just about anything else the city wanted to build, as long as she could keep her home.
”What, if anything, Mrs. Kelo, finally, do you want to get out of this lawsuit?”
”I just want to be left alone, be able to come home and relax and just be left alone.”
Londregan didn't challenge anything Susette said.
Like any trial lawyer, Bullock didn't want any surprise testimony from his witnesses. He also didn't want any angry outbursts. He and Berliner had carefully drilled the homeowners on the need to stick to the facts and to exercise restraint when being cross-examined by the opposing attorneys.
Bullock wasn't too worried. His clients were so nervous about testifying that they were unlikely to lash out. But Billy Von Winkle was the wild card in the bunch. Besides being unpredictable and p.r.o.ne to playing the practical joker, Von Winkle had some personal history with the NLDC's lead attorney, Ed O'Connell, whose firm had established a trust for Von Winkle. Shortly after the trust was set up, O'Connell's firm notified Von Winkle that it could no longer represent him. Von Winkle had never understood why until the night he dug through the NLDC's Dumpster and discovered the original retainer contract signed by O'Connell's law firm and the NLDC. From that moment on, Von Winkle had no love lost for O'Connell and his partners.
Bullock expected O'Connell to challenge Von Winkle aggressively under cross-examination. To prepare him, Bullock had played the role of O'Connell and attacked Von Winkle in a dress rehearsal the night before the trial. In the rehearsal, the tougher Bullock got, the more Von Winkle played around.
”Bill, c'mon,” Bullock said at one point, stopping the role-playing. ”Listen, you can't do this at the trial tomorrow. We have to act like this is the trial right now. We've got to temporarily turn off the jokes because it is only going to help them. It's not going to help you.”
As Von Winkle made his way to the stand in the real trial, Bullock hoped his message from the previous night had gotten through.
”Good afternoon, Mr. Von Winkle,” he said.
”Good afternoon, Mr. Bullock.”
After a series of factual questions about how many properties he owned in the fort area and how long he had owned them, Bullock asked Von Winkle how much work and money he had invested in his buildings. In all, he had spent seventeen years upgrading his buildings with his own hands, Von Winkle said. He had replaced everything from the roofing and bas.e.m.e.nt floors to the plumbing and electrical wiring. Using his own money, he had even replaced the broken city sidewalks outside his buildings. Von Winkle's direct examination went smoothly.
O'Connell hoped to get him off track. He had carefully scrutinized the deeds to Von Winkle's buildings and discovered a discrepancy that he planned to spring on him.
”I just want to clear up some minor matters,” O'Connell began. ”The deeds regarding these properties describe you by various middle initials.”
Von Winkle hadn't antic.i.p.ated questions about his deeds.
”For example,” O'Connell said, ”35 Smith Street describes you as William A. Von Winkle. Is that you?”
”No, it's not.”
”It's not?”
”No.”
Confused, Judge Corradino looked over his gla.s.ses at Von Winkle. Bullock was confused too.
O'Connell continued. ”The deed to 31 Smith Street describes a person named William M. Von Winkle,” he said. ”Is that you?”
”Yes, it is.”
O'Connell read the deed to the third building owned by Von Winkle and noted that it, like the first deed, a.s.signed owners.h.i.+p to William A. Von Winkle. ”That's not you?” O'Connell asked.
”No.”
”Who is that?”
”That would be my father.”
”So you own only one of these three buildings. Is that correct?”
Judge Corradino s.h.i.+fted his eyes from O'Connell to Von Winkle. Bullock leaned over to his co-counsel. ”Where's he going with this?” he whispered.
Von Winkle didn't know where O'Connell was headed either. But he figured that any confusion over the names on the deeds had been caused by O'Connell's own law firm when it set up the trust. He couldn't swallow the fact that O'Connell had the nerve to try to use this confusion to undermine his standing in front of the judge. Von Winkle had promised Bullock he'd behave on the stand. But he also felt the judge should know O'Connell's role in the mix-up.
”Well,” he said, looking at O'Connell with contempt, ”your office set up a trust, which, if you went back, you could find it. You'll know exactly who the owner is. That was done three years ago.”
Corradino lowered his gla.s.ses. Susette and others in the courtroom laughed. Bullock raised his eyebrows and put his hand in front of his face to conceal his smile. But O'Connell didn't appreciate Von Winkle's response.
”Well, if you can answer my question,” O'Connell said. ”Is it correct that you only own one-”
”Well-” Von Winkle interrupted him.
Corradino cut off Von Winkle. ”Wait until he finishes the question.”
”What's that, sir?” Von Winkle asked O'Connell.
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