Part 28 (1/2)

”Were you offered any other scholars.h.i.+ps at the college?”

”Yes. In baseball, basketball, and track.”

”And what about other universities? Did you have an opportunity to go to school elsewhere?”

”I received scholars.h.i.+p offers from numerous universities around the country. I believe they totaled well over a hundred.”

”And were they all for your athletic ability?”

”Yes.”

”Had you ever been offered a scholars.h.i.+p because of your academics?”

Brandon smiled slightly. ”Not until I started applying for graduate school.”

”I noticed you smiled at my question, but we'll get to that in a moment. Could you tell the jury when you first met Professor Matheson?”

”I registered for one of his courses at the beginning of my soph.o.m.ore year.”

”What was your major at that time?”

”Playing sports, primarily.” He looked at the jurors with some embarra.s.sment. ”Technically, I majored in sports psychology, but I'd be hard-pressed to tell you what that consisted of.”

”And why did you enroll in one of Dr. Matheson's cla.s.ses?”

”He had a great reputation on campus, and to be quite honest, I thought taking a black studies course wouldn't be that demanding.”

”Were you wrong?”

”I'd never worked that hard in all my life.” Brandon's eyes closed halfway as he shook his head at the recollection.

Matheson laughed, and a number of the jurors chuckled.

”It was also the most eye-opening experience I'd ever had.” Brandon looked at each member of the jury individually. ”Professor Matheson's the type of teacher you dream about having but usually never do. I was fortunate to meet him when I did.” He glanced at Matheson. ”I think I'd be a very different person if he hadn't played a role in my life-one I probably wouldn't have liked too much.”

”How did Dr. Matheson influence you?”

”I'd been thinking about leaving campus and turning pro. I had a great freshman year and set several collegiate records in multiple sports. A number of football and basketball scouts wanted me to quit school and make myself eligible for the draft.”

”Did Professor Matheson talk you out of leaving?”

”Even if I needed to be persuaded, that wasn't Dr. Matheson's style. He believed students should make their own choices, but only after considering all the options and consequences.” He looked at the journalists cl.u.s.tered in the first few rows. ”He's the only teacher who ever treated me as if I had something of value to offer besides scoring touchdowns or dunking basketb.a.l.l.s.” He smiled at Mrs. Whitney. ”Once I began to take academics seriously, I discovered how much I didn't know.”

”And you wanted to learn more?”

”I wanted to learn everything. I realized I'd allowed myself to be exploited at the expense of my education. So I resigned from sports, took out several student loans, and selected a real major. I asked Dr. Matheson to be my adviser.”

Miller leaned against the lectern and generally treated Brandon much more casually than he'd treated any other witness. ”Did he agree?”

”On one condition. He told me I needed to display as much dedication to developing my mind as I'd devoted to excelling in sports.”

”Were you able to accomplish that?”

”With his help and faith in me, I went on to win two international academic fellows.h.i.+ps. When I got notified of the first award, it was the proudest moment I'd ever experienced. It surpa.s.sed any feeling I'd accomplished in sports.” He paused for a moment and tried to contain his emotions.

The members of the jury were touched by Brandon's testimony. Vernetta Williams dabbed at her eye with a tissue; Cindy Lou Herrington, Harriet Dove, and Mrs. Whitney provided motherly smiles and encouragement while several of the men smiled in admiration.

”Brandon, were you ever in trouble with the law?” The nature of Miller's question startled the jury, but Reynolds knew the wily defense attorney had set up the next line of inquiry brilliantly. Now that he'd gotten the jury to care about the witness, he'd introduce the enemy and make them angry enough to take out their outrage on the prosecution.

”Yes, only once, and it occurred at the end of last year.”

Miller finally walked away from the podium and proceeded closer to the jury. ”Could you tell us the nature of your problem and what led to it?”

Brandon faced the jury. ”I'd been active in leading protests or demonstrations against the men on Professor Matheson's list. I, along with another student, went to Earvin Cooper's home and placed a sign on his front lawn. We wanted to inform his neighbors of the type of man they lived next to. Before I was able to leave, Mr. Cooper and I got into a verbal confrontation. He wrote down my license plate number, so I knew there was a record of my visit. A day or two after the confrontation, Mr. Cooper was murdered.”

Miller turned toward his client. ”And now Professor Matheson stands accused of that murder.”

”Yes.”

”Initially, the police a.s.sumed you were responsible for the crime, isn't that true?”

”Objection, Your Honor,” shouted Reynolds. ”a.s.sumes facts not in evidence. Mr. Hamilton was never charged with Mr. Cooper's murder, nor was that the reason for his subsequent arrest.”

”Sustained,” Tanner ruled. ”The jury's instructed to disregard the question.”

Miller paused and gave the jury sufficient time to think about the question Tanner had just told them to ignore. ”Brandon, why were you arrested?”

”I did something pretty stupid, but at the time it seemed a good idea.”

”Isn't that always the case?” Miller studied the jury, but they gave no indication of their feelings. They waited patiently for an explanation.

”Could you tell the jury what you did to cause the police to arrest you?”

”As I said, Mr. Cooper died shortly after our argument. I'd just finished cla.s.ses and was about to take Thanksgiving break. As I walked to my car in the student parking lot, I noticed two police cars searching the area.” He made eye contact with Mrs. Whitney, then s.h.i.+fted to the young, attractive juror who sat next to her. ”They stopped and one of the officers pointed at me. Both cars then turned around quickly and headed in my direction. I panicked, got in my car, and tried to get away. They pursued me for a mile or so before I crashed into a hydrant or a signpost. They may have rammed their cars into mine; it happened so fast I wasn't clear on the exact sequence.”

”Why did you try to get away from the police?”

”Mr. Miller, as I told you, I simply panicked. I knew from reading the papers and listening to the media there was a lot of pressure to find someone responsible for killing the people on the professor's list. When I saw police heading for me, driving the wrong way down a one-way street and cutting across the lot, I a.s.sumed they were pretty hyped and angry. I thought it best to get out of there.”

”Did you fear for your safety?”

”I don't know any black man who doesn't fear the police.”

Reynolds started to object but knew challenging Brandon's a.s.sertion wouldn't go over too well with this jury.

”Brandon, you're obviously a very powerfully built man-a star athlete-and yet you're telling this jury you feared for your safety?”

”It's precisely because of how I look that police feel threatened. Their anxiety about my size and strength places me at particular risk.”

”And you've felt this way about police for how long?”