Frank Pisano, D.A.:
At some point prior to Brian Fox’s death, did you have a conversation with
Brian about Jim Pears?
Mrs. Sharon Hart,
P.D.: Objection, calls for hearsay.
Pisano: This
statement is admissible under section 1350 of the Evidence Code. We filed some
papers —
The Court: I have
them here.
Pisano: Yes, Your
Honor. Uh, we expect Mr. Mandel will testify that he was told by Brian Fox that
he — Brian — saw Jim Pears engaging in sex with a man. That’s relevant to the
issues here and Brian Fox is certainly unavailable, thanks to Mr. Pears.
The Court: Mrs.
Hart?
Hart: There’re a
lot of conditions here that have to be satisfied before 1350 applies. Like —
for example, the statement has to have been written down or tape-recorded.
The Court: Where is
that? Oh, all right, I see it. What about that, Mr. Pisano?
Pisano: It also
says it’s okay if the statement is made under circumstances that indicate its
trustworthiness. That’s an alternative to a taped or written statement.
Hart: No it’s not.
That’s in addition to.
The Court: Well, I
tend to agree with the prosecutor on that. I’m going to let the statement in.
Hart: Defense
objects.
The Court:
Understood. The objection’s overruled.
Pisano: Do you
remember the question, Josh?
Josh Mandel: Yeah.
Brian told me he had proof that Jim was
gay
.
Pisano: Do you mean
homosexual?
Hart: Objection,
leading.
The Court. We’re wasting
time. Overruled. Answer.
Mandel: Yes.
Pisano: Did he tell
you what this proof was?
Mandel: Yes.
Pisano: What was
it?
Mandel: He said he
saw Jim having sex with some guy in a car out in the restaurant parking lot.
Pisano: How long
before Brian was killed did you have this conversation with him?
Mandel: A couple of
weeks.
Pisano: Now, did
you ever overhear a conversation between Brian and Jim Pears regarding this
incident in the parking lot?
Mandel: Well, I
think. Yeah. They were talking about it.
Pisano: What was
said?
Hart: Objection,
hearsay.
Pisano: This is an
admission, Your Honor.
The Court: Let’s
hear it. Answer the question, Mr. Mandel.
Mandel: Brian was
asking Jim how would he like his mother to know that he was— (Inaudible.)
Pisano: You’ll have
to speak up, Josh.
Mandel: A
cocksucker. I’m sorry, Your Honor, but that’s what he said.
The Court: I’ve
heard worse things in this court, Mr. Mandel. Next question, counsel.
Pisano: Okay. Did
Jim Pears say anything in response?
Mandel: Yeah.
Pisano: What?
Mandel: He said
something like, ‘I’ll kill you before that happens.’
Pisano: And how
soon before Brian’s murder did this conversation take place?
Mandel: It was two
days.
(Cross-examination
by Mrs. Hart)
Hart: Now you say
that Brian Fox told you he saw Jim having sex with a man that night, is that
right?
Mandel: Yes.
Hart: This was in a
private car in the parking lot at night?
Mandel: Yeah, I
guess.
Hart: Did Brian
explain how he happened to be there?
Mandel: Not to me.
Hart: Well, isn’t
it true that Brian Fox followed Jim and then snuck up on him?
Pisano: The People
will stipulate that Brian was not asked to join in on the festivities.
The Court: Why don’t
we let the witness answer, Mr. Pisano?
Mandel: I don’t
know.
Hart: Now, Mr.
Mandel, what words did Brian use to describe what he had seen?
Mandel: I don’t
remember, exactly.
Hart: Well, did he
say he’d seen Jim having sex or making love?
Mandel: No. It was
more like he saw him getting a blow job.
Hart: Okay. Did you
ever hear Brian Fox call Jim a faggot?
Pisano: Objection,
irrelevant.
The Court:
Overruled. Answer the question.
Mandel: Yes.
Hart: More than
once?
Mandel: Yes.
Hart: Did you ever
hear Brian Fox call Jim a queer?
Mandel: Yes.
Hart: More than
once?
Mandel: Yes.
Hart: How many
times did you hear Brian Fox call Jim either a faggot or a queer?
Mandel: I don’t
remember.
Hart: Isn’t it true
that you don’t remember because that was how Brian normally referred to Jim?
Mandel: He called
him that a lot.
Hart: Around other
people?
Mandel: Yes.
Hart: Now, Mr.
Mandel, isn’t it true that, in addition to being a waiter at the Yellowtail,
you are also a manager?
Mandel:
Manager-trainee.
Hart: And isn’t
part of your job to supervise the busboys on the shifts that you manage?
Mandel: Yes.
Hart: And did you
ever manage a shift where Brian and Jim were working?
Mandel: Yeah.
Hart: And during
one of those shifts did you hear Brian call Jim a queer or a faggot?
Mandel: I’m not
sure. Maybe.
Hart: But you never
stopped Brian, did you?
Mandel: I don’t
remember.
Hart: In fact, isn’t
it true that you also called Jim a faggot once?
Mandel: I don’t
remember.
Hart: Isn’t it true
that you told Jim to start acting like a man?
Mandel: That was
just because he was letting Brian get to him.
Hart: Then shouldn’t
you have talked to Brian?
Mandel: Yeah.
(Inaudible) I’m sorry, Jim.
Hart: I have
nothing further, Your Honor.
(Examination by Mr.
Pisano of Andrea Lew, a cocktail waitress at the Yellowtail.)
Pisano: Who was
working at the Yellowtail between eleven- thirty p.m. and midnight on the night
Brian was killed?
Lew: It was just me
and Frank — that’s the bartender — and Jim was the busboy.
Pisano: Besides the
bar was any other part of the restaurant open?
Lew: No, the
kitchen closes at ten.
Pisano: How many
people were in the bar at that time?
Lew: Not many. It
was Monday, you know. Slow night. Maybe a dozen.
Pisano: Between
eleven-thirty and midnight did you see anyone enter the bar?
Lew: Just Brian.
Pisano: Now, would
you have noticed if anyone else had come in?
Lew: Well, yeah,
because you have to cross in front of the bar to get to the dining rooms or the
kitchen.
Pisano: Was Jim
Pears in the bar when Brian came in?
Lew: Yes.
Pisano: Did he see
Brian?
Mrs. Hart:
Objection, calls for speculation.
The Court:
Sustained.
Pisano: Okay. Was
Brian working that night?
Lew: No, just Jim.
Pisano: Do you know
what he was doing there?
Lew: (Shakes head.)
Pisano: You’re
going to have to answer yes or no for the reporter.
Lew: No.
Pisano: Did you see
Brian leave the bar at some point? Lew: No, but he was gone.
Pisano: Did you see
Jim Pears leave the bar?
Lew: Yes.
Pisano: When was
this?
Lew: Maybe around
midnight.
Pisano: Where did
he go?
Lew: Back toward
the kitchen.
Pisano: Did you
also go back to the kitchen at some point? Lew: Yes.
Pisano: Why?
Lew: There’s a
movie theater next door and around midnight the last show gets out. Some people
came in for a drink and Frank needed some more ice so he told me to have Jim
bring him up some.
Pisano: Where is
the ice kept?
Lew: In the walk-in
— that’s the refrigerator — in the kitchen.
Pisano: About what
time was it when you went back into the kitchen?
Lew: A quarter
after twelve.
Pisano: Did you see
Jim back there?
Lew: No.
Pisano: What did
you do?
Lew: It’s hard ...
I...
Pisano: One step at
a time, Ms. Lew, and we’ll get through this. He wasn’t in the kitchen. Then
what?
Lew: I looked in
the locker room. I looked outside, out the back door, but he wasn’t there.
Pisano: Was the
back door unlocked?
Lew: Yeah.
Pisano: Okay. He
wasn’t in the kitchen, the locker room, or outside. Then what did you do?
Lew: I looked in
the walk-in. He wasn’t there. That left, the only place was the cellar. That’s
where I went.
Pisano: I want you
to describe the cellar, Ms. Lew.
Lew: There’s a big
room where the wine’s kept. Then there’s two little rooms, one for the manager’s
office. The other one is where we keep the hard liquor.
Pisano: Did you go
into the cellar?
Lew: Yes.
Pisano: What did
you find in the big room?
Lew: Nothing. I
called Jim but he wasn’t there.
Pisano: What did
you do then?
Lew: It was kinda
creepy down there. I was going to get Frank’s ice myself but then —
Pisano: We’re
almost done, Ms. Lew.
Lew: I’m sorry. The
manager’s office was closed up. I saw that the door to the liquor room was open
a little and the light was on. I went over and then — there was this noise,
like a whimper. Like a puppy makes. I thought maybe Jim was lifting boxes and
hurt himself so I went in.
Pisano: What did
you see?
Lew: The first
thing was just Jim. He was kinda hunched over and leaning against some boxes.
There was a funny smell, like a bottle of liquor got broken so I looked down at
the floor. That’s when I — saw him.
Pisano: Saw who,
Ms. Lew?
Lew: Oh, God, I
didn’t know at first. His face was all — but then it was the clothes Brian was
wearing in the bar. There was blood. I looked back at Jim. He was holding one
of the kitchen knives and his hands were bloody. There was blood on his shirt
and his pants like he tried to wipe the knife clean.
Pisano: Did he
speak to you?
Lew: No. I don’t
know. I ran out of there and started screaming for Frank as soon as I was
upstairs.
Pisano: Then what
happened?
Lew: Frank came to
the back and there was some other guys with him, from the bar, I guess. I told
them what was downstairs. We piled things up against the cellar door and called
the police.
Pisano: And when
did they arrive?
Lew: Five, ten
minutes. It seemed like forever before I heard the sirens.
Pisano: That’s all,
Ms. Lew. Thank you.
The Court:
Cross-examination, Mrs. Hart.
Hart: I have no questions
of this witness.
*****
The bloody images
of Brian Fox’s murder remained with me even after I set the transcripts aside
and made myself another cup of tea. Coming back to my desk, I picked a loose-leaf
binder out of the folder Larry had given me and opened it up. Inside were press
accounts of the Pears case from the day Jim was arrested to the day after he’d
been held to answer. I flipped the pages until I came to a story that had a
picture.
The headline
proclaimed “The Tragic Death of Brian Fox.” Beneath the headline was a
black-and-white of Brian that startled me for no better reason than his youth.
I had cast someone older and sleazier for the role of the boy who tormented Jim
Pears. Instead, I found myself looking at a handsome boy with light hair whose
features had not yet set on his slightly fleshy face. His half-smile revealed
either shyness or surprise. There was a caption beneath the picture: “His
mother called him golden boy.”
I read the story.
It consisted of lachrymose interviews with Brian’s mother, teachers, and fellow
students. You’d have thought he was in line for sainthood, at least. I looked
back at the face. No hint of sainthood there. Maybe the twist of the smile was
neither shyness nor surprise. Maybe it was sadism. I wondered, would a jury buy
that? Probably not.