chicago ♔ i wish you could see | how apart we've all grown

[lawofsurvival]

WHO || The Failboat, Rafael Giovanni, Isabella Alessandro, Hiro, Jaka, Burt Becksworth, DA of Chicago [closed]
WHAT || The trial of Rafael Giovanni
WHERE || Chicago courthouse, Chicago, IL
WHEN || Friday, Nov 22nd  [backdated]
HOW || Actionspam

The big day has finally arrived.  As media coverage rises to a frenzied fever pitch, Jaka's final preparations are completed, and the team assembles to head down for the trial of Rafael Giovanni.   

Large crowds are gathered outside, some of whom tote signs condemning Rafael as a murderer, others pledging their support and love for the singer.  Police officers keep order, and hold the crowds back as the stars are led up the steps and inside the courthouse.  

They'll have some time to convene with Burt and Jaka in a private room before the trial itself begins.  Unfortunately, Jaka still hasn't shared the change in plans that he and Des discussed in private... 

Comments

[behindcloseddoors]

Sure can. The two singing were Rafael Giovanni, the defendant, and Eterna Jade, deceased. The man holding her hostage was identified as Roger James. The girl talking in the audience, with Finnick Odair, is Mary Tanner. The man who came out to talk James down is Sterling Archer - he was one of the hosts. Second girl who came out was Violet Fiore.

After the shooting, Mark Sandazhard came out of the wing, one of Giovanni's bodyguards. The girl with the mean kick refused to give her name. The one aiming the gun at Giovanni is Desmond Descant, a P.I.

[llllllaurel]

How many bodyguards did Mr. Giovanni have on scene?

[behindcloseddoors]

2 from a private agency - Sandazhard was one, and the other admitted to being the one who shot Descant's gun out of his hand from the balcony. There were some Nova crowd bouncers on hand too.

[llllllaurel]

[She holds up two fingers as she faces the jury, counting off the items as she mentions them.]

So two members of private security, the regular level of security that Nova hires to protect their artists, and Giovanni himself was armed.

Had there been any threats reported against the singer?

[behindcloseddoors]

Nothing reported to the police, no.

[llllllaurel]

So as far as you could tell, there was no reason for them to have that much firepower on hand?

[behindcloseddoors]

[ he scratches his head, glancing over at rafael and burt ] Not a single reason. One of those things that just never added up.

[llllllaurel]

[She hums contemplatively.]

Almost as though they were expecting something to happen.

[And with that, she turns to go back and take her seat.]

Your witness.

[lawofsurvival]

[ jaka gets to his feet, palms on the table, and slides around to pace in front of Morrison. ]

Officer Morrison. You were the policeman who interviewed Mr. Giovanni on the night of the incident as well, were you not?

[ Grant leans forward with a nod ] I was.

[ Jaka folds his hands together, index fingers extended ] As an officer of the law, I imagine you were well versed in reading people through your years of service. Putting aside the question of what Mr. Giovanni had to say that evening, can you tell the court what your impression of him was, in terms of his demeanor and general state?

[ Grant glances over to Rafael for a moment ] The defendant was almost entirely nonresponsive, honestly. He struck me as disconnected from events, as if it hadn't fully registered, or as if none of the proceedings seemed to matter to him. We could hardly get him to say a damn word, but he seemed more in shock than insubordinate about it.

[ jaka smirks slightly, glancing at the other lawyer. ] Interesting. So he did not seem to be in a normal mental state immediately following events?

[ Morrison frowns] Not sure there is a normal state to be in post homicide.

[rationalizes]

[ in her seat in the audience, gar shifts uncomfortably, worrying at her nails with her teeth unconsciously as she watches jaka warily. ]

[lawofsurvival]

Please answer the question, Officer.

[ Morrison looks Jaka square in the eye, nodding. ] Yeah, alright. I'd go as far as to say he wasn't all there. Seemed to mesh with the idea that he'd killed the woman he did love, whether it was an accident or no.

[ Jaka nods, satisfied, and moves up closer to him. ] And Mr. Giovanni's relationship with Eterna Jade. Some of the witnesses spoke with you about this, yes? How would you describe it from their testimonies?

[ Morrison shifts a bit, his eyes darting over to Des ] Several people went on about how mushy their romance was, how Hollywood levels of meant-to-be they seemed.

But some information surfaced that made it seem that things weren't quite as sunny as they looked on the outside. They'd been separated for some time, during which at least the girl was seeing other people.

[ Jaka pauses on the spot, turning to look out at the jury. ] So you believe that Miss Jade had secrets that she was keeping from the defendant?

[ Morrison nods slowly ] According to one testimony, she definitely was, regarding one such relationship. He claimed he knew that Giovanni was completely unaware of what went on.

[ Jaka nods curtly and returns to his seat. ] Prosecution's witness.

[slay]

[ voice low, buffy turns to the others, brow furrowed. ]

Where the hell is he going with this?

[ she doesn't expect anyone to answer it, but she would like to register her distaste. ]

[shootfirst]

I thought we were trying to ix-nay the whole jealous lover routine. Isn't that bad for us? Pretty sure that was bad for us.

[witchwoman]

[The hairs on the back of Myri's neck have been standing up since the start of this.]

Apparently Jaka thought otherwise.

[nothingsodivine]

[With an intense will save of 25, Des meets Morrison's eyes and holds his gaze, completely unperturbed by the implications.

On the inside, however, he is screaming. And still wondering if maybe he made a huge mistake in cutting that deal with Jaka.]

[romanticidal]

[ and with a 29 will save, rafael is as stone faced as ever, so it's hard to say what he's thinking about jaka's unusual approach ]

[llllllaurel]

Thank you, Officer Morrison. That will be all.

[She shifts some papers before calling her next witness.]

The prosecution calls Roberto Umbici.

[behindcloseddoors]

[ the italian man who approaches the stand to swear in is about 6'2" with a light build, a nice tan, green eyes and short, wavy black hair which is a little brittle. he has a seat politely, although his eyes move to meet rafael's. ]

[llllllaurel]

[She makes her way around the front of her table and meets the man's eyes with a small smile.]

Mr. Umbici, you are a member of the defendant's orchestra, correct?

[behindcloseddoors]

[ he leans forward, hands folded. ] Si, for the last six years, I have worked with Signor Giovanni.

[llllllaurel]

Did you also know the victim, Eterna Jade?

[behindcloseddoors]

[ he nods ] She was Signor Giovanni's singing partner years ago.

[llllllaurel]

But they weren't partners at the time of the concert?

[behindcloseddoors]

[ he shakes his head ] We had heard she would be there, but it was the first time I had seen her since they went their separate ways.

[llllllaurel]

And when was that?