February 1990
Being a cop, going to trials of the men and women that you bust is part of the job description. You are supposed to show up, give your testimony, then be on your way. I have had to go to the trial of every single person I have ever arrested, otherwise they can walk right out of the court house. I've never missed one. It's routine.
I wore a gray skirt and black stockings with a purple silk shirt under my matching gray blazer. I read through the copy of my report once again, just to throughly remember everything that happened. I make so many arrests, it eventually starts to blur together. But this was one of the most high-profile cases I've ever done that was not a serial killer. This is what the media dubbed as the Run Away Bus. Robert Kemper, my English partner, had taken control over the bus and had it drive off a cliff, with the intent to kill 47 students, me, and the bus driver in the process. I was his arresting officer, so I was supposed to be there.
Fuller was very upset that this case was so high-profile, because it could jeopardize my ability to go undercover in the future. Luckily, he managed to get it not to be televised. But, he wanted to attend to ensure my animosity.
I looked at myself in the mirror of the courthouse bathroom one more time as I make sure there was no mascara in my eyelid, and no wrinkles on my outfit. I fluffed my blown-out hair before I walked out and found the court room. I snuck in with everyone because the trial was about to begin.
I took my seat on a bench in the gallery and watched as Robert Kemper came and took his place in the defending stand. He wore an orange jail jumpsuit, with his hands shackled in front of him.
"All rise. The court is now in session, the Honorable Tucker Brown presiding," the Bailiff said.
The judge came out and said, "please be seated."
Everyone sat down at the same time and he looked over his papers, and I knew that a copy of my report was among them.
"This is the matter of Evergreen State versus Robert Kemper," Judge Brown announced.
"Mr. Kemper is in court and we're ready for motions," Roberts lawyer said. I've seen him before. Steve Thorpe. He's a real asshole. I was surprised that he took this case, because it was destined to fail. He's one of the best attorney's I've ever seen, so I figured he would be smarter than to be on his side. Why was he on the defendant side anyway?
"Very well, call your first witness," Judge Brown said.
"Evergreen State calls Officer Michelle Gregg," the assistant district attorney, Yvonne Uribe, said. She was wearing a blue pants suit. I've talked with her a few times, she is really nice and professional.
It was my time to shine.
I stood up and walked to the Bailiff. I put my hand on the Bible and the other up.
He asked, "do you solemnly affirm that you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth under the pains and penalties of perjury?"
"I do," I swore.
I walked up to the witness stand and sat down. I cleared my throat and put my hands in my lap, feeling the soft fabric of my wool skirt underneath my fingertips. I looked up and saw Fuller standing toward the back of the room, leaning against the wall. The entire courtroom was packed, and I could almost hear the buzzing noise of the reporters outside the walls. They weren't allowed in, because of me.
"Could you please state your name for the record?" Yvonne asked.
"Officer Michelle Gregg," I said into the microphone.
"Officer, how are you employed?" She asked.
"I'm a police officer with the Metropolitan Police Department," I said.
"Do you see Mr. Kemper in court today?"
"Yes. He is at the desk, wearing an orange jumpsuit."
"Please let the record reflect proper in-court identification," Yvonne said, "Officer, could you tell the Court in what capacity you were working January 17, 1990?"
"In undercover plain clothes capacity with Jump Street explosives," I said, recalling that to be the date of the incident.
"I tender the witness, Judge," Yvonne said.
She sat down and Steve took her place for the cross examination. He asked me, "Officer, you were undercover on January 17, 1990?"
"Yes," I said.
"Did you do the physical detention of the defendant?" He asked.
"Yes."
"Would it refresh your recollection if you looked at your police report?" Steve said.
"Do you not believe me?" I asked.
"Your honor, I'm going to object. I don't think it's relevant who did the physical detention of the defendant," Yvonne spoke up.
"I will permit it. Would it refresh your recollection, Officer, if you reviewed the police report?" Judge Brown asked.
"Sure, I'll take a look," I said, doing my best to refrain from rolling my eyes.
The police report I filled out was handed to me, and I read it over for the hundredth time. I said, "the report says I notified him that he was under arrest, and I read him his rights per Miranda, and arrested him."
"I have no further questions. Thank you," Steve said.
"The state has no redirect," Yvonne said.
"Thank you, Officer, you may step down," Judge Brown said.
I stepped down and took my place back on the bench. I'm usually able to sneak out during the first recess, because my work here was now done.
I was basically twiddling my thumbs when my head shot up at the sound of my name. Robert Kemper was in the witness chair, and he said, "I knew her as Mickey Hyland."
"What?" I asked under my breath.
"Can you repeat your statement, Mr. Kemper?" Judge Brown asked.
"Mickey Hyland, or Officer Michelle Gregg, forced me to blow up that school bus," Richard said.
"What?" My jaw dropped and everyone started murmuring around me. I looked back at Fuller, and he looked as shocked as I was. By the look on his face, he didn't believe it.
"Son, you are under oath and this is a big accusation," Judge Brown said.
"I call Officer Michelle Gregg back to the stand," Steve said, standing up so feverishly that his chair squeaked back.
I was sent back up to the witness stand, but this time I was shaking. I shouldn't have had a reason to though. I was completely innocent. It should be my word against his.
"Can you tell the court how you were assigned this case?" Steve asked after I sat down.
"I came to work... my Captain gave me a folder with information regarding a bomb threat to a school bus for the Metro School District—"
"Objection, heresay," one of the attorney's interrupted.
My eyebrows came together in confusion on how my statement was objected. I looked over at the judge and he said, "I'll allow it."
"You may continue, Officer Gregg," Steve said.
"I was assigned to ride the bus to school, attend classes at Metro High School, and ride back," I finished.
"How long were you on the assignment for, Officer?"
"I was on that case for ten days, sir."
"Is it true that you complained to your Captain about the nature of the case?"
I took a breath. "Yes. Because I believed we were wasting time and resources on a threat that never occurred. It would have been much more effective to cancel school for the day and do a thorough sweep of every school bus to ensure the safety of the children and make it up at the end of the school year. The bomb would have been caught, and this incident would never have happened."
"Do you always talk with the juveniles?" Steve asked.
"Objection, foundation," Yvonne blurted.
"Sustained," the judge agreed. "Next question."
Steve asked instead, "how long have you been with Jump Street?"
"About five years," I answered. I had been on the program since I was 17, and I just turned 22.
"How do you usually make your busts at Jump Street?" Steve asked.
"We educate ourselves on the situation, plant ourselves in a school and gather information," I said vaguely.
"Our phone records indicate that you called Robert the night before the accident. Did you call him?"
"My job is to be a student, and in doing so I am required to—"
Steve interrupted me to say, "this is a pretty simple yes or no question."
I chuckled humorlessly. "You'd like it to be. There's nothing simple about this case, sir."
"Did you call Mr. Kemper on the night of January 16, 1990?"
I nodded, "yeah."
"Is it true that you spoke to him for nearly fifteen minutes?"
"Yeah," I said, not understanding how this was relevant.
"Why?" He asked.
"Objection, relevance," Yvonne said.
Thank you.
"I'll allow it," Judge Brown said.
Damn.
I answered, "'cause we had a school project together. I called to discuss the details of our assignment."
"If you are an undercover cop, why are you submitting homework assignments?"
"It's part of the job," I said, "do you think I want to do homework? Do you know how many times I've had to read A Tale of Two Cities and act shocked?"
That resulted in a slight chuckle throughout the full courtroom.
"Mr. Kemper released this to us. Can you tell the court what it says?" Steve said.
The bailiff walked over to Steve and grabbed a document before walking up to me and put it in my hands. I held it loosely and read the words over and over.
"Officer?" Judge Brown asked.
"What? Oh, right," I said and began reading off the page in a monotone voice, "Robert, yes, you have caught me. You are exceedingly smart. Yes, I am a police officer and I am in dire need of your assistence. Complete this duty and we will be heroes. Gain dominance of the Bus 14 and operate it remotely to send it off the cliff. Detonate it if you must. If you do this for me, I will make sure that you will never get caught. You can count on me. Officer Mickey."
The entire crowd gasped. I was shocked that they even believed it, I was getting second-hand embarrassment. I would never write a letter like this, nor use this kind of vocabulary. The courtroom exploded into incoherent shouts and Judge Brown banged his gavel, "order! Order in my court!"
Everyone settled down and the room went silent.
"As you can see from this piece of evidence, Officer Michelle Gregg obviously abused her power of being an older authority figure to manipulate my client into performing this terrible act," Steve announced.
"What?!" I shouted and stood up, making the chair crash into the wall behind me.
"Sit down, Officer," Judge Brown grunted at me.
I huffed and slid the chair back under my legs and sat down, but I could feel the steam coming out of my ears. I was rightfully upset and angry.
"You can't seriously believe— I-I'd never— I'm an undercover cop, why would I purposely put myself in the public view?!" I stammered and shouted. I was so livid, I could almost see red. "Come on, he spelled assistance wrong!"
"You have the right to remain silent, Officer. I advise that you use it," Judge Brown said to me.
"No further questions," Steve said.
My jaw was dropped as the judge ordered for my arrest. One of the bailiffs came up behind me and ordered me to stand up and turn to face him. I did, and he snapped his handcuffs around my wrists. The metal sunk into my skin, making my hands tremble. From a trick that I learned in my youth, I pushed the handcuffs in and twisted the chain around itself, and used its own leverage to snap the chain, shearing the chain from the cuff. My hands started to go numb, but I was so frantic I snapped the chain quickly and whipped my arms apart.
"How the hell did you do that?" The bailiff asked.
"Please don't put them on again," I begged with tears welling in my eyes. "Please, please don't."
"Turn around," he ordered.
I slowly turned back around and he grabbed another pair of handcuffs and handcuffed my hands behind my back, and the entire courtroom turned into an uproar.
"Easy... let me go," I wiggled under his grasp. I kept trying to rip the handcuffs off my wrists again because it reminded me too much of being in the Red River Strangler's basement. The chain would go taut when I pulled, but the bailiff had a hand on my wrist and another at my shoulder. The skin around my wrists was still healing, and the handcuffs were opening the wounds up again in a stinging pain. I begged, "please, let me go."
The bailiff said softly, "you know I can't do that."
"Closing arguments in the morning at 9am. We're adjourned." Judge Brown banged his gavel and stood up.
"All rise," we were told and the judge left.
Fuller was trying to push through the crowd to get to me and he called out my name, but I was quickly escorted out of the courtroom and into the jail. I kept looking back at him, but the bailiff kept pushing me forward.
I soon found myself in an interrogation room. The room was dark with an obnoxious light just above the metal table that's in the middle of the room. There are two chairs, both are made of metal and highly uncomfortable. There's also a mirror, where I know they are watching me through.
They made me keep the handcuffs on, no matter how much I pleaded that they take them off. I kept my hands clenched in tight fists and asked for Fuller, but instead a detective came into the interrogation room with a box with my name written on the side.
The detective slammed the box down on the table and glared at me coldly. I didn't recognize him, but he sure acted like he knew who I was. Or who he assumed I was.
I looked at him, then at the box and I started cackling. I let out a fully belly laugh as I tried to make sense of the ridiculous situation. When I caught my breath, I asked, "is that the best you got?"
"This is a box of all of your records, Officer Gregg," the detective spat as he drummed his fingers on the lid, trying to intimidate me.
"I know that's an empty box. It's the oldest trick in the book. I don't have a record, you simple bastard," I mocked.
"Oh, yeah?" He raised his eyebrows and lifted the lid of the box up and let it clatter on the table. I relaxed back in my metal folding chair as he pulled out folder after folder after folder from my box. He opened them and slid them across the table to me, so I leaned forward to read the documents.
My breath halted in my throat and my jaw clenched as my eyes scanned the documents that had my mug shot and my name splattered all over the papers. Over and over, he kept adding more to the pile. He tossed some old photographs my way, showcasing everything I thought was sealed away.
I looked up at him with a fire in my eyes. I asked in a low voice, "where the hell did you get this?"
He smirked, knowing he bested me. "Good cop, my ass."
"These records are sealed," I hissed.
"This is more than enough to convict you for blowing up that school bus. Hiding your record is a pretty big offense, but you knew that."
I couldn't say anything that wouldn't get me arrested for assaulting the detective so I kept my mouth shut but I let my angry eyes do all the talking. I wanted nothing more than to rip out of these restraints and strangle him myself.
He began grabbing the folders and fixing them up to get them back into my box. I had no idea this box existed, my record was expunged and I was told that it all disappeared. He should not have had any access to that.
"What do you think that jury is going to do when they find out that you're a murder suspect?"
"I want to talk to my supervisor," I said sharply.
The detective put the lid back on the box and held it in his arms. He didn't say anything else as he walked out of the interrogation room, leaving me alone. I knew I was being watched, so I tried not to let it show how pissed I was, but it was extremely difficult.
I waited for what felt like an hour before another officer came into the room and escorted me out. He had a tight grip on my arm as I was paraded through the jail like a trophy. I was thrown into the temporary cell where I sat on the bench that was in it. They took the handcuffs off, and I rubbed at my raw wrists. I put my head in my hands, trying to figure out what had happened. I heard the main door open, followed by the sound of keys clanking together which made me lift my head up. Tom and Fuller were being escorted to me by a guard.
"Tom!" I yelled and ran up to the bars. I wrapped my fingers around the bars and he gingerly put his fingertips on my knuckles.
"Fuller called me," Tom said, "I can't believe this."
"I-I-I don't know what happened... I mean... I've never—I just... I just don't know what happened," I stuttered.
"It's all right," Tom said calmly. I tried to match his breathing to his to calm myself down, and it worked. I definitely needed his support at a time like this.
"I'm freaking out a little bit."
"I know, and that's okay."
"Is there anything else that you can remember from before the incident?" Fuller asked me.
"No—wait, yes. I had written a paper for my class. About that book Animal Farm. I was searching for it in my backpack right before the accident and I couldn't find it."
"All right," Fuller sighed, not exactly the kind of information he was looking for.
"I'm sorry. I just can't believe that I'm in here... how could this happen?" I asked.
Fuller shook his head, "it's unheard of. No one could have known that they were going to turn it around and pin this on you."
"If they keep you locked-up, I'll be here just the same," Tom said as a witty promise.
"That doesn't make me any less nervous for the closing arguments tomorrow," I said honestly.
Tom lowered his voice to a whisper, "is it because you might go to prison for the rest of your life?"
I know he was trying to lighten the mood, but I raised an eyebrow and whispered back jokingly, "whispering it doesn't make it any less painful."
"Sorry," he whispered. I appreciated how he was still trying to keep my spirits high by joking around with me. I love his sense of humor.
"I never wrote that letter," I said in my normal voice while I shook my head in disbelief.
"We know," Fuller reassured.
"Oh—oh—um, my, uh, my keys. My car keys are— they took my keys. Can you move my car so it won't get impounded?" I asked.
Tom nodded, "yeah, I will."
"Thank you," I said, trying not to think about spending the night in a jail cell... again. I rested my forehead against the bars and blew a raspberry.
"We are going to get to the bottom of this, Mick, I promise. You're innocent. I'm your boyfriend, you don't have to go through this alone anymore," Tom promised and he kissed my forehead between the bars.
"I do have a question, Gregg," Fuller said.
"Yeah?"
It took him a few moments, but he admitted, "Detective Drew showed me your box. Care to explain?"
Tom's eyebrow came up as he looked at me with a puzzled expression. "What box?"
"Don't be mad," I said softly.
"Maybe you should leave, Hanson," Fuller stated firmly. His nostrils were flared, and his demeanor was stern and aggravated.
"No, it's okay," I said. I took a breath, trying to find the best place to start. "When I was a kid, I used to run around with these older kids so I usually got associated with them. I used to get into trouble a lot with them. I got hauled in for fighting and stealing... a lot. I had a juvenile criminal record. It got really bad when I found a boy from town in this... vacant lot off of 4th Avenue. He was about my age, and he was dead. I didn't even realize he was dead at first... I thought he was a mannequin. He was murdered, and people thought I had something to do with it because I was seen running away from the lot, but I was just so scared. When I met Briody, he helped me turn my life around. I got my record expunged and sealed by a judge, with letters of recommendation and testimonies from Jenko and Briody. They were putting their personal and professional reputations at stake for me."
Fuller sighed and rubbed his eye. I never thought I'd be telling him about this, but here we are.
"Is that why you knew how to break out of those handcuffs?" Tom asked.
I nodded. "Yeah, some kids from juvie taught me."
Fuller asked, "why didn't you tell me?"
"No one was supposed to know," I said in a small voice. I felt like a child again.
"It's important that I know," he stated firmly.
"It was expunged, it was supposed to disappear like it never happened," I explained.
Fuller nodded as he processed all of the information I gave him. I could tell that he was really angry that he didn't know this about my past, but I didn't think it was important to who I am now.
"Okay. Okay, Gregg. It's okay, we will figure this out," Fuller promised.
I looked at him softly and smiled gently, letting my cheeks rise some tears out of my eyes. Tom brought his hand up and his thumb caressed my cheek tenderly. With this information they have on me, I have a very real chance of being locked away. Even if we can prove that it was expunged, I still don't know what the judge will do unless we have a smoking gun.
The guard told them that they had to leave, which they obeyed. When Tom and Fuller left, I was put in an orange jump suit and they shackled me like I was a criminal. I felt incredibly violated. I had to sleep on a cold bench that night.
The next morning were closing arguments. I was woken up early and taken to the courthouse. The entire trial panned out again, this time using my now unsealed record to convict me and projecting my previous run-ins with the law for everyone to hear, including when I was a suspect in a murder case that has never been solved.
"Mr. Thorpe. Closing arguments?" Judge Brown asked.
The courtroom was even more busy than before after word got around that the arresting officer was arrested. My entire team at Jump Street was in the courtroom to support me through this nightmare. I was sitting at the defendant table, and I looked back to scan the gallery, but I couldn't find Tom. The reporters were all outside, begging to be let in. I was so thankful that Fuller still managed to keep me anonymous.
As Steve was about to make his closing argument, Tom burst through the door, with flashes of reporter cameras and their bickering was silenced as he closed the doors behind him. He held up a wad of papers in the air, and stopped everything.
"I have some new evidence for you to look at, your honor," Tom said. I noticed that he had his brown circle framed reading glasses on.
"Approach the bench," Judge Brown said.
Tom walked through everyone who gave him a path and marched up to the judge. Steve and Yvonne followed him.
"Your honor, both sides have already rested," Steve said.
"Who are you?" Judge Brown asked Tom.
"My name is Officer Thomas Hanson. I'm an officer alongside Officer Michelle Gregg at Jump Street."
He gave the bailiff the papers who handed them to Judge Brown and said, "as you can see, this letter is forged. It is easiest to see compared to reports written by Michelle. The letter 'a' is prominent due to it being written in the double-storey style. Whereas the fabricated letter is written in both the double-storey style and the single-storey style. In these government documents written by Michelle, you can see that she never mixes up her writing styles. You can also see that Michelle's handwriting can be compared to chicken scratch, while this letter shows thoughtful writing. They were clearly not written by the same person."
I knew what he was talking about. I always write in print, and my lowercase 'a's are written like you could see on a computer or a typewriter. The way most people write it is to write the letter 'O' with a little tail. I was a little offended by his chicken scratch comment, but I decided to let it go... he was right.
"You can also see that with the dates on Mr. Kemper's letter, there is no slash through the numbers seven or zero, whereas on Officer Michelle's documents, she never misses them," Tom pointed out.
Judge Brown took the papers thoughtfully. The attorney's were silent, and my heart was beating rapidly.
"Take a step back, counselors," Judge Brown said.
Yvonne said, "I'd like to bring Officer Thomas Hanson to the stand."
Tom had to swear on a Bible to tell the truth, and he walked up to the witness stand.
"Officer, how long have you worked with Officer Michelle Gregg?" Yvonne asked him once he was settled.
"I, uh, I have worked with Officer Gregg for almost three years now," he said. He slipped his glasses off and held them in his hand.
"So, you've gotten to know Officer Gregg pretty well?" Yvonne asked.
"Objection, relevance," Steve interrupted.
Yvonne reasoned, "I'm just trying to lay some foundation."
"I'll allow it," the judge said.
Tom answered, "yes, I have. She has been my partner since I joined the precinct."
"How would you describe her undercover style?"
"There is no one way to describe it. I mean, she always adjusts to what the assignment needs. If she needs to be a troublemaker, she's a troublemaker. Goody two-shoes? She puts her 4.0 GPA to use. She is very smart and talented, and a great and loyal cop. It's her dedication and knowledge that I look up to every day. She was a great mentor, and is very professional."
"Has she ever openly discussed her true identify to anyone she was working with when she was supposed to be undercover?"
"Objection. Heresay," Steve interrupted.
Tom's face scrunched slightly in annoyance. It would have made me giggle if I wasn't handcuffed in a courtroom.
"I'll allow it," the judge said.
Tom shook his head to answer the question, "no, absolutely not. We all take great pride in our undercover cases, and never break them. No one in the school system knows that we are there. Our covers come with a lifetime guarantee."
"And how much do you trust Officer Gregg?" Yvonne asked.
"I trust her with my life," he answered. He looked down at me, and I felt my cheeks grow red as I looked up at him in admiration. There was no denying that I really loved this man with my whole heart.
"Has Officer Gregg ever been violent?"
"No."
"Have you ever heard of Officer Gregg getting violent?"
"I have not heard—" Tom stopped midsentence and looked up at Steve. He waited a beat, as if waiting for the objection, and then he nodded and said, "okay. I have not heard—"
"Objection, heresay," Steve finally said.
Tom smiled slightly and said softly, "there it is."
Yvonne said, "I'm just gonna ask you another question, Officer Hanson."
"Yes. Let's let them object to another one," he said jokingly which made a bit of laughter echo throughout the courtroom. It even made me smile a bit.
"Are you aware of Officer Gregg's family life?" Yvonne asked.
My breath halted in my throat and I saw Tom gulp. I really hoped that she didn't ask too many questions about it because I really didn't want my entire life exposed.
Tom finally answered, "yes."
"You didn't know Officer Gregg as a child, is this correct?"
"She said that she—" Tom stopped himself and chuckled a bit. "That's heresay, I guess."
Everyone in the courtroom began to chuckle and Yvonne said in the microphone but under her breath, "he's got it."
"I'm learning." Tom smiled and then answered the question, "no, I didn't know her then."
"Has Officer Gregg ever expressed to you any anger towards her upbringing?" Yvonne asked.
"No, she never talks about it."
"Have you ever seen Officer Gregg under the influence of substances or alcohol?" She asked.
"No."
"Has Officer Gregg ever abused alcohol or any substances?"
"No, never. She's never used them."
"So, would you say that Officer Gregg has always been sober, and in complete control of her behavior and actions?" Yvonne asked.
"Objection, leading," Steve said.
"I'll allow it," the judge said.
"That's right," Tom answered.
"Has Officer Gregg ever expressed to you that she planned to blow up the school bus?"
"No."
"No further questions," Yvonne said and Steve took her place.
Steve cleared his throat and began his cross-examination, "you say that you know Officer Gregg pretty well, is that right?"
"That's right," Tom said.
"Define your relationship with Officer Gregg."
Tom cleared his throat softly and said, "she is my partner at Jump Street."
"Is that all she is?" Steve asked. I exhaled softly, trying to see where he was going with this.
"Objection. Foundation," Yvonne stated.
Steve reasoned by saying, "we already established that they were partners, I'm just asking if that was it. I'll just rephrase the question."
Judge Brown said, "that's fine."
"How close is your relationship with Officer Gregg?" Steve asked.
"Very close," Tom answered.
"How well do you know Officer Gregg?"
"Very well."
"Do you have a personal relationship with Officer Gregg?"
Tom waited a moment before he answered, "yes."
"Define your personal relationship with Officer Gregg."
"She is my partner," Tom revealed.
"Is she your romantic partner?"
"Yes, sir." I heard soft murmurs from the gallery behind me, like it was something so scandalous.
"Do you mind telling the court when your relationship with Officer Gregg began?" Steve asked loudly.
"Um..." Tom looked around. He licked the inside of his cheek and looked down.
"Objection," Yvonne said.
"On what grounds?" Steve asked.
"Relevance. What does this have to do with anything?" Yvonne asked.
Judge Brown nodded along and said, "I'll allow it."
"Officer Hanson, answer the question," Steve said.
"Michelle and I filled out our formal declaration of the Consensual Relationship Agreement on January 22, 1990," Tom answered.
I wanted to smile because he had remembered the exact date that we filled out the papers, but I was still a little nervous about where this was going. What point was Steve trying to prove?
"Is that the day that your relationship began?" Steve asked.
"No, sir," Tom replied.
"I'd like to bring up article Gregg 965 into evidence." Steve grabbed a piece of paper from one of his partners and asked to approach the bench. Judge Brown allowed it, and soon the document of our relationship agreement was being shown throughout the court.
Steve said to Tom, "this was a document that you signed as part of your relationship disclosure to Human Resources, correct?"
Tom squinted softly at the paper in front of him. I've told him that he needs reading glasses, but he doesn't listen to me. He finally looked back up and said, "that is my signature, indeed."
"When did your relationship with Officer Gregg begin?"
"February 27, 1989," Tom revealed.
"We are going to fast forward in time—"
"Yes, I can feel it," Tom joked dryly.
"You agree that you began a relationship with Officer Gregg almost one calendar year before disclosing it to Human Resources?" Steve asked.
Tom sighed and said, "yes."
"And that is your signature on the right, correct?" Steve asked.
Tom put his glasses back on and he peered down at the paper then back up at the attorney. It almost made me laugh. "Yes, it is."
"And that is the document dated January 22, 1990 that you signed, right?"
Tom said sassily, "for the third time, that is my signature, yes."
"Why did you and Officer Gregg wait eleven months to disclose your relationship with Human Resources?" Steve asked.
"Objection. Irrelevant," Yvonne said.
"Sustained," Judge Brown agreed.
"If you look on the first page, section eight, the statement reads that relationships in the workplace cannot raise concerns of favoritism, bias, ethics or contlict of interest. This is on the document you signed in February of 1990, and not January 1989."
Tom raised his eyebrows slightly and dryly asked, "is that the same one I signed three times before?"
Steve looked annoyed by Tom's sass. "I just wanted to make it clear that you signed it."
"You've made it clear." Tom took his glasses off again.
Steve moved onto a different question, "is it true that on October 15, 1988 at McKinley High School, Officer Gregg took a bullet for you?"
"Yes, that is true," Tom nodded.
It was two bullets, but who is counting?
"Is it possible that you felt obligated to create this false evidence in order to get even with Officer Gregg for her saving you, because she is your romantic partner?"
"No," Tom blurted before anyone could make an objection. "Look, we do not keep score of who-saves-who at Jump Street. Even if she was my greatest nemesis, I would still have come up with this evidence because I do not believe anyone should go to jail under false suspicion. Michelle is one of the brightest, kindest, most generous people I know. Everyone that we work with can agree with me on that. None of these accusations against her are true."
All anyone could hear was the court stenographer typing away frantically on the typewriter. I could almost cry from how sweet Tom was, especially because he was under oath. He really meant it.
"Did Officer Gregg ever disclose to you about her record?"
"What record?" Tom asked.
"Her criminal record," he clarified.
"Her expunged juvenile criminal record? No, she did not."
"You have a very close relationship with Officer Gregg, is this correct?"
"Yes."
"Why would she not disclose to you something so important about herself if you two were so close?"
"Because that is not who she is. That record was expunged and sealed by a judge, based on the testimonies of two very highly regarded members of law enforcement who were putting their personal and professional reputations on the line. That point is highly inappropriate and insignificant to the trial today." Tom looked up at the judge and continued, "and, your honor, on the third page you can see a paper that Officer Michelle wrote for a class." I realized that he found the paper that I told him I lost before the incident. "Every letter in the first half of the fabricated letter can be found on that paper that was stolen from her backpack. If you look closely, you can see that every letter is written the same, showing that it was traced until Mr. Kemper got more comfortable, thus the mistakes about halfway down the page."
"No further questions," Steve said, defeatedly.
"You may step down, Officer Hanson," Judge Brown ordered.
Tom and I locked eyes as he stepped down and passed me to get to a seat in the gallery. I was incredibly nervous. If Judge Brown did not believe this evidence that Tom had, I could be going to prison for the rest of my life.
Judge Brown cleared his throat, and we were all on the edge of our seats.
"Officer Gregg, will you please rise."
I stood up slowly and fixated my eyes on the judge. My heart was up in my throat, and I was terrified for the verdict.
"Tomorrow at 9am we will discuss the sentencing for Robert Kemper. In light of new evidence we have received, the state of Evergreen wishes to apologize to Officer Michelle Gregg. You are free to go," Judge Brown said and banged his gavel. I never knew how sweet that sound would be until that moment.
I gasped and the entire room fell into cheers and applause. I brought my hands up to my relieved face, and Yvonne hugged me from the side. Happy tears were streaming down my red face. I hugged her back before running to find Tom. I turned and saw Doug enthusiastically kiss Tom on the cheek while the Bailiff stopped me to uncuff me, and then I was allowed to celebrate the victory.
"You did it!" I cried and Tom scooped me up in a hug. I buried my face in the crook of his neck as all my weight lifted off my feet. He spun me around a bit before setting me back down.
Tom held my face in his hands and he said, "I couldn't have found that letter without you."
He let me go and I felt a heavy hand on my shoulder. I turned around to see the rest of the team, and Fuller said, "way to go, kiddo."
I was so elated, I bounced over to him straight into a hug. I'm not a hugger, but something came over me and I needed to hug everyone. He patted my back a few times before I let go and Doug opened his arms to me. I hugged him next and said, "I was really nervous at the end there."
I stepped back and Doug said, "we would never have let you go. We would never have allowed it."
I hugged Ioki and Judy too as Tom scoffed, "hey! What about when I got arrested?"
Doug hissed between his teeth before he said, "yeah... but we thought that there was a slight chance that you might have actually shot that cop."
Tom rolled his eyes.
"We got you out, didn't we?" Doug said. Tom nodded in agreement.
"First day as a free woman. Any plans?" Judy asked.
"A shower," I chuckled.
"We won't stop you," Ioki joked.
I playfully nudged his shoulder with mine. I took a deep breath and was able to let this entire ordeal roll off my shoulders. A weight had been lifted off my chest, and I was more than ready to go home.
"I'm sure you want to be getting home. We'll see you Monday," Fuller said.
I turned to Tom and asked, "will you come with me?"
He nodded, "of course."
We said our goodbyes to the team as they left but Tom came with me to get my belongings that were confiscated the night before. I was allowed to change out of the jump suit and into the clothes I came in with. Tom was also my ride home.
It wasn't the first time I've had to spend the night in jail, and knowing my luck it probably won't be the last. I was so thankful that Tom took the time to figure out how to prove that I was innocent. Matching handwriting was not something I would have thought about. I couldn't ask for a better boyfriend. Maybe we should start thinking about the next step in our relationship...
I've had this chapter planned forever and I'm so glad I'm able to post it! Hope you guys enjoyed!! 💗
Next chapter is Valentine's Day!