until, nine, but he doesn’t remember who the sub was.
Hoy asks, “Do you remember anything else about the rest of the day?”
“Yeah, there was a terrible snowstorm.”
Hoy says, You have been living with this for more than a year, these accusations, so what have you learned? Aaron replies that he has learned that he is a very dedicated educator, to the detriment of his own family sometimes, and that even when you are tirelessly trying to do the right thing, things don’t always go as planned, and that’s okay, that’s life. As his wife says—“You don’t live to work, you work to live.”
“Thank you, sir,” says Hoy. “I have no further questions.”
When she finally takes the stand, Marie Knodel wears a bright purple shirt under a dark suit jacket. Her hair is medium brown and very straight. Her eyebrows are dramatically shaped, making her appear perpetually stunned. It’s terrible to realize that even in this predicament a woman needs to feel and look beautiful. You cannot show up looking unlovely or some juror might nod as though it makes sense. Even the ones who believe he’s innocent may have such low thoughts. The people who believe Maggie Wilken is doing it for money are often the same people who believe women who don’t keep themselves pretty will be responsible for losing their men.
Hoy approaches and says, “I may slip up and call you Marie. But, Mrs. Knodel, you’re married to Aaron Knodel?”
Do you see, jury, Hoy is saying, that we are all friends here? Marie is a friend. Even Maggie Wilken’s classmates are friends of ours.
Marie Knodel tells the court she grew up on a dairy farm in central Minnesota. After graduating from high school, she studied criminal justice at NDSU. Today she is a parole and probations officer. She super vises about a hundred offenders across the spectrum of wrongdoing, from misdemeanors to felonies.
When Hoy asks her how many children she has, it’s the first of a few times that she cries.
Hoy says she should take her time.
“I realize this isn’t easy. We will try and make it as rapid as we can. Does your job require that you go out of town for work on the weekends?”
“No,” she says, regaining her composure.
“Has it ever required that?”
“No.”
“Have you ever been out of town on a weekend for work?”
“Never.”
Marie doesn’t leave on weekends and Aaron works all the time. She describes how his dedication to his students and his profession overran the lines of what was regular. One time, for example, he told Marie he was going to buy books for one of his students who could not afford them. The books amounted to $600. They had a discussion about that. Going above and beyond for his students was nothing new.
“So as it pertains particularly to this case, were you aware in the 2008–2009 school year that Aaron had made a decision to reach out and try and help a student that he thought needed help?”
“Yes.”
“Did you know her name?”
“No, I don’t remember her name. I didn’t remember her name.”
But Marie was aware that Aaron was both receiving calls from and making calls to Maggie Wilken. She was also aware of the text messages. Some of his were typed in her presence. Hoy asks if she remembers any of those instances. Yes, Marie says, she remembers the night of the surprise birthday party at Spitfire. Maggie Wilken was upset because one of her drunk parents left the house. Marie heard bits of the conversation and told Aaron he should call the police if he thought anyone might be in danger. Marie couldn’t remember if it was Maggie’s mother or her father who was drunk. It could have been either since they were both alcoholics. No, she says, Aaron was not attempting to hide any of this communication. Marie pays the cell phone bills, all the bills, actually; she is the one who sits down and writes the checks and licks the stamps. She had access to the call logs.
Hoy asks about Maggie’s claim that she texted Aaron on the snowy morning of his birthday. This would have been the same text that precipitated Marie’s confronting of her husband. No, says Marie, nothing of the sort happened. Hoy brings out a photograph of the cake that Marie allegedly baked for Aaron later that morning.
Next Hoy addresses why Maggie would have Marie’s cell phone number. According to Maggie, she had it because Aaron said, If this number ever calls you, do not