Peter Ragland was already at his counsel table. He flashed a confident smile at Robin just as the guards led David Turner out of the holding area.
“Am I going to get out?” Turner asked nervously when Robin took the seat next to him at the counsel table.
“To hold you without bail, the State has to convince Judge Washington that the proof is evident or the presumption is strong that you killed Chesterfield. That’s not like proof beyond a reasonable doubt, the standard in a criminal trial. It’s a lot lower.”
“Can they meet the burden?” Turner asked.
“Probably. I’ve gone through the discovery, and Ragland has a good circumstantial case.”
“Won’t you be able to cross-examine the witnesses to cast doubt on the State’s case?”
“When the case is tried in front of a jury, Ragland has to call witnesses I can cross-examine, but he doesn’t have to call his witnesses at a bail hearing. Instead, he’s allowed to have a detective summarize the State’s case.”
Before Turner could ask another question, the bailiff rapped his gavel and LaVerne Washington took her place on the dais. Judge Washington, a former public defender, was a hefty, fifty-year-old African American. Most of the time, she was even-tempered, but she had a reputation for having a short fuse when attorneys were unprepared.
“Morning, Mr. Ragland, Miss Lockwood. This is the time set for the bail hearing in State of Oregon versus David Earl Turner. Are the parties ready to proceed?”
Ragland stood. “The State is ready.”
“Mr. Turner is ready,” Robin said.
“You want to keep Mr. Turner in jail without bail, Mr. Ragland, so the ball is in your court.”
Ragland nodded. “We’re going to have Detective Carrie Anders summarize our case, Your Honor.”
Anders lumbered up the aisle, took the oath to tell the truth, and settled in the witness chair. Robin stood when Ragland began questioning her about her qualifications.
“It won’t be necessary for Mr. Ragland to qualify Detective Anders. For purposes of this hearing, Mr. Turner will stipulate that she is a homicide detective who is competent to tell the court about the facts of this case.”
“Mr. Ragland, I see no reason for you to proceed with the preliminary questions. Detective Anders has appeared before me on numerous occasions.”
“Very well, Your Honor. The State accepts the stipulation. Detective, please tell the court the evidence that justified arresting the defendant for the murder of Robert Chesterfield.”
Anders turned toward Judge Washington. “Our witnesses will testify that the finale of Robert Chesterfield’s magic show is an illusion called the Chamber of Death. In that trick, three magician’s assistants lock the magician in a sarcophagus and put snakes and scorpions in with him. When the sarcophagus is unlocked, the magician is supposed to have disappeared. Then he’s supposed to reappear at the back of the theater.
“When Mr. Chesterfield got in the sarcophagus, two of the assistants were holding up the lid, and it looked like the third assistant pushed Mr. Chesterfield down into it. When the assistant appears to push Chesterfield down, she is blocking the view of the audience. When that happened, Mr. Chesterfield was supposed to roll over the edge of the sarcophagus, get off the stage, and go to the back of the theater. But on this occasion, the person who appears to push Mr. Chesterfield down stabbed him in the heart and killed him.
“Nancy Porter is the assistant who had the job of appearing to push Mr. Chesterfield into the coffin. After that, she was supposed to move the dolly that was used to get the sarcophagus onto the stage into the wings. Then she was supposed to return to the stage for the finale. But the third assistant never came back. When we searched the theater, Miss Porter was found in the assistants’ dressing room, unconscious, and her robe was found near one of the theater’s exits.
“The robe used by the assistants during the Chamber of Death illusion is very roomy. We have established that a man or woman wearing it would be completely concealed from the audience and the other assistants.
“Miss Porter will testify that she has asthma and always has an inhaler with her. She had used it earlier in the show and placed it on her dressing table. While she and the other assistants changed for the Chamber of Death, Miss Porter looked for the inhaler, but she couldn’t find it. She continued to look for the inhaler when the other assistants left the dressing room. While she was alone, her assailant rendered her unconscious so