Chapter 7 - The Trial of Vanessa Howard
Three months later.
The New York State Supreme Court was packed to maximum capacity for the high-profile trial of The State of New York v. Vanessa Howard.
Vanessa sat at the defense table wearing a plain gray prison jumpsuit, her hands handcuffed at her waist. Gone was the glamour, the silk dresses, and the arrogant smile. She looked thin, defeated, and bitter.
Her defense attorney tried desperately to argue that the staircase incident was an accidental confrontation and that the security footage was illegally obtained.
Then the prosecution called its chief witness: Elena Howard.
Elena walked up to the witness stand wearing a stunning emerald dress, her pregnant belly now beautifully prominent. She took the oath, her voice steady and echoing clearly across the courtroom.
The prosecutor played the high-definition video feed captured from the chandelier camera on the day of the fall.
The entire courtroom watched in breathless silence as the giant projection screen showed Vanessa grabbing Elena’s shoulders, shouting curses, and violently shoving her down the marble stairs. The audio was crystal clear: “I’ll make sure you and that bastard child never see a dime!”
Gasps erupted from the jury box.
Vanessa buried her face in her hands on the defense table, sobbing hysterically as her attorney lowered his head in utter defeat.
The prosecutor turned to Elena. "Mrs. Howard, did you at any point provoke or physically threaten the defendant?"
"Never," Elena answered firmly, looking directly at the jury. "I knew Vanessa was desperate because the federal audit was closing in. I let her believe she had the upper hand so she would expose her true intentions where the law could see her."
The jury deliberated for less than forty-five minutes.
May you like
"On the charge of Attempted Murder in the First Degree," the jury foreman announced, "we find the defendant, Vanessa Howard, GUILTY."
Vanessa screamed as the judge slammed his gavel down, sentencing her to twenty-five years in the Bedford Hills Maximum Security Facility without the possibility of early parole.
