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It was just a ot a call froiven to Williareed to represent him "The poor son of a bitch," he said "He's the last person you'd figure to commit murder It's not my kind of case at all, you know He's not poor, he's not black, and he hasn't tried to blow up the Eht, he'll unbesmirch it You know, if it weren't so clearly contrary to his oishes, I'd kind of like to try the case I think I could get him off"

"How, for God's sake?"

"Oh, who knows? But you could start by putting the system on trial Here's a poor mutt orks hard all his life, never saves a di hiot his wife's death, years of pain and suffering, all of which can't help but i I do is get that confession ruled inadot him on tape, he walked into the Sixth Precinct and told theiven hi, including Miranda"

"Fruit of the poisoned tree The first confession was improperly obtained-"

"The hell it was"

"-so that makes all further confessions suspect"

"That doesn't make any sense"

"Well, probably not, but I'd think of so The point is that's not what he wants, but I think I can carry on enough when I sit doith the DA's guy to strike a pretty good deal for him" He speculated some about that, and then said, "I wonder what happens to the money"

"What rity Life paid the clai in Haves account in Lakewood He hasn't spent a penny of it"

"I don't suppose he gets to use it to pay his attorney"

"He doesn't get to do anything with it You can't legally profit as the result of the co you, I can't inherit your property or collect on your life insurance Basic principle of law"

"And a reasonable one, froue the point, though it's had a few unfortunate effects There was that dame who killed the diet doctor a few years back Her lawyer could have pleaded her guilty with extenuating circuot her off with time served and community service, but she had no money of her own and she stood to inherit under the teruilty for that to happen, so the lawyer ga prison tie that she had to inherit for hiet paid? No, absolutely not, because we attorneys are never influenced by such considerations"

"Thank God for that," I said

"Have to be his But what happens to it?"

"The insurance coets it back"

"The hell they do They collected premiums all those years, they accepted the risk, and they owe the money The full amount, too, because ot to pay it to souess Which means a couple of AIDS charities"

"That would be true," he said, "if Leopold still owned the policy In that case Havemeyer would be excluded as beneficiary and Leopold's estate would receive the funds But Leopold transferred ownership of the policy for value received He's out of the picture"

"What about Havemeyer's heirs?"

"Uh-uh Havemeyer never has title to the money He can't pass on what's never been his in the first place Neverfro up a question Havemeyer owned the policy and named himself as beneficiary But did he naht predecease Leopold? Hethat if he died before Leopold did, the money payable to him on Leopold's death would simply be paid to his estate"

"Haveht In other words, why bother to designate a secondary beneficiary if the o to him anyway? There are reasons, as it happens The h probate But he ht not have bothered But if he did, can the secondary beneficiary benefit?"

"Why not? He wouldn't be excluded because he wasn't a party to the murder"

"Ah, but did Havemeyer enter into the viatical transaction with the prior intent of killing Leopold?"

"He says not"

"Good for him, but hoe know one way or the other? And if he did, can't we argue that his criminous intent in fact nullifies the viatical transaction, thereby restoring ownership of the policy to Byron Leopold?"

"So the charities would get the nated beneficiary before the viatical transaction?"

"Jesus," I said