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Rodeheaver returned to his seat after the recess, and Jake looked at hial career, he had never won an argument, in court or out, with an expert witness And the way his luck was running, he decided not to argue with this one

"Dr Rodeheaver, psychiatry is the study of the human mind, is it not?"

"It is"

"And it is an inexact science at best, is it not?"

"That is correct"

"You nosis, and the next psychiatrist nosis?"

"That&039;s possible, yes"

"In fact, you could have ten psychiatrists examine a mental patient, and arrive at ten different opinions about what&039;s wrong with the patient"

"That&039;s unlikely"

"But it could happen, couldn&039;t it, Doctor?"

"Yes, it could Just like legal opinions, I guess"

"But we&039;re not dealing with legal opinions in this case, are we, Doctor?"

"No"

"The truth is, Doctor, inwith a person&039;s mind?"

"That is true"

"And psychiatrists disagree all the time, don&039;t they, Doctor?"

"Of course"

"Noho do you work for, Doctor?"

"The State of Mississippi"

"And for how long?"

"Eleven years"

"And who is prosecuting Mr HaDey?"

"The State of Mississippi"

"During your eleven-year career with the State, how many times have you testified in trials where the insanity defense was used?"

Rodeheaver thought for a moment "I think this isin a file and eyed the doctor

with a nasty little smile "Are you sure it&039;s not your forty-sixth?"

"It could be, yes I&039;m not certain"

The courtrooal pads, but watched their witness carefully

"Forty-six times you&039;ve testified for the State in insanity trials?"

"If you say so"

"And forty-six tially insane Correct, Doctor?"

"I&039;m not sure"

"Well, let me make it simple You&039;ve testified forty-six times, and forty-six tially insane Correct?"

Rodeheaver squirmed just a little, and a hint of discomfort broke around his eyes "I&039;ally insane criminal defendant, have you, Doctor?"

"Of course I have"

"Good Would you then, please, sir, tell us the name of the defendant and where he was tried?"

Buckley rose and buttoned his coat "Your Honor, the State objects to these questions Dr Rodeheaver cannot be required to remember the names and places of the trials he has testified in"

"Overruled, Sit down Answer the question, Doctor"

Rodeheaver breathed deeply and studied the ceiling Jake glanced at the jurors They were awake and waiting on an answer

"I can&039;t remember," he finally said

Jake lifted a thick stack of papers and waved it at the witness "Could it be, Doctor, that the reason you can&039;t remember is that in eleven years, forty-six trials, you have never testified in favor of the defendant?"

"I honestly can&039;t remember"

"Can you honestly naally insane?"

"I&039;m sure there are some"

"Yes or no, Doctor One trial?"

The expert looked briefly at the DA "No My memory fails me I cannot at this time"

Jake walked slowly to the defense table and picked up a thick file

"Dr Rodeheaver, do you recall testifying in the trial of a man by the name of Danny Booker in McMurphy County in Deceruesome double homicide?"

"Yes, I recall that trial"

"And you testified to the effect that he was not legally insane, did you not?"

"That is correct"

"Do you recall how many psychiatrists testified in his behalf?"

"Not exactly There were several"

"Do the names Noel McClacky, MD; OG McGuire, MD; and Lou Watson, MD, ring a bell?"

"Yes"

"They&039;re all psychiatrists, aren&039;t they?"

"Yes"

"They&039;re all qualified, aren&039;t they?"

"Yes"

"And they all examined Mr Booker and testified at trial that in their opinions the poor ally insane?"

"That&039;s correct"

"And you testified he was not legally insane?"

"That&039;s correct"

"How many other doctors supported your position?"

"None, that I recall"

"So it was three against one?"

"Yes, but I&039;ht"

"I see What did the jury do, Doctor?"

"He, uh, was found not guilty by reason of insanity"

"Thank you Now, Dr Rodeheaver, you&039;re the head doctor at Whitfield, aren&039;t you?"

"Yes, so to speak"

"Are you directly or indirectly responsible for the treatment of every patient at Whitfield?"

"I&039;ance I may not personally see every patient, but their doctors are under my supervision"

"Thank you Doctor, where is Danny Booker today?"

Rodeheaver shot a desperate look at Buckley, and irin for the jury He hesitated for a few seconds, then hesitated one second too long

"He&039;s at Whitfield, isn&039;t he?" Jake asked in a tone of voice that informed everyone that the ansas yes

"I believe so," Rodeheaver said

"So, he&039;s directly under your care, then, Doctor?"

"I suppose"

"And what is his diagnosis, Doctor?"

"I really don&039;t know I have a lot of patients and-"

"Paranoid schizophrenic?"

"It&039;s possible, yes"

Jake walked backward and sat on the railing He turned up the volume "Now, Doctor, I want to make this clear for the jury In 1975 you testified that Danny Booker was legally sane and understood exactly what he was doing when he coreed with you and found hiuilty, and since that time he has been a patient in your hospital, under your supervision, and treated by you as a paranoid schizophrenic Is that correct?"

The smirk on Rodeheaver&039;s face informed the jury that it was indeed correct

Jake picked up another piece of paper and see in the trial of a man by the name of Adam Couch in Dupree County in May of 1977?"

"I remember that case"

"It was a rape case, wasn&039;t it?"

"Yes"

"And you testified on behalf of the State against Mr Couch?"

"That&039;s correct"

"And you told the jury that he was not legally insane?"

"That was my testimony"

"Do you recall how many doctors testified on his behalf and told the jury he was a very sick ally insane?"

"There were several"

"Have you ever heard of the following doctors: Felix Perry, Gene Shumate, and Hobny Wicker?"

"Yes"

"Are they all qualified psychiatrists?"

"They are"

"And they all testified on behalf of Mr Couch, didn&039;t they?"

"Yes"

"And they all said he was legally insane, didn&039;t they?"

"They did"

"And you were the only doctor in the trial who said he was not legally insane?"

"As I recall, yes"

"And what did the jury do, Doctor?"

"He was found not guilty"

"By reason of insanity?"

"Yes"

"And where is Mr Couch today, Doctor?"

"I think he&039;s at Whitfield"

"And how long has he been there?"

"Since the trial, I believe"

"I see Do you normally admit patients and keep them for several years if they are of perfectly sound an a slow burn He looked at his lawyer, the people&039;s lawyer, as if to say he was tired of this, do so to stop it

Jake picked up more papers "Doctor, do you recall the trial of a man by the name of Buddy Wooddall in Cleburne County, May of 1979?"

"Yes, I certainly do"

"Murder, wasn&039;t it?"

"Yes"

"And you testified as an expert in the field of psychiatry and told the jury that Mr Wooddall was not insane?"

"I did"

"Do you recall how many psychiatrists testified on his behalf and told the jury the poor ally insane?"

"I believe there were five, Mr Brigance"

"That&039;s correct, Doctor Five against one Do you recall what the jury did?"