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“Son, you’re a fine young lawyer, Harvard trained and all, gonna make a finer lawyer one of these days,” he said “But you still need to learn that Washington is a southern town We’re every bit as southern as wherever you’re from down in Podunk, Mississippi”

I griht, Carter”

“I know you do And that’s what -heart fool and nigger-lover”

Before I could defend—well, just about everything I believe in—a police officer poked his head out of the courtroo back”

Chapter 6

THE CUMBERSOME IRON SHACKLES around Gracie Johnson’s ankles clanked noisily as I helped her to her feet at the defense table

“Thank you, Mr Corbett,” she whispered

Judge Warren gazed down on her as if he were God “Mr Foreman, has the jury reached a verdict in this case?” he asked

“Yes, we have, Your Honor”

Like every lawyer since the Romans invented the Code of Justinian, I had tried to learn so from the jurors’ faces as they filed into the courtroo hter and had cracked a tentative s my summation

Several of the directly at Gracie, which was supposed to be a good sign for a defendant I decided to take it that way and said a hopeful little prayer

The judge intoned, “How find you in the ainst Grace Johnson?”

The fore, clear voice he said, “We the jury find the defendant guilty as charged”

The courtrooly s of applause

Bam! Bam! Bam!