The Judge

He discovered that Gabriel Scott had been systematically embezzling large amounts of money from the company account

and depositing it in a secret account in the Cayman Islands.

On Wednesday defense attorney, Craig Lewis, called Vance Buckley to the stand. Upon questioning he denied killing his

partner and declared he had an alibi for the entire afternoon. “I spent the entire afternoon, from noon until after 5 o’clock in a

room at the Liberty Hotel with a lady from an escort service.” When asked if he could verify that alibi he replied, “I believe the

young lady will verify it.”

Myra Grey was called to the stand and stated that she was employed by an escort service. On the afternoon of April 10 she

was providing those services for Mr. Buckley and during that time he never left the room.

On cross-examination Sean Gallagher reminded Ms. Grey that she was under oath and to give any false information was

perjury. When she was asked if she received a large amount of money for her services she asked, “Do I have to say how

much?” Judge Summers ordered her to answer. Her answer was $1000. She was then asked if that was her usual fee for an

afternoon. She answered, “Mr. Buckley is very generous, and I gave him special treatment.”

Buckley was recalled and asked if he was always that generous with girls from an escort service, he answered, “She is very

good at what she does, and I always pay for extra service.”

Gallagher asked, “And did you pay her extra to lie in court?” Buckley denied this and also when he was asked about

withdrawing $20,000 from his account on April 9, said he didn’t remember. The prosecutor showed him a bank statement to

that effect, which made Buckley squirm but he denied paying it to Myra Grey.

Gallagher then recalled Ms Grey and reminded her she was still under oath, and there was a severe penalty for perjury. With

this admonition she admitted she had lied and stated that Buckley had left the room about 2 and she took a nap. She didn’t

know when he returned, but it was after 3.

From that point on it was all downhill for the defense. Friday morning it took less than an hour for the jury to reach a guilty

verdict.

Judge Summers sentenced Buckley to 25 years to life.

During the trial I had a seat reserved for me directly behind the defense table so I was able to hear everything being said. I

made copious notes on my laptop and later in the day wrote my newspaper report. For this, I received a pittance in pay, but

getting paid wasn’t important, the experience was.

* * *

Vivian called me the Saturday night after she got settled in to her room in New York. It’s nice and clean but it will be like living

in a nunnery. Mother left about 4, and I’m lonely. Why don’t you dome over and I’ll sneak you in. I’ll have to blindfold my

roommate; or maybe she can be bribed.”

“I’m lonely too,” I replied. “Somehow, we’ll have to work out something.”

We exchanged “I love you” before saying goodnight.

Vivian called twice more during the second week of the trial. She told me about her classes. “They’re just what I hoped they

would be, mostly music theory and discussing the masters and listening to their music. I love it.”

I described the court activities to her and told her I found it somewhat boring. “I’m glad I didn’t become a lawyer.”

On the Saturday following the closing of the trial Vivian called me to tell me she was in Central Park, repeating the walk we

took when I visited her in New York. I perked up when she said, “Mother has come up with a plan for us. She suggested that

she make a reservation for me at a hotel in New York, far from the madding crowd, and then you show up after I arrive and

ask the desk to see if I’m having visitors. How does that sound?”

“Your mother is an incredible woman but it’s a good thing you’re over 21 or she would be contributing to the delinquency of a

minor.”

Vivian laughed before replying, “I’m not a delinquent, I’m a woman; my mother told me so. And I’m very much in love with you,

Charles Ashton; now apologize.”

“I’m sorry I called you a delinquent,” I said, in a quasi-somber tone. “You’re every bit a woman and all those bits are put

together in a beautiful package, whether wrapped or unwrapped.”

“Oh Charlie, you say the sweetest things; I like you unwrapped too.”

Getting back to a normal routine took a few days. Andy and Fran had accomplished wonders during the two weeks of the

trial. Fran had completed all of 1978 and was just beginning 1979 in the files. Andy showed me a staggering collection of

excerpts.

Judge Summers, at the close of the trial, looked ashen and I was concerned. When I suggested we call his doctor he said,

“It’s just the stress of the trial. I should not have accepted the assignment; I’m too old to cope with the effort required. Give me

a few days to rest and I’ll be okay.”

It was almost a week before he was back to a semblance of his former self. Both Mrs. Campbell and I kept a close watch on

him.

It was now late September, autumn had arrived in Connecticut and many of the leaves were showing their glorious fall colors.

It had been three weeks since Vivian and I had shared our romantic weekend. We were both anxious to see each other

again.

But first, Judge Summers had another speech to give. He had been asked to speak at a conference of trial lawyers in Denver

the second week of October.

For his subject he had chosen: Pitfalls lawyers can fall into. He wasn’t sure that was the title he wanted, but it would be a

working title for now.

“I’ve seen many lawyers fall into a trap that another lawyer has set for them.”

“There’s your title,” I said. “Either, ’Build a better mousetrap’ or “How to thwart a mousetrap.’”

“Catchy titles. I’ll work on the text and get it to you in a few days.”

Three days later it was the first Saturday in October; I had read the speech several times and had him read it to me several

times. Each time he had done some suggested tinkering and improved not only the speech, but the delivery as well. He had

also included some comic relief, stories that Andy had come up with and I recommended.

One was about a little old lady who set a trap for a traffic cop. He had stopped her for speeding and when he asked for her

driver’s license she said she didn’t have one and that she had stolen the car. When she also told him there was a dead body

in the trunk he called for backup. He repeated to the sergeant everything the lady had told him, including the body in the trunk.

The sergeant asked the little old lady if what the traffic cop had said was true. “Certainly not,’ she replied, “He’s a liar” and

showed the sergeant her driver’s license. The sergeant had her open the trunk. No body. “I told you he’s a liar. I bet he told

you I was speeding too.”

The traffic cop drove off red-faced and the little old lady drove off with a grin on her face.

Having to go to Denver the following week delayed whatever plans Vivian and her mother were trying to make. I talked to

Vivian several times and explained the situation. She calmly accepted it but I knew she was very disappointed; I was too.

Again, as in Atlantic City, Judge Summers had reserved a two bedroom suite for our use in Denver. We arrived there

Thursday evening with plans to leave for home Sunday morning. In Atlantic City we had been surrounded by long-term

acquaintances of the judge. This time that was not the case; the participants were all much younger and all were from the

western United States and western Canada.

The conference began Friday morning. I was not a habitué of conferences so I can’t make comparisons but Judge Summers

said it was like most conferences. There were small group meetings for separate special interests, a couple of luncheons,

and one main dinner on Friday, at which the judge was the principal speaker.

For this dinner we were both seated at a table close to the dais. He was introduced while he was still at the table and made

his way to the dais. The speech was presented without a hitch, bringing on many ripples of laughter at the lighter inserts.

Later that evening I complimented the judge on his presentation and told him, “You are becoming quite proficient at speaking;

you might not need me much longer.”

“Nonsense my boy, I’m still a novice at it and need to improve much more before I’m confident in what I’m doing.”

Saturday, as a social part of the conference, a bus tour took us to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. The judge

had been there previously but as it was my first visit I was impressed; not only with the academy but with the city itself. It

looked like a beautiful place to live.

I spoke to Vivian both Friday and Saturday evening. Again she said she was thrilled with her classes but her residence was

‘like a mausoleum.’ A few of the girls were friendly but most were ‘sticks in the mud.’

I told her I was going to take the next weekend off and come to see her even if I had to kidnap her from the ‘mausoleum.’ We

spoke again on Thursday and I told her I had reserved a room at a hotel close to her residence and would be there Friday

afternoon waiting for her call.

Friday at 5 o’clock I got the call, “Mother and I will pick you up at 5:30. She has theater tickets for all of us; we’ll go to dinner

before the show.”

I was waiting outside when they drove up in a taxi. They got out and both hugged me then suggested we walk to a nearby

restaurant, then take a taxi to the theater. Vivian was positively glowing; I suppose I was too.

During dinner Elizabeth was very open with me. “I didn’t tell Vivian this but I knew you two wanted more than an evening

together so I told her house mother she would spend the night with me. But, after the theater you two go off together and I’ll

see you in the morning.”

Vivian blushed but leaned toward Elizabeth, saying, “You are the perfect mother; I love you very much.” Elizabeth leaned

toward me and said, “You take good care of her and don’t get carried away.”

At this I blushed also and leaned to kiss Elizabeth. “You’re not only a perfect mother but will be a perfect mother-in-law.”

We went to an off-Broadway reprise of ‘The King and I’. The show was good, but not outstanding. Vivian and I sat there

holding hands not caring how good it was. Just to have her next to me made me tingle all over.

We dropped Elizabeth off at her hotel and continued on to mine; Vivian sitting as close to me as possible and trembling all

over.

“Are you okay?” I whispered. She whispered back, “I don’t have my diaphragm. Also, I’m trembling in anticipation.”

“I don’t think not having your diaphragm will be a problem, I have condoms. They should be safe enough; they’ve been around

longer than diaphragms.”

When we reached the hotel I hoped the desk clerk would be busy elsewhere. I would have been embarrassed, and so would

Vivian, if he saw us come in together. We both breathed a sigh of relief when we saw the desk was empty.

As soon as we were in the room, Vivian began trembling again. I held her in my arms until she calmed down then talked to

her, I hoped soothingly. “It’s okay, Sweetheart, we’re together now, and we’ll be together all night. Nothing will go wrong.”

“That’s not what’s bothering me,” she said. “All I think about when I’m not studying, and frequently even then, is making love

with you.”

“I can’t think of a more pleasant subject.”

“I know, I feel that way too. At the same time, I’m frightened. I want more than sex with you but we spend so little time together

it’s all we seem to have time for.’

“You love me and I love you, with all my heart. We’re going to spend the rest of our lives together, after you finish school.

That’s something to look forward to. In the meantime, we use our time together showing how much we love each other; and I

don’t know of a better way than holding and caressing and fondling.”

With that I began undressing her, fondling as I did, making her gasp. She gasped even more when she began removing my

pants, at my hardness. That’s when I began to tremble.

This calmed Vivian down so that she took the lead and became the aggressor, taking me to glories I wasn’t aware she knew

about. We coupled and stayed coupled long after we cooled down.

“It was much better without the diaphragm,” she said. “I could feel you, all of you.” To which I replied, “Wait until we don’t need

the condom, it will be even better. But you were more aggressive than the first time, I think that made it better for both of us;

and the more we’re together, the better it will get, as we learn what gives the most satisfaction.”

“Did you like me being the aggressor?”

“I loved it.”

We fell asleep then, and somehow made it through the night without waking until 7 o’clock. We both decided we needed

more cuddling so we stayed in bed for a while cuddling our naked bodies together, then rose to take a shower together.

At 9 o’clock we met Elizabeth for breakfast at a restaurant close to her hotel. She took one look at us and commented, “You

two look like you’re on cloud nine. I’m so happy for you.”

“You know, Mom, I had as happy a childhood as a girl could possibly have but my happiness then was nothing compared to

what it is now. Do I have to wait until June for us to get married?”

“Yes, dear; you need to finish your year at Julliard. Besides, Charlie can’t afford to give up his job, a job that could very well

be a career starter for him.”

“I agree with your mother,” I threw in.

Vivian faked a pout, then smiled and said, “I know you’re both right but it seems like such a long time to not be together.

Okay, I surrender, Mother.

Would you like to tell Charlie what plans you’ve been working on?”

“He needs to know,” Elizabeth replied. Turning to me she said, “We haven’t set a date yet; right now we’re trying to put dates

together for end of the year activities at Julliard. They should be shortly after mid-May but Julliard hasn’t released the dates

yet; soon, we hope. Then we’ll aim for three weeks later.”

After breakfast all three of us went for a long walk in Central Park and had lunch in the area. After lunch Vivian had to go back

to her ‘house’ to study; I visited with Elizabeth at her hotel.

This time we discussed me and my future. “How much longer do you expect to be working for Judge Summers?” Elizabeth

asked.

“I would think about another six months at the most. I have two good secretaries working on the judge’s files; they don’t need

me anymore. The judge says he needs me but I think it’s because he wants me to get a good start and he looks at himself as

my guardian angel.”

Following this Elizabeth mentioned that they had big family plans for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. “I know you don’t have

any other family except your brother but you’re part of our family now. So will you come for both of those holidays?”

I answered, “Thank you for thinking of me as part of the family; it makes me feel good. I’ll be happy to be with you on both

holidays.”

As Vivian was not able to get away from her studies that evening I returned to New Haven.

* * *

Sunday was a day of relaxation. I took a long walk with Champ and then watched the Red Sox on TV. This time they lost.

Back to work Monday morning I did a lot of reading and came up with a case in the files that suggested an idea for a short

story. It was a case about a 14 year old black boy whose parents had brought suit against the baseball coach at the boy’s

school, claiming he had discriminated against the boy and wouldn’t let him play because of his color.

Judge Summers had ruled in the boy’s favor, requiring the coach to place him on the team. In spite of the favorable ruling the

family was so upset with the coach they had the boy transferred to another school where he became the star shortstop, not

only for his team but in the league he played in.

As I read the file I recognized the name of the boy who ten years later was rookie of the year for a major league baseball

team. Recently retired, he had completed a long, successful career as an all-star caliber player.

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