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                    SYNOPSIS
This is the first in a series of humorous novels about the life, escapades and legal exploits of C. Bruce West, who surrounded by the trappings of his professional success, is floundering in his private life.

He is retained to defend a man accused of rape who not only offers a truly preposterous alibi, but fails to pay Bruce's fee.  Unprepared, unpaid and unable to extricate himself from a protracted trial, he plans to exact revenge by selecting a jury certain to convict his client.  But during the heat of the courtroom drama that unfolds, Bruce becomes overwhelmed by his compulsion to win.

Bruce further complicates his life by becoming involved in a torrid romance with his client's boss.  He becomes obsessed by an urgent need to end the suffocating relationship.  Steamy sex - lots of laughs.
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EXCERPT

His opening was short, sweet, to the point, deadly; an open and shut case!

            Intellectually, I wanted to see Wilkes burn for this offense.  I felt like he was lying to me.  His story was total bullshit.  He was stupid and unreliable, and he stiffed me out of my fee which was the worst part.  But, these human frailties I've been telling you about, the instincts that comprise what we call human nature, are often so overpowering that they easily overcome intellect.  A soldier, for example, who is pissed-off at his sergeant, still fights like hell and shoots to kill when the enemy comes charging through the front lines.

            As much as I disliked Jefferson Wilkes, and as furious as I was about not being paid, I was seized by an uncontrollable force of human nature; the killer instinct took hold, and winning became paramount.  It was the most important thing.  It was everything.  No! Not everything; it was the only thing!

              I began, "If it please the court, Your Honor, Ladies of the jury, I truly wish this were an open and shut case.  We could all just go home now.  But I don't share Mr. Lewis's predictions for the outcome of this trial.  The reason I don't is because this trial is taking place in America.  Open and shut cases only occur in places like Russia and Romania, not in America. 

            Our laws are fairer than in those other places.  In America, the accused, in this case Mr. Wilkes, comes to this courtroom presumed to be innocent of each and every one of the charges leveled against him, and he remains innocent throughout this entire trial, until the very moment that the twelve of you reach a unanimous decision of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and to a moral certainty, which I am confident you will not do.  That means, if just one of you cannot decide on his guilt, he will remain innocent.  I seriously doubt that once you have heard the witnesses and reviewed all of the evidence you will all agree on his guilt.  Actually, I believe that you will all agree that he is innocent."

            I continued, "The State of Maryland, is represented by the prosecutor, Mr. Lewis.  His job is much more difficult than mine, because he is charged with an awesome responsibility; no, it's more than just a responsibility, it's a legal duty ... Well, it's even more than a legal duty ... he has a very heavy burden to prove to you beyond a reasonable doubt and to a moral certainty, that an innocent  man in fact committed these crimes.

            I have emphasized, and will continue throughout these proceedings, to emphasize the phrase, beyond a reasonable doubt and to a moral certainty.  In this country, this is the standard against which a finding of guilt must be measured.”

            No one was sleeping yet, so I continued, "My job on the other hand is much easier.  First, because I have an innocent man for my client.  He comes before you today as innocent as the day he was born.  Secondly, my job is easier because I don't have to prove anything.  As a matter of fact, I don't even have to produce a single witness.  The entire burden of proving every aspect of this case is Mr. Lewis's job.

            My job is so easy, I thought, that my innocent rapist, son-of-a-bitch client didn't think I was entitled to be paid!

            I'm not going to comment at this time about what happened, or didn't happen, or what evidence you will hear, or what you will observe over the next several days.  Let's just see what Mr. Lewis can prove beyond a reasonable doubt and to a moral certainty."

            Mr. Lewis is not the only one in this case who has an awesome responsibility."  I pointed my finger at two jurors, one in each row, and then swept my hand to embrace all of them.  "You, each of you, also has the awesome task of sorting out the evidence and unearthing the truth.

            I'd like you to promise me that you will perform the awesome task imposed upon you by the oath of office you took as a juror.  You have pledged to be open-minded, to listen carefully to all of the evidence, and to observe closely the manner, attitude and demeanor of the witnesses.

            Pay very close attention to the evidence presented, but focus even more closely on the evidence that is not presented.  At the conclusion of the presentation of this case, examine what you have seen and heard.  Examine what you did not see and what you did not hear.  Ask yourself, are there any questions about important issues in this case that have not been answered to my complete satisfaction by the State?  Do I have any lingering doubt about any issue?  Is there a reasonable doubt about whether or not Mr. Wilkes committed these crimes?"

            I let a moment of silence pass before I continued, just for dramatic effect.  "I predict that your answer will be yes to each of these questions.

            Can I live with my decision to imprison this man without having all of the answers?  I predict that your answer to this question will be no.

            If this case were open and shut as Mr. Lewis would have you believe, we would have to put the sword of justice into its sheath and surrender our rights to a totalitarian, or despotic government."

            This is Academy Award stuff, I thought.  Encouraged, I bellowed on in an oration which would have gotten me top honors in drama class.

            "But, the sword of justice has no scabbard.   And as long as it is unsheathed, it must be wielded to defend that which is the just due of the people it protects.  It is a two-edged sword.  It protects all people equally, both the victims and the accused."

            I thought to myself as I returned to my seat at the trial table, if bullshit could fly, this place would be an airport!