"Not until the initial evidence has been secured. I do not want the location disturbed unnecessarily."
Elaine looked toward the scattered marks on the floor and then at Daniel.
ELAINE PORTER:
"Officer, I will need your name, your department, and the details of your assignment this morning."
DANIEL REED:
"Officer Daniel Reed. I'm assigned to courthouse security support today."
ELAINE PORTER:
"Who authorized you to search for Maya Reynolds?"
DANIEL REED:
"I received information through the department."
ELAINE PORTER:
"From whom?"
Daniel hesitated.
DANIEL REED:
"I would need to check the communication log."
ELAINE PORTER:
"Then the communication log will need to be preserved as well."
Josephine turned slightly toward Elaine.
JOSEPHINE CARTER:
"Please include all dispatch records, written instructions, messages, and any changes made to the assignment before this encounter."
ELAINE PORTER:
"I will include those requests."
Daniel looked between the two women.
He had begun to understand that the incident would not disappear simply because he regretted being discovered.
The questions were becoming more precise.
Who had given him the assignment?
What information had he received?
Had he verified the identity of the woman he approached?
What had he written in his report, and would that report match what the witnesses had seen?
These were questions that could be answered only through records and a careful investigation.
Daniel cleared his throat.
DANIEL REED:
"Judge Carter, I want you to know that I didn't target you personally."
Josephine looked at him.
JOSEPHINE CARTER:
"You did not know me personally. That is precisely why you should have verified the facts before acting."
DANIEL REED:
"I wasn't trying to discriminate against anyone."
JOSEPHINE CARTER:
"Your intentions are something investigators may examine alongside the evidence. They do not replace the evidence."
She paused briefly.
JOSEPHINE CARTER:
"And you do not get to decide, on your own, that your conduct was harmless simply because you did not expect the consequences."
Elaine made a note on her tablet.
Thomas watched Daniel closely, not because he expected another attack but because he had seen how quickly the officer's confidence had turned into defensiveness.
The medical staff member approached Josephine and asked whether she could examine her lip.
Josephine agreed.
As the staff member put on gloves and prepared the necessary supplies, Daniel looked away.
He could hear the quiet questions being asked about the injury, the time of the incident, and whether Josephine felt dizzy or needed further assessment.
The questions were ordinary.
The circumstances were not.
A few minutes later, a second security officer arrived and spoke privately with Elaine. He confirmed that the corridor cameras were operating and that the relevant recordings could be retained for review.
Elaine instructed him to document the camera locations and the time range that needed to be preserved.
SECURITY OFFICER:
"The hallway camera captured the confrontation. The elevator camera may also show the approach."
ELAINE PORTER:
"Preserve both. Include the minutes before the encounter and the period afterward."
SECURITY OFFICER:
"Understood."
JOSEPHINE CARTER:
"Please preserve the original recordings and document every person who accesses them."
ELAINE PORTER:
"That will be included."
Daniel's expression grew increasingly troubled.
He had assumed that his uniform would make people accept his version of events. Now, every instruction was designed to ensure that the evidence could be examined independently of what he claimed.
The attorney who had recorded the confrontation approached Elaine and identified himself.
ATTORNEY:
"My name is Peter Lawson. I witnessed the incident from the beginning. I have a recording of the confrontation, including the officer's commands and the moment he struck Judge Carter."
ELAINE PORTER:
"Thank you. Please provide your contact details and preserve the original recording. Do not edit or delete it."
PETER LAWSON:
"I will."
Daniel looked sharply toward him.
DANIEL REED:
"You were recording before you knew who she was?"
PETER LAWSON:
"I was recording because you were using force against someone who was asking you to stop."
DANIEL REED:
"You don't know what led up to it."
PETER LAWSON:
"I know what I saw, and I know what I heard."
Thomas stepped closer to the group.
THOMAS GALLAGHER:
"And I witnessed the latter part of the confrontation myself."
Elaine made another note.
The number of witnesses was growing, and the possibility of contradicting accounts was becoming smaller.
Josephine remained quiet while the medical staff member finished documenting her injury. She accepted a clean dressing and listened to the instructions about keeping the injured area clean.
When the examination was complete, she thanked the staff member.
Then she looked toward Elaine.
JOSEPHINE CARTER:
"I would like to provide a formal statement once the immediate evidence has been secured."
ELAINE PORTER: