The Color of Law_ A Novel - Mark Gimenez [85]
“Clark McCall beat and raped another woman a year ago. She filed a criminal complaint against him, but dropped it under pressure and a half-million-dollar payment from Senator McCall. She has agreed to testify at Shawanda’s trial.”
“To corroborate that Clark McCall was a rapist?”
“Yes. And there were other women, six others, who were raped and beaten by Clark McCall. I’m asking those women to come forward and testify so that an innocent victim of Clark McCall will not be sentenced to death for a crime she did not commit.”
Another commercial break had Mack pointing to Jean’s laptop and asking her if she had Dan Ford’s home phone number on it. She did.
When the program resumed, the reporter asked: “Now, Mr. Fenney, let’s turn to your allegation that Senator McCall obstructed justice.”
Fenney said, “Obviously, the trial of the person accused of murdering Clark McCall will be a media circus. The federal court did not believe that the public defender’s office could provide an adequate defense for Shawanda under those circumstances. So the court appointed me to represent her.”
“That must have been a shock.”
“Sure, at first. I’m a partner in a large Dallas law firm and I’m very busy with our paying clients, but I’ve always believed that lawyers have a professional duty to represent people who can’t pay. So when the judge called, I readily accepted the appointment.”
“But as they say, no good deed goes unpunished.”
“So I’ve learned. I expected some adverse publicity, perhaps a few clients who didn’t like what I was doing, but I did not expect Senator McCall to try to destroy me.”
“And what has Senator McCall done?”
“First he called my senior partner and asked him to get me to exclude any evidence at trial about Clark’s past criminal conduct. He said he did not want his son dragged through the mud. But Clark McCall lived in the mud.”
“You refused to drop that evidence?”
“Absolutely. To do so would have been unethical conduct by a lawyer and unfair to Shawanda. She’s entitled to the very best defense I can muster. And that’s exactly what she will get.”
“What did the senator do next?”
“He got the U.S. Attorney in Dallas to offer a plea deal, twenty years for Shawanda if we kept quiet about Clark’s past. Of course, we rejected the offer. My client is innocent.”
“Then what happened?”
“INS agents showed up at my house and arrested my maid, a Mexican national. Consuela—that’s her name—had been with us for three years. She’s part of our family.”
Fenney’s eyes looked wet.
“She didn’t have a green card?”
“No.”
“She was here in America illegally?”
“Yes.”
“And you knew that?”
“Look, we can debate the merits of the immigration laws, but the point is that Senator McCall used his political power in Washington to have my maid in Dallas arrested.”
“To pressure you?”
“Yes.”
“Did he succeed?”
“No. I will never be pressured to act to the detriment of my client. Senator McCall only hurt a poor Mexican girl.”
“Not a smart political move given the percentage of Hispanic voters in America. What happened next?”
“Senator McCall then got me kicked out of my dining club, my athletic club, and my country club.”
The reporter offered a shocked expression.
“The man who wants to be president stooped that low?”
“Yes, he did.”
“So is that all?”
“No, unfortunately, that’s not all. Since I still refused to accede to his demands, Senator McCall used his power to get the bank to call the notes on my cars and my home. I now have ten days to pay off the car notes and thirty days to pay off the house note, or I’ll lose everything.”
“My God, you’re not serious!”
“I’m afraid I am.”
“I hesitate to ask, but is there more?”
“Yes. Since all of that did not succeed, McCall called in some favors with a client of mine, Tom Dibrell, a real-estate developer in Dallas and—”
“What kind of favors?”
“Well, Tom told me that ten, twelve years ago, McCall threatened to hold up legislation desired by the lender holding the