Chapter 6 - The Record
I did not take the citation from Claudia’s hand. I let it fall onto the patio table beside the barbecue sauce. Then I looked at Sergeant Bell.
“Sergeant, I would like your body-worn camera preserved, Officer Cole’s body-worn camera preserved, the dispatch call preserved, and your incident report to reflect Mrs. Voss’s exact words.”
Cole’s eyes dropped.
Bell nodded. “Yes, Your Honor.”
Claudia scoffed. “This is ridiculous.”
“No,” I said. “This is documentation.”
She pointed toward the house. “Hawthorn Glen has standards.”
“So does the Constitution.”
The backyard remained silent. A few neighbors had gathered near the fence, drawn by police lights and the kind of trouble upscale communities pretend never happens inside their gates. One of them, Mr. Abernathy from two houses down, lowered his phone when I looked his way.
“Keep recording if you already started,” I told him. “Just don’t post my grandson.”
He nodded quickly.
Leila tightened her hold on Micah. “Dad, do you want to go inside?”
“In a minute.”
I looked at Claudia. “You entered my property without permission. You made a false emergency call. You described grill tongs as a weapon. You watched an officer restrain me in front of my grandchild, and after learning the truth, you issued a fine saying I still do not belong here.”
Her lips pressed together.
“You may want counsel before you speak again.”
For the first time since she entered my yard, Claudia looked uncertain.
Cole muttered, “Sir, I really am sorry.”
I turned to him.
“Officer, you are sorry because I am a judge. You should be sorry because I was compliant.”
His mouth closed.
May you like
Bell looked at him.
And I knew she understood the difference.
