After Before and After

Phase 4: Chapter 18

December 7, 1992. 4:14PM.

Jack Merridew fidgeted anxiously with the stitching on the sleeve of his blazer; rubbing it between his fingers until they were red and swollen. Beside him, he could hear the annoying sound of his sister breathing. The way she would sigh heavily at the end of each attorney's questioning of a witness made Jack want to slap the oxygen out of her. On Paige's other side sat their father; a man who kept his eyes forward and his expression blank for the entire six hours they'd been in the courtroom today. If Evan Merridew had a single thought about the content of the testimonies thus far, it didn't show.

Jack was growing tired of watching the attorneys question all these men Jack could barely remember from the Marine Corps rescue team. A lot of them were being asked the same kinds of questions, and giving the same kinds of answers. Jack thought the entire thing would go by much quicker if they just compiled the officers' points into a single testimony. All the repetition was making him tired.

So far, the only people who had taken the stand were members of the Marine Corps, all officers who were called to the island to assist in the rescue efforts. After Victor Greene, several more marines were called to the stand to testify. A few of them were pilots for the other helicopters that rescued the rest of the boys. They spoke to those boys' behavior upon rescue, during the helicopter flight back to the U.S., and at the airport. Like Ralph, Jack was also finding it difficult to keep from looking at the other boys when their names were spoken during testimony. The other pilots spoke of the little ones like Greg and Peter and Mikey and Percy. The pilot who flew Maurice, Sheraton, Andy and a couple others spoke about how during their flight, the boys exhibited signs of guilt and fear more so than relief that they were going home. In his cross-examination of another pilot, Officer James Lenardon, Jeremy Reynolds pointed out that anxiety wasn't an indication of guilt, and that there was no correct way for the boys to feel in the midst of being rescued from such a surreal and incomprehensible trauma.

Once all the pilots had taken the stand earlier in the afternoon, the prosecution's witness list for the day was to conclude with one final member of the rescue team.

"The prosecution calls Lukas Hoffman to the stand" Dana Barnes announced just after 4pm, once the previous witness had left the courtroom.

The awkward walk, and the swearing in took a few minutes as usual before the questioning began.

"State your name for the record, please and thank you" Barnes requested of the witness.

"My name is Lukas Hoffman."

"Mr. Hoffman, what is your occupation as pertaining to this case?"

"I am an EFR specialist and officer with the United States Marine Corps" Hoffman informed the court.

"Can you describe for the court what exactly an EFR specialist is?" Barnes requested.

"EFR stands for Expeditionary Firefighting and Rescue. It is the division of the Marine Corps that handles aircraft rescue and firefighting services in support of airfield operations. We respond to any fire-related emergencies and situations while serving overseas. We fly aircrafts that are equipped with fire extinguishers that are designed to fight extremely large fires, and use equipment like fireproof boots, trousers, jackets, Nomex headgear, masks with respirators, helmets, and oxygen tanks at all times."

"Thank you, Officer Hoffman. The court thanks you for your brave service. Were you called to the island the defendants of this court were rescued from on the morning of January 27th 1991?" Barnes prompted.

"Yes" Hoffman confirmed.

"What was your role in the rescue response that day?" Barnes asked.

"My EFR team and I were brought on scene to help contain and distinguish the fire on the island."