Journey

Chapter 14

Mid February 2017

"That should've been inadmissible."

"I'm aware. I'm well aware but Nia allowed it to be introduced and now we have to deal with it." Lisa is frustrated. More than she's ever been with a case in a long time.

NYPD's Organized Crime managed to place an undercover officer deeply infiltrated into the Lucchese operation. The detectives had been amassing information for close to two years before they came to the District Attorney's Office with what they believed was a solid case. Indra took one look at the files and agreed. She set up a meeting with all the ADAs from Major Crimes and informed them of the development. Everything indicated that their strongest case at the moment was against Carlo Gagliano. He was one of the Lucchese's top enforcers and their goal was to convict him on hundreds of counts of various severity degrees. The lengthy list included robbery, drug trafficking, human trafficking, smuggling, contract killing, assault, extortion, and an endless string of murders amongst other things. They were hoping a sweeping conviction across most counts with the agreement of a reduced sentence would be leverage enough to get Gagliano to turn on the people above him. In any conventional case this could've gone to the Major Gangs division of the Manhattan DA's Office, but because of the laundry list of charges and the fact that their more solid evidence was in relation to a handful of murders Gagliano could be tied to in the early 2000s, Indra wanted this to be handled by Major Crimes.

Using Gagliano to convict a single or several of the heads of one of the Five Families from the Cosa Nostra was their big picture play. Right now they had to focus on the case at hand though and that one wasn't looking good for them. Particularly not for Lisa.

During the initial meeting Indra made it clear that she wouldn't force anyone to lead the case. Dealing with the Mafia came with very real risks and Indra wasn't the kind of boss to force that on any of her people. Not for a case like this. Not for a case that required someone dedicated and unfazed by what they'd be up against. Everyone shied away from volunteering for this prosecution team except for Lisa and the other "rookie" of the team, Nicholas Dillane.

Those two were green. Too green. Neither of them had yet tried a prominent case. Nothing that would draw this level of attention or scrutiny by the media and the city. Indra knew this. She also knew they were the new kids who were thirsty to prove their worth. Throughout the years Indra learned that sometimes was more valuable than anything. Much to the chagrin and lambasting of the more seasoned attorneys around them, Indra gave Manoban and Dillane the case with the caveat that a third person with more experience round up the team. Lisa and Nick agreed to those conditions without hesitation. Indra made Lisa the lead prosecutor and convinced Madison Dickens one of her most trusted ADAs to join the team as third chair and they got to work.

That was ten months ago. For ten months they've been juggling whatever other cases they were assigned to while they put this monster together. They are now on the fifth day of trial and they're getting viciously pummeled by the defense. Not that anyone was expecting anything different. The Lucchese's hired one of the best law firms in the city to defend Gagliano and as foreseen they were playing every dirty trick in the book. The trio of prosecutors was being outwitted and overpowered at every turn. That was strike one for the prosecution. They were also unlucky enough to have ended up in Judge Nia's courtroom. Nia had a reputation for disliking female counsels. Rumor was she thought them emotional and weak. This team was made up of mostly women. They were certainly at a disadvantage on that front. That was strike two. They were one mishap away from watching this case unravel in front of their very eyes and that might have happened today.

"How did they get that tape?"

Nick throws his pen across the table and it barely misses Madison. She offers him a dirty look and he raises his hand as an apology. The three of them are sitting around the table of the conference room they've turned into their command center with folders open over every surface and boxes of evidence stacked high against the corners.