The Trial: Poke the Defendant

Etanis is his real name. Everyone called him Poke. The judge instructed us not to speculate.

His friends had nicknames, too (“Country” was born in the Midwest) and were well-known to the party hosts. Apparently, no matter where you are, teenagers make nice with college kids offering free beer.

After the trial the internet told me Poke had a criminal record. In the courtroom he was a blank slate, presumed innocent. An old picture shown despite the objections of his offensively-minded defense attorney, Rosemary Scapicchio, showed Poke with mildly menacing cornrows. On trial he wore a suit with his hair pulled back in a perfectly harmless man-tail.

Poke didn’t speak. He never took the stand. His emotionless expression never changed and his attention never wavered. We never learned much about his family or his life.

He was an unknown. We were there to decide whether this stranger was a knife-happy murderer.

Continue: Star Witness #1

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