Chapter 10 - THE TRIAL OF THOMAS HALE
Thomas’s trial began first.
He entered court wearing a dark suit and the expression of a man attending a difficult board meeting.
His defense blamed Celeste.
They portrayed him as a financially careless brother manipulated by a beautiful woman.
The recordings destroyed that story.
The jury heard him instruct Celeste to increase Evelyn’s medication.
They heard him discuss the forged incompetency order.
They watched him push Rosa into the laundry-room wall.
They saw him remove documents while wearing gloves.
The prosecution presented my father’s affidavit.
Luis Martinez’s testimony was read into the record.
The company audit explained the fake suppliers.
Dr. Ward described the medication changes that preceded Richard’s death.
Thomas’s attorney attacked Ward’s credibility.
The doctor admitted he lied for money.
The physical evidence supported him.
Pharmacy records.
Bank transfers.
Forged authorizations.
Thomas testified against legal advice.
He looked toward me.
“Marcus was always the favored son.”
The prosecutor asked whether favoritism authorized theft.
“No.”
“Did it authorize drugging your mother?”
“I did not drug her.”
“You ordered Celeste to increase the dose.”
“I was discussing prescribed medication.”
“You knew Dr. Ward’s evaluation found Evelyn competent.”
Thomas looked toward the jury.
“My mother was destroying the company through emotional decisions.”
“She wanted an audit.”
“She wanted control.”
“She wanted to protect the family legacy.”
The prosecutor displayed the photograph of Evelyn’s untreated wrist.
“Was this protection?”
Thomas’s face hardened.
“She resisted care.”
The jury saw him clearly then.
Not a neglected younger brother.
Not a businessman making complicated decisions.
A man who believed another person’s resistance justified force.
I testified for one day.
Thomas’s attorney asked whether I hated my brother.
“I grieve the brother I believed I had.”
“That was not the question.”
“No.”
“I do not need hatred to describe what he did.”
The attorney asked why I trusted him with the family finances.
“Because he was my brother.”
“Was that reasonable?”
“At the time.”
“What did you learn?”
“That trust without review creates opportunity for dishonest people.”
The jury convicted Thomas of racketeering, financial fraud, elder abuse conspiracy, medical fraud, assault, and his role in Richard Hale’s death.
The murder charge resulted in a conviction for felony manslaughter rather than intentional homicide.
The jury believed he intended to incapacitate my father, not kill him.
Thomas received fifty-two years.
Before sentencing, he asked to speak.
“Mom, I am sorry.”
Evelyn attended by video.
She looked at him for a long time.
“You are sorry the truth survived.”
Thomas began crying.
Mom continued.
“I loved you when you were honest.”
“I loved you when you lied.”
“Love is not the question.”
“Safety is.”
She ended the connection.
Thomas looked toward me.
“You turned her against me.”
“No.”
“You left bruises where love should have been.”
The guards took him away.
Celeste’s trial began three months later.
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Her attorneys planned to argue that Thomas controlled her through fear.
Then Rosa asked to testify in person.
