Chapter 3 

“Mr. Kim, Shim Changmin is on the line for you.” 

Jaejoong picked up his phone, “Hey Min. How is it going?” 

“Hey, man. Thanks for sending the Hwang case to me. I can’t believe your brother has grown so much. Man, I feel old. Hyunjoong didn’t even remember who I was. I had to remind him that I was the one who used to dunk him in the swimming pool.” 

Jaejoong smiled at the almost forgotten childhood memory of the boys horsing around. Then he turned serious, “So, what’s your take on the Hwang case?" 

“You know, I’m not supposed to discuss the case with anyone else other than the prosecuting attorney. One of the fundamentals in law is the client-attorney privilege.” Changmin pontificated teasingly, but Jaejoong was in mood for humor, “Sooyoung got sick. I got selected to do the arraignment hearing and I just received the case folder 15 minutes ago. Do me a favor and run the situation by me. It will save some time.” He said testily. 

“Down boy.” Changmin instantly responded, “I wasn’t aware of that fact counselor, no need to bite my head off." “Sorry about that Min. Don’t mind me, I’m just tired." 

“Aren’t we all?” Changmin mumbled, “Ok, the case. Tiffany Hwang, a 26-year-old was arrested a couple of days ago for the murder of Choi Minho, a known drug dealer in the area. She was tied to the murder when her fingerprints were found all over the knife that was used to stab the deceased.” Changmin hesitated, “Jaejoong, it was nasty. According to the coroner’s report, the victim was stabbed several times before dying due to loss of blood. The estimated time of death was around 8pm.” 

Jaejoong shrugged his shoulders. He’s heard worse. He jotted the information down, right next to it he wrote ‘Crime of Passion?’ in big bold letters, “Witnesses?” Jaejoong fired his next question. 

“No one has come forward with any information.” 

“Alibis?” 

“Not very promising. She said she was out watching a movie with some friends.” 

“How did she plead?” Jaejoong had enough background information to finally ask this question. 

“Here’s the interesting part. Ms. Hwang said that she didn’t even know the victim and had never even been to the warehouse district where the body was found.” 

'Interesting.' Jaejoong thought, “Have you informed her about the sentences should she loses the case?” 

Changmin was a little insulted by the question but let it slide this time, “Of course. Life without possibility of parole should she be tried for murder one and get convicted. She was also informed that if she pleaded guilty then we could do a plea bargain; bring the charge down to involuntary manslaughter. Since she has no priors then she would possibly get 20 years and 5 years off for good behavior but she was vehement that she didn’t do it.” 

“How did she explain about the murder weapon?” 

“She said she had no idea how it got to the crime scene. She did admit that it was her kitchen knife that was used as a murder weapon.” 

“Has forensics come up with anything?” 

“Nothing conclusive. The angles of the seem to suggests that the act was done by a taller person.” Changmin didn’t want to add the obvious; if Tiffany had been wearing high heels then she would still fit the profile, “Jaejoong, I really don’t think that Ms. Hwang could have done it. I have dealt with enough criminals to know that this girl doesn’t have it in her to commit a crime.” 

“Save that for the courtroom. Changmin, I'm sure you are well aware of the fact the every individual has the capability to kill. It’s just that it’s not often that one encounters a situation where one would reach his or her trigger point. Anyway, I’m just on temporary assignment with this case until Sooyoung gets back and all I’m doing is taking care of the arraignment hearing.” 

“I was going to talk to Sooyoung but since you are the one representing this afternoon, I guess I’m stuck with you. Let’s talk about bail.” 

“Have you lost your mind? This is a capital murder case. There is no bail.” 

“Jaejoong, we are talking about a young girl here who has no priors. She has a steady job, pays her taxes on time and never been involved with anything shady. A girl who wouldn’t know how to handle herself in prison, we can’t keep her locked up with all the other criminals. Do you know what can happen to her in there?” 

“No deal. You can try with the judge this afternoon but they will offer no concessions when it comes to bail.” 

Changmin let out a big sigh. He knew that bargaining for a bail was a long shot but he had to try, “Thanks for your time, counselor and Jaejoong, I wish you would take over this case. It’s been a while since we faced each other in court. See you in a couple of hours.” 

Jaejoong had all his documents laid out in proper order while waiting for the arraignment to start. He gave a curt nod to Changmin who returned the greeting in the same manner. It was the only indication that the two knew each other. While in court, they work for the opposing sides of the law and no such thing as friendship exists. Everyone was silent when the alleged murderer was finally brought in. Jaejoong looked at the girl curiously and almost choked on the water he was drinking. Tiffany.