Shaw returned to his table shortly afterward.
Hale testified last.
His attorney advised against it.
Hale insisted.
He wanted people to understand.
That desire had damaged him repeatedly.
It did again.
“I thought she was Maya Turner.”
The prosecutor displayed Maya Turner’s booking photograph.
Young woman.
Short.
Braids.
Round face.
Gray sweatshirt.
Then displayed a still frame of Josephine from hallway footage.
Tall.
Long wavy hair.
Burgundy suit.
Pinstripe coat.
White heels.
The prosecutor asked:
“What characteristic caused you to believe these were the same woman?”
Hale stared at the images.
“Location.”
“Both were in the courthouse.”
“Yes.”
“What else?”
“She was heading toward a restricted corridor.”
“So do hundreds of attorneys and staff.”
“She refused direction.”
“After you called her Maya.”
“Yes.”
“What physical characteristic?”
Hale shifted.
“General build.”
The prosecutor enlarged both photographs.
A few jurors looked uncomfortable.
“What general build?”
Hale said nothing.
The prosecutor continued.
“Same height?”
“No.”
“Same age?”
“No.”
“Same hairstyle?”
“No.”
“Same clothing?”
“No.”
“Same facial features?”
“I didn’t study the alert photograph.”
“So what made her Maya?”
Silence.
The prosecutor did not rescue him.
Eventually Hale said:
“She fit the description enough.”
The words landed badly.
The prosecutor waited.
Then asked:
“What part?”
Hale’s attorney objected.
Overruled.
Hale looked toward the jury.
His answer came slowly.
“Black female.”
Nobody moved.
The prosecutor nodded.
“Thank you.”
Hale immediately tried correcting.
“That wasn’t the only thing.”
“But it was the only characteristic they shared.”
Hale’s face reddened.
“They were both in the same area.”
“An area open to the public.”
“Yes.”
The prosecutor moved on.
“Why was your body camera disabled?”
“Battery preservation.”
The prosecutor displayed device records.
Battery at 91 percent when manually deactivated.
Hale stared.
“Why order Officer Barnes to stop hers?”
“I was concerned about privacy.”
“When?”
“After realizing Judge Caldwell’s position.”
The prosecutor played the footage.
His order occurred seconds after Walter said “Your Honor.”