Until Proven Innocent by Gene Grossman Read Free Book Online Page A

bookmaking operations and federal income tax evasion. I hope Stuart makes a lot of money with his plan, because he may have to hire quite a few bodyguards next year.
    Walking down to our boat on C4200 dock after an educational, complimentary early dinner, I see Tony the cop sitting on our dock box again. He hands me a small envelope.
    “ Here’s the info on that cell phone number you gave me.”
    “ Thanks, Tony. By the way, do you know anything about ballistics?”
    “ All I know is that without me, those experts would be out of work. Why, you got some problem with a bullet?”
    “ No, it’s just this movie I’ve been brought in on as a legal consultant. They’ve got a part where some ballistics expert is called to the witness stand. The rest of the witnesses are mostly cops.”
    “ I can’t help you with the ballistics part, but I sure can straighten you out about how the cops testify. All I know about bullets is what I’ve learned from reloading my own.”
    “ You mean you reuse your bullets?”
    “ Sure. The new .50 caliber ammo for this revolver can cost up to three bucks each. If I go to the firing range three or four times a month, that can cost me several hundred a month. By reloading, I cut that cost down by around two-thirds.”
    “ What do you have to do, pour in some more powder and put a new bullet head on?”
    “ Yeah, I wish it was that easy. Actually, I use a single-stage center-fire metallic press, with a separate powder measure and a hand-priming tool. The press sits on a ledge in my boat near a portlight. Maybe you’ve seen it there when passing by my slip.”
    “ Oh, yeah, I did happen to notice it. I thought it was a special device you used to make coffee with. What’s involved in reloading ammunition? Is it a complicated process?”
    “ Not really. There are only five steps. Clean and lubricate the press, resize and decap the cases, re-prime the cases, charge the cases with powder, then seat the bullet in and crimp it. Actually, it’s not that hard. I’ve even taught your little Suzi how to do it. She saw the press and wouldn’t leave me alone until she knew how it worked. Hope you don’t mind my giving her lessons. She wants to go to the range with me too, but I told her she’s a little small for that, and she’d have to get your permission first. About the only thing she could fire that wouldn’t push her back onto her rear end would probably be a little .22 caliber pistol.”
    Okay. So he doesn’t know anything about ballistics – just how to recycle killing tools and teach my little roommate the skill. I know that the kid feels like we still owe him for his previous and possibly future help on our cases, so maybe I can get him a job with coaching the movie cops in testifying, especially if I tell Joe Caulfield that Tony will work for less than a thousand a week. That’s the easy part. Now it’s time for the tough question.
    “ Would you have any problem working for a black guy?”
    “ Not at all. Is it a job about coaching actors to testify like cops? Because if it isn’t, I’m not interested in being a rent-a-cop working as a security guard.”
    “ Wait a minute, Tony, I thought you were supposed to have some reputation as not caring for black people. Is that only when you’re on active police duty, and doesn’t apply when you’re on suspension?” He’s a little surprised by my assessment of his feelings.
    “ Hey, wait a minute. I have nothing against any person just because of the color of his skin. It’s certain cultures that I’m not happy with. We were at war with Germany and Japan just fifty years ago, and now we all drive German and Japanese cars and count them as our allies and our friends. Some blacks were forced into slavery over a hundred and fifty years ago, and hundreds of thousands of white soldiers died in a civil war to help them gain freedom, but every time you see some loudmouth opportunist like Jesse Jackson on television, he’s got his