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“What a bummer!”
“I’ll really miss him. He’s been a good friend and a great teacher. We’ve been together for a long time now. It won’t be the same.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Yeah, the timing is bad. Well, that’s not why I called.”
“Okay, shoot.”
“This Saturday is Chloe’s First Communion. We—me, my father, my sister—we want to go to the church. Can I go there? Would I be violating any order from criminal court?”
“I’ve never received anything in writing. Let me think for a minute how it went down.” Bea took a puff, coughed, wheezed a little, and answered, “I think it was left that whatever arrangements had been made in the divorce court would be followed. Since there’s no open restraining order against you, I’d say just show up.”
“Just show up? You’re sure?”
“Look,” she sighed, “I’ll take the blame if anything hits the fan. But nothing will. Go. Most of the judges are Catholic. They’ll understand.” Bea gained momentum. “Which Catholic judge is going to put a father in jail for going with the child’s grandfather and aunt to the child’s First Communion?
“And any Jewish judge will stay even farther away. No way they’ll interfere with a Catholic’s father’s desire to be at his child’s First Communion. And going there with the grandfather and an aunt? No way! You’re safe. Go. There’ll be some static. You can be sure. Joe will stand on his head.
Fogarty will make righteous noises before the bench. But nothing will come of it. I’ll be more righteous. Go. Be proud. Enjoy.”
The phone rang. Bea picked it up and heard, “I went.” Bill sounded happy and sad at the same time.
“We sat in a crowd. I was so excited to be there, I was crying. I went up to Communion, too.
“Denise saw us and ran from the front to the back of the church. She must have thought something was up. She hurried to get Chloe out of there. Then she called me later to ask me why I went, and complained that I shouldn’t have gone because Chloe was afraid of me.”
“Unreal!” Bea exclaimed.
“On Sunday, she told me again how scared Chloe was of me, and warned me not to talk about the Communion.”
“How could talking about the child’s Communion possibly have been scary to the child?” I can’t listen to this kind of rot. I get too upset. The woman needs a mental examination, but he’d end up having to support her for life. A no-can-do situation. A Catch-22. But aloud, she merely asked,
“Well, how was Chloe when you saw her?”
“Chloe was the same as usual. But I wanted to talk about the Communion! I’m so angry. It’s unfair.”
“Life has its hiccups.”
“Mine are nonstop.” He laughed nervously. “You’re probably going to have to put a bag over my head to stop them when we get to court.”
“Worry wart.”
Picking Her Battles
Bea and Joe Aguilar agreed. Rhonda C. Cavanaugh, referred to by Goldblatt, would be the psychologist to observe Bill and Chloe together—something no one had done in a professional manner. Goldblatt defined Cavanaugh’s goal: she was to recommend how the supervised visits were to transit into unsupervised visits. Because Denise was afraid they’d speak about the case to Chloe, Goldblatt suggested that the decision on grandparents’ rights be deferred until the criminal case was resolved.
Soon thereafter, Bill received a written document from Cavanaugh. The demeaning document set Bea ripping. She saw Aguilar’s hand on it.
I agree to refrain from any physical contact with my daughter Chloe, except for a brief hug and/or kiss on the cheek at the beginning and/or end of the session if Chloe gives her permission. I understand physical contact initiated by Chloe will be limited to the above and it is my responsibility to redirect into other activities any other physical contact initiated by Chloe. I understand this agreement applies only to my meeting with Chloe and Dr. Rhonda Cavanaugh at Dr. Cavanaugh’s office.
Bea decided to let that one go. Pick your battles. At this time, it wasn’t worth picking. Bill was so anxious to have unsupervised visitations, Bea didn’t want to risk upsetting the process put in place by Goldblatt. Instead, she put her faith in him. He’d use common sense.
The Center’s New Rules
Bill paid Bea the money he owed her. With the check, he enclosed the new visitation center rules given to him by the Center on Saturday. “Obviously I’m not going to sign,” he wrote. “They’ll probably give me a hard time over not signing them. I’ll be talking to you soon.”
The written policy applied to “alleged child sex-abuse perpetrators” visiting children at the Center. Bea didn’t have a problem with a limitation on touchy-feely stuff, like hugs or kisses, but the Center’s new policy precluded a parent and child from doing the most ordinary things a parent and child do when they play, like tickling, wrestling, patting, piggyback rides, hand-holding, hair-combing, and even taking a photograph during the visits.
Along with the rules came an agreement echoing the rules, but was in the form of a contract. It required Bill’s and a witness’s signature.
When Bea saw the agreement, she noted the similarity of Rhonda Cavanaugh’s agreement to the Center’s. Had Aguilar sent the Center’s form to Cavanaugh? If one assumed that people from all strata visit the Center, then the ground rules were not unreasonable, but to someone like Bill, they were demeaning. To someone like Bea, they invited arbitrary enforcement and a complaint from Denise every week.
All the rules were harsh, their tone threatening. Excuses were unacceptable. Breaking them would be reported to the courts, DSS, and/or law enforcement immediately. Some breaches would result in expulsion from the Center. If visitation were terminated, petitioning the court to re-instate the visits would be necessary.
Aguilar Stands on His Head
Aguilar addressed Goldblatt. “Judge, Mrs. Abernathy doesn’t want supervised or unsupervised visitation by Chloe’s paternal grandparents. Nor does she approve of alternate visitation centers.
Supervised visits at the Center were ordered by the Superior Court judge as a condition of Bill’s bail. His unannounced appearance at Chloe’s First Communion was in violation of temporary orders and bail conditions.”
Bea reacted immediately. “Your Honor, regarding the elder Abernathys, the Center never told Bill that his parents could see the child there, or that Denise would bring the child to see her grandfolks.
“The elder Mrs. Abernathy, being around 79 years of age, and George Abernathy, around 81, have more common sense than to discuss such a sensitive topic as sexual abuse with Chloe. The grandparents simply desire to take their grandchild to McDonalds or an outing, for example to a zoo or on a picnic.
“It’s ridiculous for Mr. Aguilar to suggest that Bill would insist on being present during the grandparents’ visits with the child. It’d be totally out of character for him to insist and for the grandparents to disobey any order of any Court.
“Filing a Complaint for Grandparents’ Rights would cause additional expenditure of time, money, and energy. Can’t we find an alternative resolution to this dispute?
Goldblatt challenged both counsel, “Any suggestions? If so, put them in writing.”
Bea then reiterated what happened in Superior Court during Bill’s arraignment. “One, no temporary orders or bail conditions were set. Two, the judge simply was told—and the assistant DA agreed—the couple had agreed to continue supervised visits until the matters in this court were settled and until the criminal matter was resolved. Three, no cash bail was requested. And, four, no cash bail was ordered.”
“Mr. Aguilar?” Goldblatt turned toward him.
“I wasn’t there, Judge.”
“Your Honor, I’d like to offer for the record a copy of the Grand Jury transcript and the Motion to Dismiss filed by Attorneys Castenetti and Michaelson in Superior Court.” Bea handed those documents to Goldblatt. Then, looking at the letter the elegant Wayne Michaelson had already written to Fogarty, she decided to hand that also to the judge.
“As to the First Communion, Your Honor, when the assistant DA moved to punish Bill the other day for going to Chloe’s First Communion with his parents, his sister (who’s Chloe’s godmother), and his brother, the presiding judge chastised the ADA for her unreasonable request. The judge then told Attorney Fogarty, in view of the First Communion service being a very public ritual with an entire congregation present, he saw no need to act on the prosecution’s motion.”
Aguilar jumped in: “Chloe was afraid of Bill when she saw him in church.”
“Attorney Aguilar wasn’t there, Your Honor. He has no personal knowledge that Chloe fears her father. If Chloe is afraid of Bill, it’s because Denise has taught her to fear him.”
Aguilar cunningly acquiesced. He said, “Judge, Mrs. Abernathy’s fears have been fueled by ADA Fogarty wanting to limit Mr. Abernathy’s access to the DA’s star witness, Chloe.”
Bea nodded. Got to hand it to Aguilar. He gets an A for courage on that one.
And the Judge Tries
“I wouldn’t let any client of mine sign the Center’s ‘agreement.’” Goldblatt smiled wryly at Aguilar.
“I’ll try to get the Center to make an exception to its rules in this case.”
He did try. While Bea and Aguilar waited in Goldblatt’s chamber, he called the Center and followed up with a strong letter. But the Center refused to budge.
Then he wrote to Rhonda Cavanaugh, enclosing Bill’s payment and stating,
The primary objective of the parties is to grant unsupervised reasonable periods of visitation to Mr. Abernathy. Hopefully your efforts will result in the child having equal love, affection and trust for both parents.
All future communications with individual attorneys are to be done through me, but you can meet with them jointly without going through me. You can, as you see necessary, conduct interviews with Denise, Bill, and Chloe together or individually and with third parties at a time and place of your choosing.
In the interim, the attorneys are attempting to work out a plan for supervised visitation with the Center. If you have any objection to this, inform me immediately.
I am requesting a copy of your curriculum vitae for my records as well as periodic progress reports and recommendations. You are not to implement anything without me unless both Bill and Denise agree.
After a month had passed with no news from the Center, Bill researched and Bea submitted to Goldblatt a list of four alternate locations where supervised visits could take place: a parish outreach center, a guidance center, a parents’ and children’s service center, and a family service center. All were unacceptable to Aguilar and Denise.
Bill hadn’t seen Chloe in two months, and his father hadn’t seen her for over a year.
Bill was getting desperate.
Justice Is Expensive
Bea’s phone rang and she picked up. Larry Kupersmith said, “Another hurry-up-and-wait year.”
She laughed. “I gather our friend has kept you well informed.”
“He said Wayne Michaelson’s Motion to Dismiss was denied. Apparently, they had to wait two months to have it heard in court. See, I’m beginning to learn your language. He was really upset when after waiting, it took the judge only two seconds to decide it.”
“When that happens, you not only wonder whether they’ve read the brief, but why they denied it, whether there was any valid reason or just a predisposition against the defendant.”
“He said he paid $11,000 for Castenetti’s office to review some materials from you, write a motion and brief—whatever that is—and appear in court a few times.”
“Monstrous, isn’t it? What can I say? The costs in this business are huge. Associates, paralegals, secretaries, books, rent, technology—all of them high-priced, some inflated—just because it’s lawyers footing the bill.”
“Well, he said they tried, but it was expensive and he couldn’t afford them.”
“The poor go to jail. That’s the way the system is set up. Justice for all is a myth. Justice is expensive.”
“As he says, it’s scary.”
“Certainly is. No reasonable doubt on that one.”
“Michaelson said they could appeal. But Bill doesn’t know what to do: to appeal or go straight to trial or plea-bargain.”
“Yeah, he spoke to me about it,” Bea said.
“What are the odds if he goes to trial?”
“Larry, there’s not a lawyer in the business who’d give you odds. The entire process is too dicey. Which judge? That’s a biggy. Which newspapers are inflaming public opinion at time of trial? How much has the child been trained? And conviction is the norm.”
“Talking about newspapers. He said he had been following the Patrick Bresnahan stuff in the papers.”
“I haven’t been following it, I’ve been so busy. Clue me in.”
“Bresnahan was a child sex-abuser who was paroled on the say-so of Dr. DeSegonzac and then assaulted another child when he got out. Now, Bill’s worried that DeSegonzac might be discredited on the stand were he to testify in the criminal trial.”
“And?”
“What do you think?”
“Without the details, anything I’d say now would be totally speculative, valueless. Anyway, Castenetti and Michaelson can make that decision.”
“For what it’s worth, he’s concerned that he wasted $1500 for the exams.”
“I think it was my legal ethics professor who told us a client’s satisfaction can be plotted. She drew a bell curve on the board, pointed to the top of the curve, and said, in so many words, This is where you just won the trial. Get paid before this. If you don’t, forget about the rest. If you sue for the balance, you’ll be sued for malpractice because people don’t have long memories.
“Bottom line, she warned us the client’s gratefulness reaches the top of the curve when the crisis is the greatest. After the crisis, the client forgets what the professional did and starts to moan and groan what the services cost him. I’m not saying Bill fits on that curve, because he generally seems to be appreciative. All I’m saying is, his sentiments might reflect the curve.
“In this case, Bill was pro-DeSegonzac when Goldblatt wrote that Bill didn’t fit the profile of a child-molester and was a good man. That came out of DeSegonzac’s testimony. DeSegonzac might now be vulnerable now because of the Bresnahan situation, but there’s no reason Bill should regret having paid the $1500 for DeSegonzac’s services. Just take it for what it’s worth.”
When Larry made no comment, Bea thought he wanted to steer clear of the topic. That’s okay, she thought. It’s probably too close to home. He’s probably well aware of the Bell curve in his profession too, and he has to be careful what he says, consent to exchange information or not.
After a moment, Larry said, “His fear is that if this goes on, he’ll lose Kate and Chloe.”
“Look, Bill’s fears are appropriate. The worst-case scenario rather than the best-case has a higher likelihood of happening.”
“He said he believes Chloe simply isn’t ready for trial.”
“I believe that’s true.”
“What’s happening in the divorce case?”
“A female, Rhonda Cavanaugh, was selected to do the eval. Did Bill tell you that?”
“Yes, he did,” Larry said. “He said he had to sign a release for her—even though he didn’t like the wording—because he felt he had to keep something moving.”
“He did sign, but she still has to conduct the interviews. She’ll probably contact you too. Her act was on hold all this time because Denise had to pay her share.”
“He’s getting quite anxious about not having seen Chloe for three months or so, since the beginning of summer.”
“I know,” Bea said.
“He’s still talking to her on the phone and he’s begun writing her. He tells me she does her homework on the phone with him.”
“He’s been doing that for three years now,” Bea said.
“Apparently he called Denise to ask if he could see Chloe weekly. Denise said No. She’s unwilling to compromise. In the Spring, Denise told him outright that Chloe didn’t want to talk to him. He was sobbing when he told me. He said it was like a knife through the heart. But then on Father’s Day, Chloe made a card and gift for him at school. He believed Denise didn’t prompt her to do it, so he felt a lot better and bought her a Holy Cross hat and shirt.”
“You do manage to get the details from him,” Bea said. “I just avoid them. I simply can’t get bogged down in them.”
“He told me you called the director of Salem Woods Community.”
“That I did. So did Goldblatt. Tried to get them to make an exception. They refused him. I had Bill looking for alternate visitation centers, but Denise kept rejecting them.”
“And he’s angry about it.”
“He has reason. I just hope he can control it. What do you think, Larry? Can he?”
“That’s where Kate comes in. He’s talked marriage to her.”
“He’d be lost without her.”
Draconian Choice
By November, Bill’s criminal case and the visitation issue converged. Fogarty interfered with the civil case by writing Cavanaugh, who moved ahead slowly and dictatorially.
“Mr. Abernathy, your visits with Chloe must take place at the Center.” Cavanaugh told Bill on the phone. “Unless the Center gives me its permission, I can’t allow the visits at my office.”
Upset, Bill immediately called Bea. “Cavanaugh wants me to sign a form different from the one I’ve already signed.”
Bea, infuriated, had to act fast. Her first step had been an easy one. She’d alerted Goldblatt to Fogarty’s efforts to derail the “Cavanaugh process.” What would be her second step? Eye for an eye?
To derail the criminal case? How? Impossible. All she could do was write motions, handfuls of them. Her message to Judge Goldblatt read
Judge, the Center, Cavanaugh’s employer, is a private corporation, not an arm of any branch of government. It has absolutely no authority to interfere with any of William Abernathy’s rights.”
Nothing in criminal court gives the DA’s office power to impose conditions on Bill in the divorce court or to interfere with the thoughtful and reasoned approach we’ve embarked on in this case.
This most recent effort to interfere with the process is a tragedy. I no longer have any choice but to recommend a more aggressive approach to my client regarding violations of his rights. I’m always willing to listen to reason, but no one seems motivated to speak with reason either to my client or to me. I believe I must now pull the plug.
We must expose the nexus between DA O’Shaughnessy and his wife with the incorporation of the Center, the Center’s evolution from a private nonprofit with benign charitable purpose into a sub rosa rogue political entity.
Realizing that exposure was draconian, she wanted to speak directly to Goldblatt, so she added, Your Honor, may I phone you? I’d set up a conference call, of course, with Aguilar, too.
“Hello, Your Honor. I’m open to all reasonable suggestions regarding alternatives. My fear is that not only our expectations of success through Rhonda Cavanaugh’s efforts but also her efforts themselves have already been contaminated.”
“I’m listening,” Goldblatt said.
“I believe Judge Fessenden was also one of the incorporators of the Center. He’s always struck me as being reasonable and reasoned. Perhaps he can help.
Aguilar said, “Judge, Denise and Leavitt agree with Cavanaugh and Assistant DA Fogarty. They feel supervised visits at the Center would be in Chloe’s best interests. Also, Denise is not interested in traveling to accommodate Mr. Abernathy’s fear of signing the Center’s visitation agreement.”
Bea didn’t let that go without a response. “Your Honor, the danger is that even were Bill to sign the form under protest, whatever he’d do during visits at the Center would be communicated to the DA’s office as being a ‘violation of rules.’ The potential for Fogarty to twist something innocent into something sinister would be enormous.”
Bea couldn’t allow him to sign, even as Aguilar suggested, “under protest.” Those words mean nothing. In a result-oriented court, “under protest” would simply mean he signed it voluntarily, knowing full well what he was signing. Signing the so-called agreement was fraught with danger.
“Anyway, why does the Center need the signed agreement? All the visits have taken place without any such agreement being in place. Nothing happened that inspired any complaint. Why should they need it now except to do something malicious with it?”
Bea hoped Goldblatt could see through Aguilar’s bogus suggestion as fast as, if not faster than, she had.
“I’ll take this under reservation,” Goldblatt said.
In her next letter to the judge, Bea merely wrote more news:
Denise forwarded the letters from the Center and the DA’s office to Cavanaugh. We need clarification as to what information should or should not be transmitted to Cavanaugh and what caveats, if any, should be communicated to her.
My primary concern is that Denise Abernathy is attempting to manipulate the process by funneling potentially prejudicial “information” costumed in the guise of “truth”!
What should stop us from educating Cavanaugh with materials that explore the conditions under and by which false accusations of sexual abuse are fostered?
My sense is that before this process goes from the sublime to the ridiculous, some affirmative curative action must be taken.
Given that Bill still hadn’t seen Chloe and that Bea and Bill would be disappointed if the mediation process were to exacerbate the family’s problems, she made a request for another conference call.
Aguilar was more dramatic when they spoke with Goldblatt again. His claims were epic in imaginative assumptions and junk psychology. “Judge, Bea fears Cavanaugh will receive documents adversely affecting Bill.”
Bea tried to speak, but Aguilar overtalked her. “Judge, Ms. Archibald has become quite paranoid that truth about her client will surface. She wants to review and cull out records possibly detrimental to Bill’s case from those transmitted to Cavanaugh.
“Denise is not attempting to manipulate the process in any way.”
Bea found irony in Aguilar’s words.
In closing, Aguilar said, “Mr. Abernathy should sign the visitation agreement, under protest, and abide by the Center’s rules.”
Bea both fumed and laughed in silence. Her funny bone outweighed her anger, her own vulnerability. This wasn’t the time to act out and show her own demons. She could be disbarred were she to say something arguably unprofessional. As it was, her letter to Goldblatt was radical.
So she held back responding to Aguilar. Were she to, she believed, this exchange would never end. Plus Bea wasn’t manipulating a damn thing. She just didn’t want the DA or his alter ego, the Center, to interfere with the civil process. So, because Bill was facing a conviction for a heinous felony, she decided to see the Cavanaugh exercise through to the end. Going in front of a sitting family court judge to get a faster decision on the visitation probably would not be as productive as working with Goldblatt toward a reasoned visitation schedule.
Goldblatt both contacted all four visitation sites and phoned Cavanaugh. At a lobby conference, Aguilar wouldn’t agree to any of the visitation sites. The visitation remained suspended.
You Can Call Me Dick Fast
His card read Richard Fast, Esq., Investigative Attorney. He gave it to Bea as he made himself comfortable in the overstuffed white velour two-seater in her salon. Loveseat would be a misnomer.
Bea set tea cups and saucers and a cloth-lined basket of hot scones on the highly polished surface of the coffee table, the cross-section of a tree trunk and branch, in front of him. She then poured the tea and took hers to the white wing-back lounger, also overstuffed. It was her favorite for reading. Her accents or accessories were so brilliantly colored or dramatic, for years she’d had white furniture, no matter the style or size or fabric. The salon oozed eclectic: fun, decorative junk and mementoes salvaged from her life.
Bea took a sip of her chamomile and looked at his card.
He said, “You can call me Dick... Dick Fast,” then laughed.
Bea looked at him over the top of her granny glasses and saw a broad grin, as if he were waiting for her reaction.
Oh, shit, not another fast dick, she thought, paused, and laughed back. He didn’t seem to realize they weren’t laughing at the same joke.
“Yup, everyone calls me Dick Fast. I’m used to it. Only a few complaints.”
“Just so long as you do the job,” she said. She should have said, “No double entendre intended” because, of course, that’s exactly how he took it.
He laughed again.
Patience, Bea, it could have been rough growing up with a name like that. He’s overcompensating.
“Okay, let’s get down to business,” Bea said.
Dick Fast pulled out his notebook.
“The young lady—” She caught herself. “Well I’m assuming she’s a young lady. Her name is Carol Tracy. She’s what they call a rape-crisis counselor at Salem Woods Rape Crisis Center. I don’t know whether it’s a paid or a volunteer position. The Center’s on Main Street, on the corner opposite the chili parlor. Third floor. I’d go there myself and snoop, but my opposing counsel has an office on the second floor of that same building. I don’t want him spotting me.
“It’s one of those buildings with a huge atrium. Like the one in Cambridge Probate, but not as well lit. Any lights there haven’t held bulbs—or gas—for years. I didn’t notice whether there’s a skylight. If there is, it’s been painted or boarded over. At least, that’s how it seems. So be careful. The few times I’ve been there, I was worried I’d be accosted by some derelict jumping out of one of the nooks and crannies along the upper walkway. There is an old retrofitted freight elevator. It smells a bit better than the stairwell.”
Bea took another sip of tea. “Back to Tracy. Two years ago when I checked, her name was not on the Board’s list of licensed social workers. That’s why I want to find out her past. Who she is. Where she’s from. Age. Education. Experience. This is a child-sex-abuse, child-rape case. I’m looking for proof she’s not qualified to question a child.”
“Do you want it written up? That’s extra.”
“Nah. You don’t have to write it up. Just call it in. I can write it down as you tell me.” Bea chuckled.
“If you find me a storybook, you can write it up.”
Look for part 26 of 41 to post on Tuesday, September 16th