THE SPECTATORS' COLLECTIVE reaction rose to a terrifying crescendo, prompting the presiding judge to call for order.463Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrI27Qrp8t
"And after being confronted with this evidence," the presiding judge asked Picard, "did the accused continue to deny having been in that Bentley vehicle?"
"They did," said Picard. "Each of them continued to deny it."
Mischa's lawyer had prevailed upon her to admit being in the automobile. He'd tried to shape her story so that she maintained her innocence but admitted to that one fact. "Why fight it?" he'd said to her over and over. "If you deny something so obvious, you lose your credibility and you lose any goodwill you have with the court."
Nicole Richie shook her head, her jaw clenched and her eyes cast upward to the ceiling. She was a businesswoman, a competitor, but in this case she was flailing at shadows. Mischa's attorney was right: none of the women had a credible explanation for this DNA evidence.
The presiding judge gestured in the direction of the glass case that was positioned to the right of Major Picard, where the physical evidence was held. The courtroom deputy removed the murder weapon from the case and handed it to Picard. It was a subcompact handgun with a black grip, a Beretta Px4 Storm.
"The weapon was recovered aboard the Inner Peace yacht owned by Mr. Mascarenas," Picard explained.
"Please explain where, within the yacht, the weapon was found."
"Mr. President, the weapon was recovered within this black purse."
The presiding judge referenced another exhibit. The greffier removed is black purse from the glass evidence case and handed it to Picard.
"The purse belonged to the accused, Mischa Barton."
"Did the accused Ms. Barton admit this much at least?"
Someone in the gallery snickered at the judge's sarcasm.
"She did, Mr. President. She admitted that the purse was hers."
"And the weapon?"
"She denied the weapon belonged to her."
"Did the accused Ms. Barton offer an explanation as to why the weapon was in her purse?"
"No, Mr. President. She did not."
Picard continued to recount, consistent with the dossier, how the weapon was processed and analyzed for fingerprints, and how the four actresses were fingerprinted.
"Please tell us the results of the fingerprint analysis."
Major Picard cleared his throat. If he was doing it for added drama, he needn't have bothered; the courtroom was hanging on his every word.
"A fingerprint matched to the right index finger of the accused, Nicole Richie, was found on the barrel of the weapon," said Picard. "A fingerprint matching the left thumb of the accused, Mischa Barton, was found on the grip."
"And the third one, Major?"
"A fingerprint on the trigger of the weapon was a match for the right middle finger of the accused, Robyn Rihanna Fenty," the major said.463Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8PSBf6ztUp
The presiding judge nodded solemnly, taking in this information with a sense of gravity. He already knew this information, of course, and there had been rumors in the media for weeks, but this was the first time it was publicly acknowledged: fingerprints belonging to Nicole Richie, Rihanna, and Mischa were found on the murder weapon.463Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZVLB6wYWg
Rihanna, sitting next to Mischa, stared forward into the bulletproof glass, numb from the whole ordeal, unable to muster any emotion, even upon hearing the most damning evidence against her. Nicole Richie was tearing up again, surprising Mischa by her emotional vulnerability----she was in many ways the toughest of the four women.463Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPp0dyIQqRU
Mischa wasn't having a great time herself. Now, in addition to the DNA evidence placing her inside the vehicle where the dead bodies were found, it was revealed that the murder weapon had her fingerprints on it and was found in her purse.463Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUD8wM9VvOo
And then there was Lindsay, passive, staring forlornly up at the ceiling, listening to the evidence.463Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFeYztjF4k0
Evidence that, thus far, had miraculously avoided implicating her in any way.463Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoI3Ko9QUuV
