The jury foreman stood. “We have, Your Honor.” He handed a single sheet of paper to the bailiff, who then took it to the judge.
The room was quiet as the judge looked over the paper. There was a slight nod as he refolded the paper and reached out to hand it back to the bailiff.
Two muffled shots rang out and a woman screamed at the back of the courtroom. Both the bailiff and the only other deputy fell to the floor as two men jumped into the center aisle and bounded toward the front of the courtroom. The leading man suddenly tripped and fell to the floor as a leg was thrust out from the crowded bench. He hit the floor with a thud, his gun clattering away toward the front of the room.
The second man saw what happened and began to turn toward the opposite rows when he, too, suddenly felt his legs shift from under him. He held onto his gun, which went off, leaving a hole in the courtroom wall. Rapidly he felt arms grab him in a vice — like grip. Master Sergeant Dale Ricks began wrestling with the man, keeping the gun hand pointed safely away from the others in the room. The man was strong, but Ricks was a very well trained soldier and he was not about to be bested by some extremist. The man tried swinging his arm down and with all the strength he had, squeezed off a round that entered Ricks’ right shoe. With a grin on his face, the man was somewhat surprised when Ricks placed both hands on his arm, slammed it into the side of a bench and then calmly broke his forearm. With a scream, the man crumpled to the ground, holding onto his now misshapen arm. Ricks then calmly shoved the man’s head into the side of the wooden bench, knocking him senseless.
At the same time, the other assailant, stunned by his fall, suddenly found someone sitting on his back. Mayor Patricia Crowell-Hammond had her knees on either side of the man, sitting firmly half way up his back. The man began flailing his arms trying to get loose and kicking wildly with his feet. “Better calm down. You don’t want me to get angry,” she said as she reached over the man’s head, placed her index and middle fingers firmly up his nostrils and began to pull. Now the man’s hands began trying to grab her wrists, but she pulled her fingers tighter and jerked his head back almost to the small of his back.
“Roger!” shouted Patricia as she saw Parente grab the ball point pen used by his legal counsel, and stab him in the chest with it. Parente turned quickly to help his allies, and became entangled in the extra chairs at the defense table. An arm closed around his neck from behind and Admiral Roger Hammond began to squeeze. “You know, you really don’t want to give me an excuse to break your neck,” Hammond said quietly into Parente’s ear. The harder he fought, the tighter Hammond squeezed until Ricks walked up in front of Parente.
“I warned you I would be around,” he said with a death-like stare. Then he punched Parente solidly in the stomach, knocking the wind from the man and dropping him like a stone.
“He has a knife!” someone shouted. Both Ricks and Hammond turned to see the assailant on the floor swing his arm around. There was a ceramic knife in his clinched hand. Before he could move his arm into position, Patricia Hammond gave a mighty heave. Her fingernails pierced the man’s skin and she peeled his nose back like a banana. There was a scream in the room. This time, it was the assailant. The knife clattered to the floor and he grasped at his now bleeding face.
“Better get some paper towels. He’s going to make a mess,” she said, glancing down at her bloody hand and then wiping it on the man’s shirt. She leaned over to the man, sobbing under her. “I warned you,” she said. Then looking around, she exclaimed, “Will somebody get some help in here? He’s very uncomfortable.”
It had only take about thirty seconds in all, but three men lay on the floor with two men and a woman standing over them. When the deputies came crashing into the room they weren’t sure what had happened, but the judge banged his gavel and very quickly gave the orders on whom to seize. Ricks raised his hand.
“Your Honor, these guys couldn’t have been working alone. I bet there is someone lese waiting outside with a car. You want to get them too?” he asked with a sly grin.
The judge’s face spread into a wide smile. “I most certainly do.”
“Well, I think I can get this young man to tell us their plans,” Patricia said as she reached into her purse and took out a pencil. She also removed one of her shoes. “I always wondered if it was like the cartoons and something could go all the way through,” she said leaning down toward the man. He immediately began telling them everything they wanted to know.
Five minutes later the outside door to the judge’s entrance sprang open and three men ran outside. Two were dressed as the assailants. In between was Parente, his orange jumpsuit draped in a towel. He was having a hard time keeping up, since his hands and feet were manacled. A yellow painted taxi suddenly sprang down the side of the street and screeched to a halt in front of the men. The door was flung open and the three men jumped inside. As soon as the men were in, the driver slammed his foot down on the accelerator heading toward the main road.
Suddenly the road was blocked by nearly a dozen patrol cars. The driver spun the wheel slinging the car around so he could exit down the other side, but he was blocked in. This became even more evident when he felt the barrel of a pistol pressed against the back of his neck.
“I think you need to stop now,” said an unfamiliar voice behind him. Glancing in the rearview mirror, the driver saw two unfamiliar men, with Parente between them looking angry and disgusted. One of the men spoke again. “Just pull to the side. You are now in the custody of the Texas Rangers. Partner, you just screwed up big time,” he said with a grin.
Fifteen minutes later, Parente was led back into the courtroom. Everyone was still there, but his legal counsel had been changed. Then the judge entered the chamber and everyone took their seats.
“We will resume to sentencing phase of this proceeding. Fortunately, the jury had already presented me with its findings and they cannot be changed. In this case, the jury has asked for the death penalty. Therefore, I must ask two questions of the jury before handing down the sentence. Those answers have already been given to me, but I must ask the foreman to provide the answers orally. The first question is whether there exists a probability the defendant would commit criminal acts of violence that would constitute a "continuing threat to society". Did you find this to be so?”
The foreman, standing at his seat, nodded, “Yes, Your Honor.”
“The second question is whether, taking into consideration the circumstances of the offense, the defendant's character and background, and the personal moral culpability of the defendant, there exists sufficient mitigating circumstances to warrant a sentence of life imprisonment rather than a death sentence?”
The foreman shook his head, “No, Your Honor.”
The judge looked at the other jurors. “So say you all?”
They all nodded.
The judge nodded solemnly. “Very well. I thank the jury. It has been a very difficult and tedious trial, and your perseverance is appreciated.” He then turned to face the accused. Parente’s new lawyer had Parente to stand.
“Mr. Parente, you have been found guilty of capital murder, conspiracy to commit murder, kidnapping and attempted murder of thirteen others. Upon the deliberation of a jury, and their recommendation, I hereby sentence you to death by lethal injection. You are to be turned over to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Your case will be automatically appealed to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals where it will be reviewed. I am ordering that you be placed in solitary confinement until such time as prosecutors can try you for the acts of terrorism you and your co-conspirators performed in this very courtroom. You will also be made available to the United States Department of Justice for any trials which their prosecutors may wish to bring, however, I am ordering that you never be transported, for any reason from the Great State of Texas. Any further trials and proceedings must take place within this state. Is there any other business for this court?” he asked.