‘What do you think you’re doing, officer?’ she asked.
‘I was just asking Mrs Allard if she was all right, as she looked very upset.’
‘Well, you should not be speaking to the defendant’s wife – it is totally inappropriate. Now please return to the officers’ waiting room and tell DC Edwards he has been called to give evidence.’
Jane felt distressed that she had made such a stupid error. She had been genuinely concerned about Marie Allard, but resigned herself that what was done was done and there was nothing untoward in her approach. As she entered the waiting room she told DC Edwards that he’d been called. Jane looked at him.
‘Brian, there’s something you need to know.’
‘What? What’s happened? Tell me quickly, before I go in there.’
‘I just got told off for speaking with Marie Allard… she was in an awful state.’
‘You what? How could you be so stupid? She might get called by the defence as a witness.’
‘I don’t think so. She was sitting in court listening to Moran give his evidence so she can’t be a witness.’
‘Of course she can – the magistrate may have allowed her to sit in as she could be giving evidence on her husband’s character.’
‘But I thought-’
‘Well, you thought wrong. For Christ’s sake, what did you say to her?’ Edwards began to ask, as the waiting room door opened and the usher stood there with a frown.
‘I hope you two are not discussing the case, especially not Officer Tennison’s inappropriate conversation with Mrs Allard?’
‘No,’ Edwards replied, as he sheepishly left the room.
Jane spent the next half-hour worrying about what she may now be asked and what to say when she was called. A part of her considered that maybe it would be some form of justice if her actions caused the rape case against Allard to be thrown out, but it could also be the end of any ambitions she had of ever joining the CID. It was over half an hour later before the usher came and collected Jane. As she walked into the court she could see Peter Allard looking forlorn in the dock, as did his wife who was now sitting in the public area. DI Moran and DC Edwards were seated in the corner of the room. Edwards looked nervous and avoided eye contact with Jane, whereas Moran had a smug grin on his face as if the case was going his way. As Jane entered the witness box the usher handed her a Bible and a card with the oath written on it. Jane raised the Bible in her right hand, looked over at Moran and read the oath.
‘I swear by Almighty God that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Jane Tennison WPC 517 attached to Hackney Police Station.’
Allard’s barrister stood up. ‘I am Anthony Nichols QC and represent Mr Allard. May I say, officer, you read the oath with some conviction.’
‘Thank you, sir,’ Jane replied, glad that he had appreciated it in the manner she intended.
‘May I ask, though, why you directed it towards DI Moran and not the magistrate as is normal practice when an officer takes the oath?’
Realizing her mistake Jane looked at the magistrate. ‘Sorry, sir, it was remiss of me.’
The magistrate smiled. ‘That’s all right, officer. Please continue, Mr Nichols.’
‘Well, let’s hope it was a faux pas, officer, as opposed to an inference towards the truthfulness of evidence that we have heard from DI Moran today.’
Nichols was in his late forties, with fading red hair carefully combed over to hide its thinning. He wore a pinstripe suit and blue cotton shirt with a white collar.
‘My client wishes to express his deep regret about the indecent assault, not only on you but the other women, and that cutting your lip with his elbow during the arrest had not in any way been deliberate. However, he pleads guilty to that offence as, although it had been reckless behaviour, it nevertheless constituted an assault on a police officer.’
Jane said nothing in reply to the barrister’s remarks. Nichols flicked over a page in his notes, which were laid out on the table in front of him.
‘My only question to you about the arrest of Mr Allard is whether or not at any time he had possession of a knife?’
‘He said he’d got a knife.’
‘Yes, but did you see one, officer?’
‘Sorry, no… not until I was at the station.’
‘Did you physically search him at the station?’
‘No, DI Moran did.’
‘And you saw him find the flick knife on Mr Allard at this point?’
‘No, I was in the police surgeon’s room treating my cut lip.’
‘Where was DC Edwards at this time?’
‘I assume he was in the charge room with DI Moran.’
‘Well, you assume wrong. According to the evidence he just gave he was in fact looking for the duty sergeant to come and book the prisoner in.’
‘I wasn’t aware of that.’
‘Were you aware that DI Moran searched Mr Allard at the time of his arrest and allegedly found the flick knife in his possession?’
‘No, I only knew when DI Moran produced the knife from his own pocket in the charge room that he said he found it on the defendant.’
Nichols was about to continue when the magistrate interrupted.
‘Is there any point in pursuing this line of questioning? DC Edwards has told you he saw DI Moran search the defendant at the scene and put something in his own pocket, but being dark he could not say what it was. It’s reasonable to assume it was the flick knife. DI Moran has stated that, because WPC Tennison was in such a distressed state having just been savagely attacked by your client, he decided it was best not to mention, or show her, the knife, until they had returned to the station.’
‘It is relevant, sir, because I believe that DI Moran left the charge room on the pretext of needing the toilet so he could get the flick knife to plant on Mr Allard in his first step towards falsely implicating him in the rape.’
‘Well, DC Edwards has said that he never saw DI Moran leave the charge room, and although he went to get the custody sergeant he was certain the DI would never leave a prisoner alone, particularly for such serious offences.’
‘Well, my client is adamant that DI Moran left the room briefly and I would argue that DC Edwards is lying.’
The magistrate frowned.
‘And the officers argue that your client is lying, Mr Nichols, but it is a matter for me to decide who is telling the truth or not. So please move on with your questioning of WPC Tennison.’
Jane couldn’t believe what she had just heard and now understood why Edwards had avoided eye contact with her, and Moran had looked so smug when she entered the courtroom. She was nervously anticipating Mr Nichols asking if she thought Edwards was lying and Moran had planted the knife but was surprised when, as advised by the magistrate, he changed his line of questioning.
Nichols flicked over to another page of his notes and spoke in a begrudging tone.
‘Moving on as requested. Now, WPC Tennison, you were present during two interviews that DI Moran conducted with Mr Allard?’
‘Yes.’
‘And would you accept that in the first interview he lied in essence because he was worried about what his wife would think of him?’
‘Yes, and I think that was why he gave us false details about who he really was.’
‘And in the second interview he admitted his crimes. Apart from the rape, that is?’
‘Yes, that is correct.’
‘And you contemporaneously recorded the interviews on the correct forms.’
‘Yes, I did.’
‘Did you ask Mr Allard to read and sign the interview notes?’
‘After the first interview DI Moran asked him to and he did, but after the second interview I didn’t personally because-’
‘A confession to a number of indecent assaults and a denial to a violent rape, yet you didn’t follow one of the basic principles of the Judges’ Rules concerning the interrogation of a suspect?’