Chapter 38 Big Brother #2
“Did you know who Coach Bianchini was at the time of receiving this message?”
“Yes, of course. Everyone knows Coach Bianchini.”
“Did you send him any information?”
“I did. I sent him a link to our hockey cheer tryout packet and application.”
“So, this packet and application are readily available on the internet?”
“Correct.”
The prosecutor crossed her arms. “And easy to find?”
“Relatively easy if you know how to navigate the website.”
“Ms. Burch.” The prosecutor’s tone sharpened. “Explain to me about a call that you received one week later.”
Melanie sat up straight. “Yes. I received a call from a representative at Achilles Incorporated.”
“And what did this representative say to you?”
Melanie scooted closer to the microphone. “He understood how little funding there is for college cheer teams. He said they would be happy to make a financial pledge to my hockey cheer squad as long as some particular people made the team.”
Suddenly, my ears became hypersensitive. Black spots appeared in my vision.
“Can you please tell us who those people were?”
“Well, I shouldn’t say ‘people’ in the plural. It was really one person.”
“Who?”
“Coach Bianchini’s daughter.”
This was craziness. Lunacy. I had never ever wanted to become a cheerleader, let alone try out for the team.
“Did you receive any of this money from Achilles Incorporated?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I assume because the investigation broke before they could send any money.”
Crap. That sounded terrible. It sounded like all my dad did was direct bribes at people. I eyed Gray, but he was just sitting there, observing.
He needed to fix this.
I grabbed my bag and fished out a pen and a scrap of paper. I wrote on it as quickly as I could.
“Thank you, Ms. Burch. I have nothing more.” The prosecutor returned to her chair.
Gray stood and turned toward us while he buttoned his jacket. I leaned forward and handed him my note.
He narrowed his eyes but took it and read it. He looked back at me once before stepping out from behind the table to move to the podium.
“Ms. Burch, you said that this message came to you in an inquiry. What does that mean?”
“It means that Coach Bianchini was on our cheer home page and filled out a form that gets sent to my inbox.”
“So, this message did not come from, say, his personal or university email?”
“No.”
“How can you verify that Mr. Bianchini submitted the message?”
“Because he signed his name to it.”
“But couldn’t someone else have sent the message and put his name on it?”
“I suppose, but I don’t know why they would.”
Gray paused, looking straight at the jury and letting her words sink in.
“Okay,” he continued. “You also said that you sent Mr. Bianchini a link after you received the message. How did you do that?”
“I emailed him.”
“So you looked up his email address and emailed him the link?”
“Correct.”
“Did he ever email you back?”
“No, I don’t believe so.”
Gray paused again.
“Ms. Burch, when do you make this tryout packet and application available to the public?” he asked.
“February.” A piercing sound from the microphone filled the room. Her lips had come too close, and she leaned back. “In most cases, February for the following season.”
“And when are the applications due?”
“In March.”
“And when do the tryouts take place?”
“April.”
“So, Ms. Burch, let me get the course of events straight. A message was sent to you in February that we can’t verify was actually from Mr. Bianchini.
In response, you sent Mr. Bianchini a link to the publicly available tryout packet and application with no confirmation of receipt.
One week later, Achilles Incorporated offered you financial support if Coach Bianchini’s daughter was placed on the squad. ”
“Correct.”
“Did Coach Bianchini’s daughter ever turn in an application?”
The woman sat silently in her chair, staring at Gray but not flinching. “I don’t know.”
“Did Coach Bianchini’s daughter ever come to tryouts?”
“I don’t believe so.”
“Have you ever spoken to Coach Bianchini’s daughter?”
“No.”
“Ms. Burch, do you know the date that the defendant was charged with his alleged crimes?”
“No.”
“Since you haven’t had the benefit of watching the entirety of this trial, I will tell you. It was May twenty-third. My client, Coach Bianchini, was relieved of his coaching duties two days later, on May twenty-fifth. So, my question to you is, do February and March come before May?”
“Objection,” the prosecutor said. “Harassing the witness.”
“Overruled.” The judge raised her head. “The witness is capable of answering the question.”
Gray repeated himself. “Ms. Burch, do February and March come before May?”
“Yes, they do.”
“So, we can safely assume that the reason Achilles never sent you any money is not because an investigation broke before they could send you the money?”
“Yes, that is probably true.”
“In fact, was there ever any indication from Coach Bianchini’s daughter that she wanted to be part of your hockey cheer squad?”
Melanie paused for a while, staring into space. “No.”
“And if she didn’t want to be part of a hockey cheer squad, there’s no reason Mr. Bianchini would need to induce you to ensure that she was?”
“I suppose that makes sense.”
“That’s all I have, Your Honor. Thank you.”
I stared at Gray, understanding, but then again not totally understanding, what had just happened or what impact, if any, it’d had.
Gray winked at me before he sat.
At least he seemed to think something had just gone right.