“Mr. Trofino,” Judge Gold says, “please limit your responses to your beliefs before your wife’s murder. What you concluded after is not relevant.” He turns to the jury. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m sustaining that objection because there’s been no evidence entered that Ms. Goodwin was planning to leave her job. Mr. Trofino’s testimony is only that he was told that by his wife. I know it’s a bit confusing, but this testimony is only relevant to the extent it addresses what Mr. Trofino was thinking at the time because the defense has put his mental state into issue, claiming that he knew of the affair and therefore had motive to commit the crime for which Ms. Goodwin stands accused. But Mr. Trofino’s speculation now, after evaluating the evidence, about what it all means is no more relevant to Ms. Goodwin’s guilt or innocence than yours or mine. And because we can’t ask Ms. Wright if she told her husband the truth, it cannot be considered by you as the truth. Please proceed, Ms. Broden.”

I quickly consider whether the jury realizes that the only reason Lauren would have told her husband that Dana was leaving Special Vics was because they had broken up. It seems obvious to me, but juries can be dense about anything not explicitly laid out. I decide to weather some judicial ire to drive this point home.

“Thank you, Your Honor,” I say. “Mr. Trofino, do you now believe that your wife was saying this to you because her relationship with Ms. Goodwin had ended?”

Burrows is back on his feet. “Your Honor, you just cautioned that Mr. Trofino’s state of mind after the murder is of no relevance.”

“Sustained,” Judge Gold says, an edge to his voice. He knows I did that deliberately. “Move on, Ms. Broden.”

My last area of inquiry is to recount the last hours of Lauren’s life. I begin with Richard’s visit to Lauren’s office.

“What caused you to visit Lauren that evening?”

“We had dinner plans—with you, Ms. Broden, and your boyfriend. It was Lauren’s idea that we arrive together at the restaurant, so I met her at her office.”

“Did you see Dana Goodwin on that visit?”