Chapter 72 Section 22

After several days of out-of-court debate, Judge Skinner finally concluded four similar questions to the two defendants. Although each question has only one sentence, it contains several clauses, clauses and commas, etc. Wait.For example the first question: Taking into account the evidence submitted to the court by both parties, do you believe that after August 27, 1968, the subsidiaries of the Beeches Group released trichlorethylene, tetrachlorethylene and/or 1 on the land it owned, 2. Trans-dichloroethylene, and these chemical pollutants polluted Well G and Well H before May 22, 1979? (Please answer each of the three chemical pollutants in the question.)

Because Jack Riller testified in court that he himself did not know until August 27, 1968, when the engineering team he invited himself drilled the ground and drilled the well, the groundwater level of the J.J. Riller Tannery was due to G , H II well pumped water and fell, Judge Skinner therefore asked the jury not to consider the behavior of the tannery before 1968, nor to consider the evidence submitted by the plaintiff before 1968, such as the state health department engineer A·C • Boulder's report of July 12, 1956, for "no guilt if you don't know".For W. R. Glass, this date was October 1, 1964, the date Shaft G was first commissioned.That is to say, neither company's contamination of its own site, and thus groundwater, before these dates, has been disregarded, since they did not, as Jane Hilleman alleged in his opening statement: "These Big companies, they know what they're doing, they know they're hurting other people, and yet they're doing it."

It is conceivable that in the face of such eight questions, it is difficult for the jury to make a verdict in a short period of time.A reporter later commented that these questions were "as if someone had translated them from English to Japanese, and then back to English." And Jane Hilleman even felt that the case he had spent nearly three years preparing with painstaking efforts and ruined his fortune had now been shattered and beyond recognition by a few court veterans who played with the law in their hands.First, the two stages divided by Judge Skinner, then a series of "protests" by Jero Fischer in court, and now these inexplicable questions...God knows what will happen next?

More importantly, the jurors have not seen the whole of the case until now, without seeing the real plaintiffs or victims, what kind of verdict can they make? For the first time in her life, Jane felt powerless and helpless.Jane became less confident. At 8:30 a.m. on the last Saturday in July, Jane Hilleman was awakened by the ringing of the phone.The other party claimed to be a policeman, saying that Jane had been in arrears with the bank loan of the Porsche sports car for several months, and unless he could immediately pay off the $9,203 owed, the policeman would come to collect the car within half an hour.

Only then did Jane remember that Jamon Gordon had told him about this a few months ago.He hurriedly called James Meng, but no one answered. The policeman rang the doorbell just in time.Jane took him to the garage, handed him the car keys, and stood aside consciously.The police expertly took out a screwdriver to unscrew the license plate, and shook out a green plastic garbage bag to pack Jane's personal belongings.In the back seat of the Porsche, the policeman saw a stack of legal papers with "Anne Anderson et al. v. W. R. Glass & Co. et al.The policeman is a man of few words. Experience tells him that not many people will show enthusiasm for him when performing this kind of official duties, but he still cannot restrain his curiosity: "Are you a lawyer?"

Jane nodded. "This is your case?" Jane nodded again. The police said he had seen Ms. Anderson on the CBS television talk show "60 Minutes."The policeman handed the garbage bag to Jane and asked him to sign a form, and then he stuffed his big man into the driver's seat with great difficulty, turned on the ignition, and shifted gears.The policeman looked up at Jian En and shook his head: "It's a tricky case, isn't it?" Jane smiled. "Then, good luck to you." The Porsche turned the corner and disappeared.Jane said to herself: Easy come, easy go.

Two days later word came out that after two weeks of deliberation the jury had finally reached its verdict. When Jane Hilleman rushed to the court, many reporters had already arrived before him.Judge Skinner unfolded a note from the presiding juror, looked at it for a while, and then announced very solemnly that all the jurors had answered the first question of the Beeches Group in the negative, so, The Chase Group won the first phase of the case and does not have to participate in the second phase of the trial.According to the design of four questions, if the jury's answer to the first question is no, then there is no need to consider the following three questions.

Jero Fisher immediately burst into a smile, while Jane buried her face deeply in her palm. "As to W. R. Glass, the jury answered 'yes' to trichlorethylene in the first question..." Judge Skinner read through all the answers in turn, and concluded, "So, to W. R. The trial of the Glass company will continue.” After discussing with several lawyers, the judge tentatively set the date for the second phase of the trial on September 15, and asked the lawyers to come to the court to see him on September 5. Jane still looked sad.In the past week, he has suddenly aged 10 years, and his hair has also become gray.Judge Skinner tried to comfort him as they parted.He patted Jane on the shoulder and said a proverb: "Half a bag of bread is better than nothing, isn't it?"

Jane nodded reluctantly: "Yes." But he thought in his heart that he didn't even have half a bag of bread.For the fourth question of W. R. Glass & Co.: Taking into account the evidence submitted to the court by both parties, do you believe that when (again, please give the specific year and month) the pollution mentioned in the third question began due to the company's irresponsibility and knowingly committed crimes? ?