Chapter 24 Chapter 4 Virtue as Evidence

The order for the arrest of Joam da Costa, Joam Gallard, was issued by the judge acting for Ribeiro, who will serve as chief judge of the province of Amazonas until he is replaced. The deputy judge is called Vicente Jarrigates.He was short in stature and brusque, and forty years in the law had done nothing to soften him to criminals.He had tried many such cases, tried and sentenced many outlaws, and it seemed to him that no accused, whoever he might be, could be innocent.Of course, he will not judge against his conscience, but his conscience is wrapped in a thick armor and will not be easily cut by accidents in the trial or defense testimony.Like many criminal judges, he often expressed his displeasure with the leniency of the jury, and when the accused was brought before him after the investigative questioning, the initial trial, he considered all the speculations to prove the guilt of the accused tenfold.

However, this Jerry Gates is by no means a villain.He was nervous, restless, chattering, shrewd, perceptive, and very peculiar in appearance: a huge head on a short frame, disheveled hair that might have looked better in an old fashioned wig, eyes He is sharp and can penetrate people like a screw. He has a high nose. If the nose can move, he will definitely dance. The two protruding ears are even sharper than hearing aids. A pianist is practicing silently. His upper body is too long and his legs are a little short. When he sits majestically on the judge's bench, his feet will keep closing and separating for a while.

In his private life, Judge Jarry Gates is a ruthless bachelor who never neglects his diet, loves whiskey, is proficient in chess, and is especially good at jigsaw puzzles, riddles, word puzzles, rebuses, reverse anagrams, monograms, and Various other word games, like some European judges, he likes guessing as his main pastime, both as a hobby and as a professional habit, and the rest of the time he spends reading criminal law books without letting go. It can be seen that this is a different man, and one can also see what a loss Judge Ribeiro's death is to Joam D'Acosta, since his case will now be handled by this stern judge. The judge is in charge.

In this case, Jarry Gates had a simple task.He didn't have to investigate, he didn't have to pre-trial, he didn't have to listen to lawyers, he didn't have to ask for a jury verdict, he didn't have to invoke the provisions of the penal code, he didn't even have to pronounce a sentence.For the unfortunate owner of the Iquitos hacienda, these formalities were unnecessary.As early as 23 years ago, Joam Dacosta was arrested, tried, and sentenced for participating in the Tijuca robbery. The sentence of that year is still valid, and it is impossible to ask for any reduction of sentence. It is also impossible to appeal and ask for amnesty.In short, all that needs to be done now is to confirm his identity and wait for the execution order to be executed in Rio de Janeiro.

But Joam D'Acosta would undoubtedly have proclaimed his innocence, and the sentence was unjust.The judge must hear his plea, whatever his opinion on it.The question is what evidence the inmate will present in support of his claim.In the past, he failed to present evidence in court, can he present it now? It was this that the interrogation focused on. It must be admitted, however, that this is a curiously rare case: a lucky fugitive, living in safety abroad, willingly surrenders everything and surrenders himself to a judiciary whose past experience has made him fearful of such institutions Therefore, even judges who have long been accustomed to various accidents in judicial trials have become interested in this case.Is it tired of life of brazen stupidity, or is it a whim of conscience that makes Tijuca's prisoners demand justice at all costs?Admittedly, the problem is weird.

The day after the arrest of Joam D'Acosta, Judge Jari Gates came to the prison where the prisoners were held in the Rue Sainte-Zonne. The prison, formerly a monastery of the Mission, was situated on the banks of one of the main rivers in the city.This building is not commensurate with the later new use. In the past, a group of people who were willing to be isolated from the world lived here, but now they are some prisoners who can't help themselves.Joam D'Acosta's room was nothing like the bleak cells of modern correctional prisoners.Once upon a time, this was the monk's room, with one window and no shutters.There was a railing on the window, an open space outside the window, a stool in one corner, a broken bed in the other corner, a few rough utensils, and nothing else.

From this room, at around 11:00 am on August 25, Joam Dacosta was taken to the interrogation room (formerly, it was the common hall of the monastery). Judge Jarry Gates sat in a high-backed chair at the edge of his desk, with his back to the window, so that his face was in the dark and the defendant's face was in the light.The clerk was sitting at the other end of the table, with a pen in his ear, and with the indifference of a judicial official, he was about to record the content of the interrogation. Joam D'Acosta was led into the house, and the judge motioned for the guard who had brought him to leave.

Judge Jarry Gates looked at the defendant for a long time.Joam bowed to him in a respectful manner, without condescension or condescension, and he waited in silence for questions. "What's your name?" Judge Jarry Gates asked. "Joam D'Acosta." "your age?" "Fifty-two." "What is your address?" "Peru, Iquitos village." "What's your last name?" "Galal, that's my mother's last name." "Why did you use that name?" "Because for twenty-three years, I have been trying to avoid the pursuit of the Brazilian police."

The answer was clear, and it was evident that Joam D'Acosta was determined to confess, both past and present, in a way that Judge Jarry Gates was not used to, and his nose was straighter than usual. "Why," he continued, "are you being pursued by the Brazilian judicial authorities?" "Because in 1826 I was sentenced to death for the Tijuca Diamond Heist." "Then you admit that you are Joam D'Acosta?" "I am Joam D'Acosta." He answered these questions very calmly and briefly.So Judge Jarry Gates's little hidden eyes seemed to say, "This case is going well!"

But now comes the clichéd question, to which all the defendants have the same answer, which is to claim their innocence. Judge Jarry Gates' hand began to tap on the table lightly, making a slight trill. "Joam D'Acosta," he asked, "what are you doing in Iquitos?" "I am the owner of the manor, and I manage a very large farm." "Is it prosperous?" "Extremely prosperous." "When did you leave the manor?" "About nine weeks ago." "why?" "For this, sir," said Joam D'Acosta, "I have an excuse. But in reality I have an object of my own."

"What excuse?" "Shipping a load of driftwood and various Amazon natives to Pala." "Ah!" Judge Jarry Gates asked, "and what was your real motive for leaving?" As he asked the question, he thought to himself: "Finally back to the old road of denying crimes and lying!" "The real motive," said Joam D'Acosta firmly, "is my determination to surrender myself to the judiciary of my country." "Surrender!" cried the Judge, jumping up from his chair. "Surrender...in person?" "yes!" "why?" "Because I'm tired of this incognito life of lies; tired of not being able to give my wife and children what they deserve; and finally, sir, because..." "Because of what?..." "Because I'm innocent!" "I expected you to say that!" Judge Jarry Gates thought to himself. Tapping his fingers on the table more vigorously, he nodded to Joam D'Acosta with a clear meaning: "Keep on! Tell your story! I know what it's about, but I don't want to stop it." You do your best!" Joam D'Acosta was well aware of the judge's intentions in this small encouragement, but he did not wish to delve into it.He narrated all his experiences, concisely and calmly, without missing any circumstances before and after the trial.He neither particularly emphasized that he led a respectable and respectable life after his escape; nor that he took his duties seriously as head of the family, husband and father.He only emphasized one thing—that no one forced him to come to Manao to demand a review of the case and restore his reputation. Judge Jarry Gates, always prejudiced against the defendant, did not interrupt him.He just kept opening and closing his eyes, as if he had heard the same story ninety-nine times; bump. "Have you finished?" he asked. "Yes, sir." "You insist that you left Iquitos to come here in order to have your case reopened?" "I have nothing else to ask for." "Who can prove it? Who can prove that if no one informs and is arrested, you will voluntarily surrender?" "There is at least one document, sir, which is not in my possession, but whose authenticity cannot be doubted." "what document?" "My letter to your predecessor, Judge Ribeiro, in which I notified him of the date of my arrival." "Ah! You wrote a letter? . . . " "Yes, this letter should have been delivered here, and it will be delivered to you shortly!" "Really?" said Judge Jarry Gates incredulously. "You wrote to Judge Ribeiro? . . . " "Before becoming chief judge," said Joam D'Acosta, "Judge Ribeiro was a lawyer for Villa Rica. He acted for me in the Tijuca case. He firmly believed that I am innocent. He tried his best to save me. Twenty years later, he became the chief judge of Manao, and I told him who I am, where I live, and what I plan to do. His confidence in me is as strong as ever. At his suggestion, I left the estate and came here to seek justice myself. But he died suddenly, and I may have no hope, if Judge Jarry Gates does not treat me like Judge Ribeiro!" The judge almost jumped up uncharacteristically when he was called by first and last name to his face, but he finally managed to control himself and just murmured: "Too much, really too much!" Obviously, doubts arose in the judge's heart, but he did not show any surprise. Just then, a guard entered the house and handed a letter to the judge. He tore open the seal and took out a letter from the envelope.He opened the letter, read it, frowned, and said: "Joam D'Acosta, I do not want to conceal from you that this is the letter you have just mentioned to Judge Ribeiro; it was forwarded to me. Therefore, there is no reason to suspect that you What was said at one point." "Not only that," said Joam D'Acosta, "everything I have just told you cannot be doubted." "Ah! Joam D'Acosta," said Judge Jarry Gates passionately, "you claim your innocence; but all the defendants say so! In the last analysis, you only raise some moral Evidence! Do you have physical evidence now?" "Perhaps, sir," said Joam D'Acosta. Hearing this sentence, Judge Jarry Gates stood up.Tell him that this was too unexpected, and he walked around the house two or three times before he calmed down.