Court House - People Versus Dylan Massatt/First Degree Murder - Session 1 January 6, 2016, Dylan Massatt

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'I call Dylan Massatt back to the stand,' said the prosecutor Mr. Carson.

My lawyer gave me a reassuring pat on the back as I was escorted in my orange jump suit to the stand. A burly guy with salt and peper hair loomed over me and read me the oath. I raised my left hand and said I do and sat in the wooden chair that seemed to creak a little.

'Dr. Finnigan stated earlier that Norma came to him and admitted that she had a sexual relationship with you. Was this true?'

I looked over at my lawyer scared to see the expressions on the jurors faces. 'Yes its true. My brother as well.'

'Yes or no answers would suffice,' Mr Carson exclaimed holding up his hand to silence me. 'I'd like to submit to the court Exhibit B stating that Norma Bates had sex only hours before her death and the DNA matches her son Dylan Massatt.'

A low murmur erupted among the crowd. He couldn't make out any one phrase, but he knew none of it was good.

'Silence, order in the court.' The judge yelled banging the gravel hard as he took the offered file.

'Dr. Finnigan says that he only met you twice during the time period that he was treating your mother?' he asked standing in front of the jurors.

'That's about right.'

'Yes or no, Mr. Massatt?' He said sternly.

I stuck my tongue in my cheek stopping the biting words that wanted to rip into him. 'Yes.'

'The second occassion that you saw them was outside your mother's hospital room. You physically assaulted him. Can you tell the court why?' He said looking over his shoulder at me.

I snorted, 'No.'

'So you cant answer my question?' he asked turning around to face me full as he clicked his pen obnoxiously. 'Judge can you instruct Mr -'

'I didn't assault him,' I interrupted saying what I really meant.

'So you didn't push him into a wall at a crowded hospital?'

I sighed in defeat. 'Yes.'

'Well, thats assault Mr. Massatt just in case you weren't aware.' The prosecutor said smugly. 'Dr. Finnigan testifies that you want him to stop treating your mother. Is this true?'

I bit my tongue drawing blood knowing what this answer would mean to anyone who wasn't there. 'Yes, but only -'

The alkaline taste of blood feels my mouth.

'That will be all Mr. Massatt. Can you tell us about your whereabouts during the time of 1am and phoning for the ambulance around 5am.'

I gazed at the jurors out of the corner of my eye. 'I was out.'

'Where?'

'I was out running a drug deal. It was supposed to be my last one. It was my last one.' I said tapping my foot nervously. Glad that the stand blocked my legs from view.

'Anyone who can confirm that? Somebody you worked with. Maybe a cop that saw you out and about,' He shrugged a smug look upon his face that looked like he already knew the answer.

'I dont know many drug dealers willing to come in and admit to doing a crime. Do you?' I sneered through gritted teeth.

'Actually a few, we could have cut them a deal. Your life's on the line after all.' He said leaning against the table nonchalantly.

'Well they weren't on your radar before. There not going to change that now for some lowly runner.' I said my shoulders slumped. I had begged. I had made my case, but there just wasn't anything I had to trade for a gift of this magnitude. I could rat them out anyway just to be relased and die on the steps of the court house.

'So you would like the jury to believe I couldn't have killed my mother because I was out committing another crime. I'm a bad guy, but not bad enough,' He said looking to the jury. 'Or is the real truth that you were scared that Norma was going to tell more people that you had slept with her and you couldn't risk that ugly truth getting out.'

'Of course not, I brought her home from the hospital to my place to nurse her back to help.'

'You mean the week that you left Emma home alone to console a stricken Norman who was only worried about his mother.'

'Objection, leading the witness,' Said my lawyer standing up to object.

'Sustained,' the judge nodded. 'Mr. Carson I need you to get around to actually asking a question.'

'Fine,' the lawyer said approaching the stand. 'Are you jealous of your brother?'

I sat back in my chair loathing the question and wondering if it would just serve me better to lie.

'I would like to remind Mr. Massatt that he is under oath.'

I scratched my forehead. 'I was.'

'Yes or no Mr. Massatt?'

I licked my lips and with that sealed my fate. 'Yes.'

'I rest my case your honor.' The prosector said going back to his chair confidently.

'Would you like a chance to cross examine?' The judge asked.

My lawyer looked down at his notes and knew he wouldn't. They had been at this for a couple days now. Each witness more damning than the last. The doctor, Emma and even Norman. Who looked like an utter boy scout next to me sweating as I was and shaking nervously. But sorry, I couldn't be more calm at the idea of losing the rest of my life. The scene I made at the sight of Norman for the first time certainly didn't help. I wanted to kill him. I wanted justice for the woman that loved me, but loved him as well.

'No, your honor.'

'Then we will reconvene after the jury has come to their decision,' He said banging his gravel. Baliff you can take him back to his cell.

It would be a week later before I was called back to court.

The jury has reached a verdict?' the Judge announced handing the piece of paper back to the baliff who handed it off to the first Juror.

'We have your honor. In the case of the people vs Dylan Massatt for the first degree murder of Norma Bates. We find Dylan Massatt Guilty of all charges.'

The baliff came over with handcuffs in hand.

'I'm sorry, Dylan. We can appeal if you want,' Mr. Stantion replied already packing up his things in his briefcase.

'Does no one care that I didn't do it?' I asked staring down my lawyer who had yet to look up at me. I flinched as the baliff tightened the cuffs against my wrist. 'Goddammit, does no one care that I didn't do it.' I began to struggle as the gaurd tried to pull me from around the table. I looked in the audience and didn't see a familiar face amongst the crowd. Just tv reporters and cameras. Suddenly, my eyes caught sight of Emma. 'Emma, it was Norman. I didn't do it. It was Norma.' She turned her head away from me.

My feet tripped on one of the legs of the table and I fell to the ground. The guard fell on top of me thinking I was trying to escape. I looked up to see Emma staring at me with pain in her eyes. 'Ask yourself you know better than anyone, Emma. He loved his mother. Why's he not here because he did it, Emma. Not me.' I yelled as I was being dragged to my feet. 'Not me.'
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A month would go by before I received any contact from the outside world. It came in the form of a letter addressed to me by Norman. I ripped it open naively believing that maybe he would want to confess for what he had done. What I got was one lowly sentence.

Don't worry Dylan. Mother will never have to suffer again under the weight of what you have done to her.

I bawled up the piece of paper in my hand and tossed it in the garbage. Whats sick about the whole situation is that he really does believe it was me.

'Massatt you have a visitor. Stand up and put your hands through the bar.'

I did as I was told as the gaurd cuffed me. If this was my lawyer come to give me more bad news than this would be a very short meeting. I took the long walk to the outer hall the guard holding on to my upper arm much more tightly than he needed to. He was just angry over the head butt he got from me while trying to break up a fight.

'Open up.' The guard yelled to another sitting in the booth.

We paused in front of a door and he waved his ID badge in front a key pad and the door opened automatically. Once inside he uncuffed me and I rubbed at my tender wrists gingerly.

'Last booth.' He nodded standing gaurd by the door.

I walked to the end and was surprised to see Emma sitting on the other side of the plexiglass. She picked up the phone as she saw me standing there and waited patiently for me to do the same. I briefly looked back at the gaurd and wondered if I should cut this meeting short. Then again It would probably be the only chance I get to learn about the outside world outside of my lawyer so I decided to sit and listen to her babble. I picked up the phone hanging on the divider. 'Hi, Emma.'

'I didn't know if you would even see me.' she said. The old phone crackling and distorting her voice a bit.

'What do you want, Emma? Because it's definitely not to here that I'm still innocent.'

She blushed and pulled a white piece of paper out of her pocket. 'I was actually here before, but I was turned away because they said you couldn't bring your cell phone in. So I had to go to the library to print this out and then come back. But my father wouldn't drive me because he -'

'Spit it out already Emma,' I sneered.

She unfolded the paper and put it up to the glass. 'I know you're innocent now and I know because he took to body.'

I choked out a breath as my mother's tombstone stood proudly above an empty whole in the ground. 'What the hell do you mean he took her body?'

'I've gone to your mother's grave practically everyday since it's happened. This one particular day I went to lay flowers on the grave and there was no grave.' She said taking the picture down and staring at it as if it were the first time she had seen it herself.

'So call the police tell them what you know. I'm going to be here for the rest of my life. What the hell am I supposed to do, but maybe if you tell someone it may lead to my sentence being overturned.' The letter suddenly made way more sense. He took her to take care of her.

'I think you're jumping to conclusions. I hate to be the barer of bad news but I've already been to the police.' Emma said biting her bottom lip.

'And?' I said anxiously.

'There looking, but it seemed to be pretty low on their list of priorities.'

'They don't need to look hard his name is Norman Bates,' I said through gritted teeth.

'Well, yes, they do,' she said hesistaingly. 'He skipped town.'

'So he's not at the house. What about the motel?' I asked looking down at the metal table in front of me trying to process this new information quickly.

'He sold it to some developers. It's going to be torn down and turned into a strip mall.'

'So I really am going to be here forever,' I said my voice choking up.

'Honestly, Dylan I don't know.'