Chapter 8 - The Plea Deal
With her marriage destroyed, her daughter taken away, and her social standing in tatters, Vanessa faced her impending criminal trial for felony child endangerment.
Her defense attorney quickly realized that going to a jury trial in a county where the evidence included high-definition burn photos of a four-year-old child and corroborating testimony from her own husband was financial and legal suicide.
Five days before the trial was set to begin, the District Attorney’s office called David and me into their office.
Assistant DA Marcus Cole sat across from us in a conference room.
"Mrs. Vance," prosecutor Cole said, opening a file. "Vanessa’s defense team is begging for a plea bargain. They know a jury will convict her, and under state guidelines, a conviction carries a mandatory minimum sentence of eighteen months in state prison."
I sat back in my chair, holding David’s hand. "What are they offering?"
"She will plead guilty to a downgraded charge of Misdemeanor Reckless Endangerment," Cole explained. "The terms will include three years of strict supervised probation, two hundred hours of community service, mandatory psychiatric therapy, and a permanent criminal record."
Cole looked me in the eyes. "Most importantly, Rachel... the plea deal includes a permanent, three-year criminal Restraining Order protecting you, David, and Mia. If she comes within five hundred feet of your home, your daughter's school, or your workplace, her probation is revoked instantly and she goes straight to prison."
I looked at David. He gave me a gentle, supportive nod, leaving the decision entirely up to me.
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I thought about my four-year-old daughter, who was finally sleeping through the night again, drawing pictures with her new watercolor paints, and laughing without fear.
"Sign the deal," I said. "As long as she can never come near my daughter again, sign it."
