Chapter 12 - The Grand Jury Indictment
Three months later, the grand jury returned a historic, forty-count criminal indictment against Victoria Vance, Dr. Richard Hayes, and Trevor Vance.
Victoria was charged with two counts of Capital Murder, one count of First-Degree Poisoning, Wire Fraud, and Obstruction of Justice.
Under Texas law, the District Attorney officially announced that the state would seek the sentence of death by lethal injection for Victoria Vance.
Dr. Hayes was charged with Capital Murder as an Accomplice, Medical Fraud, and Falsification of Public Records, facing life in prison without parole.
Trevor was formally indicted on charges of Grand Larceny, Wire Fraud, and Accessory to Estate Embezzlement.
On the morning of the formal arraignment, I walked into the crowded gallery of the Harris County Criminal Courts Building.
I wore a sharp black suit, holding my head high as the news cameras flashed continuously around the mahogany courtroom.
Victoria sat at the defense table in a bright orange inmate jumpsuit, her wrists locked to a heavy leather waist restraint belt.
Her once-immaculate blonde hair was gray and unwashed, her face gaunt, hollow, and lined with deep, permanent despair.
Trevor sat two seats away from her, wearing a navy prison uniform, staring down at his cuffed hands in total silence.
When the judge read the capital murder charges aloud, Victoria tried to turn her head to look at me in the gallery.
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I met her gaze directly, my eyes cold, unyielding, and completely filled with the unbreakable strength of a mother who survived.
She shuddered, bowing her head as the judge denied bail and ordered her remanded to the high-security wing of the county jail.
