Chapter 12 - THE COURTHOUSE BATTLE
The following afternoon, the county courthouse in downtown Helena was packed with local reporters and curious residents.
Jessica sat at the plaintiff's table in a black designer suit, weeping softly into a handkerchief for the cameras.
Her high-priced defense attorney stood beside her, presenting a stack of emergency petition documents to the judge.
"Your Honor, my client is a grieving mother whose traumatized child was snatched by a rogue soldier," the attorney argued.
Judge Abernathy, an elderly woman with sharp grey eyes, looked down from the bench at Ethan sitting across the room.
Ethan sat quietly in a crisp uniform with his military medals pinned proudly over his heart.
Beside him sat a high-ranking military legal officer sent directly from the Judge Advocate General's Corps in Washington.
"Lieutenant Vance, do you have legal representation present today?" Judge Abernathy asked, leaning forward.
Ethan’s JAG officer stood up, placing a thick leather briefcase onto the mahogany table.
"Your Honor, I represent the United States Department of the Army," the JAG officer announced clearly.
"We are entering an immediate motion to dismiss all charges against Sergeant Ethan Vance," the officer stated.
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"Furthermore, we are filing federal arrest warrants for Jessica Vance and Brad Sterling for conspiracy to commit treason."
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