...The prosecutor stood up and began by asking me the basics, name, etc. for the record. He then took me through the circumstances of how I met Marsalis, meeting via Match.com, speaking on the phone and planning our date. He asked things such as what I thought as I spoke with him on the phone and when we finally met face to face. He walked me step by step through that evening including where we went, our conversation, what and how much we drank. He asked that I describe what I was thinking as the evening progressed and if I liked him and what, if any, was the potential of a future date based on my initial feelings. All of this was for purposes of showing that Marsalis fabricated his identity to me and he was using this false information to charm me into trusting him. It also showed that Marsalis used a similar if not exact plan when he was meeting and luring women using Match.com for the purpose to ultimately drug and rape us.
We then got to the part of the evening where I was going to have to describe in open court and to a room full of strangers the most embarrassing story I was ever going to tell. Joe took me through those details slowly and it was difficult but somehow I got through it knowing this was for something much bigger than just me and how I felt.
Next it was the defenses turn to ask questions and guess who stands up? His female attorney! Now once I had time to reflect on this much later it was obvious why he had a male and female defense team. That reasoning being so not to have the male attorney look insensitive when questioning the victims. Well let me tell you it backfired on me because the more time I took answering her questions the more strength I gained. It was like a revelation. I had so little respect for her personally that it made it easier for me. In my mind I was thinking "who do you think you are?" There is no way I should be afraid of a woman who defends rapists. She actually kept the number of questions for me brief which threw me off a bit when she said she was done, but great the fewer questions the better.
Then, unexpectedly, the judge turned to me and said she had a couple of questions. They were very basic, she was really nice and thanked me when she was done. I was told that would be it for the day, got up and the bailiff escorted me out of the courtroom. One of Joe's associates followed me out and told me I did great. Of course I wasn't feeling great but I didn't have to do that again for a long time and that was a good thing. Now I had to get back to work and try to get on with my day.
The next day I had taken off from work but had lunch plans. I got up and out to Wawa again to buy the newspapers so I could read their reporting. It was really weird to see your own words in print related such a sensational new story. I had just pulled into the restaurant parking lot when Joe Khan called me as he had news regarding my testimony. He said I did really well and the judge found me credible and held over my charges against Marsalis for trial. I was very happy. Up until that point I was unsure what the respected powers that be would think and I had my answer. He gave me an idea when the trial could be scheduled and said we would speak again in a few weeks regarding preparation for it. But there was going to be a lot more I would have to do to get ready for trial...
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