Chapter 463: The Judgment

Chapter 463: Chapter 463: The Judgment

He must have realized his precious girlfriend, the one he doted on and protected, had thrown all the blame on him. He was probably angry and disappointed, and afraid of taking full responsibility, so he scrambled to defend himself.

Sure enough, Mr. Morrison, who had been arguing stubbornly with the police, looked stunned when he heard what Captain Crowe said. He immediately blurted out, "It wasn’t me! I didn’t do it! She’s framing me! You police can’t just pin everything on me without investigating! She doesn’t have any history of mental illness. She’s lying!"

Seeing Mr. Morrison scramble to defend himself was a stark contrast to his earlier stubborn refusal to cooperate.

He might have genuinely liked his girlfriend, but in reality, he loved himself more. He used her and her emotions to get rid of his two children, freeing himself from future child support payments and the worries of their eventual marriages.

When there was no conflict of interest, Mr. Morrison would protect and dote on his girlfriend. But as soon as he himself was implicated, he became a whole different person.

And now, upon hearing his girlfriend push all the blame onto him, he was immediately defending himself, terrified of shouldering all the responsibility.

The officer interrogating Mr. Morrison seized on the holes in his story and pressed him. Soon, Mr. Morrison couldn’t reconcile his lies and had no choice but to confess everything.

Once he started cooperating, the rest of the interrogation went much more smoothly, with no further standoffs.

Meanwhile, in the lobby, when Mr. Morrison’s father and Mrs. Morrison heard that their son had admitted his guilt, their limbs went weak. They had to hold onto each other to keep from collapsing to the floor.

"What are we going to do? How could our son do something like this!" Mrs. Morrison’s voice was filled with disbelief. ’Those are his children, too!’

Mr. Morrison’s father also shook his head in agony. He couldn’t understand when his son had started down this crooked path, to the point of contemplating filicide.

Over in the reception room, Zoe Sawyer had been staying with Ms. Crawford and her two children. After learning that Mr. Morrison and his girlfriend had confessed, she returned to the police station through the door in Director Marshall’s office.

"How are the kids? Did they catch the culprits?" Sean Hughes, who had been waiting in the office, asked hurriedly when he saw Zoe Sawyer and the others return.

Zoe Sawyer relaxed and rolled her shoulders, giving Sean Hughes a thumbs-up. "When we’re on the case, of course it’s handled!"

In truth, the moment they saw the relaxed expressions on Zoe Sawyer and the others, Sean Hughes and his team knew the outcome was good. Still, they needed to hear it with their own ears to truly be at ease.

Since there was plenty of time after solving the case, Zoe Sawyer stuck to her original plan and went home to spend a few days with her family.

When she returned from her vacation, the verdict in Mr. Morrison’s case was out.

"What was the result?" Zoe Sawyer looked at Heath Hale curiously, eager to know the sentence.

"Mr. Morrison and his girlfriend were charged with attempted intentional homicide. They had clear murderous intent, a specific method, and had taken concrete preparatory steps. The facts of their crime were ironclad. Mr. Morrison’s attempt to murder his own children had an extremely vicious social impact, so both of them were sentenced to life in prison." Heath Hale briefly summarized the verdict for Zoe Sawyer.

Because the nature of the case was so vile, Director Marshall didn’t want to delay. Plus, the chain of evidence was complete and both suspects had confessed, so they were sent to trial as quickly as possible.

According to Captain Crowe, as soon as the initial verdict was announced, Mr. Morrison and his girlfriend instantly recanted, claiming their confessions were coerced under torture and couldn’t be taken as truth.

Mr. Morrison’s father and Mrs. Morrison also went to plead for leniency, hoping Ms. Crawford would issue a letter of forgiveness so Mr. Morrison’s sentence wouldn’t be so severe.

Ms. Crawford flatly refused their request. She was determined that those two would receive the harshest punishment possible.

Mrs. Morrison looked at the unyielding Ms. Crawford, then at her two grandchildren hiding behind Ms. Crawford’s parents, and said, "I know what he did was wrong, but he’s still the children’s father.

If he really goes to prison, it will affect the children later on. You don’t want people pointing fingers at them, cursing them for having a murderer for a father.

And a father with a criminal record will affect their future. I’m begging you, as a mother, please write the letter of forgiveness. At the very least, at the very least, don’t let him spend decades in prison. By the time he gets out, the best twenty or thirty years of his life will be gone!"

As she spoke, Mrs. Morrison looked as if she was about to drop to her knees.

Before Ms. Crawford could move, her mother rushed over in a single stride and pulled Mrs. Morrison up. "What do you think you’re doing?! Is this moral blackmail?!

When you can’t win the argument, you try to kneel before a child to force her to agree to your unreasonable demands, is that it? How about we go back to the police station right now and see if they approve of your little act?"

Ms. Crawford stared at her former mother-in-law’s face and said, "You say the best twenty or thirty years of your son’s life will be gone. But what about my children?

One is only two, and the other is just one. They haven’t even begun to experience life. If the police hadn’t keenly sensed something was wrong, I’d be the one crying right now, wouldn’t I?

You have to consider your son, and I have to consider my children. A letter of forgiveness is absolutely impossible. I will make sure those two receive the most severe punishment!"

Mr. Morrison’s father, who had been silent until now, supported his wife and spoke up. "All the assets in his name, we’ll give them to the children as compensation. We can also promise to never see the children again.

A letter of forgiveness. We just need a letter of forgiveness."

Getting their son acquitted was impossible. All they could do now was obtain a letter of forgiveness from Linda’s mother, which might lead to a lighter sentence—commuted from life to a fixed-term.

Then, if their son behaved well in prison, he might even get parole in a few years!

Mr. Morrison’s father had it all planned out and thought the terms he offered were quite good.

But he was still rejected.

’Are you kidding me? The things he’s offering, the law will award all of that to the children as emotional damages anyway. Besides, after what Mr. Morrison did, she had the right to file for a change in custody and to deny visitation rights—and she’d be 100% certain to win. She didn’t need him acting like he was doing her a huge favor.’

Ms. Crawford didn’t agree to any of their conditions. Mr. Morrison’s father and Mrs. Morrison could only leave in defeat. Their younger son was truly beyond saving.

The parents of Mr. Morrison’s girlfriend came over as well, also trying to use monetary compensation to get a letter of forgiveness from Ms. Crawford.

But the outcome was obvious. They were also rejected.

In the subsequent appeal, the verdict for Mr. Morrison and his girlfriend was upheld.

All of their assets were awarded to the two children as compensation for emotional distress.

Unable to bear the stares of their neighbors, Mr. Morrison’s father and Mrs. Morrison moved out of the building.

"Nice one!"