“That was him?”
“Yes.”
DeAndre stared at the screen.
“He did almost the same thing to me.”
Marcus knew.
“I read your complaint.”
DeAndre looked at him sharply.
“And?”
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For what happened after.”
DeAndre laughed.
“You mean nothing?”
Marcus nodded.
DeAndre closed the laptop.
“He stopped me right over there by the basketball courts.”
Marcus listened.
“I was training for a half-marathon. Had headphones on. He came up behind me and grabbed my arm.”
“Did he tell you why?”
“Said somebody called about a suspicious person.”
“What happened?”
“He searched me.”
“Anything found?”
“My apartment key and two energy gels.”
Marcus almost smiled.
DeAndre did not.
“I filed the complaint because my dad told me I should.”
“What happened?”
“They said his body camera malfunctioned.”
Marcus nodded.
“Do you believe that?”
“No.”
Neither did Marcus.
DeAndre looked toward the window.
“You know what’s crazy?”
“What?”
“When I saw your video, I was happy.”
Marcus waited.
“I saw him hit the ground and I was happy.”
DeAndre rubbed his forehead.
“Then I saw your badge.”
His expression changed.
“And that made me angry.”
“Why?”
“Because he stopped.”
Marcus understood immediately.
DeAndre continued.
“He didn’t stop for me.”
The sentence hung between them.
“He pushed my face against his car while people watched.”
Marcus said nothing.
“I didn’t have a badge.”
“No.”
“So your video doesn’t prove he changed.”
Marcus looked at him.
“It proves what made him change.”
DeAndre nodded.
“Exactly.”
Chapter Nine: Harlan Wants a Deal
Three months after Jefferson Park, Daniel Harlan was indicted.
His attorney approached prosecutors about a plea agreement.
Harlan would admit to evidence mishandling and official misconduct in exchange for dismissal of several more serious charges.
The prosecution refused.
Then Harlan offered something unexpected.
Information.
He claimed other officers knew what he was doing.
Some had benefited.
Some had participated.
The investigation widened again.
Marcus wanted to believe Harlan was lying to save himself.
He wasn’t entirely.
Two officers resigned.
One sergeant was suspended.
A retired evidence technician was questioned.
The department that originally described Harlan as a single bad officer now had to admit that several people had ignored warning signs.
The scandal reached city hall.
Chief Bell announced an independent civilian audit.
Old complaints were reopened.
Body-camera policies changed.
Evidence systems were redesigned.
None of that impressed Walter King.
When Marcus met him months later, King said:
“They always change the rules after somebody gets caught.”
Marcus nodded.
“Usually.”
“Then everybody congratulates themselves.”
Marcus smiled slightly.
“Usually.”
King folded his arms.
“Don’t let them turn you into their poster boy.”
“What do you mean?”
“The good cop who fixed everything.”
Marcus looked at him.
“I didn’t fix everything.”
“I know.”
