Now, who wants to talk about how pathetic Magdalene is (on the female side) vs Trey (on the male side)?

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

I have to wonder to myself what exactly Christopher Jr. would have to say to Magdalene in order to get her into bed. There is something sort of sick and twisted about a woman commiserating with a man about her heartbreak while she screws his brother. Is it just me or does that stink?

Why is it that Christopher Jr. became the go-to guy for sex and commiseration about Gideon? Why sleep with him? Did she not realize that Gideon wouldn’t want to sleep with her if she slept with his brother?

[LN Cronan]

Hi LNCronan,

I have to wonder to myself what exactly Christopher Jr. would have to say to Magdalene in order to get her into bed. There is something sort of sick and twisted about a woman commiserating with a man about her heartbreak while she screws his brother. Is it just me or does that stink?

Why is it that Christopher Jr. became the go-to guy for sex and commiseration about Gideon? Why sleep with him? Did she not realize that Gideon wouldn’t want to sleep with her if she slept with his brother?

 

Magdalene would have been putty in Christopher's hands, because of the self-esteem issues she's got, and because of what a manipulative S of a B he is. 

 

Signs that Magdalene really needed to have her head examined, not just get a pretty haircut:

 

• Instead of relying upon her own attractiveness, she molded herself into trying to remind Gideon of Corrine. Magdalene wore the same hairstyle (long straight black hair) as Corrine.
• Magdalene had, in her own mind, been competing against Corrine for years. Even though Corrine had dumped Gideon, married another man, and (as the story first opened in Bared) been living in Europe for years. Still, Magdalene was competing against a memory.
• For all we know, Magdalene was competing against Corrine even while she and Gideon were still together all those years ago. The story strongly suggests Magdalene knew the couple back in the day. So did she long for Gideon even then, and immediately put herself into position to fill the vacancy Corrine created by leaving?
• Magdalene was willing to appear to all the world as the main girlfriend of a celebrity who actually was publicly dating other women too. Magdalene was the woman most photographed with Gideon, but per the Internet research Cary gave Eva just before she went out on her first date with Gideon, he was photographed with others too (all of them brunettes, of course.)
• Whatever the public might have assumed (Gideon was lovers with some or all of those trophy dates, especially Magdalene) the truth was that in fact it was a celibate social arrangement. Magdalene is fully aware that hidden out of the spotlight, Gideon sleeps around with other women that he used only for sex.
• Magdalene was fooling herself into believing the sleeping around was something Gideon just needed to get out of his system. Then he'd marry her.
• She was actually willing to tolerate being the arm candy of a sexually active man who didn't want her sexually, tolerate it because her long-range goal was to upgrade from trophy girlfriend to trophy wife. I'll bet Magdalene would have waited until the wedding night to sleep with Gideon.
• But here's the thing -- would she have tolerated Gideon having mistresses after he married her? I'll bet she would have been willing to do even that.
• In the meantime, she was so sexually frustrated that she actually carried on an affair (of sort - it's a stretch to call it an affair) behind Gideon's back with his own half brother.

 

I wonder whether Christopher actually is what Dr. Lucas accused Gideon of being: a narcissistic sociopath and a misogynist. Wouldn't that be a red herring. One of the story's open villains (Lucas) accusing the hero (Gideon) of being something he's not, all the while the hero is providing little red flags to the heroine (Eva) that another character (Christopher Jr.) is seriously mentally broken. Here are some red flags I picked up:

 

• From the night Christopher met Eva, who was on her first date with Gideon at the time, he tried hitting on her. He was still hitting on her at the end of Reflected. After Eva had lunch with him that day, he told Eva he wants to take her out (yeah, like that's gonna happen.)
• From that first night, Gideon warned Eva to stay away from Christopher. At the time, we'd be led to think it was just Gideon's possessiveness. But once we found out about Christopher using Magdalene, we knew Gideon had good reason to warn off Eva.
• Gideon mentioned he thought Magdalene "would have been safe" from Christopher based on the fact her mother and Christopher's/Gideon's own mother were best friends. This implies Christopher has had a regular pattern of seducing women and using them. Gideon assumed (wrongly) a woman whose family was very close to Christopher's own family would be off limits to even Christopher. He wouldn't be so dumb as to use/abuse someone close to the family. Unfortunately, Gideon found out that even a Magdalene wasn't safe.
• Gideon once described his half-brother to Eva as being unstable and dangerous. And that Gideon has tried everything (money, threats) to deal with Christopher, all in vain. The best Gideon can do, so he feels, is to try to manage Christopher.

 

Narcissists can be extremely charming on the surface in order to get people to like them and pay attention to them. It's a form of manipulation. Sociopaths (a layman's term for borderline personality disorder) can also be charming and manipulative. And it's pretty obvious Christopher has a low opinion of women and has no problem using them (and in the case of Magdalene emotionally abusing her by manipulating her distress.) That's something a misogynist does.

[AMC]

LN Cronan:

TOTALLY agree with you about Christopher!

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

The airplane theory wouldn’t work. Airplanes can’t fly off (take off for flight) without first having filed a flight plan with the airport they are taking off from and then the one they plan on landing at. They also have to have a flight manifesto/passenger list. It is a way of keeping track of who is coming and going. I could however see several of Gideon’s limousines or cars being dispatched at the same time and the cops having to figure out which car (if any) Gideon is in.

As far as the means, motive and opportunity theory goes:

• Monica, Stanton, Gideon, Angus, Clancy, etc. all had the financial means to “off†Nathan.

• Monica, Stanton, Clancy, etc. had the motive in that Monica is the mother of the daughter whom was abused. Stanton is married to Monica etc.

• What isn’t clear is if Monica herself was approached by Nathan or whether Nathan just approached Stanton for a payout or whether the both of them were approached.

• Any good defense attorney would “Plan B†all of the prosecutions’ witnesses. Monica, Stanton, Clancy, etc. all had the opportunity to get rid of Nathan.

• Mrsmajessick brought up a good point about the paparazzi and their ability to spot Gideon. I simply can’t buy that Gideon would be able to slap some disguise on and then poof…he would magically be able to avoid being spotted by “seasoned detectives†and the media who earn their living taking “juicy photosâ€.

• I also don’t think that Gideon would be sneaking into her apartment an hour later. Everything that needs to be said could be done so while they are together in his apartment hallway.

• You also stated that detectives are seasoned professionals, who know how to tail a suspect, etc., but now all of a sudden these detectives have lost their street smarts and Gideon just slips by them? I think not.

• The only thing that the cops would be able to prove is that Eva went to Gideon’s apartment building. They would have to prove that Eva saw Gideon, they would have to link Eva and Gideon talking etc. and if anything that could backfire on the detectives again. Eva supposedly went to talk to Gideon but she rejected her yet again….

• Gideon could have said enough to Eva to reassure her and not taken up to much of her time and thereby keeping his alibi intact and Eva safe from suspicion.

What do you think? What does everyone think?

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

In order to compete you have to be in the game. Magdalene was never in the “game†in that Gideon most likely never; asked her out on intimate dates, touched her intimately or imitated any kind of sexual contact. All of these signs suggest to me that Magdalene had huge self esteem issues.

Magdalene was willing to settle for scraps. She got the public dates but never anything more. I have to wonder where she learned that was acceptable or could it be that she made a play for Gideon but was rejected so she justified the rejection by telling herself a man like Gideon would have to make the first move.

I also wanted to clarify that it was the media speculation that Magdalene was the girlfriend of Gideon and that Gideon allowed it or didn’t bother to clarify it because either; he didn’t care or it served his purpose in that it kept media attention of his “real†love life.

[AMC]

I can buy the car and limosine theory---vehicles being dispatched at the same to throw off the police as to which vehicle Gideon was in....

 

Are the police tailing Eva and Gideon 24/7??

[GiGi]

 

I can buy the car and limosine theory---vehicles being dispatched at the same to throw off the police as to which vehicle Gideon was in....

 

Are the police tailing Eva and Gideon 24/7??

 

Hi AMC,

I don't think that Eva is being tailed 24/7. That would be a huge amount of man power and money! It isn't like Eva and Gideon are part of some huge underworld crime organization. Realistically this is one murder and somehow I can't see the police department putting that kind of man power into one crime when there are so many other crimes that need to be solved as well. What do you think? What does everyone think?

[AMC]

I thought so too GiGi!

 

Gideon has to be careful when he "sees" Eva but not extremely careful------if that makes any sense!   LOL!

[LN Cronan]

Gideon has the resources to evade tails, including drivers who are also trained bodyguards. They'd know how to throw off any vehicles following a car they were driving.

Regarding flights, true the pilots must file a passenger list as part of any flight plan. But Gideon could easily arrange for his people to file the paperwork but then have someone else (a body double) get onto a flight. Gideon would be paying a fortune to maintain a fleet of five private jets, including full crews to man them. They'd do anything, no questions asked, if he told them he wanted to be listed a passenger to some place like Las Vegas, but never actually take the flight himself. As long as he travels within the U.S., no official will physically check whether he was on the plane.

As long at the flight travels strictly within the continental U.S. (i.e. New York to Vegas) Gideon does not have to "check in" before departure nor confirm he arrived. Only if he is leaving and then re-entering the country must he go through U.S. Immigration. At U.S. international airports that have extensive private jetports, there are Customs folks assigned specifically to that area. After a private plane lands having entered/re-entered the U.S. a Customs officer will actually board the plane and personally check everyone's passports (even the crew's) before anyone is allowed to step foot off the plane.

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

Since the advent of September 11th the FAA has gotten really hyper vigilant about how they handle passengers on commercial flights and yes even private flights. So if Gideon supposedly booked a private flight with one of his jets and said jet arrived at its location without Gideon, the pilot would face serious fines. I don’t know how much leeway the FAA would give Gideon because of his status and wealth. I suspect that he wouldn’t get too much wiggle room, especially if he pulled that kind of stunt more than once.

Every passenger also has to fly with some kind of identification so the body double stunt wouldn’t work. If someone tried to pass themselves off as Gideon and that flight got check, I couldn’t even image the world of trouble that individual would be in. Regardless of wealth and regardless of where someone is flying, every person has to produce his/her driver’s license (or passport) in order to board a flight. In Canada, a person cannot board any flight; either domestic or international, without producing her/his passport.

That is why flights can often be delayed. Airlines check and double check their passenger lists before take-off and they have to submit any revisions before the flight commences. They are usually handing that list off to the gate attendant just before they close the airplane doors and the airplane pushes away from the gate. If the airline couldn’t account for their passengers and something terrible happened, that airline would face huge fines and possible criminal charges.

The multiple drivers’ scenario seems far more doable from a logistic perspective. Gideon could dispatch any number of cars all with men of similar height, weight, hair and eye colour and boom! Then watch the police department scramble to try and tail all of those cars. It would be like watching an episode of the “Keystone Copsâ€.

[fsumom]

In light of Det Graves discussion with Eva and then Gideon 'slient' confession to her, I think that he will continue 'dating' Corrine and we have seen in the snippets secretly meet Eva.  He needs to put a reasonable amount of time between being 'cleared' (if his is indeed cleared as Graves states) and any move to resume his life with Eva.

 

Sorry couldn't find where the discussion of him fleeing the country started, unless some overwhelming evidence comes out I don't

think will alter his daily business routine keeping to 'business as usual' as much as possible.

[LN Cronan]

   

Hi AMC,

I don't think that Eva is being tailed 24/7. That would be a huge amount of man power and money! It isn't like Eva and Gideon are part of some huge underworld crime organization. Realistically this is one murder and somehow I can't see the police department putting that kind of man power into one crime when there are so many other crimes that need to be solved as well. What do you think? What does everyone think?

 

More than any other city police force in the United States, the NYPD has both the manpower and the money to put a 24/7 tail on someone. And they'd be more than willing to spend both in order to bag the ultimate prize: to bag one of the richest men in the world, the son of an infamous financial crook who escaped justice by killing himself. Gideon's case would be even juicier than fraud: first degree murder of a man who raped his girlfriend as a child. Behind the cops would be a very ambitious Deputy District Attorney. And of the crimes that need solving, first degree murder is the highest priority of all. Especially if there's also a conspiracy going on involving other very rich, powerful people. (i.e. Stanton and Monica, your favorite prime suspects.)

 

Oh yeah, New York would be more than willing to shell out a lot of money. Besides, tailing Eva won't take much manpower nor money. Eva's the bait in the trap, so they'd be following her (the bait) instead of Gideon. She'd be pretty easy to tail too. She doesn't own a car. She often walks to work. And she lives in a crowded part of the city -- it's easier to for a tail to be unobtrusive downtown than in a strictly residential neighborhood. An unmarked car parked near her apartment building. Another unmarked unit near Gideon's. A couple of people on foot to track her going to and from work, to the Krav Maga studio she frequents, plus some of her other spots. Eva keeps a pretty regular schedule.

 

Organized crime surveillance is not something the NYPD (nor other city departments) conducts. The departments may assist, but organized crime is a Federal government concern, and surveillance is conducted by the U.S. federal police force, the FBI, which has more resources than any other police force in the world.

[LN Cronan]

The fact Gideon has been tailed for years by the paparazzi has, I'm certain, made him an expert at sneaking around in and out of buildings, and altering his appearance to make him look like some ordinary Joe Schmoe that no one, even a professional photographer, is going to notice.

 

Ditch $100,000 watch, $20,000 suit, $5,000 shoes. Put on sweatpants, a beat-up college sweatshirt, and a pair of well-worn athletic shoes. Tuck the trademark mane of really nice hair under a New York Yankee's cap. Keep looking down so that the cap's bill helps shield those big blue eyes and fine bone structure. Slip out the service entrance or the side door to an underground garage instead of climbing into a fancy car at the front door. Walk to a busy street to get a cab. At the destination, sneak into the building via the garage or service entrance and voila -- he's gone from his building to Eva's.

 

On a related matter, I firmly believe Gideon did not pick the f*** pad hotel to hurt Eva. He picked that place because more than anywhere else, he's been sneaking in and out of that building for years to get laid without attracting any outside attention. Yes, the first time he headed there with Eva, there was a photographer in the area. So was Gideon's gym. He actually had to tip off the photographer where to go in order to catch that (not so) candid photo of him kissing Eva. Gideon's way of trying to make sure everyone (i.e. other men) knew Eva was taken. Gideon had been successfully hiding his secret sex life for years. Not by walking in the front door looking like the billionaire he is. I'll bet there was a lot of practice donning less-noticeable attire and slipping in a side door.

[AMC]

Interesting, LN Cronan!

 

I believe that there is some significance with the luggage tags on the cover of EWY. A "red flag"...

Maybe alot of traveling for Gideon and Eva so that they can escape the NYC police surveillance and be able to spend time together?

[LN Cronan]

One of the advantages of Gideon/Eva sneaking out of the city together is that they could move beyond the official reach of the cops tailing her. For all of its considerable manpower resources within NYC, the NYPD itself couldn't simply tail her outside of its own jurisdiction. Only the Feds have an unlimited jurisdiction to tail someone around the United States, because the whole country is the FBI's jurisdiction. The NYPD would need to get the cooperation of another police agency to tail someone within that other agency's own turf.

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

Do you really think that the NYPD would go to all o that trouble and expense for just one murder? The type of scenario that you are suggesting would normally be reserved for a huge mafia take down. Nathan was just one man and a scumbag at that. I am not so sure that a police chief would want to spend that kind of money on solving one murder.

I also want to clarify something with you. If a murder occurred in a specific police precinct (let’s say New York City) that was later confirmed to be part of an organized crime, does that mean that the FBI is automatically called in? That doesn’t make sense to me. I would think that the police department would want the credit for solving that crime. If you could explain the process, that would be great.

Asides from Detective Graves’ speculations, she has nothing, no tangible proof and no evidence. Again I can’t see some DA presenting a case before the Grand Jury, not unless he/she was on a suicide mission. DA’s are elected in your country and as such if someone lost such a famous public figure and so much money was spent in order to go on a “fishing expedition†I think there would be huge backlash from the public and specific government parties.

[GiGi]

Hi LNCronan,

Your theory is plausible with one exception; do you think that Gideon had all of his employees sign non-disclosure agreements in which case Gideon wouldn’t have to worry so much about his disguises? I still find it hard to believe that Gideon could be that good at disguising himself. I also don’t think that the police department would be foolish enough to just sit out front and wait for Gideon to enter and exit the premises.

If Gideon might try to disguise himself and use the service exit, could it be possible that the police might take that into consideration as well and that they might have surveillance posted at all entrances and exits?

[GiGi]

 

More than any other city police force in the United States, the NYPD has both the manpower and the money to put a 24/7 tail on someone. And they'd be more than willing to spend both in order to bag the ultimate prize: to bag one of the richest men in the world, the son of an infamous financial crook who escaped justice by killing himself. Gideon's case would be even juicier than fraud: first degree murder of a man who raped his girlfriend as a child. Behind the cops would be a very ambitious Deputy District Attorney. And of the crimes that need solving, first degree murder is the highest priority of all. Especially if there's also a conspiracy going on involving other very rich, powerful people. (i.e. Stanton and Monica, your favorite prime suspects.)

 

Oh yeah, New York would be more than willing to shell out a lot of money. Besides, tailing Eva won't take much manpower nor money. Eva's the bait in the trap, so they'd be following her (the bait) instead of Gideon. She'd be pretty easy to tail too. She doesn't own a car. She often walks to work. And she lives in a crowded part of the city -- it's easier to for a tail to be unobtrusive downtown than in a strictly residential neighborhood. An unmarked car parked near her apartment building. Another unmarked unit near Gideon's. A couple of people on foot to track her going to and from work, to the Krav Maga studio she frequents, plus some of her other spots. Eva keeps a pretty regular schedule.

 

Organized crime surveillance is not something the NYPD (nor other city departments) conducts. The departments may assist, but organized crime is a Federal government concern, and surveillance is conducted by the U.S. federal police force, the FBI, which has more resources than any other police force in the world.

 

Hi LNCronan,

Do you think that the NYPD would call the FBI to have Gideon and Eva tracked if they left the jurisdiction? Gideon hasn’t been charged with a crime and neither has Eva. They are both free to travel to and fro without any reservations or restrictions.

Again, I would wonder whether anyone would really care enough to pursue one murder. By all accounts Nathan was a dangerous man who was stalking Eva. He was going to kill her eventually and every sign pointed to the fact that he was planning on doing so. So someone did society a favour and “offed†a man who probably would have wound up in the electric chair/or with a needle in his arm (from some other heinous crime he probably committed as well).

[LN Cronan]

A couple of quick things re: cops and this investigation.

 

In real life, the cops would have warned Gideon, in the presence of his lawyer, specifically to not leave the country. They might have even warned him to not leave the state of New York (the murder right now is a state case.) Technically, he could leave, because he is not under arrest. BUT to do so, especially to leave the country, would be considered flight. It would make him look guilty, and it would most definitely be used against him in court. Plus it would almost guarantee the cops to immediately get an arrest warrant based on everything they did have at the time. This "don't go anywhere" is done all the time in regular police practice involving murder cases -- if someone is under strong suspicion, the cops bluntly tell the suspect "stick around" so that the suspect and his/her lawyer remain available to them. And his own lawyer would then warn him it would be in his best interest to obey that condition, lest he trigger the cops to get him arrested. An innocent man would stick around. A guilty man, facing a life sentence, would run.

 

Right now, Nathan's murder is a state crime -- that is, it is a crime under the laws of the state of New York. No, the FBI would not automatically get called in. The NYPD would have to voluntarily ask the FBI for help -- and even then, the case remains the NYPD's to investigate and the state of New York's to prosecute. Even if the NYPD uncovered a conspiracy between Gideon and Stanton, it still would be a state case initially -- everything happened within the state of New York. The FBI does not have jurisdiction over state crimes, only on certain crimes that are considered federal crimes. A murder case crossing state lines would be one (for example if all the plotting were done in New York, but Nathan was lured to Nevada to be killed in Las Vegas.)  

 

New York would handle a case like Gideon Cross' the way California handled the real-life O.J. Simpson case. With O.J. the Los Angeles police department investigated and the State of California prosecuted him under California state murder laws. The prosecution team was from Los Angeles County. Pre-trial, O.J. was held in the Los Angeles County Jail. had he been convicted, he would have been sent to some maximum security California state prison. And Los Angeles spent a fortune on the case. Unfortunately, the prosecution lost spectacularly because O.J. had an entire team of some of the greatest defense lawyers in the country.

 

In real life, the NYPD (or any sizeable police department) would most certainly put Eva under surveillance if they were attempting to trap a suspect using her. And in real life, if the cops need to prove people are meeting in person, they do put one or both of the parties under surveillance. In Eva's case, they need to track her movements in order to document any in-person contact she may have had with Gideon post-murder, such as her immediately running to Gideon's apartment building and then him arriving home. This is one step up from pulling phone records and computer records to show any telephone/text or email contact between the Gideon and her.

 

There's a reason why Gideon was very careful to not phone nor text her. Unfortunately, he did not resist the impulse to avoid all in person contact. So if the cops now want to prove in person contact, they have to document it by tailing Eva.

[AMC]

Maybe Gideon's security team is tailing the police who are tailing Gideon and Eva....

 

I am worried about Gideon's enemies---- especially the ones who are bitter about what Gideon's father did to their finances.....

[LN Cronan]

   

Hi LNCronan,

Do you think that the NYPD would call the FBI to have Gideon and Eva tracked if they left the jurisdiction? Gideon hasn’t been charged with a crime and neither has Eva. They are both free to travel to and fro without any reservations or restrictions.

Again, I would wonder whether anyone would really care enough to pursue one murder. By all accounts Nathan was a dangerous man who was stalking Eva. He was going to kill her eventually and every sign pointed to the fact that he was planning on doing so. So someone did society a favour and “offed†a man who probably would have wound up in the electric chair/or with a needle in his arm (from some other heinous crime he probably committed as well).

 

See my answer above about state versus federal (FBI) jurisdiction -- and about the explicit warning Gideon would have been given by the cops to not leave the state of New York.

 

If Gideon were to leave New York state despite being warned by the cops not to do so and warned by his own lawyer it would be a very bad mistake to do so, then yes the FBI possibly/likely would be involved as soon as the cops got their arrest warrant, but only for the process of getting Gideon arrested and extradited back to New York state, NOT taking over the prosecution. The FBI and/or police in the state where Gideon fled (for example, Nevada) would be involved in arresting him, if Gideon left New York but remained within the United States. If Gideon fled the country, the FBI would get involved with the other country in arresting him.

 

Eva's trickier. The New York City cops technically can't automatically tail her outside the city, and she's free to go wherever she wants. They would need to ask for and get help from other police agencies, depending upon where Eva went. For example, if she stayed within New York state, the NYPD might ask for help from the New York State Police. If she were to go to Las Vegas, the NYPD would have to ask for help from the Las Vegas Police Department and/or the Nevada State Police -- and/or the FBI, because Eva has crossed a state line. In a real life situation, most likely some NYPD detectives would go to where Eva is in order to do a stake-out along with the express help of another police department, help that most likely would include having some other detectives working alongside the New York cops. And in any case, the NYPD would need to get permission beforehand.

[LN Cronan]

Bottom line on the FBI handling murder cases, the FBI sometimes does help lend expertise by express invitation of a state or city police agency -- but the FBI almost never takes over an actual murder case itself from a state. The federal court system (the U.S. Attorney's Office) leaves the vast, vast, VAST majority of homicides to be prosecuted by the state courts.

 

There are some circumstances where the FBI almost always takes the case from the get-go and the Federal government, not a state government, prosecutes. But these cases are not your every day ocurrances:

 

1. Serial killers, whose kills are spread wide over many jurisdictions, especially if the serial killers are working multiple states. Even if the kills are just in one state, generally that state will voluntarily relinquish the case to the Feds, because the FBI has such expertise with serial killers. If the kills are inter-state, the Feds automatically have the jurisdiction.
2. Cases where predators lure child victims to other places, such as using the Internet, which is an inter-state means to commit a crime, or in cases where a child is taken across state lines. That's child kidnapping, and all child kidnapping is a Federal crime. (Adult kidnapping is not automatically a federal crime.)
3. Killings committed during bank robberies. Bank robbery is a Federal crime. All bank robberies are investigated by the FBI, and nearly all serious ones automatically prosecuted federally. Sometimes, especially on smaller bank robberies (no one is killed nor seriously injured, and the amount of money stolen is in the thousands, not millions) the Feds might voluntarily relinquish the prosecution of the case to a state court.

[LN Cronan]

OK, now onto how Detective Graves may have nuked her own case and that all the evidence she gets of Eva and Gideon getting back together because Gideon loved Eva all along might get thrown out of court as inadmissable .....

 

As soon as Graves started speaking with Eva at the Krav Maga studio, Eva indicated she wanted a lawyer. When Graves opted to continue talking to Eva, technically Graves could do so. Graves even was careful to make it clear she (Graves) was going to do all the talking. This is legal BUT is entering a very dangerous mine field where one wrong step could blow the case. She could talk to Eva but not question Eva.

 

And Graves blew it when she asked Eva "You broke up with him on the Saturday after we interrupted your dinner." That crossed over from talking to Eva asking Eva a question and getting an answer. It was only one question, and all Eva did was nod in answer, but that was an answer. It was evidence. Graves violated Eva's constitutional rights by questioning Eva without Eva's lawyer present after Eva expressly said she wouldn't talk without one.

 

Of course Graves knew that Eva called Gideon's cell phone from her home phone at exactly that time on Saturday morning when Gideon was at the station and Graves was watching. A simple check of both of their phone records would show the numbers, time called, and length of phone call. Graves never would have asked if she didn't already know who called who. This is the exact same deal as when Graves asked Gideon whether he knew Nathan, Graves already knew the answer to that.

 

But Graves did not have proof of what Graves suspected -- that Eva dumped Gideon, not the other way around. She tricked Eva into revealing that one bit of proof. It probably was spur of the moment as Graves kept pressing, knowing that she (Graves) was right all along, Eva's crying confirming Graves' suspicions. Graves was winging it based on the reactions she was getting by talking to Eva, and she pushed just a fraction too hard by actually asking Eva to confirm a suspicion.

 

So now that little piece of evidence -- Eva's confirmation Gideon didn't break off the relationship -- is now legal poison because it was obtained in violation of constitutional rights. And thus anywhere that piece of evidence leads Graves next is what is known as "fruit of the poisoned tree."  Eva's answer to Graves (the nod) is inadmissable and so anything Graves gathers next based directly and solely on that nod also is inadmissable, because it is the fruit of something inadmissable. Indeed, almost everything else Graves gathers after "running into" Eva is ripe for legal challenge by the defense. But anywhere that answer by Eva to that one question directly lead the cops next is gonna get tossed. What's the first thing Eva did next? Ran to Gideon. 

 

Graves took a huge risk by approaching Eva. Cops do this sometimes. It happens more often than you'd think in real life, pressuring suspects and reluctant witnesses alike. But sometimes, this ends up blowing up in their face. Many cases that never make it to trial end up that way because crucial evidence gets tossed by a judge long before the trial itself, leaving the prosecution without evidence they absolutely need in order to get a conviction.

 

Graves may now continue to gather her proof the whole Corrine-Gideon-Eva love triangle was one fat lie and central to Gideon's well-planned murder plot. But it'll never get to trial, if a judge rules it's all inadmissable, thanks to Graves' mistake. If Graves can't prove the love triangle was a lie, she can't prove motive. Without motive, the prosecution can't win, especially on a case where the other half, opportunity, is weak. There's a tiny possible hole in Gideon's alibi, but that's shaky at best. Without clear motive to go along with the weak opportunity, the jury won't convict. There's a big enough hole in reasonable doubt "to drive a truck through" as some lawyers would sarcastically say.

[LN Cronan]

Last word, lest I bore everyone with all the real-life stuff I know about how cops investigate cases and prosecutors take them to trial.

 

Even if the cops think Nathan was a scumbag who deserved to die, it is NOT their call to drop the case. That decision rests solely with the prosecution. In Gideon's case, this would be the office of the District Attorney for New York County -- the agency that prosecutes criminal cases in New York City that are being handled under the state of New York laws (here, the murder laws). In a case as involving a celebrity like Gideon, probably the head DA himself/herself would make the final call after a pitch from deputies who worked with the cops during the investigation.

 

An ambitious prosecutor would jump all over this case -- it would be the biggest thing since O.J. Simpson (I know, I know, the prosecution lost O.J., but not for lack of trying and spending a fortune on the case.) A smart prosecutor would carefully consider the strength or weakness of the case before formally daring whether or not to charge him -- i.e. unless the state had a very good shot at winning the trial based on solid evidence, the DA might back off.

 

In June, I likely get to tell my online friends here "I told you so" when Gideon's case is handled one of two ways:

 

1. The prosecution doesn't dare proceed to the grand jury stage to get Gideon indicted and then arrest him.
2. If the prosecution does arrest him, the case won't go to trial because crucial evidence will get tossed by the judge because the cops end up violating Gideon's and/or Eva's constitutional rights in trapping them. The cops are walking a very narrow line here.

[AMC]

INTERESTING!  THANKS!!