The Wall: Chronicle of a Scuba Trial
Chapter 3

Trial, Day 1 (continued)

Everyone reassembles after the break, but the trial doesn't go forward right away. Instead, Judge Whittaker nods to her bailiff, who goes to a side door of the courtroom. This door connects to a small room where prisoners are kept before entering the court. Presumably the prisoners get to there by a passageway hidden from the general traffic of the court. Courthouse architecture has its own peculiarities.

A woman in her early 40s is escorted in by a female deputy. She is white, her hair is disheveled, and she wears no makeup. She had been arrested for driving while intoxicated, with an alcohol level of 0.22; the legal limit is 0.10. Her lawyer pleads that she not go to jail, as this is her first offense, and she has given up drinking. More importantly, he asserts, no one was injured by her driving. The judge asks her if she has given up drinking. The woman replies in a low voice, yes your honor, seeming contrite; impossible to tell she's sincere or not. The woman herself probably doesn't know. Judge Whittaker sentences her to 160 hours of community service, and forbids her to drive for six months except to work and back. The woman is escorted out.

Having dispensed with that matter, the judge nods to the current witness. "Mr. Morgan, you may take the stand. Please remember that you are still under oath." Morgan goes to the witness chair and Kirkland rises to cross exam him.

"Mr. Morgan, I'm Richard Kirkland, and I represent the defendant in this case. We've met before?"

"Yes?"

"In a deposition, is that right?"

"Yes."

"OK. Mr. Morgan, would you please tell the jury how long you have been in this business?"

"You mean scuba diving?"

"Yes, as a professional in the field of scuba diving."

"Fifteen years."

"And during that time you have seen the scuba industry grow?"

"Yes, it has grown quite a bit. It's still a small part of the overall recreation and vacation business, but it's expanded quite a bit in that time."

"Now Mr. Morgan, in the early days of scuba, it's my understanding that anyone could go out and rent scuba equipment and jump in the water. Is that right?"

"Well, that's actually before my time, probably in the 1950s and 1960s, but certainly not since I've been a professional."

"Could you explain to the jury why someone today, or in recent years for that matter, can't just go into a store, buy or rent some equipment and go scuba diving?"

"OBJECTION! Your honor it is immaterial to this case who can or cannot rent scuba equipment. I object to this tangential line of reasoning."

Kirkland's question seems pretty innocuous, but he is clearly leading the witness somewhere Pearson doesn't want him to go.

"On the contrary your honor!" Kirkland responds indignantly. "I believe it is vitally important to inform the jury just what is required for someone to get on a plane, fly the Cayman Islands, board a dive boat, and then and jump into an ocean that doesn't reach bottom for 5000 feet! And by requirement I don't mean a plane ticket. I mean the unique requirements to safely go scuba diving!"

Very clever, this reply. Even if the judge upholds Pearson's objection, the seed is planted in the jury that scuba diving's special. It's not like taking a swim off the beach.

"Overruled."

"Thank you." Turning to the witness, "Now, Mr. Morgan, could you please inform the jury why not just anyone can go to Cayman's Ocean Realm Resort, rent scuba equipment and go diving?"

"Well, actually anyone can go to a resort and scuba dive, as long as they are certified."

"You mean certified for scuba diving?"

"Yes. To go diving at any reputable resort, or get on a dive boat for that purpose, you first need to be certified in scuba, pass a course that leads to certification."

"You mean, Mr. Morgan, just so I understand you correctly, that anyone who wants to go scuba diving has to first take a course and become certified?"

"Well, yes, with one exception. People can take what we call an introductory dive, at some resorts, and in the states at most scuba shops, they'll put you in a swimming pool with an instructor to get a taste of scuba, but in these situations you are with an instructor, usually one on one, and that is not in any way considered training for any future dives. If you ever want to dive without being with an instructor and under very tightly controlled conditions, yes, you have to take a certification course, become certified."

"So to be more specific, the dive that Ms. Knowlton did with her boyfriend, they would both have to have been certified first?"

"Oh, yes."

"Everyone who dove on that Ocean Realm resort boat had to be certified first?"

"Oh yes, unless, as I said, they were taking an introductory dive, one on one with an instructor as part of an introduction to scuba, but that wasn't the case here, so I am certain they were all certified."

"Not to belabor the point, Mr. Morgan, but how can you be so certain?"

"Well, resort course divers are never taken to such depths as occurred on this wall dive. In these introductory dives, the instructor will take you perhaps to 20 or 30 feet, to give you a taste of scuba diving, and that's it. This dive was obviously not an introductory dive. Also, of course, a resort in the Cayman Islands is not going to let divers on the boat unless they see their C card first. Scuba is a big industry there and they're not going to tolerate a rogue outfit."

"C card is certification card?"

"Yes."

"Couldn't someone just fake a C card and go diving?

Morgan chuckles. "I suppose someone could get a phony C-card, rent an air tank from the resort and go diving, but as a practical matter that would be stupid, and it is almost unheard of. Anyone crazy enough to do that would probably try it in the states, not fly a thousand miles to the Caribbean. So I think I can safely assume that everyone on that boat was legitimately certified. You certainly wouldn't want to dive without being certified. As I said, that would just be just plain stupid."

"Why is that?"

"Well, scuba diving is potentially dangerous if you don't learn some basic rules and laws about pressures and gases and such. You can blow out your lungs and die."

"That is taught in the certification course? That you can blow out your lungs and die?"

"Oh yes. The language is not so explicit, but it's certainly taught that you can develop major problems from holding your breath or other violations while diving. All that information is an integral part of the course. Ordinarily, of course, diving is actually pretty safe if you follow the rules."

"Follow the rules?"

"Yes." Both interrogator and witness sense a potential double meaning in Morgan's ad lib response; neither is sure how the phrase will be picked up by the jury.

"These rules, as you call them, they are in the certification instruction book? In print?"

"Well, yes and no. I think I'm getting you and the jury confused. May I clarify what I mean?"

"Yes, please do."

"There are some basic rules in diving, like don't hold your breath, always stay close to your buddy, don't go deeper than 130 feet, and so forth. Those are in black and white. But each dive is different, and how deep you can go and how long you can stay, that depends on some specifics, such as how much diving you've already done that day. So overall, there are rules, yes, and divers also chart how much diving they've done to make sure they don't do too much on any given day."

"How long is the basic certification course. How long does it take?"

"It's about 30 hours total, including classroom instruction and pool dives. Then there are what we call open water dives with the instructor, usually four of those. After passing a written test and performing certain skills in the pool and in open water, you become certified."

"Open water?"

"Yes, like the ocean, or a lake. A natural body of water. Not a swimming pool."

"And that instruction, leading to a C card, allows you to go anywhere, rent equipment, air tanks, whatever, and go diving?"

"Yes, that's correct."

The jury is getting a little restless. Although Morgan has said nothing technical, and can explain things well to the non-diver, he is sounding like a scuba pitchman. Kirkland's problem is that he has to educate the jury, and the field has both technical and medical aspects which can't be ignored. Kirkland grimaces slightly, a sympathetic grimace to the jury, as if to say, 'Hey, this is difficult stuff, but let me see if I can get it all straight.' Like all good attorneys he can immerse himself in a new field if he has to, and has probably mastered more about scuba than the typical recreational diver. But he can't teach the jury, that has to be left up to others.

"Mr. Morgan, earlier you mentioned to Mr. Pearson that all divers carry lead weights, is that correct?"

"Well, yes."

"To us non-divers [a nod to the jury] that seems rather burdensome. Could you elaborate a little more. I mean, if I want to go the Caribbean I have to take lead weights with me on the plane? Why do divers need lead weights?"

Morgan chuckles. "No, you rent the weights wherever you dive. Every place you go diving they will rent an air tank and weights with a weight belt. That's pretty standard. Actually, I don't even like the word "carry." We don't carry the weights, we wear them in a belt around the waist. They allow the diver to sink below the surface and stay down. Without wearing some lead weights, with all the equipment and the wet suit, you would just float on the surface."

"That seems paradoxical, could you explain? I mean, wouldn't a heavy tank and equipment make you sink?" Kirkland seems in synch with the jury now; at least half of them must be wondering this very same question.

"Well, yes, if the equipment was all solid. But the vest you wear, the wet suit you wear, they actually contain air pockets, so they keep you buoyant, make you float. In warm water where you usually don't wear a thick wet suit, you get by with wearing only a few pounds, and in any case you don't even notice it when you're diving. So it's really not burdensome."

"A few pounds of lead weight? How many is a few?"

"Well it depends on what you're carrying, and on how much fat you have. The more fat you have, the more likely you'll float. Actually, each diver sort of determines his need by trial and error over several dives."

"In warm waters like this dive that took place at Grand Cayman, how much lead weight would you say the average diver takes?"

"It varies. As I said before, anywhere from 4-10 pounds. More experienced divers generally need less."

"Why is that?"

"They learn to control their buoyancy with proper breathing and more efficient body movements. It's an efficiency thing."

"So anywhere from 4 to 10 pounds of lead weight for a warm water dive?"

"Yes."

"Like these?" Kirkland hands Morgan some lead weights. They are rectangular, about 3 inches square and a inch thick, with two belt-wide slots so they can slide on the weight belt. He also hands Morgan a weight belt.

"Yes, these are four-pounders. One on each hip and you've got 8 pounds."

"Could you please insert them on the belt and show the jury how it's worn?"

Morgan obliges.

"And with one hand you can release the belt and the weights will fall away?"

"Yes."

"Could you please demonstrate?"

Morgan stands up and goes to the jury box where he places the weights and the belt on the railing. Then he webs the belt through both weights and places the on his hips.

"OK, now please show us how you release it."

Morgan reaches over with his right hand and gives a tug on the belt's metal clasp; the belt instantly falls to the floor with a thud.

"That quick release, that's so the diver can shed the weight belt and move quickly to the surface, is that right?"

"That's correct. In an emergency you've got to be able to get rid of your weights and ascend quickly."

Kirkland picks up the belt and hands it to the first juror, who then passes it around. This hands-on approach to jury education pleases Kirkland.

"How else could a diver carry these weights?"

"Well some diving vests have specially-designed pockets and you can carry weights in them."

"An ordinary pocket won't do?"

"Well, no. As I said, you have to be able to drop the weights quickly if you get in trouble." There is slight emphasis on 'said', just enough to imply the question was dumb. Kirkland doesn't respond and Morgan continues.

"You can do that with a weight belt, but not with weights stuffed in an ordinary vest pocket. Some BC's come with special pockets that have a purse string. Pull on that string the purse opens up and the weights drop out. Just like that. I don't like that arrangement myself, and I only use the weight belt."

"But you could put extra weights into an ordinary vest pocket. I mean, they will fit, won't they?"

"Yes, I suppose."

"OBJECTION!" Pearson has been silent for a while, and now is on his feet. "Mr. Kirkland is leading the witness and misleading the jury. If he has some pertinent questions about this case he should ask them, but not questions full of innuendo."

"Your honor this testimony has direct bearing on Ms. Knowlton's disappearance. It is vital to establish other plausible reasons why Ms. Knowlton may have quickly sunk off that wall. Absent any autopsy, indeed absent any physical evidence of her demise, I believe defense is entitled to explore any plausible explanation other than what we have so far heard from this witness. If I may continue?"

The judge weighs each objection carefully because each one is a potential point of appeal. But appeals are based more on evidence let in or kept out, not on what some paid witness is asked or isn't asked. Response to this objection is a no-brainer.

"Overruled."

"Mr. Morgan, I am handing you a duplicate of the scuba vest Ms. Knowlton wore the day she disappeared. The court will please mark this vest as Defense Exhibit 1. Along with it is a receipt from Central Scuba Stores for the vest she actually bought two years before her last dive -- please mark Exhibit 2. Would you be so kind as to authenticate that this is the same type and model of vest she had purchased?"

Morgan studies the receipt, then the bright pink scuba vest, then the receipt again. He checks the label, looks at the receipt again. "Yes, this appears to be a Sherwood BCD, Model S66."

"BCD?"

"That stands for buoyance control device, we call it BC for short. By pumping a little air in it you can help control your buoyancy in the water."

"And there are pockets in this vest?"

"Yes, three, one on each side and an upper vest pocket." Dutifully, he shows them to the jury.

"They are the specialized pockets you mentioned earlier?"

"No, no. These are ordinary pockets. You wouldn't want to put weights in these pockets. You'd have a hard time getting them out if you got into trouble."

"But the lead weights will fit into them?"

"Yes, of course."

"Mr. Morgan, if you would be so kind as to put the four pound weights in the two largest pockets." At this, Kirkland takes the weight belt from the juror still holding it and hands it to Morgan. Morgan removes the weights from the belt and puts one into each side pocket, then closes the velcro flaps.

"So that vest is now 8 pounds heavier, is that correct?"

"Yes."

"And a diver wearing it would be eight pounds more likely to sink than without them, is that correct?"

"OBJECTION!"

"Overruled."

"Yes."

"Thank you." Kirkland is satisfied. He takes the vest from Morgan and puts it on the table.

"Mr. Morgan, I am handing you what is labeled Defense Exhibit 3, a plastic card. Could you identify that card to the jury, please?"

Morgan takes the card and displays a faint, knowing smile. "Yes, this is Ms. Knowlton's scuba certification card. She was certified by PADI on November 4, 1992."

"PADI?"

"I'm sorry, that's Professional Association of Diving Instructors." It's the largest organization in the world that certifies scuba divers.

"I take it there are others, other organizations that certify divers?"

"Yes, there's PADI, NAUI, lots of others. PADI's the largest."

"NAUI?"

"National Association of Underwater Instructors."

"So she was certified almost 4 years before her disappearance on that reef?"

"Yes."

"Do you know how many dives she did before her last boat dive?"

"Not really. I read that her boyfriend testified to about 60 dives."

"Is that a lot, a little?

"In four years, that's about average for the typical recreational diver, 15 or so a year."

"You've done several thousand?"

"Yes."

"But you're an instructor, you teach diving. For someone like Ms. Knowlton, 15 a year is pretty typical?"

"Yes, it appears to be. Most Americans only dive when they travel to warm waters, and that is usually once or twice a year for most divers, it seems. Then they may do one or two dives a day, at most. Some people dive more, of course, but this seems to be pretty typical."

"Mr. Morgan, is it fair to assume that, having been certified by PADI, Ms. Knowlton learned the rules, as you call them, of scuba diving."

"OBJECTION. Witness has no knowledge of the decedent's learning about scuba."

"Overruled."

"You may answer the question," Kirkland prods.

"Yes."

"And after certification she dove, it appears, fairly regularly?"

"OBJECTION! Mr. Morgan has no knowledge of when she dove, of when she did those 60 dives."

"Sustained."

"Mr. Morgan, you have told the jury that you teach diving, in fact that you teach divemasters."

"Yes."

"What is the role of a divemaster?"

"Well, they are a level below the instructor, which is the highest level in scuba. Instructor is sort of like a full professor in college. Divemaster is like the junior professor. The divemaster position is to assist instructors in teaching scuba and also to lead dives such as the one Ms. Knowlton was on. Divemasters are also knowledgeable to work in dive shops and assist divers in certain tasks, but not to do actual teaching by themselves. Most divemasters are actually in training to become instructors, or plan to enter such training. So it's sort of like an intermediate spot."

"But they're considered professionals in scuba?"

"Yes, that's correct, sort of like entry level professionals."

"And you teach the divemaster course?"

"Well, I don't do it now, but I have in the past."

"You've even made a video for students taking the divemaster course?"

"Yes, that was a few years ago."

"Mr. Morgan, I am now handing you Defendant's Exhibit 4, which is a training video. Could you please read the title on the video box?"

He reads the label:

Pearson's eyes light up in mild alarm, while Morgan seems pleasantly surprised at seeing his own handiwork. Morgan had only briefly mentioned the tape during his deposition months ago. He did not expect to see it in the courtroom.

" Divers Unlimited International was the company you were working for at the time, was it not?"

"Yes, it was."

"And the date this tape was made?"

"1991."

"Has the instruction changed much since then?"

"No, not the basics, it's pretty much the same."

"How did you make this tape?"

"Well, we sent a divemaster into the water with some of our employees, on several dives, and I edited the footage of those dives to bring out the points we wanted to make."

"You edited it?"

"Yes, I worked with a professional videographer, and we did it together, but he's not a scuba instructor, so I really edited it."

"Your honor, with your permission I would like to show part of this tape to the jury."

"Any objection? the judge asked."

"Your honor," Pearson rose, a little off guard. "We have not had a chance to view this videotape, and I have no knowledge of its contents. Since this has not been introduced before, I do object to showing it without a prior viewing."

"Your honor," Kirkland reprises, "the author of this videotape is here, giving testimony. This is not a work of hearsay or of a third party. The nature of this tape is germane to the lawsuit against my client. If there is a problem with the tape, or it works against my client, that will come out also. Furthermore I will stipulate that the tape is original, was bought in a store, and has not been altered in any way, shape or manner."

At this point the judge calls both lawyers to her bench. There is some gesticulating, and the voices are kept low voices so the conversation cannot be heard. For a few minutes the trial is in abeyance, then

"You may show the tape."

"Thank you, your honor."

The TV and videoplayer are wheeled in position to the right of the judge, so everyone in the courtroom has a view. Kirkland has the remote control.

"Mr. Morgan, I will be stopping the tape once or twice and asking you questions."

"OK."

Credits appear on the screen. Morgan's name is highlighted. Kirkland fast forwards through some introductory text about diving. The jury enjoys this respite from what heretofore has been dry testimony. They expect to see underwater scenes, and won't be disappointed. A dive boat appears; on deck seven or eight divers - it is not exactly clear - are about to jump in the water. Kirkland turns the volume up.

Voice over. As divemaster you will make sure the mooring is secured and the site is safe for diving. . .

Fast forward. At fast speed the divers make jerky movements as they put on their equipment, test their tank's air, listen to the dive briefing and get ready to jump in the water. Then regular speed. The divers jump in the water.

Voice over: . . .ask each diver for the OK sign. When all is OK, begin your descent. Make sure you have enough visibility to see each diver. . .As you lead the dive, it will be important to look for interesting sea life that novices might miss. While safety is always the most important part of any dive, as divemaster you also want to help each diver appreciate the beauty of scuba and the wonderful discoveries to be made every time they take the plunge. This is where your own knowledge of the sea can come in handy. . .

Soft corals come into view. They look like colored plants, but are really part of the animal kingdom. Then fish are seen, then more fish. "Sure looks pretty down there" Kirkland says ingratiatingly, to no one in particular. Most jurors nod in agreement. For a brief moment there is a friendly aura in the courtroom. The sea can be captivating, but no one is here to watch The Discovery Channel.

Kirkland freezes the screen; the divers are at a wall of coral, a similar geologic formation to the wall where Jennie died.

"Mr. Morgan, where was this filmed?"

"In the Bahamas."

"Did you film it?"

"No, as I said, it was filmed by a professional underwater videographer."

"What were the circumstances?"

"I don't understand your question."

"Well, was this a staged dive, or is that really a divemaster leading the dive?"

"Oh, I see. Yes, she's a divemaster, but she's leading some of our company employees who helped make this training video. So these people are not on a recreational dive, they're just helping to make the video."

"But you used this video, that you edited, in your divemaster course?"

"Yes."

"OK, let's continue the tape." At that, Kirkland conspicuously takes out a stop watch and presses the timer when the tape re-starts.

Voice Over: You must always strive to preserve sea life and not harm any creatures you find. While it is permissible for you to handle crustaceans and other large sea animals, always take care to be gentle and not harm them. Now the divemaster is gliding past the wall, occasionally pointing to a hiding crustacean or a large swimming fish. The camera zooms out and now all the divers are in view. The divemaster continues along the wall and the others follow. She stops. Something is hiding in the wall. It is a giant crab. While keeping eyes fixed on the wall, the divemaster turns her head slightly toward the divers and holds out her left hand to signal them to stop, to wait and see what she has discovered. She shines her flashlight into a crevice, then reaches in with a gloved hand and slowly pulls out a large crustacean. Now she turns around to show the others her find.

Kirkland stops the tape and with a flourish clicks his stopwatch.

"Mr. Morgan, the scene that we just viewed, do you remember showing it in class?"

"Yes, " he says, and probably thinking, 'What's his point?'

"Mr. Morgan, I timed that last scene with my stopwatch. Would you please look at my stopwatch and tell us how much time passed in that scene."

Morgan picks up the watch, examines it.

"Looks like two minutes, 10 seconds."

"Mr. Morgan, in that two minute, 10 second scene, from your videotape, did we see the divemaster turn around to look at the other divers?"

There is a pause, and Morgan looks briefly to Pearson.

"Please, if you can, Mr. Morgan, answer the question."

"No."

"In that two minute, 10 second scene, from your videotape, did we see the divemaster make any attempt to count the divers in her charge?"

"No."

In that two minute, 10 second scene, from your videotape, did the announcer make any comment about the importance of continually counting the divers?"

"No."

"Mr. Morgan, in those 130 seconds, could one of the divers have fallen away from the group?"

"I suppose so, but. . ." He stops. Perhaps he was going to say, 'but their buddy would have noticed,' or something like that.

"Why doesn't your tape mention that the divemaster should never take her eyes off the other divers, if that is the rule? If that is the standard, why doesn't your tape point it out? Or is it just the standard for cases you testify against?"

"OBJECTION! Mr. Kirkland is badgering the witness."

"Sustained. Mr. Kirkland, please ask one question at a time, and wait for an answer."

"Mr. Morgan, please tell us -- me, the jury, the court -- just what is the standard for divemasters who are leading a group of buddied-up divers on a wall dive?"

Morgan regains composure. "Well the standard is clear. The divemaster should always be aware of the divers in his or her charge. In this training tape, if one of the divers had drifted away, I feel certain the divemaster would have become aware of it, and taken action. In fact, I believe we actually had a second divemaster posted out of camera range in just such event. If we didn't, we sure would have on a regular dive. We just didn't make a point of it in that particular scene. So that scene is taken out of context, really."

"Excuse me, I'm confused. Was the purpose of this training tape to teach about sea life or about the duties of a divemaster."

For a second Morgan seems unsure, then:

"The duties of a divemaster."

"Well, then, why didn't you mention that the divemaster should only show sea life if there is a backup divemaster overseeing the whole group. I missed any mention of that."

"This is just an edited tape to make a point, and --"

"What point, Mr. Morgan?"

"That when you come upon some interesting sea life you can point it out to the group, that's all. That this segment doesn't mention a second divemaster doesn't mean there shouldn't be one on a guided wall dive. You're taking this all out of context, Mr. Kirkland."

"But if there is no second divemaster, it is surely not expected that the solo divemaster be in constant eye contact with her charges every second, is it?"

"No, that's not necessary."

"So it is possible for a diver with some acute illness to fall away from the group, assuming that the diver's buddy wasn't watching, and get lost during some finite period while the solo divemaster isn't counting heads, and for this to happen within the standards you have demonstrated on this tape, is it not, Mr. Morgan?"

A pause, a furrowed brow, then "Yes, I suppose that's possible, given the constraints of how you're phrased it."

"And if a diver wanted to hide, or fall away, or leave the group, and that diver's buddy wasn't watching, it is also possible for that determined diver to do so, is it not?"

"Yes, I suppose, if the diver really wanted to get away."

"Thank you. No further questions."

The judge: "Mr. Pearson. Any re-direct?"

"Yes, your honor." Pearson stands to undo any doubt this barrage may have sown.

"Mr. Morgan, the purpose of that scene we just viewed, was to emphasize a certain point about observing and displaying sea life, was it not?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"Would you clarify for the jury your position on divemaster observation of divers in her charge."

"Yes. It is not necessary to physically watch every diver every second. It is necessary to be aware of your divers, of where they are, so that if one gets away you can act upon it. We teach this in the course, but the scene you viewed wasn't to make that particular point. We make that point in other scenes. Furthermore, on a deep wall dive with over 6 divers, we would never send down a solo divemaster."

"Thank you. No further questions."

"OK. We'll recess for lunch. Everyone back by 1 p.m."

* * *

Lake Erie is dark, brooding, and uninviting when the sky is grey and the air cold. It comes to life in the late spring and summer. Then the near shore can be crowded with sailors, motor- boaters, fishermen. On the shore are beaches, windsurfing, ski boating and water skiing. And across the lake you can reach Canada in under two hours by motor boat, in about 8 hours by sail. Many people make the trip for pleasure

Not many people go below the lake's surface. Even in the best weather visibility might reach only 4 to 6 feet. The lake hides over 300 wrecks, and hundreds more are in the other great lakes. Few people know about them, much less dive them. For every Edmund Fitzgerald there are hundreds of unsung, divable wrecks waiting to be explored. But diving here is only for cold-water aficianados, the scuba-addicted and diving professionals. Not, certainly, for the casual customer. Scuba training near the great lakes region is done inland, in quarries, where at least you don't have to contend with waves and unpredictable weather.

All the jurors are from the Lake Erie region, but only two have been scuba diving, and that in warm southern waters. None of the jurors dives now. Would any of this matter? Is it fair to ask, How can a group of people largely unfamiliar with scuba judge the cause of a scuba death, death in a recreational activity most of them know nothing about. A death three thousand miles away, in a foreign country? There is not even a body, let alone an autopsy report. Even the authorities don't know. Who does? Mr. Morgan from Miami who is paid to say things? Or the plaintiff's lawyer who will get a third of whatever the family is awarded? Or the smart defense attorney who seems on the verge of concocting his own theory? Can this case be judged fairly, with the certainty the law demands? If the jurors could opt out now, would they? 'Hey, Ms. Judge, you want me to decide the cause of this girl's death? You must be kidding, right? No way. Thank you, and goodby.'

The court house is only a stone's throw from the lakefront. Several jurors are spotted walking the promenade, looking out across to Canada. Relaxing? Thinking about the sea? Or about the victim, whose body lies two thousand miles away and a mile deep? Or perhaps they are just thinking about what to make for supper, watch on television, tell their familes when they get home.