Chapter 8 - The Trial & The Final Sentences
Six months later, the criminal trial of Eleanor Vance, Chloe Vance, and Mark Sterling concluded at the New York State Supreme Court.
The trial had been swift. Faced with incontrovertible video evidence, financial records, medical testimony from Mount Sinai specialists, and the crushing loss of all their assets, the defendants had no defense left to offer.
Maya did not have to testify in person; her video deposition, taken comfortably from our new brownstone, was played for the jury.
When the jury returned after less than an hour of deliberation, the verdicts were unanimous: Guilty on all counts.
The judge sentenced them ruthlessly:
Eleanor Vance: 12 years in state prison for Attempted Manslaughter, Felony Child Endangerment, and Grand Larceny.
Chloe Vance: 8 years in state prison for Assault, Criminal Inaction, and Theft.
Mark Sterling: 6 years in state prison for Conspiracy and Child Endangerment.
In addition to their prison sentences, the civil court ordered the complete liquidation of whatever remaining assets they held to pay a three-million-dollar restitution judgment to Maya and Liam’s educational trust.
As Eleanor was led away in handcuffs to begin her twelve-year sentence at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, she looked back one last time at the gallery.
May you like
She was older, her pride shattered, her life in absolute ruins. She had wanted a luxury vacation in South Beach; instead, she had traded her freedom, her family, and her future for a cell.
I sat in the gallery, holding Maya’s hand tightly. We didn't cheer or gloat. We simply watched as the shadows of our past were led away into the dark, cold halls of justice.
