Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies/Episode 3: Turnabout Academy/Trial, Day 2

After a sleepless night, you find yourself in the defendant lobby. Klavier has come with the results of the voice analysis, and the voice is definitely the same as the one in the mock trial. The tape recorder is updated in the court record. The study of the tape is still ongoing. Signs of overdubbing have been found, but recovery of the erased audio will take a while. You suddenly hear the sound of someone falling, but the person fled quickly. After a mini Chords of Steel exercise, it's time to enter the courtroom.

Trial Begins
Robin and Hugh have recanted their confessions, and the art room photo is no longer relevant, according to Blackquill. He means to prove that Juniper was the only one that could have moved the body. According to his theory, the victim was murdered in the center of the art room, and then carried to the window. The body then landed on a mat and was carried with the ball cart. He calls O'Conner as a witness to prove this.

O'Conner's Testimony: What O'Conner Saw
The drag marks you saw yesterday were from that mat. It is the only mat in the entire campus, and therefore the one used to cushion the fall. It looks like you're off to a bad start again.

Cross-Examination: What O'Conner Saw
Present the stage set up photos on the third statement. If O'Conner really was standing at the corner, he couldn't possibly have seen Juniper because of the big construction screen that is in the way. O'Conner now claims it was a slip of the mind, and that he watching her from the front of the stage, but you cannot see behind the stage from there. The only way this would be possible is if O'Conner was actually in the same area behind the stage, but in that case, Juniper surely would have seen him.

Blackquill now says that Hugh actually was standing at the vantage point, but he was sitting inside the crane. From here, he could look over the construction screen. Apparently he was working part time as a crane operator. O'Conner clearly doesn't want anyone to know about this, and denies that he operated the crane. In the other photo that you received from Scuttlebutt, the crane operator is visible. O'Conner still denies that the person in the photo is actually him, so you propose to examine His neck to prove the person inside the crane is actually him. In the photo, he has a unique object around his neck. O'Conner's neck is concealed by his tall collar. Sure enough, when he unbuttons his collar, it's the same neckband as in the photo.

He finally admits to having a part time job as a crane operator, but shouldn't you be at least twenty to have a license to operate such a crane? Blackquill decides to reveal his secret: Hugh is actually twenty-five years old! He took a seven year break from school! Despite this new information, the prosecution's claims have not changed. Thankfully, Apollo has thought of something. He couldn't have been on the job right before the mock trial, so what was he doing in the crane? He was probably using the crane to Move the body. When asked for an explanation, Hugh shows his left hand that has been in his pocket all this time. It's injured and covered in bandages! Two hands are necessary to operate a crane like that, and the prosecution's claims still hold ground.

The only thing you can do is think of a way the body could have been moved without it being dropped. When you are asked what what was used to move the body, present the school banner. Someonr could have used the banner to lower the body via the wire! The bottom part of the banner was knotted up, so the body could have been bundled in there and lowered to the stage without the use of a mat. However, if this is the case, the body would have been carried to the window with the wire, and not the window with the bloodstained pottery. That means the blood on the pottery must not have been The victim's blood. And indeed, after a blood analysis, the blood on the pottery turns out to be from O'Conner! Does this mean the blood got on there after a struggle with the victim? It would also explain the injury on his left hand.

Blackquill asks the court to look at an envelope with Scuttlebutt's script inside. It contains a trap with a powerful blade, and only Courte knew the correct way to open it. This disproves that the body was dropped to the maintenance area! If the body was lowered with the wire, that would also explain the sound you heard during the mock trial, but that creates another problem. The body wouldn't have been on the stage before the mock trial, like O'Conner testified. When putting him under pressure, O'Conner admits that he was lying, and never actually saw the body. But why would he lie about this? Anyway, you have now proven that the body was moved during the mock trial, but that leaves Juniper as the only suspect! She was in the audio control room, and could leave and reenter the Lecture Hall. Now you've really dug your own grave, and you have nothing to counter it. Just before the judge was going to give the verdict, he gets interrupted by O'Conner. He asks for the court's attention, and then he confesses AGAIN!? He couldn't actually be the culprit, because he was at the mock trial at the time of the murder. O'Conner wants to give testimony explaining what he did at the time of murder.

O'Conner's Testimony: Hugh's Confession
Seriously? A body double? Even the judge agrees that this testimony makes no sense at all, but Hugh insists that this is the truth. But if you don't take this chance to cross-examine him, the verdict will be reached, so you don't really have a choice. The judge allows you to do a short therapy session, but Blackquill doesn't feel like this is worth his time, and leaves for a walk with Fulbright. O'Conner's emotions are out of control, and you have to find the source of his happiness.

Mood Matrix: Hugh O'Conner
Probe Woods on the seventh statement. O'Conner says the confession is about the truth, and that he still doesn't care about Juniper, but this is clearly not true. Hugh feels great happiness in the thought that he might help Juniper. Blackquill has returned, and already demands a verdict. There is still noise left, so you can continue the therapy.

Pinpoint happiness on the third statement. That's strange... he exhibited happiness during the entire testimony, except during this statement. O'Conner now claims that he actually was at the mock trial, but only just before the verdict, and that this is the reason that he didn't feel happy. No one could have seen him if he entered through the doors behind the screen. The people on the balconies could have easily seen him though. O'Conner then claims he went through the right door, and Prof. Courte was supposed to be on the left balcony. This is a lie, and to prove this, present the Lecture Hall diagram. The left balcony couldn't have been empty, because that was where Prof. Means was seated, but he doesn't seem to be lying about the left balcony being empty. O'Conner is asked to testify once more.

Pinpoint sadness on the fourth statement. The audio control room wasn't really empty, but there was someone who returned after Prof. Means's speech. Present Juniper Woods's profile. Hugh realized that if he said that, it would mean Juniper was roaming around the campus. Blackquill is enraged by O'Conner's constant lies, and breaks out of shackles again! He was about to cut O'Conner down, but then remembers his "shocking" experience last time he tried doing something like that. O'Conner admits to not being a genius, and says that he accidentally learned that his parents have been paying money for good grades. When he confronted his parents about this, Juniper overheard him, and reported it to Prof. Courte. O'Conner wanted to make it up to Juniper for disappointing her, and pinned the blame on himself.

The truth is, the friendship between the three of them is still rock solid, and you just need to prove that. You think of the "proof of friendship" they were talking about, and it's definitely the neckband he has. O'Conner always touches his neck when pressured, and the two others also feel the same way. The others wear their proof of friendship Where they're easy to touch. Robin holds her arm, and Juniper holds her wrist when pressured. The game moves to a cutscene showing Robin making the bands of friendship, and the three showing their proof of friendship to each other in court. Hugh recants his confession again, and now will only tell the truth. This means you're back to square one, and Juniper is still the only one without an alibi during the mock trial. At least that is what Blackquill claims, but O'Conner is telling the truth, and that leaves another person without an alibi. During the mock trial, the left balcony really was empty! Present Aristotle Means's profile.

Prof. Means was supposedly giving his speech during the mock trial, but he could give his speech from an empty seat if it was Pre-recorded. O'Conner says accusing Prof. Means is insane, because he gave him the tape recorder, but that was forged evidence! The tape recorder is updated in the court record once again. Prof. Means is called to the witness stand. The court takes a listen to the pre-trial speech to find a contradiction. There is something strange about the last part of the speech.


 * "Once again, our pure white Lady Justice will be watching over all of you today."

Present the golden statue in the center of the Lecture Hall. The white statue was replaced after it broke on the night of the murder, Means must have assumed the white statue was going to be used. Prof. Means claims it was nothing more than an oversight, and this is not enough evidence that the speech was pre-recorded. If you look at the timestamp, you will notice the speech lasted exactly ten minutes and thirty-five seconds. That's the same as the noise length on the tape recorder! Present the voiceprint analysis. Prof. Means's speech had been overdubbed by Juniper's fabricated threat! Prof. Means now claims that he didn't want to testify to protect Juniper, but now that he is under suspicion, he has no choice but to tell the truth.

Cross-Examination: Prof. Means's Testimony
Present the tape recorder on the fifth statement. He obviously didn't want to protect Juniper if he would forge incriminating evidence against her. Prof. Means is serious now, and he now looks like a Spartan warrior! He grabs his chalkboard, and after the roll call, explains why he couldn't be the murderer. The murder occurred between 6 and 8 PM, but he claims to have already been at home at that time. Then, Robin takes the witness stand to make another confession: she did not make the two statues all by herself. After the last bell, she asked Prof. Means to finish the second statue, and must have been at school until at least 7 PM. Prof. Means offers an explanation for this.

Means's Testimony: Prof. Means's Work of Art
It is true that Juniper said that she saw both statue finished around 8:30 PM at the detention center, and it is possible to finish a statue in that amount of time. There doesn't seem to be a contradiction in his testimony.

Cross-Examination: Prof. Means's Work of Art
Press on the fourth statement. Means repeats that he couldn't have left the stage during this time. There is nothing more you can do, so when the judge asks if you accept the witness's claim, select Yes, I accept it. However, you have another objection. If Prof. Means didn't move from the stage, then everyone was wrong about the Crime scene. When asked where the crime was committed, present the stage. It is strange that there was no blood at the crime scene, except for one item. Present the school banner. However, the cause of death was blood loss, and there was only a trace amount on the school banner. If so, then there must have been something else to soak up the blood. Present the Gavinners banner on the ground.

There was also a large pool of blood in the art room. When asked what used to transport the blood to the art room, present the burnt fragments. Then, you are asked to explain the loud noise you heard during the mock trial. Another object was used to knock down the statues, present Lady Justice. But why would Prof. Means use the statue? Considering that the statue was moved during the mock trial, while Means was faking his alibi, the most logical explanation would be that he wanted to Point us to the body. This should explain everything, but Prof. Means asks one final question. If the body wasn't found until the next day, where was the body hidden?

Prof. Means goes further and claims that not only have you failed to defend Juniper, but also almost got her friend convicted, and that you are not worthy of your attorney's badge. You experience a past trauma, but Robin, Hugh and Juniper remind you of the good things you have done for them, Blackquill reminds you of someone that you were trying to save, and Apollo tells you the truth will always win against people like Means. After thanking everyone, you look back over the entire case.

Revisualization
There wasn't any time to move the body somewhere else, therefore Courte must have been killed on the stage. This also means the body must have been hidden somewhere near the stage. First up, when did Prof. Means remove the body from its hiding place? Prof. Means was using the tape recorder to make a fake alibi to move the body where it would be easily spotted. Therefore, the body was moved During the mock trial, specifically, During the speech. Apart from the body, the professor also moved The white statue to the stage, knocking down the two statues. The body must have been hidden someplace. How about something that should've been finished but was only mostly done? It didn't draw attention because it looked like it belonged on the stage. The only thing that was on the stage and capable of concealing the body was The Wright statue.

Recreating the Statue
The Wright statue was never actually finished! The body was wrapped under some cloth to make it look like a statue! It sounds insane, but you'll never know unless you try for yourself! When you make the objection pose and get wrapped around in a sheet, it doesn't look very convincing. You're missing the spiky hair, and a dead person can't hold their arm like that. You remember that Courte's wrists were tied up. To recreate the spiky hair, select to have your hands tied up Behind my head. However, it doesn't look like you're in objection pose at all. There was something on the victim's body that you don't have now. Present the arrow, this could serve as an arm. But, even with the hands tied behind your head and the arrow, it still doesn't look like the statue. The arm is way too short!

What else could have been used as an arm? If the murder wasn't premeditated, then Prof. Means must have used something that was close at hand. Present Means's staff in the photo. When you use the staff as an arm, it looks just like a statue of Phoenix Wright (according to the gallery, at least)! Prof. Means says this is a coincidence, but you can prove it if you Test the spear for blood. There is no real need to do this, however, because it is already obvious who the real culprit is. Means makes a few proposals for his punishment, but they won't do. When he writes down his proper punishment, his teeth shatter and he collapses to the ground.

Juniper Woods is found...



What really happened
The 67th school festival took place in 2027, and featured a mock trial between the two best students in the lawyer and prosecutor course, in this case Robin Newman and Hugh O'Conner. The winner would receive a special lecture from either the ace attorney Phoenix Wright or famous prosecutor Klavier Gavin, depending on the course they are taking. The script would be written by a student from the judge course, and Woods's script was chosen by Prof. Courte.

In the wake of the dark age of the law, an unspoken rift emerged between students and teachers. Rumors begun circulating of teachers accepting bribes from students. This led to Prof. Courte assigning Juniper Woods as her "snitch" to find the culprit behind the bribes. Hugh O'Conner accidentally discovered that his parents were bribing one of the professors for good grades. When confronting his parents about this on his phone, Woods overheard him and assumed Hugh was the one bribing the professor. On October 22nd, Woods gave her monthly report to Prof. Courte, and reported the bribery. After meeting with O'Conner, she learned Prof. Means was behind the bribery.

The next day, around 7 PM, Hugh O'Conner went to the art room and noticed a script written by Myriam Scuttlebutt. Thinking it was another nasty tabloid with malicious intent, he opened the envelope, only to have his hand injured by the booby-trap inside, leaving the pottery with bloodstains. As he was heading towards the hallway he was spotted by Woods with his hand dripping with blood. Meanwhile, Prof. Means was asked to finish the Wright statue on the stage by Newman after the last bell. When Courte confronts Prof. Means about the bribery, Means stabs Prof. Courte with his staff and leaves her bleed to death. Having read the mock trial script's details from Courte's notes, he decides to frame Woods for the crime.

Means wiped up the blood with two banners, and brought them to the art room, where he creates a large pool of blood. He then proceeds to throw the Gavinners banner in the incinerator, and brought an awl from the art room to cover it in Courte's blood. Means tied Courte's hands to her head and used his staff and covered it with sheets to make it look like a statue. Sometime after the murder, Means also pre-recorder his speech for the mock trial, lasting ten minutes and thirty-five seconds.

The next day, during the mock trial, Means played the pre-recorded speech, and left to the stage so that Courte's body is easily spotted. To hide that the body has been by the Wright statue this whole time and to draw attention to the body, Means moved to the art room, and lowered the white Lady Justice statue with the school banner, making it crash into Gavin's statue. While having created a fake alibi, Phoenix Wright and Athena Cykes were led to the body, and the crime looks like it was committed the same way as the mock trial script.

Means then used the tape recorder to fabricate evidence of Woods screaming "You're a goner!" and gave the tape to Hugh O'Conner. His last step was attempting to take Woods's case. Thankfully, Cykes insisted in taking the case, who deduced that Means was the real culprit.

After the Trial
The school festival is being extended one more day until tomorrow! At the festival, we see Juniper about to sing the Guitar's serenade with Klavier (sounds familiar). After the performance, everyone is gathered in the Lecture Hall. Hugh thanks Phoenix for the training seminar, and Newman decides she will stick to being a prosecutor, to make up for the loss. This means O'Conner won the mock trial! It looks like O'Conner is about to confess... but he asks Juniper if they still can be best friends. The confession was apparently about his age, and that he is not a genius. Juniper proposes that Robin, Hugh, Myriam and herself will work together to put an end to the dark age of law, because the end never justifies the means.

You and Apollo start talking about his best friend, and he wanted you to meet with him. Unfortunately, that promise was never fulfilled, which also lead Apollo from leaving the office. This will be explained in one of the sadder cases in the series.