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The attorney representing Stephanie Christie, the sole woman among 33 people now on trial accused of being members of the feared Klansman gang, yesterday went to great lengths to present his client as a dedicated church and community woman with a mundane nine-to-five job in a stationary store and not a top-ranking lieutenant in the criminal outfit.According to attorney Alexander Shaw, his client, who was born and raised at Jones Avenue in St Catherine, was only just a "childhood friend" of alleged gang leader Andre "Blackman" Bryan.The court has already heard testimony that the gang's headquarters was at Jones Avenue.Shaw's suggestion to the witness that Christie's only association with Bryan was by virtue of the fact that they grew up together in the same community was dismissed with a curt, "I can't agree, I disagree," by the witness.Shaw was confronting the witness, a former gang member turned State informant, over aspects of his testimony that the defence sought to portray as inconsistent.The attorney's, "You knew they were close friends?" was met with a sarcastic, "Close friends? I didn't know that close friends want to kill close friends," by the witness. He was, however, reined in by trial judge Chief Justice Bryan Sykes before he could say more.Shaw, in positing to the witness that he hated his client, questioned him about a supposedly threatening text received by his client while she was in custody in which the witness indicated his intention to harm her. The witness, in denying the message, further rejected suggestions from the attorney that he had followed on the threat by "trying to get her killed"."Why would I want to get her killed?" the witness queried."Because you don't like her...she used to always tell yuh that yuh mix up and labba labba [talk too much], that's why you don't like her," the attorney insisted.Shaw further grilled the witness with suggestions that he had made other unsavoury comments about Christie, branding her as an "obeah worker".But according to the witness, he had no reason to hate Christie and had not told anyone she was an obeah worker, except to tell the court that she had provided "guard rings" for members of the gang and had offered one to him as well.The witness also stood by his earlier assertions that Christie was the "aggressor" in meetings held by the gang, in contrast to the attorney's suggestions that the only meetings his client was involved in were church and community meetings.According to Shaw, Christie was not responsible for securing legal representation for incarcerated gangsters in particular. He said her strong community ties made it so that Christie was "just generous to everybody"."I can't agree... family members always go and look them lawyer. I don't know of any close friend doing that," the witness replied."I'm suggesting to you that she was a community person, well involved in Jones Avenue, born and grown in Jones Avenue," the attorney said."So what would you say about Lauriston?" the witness shot back.Cautioned by Justice Sykes, again, he said, "I totally disagree."Earlier yesterday the witness claimed that he had been offered money by incarcerated gang members to buy his silence to help them beat their cases.At that point he had been asked by Shaw if he had been in contact with any of the accused while they were in custody and whether he had demanded money from Christie or from the other incarcerated accused in return for his silence. The witness declared, "No, Sir, I had been offered money on behalf of Sick Head and [one other] to come to court and say I don't know them."While testifying in October the witness had told the court that, in 2018 he was summoned by Christie, who is a 'pastor' of a church in St Thomas, to her house to discuss Bryan's waning legacy.The witness had recalled for the court what he said was a meeting with Christie during which she supposedly told him, "Wi need fi up wi game because wi can't mek Blackman ting water down."Asked to explain what that meant, he said, "Meaning, from him gone jail nobody nah dead, no killing nah gwaan. It was a bad thing for her."He had further claimed that Christie, who was introduced to him in 2016 by Bryan, "run the gang"."She is known as the finance person and the link between the police force and the gang. Christie is the person who gets the [information about] the licence plate numbers and colours for the police private cars and the type of car, she pass it on to mi and I pass it on to the gang. If Blackman had a problem with an officer she would get it sort out," the witness claimed."If someone was held by the police she would get that sorted out as well. She would get someone to bail them and she would deal with the lawyers; sometimes Blackman wi ask her if she get the bailer man," he had alleged.The witness had also testified that Christie, who went to church "every Sunday" and also went on church trips to which she invited him, had offered him her special brand of protection."She also invite me on the trips as well, say I need protection. She even give mi ring; I didn't take it," the witness had claimed.Prodded by Chief Justice Sykes as to whether he went on the trips or if the ring offered was a 'guard ring' the witness had said, "No, Your Honour [he didn't go on the trips] and yes [it was a guard ring]".He had further claimed that two of the accused presently sitting in the dock are sporting guard rings courtesy of Christie.The Crown, in opening its case on September 20, had said Christie was the "liaison officer" between incarcerated members of the gang and those roaming free. Christie, the court was told, was also responsible for securing legal representation for the members of the gang whenever the law caught up with them and was also the "link" between the gang and rogue cops.