James the Fish
The only witness. He refuses to testify.
James saw the whole brownie incident from the river. Every minute of it. He has been sworn in by the court. He has said nothing since. He is a fish.
What James saw. On the night of the brownie incident, James was in the river, where he lives, at the window the river gives him on the empire's kitchen. He saw the pan go in full. He saw the pan come out empty. He saw who was holding it. He saw the goat near the oven earlier, which complicates the goat's account of everything else.
What James said. Nothing. The court has deposed him three times. The record of each deposition is one page long and mostly describes the river. Moo Cow has ruled his silence admissible. The raven has filed it under the brownie incident, in the redacted file, where it fits.
Why it matters. Every other animal in this empire has an agenda. The raven keeps the record, the goat bends it, the raccoon sells it back, the cow judges it, and the bear ate the part that mattered. James just watched. A court can work with a witness like that. A court cannot make him talk. He is a fish.
His position. James remains in the river. He has not asked for protection, a record deal, or a shirt. He is the only member of this court with nothing to gain, which is exactly why everybody is nervous.