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There are only three people I look out for: Me, Myself and I.
~ Damon Gant.

Damon Gant, also known as Kaiji Ganto in the original Japanese version, is a major antagonist in the video game Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, serving as the main antagonist in the fifth and final case, "Rise From the Ashes," which was included in the international Nintendo DS release of the original GameBoy Advance port.

Biography[]

Damon Gant was the District Chief of the Los Angeles district police department. Chief Prosecutor Lana Skye and Gant formed a legendary duo for their formidable skills in law enforcement. Gant was the brains of the duo, famous for his crime-solving abilities.

The last case of the legendary duo was the SL-9 case in which a businessman named Joe Darke committed a string of murders. Gant and Skye worked alongside the investigation team, which included detectives Bruce Goodman, Jake Marshall and Angel Starr as well as Jake's brother, prosecutor Neil Marshall. They tried to gather enough evidence to convict Darke, but they ultimately failed. During Darke's interrogation, a power outage occurred, which Darke used to flee the interrogation room. Neil chased him to Gant's office where they had a fight. Gant followed Neil and, after arriving at his office, he saw Neil, Darke, and Lana's sister, Ema, unconscious from the fight. Gant saw this as an opportunity to convict Darke once and for all, so he impaled Neil's unconscious body on the sword of a suit of armour, killing him.

Gant then arranged the crime scene to make it look like Ema was the murderer. When Lana arrived, she and Gant rearranged the scene to make it look like Darke was the culprit. Later, using false evidence, the duo along with prosecutor Miles Edgeworth managed to sentence Darke to death for his crimes. Gant then fired Angel Starr and demoted Jake to patrolman level in order to ensure that the investigation team stayed quiet about the case. For the following years, Gant used Lana's desire to protect her sister in order to blackmail her and take control of the city's law enforcement.

Shortly before the SL-9 incident was transferred into storage for good, Bruce Goodman, convinced by Jake Marshall, decided to reopen the case. In a moment of panic, Gant killed Goodman with Darke's knife. He then cleaned up the crime scene and, with the help of Lana, moved the body to the underground parking lot. With false evidence, Gant then framed Lana for the murder.

Phoenix Wright managed to break into Gant's office later on and found decisive evidence from his safe, which would imply that Ema was the one who murdered Prosecutor Marshall two years earlier. Not refusing his defeat, Wright pleaded the court to summon Gant to the witness stand. Along with his and Lana's testimony, Wright created a clever plan to prove that Gant was the murderer. After Gant admitted that he had cut a piece of cloth from Prosecutor Marshall's vest, Wright noted that, since there was no blood in the piece of cloth, it could only have been cut off prior to Marshall's murder, thereby exposing Gant as the true killer. Gant panicked and claimed that the cloth was not legally valid evidence, as Wright had refused to present it when prompted earlier, and thus he could not be convicted of murder with it. However, Wright, backed by a copy of Evidence Law, proved that he could not have presented the evidence when prompted because it was neither approved by the police department or proven to be relevant to the case; the cloth's relevance was only proven when Gant admitted to cutting it off, which at the same time gave it the personal approval of the chief of police as decisive evidence.

After Gant's breakdown, he admits to the crime and actually expresses guilt and remorse over his actions, regret over losing the Judge's friendship, and good wishes for both Wright and Edgeworth's futures in the courtroom.

Breakdown[]

In his breakdown, Gant starts clapping his hands and laughs hysterically, increasing the amount of clapping more and more until he starts clapping 50 times per second, before returning to his former, calm self.

Personality[]

Gant mostly seemed like a very jovial, coltish, eccentric person, but was nevertheless the respected leader of the police force. He enjoyed referring to other people with his own nicknames, such as "Wrighto" for Wright, "Worthy" for Edgeworth, and "Udgey" for the judge. He also had a passion for swimming and would constantly invite people to swim with him.

However, this all changed during the SL-9 case. Gant, frustrated, and angered about being unable to prove Darke guilty, decided to take matters into his own hands. The chief of the police forces thus became a cold, calculating, manipulative criminal himself—using his once-jovial nature as a mere façade.

Damon was very intelligent and cunning, having an extensive knowledge of the criminal system and being able to effortlessly manipulate both the Prosecutor's Office and the court to turn the tables against his opponents. His understanding of the legal system allows him to dismiss arguments and evidence, penalize and intimidate Phoenix Wright, and manipulate outcomes to suit his desires.

Despite how far he has fallen by the time of his conviction, he seems to show genuine remorse for what he has become, lamenting the fact that the Judge has lost all respect for him, before congratulating Phoenix Wright and Miles Edgeworth for catching him. He then accepts his conviction, leaving Edgeworth with (cynical) advice and warnings, finishing his speech by alluding that the two men aren't too different, and that Edgeworth will one day understand why Gant felt like he had to take matters into his own hands.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

  • Damon's name could be a play on the word "demon," a hint of Gant's true nature.
  • Damon Gant and Quercus Alba are competitors for bosses who take the longest to defeat. While Alba is a marathon boss, Gant has several long testimonies over the course of two days.
  • Gant is often considered to be among the most intelligent and cunning criminals in the series, since he was able to create an almost perfect crime (only being stopped because of the unpredictable actions of his subordinates).
  • Gant's motifs are lightning and water, a dangerous combination.
  • As "Rise from the Ashes" was written after "Trials and Tribulations," Gant was the last villain created for the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney trilogy. Canonically, he's the eighth and final character who Phoenix gets arrested in the game (following Sahwit, May, White, Vasquez, Yogi, Von Karma, and Marshall). This may be the reason why he never makes any appearances in the anime adaptation.
  • Damon Gant is a foil to Manfred Von Karma in many ways. Both were corrupt officials, but while Von Karma exploited the flawed legal system to maintain his perfect win record, Gant created a system to exploit. Von Karma was intimidating and terrified the court into submission while Gant appeared to be jovial and easygoing, only becoming threatening when he was cornered. Von Karma was brilliant at long-term plans while Gant was a brilliant improviser.
  • Gant is the first antagonist with history as a hero before his descent towards villainy, having been a respected detective before Neil Marshall's death.
  • Gant's infamous shoe to the headline is a reference to a Youtube skit (where Phoenix Wright characters are assaulted by Phoenix throwing boots at their heads) that gained popularity in English-speaking countries.

External Links[]

Navigation[]

           Ace Attorney Logo Villains

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Manfred von Karma | Frank Sahwit | April May | Redd White | Jack Hammer | Dee Vasquez | Sal Manella | Yanni Yogi | Robert Hammond | Joe Darke | Lana Skye | Damon Gant

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice For All
Richard Wellington | Morgan Fey | Mimi Miney | Turner Grey | Acro | Juan Corrida | Shelly de Killer | Matt Engarde

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations
Dahlia Hawthorne | Godot | Kane Bullard | Luke Atmey | Ron DeLite | Furio Tigre | Viola Cadaverini | Bruto Cadaverini | Glen Elg | Jean Armstrong | Terry Fawles | Morgan Fey

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney
Kristoph Gavin | Zak Gramarye | Olga Orly | Pal Meraktis | Alita Tiala | Machi Tobaye | Daryan Crescend | Drew Misham | Valant Gramarye | Magnifi Gramarye

Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth
Cohdopian Smuggling Ring (Quercus Alba | Jacques Portsman | Cammy Meele | Calisto Yew | Manny Coachen | Ernest Amano) | Lance Amano | Lauren Paups | Ka-Shi Nou

Ace Attorney Investigations 2: Prosecutor's Gambit
Simeon Saint | Excelsius Winner | Bronco Knight | Fifi Laguarde | Rocco Carcerato | Bodhidharma Kanis | Judy Bound | Carmelo Gusto | Paul Halique | "Di-Jun Wang"

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies
The Phantom | Ted Tonate | Florent L'Belle | Marlon Rimes | Aristotle Means | Aura Blackquill

Professor Layton Vs Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
High Inquisitor Darklaw | Story Teller | Kira | Robbs and Muggs | Olivia Aldente

The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures
Jezaille Brett | John H. Wilson | Magnus McGilded | Joan Garrideb | Nash and Ringo Skulkin | Ashley Graydon | Tobias Gregson

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Spirit of Justice
Ga'ran Sigatar Khura'in | Gaspen Payne | Paht Rohl | Pees'lubn Andistan'dhin | Roger Retinz | Rheel Neh'mu | Geiru Toneido | Paul Atishon | Inga Karkhuul Khura'in | Dumas Gloomsbury | Pierce Nichody

The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve
Mael Stronghart | Raiten Menimemo | William Shamspeare | Odie Asman | Courtney Sithe | Enoch Drebber | Klint van Zieks | Genshin Asogi | Seishiro Jigoku

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