I have decided not to use numbers for my chapter headings. This is my second chapter. If you haven't read the prelude, scroll down and real it first. Please let me know what you think.
SYNOPSIS: Jason Franco is an aspiring novelist stuck in a dead end job working for a newspaper in a small town where nothing exciting happens until someone rapes and murders a young woman only eighteen years old. All evidence points to the woman's boyfriend who confesses to the crime. Jason is assigned to write a follow-up story for the paper and soon suspects that the local police are covering up for one of their own. Jason enlists the help from a high school classmate who works at the state crime and the two soon fall in love. Jason and his girlfriend, Tina, follow the leads and Jason finds himself a target for the rapist turned murderer. An attempt on Jason's life puts him in the hospital as the alleged rapist commits suicide. An unexpected turn of events put Jason back in the cross hairs of a different killer.
Jeri Cruse, Torrington Chief of Police
The police station was only three blocks away form the newspaper office so Jason decided to walk. The weather was fair and sunny – not too hot. He arrived five minutes early to interview Chief Jeri Cruse.
Natalie Hathaway, Chief Cruse's administrative assistant, saw Jason standing in front of the desk sergeant and walked over. “Jason, you're early. The chief is ready to see you.” Natalie led Jason to Chief Cruse's office. He was a man of average height with a barrel chest. His nose was flat and had a slight 's' shape to it with the tip slightly off center to the left. One ear was mangled. Jason had met Chief Cruse on a couple of occasions but had never had an extended conversation with him.
The chief’s office was typical: a large desk covered in papers and files, a desk top computer and a seating area in front of the desk. There was a small conference table with chairs around it. Chief Cruse stood when Jason came in and motioned for him to sit at the table. He came from behind his desk and sat down opposite Jason at the table. He was wearing the dress uniform that he wore in court – impeccable.
Jason turned on his pocket recorder and laid it on the table between them.. “Chief, I'm going to record everything for the record. Nothing is off the record.”
“Trust me, son. I've been through this before,” replied the Chief. “Go ahead. Coffee?”
“Huh? No thanks. Let me start by saying that my editor asked me to do a follow up article about the Littlefield rape and murder. He wants me to get more on how that tragedy impacted the community. I’ve read your police reports and press releases as well as the ME's report. Do you have anything new to add?”
“Call me Jeri, please. Your editor is Sean, right? We go way back. No, there hasn’t been any new evidence since we arrested McAdams. His confession wrapped everything up as far as our investigation goes. His semen was found during the autopsy. The vic's cellphone was found in McAdams's home with a picture of her dead body. He had no alibi. It was a slam dunk – case closed.”
“At the sentencing, he said that he’s innocent.”
Chief Cruse leaned forward slightly and tilted his head to gaze over imaginary glasses. “They always do. The evidence is compelling and that is what condemned Mr. McAdams.”
“What’s your theory on the motive?”
Chief Cruse sat back and clasped his hands behind his head. “That’s a good question. Our justice system relies heavily on motive but in this case the motive is unclear. My theory, and the accepted working theory, is that it was a crime of passion. Mr. McAdams was getting ready to join the Army. Ms. Littlefield decided to break up with him. I don’t think she wanted a long distance romance. In a fit of anger, he beat her, raped her and then killed her.”
“Isn’t that a little extreme over a breakup?”
“I don’t know. It happens all the time. Husbands and wives kill each other. Boyfriends kill their girlfriends and vice versa. In a murder case, the spouse or significant other is usually the primary suspect, because so often they’re the perpetrator, statistically anyway.”
“I was troubled by the lack of any eye witnesses. Don’t you think someone would have seen Paulo’s car in the neighborhood?”
“Nah. That neighborhood has a lot of older folks who go to bed early. Now days, people are watching TV or looking at their cellphones or working on their computers. Noone sits around on their porch any more. We see that a lot. At that time of night, I wasn’t surprised that there were no eyewitnesses.”
"I would think that people still walk their dogs or drive to the store. Did your department try to find witnesses?”
“Of course. We canvassed the neighborhood but came up empty handed.”
“According to McAdams's statement, he had sex with Littlefield earlier that evening. Doesn't that explain his semen being present?”
Chief Cruse laughed. “That's just a defense ploy. There's no way to verify that they had consensual sex. His was the only semen present. The ME said she was raped; no doubt about it.
“Has this case changed the town? Has it changed the way your department does business?”
Chief Cruse slapped the table with the palm of his hand. “Good question. I think it has. Torrington isn’t a high crime area. Most of our crime is rather petty; robberies, assaults or drugs. We do have an occasional shooting but rapes and murders are rare. They do happen. People are going to feel insecure for the next couple of years and then they’ll forget about it.”
“How can you prevent this type of crime from happening again?”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure we can. It was a crime of passion, not well thought out – not premeditated. We could increase our department and have more patrols, but that takes a lot of money which we don’t have.”
“I know that the State Police were involved. What was their role in this case and did any other department help?”
“When the murder was discovered, we immediately called the State Police. They have Regional Enforcement Teams better trained in crime scene investigations. One team is always on standby. They flew up by helicopter and were here within two hours. All the evidence they collected was sent to the state crime lab in Cheyenne. That was all the support we received.”
“Just for background, how long have you been the Chief of Police?”
“I’ve been here about seven years, right after Chief Marini’s heart attack.”
“And how many officers do you have?”
“I’ve a staff of twelve officers. There are six patrol officers and two patrol sergeants. One officer is assigned to investigations and two are dedicated to the schools and college. There’s one reserve patrol officer who covers for officers on vacation or sick. We’re pretty thin. We have to run a 27/7 operation.”
"I didn’t see a report from your investigations department, just from the patrols.”
“I've only two officers in investigations. Mr. McAdams confessed so fast that there wasn’t a need to assign the case to them.”
“Who was working the night of Littlefield's murder?”
“Of course, we run three shifts. Usually, the second shift is from three to eleven. Marini and Rudd have that shift. Third shift is Dunley and Reynolds. As it happens, most of the patrol officers stay around after their shift and file paper work. That night Marini and Rudd were still in the station when the 911 came in. They responded immediately. Dunley and Reynolds were on patrol. I told Reynolds to stay on patrol and for Dunley to go to the crime scene. I was at home when dispatch called me and left immediately.”
“You mentioned that Chief Marini had a heart attack?”
“Yeah. Died right here at this very desk. His daughter found him. Terrible.”
“So Chief Marini hired his daughter?”
“Yeah. Normally, she would have needed a college degree in law enforcement, but he had been preparing her for years. He hired her. A little nepotism, I suppose. But Marini’s the best officer I’ve ever worked with. She’s now my second in command.”
“Did he also hire Officer Rudd?”
“No. He died before Art was discharged from the Army. I hired him. He also lacked a college degree, but he had three years of experience in the military police in the Army. Probably saw more action in those three years than most off our officers get in a career. He was something like a step-son to Chief Marini. Naomi Marini was his guardian as I understand. ”
“I read that Officers Rudd and Marini were the arresting officers.”
“Four officers responded to the initial call, including me. Officers Marini, Rudd and Dunley were the other officers. Dunley and I secured the crime scene and waited for the Enforcement Team from Cheyenne. Rudd and Martini went to McAdams’s house. Initially, they were going to inform Mr. McAdam that his girlfriend had been murdered. Rudd took him to the station for questioning. Officer Marini found evidence at the house that implicated him. Later, we charged him with the murder and rape.”
“Mr. McAdams had no priors?”
“None. It was one of those situations where for all outward appearances, he was a model citizen. I guess he just snapped. Who knows why? ”
“I didn’t see a lab report on the pubic hairs. What does that mean?”
Chief Cruse sucked in his lips and bite them. “The lab didn’t run any tests.”
“Why not?”
“Before the lab could test the hairs, Mr. McAdams confessed. I told them we no longer needed more evidence. Obviously, they were from him. He admitted as much.”
“I thought when he was arrested, he was clean shaven; no body hair.”
Cruse smiled. “Hair grows back.”
“I would like to interview Officers Marini, Rudd and Dunley, if I may.”
“Okay. I’ll check their schedules and get back to you.”
Jason had the feeling that he hadn’t asked the right questions. “I may want to talk with you again once I’ve a rough draft of my story. I want to get the details right.”
“Of course. Any time.” The chief stood and shook hands with Jason. It was a firm handshake.
SYNOPSIS: Jason Franco is an aspiring novelist stuck in a dead end job working for a newspaper in a small town where nothing exciting happens until someone rapes and murders a young woman only eighteen years old. All evidence points to the woman's boyfriend who confesses to the crime. Jason is assigned to write a follow-up story for the paper and soon suspects that the local police are covering up for one of their own. Jason enlists the help from a high school classmate who works at the state crime and the two soon fall in love. Jason and his girlfriend, Tina, follow the leads and Jason finds himself a target for the rapist turned murderer. An attempt on Jason's life puts him in the hospital as the alleged rapist commits suicide. An unexpected turn of events put Jason back in the cross hairs of a different killer.
Jeri Cruse, Torrington Chief of Police
The police station was only three blocks away form the newspaper office so Jason decided to walk. The weather was fair and sunny – not too hot. He arrived five minutes early to interview Chief Jeri Cruse.
Natalie Hathaway, Chief Cruse's administrative assistant, saw Jason standing in front of the desk sergeant and walked over. “Jason, you're early. The chief is ready to see you.” Natalie led Jason to Chief Cruse's office. He was a man of average height with a barrel chest. His nose was flat and had a slight 's' shape to it with the tip slightly off center to the left. One ear was mangled. Jason had met Chief Cruse on a couple of occasions but had never had an extended conversation with him.
The chief’s office was typical: a large desk covered in papers and files, a desk top computer and a seating area in front of the desk. There was a small conference table with chairs around it. Chief Cruse stood when Jason came in and motioned for him to sit at the table. He came from behind his desk and sat down opposite Jason at the table. He was wearing the dress uniform that he wore in court – impeccable.
Jason turned on his pocket recorder and laid it on the table between them.. “Chief, I'm going to record everything for the record. Nothing is off the record.”
“Trust me, son. I've been through this before,” replied the Chief. “Go ahead. Coffee?”
“Huh? No thanks. Let me start by saying that my editor asked me to do a follow up article about the Littlefield rape and murder. He wants me to get more on how that tragedy impacted the community. I’ve read your police reports and press releases as well as the ME's report. Do you have anything new to add?”
“Call me Jeri, please. Your editor is Sean, right? We go way back. No, there hasn’t been any new evidence since we arrested McAdams. His confession wrapped everything up as far as our investigation goes. His semen was found during the autopsy. The vic's cellphone was found in McAdams's home with a picture of her dead body. He had no alibi. It was a slam dunk – case closed.”
“At the sentencing, he said that he’s innocent.”
Chief Cruse leaned forward slightly and tilted his head to gaze over imaginary glasses. “They always do. The evidence is compelling and that is what condemned Mr. McAdams.”
“What’s your theory on the motive?”
Chief Cruse sat back and clasped his hands behind his head. “That’s a good question. Our justice system relies heavily on motive but in this case the motive is unclear. My theory, and the accepted working theory, is that it was a crime of passion. Mr. McAdams was getting ready to join the Army. Ms. Littlefield decided to break up with him. I don’t think she wanted a long distance romance. In a fit of anger, he beat her, raped her and then killed her.”
“Isn’t that a little extreme over a breakup?”
“I don’t know. It happens all the time. Husbands and wives kill each other. Boyfriends kill their girlfriends and vice versa. In a murder case, the spouse or significant other is usually the primary suspect, because so often they’re the perpetrator, statistically anyway.”
“I was troubled by the lack of any eye witnesses. Don’t you think someone would have seen Paulo’s car in the neighborhood?”
“Nah. That neighborhood has a lot of older folks who go to bed early. Now days, people are watching TV or looking at their cellphones or working on their computers. Noone sits around on their porch any more. We see that a lot. At that time of night, I wasn’t surprised that there were no eyewitnesses.”
"I would think that people still walk their dogs or drive to the store. Did your department try to find witnesses?”
“Of course. We canvassed the neighborhood but came up empty handed.”
“According to McAdams's statement, he had sex with Littlefield earlier that evening. Doesn't that explain his semen being present?”
Chief Cruse laughed. “That's just a defense ploy. There's no way to verify that they had consensual sex. His was the only semen present. The ME said she was raped; no doubt about it.
“Has this case changed the town? Has it changed the way your department does business?”
Chief Cruse slapped the table with the palm of his hand. “Good question. I think it has. Torrington isn’t a high crime area. Most of our crime is rather petty; robberies, assaults or drugs. We do have an occasional shooting but rapes and murders are rare. They do happen. People are going to feel insecure for the next couple of years and then they’ll forget about it.”
“How can you prevent this type of crime from happening again?”
“I don’t know. I’m not sure we can. It was a crime of passion, not well thought out – not premeditated. We could increase our department and have more patrols, but that takes a lot of money which we don’t have.”
“I know that the State Police were involved. What was their role in this case and did any other department help?”
“When the murder was discovered, we immediately called the State Police. They have Regional Enforcement Teams better trained in crime scene investigations. One team is always on standby. They flew up by helicopter and were here within two hours. All the evidence they collected was sent to the state crime lab in Cheyenne. That was all the support we received.”
“Just for background, how long have you been the Chief of Police?”
“I’ve been here about seven years, right after Chief Marini’s heart attack.”
“And how many officers do you have?”
“I’ve a staff of twelve officers. There are six patrol officers and two patrol sergeants. One officer is assigned to investigations and two are dedicated to the schools and college. There’s one reserve patrol officer who covers for officers on vacation or sick. We’re pretty thin. We have to run a 27/7 operation.”
"I didn’t see a report from your investigations department, just from the patrols.”
“I've only two officers in investigations. Mr. McAdams confessed so fast that there wasn’t a need to assign the case to them.”
“Who was working the night of Littlefield's murder?”
“Of course, we run three shifts. Usually, the second shift is from three to eleven. Marini and Rudd have that shift. Third shift is Dunley and Reynolds. As it happens, most of the patrol officers stay around after their shift and file paper work. That night Marini and Rudd were still in the station when the 911 came in. They responded immediately. Dunley and Reynolds were on patrol. I told Reynolds to stay on patrol and for Dunley to go to the crime scene. I was at home when dispatch called me and left immediately.”
“You mentioned that Chief Marini had a heart attack?”
“Yeah. Died right here at this very desk. His daughter found him. Terrible.”
“So Chief Marini hired his daughter?”
“Yeah. Normally, she would have needed a college degree in law enforcement, but he had been preparing her for years. He hired her. A little nepotism, I suppose. But Marini’s the best officer I’ve ever worked with. She’s now my second in command.”
“Did he also hire Officer Rudd?”
“No. He died before Art was discharged from the Army. I hired him. He also lacked a college degree, but he had three years of experience in the military police in the Army. Probably saw more action in those three years than most off our officers get in a career. He was something like a step-son to Chief Marini. Naomi Marini was his guardian as I understand. ”
“I read that Officers Rudd and Marini were the arresting officers.”
“Four officers responded to the initial call, including me. Officers Marini, Rudd and Dunley were the other officers. Dunley and I secured the crime scene and waited for the Enforcement Team from Cheyenne. Rudd and Martini went to McAdams’s house. Initially, they were going to inform Mr. McAdam that his girlfriend had been murdered. Rudd took him to the station for questioning. Officer Marini found evidence at the house that implicated him. Later, we charged him with the murder and rape.”
“Mr. McAdams had no priors?”
“None. It was one of those situations where for all outward appearances, he was a model citizen. I guess he just snapped. Who knows why? ”
“I didn’t see a lab report on the pubic hairs. What does that mean?”
Chief Cruse sucked in his lips and bite them. “The lab didn’t run any tests.”
“Why not?”
“Before the lab could test the hairs, Mr. McAdams confessed. I told them we no longer needed more evidence. Obviously, they were from him. He admitted as much.”
“I thought when he was arrested, he was clean shaven; no body hair.”
Cruse smiled. “Hair grows back.”
“I would like to interview Officers Marini, Rudd and Dunley, if I may.”
“Okay. I’ll check their schedules and get back to you.”
Jason had the feeling that he hadn’t asked the right questions. “I may want to talk with you again once I’ve a rough draft of my story. I want to get the details right.”
“Of course. Any time.” The chief stood and shook hands with Jason. It was a firm handshake.
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