by Jerry Brown
After greeting Mr. Stump and introducing himself to Mr. Porter, he explained that he had asked Police Superintendent Edgar Landry to join him, since he himself ,knew little about police procedures. Leading the two men into his office, he mused that Landry had already been there and moved his chair around the corner of the desk, demonstrating an alignment with the mayor, separating himself from the two men and affording himself the protection of the desk corner.
Robert had appointed Landry on the recommendation of his father and his uncle. He originally felt no more than a mild ambivalence toward the man. Now, he was beginning to lose all respect for him.
Ignoring Landry, he walked through his office to an adjoining conference room, gesturing for Porter to sit on his right, Stump to his left, and for Landry, who had just entered the room, to sit on the far left. He then directed his remarks to Uriah Stump, explaining that he did not wish to rush him, but he had a full schedule of appointments that afternoon. Before he could respond, Robert turned to the father and said, "Mr. Porter, I understand you have some grievance with one of our police officers."
The father looked at his lap, fighting back tears, and told of his son's disappearance early in the week, and of the apparent callousness and indifference of the two detectives. His jaw stiffened. He directed a hard stare at Edgar Landry, then turning his face to the mayor, softened his eyes and explained that he had been unable to sleep or keep his mind on his work since. He said that word had spread in the community that the body of a young boy had been found in City Park, an area where his son frequently played. His lips trembled and tears ran down his cheeks. "All I'm asking is to see the body so I know it's not my boy. Can't you see what this is doing to me? Not knowing where he is and what's happening to him. Not being able to get anybody to do anything."
Robert turned in his chair and touched the man's shoulder. "Of course, we understand, Mr. Porter, and our hearts go out to you. Mr. Landry, can you explain to Mr. Porter about the procedures your people follow in a case like this? But first let me say that I can understand why the department would be reluctant to have you view a body, unless they have strong reason to believe it is your son. That would be a needless and traumatic experience for anyone. Superintendent?"
"Mr. Mayor," Edgar Landry responded centering his attention on his superior and, in effect, ignoring the other two men. "We receive fifteen to twenty reports of missing juveniles every week. During Carnival, it's even worse. They almost always end up being with friends or relatives or being picked up on the road somewhere. In that busy period all our staff work overtime, and we bring in officers from throughout the country just to assist with crowd control. But even in normal times, we couldn't give priority to a missing person report unless there was some witness or strong reason to believe a crime has occurred. It is simply a matter of proper utilization of extremely limited staff. I have been on duty, away from my office this morning." Landry tugged at his collar and reddened in response to Robert's narrowing eyelids. "But now that things have settled down a bit, I'll get my staff working on this and determine exactly what has happened. Then, Mr. Mayor, I'll have someone go directly to Mr. Porter's home to discuss this with him. I'm sure we can resolve this without burdening you with it."
Robert rose and folded his arms; leaning against the conference table, and faced the three men. "I don't look at this as a burden, Superintendent." His eyes swung to the others. "And I think we can do a little bit better than that. Mr. Stump and Mr. Porter, I have the detectives who are working this case in the building. You two make yourself comfortable here, and I will have my secretary get you some coffee while Mr. Landry and I go and talk with them." Rising and softly patting Mr. Porter on his shoulder, he continued: "Perhaps we can handle this matter quickly. We'll be back just as soon as we can."
Rene Aubrian occupied the telephone in the conference room, overseeing arrangements for the meeting of detectives later that night. Flint and Johnson had been assigned nearby offices. Aubrian was somewhat startled when the door was abruptly opened by the mayor, followed by Edgar Landry. Landry immediately assumed control speaking sternly and more loudly than necessary. "Captain, do you have those two detectives here?"
Robert looked at Landry incredulously and interrupted: "Whup, hold on there, Edgar. Wait a minute. Why don't you let me handle this. We're not here to place blame. I just want to find out where we are." Robert turned to face Aubrian and consciously softened his expression. "We are all on the same team here. Besides, first things first." He turned to Aubrian and smiled.
"Captain, I'm embarrassed to say that I have never had the pleasure of meeting you. It's one of several things I haven't made the time to do since I've been on the job, but it's one of several priorities I'm going to alter. I'm Robert Kingwood," he said offering his hand.
Aubrian rose to his feet, his chest swelling; he smiled as he took the offered handshake. "Mr. Mayor, I'm Rene Aubrian, Captain of the Homicide Division. I want to tell you before the guys get in here that they are two of the most loyal and hard working men I have. I was aware that they were going to the Porter's home this morning and ..."
Robert, still holding the handshake ,touched the man's shoulder. "Captain, I don't mean to interrupt you, but as far as I'm concerned, we're here to communicate freely. There's absolutely no reason for anyone to feel defensive." He dropped the handshake and stepped back, maintaining eye contact. "I can tell from your sir name that you're homefolks. How long have you lived in New Orleans?"
"Born and bred right here."
"How long have you been on the force?"
"Eighteen years, sir, the last two in my present assignment."
"Were you a homicide detective before taking over the division?"
"I was a detective for ten years before moving into administration. Some of that time was in homicide, but I've worked in almost all divisions of operation."
Robert placed his hands in his pockets, threw his shoulders back and smiled. "Good. That's the experience I need to rely on. As you know, I have no knowledge of police procedures, and although the superintendent has a wealth of experience with criminals through his years as a prosecutor, he can't be expected to be an expert in operations."
Robert quickly turned to Landry, warning him with his eyes not to interrupt, and then turned back to Aubrian and resumed his easy smile. "Captain, why don't I direct my questions to you and then you ask the detectives to comment on anything that needs enlarging upon? Don't you think we'll all feel more comfortable that way?"
Aubrian, still smiling, nodded his head. "That's fine with me, Mr. Mayor."
"Okay, bring them in, if you will." He paused. "One other thing, I have Mr. Porter and a neighbor of his in my office. I know you're under time pressures as am I, so let's try and keep things as focused and brief as we can."
"Fine," Aubrian answered and left the room.
As the three officers entered, Robert rose and stepped forward to meet them. "Hi, I'm Robert Kingwood." He honed in on Flint's eyes. "Gosh, you're a big fella. I'd sure hate to tangle with you," Flint grinned out the left side of his mouth.
He took the mayor's proffered handshake. "Mr. Mayor, I'm Detective Bill Ed Flint, and this is Detective Ken Johnson."
Robert moved toward the black detective, placing a a hand on the man's upper arm while shaking his hand, asking if he was related to any of the Johnsons in the Ninth Ward.
He responded, "No sir, not that I know of. I was raised outside Baton Rouge."
"How long have you been with the force?"
"Ten years, Your Honor, the last two as a detective."
"Are you married?"
"Married, with two small sons."
"Great!" the mayor responded. "I haven't found anyone stupid enough to put up with me yet." He then turned to Flint: "How about you Detective Flint, what is your background?"
"I'm married with two teenage daughters. I've been on the force fourteen years, ten as a detective, and prior to that I served six years as a patrolman in Woodv
ille, Mississippi."
"What made you decide to transfer down here?"
"The money was a lot better, but I really wanted experience as a detective."
"What are your plans; get your twenty here then go back home and take over as Chief of Police or Sheriff?" the mayor asked with intense interest.
"Honestly, I think that was always in the back of my mind, but I married a New Orleans girl. She wouldn't be happy anywhere else, and the city is all my daughters know. It wouldn't be fair to ask them to leave, and I don't even know if I could make the adjustment now."
"That's good to hear." Robert looked down and slid his hands in his back pockets. "I hope I'm not betraying a confidence, but Aubrian here has told me that you men are two of his best. We sure don't need to lose you now," Robert said, turning and surveying the area. "This is a very large and formal room. Why don't we all just bunch up at one end of this table so we don't have to shout. Johnson, sit there. Landry, next to him. Flint, you've done most of the work on this case, you take the head of the table. Captain, sit next to him, and I'll sit next to you. We are all jammed for time, so I'll give you some background and address my questions to Aubrian. If you think some point needs clarifying or enlarging, just jump in; but please, let's get this done as quickly as possible. Agreed?" He looked at each person in turn as they nodded.
"Okay, as I told the Captain, we're all a part of the same team. I'm not here to blame. It is imperative that I know exactly what happened. I have Mr. Porter, the man you interviewed this morning, in my office with a neighbor. My secretary asked to unhook the phone because the media is calling constantly about the body found in the park. I now have the administrator's secretary handling all but my private line, to give her some relief. Mr. Landry has been good enough to assign uniformed officers downstairs to keep the press off my back until I can get some information. Captain, fill me in. In your own words, please, not in jargon."
The three officers smiled. Edgar Landry sat rigidly, his arms clasped to his chest and his gaze fixed to the wall.
Aubrian rose to speak. Robert shook his head, gesturing that he remain seated and then leaned forward in his seat. "Captain Aubrian, please detail how the body was found and the steps taken by each of the two detectives up to the point of contact with the Porters."
"Okay, Mr. Mayor. On Wednesday morning, about eight o'clock, Detective Flint responded to a call from a Fish and Wildlife ranger, who had found a portion of a body. As you know, it had rained hard for three days and the body was located in a swampy, canal area, leading to Bayou St. John. Because of the effects of the rain and the terrain, the hope of getting clues , such as footprints or anything of that nature , was non-existent. So we headed in another direction. We decided our best chance to identify the victim would be through his fingerprints. Since it's unlikely that a kid his age would have a print record, our best hope was reports of missing juveniles. One of the reports was on the Porter kid. When we saw where he lived and determined he was supposed to be in the park when he turned up missing, we arranged to take print samples from his home. That's all we knew when these guys went in there." Robert nodded for him to go on. Aubrian leaned forward and lowered his voice. "Now what you may not know is that the child was decapitated and severely mutilated." Robert sat up, then looked down at his crossed hands. "No, I didn't know that." Aubrian moved closer. "Unfortunately, it gets worse than that. The guy who spotted the body in the first place has decided he likes attention. He's spilled his guts, giving a pretty detailed description of what he saw to reporters. I understand that some of this information has already been reported on television and more will be released over the evening news."
The mayor, still looking at his hands, began shaking his head. "Can you give me anything positive to tell this father? It's certainly clear now why you wouldn't allow him to view the remains." Aubrian loosened his tie and rubbed his face and eyes with both hands. "What I have to tell you, you may not want to hear. The guy who's comparing the prints is all but positive the body is that of the Porter kid." Robert sagged slightly. Aubrian went on. "He's not one of our more experienced technicians and is getting second and third opinions. We've learned from the medical examiner that there was slight blood loss, which suggests that the kid was mutilated after death." "Do you have any leads? Any ideas, even conjecture as to who might have done this?” Robert straightened himself and pushed his chair still farther back. Aubrian shook his head. "No sir, nothing at all, but we've really only started. I have authorization to put my staff on double shifts. We're going to give this case utmost priority. We'll begin in the morning canvassing the city and hittin' up our snitches. Once we get a full report from the coroner's office, we will send it and what else we have to VICAP to see if similar cases have been reported elsewhere."
"VICAP, what is that?" Robert asked.
Captain Aubrian responded: "It's a unit of the F.B.I. that receives reports of violent crimes from across the country. They analyze them to try to identify offenders and look for evidence of serial offenses. Flint, Johnson, do either of you know what the initials stand for?"
"Yes sir," Flint snapped, "the Violent Criminal Apprehension Program computer database. Captain, one thing you haven't mentioned that I'm sure the mayor needs to know is about the designs carved on the back. Yes, thank you," Aubrian said, looking back to the mayor. "There were designs carved in a rectangle covering the back of the torso, designs within the rectangle are very primitive and dominated by one large central figure. Outside the rectangle, on the side of each buttock, is a recognizable symbol, swastikas.” Aubrian paused to highlight the disclosure, then shifted forward and placed his elbows on the table. "I don't know how much of this detail the ranger has told the media, but we're boxed in and have to assume the worst. It would have been best if we could have disclosed some of this to the family before they were hit with it on the television screen, but surely it's too late now."
"Jesus!" the mayor said sighing, putting his hands to his temples, then running his hand to the back of his neck. "The father doesn't know anything yet. I guess I can handle this with him, but Lord only knows how. Captain, is there anything I need to do to make things easier for you?"
"Nothing I can think of, sir. I will need to talk with Superintendent Landry about arranging a meeting as soon as possible of all division heads. With so little to go on, our best shot will be someone running their mouth. If we can get all officers pumping their contacts, our chances will be better."
"Well, I'm sure you will find that the superintendent will do everything possible to assist you," Robert said as he turned to Landry who jerked from his pout. Turning back to Aubrian, he continued. "By the way, Captain, who authorized overtime so quickly?"
"Stokely, Sir. He's at my division now trying to keep the lid on things while we're here."
"Excellent, Landry, give Stokely an 'attaboy' and my thanks for taking such initiative, will you?" He scanned the faces of each of the men, polling with his eyes. "Does anyone have anything else?" Everyone exchanged silent glances. "No, well let's all get on with our unpleasant tasks." He rose, walked to the door and looked back. "If any of you need anything from my office, please call my secretary, Joni Jamison. I will maintain close liaison with Landry on this. Captain, is there anything you can do to keep the child's identity from the media?"
"We can try, but somehow these things always seem to leak. It'll get out eventually."
"Well, keep the lid on as long as you can. The father is barely hanging on. He doesn't need to deal with anything more." He paused with his hand on the door and looked from man to man. "Thank you and it was very nice to meet each of you. Don't be a stranger. Edgar, why don't you stay with Aubrian and assure that he gets all the help he needs. I'll talk with the father alone. No need to put you through that." He nodded once and left quickly.
Returning to his office, Robert was aware of only two things: a throbbing headache and the conviction that Edgar Landry would be replaced as soon as the clamor died, even befor
e if need be. He entered his outer office, shaking his head at Joni and asked for two aspirins. She popped two tablets out on her palm and held them out to him. He took them from her and chewed them up without water.
He knew what he had to say to his visitors, but he had no idea of how to go about it. He paused outside the door to his conference room, took a quick breath, and moved inside. Walking directly to the seated Mr. Porter, he placed his hand on the man's slumping shoulder to prevent him from rising, then pulled a chair close beside him.
"Mr. Porter," he began, "I know of no kind or delicate way to say all that I have to tell you. The media is filled this afternoon with information on the body that has been found in the park. If I could spare you those details, I would, but I would rather you hear them from me than from the media. The fingerprints the officers took from your home appear to match those of the body found in the park. They are not absolutely sure, but they are pretty certain." At that the father slumped in his chair, covered his face with his hands and sobbed uncontrollably. Robert turned to Uriah Stump and shook his head.
"Mr. Porter," he continued, "I don't know how much of this you are going hear, but I've got to say this to you. The detectives would not allow you to view the body, and will not, because it is horribly mutilated. There is every reason to believe that these multilizations were administered after, not before, death. It's small consolation, I know, but it is all that I can offer. We will try to protect your identity as long as we can, but eventually the press will seek you out. In fact, even now graphic details are being related all over television news. We can only hope that your name becomes known later rather than sooner. The investigation is just in its beginning stages." He rose and put a hand on the man's shoulders, forcing him to look up. "I wish I could tell you that the person or persons who did this will soon be arrested, but in all honesty, I can't even tell you that. You have my personal assurance and commitment that the case will be given the highest priority and that everything that can be done to solve the case will be done." Pausing again and looking down at his hands, he added: "I wish that I could be of more comfort to you, but I just don't know how. I don't know of anything more to tell you. Do you have any questions I can answer?"