“No problem,” she said, “but there’s only one other person still here. I’ll tell her you want to talk to her. In the meantime, you can wait in Mr. Slivers’ office.”
Entering the office, Fred observed a large desk, with four chairs arranged directly in front of it. Each was spaced an exact equal distance from the other. Fred sat in the desk chair so that he could directly face the secretary as he spoke to her.
Fred found it best to interview people on an individual basis. He had found from life’s experiences that, like animals, people tend to either follow or lead. So, when two or more people are present, this can cause communication distortions since subordinates often take strong clues from their perceived superiors.
To the side of Slivers’ desk was a small tiger wood oak table. On it were pictures of an attractive middle-aged woman with two teenaged children by her side.
As the secretary came into the office, Fred asked, “Is this a picture of Mr. Slivers’ wife and kids?”
“Yes,” the secretary replied, “He thinks the absolute world of them.”
Slivers’ desk contained on one end what appeared to be neatly organized work papers. Inconsistently, in the middle of the desk, papers were scattered in every direction. Lying directly on the top of one of the papers was a gold fountain pen. Turning the top paper around to gain a better view, Fred noted that Slivers had apparently been drafting some type of agreement concerning auto insurance for a new Buick sedan. Slivers had stopped his writing in the middle of a word.
Fred said, “That’s strange!”
“What is?”
“Well for starters let me ask, is the writing on this sheet of paper that of Mr. Slivers?”
“Yes, I recognize it, and anyway it has to be!”
“I don’t understand; why does it have to be?”
“Because no one else is allowed to use or move whatever is on his desk—not even me. He’s a nice man but he’s a fanatic about maintaining a clean and organized work area that only he controls. I don’t even empty his coffee cup, and I’m never to adjust his window blinds. ”
“But”, said Fred, “As I look at his desk he doesn’t seem that well organized. I also notice that he seems to have stopped writing this contract in mid sentence.”
“I have to admit, that is strange. Mr. Slivers always puts his papers in a neat stack when he’s done working. He hates to be interrupted, he always tries to complete whatever he is doing; and once he is done with something he puts it into the stack that you see on the left. If he can’t complete the work, and that’s really rare, he puts it in a neat stack on the right.”
“But there’s no stack on the right and there seems to be unorganized papers in the middle of his desk.”
“Oh, yes, I remember now. I was talking to him, and he looked at the clock. He abruptly stopped writing and headed out the front door. He left all his work papers in the middle of his desk. He had never done that before. Another thing, he bumped into Meg in the doorway as he left. Mr. Slivers is a very courteous man, yet he didn’t even stop to apologize to her. But it was even stranger that he stopped his work in mid sentence. He is so disciplined that he always wants to finish what he started.”
“Did he have an important appointment scheduled?”
“No, there’s nothing on his calendar.”
“Did you notice anything else that seemed unusual to you today?”
The secretary thought for a moment. “Oh, yeah, now that you mention it, he left earlier than he normally does for lunch. He habitually tells me where he’s going even if it is to the same place every day, and it always is. I guess it’s just part of his highly structured nature. But today, he just got up and left without saying a word. I yelled after him and asked if everything was all right, but he never answered me. The whole thing seemed strange.”
“I appreciate your being candid with me. You mentioned Meg, does she also work for Mr. Slivers?”
“Yes, she’s one of the insurance agents. I’ll send her in.”
“One more question. Where does he do his banking?”
“He does all his personal and business banking at the County Friendly, just across the street from us.”
Meg was a beautiful woman in her mid 30’s. Soft smile lines were just beginning to appear around her eyes. Her hair was a bright red, cut extremely short. Fred thought it looked like it had never seen a bottle, but he could not be sure based on the creativity of hair dye manufactures nowadays. His wife also had brilliant red hair, but he knew intimately that hers was natural. Regardless, nature had treated the agent very well over the years. She was slim; he guessed not more than 110 pounds.
It was immediately obvious that she adored her boss. Her first words were, “All of this must be a mistake.” Fred in fact had trouble getting her to concentrate on Slivers’ activities of the day; she constantly interjected her statements with words of support for her boss. The story he got from her was basically the same as he had obtained from Sliver’s secretary. Her boss was a great guy; and no, she had not noticed any significant change in his behavior over the past month.
As for Slivers’ personality, Meg confirmed the secretary’s view that he was a myopic man to the nth degree. He spent a lot of his time thinking, reviewing and re-reviewing details. His end products were professionally done. His regular place to eat was Joe’s Diner, which was a short walk from the office. Normally he was back in less than 45 minutes. He held his subordinates to strict lunch rules, so he didn’t violate them himself. He was a very honest and ethical man. Both his employees would make great character witnesses for the defense, Fred surmised.
Fred learned that Slivers was dedicated to the job and was often at work before his employees arrived and often stayed long after the last one had left. The only thing especially unusual this day was that he did not announce his lunch break and he had not returned to the office in his normal time.
Fred thought, that makes sense, because during that period he was in the bank randomly killing people. Fred thanked both of them for their cooperation and requested that they call him if they remembered anything that might help in the investigation.
Night had started to fall and Fred was happy he had decided to take his light, unlined jacket with him since the temperature had already dropped significantly since he first entered the insurance office.
He dropped over to Joe’s Diner. He had been in the insurance office for over an hour and was now disappointed to find that the doors of the diner were locked for the day. The hours displayed on the door were from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. He would have to save that visit for tomorrow.
Chapter 17
Fred arrived at the office early the next morning. On his desk was a steaming hot cup of Barney’s black coffee, which he offered to the first patrolman that walked by. Fred had never told Maureen that he hated coffee and out of fear the word might get back to her, he never told his fellow officers or secretary about his dislike for the beverage either. He assumed at least some of them had caught on to him since he gave away much more coffee than he ever consumed. A DVD was nested in the middle of his desk with a large note on top—GOT IT. Jan had once again done a superb job! Shortly after Fred sat down, Jim entered the office.
“When do you want to watch the DVD”? Jim asked, apparently as eager as Fred was to view it in greater detail, hoping to clarify the confusion that had bothered both of them earlier.
“Right now is as good a time as ever,” Fred responded eagerly. Jim asked if anyone else was going to watch the DVD. It was obvious that neither of them wanted to invite the chief or Paul to participate in the viewing. In less than ten minutes, the conference room was set up for viewing. Jan put a note on the outside of the door indicating a meeting in process which would probably prove useless. Patrolmen would continuously open the door and then immediately apologize indicating that they didn’t realize the room was occupied. However, without a lock, a note pinned on the door was the only form of security available. Fred and Jim sat down on
both sides of the front end of the peeling gray metal conference table. Jan controlled the DVD player behind them.
Fred had Jan stop the projection at the point in which Slivers entered the bank and was greeting a woman to his right; Slivers was all smiles. Fred asked rhetorically, “Now, does that look like someone about to commit a robbery, or just about to go into a panic mode?”
Jim responded, “Not at all, and that was my initial feeling when I first saw the video.” The DVD player was started up again and stopped when Slivers’ facial reaction went through an instantaneous sea change.
Fred remarked, “Notice that the smile on Slivers’ face has now shifted to a deep grimace. The change is so abrupt and vivid he looks like a different person. It’s almost spooky.”
The rest of the DVD was played continuously, and Fred asked if anyone had detected anything significant. Neither Jim nor Fred’s secretary could discern anything other than what obviously appeared to be a random shooting. Fred continued to sit in silence, his attention riveted on the scenes in front of him. Something was bothering him but he was still not sure what it was. They watched the DVD several more times but nothing new was evident to Fred or to the other two. Finally he said, “You know, most banks have more than one video operating at the same time to gain the advantage of various perspectives of a potential crime scene. Jim, you got the video from the bank, was that the only video they had of the assault?”
“They didn’t say, they just gave it to me and I didn’t question them further.”
“Check it out,” Fred directed.
Just as Fred and Jim were exiting from the conference room, the chief’s secretary burst in. “There you are,” she stated in an obvious sarcastic tone, which to Fred seemed to be the only tone she ever used, “the chief wants to see you immediately.”
Amazing how secretaries and immediate subordinates take on the derived power of their bosses, Fred thought. It doesn’t matter where in the pecking they are, in their eyes they are the same as the boss.
Fred walked into the chief’s office. Seated to the chief’s immediate right was the District Attorney, Jason Cooper. Next to the DA sat Paul. They were all smiling as if sharing the residual humor of some joke.
“Hello Fred, congratulations on your promotion,” the DA offered, firmly grasping Fred’s hand as he spoke. “You really deserved it!”
“Thanks, Mr. Cooper,” Fred replied, somewhat surprised that Cooper knew about his recent promotion, let alone his existence on the force. Fred found it interesting that, at the moment, the contrasting personalities of the DA and the chief seemed to be getting along so well. In past months, several conflicts had arisen between the two. As a result the DA had made it a habit not to visit the station unless absolutely necessary. In fact, Fred had never actually met the DA until this occasion. Now he felt something like Ensign Pulver in the Mr. Roberts movie, who had suddenly been noticed emerging from the ship’s interior and was for the first time after months on the ship being recognized for his achievement. Of course, in the movie, it had been the effective job that the ensign accomplished on the laundering of his superior’s shirts that brought him delayed recognition and fame. Fred hoped that his achievement would be more noteworthy and enduring.
The chief was in all ways a stark contrast to the DA. The chief wanted things done yesterday. Full speed ahead and damn the torpedoes seemed to be his life’s creed.
Cooper presented a totally different picture; extremely cautious, he weighed the impact of every possible variable. He sought total victory in the courtroom; losses were an unacceptable political liability. Above everything else, Cooper was a consummate politician whose re-election was coming up in a couple of months. Fred understood that the future election and the success of the police department in capturing the bank “robber” temporarily put the chief and the DA on the same page, literally as well as figuratively. Fred noted that, recently, the two had been pictured together on the first page of the local newspaper basking in common glory. For Cooper a successful prosecution would tremendously help his career as well as his re-election chances.
Fred now understood fully well how and why the DA suddenly knew his name. He realized that he had suddenly become pivotal in the future success of the two men sitting before him. As a political animal, Cooper would have learned the names of all those that could help propel him to victory.
Cooper was the first to speak. “Fred, I’m proud of you for capturing the criminal almost as soon as the crime was committed. However, as you know, I have to establish motive as well as opportunity to satisfy a jury. Certainly the evidence you have gathered will more than support the ingredient of opportunity. Motive is, however, an equally important component in my—ah, our—success in obtaining a conviction, and in this particular case, the death penalty. Now, Dan tells me he has already directed you to find the motive behind the killings at all costs even if you have to work day and night; and I deeply appreciate his foresight.”
Fred almost burst into laughter for two reasons. First, it was the first time he heard the chief called by his first name by anybody. He at times wondered if even his wife called him by his first name. Fred would not have found it improbable that the chief popped out of the birth canal with his parents immediately calling him chief. As far as his being directed to find the motive, that was the first time he had heard that take on the case. In fact the last time he talked to the chief, “Dan” and his buddy Paul had considered the case closed—no further evidence required or wanted.
“Certainly, I realize motive is usually an important part of any case,” Fred injected, more for effect than illumination, “but why would you need motive in this case where the evidence of the crime is so clear and overwhelming?”
Fred asked the question not for himself but to have the DA’s answer register with his chief.
Cooper said, “Good question,” and turning to the chief said, “Dan, do you want to explain that?”
The reaction on the chief’s face was as if he just swallowed an egg, shell and all. The chief said, “No, why don’t you explain it, Jason? You are so much more articulate than I am.”
Fred had to suppress a laugh. He knew the chief had moved into his present position directly from his experience as a hard nosed cop on the beat. He saw everything in black and white. Gradations were not his style, and his whole knowledge base was derived from his early work on the beat. The chief never put a foot in the courtroom, and to the best of Fred’s knowledge, never once took the time to explore the vagaries of the legal profession. In fact he was usually at war with the DA, who sought to obtain maximum prosecutorial data versus the chief’s desire to close cases quickly and get them over with.
Cooper said, “Okay, I’ll be happy to. In this case it is especially important to discern motive since the defense might be able to claim that the defendant was not of sound mind at the time of the crime. Let’s face it, Slivers seems to have a very positive community background. And for him to commit murder for no apparent reason would lead one to believe that he might have been temporarily insane.
“Now mind you, I don’t buy that garbage but a sympathetic jury just might. We need to collectively find the reason for his rampage; and the reason has to be solid and something that the jury can buy into.”
Fred realized that the DA had already done his homework and very likely his staff had contacted Slivers’ employees and peers. But apparently, that research had not resulted in identifying any glaring character defect associated with the suspect, nor any deep seated reason for Slivers’ action.
Fred found the DA’s admission revealing. From Fred’s experience, prosecutors needed to establish motive in order to lock up all the elements of a case. It didn’t matter if the motive was entirely valid or not, just that it had to be capable of being sold to a jury. It would help if there were supporting facts to back it up, even if the facts were totally derived from conjecture.
To Fred, crime solving requires a synergistic approach; all the pieces h
ave to fit together to ensure the right person was accused. If a piece did not fit, it would forever cast doubt that the right man was arrested. In the bank murders, the DA understood that a motive that appeared to fit the situation was necessary to eradicate any consideration of insanity in the minds of the jurors. Both Fred and Cooper shared a common goal to look hard for the motive; but each was driven by totally different objectives.
Cooper said, “A bond hearing will be held in a couple of days. The defense attorney wants a month to prepare his case before it goes to trial. Based on the savage nature of the crime, both of us know in advance that Slivers will be denied bail.”
The meeting broke up, and each of the participants went in their different directions. Fred was becoming increasingly frustrated at the continuing presence of Paul in each of his meetings with the chief. After Fred received his promotion, he had thought that his selection by the board had been unanimous. But now he realized that his being picked for the job may have been based on a simple majority, and not a unanimous vote. If so, he suspected his chief did not vote for him at all, but in all probability had voted for Paul. This is great, Fred thought. Not only am I not respected by my subordinates, but I also most likely have no respect from my immediate superior!
He briefed Jim on the meeting with the chief and DA. He told Jim he was going to assign a segment of the investigation to Paul. “As much as I hate to assign Paul any work on the case, I feel that by involving him it will keep him, in the short term, from being a constant critic. But I’ve decided not to tell Paul about our findings on the bank video. Any facts in that area will be kept between me, you and Jan.”
At that point Fred called Paul into his office. Fred said, “I am going to personally interview Mrs. Slivers to see if she can shed some light on the case. Jim, you and Paul check into the backgrounds of all those that were in the bank at the time of the shooting to see if there was any link between the victims and Slivers. I fully understand that this might be a wild goose hunt; but if the shootings in the bank were not random, then perhaps we can unearth the real reason behind them.”
Mind Switch Page 6