“Exactly. He was on a county golf course, and the wife’s attorney says we had insufficient procedures in place to provide shelter from an inevitable and predictable threat.”
“How about a caution sign with a picture of Ben Franklin?” Stride asked.
“Don’t give them any ideas,” Pat replied, smiling. She added, “Anyway, let’s move on to police matters. Is Maggie making progress on the peeper case?”
“Not so far. He hasn’t struck again since the incident involving the disabled girl in Gary a couple weeks ago. We’re keeping an unmarked vehicle near her house for several hours each night in case he comes back.”
“Is that likely?”
“The father thinks he peeped her once before. He may have a special interest in this girl.”
“Keep me posted on this case,” Pat told him. “Families don’t get too upset when drug dealers kill each other, but they feel vulnerable when perverts are peering in the window at their daughters.”
“Understood.”
“I’d like to set up a monthly status meeting with you,” Pat added, “so we can go over outstanding cases. Okay?”
“Of course. I’ll set it up with your assistant.”
“I’m not trying to tread on your turf, but I like to know what’s in the pipeline. I don’t want to be surprised by headlines or get sandbagged by reporters.”
“I understand,” Stride said. “If anything happens, either K-2 or I will call you directly to keep you in the loop.”
K-2 was the departmental nickname for Deputy Chief Kyle Kinnick.
“I appreciate it,” Pat said. She added, “Peter Stanhope called me this morning.”
“Oh?”
“He’s concerned about this reporter, Tish Verdure, and the book she’s writing about an unsolved murder back in the 1970s. There was an article in today’s paper.”
“That’s right,” Stride said.
“This is the kind of thing I need to know about in advance, Lieutenant.” She didn’t snap at him, but her voice was cool and direct. “Particularly if someone like Peter Stanhope is involved. I don’t like to be blindsided when a major campaign contributor calls me to talk about a murder investigation, and I don’t know anything about it.”
Stride nodded. “You’re right. I apologize. I should have called you when I first met Tish and heard about her project. Candidly, I didn’t think that-”
Pat cut him off with a wave of her hand. “Never mind. I don’t want explanations or excuses. It’s done. I just want us to be clear for the future, okay?”
“Absolutely.”
“Now you can tell me about this case. I gather you knew the victim?”
“She was my wife’s sister.”
“Oh, I see. I’m sorry. Tell me what happened.”
Stride sketched out the facts of the case and retraced the investigation for her. He also told her what he knew about Tish’s book and about the DNA tests he had run in the past several weeks.
Pat sipped her wine and listened carefully to the story. “Peter was asking if we had any plans to reopen an active investigation of this case.”
“I don’t think we have enough evidence to do so,” Stride said. “So far, nothing changes the original theory of the crime, which is that Laura was killed by a vagrant. Tish hasn’t come up with anything to disprove or discredit that idea.”
“But you’re running tests on physical evidence.”
Stride nodded. “That’s true. If we had made a DNA match to find out who was stalking Laura, or to find out whose semen was near her body, that certainly would have changed things. We’d have new questions to ask and potentially someone with new information.”
“Except from what you say, one of the key pieces of physical evidence is missing,” Pat said. “Namely, the murder weapon. We also don’t have any idea how to find this vagrant after thirty years, or know whether he’s even still alive. I don’t know how we would go about bringing a case against anyone under those circumstances.”
“Agreed,” Stride said. “We’ve got a lot of suspects and a lot of reasonable doubt.”
“That means we need to be extremely careful about allowing speculation to make its way into the media. I don’t want anyone tried in the press when we have no intention of bringing charges in court.”
“You mean Peter Stanhope,” Stride said.
“I mean anyone.” Pat paused. “Look, Lieutenant, I’m a practical person. You and I both know that money talks. If I could prove Peter Stanhope was guilty of something, would I throw the book at him? Absolutely. Do I want you to avoid spreading rumors about him if we can’t prove he’s guilty of anything? Absolutely. I’d say that about any suspect, but yes, I’m going to be extra careful when it comes to someone who is a friend and supporter. That’s life.”
“I’m well aware of that.”
“I have no idea what Peter Stanhope was like as a teenager or a young man. All I can tell you is that my firm has been on the other side of his in litigation, and my partners spoke highly of his professionalism.”
“Understood.”
“So let’s set some ground rules. First, be extremely cautious with what you tell Tish Verdure. We don’t know her. She’s a journalist and potentially a loose cannon. The last thing we need is her turning this into another Martha Moxley case, all right?”
“Fair enough.” He didn’t mention that he had just come from a meeting with Tish and that he had already shared something with her that he probably shouldn’t. The existence of semen near Laura’s body.
Pat held up two fingers. “Second, we both know that this case could blow up in our faces no matter what we do. If Tish gets someone in the New York media to take an interest, we’re going to get hounded with queries. This could wind up on 20/20 or Cold Case. National press.”
“What do you suggest?” Stride asked.
“I suggest you make sure you know this case inside and out. Okay? Go back over everything. Make sure you’re able to answer any question that comes up. Revisit the entire investigation, but be discreet.”
Stride hesitated.
“What is it?” Pat asked.
“I have some concerns that the original investigation may have been compromised.”
Pat nodded. “You mean Ray Wallace.”
“Yes.”
“Ray was before my time, but I’ve heard stories. He was a big problem.”
“Ray was a good cop, but he crossed the line,” Stride said. “He may have leaped too quickly to a theory of the crime that exonerated Peter Stanhope. He may have made the murder weapon and the original stalker letter disappear.”