Read Online FIRST CASE - Novella (McRyan Mystery Series Prequel) by Roger Stelljes - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Roger Stelljes
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vicinity, within the three or four block area. Maybe we’ll get lucky and see someone walking, running or driving away from the area that is tied to Oliver, The Mahogany and the law firm.” Mac thought for another minute and looked at Beckett. He was good with video and computers. “Rick, you and Franklin hit the establishments around The Mahogany and get any video running in the time window of the murder. Maybe we’ll get a hit off of that.”
“What are
you
guys going to do?” Beckett asked, a tinge of bitterness in his voice, knowing how boring surfing hours of video could be.
Mac looked at his watch which said 3:44 p.m. “We’re going to go back to the station for a few hours. I want to go over everything we have and then Dick and I are going over and re-canvassing The Mahogany when it starts getting busy. I want to hit it when most of the staff and regulars are around.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“It must be the law firm.”
L ich said he needed a break before they went over to The Mahogany. Mac was okay with that. It gave him some time alone with the case to work through the evidence. One thing Mac learned from watching his father over the years was that at some point in a case you needed to sit down and take a look at everything and see if a pattern, string or trail developed.
In law school, a professor happened along Mac studying in the law library. He saw Mac had written ‘jurisdiction’ and drawn a box around it on his legal pad. He had a line to the left that read ‘personal jurisdiction’ and a line to the right that read ‘subject matter jurisdiction,’ the two components necessary for a court to have jurisdiction over a particular case. Then notes were jotted around each of the words. The professor smiled and said, “Mr. McRyan, you are mind-mapping.”
A mind-map is essentially a diagram that uses words, ideas, tasks or other items arranged around a central key word or idea. Mac saw his father do it when he was a kid. Mac picked it up and used it in college and then law school. He never knew it was called mind-mapping but that’s what Professor Becker was telling him and Mac apparently had a good understanding of jurisdiction. He aced the Civil Procedure final.
While Lich took his leave for a few hours, Mac jotted ‘Gordon Oliver’ in the middle of the page, drew a rectangle around it and started jotting down notes in bullet point format:
• Associate at KBMP for 4yrs.
• A very good young litigator according to several attorneys including Preston, Busch, Bernier, Anthony, Lund and Harris.
• Worked killer hours, strictly litigation, going to trial next week.
• No problems professionally at work.
• Mr. “All the tools in your toolbox.” His signature catch-phrase for work and pleasure.
• Womanizer. Slept with at least six women at law firm, probably more. 1. Burrows alibi’d out. 2. Mathis home with boyfriend. 3. Bernier in Atlanta. Other women are not good suspects, no apparent motive (might need to evaluate further?).
• The Mahogany is favorite bar. Confrontation at bar but it was with Burrows, who alibi’d out.
• No other apparent social life beyond law firm and bar.
Mac drew another line away from Gordon Oliver and jotted down ‘Crime Scene’ and drew a box around it:
• Alley at The Mahogany.
• Time of Death - Midnight - 2:00 a.m.
• Blunt force trauma to temple was the fatal blow.
• Not a robbery. Still had wallet, watch and cell phone. New Ford F-150 left behind. If robbery all would have been taken and body left behind.
• Body stuffed into truck bed. Why? To hide it. Why hide it?
• Hit from behind by someone who was tall, at least 6’2" based on wound angle. Weapon unknown.
• Brass plate with blood. Unsure if from murder weapon. Forensics still evaluating.
• Why use the alley? If not robbery, then he was killed by someone who knew
“What are
you
guys going to do?” Beckett asked, a tinge of bitterness in his voice, knowing how boring surfing hours of video could be.
Mac looked at his watch which said 3:44 p.m. “We’re going to go back to the station for a few hours. I want to go over everything we have and then Dick and I are going over and re-canvassing The Mahogany when it starts getting busy. I want to hit it when most of the staff and regulars are around.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“It must be the law firm.”
L ich said he needed a break before they went over to The Mahogany. Mac was okay with that. It gave him some time alone with the case to work through the evidence. One thing Mac learned from watching his father over the years was that at some point in a case you needed to sit down and take a look at everything and see if a pattern, string or trail developed.
In law school, a professor happened along Mac studying in the law library. He saw Mac had written ‘jurisdiction’ and drawn a box around it on his legal pad. He had a line to the left that read ‘personal jurisdiction’ and a line to the right that read ‘subject matter jurisdiction,’ the two components necessary for a court to have jurisdiction over a particular case. Then notes were jotted around each of the words. The professor smiled and said, “Mr. McRyan, you are mind-mapping.”
A mind-map is essentially a diagram that uses words, ideas, tasks or other items arranged around a central key word or idea. Mac saw his father do it when he was a kid. Mac picked it up and used it in college and then law school. He never knew it was called mind-mapping but that’s what Professor Becker was telling him and Mac apparently had a good understanding of jurisdiction. He aced the Civil Procedure final.
While Lich took his leave for a few hours, Mac jotted ‘Gordon Oliver’ in the middle of the page, drew a rectangle around it and started jotting down notes in bullet point format:
• Associate at KBMP for 4yrs.
• A very good young litigator according to several attorneys including Preston, Busch, Bernier, Anthony, Lund and Harris.
• Worked killer hours, strictly litigation, going to trial next week.
• No problems professionally at work.
• Mr. “All the tools in your toolbox.” His signature catch-phrase for work and pleasure.
• Womanizer. Slept with at least six women at law firm, probably more. 1. Burrows alibi’d out. 2. Mathis home with boyfriend. 3. Bernier in Atlanta. Other women are not good suspects, no apparent motive (might need to evaluate further?).
• The Mahogany is favorite bar. Confrontation at bar but it was with Burrows, who alibi’d out.
• No other apparent social life beyond law firm and bar.
Mac drew another line away from Gordon Oliver and jotted down ‘Crime Scene’ and drew a box around it:
• Alley at The Mahogany.
• Time of Death - Midnight - 2:00 a.m.
• Blunt force trauma to temple was the fatal blow.
• Not a robbery. Still had wallet, watch and cell phone. New Ford F-150 left behind. If robbery all would have been taken and body left behind.
• Body stuffed into truck bed. Why? To hide it. Why hide it?
• Hit from behind by someone who was tall, at least 6’2" based on wound angle. Weapon unknown.
• Brass plate with blood. Unsure if from murder weapon. Forensics still evaluating.
• Why use the alley? If not robbery, then he was killed by someone who knew
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