Burying the Lede

by Joseph LeValley

“I wasn’t sure what was happening, but I knew it couldn’t be good,” Davis explained. “And because the governor was involved, good or bad, no one questioned the necessity of calling in the pros. I told SWAT to get set up around the mansion and wait for me.” Davis then had driven to Des Moines with lights and siren going full bore. Traveling at nearly a hundred miles per hour, he arrived in time to participate in the takedown.

  Tony asked, “How could you be sure enough about the governor’s guilt to use the stun gun on him?”

  To which Davis replied with a wry smile, “Despite my deep respect for the local press, I wasn’t really sure until I saw Nathan Freed come out that door. He obviously had just been through hell. And then when the governor emerged from the door carrying a handgun, I didn’t hesitate for an instant. You don’t get second chances when the perp has his finger on a trigger.”

  “Well, God bless you, Rich Davis. I am so sorry I ever doubted you,” Tony said, meaning every word.

  ***

  The election, of course, was a circus. Iowans were now faced with choosing a disgraced prosecutor or a governor in jail without bail on charges of multiple felonies. Nearly everyone wanted to postpone the election, but no one knew how to do it. The Election Commission said it didn’t have the authority. The attorney general was reluctant to take action without specific authority, fearing whatever he did would be challenged later in court because of his obvious conflict of interest.

  Both houses of the Legislature and the leaders of both major political parties agreed they wanted to meet. It was perhaps the first time in a century they all had agreed on anything, but only the governor had the authority to call them into session outside of the statutory legislative session, which ran from January to April.

  The governor’s party petitioned the Iowa Supreme Court asking it to delay the election, which now was just five days away. The Court took just ninety minutes to rule. There was nothing in the constitution nor statute nor case law on which to base a stay, so the election would proceed as planned.

  W. Rodney Nelson won, but by a narrow margin. This left a lot of Iowans shaking their heads and provided a lot of late-night talk show hosts with great comedic material. Nelson was in for a rough four years, as he became known as the man who almost lost to a murderer.

  Tony’s favorite part of the entire story occurred on January 2, when the Legislature rushed to convene the new session. The House voted impeachment seventeen minutes after the opening prayer was concluded. The Senate voted to convict and remove Roskins from office less than three hours later. All this, despite the fact the inauguration of the new governor was just ten days away. Every elected official in Iowa wanted to be on the record as having voted Roskins out of office.

  The action created an unintended consequence that also made national news. Iowa had its second female governor. Upon Roskins’ removal from office, Lt. Governor Cindy Francois took the oath, swearing to uphold the constitution and serve the people of Iowa to the best of her ability…for 240 hours. No formal inaugural ball was held.

  Chapter 29

  Tony was once again sitting in Willie’s, watching the kids in the park. It was another sunny, warm morning in June, and he and Doug were having giant sweet rolls and coffee before heading back to the courthouse.

  “Okay ‘Mr. Hotshot I’ve been in Rolling Stone’,” Doug began, as Tony rolled his eyes at the now tired reference. “What’s your prediction today? Will Judge Schroeder cut him any slack because of who he is?”

  Doug was referencing the fact that Harry Roskins was going to be sentenced in District Court that morning for the five felonies for which he had been convicted the previous month. Tony and all the players – Molly, Davis, Freed, and even Ben – had been called to testify for the prosecution. Roskins had hired a team of first-rate Boston attorneys, including two he had known since law school, but he had no real defense. On the kidnapping charge, Roskins had tried to claim self-defense saying Freed had showed up at Terrace Hill unexpectedly, and then when the governor agreed to see him, had pulled a gun on him. However, crime scene investigators said no unexplained gun was found, and no one was willing to corroborate the former governor’s story.

  The stake through his heart came when Lyle McCabe testified against his former boss. It had taken the jury more than two hours to reach its verdicts, but Tony assumed that was just because there were so many counts to work through.

  Taking a sip of Willie’s homemade root beer, Tony looked at Doug over the rim of the glass. “I think just the opposite,” he said. “You know a judge sees case after case where some kid who never had anything falls in with a bad crowd and grows up to become a criminal. The judge frequently has to send people to prison who never had a fair shot at a decent life. But here,” Tony paused to take another bite of roll, “here is a guy who literally had everything. He had a great education, money, influence, and the love and support of more than half the people in Iowa. Despite all that, he chose a path of unconscionable evil. He directly caused the deaths of four people, three of whom were completely innocent young people, just beginning what should have been full lives.

  “I think if Iowa had the death penalty, Schroeder would fry his ass…four times,” Tony declared.

  Roskins Sentenced to 150 Years

  Former Iowa Governor Ordered to Serve Five Consecutive Sentences for “Heinous” Crimes

  Ben Smalley, Editor, and Tony Harrington, Staff Writer

  ORNEY, Iowa – Calling the defendant a “disgrace to his office,” District Court Judge Arnold Schroeder sentenced former Iowa Governor Harris “Harry” Roskins to five consecutive 30-year terms in prison for his roles in the murders of four people and the kidnapping and assault of a fifth.

  Roskins was present in the courtroom as the sentence was pronounced. He was unshaven and appeared to have lost a great deal of weight since his arrest last October. He made no comments during the sentencing procedure.

  At its conclusion, state troopers escorted the former governor from the courtroom and immediately transported him to the State Penitentiary at Fort Madison.

  Speaking for Roskins in the sentencing hearing was a single member of the legal team that had represented Roskins at trial. Adamson Delacourt pleaded with the judge for leniency, citing Roskins’ age and lack of any prior criminal history.

  Judge Schroeder had a four-word reply before issuing the sentence. “Don’t make me laugh,” the judge said.

  Roskins’ arrest and conviction ended a long legal and political career in which he…

  ***

  The following Sunday, Nathan Freed invited everyone touched by the incidents of the past two years to his home for a barbecue. It was a long list. In addition to the people from Orney, he included Tony’s parents. They brought Molly, who had become like a member of the family when she had stayed with them in Chicago waiting until they all knew it was safe to return. Other guests included members of the DCI and Iowa State Patrol who had helped with the rescue at Terrace Hill.

  The steaks, fried potatoes, steamed vegetables, and homemade ice cream were wonderful. Many people left by early evening, but as the sun set, Tony, Ben, Molly, Doug, and Freed still were sitting on the patio. As the air cooled, Freed re-kindled the fire in the barbeque pit. Everyone pulled their chairs closer to enjoy the warmth of the flames. They tried to avoid talking about the cases, as it seemed they’d talked of nothing else for an eternity. But somehow the conversation kept coming back to what had happened, or what might have happened if…

  One of the big “ifs” was the governor’s attempt, while in jail awaiting trial, to pardon himself. He had written the document in long hand with a pencil and a piece of ordinary lined notebook paper provided by the county. When handed to the guard and passed up the chain of command, it had caused quite a stir. The county had refused to honor it and left the governor right where he was. The following day, Roskins’ legal team arrived back in Orney and petitioned the District Court to release their client. The county prosecutor filed
a brief in opposition and the three documents promptly landed on Judge Schroeder’s desk. The judge was no fool. He declined to rule and sent the question to the Iowa Supreme Court.

  Once again, the High Court responded in record time. The very next day the court issued a unanimous ruling stating that the Iowa Constitution “was not written with the intent to allow a person legally charged with multiple felonies to escape prosecution by using the power of the pardon for himself.” The court denied the defense attorneys’ petition for release and declared the pardon null and void. A large part of Iowa breathed a sigh of relief, no one louder or longer than Tony and the others who now were assembled for the Sunday barbecue.

  They had a brief but lively debate about Lyle McCabe. He had taken a plea bargain and leniency in exchange for his testimony. As a result, he had received one 20-year sentence. If he behaved himself in prison, he could be free again in less than ten years. Tony hated the thought of that, but others thought it was good they all didn’t have to go through another trial.

  Taurus’ fate was even simpler but was debated by the group nonetheless. Taurus, whose real name was Thomas Monroe, had already been on probation for two felony convictions. The fact he had been involved in a crime in which he was carrying a deadly weapon put him on the express lane back to prison, no passing “Go.” The debate came when Tony was asked if he would press charges against Monroe for taking a shot at him while on the river bridge. Tony had thought about it but, in the end, decided he would not. Doug pushed him, saying it wasn’t right to let someone get away with attempted murder. However, Tony’s reasoning was simple.

  “First,” he said, ticking the answers off on his fingers, “it’s my word against his. Beyond his claim to me, there’s no evidence I know of that he had anything to do with it. Secondly, he’s in prison for a long time anyway, so I wouldn’t be doing society any particular good. Thirdly, and most importantly, I don’t want to waste one more minute of my life thinking about that creep. Governor Roskins and his band of thugs have taken all from me that I’m going to allow them to take.”

  In the manner of a true reporter, Doug posed the final question. “So, any loose ends? Any other articles to write before we move on to covering the scandal brewing in the local quilting bee?”

  “Well,” Tony responded, “I never did get Ralph Wells to give me an interview. I guess I can understand his desire to put this all behind him, but I sure would like to have heard this story from his perspective.”

  “I think we can live without it,” Ben said, taking a sip of his beer. “Three Iowa Press Awards, a Pulitzer Prize, and the highest readership in the paper’s history should be enough to satisfy all of us for a while.” He hoisted his beer. “Here’s to Tony, the reporter of the year… perhaps of the decade.”

  Tony tried to protest but was drowned out by a round of “Hear, hear,” followed by the sound of glasses and bottles clinking.

  As 11 p.m. neared, Tony decided he too needed to call it a night. As he stood, he heard Nathan Freed get up from his chair and say, “Tony, hang on. One more thing.”

  Curious, Tony turned and saw Freed was headed for the house. He followed.

  “What’s up?” Tony asked. “Need help with cleaning up?”

  “No,” Freed laughed out loud. “I haven’t done any of my own cleaning in a very long time. Don’t you know they have services that do that for you?”

  Tony smiled as Freed continued, “No, I want to give you this.”

  Tony looked down as Freed pulled a key ring from his pocket. Tony knew immediately what he was holding, the keys to Lisa’s Mustang.

  He took a step back as if repelled by some hidden force field. “I couldn’t…”

  “Oh yes, Tony,” Freed said firmly, stepping forward and pressing the keys into Tony’s hand. “You can and you will. I’ve known for a while that this is what I want to do. If it makes you feel better, I hate driving it. Of course I can’t bring myself to sell it. So what better home could it have than with the man she loved? Just promise me you’ll take good care of it, and the title will be delivered to your office tomorrow.”

  “Mr. Freed… Nate, you know I will treasure this as much as you.” Tony paused. “I don’t know what else to say.”

  “Don’t say anything,” Freed smiled. “I noticed you’ve been drinking that damn diet soda all day, so you’re in perfect shape to drive her home. Sleep well, my friend.”

  “Wait,” Tony said suddenly. “I do know what to say. I have something for you as well.”

  Freed’s brow wrinkled and his head shook. “You don’t need to give me anything,” he said, holding up a hand in protest.

  “Yes, I do,” Tony smiled. “It’s just this. The article you asked me to write about Lisa…it will be in the ‘My Turn’ column of Tuesday’s paper.”

  “Oh Tony, thank you.” Tears welled in Freed’s eyes.

  “Don’t thank me until you read it,” Tony said honestly. “It was much easier to write than I dreamed possible, but I am still praying every minute that I’ve done her justice.”

  Freed didn’t respond verbally, but reached out and pulled Tony to him in a tight, tearful embrace. Then he turned and was gone.

  Now it really was time to go, so Tony did just that. He backed the Mustang out of Freed’s garage and drove it home, taking a slightly out-of-the-way route miles through the river valley and a couple of neighboring towns. It was a beautiful night, so he only cried a little.

  ***

  Tony climbed into bed at 1:45 a.m. He was more exhausted than he could ever remember being. Despite that, he could find some positive things to contemplate as he stretched out on his mattress. He knew he had done good work. He knew he had built lifelong relationships with people he loved. He knew he had played a role in putting a despicable excuse for a man in prison for the rest of his life. And as much as Lisa’s death still weighed on him, he was learning to cope. He now believed he would be okay. Closing his eyes, he thought about how good it would feel to sleep late in the morning, then maybe take the Mustang for another spin before work. Or maybe just play some old tunes on the new piano, a Yamaha digital Clavinova, sitting in his living room. Thank you, Dad, for the annual trust money, Tony thought.

  As he drifted toward sleep, the most positive thought he carried with him was that the nagging questions that had filled his nightmares for the past two years were gone. He finally could rest easy.

  At 3 a.m. his cell phone rang…

  Afterword

  I have been privileged to personally know five Iowa governors. If you know anything about Iowa, this tells you I’ve been around a long time, because Iowans keep most governors in office for multiple terms. In nearly five decades leading up to 2018, Iowa had a total of just five governors: Robert Ray, Terry Branstad, Tom Vilsack, Chet Culver, and Kim Reynolds.

  The fact I met these five elected officials says absolutely nothing about me. A lifelong Iowan who has talked with each governor in turn is nothing special. Iowa is the kind of state where, if you want to be active in public policy, you can get to know as many elected officials and policy leaders as you want, including the governor. Iowa also is the kind of state that elects good people to serve in the state-house. These five governors were and are the kind of elected officials who want to engage with their constituents.

  Years ago Governor Ray called me at home on a Saturday morning to say thank you. Whatever I had done for him was so trivial I can’t even remember what it was, but I sure do remember getting the phone call. I’m certain, of course, I wasn’t Governor Ray’s only call that morning. He simply was the kind of person who wanted to be sure to thank everyone who pitched in to help, no matter how minor the effort.

  Similarly, I remember Governor Culver inviting me to Terrace Hill on a Saturday morning to have coffee and discuss health care policy. Again, this was no credit to me. A mutual friend set it up and my position as a health care executive gave me some credibility on the topic. Nevertheless, it was a great privilege to have mo
re than an hour with the state’s elected leader. It also gave me a chance to see the inside of one of Iowa’s most remarkable buildings. As an aside, the interior doesn’t look much like I described it in this book, and I never saw the basement, which may be a dirt cellar for all I know.

  The point of all this is that no one similar to Harris “Harry” Roskins ever has served as governor of Iowa.

  On a related note, I want to emphasize that all of this book is a work of fiction. While the story was inspired by two different actual crimes I covered as a newspaper reporter many years ago, all of the characters and facts and places in this book are fiction. The only exceptions are some larger cities, a few Iowa landmarks such as Terrace Hill, the Raccoon River, and the numbers of a few highways. Even the Raccoon River is depicted as larger and in a slightly different locale than you will find it in real life.

  As someone who loves Iowa and appreciates the opportunities I’ve had to know its governors, I found myself surprisingly reluctant to depict the chief executive as someone as purely evil as the character in this book. Alas, that is where the story took me. All I can do is hope you enjoyed its telling.

  – Joe LeValley

  Acknowledgements

  I want to gratefully acknowledge all of the wonderful people who played roles in the creation of this novel. High on this list are two published authors who read and shared their ideas and expertise with me. John Shors, the New York Times best-selling author of Beneath a Marble Sky and several other wonderful novels, read a manuscript and made extremely valuable suggestions. Similarly helpful comments were made by Dr. Ronald Weber, author of several very entertaining crime novels and former chair of the Graduate Program in Communication Arts at Notre Dame University. These men were very generous with their time and very encouraging to a first-time novelist.