by Don Bullis
Freddy Finch slipped into the room.
―Why the hell didn't you call me, Marty? I'm the goddamn chief around here.‖
―Why is Finch here?‖ Vigil asked with obvious annoyance.
―Because I told him to be here. That's why. Why in the hell didn't you call me?‖
―What for, Charlie? Spurlock didn't do anything wrong. Worst thing he did was just bad judgment. No need to get the chief involved with such a minor infraction. Even the newspaper doesn't say he did anything wrong.‖
―You know,‖ Scarberry stormed, ―you and Torrez are responsible for this whole mess.‖
―How's that, Charlie?‖
―You sent Spurlock off on that trip. You set up the whole damn deal and you never got no approval from me for it, neither. I wouldn't allow the son-of-a-bitch to go to Los Lunas, let alone Los Angeles and I damn sure wouldn‘t allow him to go anywhere with a smart-mouth insubordinate bastard like Budwister.‖
―Out of state travel doesn't require approval by the chief like it did when Johnny Bradford was chief,‖ Vigil observed. ―Chief Black‘s policy is that any captain can authorize it as long as it‘s law enforcement related and there‘s money in the budget.‖ Scarberry sat down in the large leather chair at the head of the conference table as Vigil spoke. ―Captain Torrez did the right thing in checking with me to make sure we had the budget for it. The trip was well within in regulations. And budget.‖
―All regulation, was it?‖ Scarberry snapped his fingers at Finch who quickly placed a file folder on the table in front of him. The deputy chief turned a page. ―Let's see. Peppermint Lounge. Nightclub next door to a motel. Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles. Is it regulation for State Police officers to stay in a place like that while on official business.‖ He turned a few more pages. ―Drank until 0130 hours next date. Returned to room with two women. Women departed room, 0300 hours. Officers departed room 1000 hours. Beer purchased at Running Indian Oasis, Interstate 40 approximately 47 miles east of Barstow, California. Approximately 1330 hours. Beer purchased, Holbrook and Saunders, Arizona. Average speed traveled, seventy-two miles per hour. Littering. Beer cans thrown out of vehicle at mile markers, and so forth and so on. That all sound like regulation to you, does it, Marty?‖
―What's in that file, Charlie? Do you mean to tell me that you had
Freddy follow Doc all the way to California and back?‖
―You can bet your sweet ass I did. I got wind of what you two
were up to, and Freddy was on the job. I knew Spurlock would step
on his dick sooner or later, and he did it, didn't he?‖
Vigil was on his feet, his face red and menacing. ―Get the hell out
of here, Freddy.‖
The sergeant in charge of fleet management looked at Scarberry
for help. The acting chief merely nodded his head toward the door
and Finch slunk away.
―You do live up to your reputation, don't you Charlie.‖ ―I do Marty. It's my job. We already knew Spurlock‘s been drinking then driving department cars. Freddy caught ‗im at it. It'd take an
hour to tell you the regulations he‘s violated since he‘s been on Bud's
murder case. Besides that, Budwister was insubordinate as hell to me
out at Budville. I knew he‘d screw-up, too.‖ Scarberry leaned back in
large leather chair. ―Spurlock's fired.‖
―You made that decision, have you Charlie?‖ Vigil's face was red
and a blue vein in his neck pulsated as he leaned on the table facing
Scarberry. He kept his voice in check.
―I did.‖ Scarberry said. ―If APD sat down Budwister for a week,
we got to fire Spurlock. The State Police is held to a higher standard
than a bunch of second-rate, pissy-assed city cops.‖
―And I'll bet you've even talked to Tom Fetter and the State Police
Board about this haven't you, Charlie?‖
―Sure. I'm the acting chief. We can't delay needed action just on
account of the chief bein‘ out on sick leave. This‘ll all be signed and
sealed by the time Sam Black gets back to work.‖
―But you haven't talked to the chief, have you?‖
―The man's sick. No need to bother him. And besides, why should
I?‖
―Common courtesy, if nothing else.‖ Vigil stood upright and
folded his arms across his chest. ―I'll tell you what, Charlie, I don't
think it'll fly.‖
―I don't care what you think, Marty. Chere Ortiz is busy right this
minute typing the orders. They'll be issued in the morning.‖ ―You know the press is gonna have a field day with this, don't
you?‖
Scarberry stood up. ―Just who in the hell's gonna tell the press
about it? You, Marty?‖
―Not me. But I'm surprised they haven't talked to Doc already.
Hell, he's part of the story. Believe me, they'll do a follow up. Governor Dave Cargo will be happy for the attention, I'm sure. Him and Cliff Hawley will both like a surprise this close to primary election
day.‖
Sweat popped out on Scarberry's bald head as the muscles in his
face and neck tightened. ―I'm the acting chief. I'll fade the heat and do
what I damn well think needs to be done. You two get the hell out of
here.‖
A short piece appeared in the Albuquerque Journal on Monday
morning.
State Police Officer Fired on Drinking Charges
Acting Chief of the State Police, Lt. Col. Charles Scarberry said Sunday that State Policeman J. B. Spurlock, who was involved in an incident involving drinking in a state-owned car has been fired from his job as a criminal investigator. Spurlock was reportedly driving the police car when the drinking took place.
Scarberry is in charge of State Police activities while Chief Sam Black is recovering from an illness.
CHAPTER XIV
While the state police brass argued Spurlock‘s future that Sunday morning, jail guards moved Joe Peters from his cell in the Albuquerque jail to the interrogation room upstairs. Even though he was under suspension, Doc drove to Albuquerque to sit in on the interview. Attorney Sharon Baca and Virgil Valverde––Torrez reassigned Vee to the case when Scarberry suspended Doc––were also present. Wilcoxson glowered at Spurlock, and offered no greeting. Spurlock, for his part, tilted his chair back against the wall, folded his arms across his chest and ignored the assistant district attorney.
Wilcoxson waited until Peters was seated and his handcuffs removed before he spoke. ―State your name for the record.‖
―Joe Peters.‖
―You‘ve been advised of your rights, have you not?‖
―Yeah. Budweiser told me all about my rights.‖
―Good. And for the record, note that your attorney, Miss Sharon
Baca is present in the room. Ok. What's your address?‖
―Up on Arvilla Place. Northeast.‖
―Here in Albuquerque?‖
―Yeah.‖
―What were you doing in Los Angeles?‖
―Painting houses for my uncle. Lloyd Dean.‖
―When did you go to Los Angeles?‖
―I don't know the exact date, man.‖
―Approximately.‖
―Middle of February. Maybe.‖
―What made you decide to go to Los Angeles at that particular
time?‖
―A number of reasons.‖
―Like what?‖
―Well, first off, I didn't go right from Albuquerque to California. I
went from Albuquerque to New Orleans and then from New Orleans to California later on. One thing was that my mother passed away the first part of January. The girl I was engaged to went to New Orleans and I went down there with her. Her mother was sick with cancer and I had a fight with her family on the ma
rriage. Broke me up pretty bad. I didn‘t have no reason to come back to Albuquerque no more with my mom dead so I went out to California.‖
Much of what Peters said was a lie. It was true that his mother‘d died, but nearly ten years before. Arrested shortly after the funeral, the cops seemed to go easier on him because of his grief. He‘d brought up his mother‘s death every time he‘d been arrested since then, and no cop ever checked to see if it was true. His sick future mother-in-law and the break-up of his engagement were also sympathy cards. He could scarcely tell the cops the truth: he got drunk and went to New Orleans on a whim. He hooked up with Billy Ray White and the two of them partied until all their money was gone and they went their separate ways. Peters robbed a filling station at gunpoint and headed west. His criminal intuition told him—and he‘d said as much to Billy Ray—that the Rice/Brown murders would cause shit to hit the fan, and he didn‘t want to be in Albuquerque when it happened.
Once on the West Coast, he worked at painting a single house before his uncle fired him. Joe spread more paint on window panes, flower beds, and himself than he did on external walls. Uncle Lloyd Dean told his nephew he could stay with him, but he‘d have to find another line of work. Joe was in the process of getting into the dope selling trade when the FBI arrested him on the murder warrant. Joe‘d made a lot of friends in Los Angeles while he served time at the Federal Prison at Lompoc, California.
―Ok. Now,‖ Wilcoxson said, ―you were acquainted with a person known as Billy Ray White or Billy Stirling when you were here in Albuquerque, last year, last fall, weren't you?‖
―Yeah. He called himself Larry something, too. Kedrick or Dedrick. Something like that. I only knew him three days.‖
―When did you meet him?‖
―On the fifteenth of November. Cato introduced me to him.‖
―How did you become acquainted with Joe Cato?‖
―We both worked for Bob Drymaple and his brother Ed.‖
―When was that?‖
―Last summer. July. August.‖
―Ok.‖ Wilcoxson lit a cigarette. ―Where did Cato introduce you to Billy Ray White.‖
―In an apartment down in the southeast heights. I don't know the street or address. I followed them in my car.‖
―Who was with Cato?‖
―Dave Sipe.‖
―Why was Cato taking you to this apartment?‖
―To show me some hot stuff. You know. Stolen merchandise. Typewriters. Office machines.‖
―What‘d you do when you got there?‖
―Went in the bedroom and looked through the stuff that they had. I picked out a typewriter I wanted. They wanted me to take everything for three large.‖
―Does that mean three hundred dollars?‖
―Yeah. Three hundred.‖
―Who was there at that time?‖
―Cato, Sipe, Billy Ray, if that's what you say his name is. Cato figured I should know Billy Ray ‗cause we was both in Leavenworth, but I didn't know him. We wasn't there at the same time and I wasn't there very long before they sent me to Lompoc. Billy asked me if I knew a guy named Jimmy Clark, or Jimmy Claire. Some name like that. Said he was in Leavenworth when I was, but I didn't know the guy. Never met him. Like I say, I wasn't in Leavenworth very long.‖
―Did you take all the stuff there for three hundred?‖
―No. Just the typewriter. For fifty. I sold it to a friend of mine, an architect, for seventy. I picked up a double sawbuck for an hour's work.‖ Peters seemed proud to demonstrate to the lawyers in the room that he could make so much money in such a short time.
―When did you see White next?‖
―Next day. Cato came by my place to pick up the money for the typewriter. They'd let me have it on the come. Actually, what Joe wanted was, he wanted the typewriter back. He had someone that wanted to pay more for it. I told him it was gone and I gave him the fifty. Then he said they had some more stuff, different things, colored televisions, stereos and things like this. He wanted to know if I'd be interested in looking at them and I said yes. I didn't follow him that time. I just drove over there. I knew where the place was.‖ ―You buy anything?‖
―No.‖
―Who was there?‖
―Same guys. Cato, Sipe, Billy. Then some guys from Texas showed up and they bought some stuff and left, as I recall it.‖
―You talk to Cato, Sipe or Billy about anything besides the stolen goods they had there?‖
―Armed robberies. Evidently, this guy Larry, or Billy Ray, that was his thing. This is what he did.‖
―How do you know that?‖
―Just from the way he talked.‖
―What‘d he say that made you think he was an armed robber?‖
―It wasn't so much what he said, but the way the others were talking to him and the way he was taking the conversation in and answering questions and asking questions.‖
―What was discussed about armed robberies?‖
―Where armed robberies could be done that would benefit Billy.‖
―What‘d you tell him?‖
―That I knew where one could be done.‖
―Where was that?‖
―The Trading Post at Budville. Budville Trading Post.‖
―What made you think it‘d be a good place to rob?‖
―Because I heard a lot of talk about this Rice guy that stopped motorists and he collected cash and never turned it in or anything like that; and that he kept all the cash on the premises, from the various sources. I can't say exactly who said it. A number of people did.‖
―Have you ever been to the Budville Trading Post?‖
―No.‖
―You know anyone who has?‖
―Not offhand.‖
―What happened after you mentioned the Trading Post?‖
―He asked me how much money would be there and I said, I don't know. I imagine quit a bit. Ten grand, fifteen, at least. He said, well, I don't have a car, and I said I‘d supply a car for ten percent of what you get. He was agreeable to that.‖
―How did you know that you weren't going to get short-changed on your ten percent? What was your precaution on that?‖
―I didn't have any except the newspapers usually tell how much is stole.‖
―You get him a car?‖
―Yeah. The following day.‖
―That‘d be the 18th of November.‖
―Saturday, the 18th of November. Yeah.‖
―Where‘d you get the car from?‖
―Drymaple's lot.‖
―Drymaple know about it?‖
―I didn‘t tell ‗im, but he didn't care. He had lots of cars and he pretty much let us take what we wanted long‘s as we brought ‗em back in one piece.‖
―What kind of car did you get?‖
―I don't know. A '66 or '67 Chevy. A two door, I think it was.‖
―What model? Impala? Belaire?‖
―I don't know.‖
―What color was it?‖
―It was either a gun-metal gray or a blue.‖
―Did you go back and get the car?‖
―Yeah. The next morning.‖
―What time was that?‖
―I would say any place from about seven up until about nine. I'm not too sure. I was pretty shook up.‖
―Why were you shook up?‖
―I get up early sometimes. Go to Winchell's for coffee and the Sunday paper. I read about them murders out at Budville and I figured this guy‘d killed them two people.‖
―Did you see Billy Ray when you picked up the car?‖
―No. He'd parked about a block from his apartment. I hot wired it and drove it back to Drymaple‘s place.‖
―You notice anything unusual about the car? Any blood or anything in it?‖
―Not that I saw. I was only in it about ten minutes. I wanted to get rid of it. Keep my end of the deal.‖
―Who took you to get the car?‖
―Nobody.‖
―Don'
t tell me you walked all the way down there.‖
―I drove my car. Once I got the other car back to Drymaple's, I just hung around for a while and finally Wally Webb took me back to get my car. He didn't know nothing about what had happened.‖
Wilcoxson looked at some notes in a yellow pad. ―You ever see Billy Ray, or Larry, with a gun?‖
―No.‖
―Did he ever talk about a gun in your presence?‖
―Not that I can remember.‖
―He ever say where he was from?‖
―He was sentenced to the federal joint from Louisiana; New Orleans, I think it was?‖
―You see him when you were in New Orleans?‖
―No. I never seen him since the day I dropped the car off.‖
―You get any of the money from the armed robbery?‖
―No. I didn't want nothing to do with any of it.‖
―What about Cato and Sipe? You have contact with them?‖
―Used to see them around before I left town for New Orleans.‖
―Do you know any reason why Cato‘d want to say anything to implicate you in a crime that wasn't true?‖
―Nothing other than saving his own neck and getting out of jail. I feel like Cato would tell you anything—Cato‘d say anything that would help him get out of whatever he was trying to get out of.‖
―Do you have any reason to believe that Cato was involved in the armed robbery of the Budville Trading Post?‖
―He was involved to the point that he knew about it.‖
―Billy ever mention anyone else that might be going with him?‖
―He said Sipe was his partner, like, but he didn't mention Dave going with him that I recall.‖
―Did he mention that he wanted you to go with him?‖
―No.‖
―Are you willing to testify in court, if necessary?‖
―Yes, I am.‖
―Have I made any promises to you regarding any future charges in this case?‖
―No.‖
―Where will you go if you get out of jail?‖
―Back to California. Back to work for my uncle.‖
―Do we have that address?‖
―I gave it to the pig, ah, guard over at the jail.‖
―You have a prior arrest record, don't you Joe?‖ Vee asked.
