his thoughts. I’m certainly paying for them. He returns in fifteen minutes with a cup of coffee.
“So what’s bugging you?” I ask. “Forget the science and let’s do some speculating.”
“That’s almost as much fun as the science,” he says with a grin. “Question one: If the police planted the flashlight in the trunk of Miller’s car, why didn’t they go ahead and plant the shotgun too?”
I’ve asked myself the same question a hundred times. “Maybe they were worried about proving he owned it. I’m sure it was not registered. Or maybe it would have been harder to plant in his trunk. The flashlight is much smaller and easier to simply place there. Pfitzner, the sheriff, testified that he found it when he was searching the trunk. There were other cops at the scene.”
He listens intently and nods along. “That’s plausible.”
“It would have been easy to simply pull the flashlight out of a pocket and drop in the trunk. Not so with a shotgun.”
He keeps nodding. “I can buy that. Next question: According to the snitch, Miller said he drove to the Gulf the next day and tossed the shotgun into the ocean. Why wouldn’t he have tossed the flashlight too? Both were at the crime scene. Both had blood on them. It makes no sense not to dispose of both.”
I respond, “I have no answer to that and it’s a huge gap in the fiction the cops fed to the snitch.”
“And why the ocean where the water is shallow and the tides rise and fall?”
“It makes no sense,” I say.
“It does not. Next question: Why use a shotgun? They make too much noise. The killer got lucky when no one heard the blasts.”
“Well, Carrie Holland said she heard something, but she’s not credible. They used a shotgun because that’s what a guy like Miller would have used, maybe. A pro would have used a pistol with a silencer, but they weren’t framing a pro. They wanted Miller.”
“Agreed. Did Miller have a history of hunting?”
“None whatsoever. Says he never hunted in his life.”
“Did he own guns?”
“He says he kept two pistols in the house for protection. His wife testified that he owned a shotgun, but she’s not credible either.”
“You’re pretty good, Post.”
“Thanks. I’ve had some experience on the streets. So have you, Dr. Benderschmidt. Now that you know the case, I’d like to hear your version of educated guessing. Put the science aside and tell me how this murder happened.”
He gets to his feet and steps to a window for a long gaze. “There’s a brain at work here, Mr. Post, and that’s why you’re not likely to solve this crime, short of a miracle. Diana Russo told a convincing story of the conflict between Miller and her husband. I suspect she exaggerated, but the jury believed her. She pointed to a black guy in a white town. And one with a motive, at that. They, the conspirators, knew enough about crime scene evidence to use the flashlight as the link to Miller. The real killer left behind no traceable clues, which is remarkable and says a lot about his high level of planning. If he did make a mistake, the cops missed it or perhaps covered it up. After twenty-two years, it is indeed a cold case, and one that looks impossible to solve. You won’t find the killer, Mr. Post, but you might succeed in proving your client innocent.”
“Is there a chance he’s guilty?”
“So you have doubts?”
“Always. The doubts keep me awake at night.”
He returns to his chair and takes a sip of coffee. “I don’t see it. Motive is weak. Sure, he may have hated his former lawyer, but blowing his head off is a sure ticket to death row. Miller had an alibi. There is nothing that links him to the crime scene. My best educated guess is that he didn’t do it.”
“That’s good to hear,” I reply with a smile. He is no bleeding-heart and has testified for the prosecution more than the defense. He shoots straight and is not afraid to criticize another expert, even a colleague, when he disagrees. We spend a few minutes talking about other famous blood-spatter cases, and it’s soon time to leave.
“Thanks, Doctor,” I say as I gather my things. “I know your time is valuable.”
“You’re paying for it,” he says with a smile. Yep, $30,000.
As I open the door, he says, “One last thing, Mr. Post, and this is even farther from my expertise, but that situation