The Interrogation

“So, after practice where did you go?”

“I stayed at school for a while and then I took the bus home.”

“What time was it?”

“Around 11am”

“Were you alone on the bus?”

“Yeah, no one else was on the bus except the driver.”

“And later in the day, did you send a text to Mollie?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you text her?”

“Just to say hi.”

“I will read your text: rly hope ur doing good / want to hang out later? Is that what you wrote.”

“I guess so.”

“Did you think she would want to hang out with you?”

“I guess not really.”

“Because she’d just broken it off with you?”

“Yeah”

“And how were you feeling about that?”

“Pretty bummed out I guess.”

“Did she tell you why she wanted to split up?”

“She said she wanted to focus on her new summer job and finishing out the year. She didn’t think we were right together.”

“Did you know what she meant by that.”

“Not really.”

“Did you talk to anyone about it?”

“No.”

“But you texted some friends about it.”

“Yeah, I wrote to my friends about it.”

“To say what?”

“Just that they had probably noticed that I was a bit low and explaining that it was because Mollie and me had decided to take a break until after the summer. And also that my dad was diagnosed with ALS last year -like Lou Gherig’s disease. So he’ll probably die soon. So I was feeling pretty overwhelmed about it all.”

“Did any of them respond to your message?”

“A couple of them send me texts.”

“You also told them that you and Molly were going to hang out.”

“I thought she might.”

“But Mollie didn’t respond to you, did she?”

“No.”

“And you weren’t surprised that she didn’t?”

“I guess not.”

“So yesterday your mom drove you to school early for your basketball practice, then after practice you took the bus home because you weren’t feeling well. You stayed home for the rest of the day and evening."

“That’s right.”

“What did you do all day? You said listening to music and doing homework?”

“Yeah, and sleeping.”

“You didn’t take a walk?”

“No.”

“Can I get you a glass of water or anything, Peter?”

“No thanks. I’m fine.”

“Ok. So Peter, how did you feel when you heard about Mollie?”

“I dunno. Shocked I guess.”

“Did she ever talk to you about suicide?”

“Well sometimes she could be a bit down.”

“What did she want to do with her life?”

“She wanted to join the RCMP.”

“Why?”

“She thought it would be exciting. She was into mystery books and stuff like that and so she wanted to be able to solve crimes.”

“So she saw a full life ahead for herself.”

“I guess.”

“Did you think that the way she did it was something she would do?”

“I dunno. What do you mean?”

“It’s an unusual way for a young girl to kill herself.”

“Is it?”

“Yes it is. I’d like to show you a picture now, Peter. Are you sure you don’t want to have your parents here with you?”

“No. I don’t want my parents.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to call someone else? Or we could bring in a counsellor.”

“Nah, it’s ok.”

“Peter, this might be upsetting, and I just want to make sure that you have an opportunity to have someone else with you during the interview. You know that you don’t have to stay here or make a statement. We went over what your rights are. Are you sure you are ok without anyone?

“Yeah.”

Ok, are you ready?”

“Uh huh.”

“Peter, how do you feel seeing those pictures?”

“I dunno. Shocked I guess.”

“Do you notice anything in the picture that could help us in our investigation? Anything unusual?

“You mean, other than the knife in her neck?”

“Yes, other than that, Peter.”

“Nope.”

“Ok, Peter. We’re almost done here. What were you wearing yesterday?”

“Sorry?”

“What were you wearing?”

“Jeans. A sweatshirt. I don’t really remember.”

“Where are those clothes now?”

“At home I guess.”

“Did you wash them?”

“Yeah, I think I did a laundry?”

“What time would that have been?”

“I don’t know. Maybe in the afternoon.”

And you put the clothes you were wearing in with the other washing? Even though it was the middle of the day?”

“I think so, yeah.”

“Ok. So, Peter, you told your friends that the marks on your hands are from you self-harming yourself. Is that right.”

“Yeah.”

“Have you done that kind of thing before?”

“Yes.”

“Ok.”

“Oh, one more thing I forgot about, Peter. The neighbour said that you were seen walking along the canal road near your house at around 3:30pm. Is that right”

“Uh. No. I don’t think so.”

“You didn’t go for a walk that day at all?”

“No.”

“Why did you tell your friends that you were worried that you couldn’t get hold of Mollie?”

“Well, she didn’t answer my texts, so I was worried.”

“But you said that you weren’t surprised she didn’t answer. Since she had broken up with you.”

“Yeah, but I felt like it was weird she didn’t write back.”

“Mollie sent out a message to her friends on social media the night before last saying that you two had broken up and that you - quote – had taken it pretty badly. What do you think she meant by that, Peter?”

“Well, we decided to take a break and I was bummed about it. That’s all. She knows I’ve been upset about the other things going on at home.”

“I’m sorry about your Dad, Peter. I have a good friend with ALS and he is still doing well. Hopefully your Dad will beat the odds.”

“Yeah thanks.”

“Peter, why don’t you tell me what really happened between you and Mollie yesterday?”

“Huh?”

“We know you were at her house yesterday. We know that you killed her. We know you threw some bloodied clothes in the canal. We just want you to admit it to help her family. Imagine how hard it would be to go through a trial, especially after how they found her. Her dad said that he would never get that image out of his head. You’re a good kid, Peter. Never been in trouble. You were having a hard time because of your dad. We all feel sorry for you, Peter. We know how messed up you felt. It was hard when Mollie broke up with you. You cracked, right? Isn’t that what happened Peter. Why don’t you just get it off your chest.”

“Um…”

“Peter?”

“What’s going to happen to me?”

“It will go easier for you if you tell us exactly what happened.”

“I think I need to speak to a lawyer.”

“Yeah, Peter, I think you do.”

.