no place in a police investigation, Dan saying she was nothing more than an average, unimaginative cop, always playing it safe, filling out the paperwork, following the time-honoured routines and correct procedures in a way he never would.
They’d never even warmed to each other, but one night, after a couple of bottles of wine, Claire had finally got Dan to admit a reluctant respect for Suzanne, and an understanding that police work needed both their approaches. He went for the show business style, the wild leaps of careering imagination, the instinctive insights that explained people’s actions. The sacred epiphany moments as he called them, which solved the crime in an instant of vivid realisation. She preferred to build a case slowly and methodically, on the traditional foundations of solid evidence.
Suzanne had changed over the last couple of years. She didn’t talk about it, kept her private life very separate, but it didn’t take a master detective to sense the influence of a man. Fashionable clothes, a trimmer figure, perfume, a hint of make-up, and, most tellingly of all, the occasional sight of a genuine smile. A new reason to live.
Whiting cleared his throat noisily. ‘I wanted to get together so we can have a discussion before we conduct the interview with PC Crouch,’ he said, giving them his unfeeling smile and exposing the tiny teeth. ‘It is the key moment of the case. Let’s take a moment to go through the statements of PC Andy Gardener, the other marksman he was working with on the night, and Ms Chanter, the partner of the dead man.’
Whiting produced a pile of papers from his briefcase and placed them carefully on the desk. They were neatly divided by a red, plastic partition. He pushed a half towards Claire, the other half to Suzanne.
‘Let’s examine PC Gardener’s first,’ he said. They began reading.
“PC Crouch knocked on the door. There was no answer”, Gardener had said. “We could hear screaming from within, so he knocked again, much harder. There was some light in the house, though at the back, not the front where we were. I believe I saw the shape of a person moving fast, perhaps running past the window in the lounge although I could not tell if it was male or female. I may have seen another person’s shape following it, but I cannot be sure as my attention was back on the door. PC Crouch was knocking hard and shouting through the letterbox. He said ‘Police! Open up please.’ There was still no reply, and I heard more screaming and what I believed to be thudding and banging coming from inside the house.
“PC Crouch and I had a brief conversation. We agreed there was reason to believe a crime was being committed and we feared for the safety of at least one of the people in the house, as there was evidence a weapon may have been involved. We would normally wait and follow the standard procedure of contain and negotiate, but we believed there was an imminent risk to life in the house, and so we had to go in. We briefly discussed our tactics. We agreed we could not use baton guns due to the confined space. The Taser electric stun gun is currently banned from use due to its potential contribution to the death of a woman in the Midlands. Thus we decided pistols would be the most appropriate weapons and we drew them. PC Crouch would move in first. I would follow, covering him. This was our standard way of working. He always liked to go first.
“PC Crouch kicked down the door and we moved slowly into a hallway. It was dark. The only light was coming from the far end of the house, and we continued slowly towards it. The screaming had stopped when we entered the house, but then resumed. It was clear it was coming from the rear, and what looked like the kitchen area. We continued forwards. Ahead, PC Crouch rounded a corner in the hallway and I saw him then raise his gun and shout the standard challenge, ‘Armed police, put your hands up! Armed police, put your hands where I can
They’d never even warmed to each other, but one night, after a couple of bottles of wine, Claire had finally got Dan to admit a reluctant respect for Suzanne, and an understanding that police work needed both their approaches. He went for the show business style, the wild leaps of careering imagination, the instinctive insights that explained people’s actions. The sacred epiphany moments as he called them, which solved the crime in an instant of vivid realisation. She preferred to build a case slowly and methodically, on the traditional foundations of solid evidence.
Suzanne had changed over the last couple of years. She didn’t talk about it, kept her private life very separate, but it didn’t take a master detective to sense the influence of a man. Fashionable clothes, a trimmer figure, perfume, a hint of make-up, and, most tellingly of all, the occasional sight of a genuine smile. A new reason to live.
Whiting cleared his throat noisily. ‘I wanted to get together so we can have a discussion before we conduct the interview with PC Crouch,’ he said, giving them his unfeeling smile and exposing the tiny teeth. ‘It is the key moment of the case. Let’s take a moment to go through the statements of PC Andy Gardener, the other marksman he was working with on the night, and Ms Chanter, the partner of the dead man.’
Whiting produced a pile of papers from his briefcase and placed them carefully on the desk. They were neatly divided by a red, plastic partition. He pushed a half towards Claire, the other half to Suzanne.
‘Let’s examine PC Gardener’s first,’ he said. They began reading.
“PC Crouch knocked on the door. There was no answer”, Gardener had said. “We could hear screaming from within, so he knocked again, much harder. There was some light in the house, though at the back, not the front where we were. I believe I saw the shape of a person moving fast, perhaps running past the window in the lounge although I could not tell if it was male or female. I may have seen another person’s shape following it, but I cannot be sure as my attention was back on the door. PC Crouch was knocking hard and shouting through the letterbox. He said ‘Police! Open up please.’ There was still no reply, and I heard more screaming and what I believed to be thudding and banging coming from inside the house.
“PC Crouch and I had a brief conversation. We agreed there was reason to believe a crime was being committed and we feared for the safety of at least one of the people in the house, as there was evidence a weapon may have been involved. We would normally wait and follow the standard procedure of contain and negotiate, but we believed there was an imminent risk to life in the house, and so we had to go in. We briefly discussed our tactics. We agreed we could not use baton guns due to the confined space. The Taser electric stun gun is currently banned from use due to its potential contribution to the death of a woman in the Midlands. Thus we decided pistols would be the most appropriate weapons and we drew them. PC Crouch would move in first. I would follow, covering him. This was our standard way of working. He always liked to go first.
“PC Crouch kicked down the door and we moved slowly into a hallway. It was dark. The only light was coming from the far end of the house, and we continued slowly towards it. The screaming had stopped when we entered the house, but then resumed. It was clear it was coming from the rear, and what looked like the kitchen area. We continued forwards. Ahead, PC Crouch rounded a corner in the hallway and I saw him then raise his gun and shout the standard challenge, ‘Armed police, put your hands up! Armed police, put your hands where I can
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