sometime after they effected the search warrant and I found out my hard drive was gone. I was trying to figure out what the heck does that mean. Why would it be gone?”
“When did you find out the hard drive was gone?”
“When Detective David Miller came storming out at me on the day that they effected the search warrant, screaming, ‘Where’s the hard drive, Perry?’ like out of some B-rated detective movie.”
“Did you know he was coming?”
“I had no certain knowledge that Detective Miller was—” Perry tried to answer. However, Jones cut him off.
“I didn’t ask you if you had certain knowledge,” Jones said, staring intently at Perry.
“No, I didn’t know that Detective Miller was coming,” Perry clarified.
“Did you have any information that the police were coming with a search warrant?”
“My attorney had informed me that unless I allowed the police to come out and effect a third voluntary search on my house, they were going to issue a warrant.”
“Did you have any information that one of the things the police wanted to look at or search was your computer?”
“I will answer this question, the specific question, which is that Mr. Barrett informed me the day before that the police wanted to come out again and make a third voluntary search of my house. But this time they had informed my counsel that I was the prime suspect in my wife’s disappearance.”
“So, shortly before the police came out and searched the computer, found out somebody had ripped out the hard drive, you had been told that the police intended to come to your house and search the computer—is that correct?”
“Actually, Mr. Jones, I knew before then because the police had come out once before then, saying they wanted to inspect my computer, and they did.”
“Who do you say tore the hard drive out of your computer ?” Jones asked.
“I don’t say anybody,” Perry replied. “I have no idea, Mr. Jones.”
In response to further questioning, Perry said that he did not have an opinion regarding who may have removed the hard drive. He explained that the computer was used primarily for “home stuff.”
“I did a lot of work on it at home,” Perry said. “I’d do documents for clients . . . office work. I used it quite a bit to access Internet. Databases, things of that nature. Janet used the computer for the construction of the house. All of her house budgets and Excel spreadsheets were on the computer. And then there was—clearly, Janet used it for her personal word processing as well, when she needed to type somebody a letter or send some correspondence. . . . And then I used it probably mostly for education for my kids, for Sammy.”
“Who owned the computer?”
“We did. My wife and I.”
“Where was it located?”
“In my study.”
“After August fifteenth, did you use the computer?”
“You know, Mr. Jones, I don’t have any recollection of specifically using the computer after August fifteenth. I don’t think I did. . . . I may have used it once for some office-related issue . . . and I did turn it on for the police when they came and inspected it.”
Over the next few minutes, Perry and Mr. Jones moved into the area of differentiating between using a computer and programming one. Perry—in his typical manner of playing his game of semantics with his questioner—quibbled at length over the use of the word “programming” with regard to how it pertained to computers and their use.
“Mr. Jones,” Perry said, “I’ve never written a program.”
“Have you ever attempted to do any programming of the computer?”
“I don’t understand your question,” Perry responded. “I just think it’s because you’re probably just not using the correct vocabulary with me. When you say that, are you asking if I wrote software programs? I’m not . . . trying to be truculent here, I’m just trying to understand what you’re saying.”
“Have you ever modified a program?” Jones
“When did you find out the hard drive was gone?”
“When Detective David Miller came storming out at me on the day that they effected the search warrant, screaming, ‘Where’s the hard drive, Perry?’ like out of some B-rated detective movie.”
“Did you know he was coming?”
“I had no certain knowledge that Detective Miller was—” Perry tried to answer. However, Jones cut him off.
“I didn’t ask you if you had certain knowledge,” Jones said, staring intently at Perry.
“No, I didn’t know that Detective Miller was coming,” Perry clarified.
“Did you have any information that the police were coming with a search warrant?”
“My attorney had informed me that unless I allowed the police to come out and effect a third voluntary search on my house, they were going to issue a warrant.”
“Did you have any information that one of the things the police wanted to look at or search was your computer?”
“I will answer this question, the specific question, which is that Mr. Barrett informed me the day before that the police wanted to come out again and make a third voluntary search of my house. But this time they had informed my counsel that I was the prime suspect in my wife’s disappearance.”
“So, shortly before the police came out and searched the computer, found out somebody had ripped out the hard drive, you had been told that the police intended to come to your house and search the computer—is that correct?”
“Actually, Mr. Jones, I knew before then because the police had come out once before then, saying they wanted to inspect my computer, and they did.”
“Who do you say tore the hard drive out of your computer ?” Jones asked.
“I don’t say anybody,” Perry replied. “I have no idea, Mr. Jones.”
In response to further questioning, Perry said that he did not have an opinion regarding who may have removed the hard drive. He explained that the computer was used primarily for “home stuff.”
“I did a lot of work on it at home,” Perry said. “I’d do documents for clients . . . office work. I used it quite a bit to access Internet. Databases, things of that nature. Janet used the computer for the construction of the house. All of her house budgets and Excel spreadsheets were on the computer. And then there was—clearly, Janet used it for her personal word processing as well, when she needed to type somebody a letter or send some correspondence. . . . And then I used it probably mostly for education for my kids, for Sammy.”
“Who owned the computer?”
“We did. My wife and I.”
“Where was it located?”
“In my study.”
“After August fifteenth, did you use the computer?”
“You know, Mr. Jones, I don’t have any recollection of specifically using the computer after August fifteenth. I don’t think I did. . . . I may have used it once for some office-related issue . . . and I did turn it on for the police when they came and inspected it.”
Over the next few minutes, Perry and Mr. Jones moved into the area of differentiating between using a computer and programming one. Perry—in his typical manner of playing his game of semantics with his questioner—quibbled at length over the use of the word “programming” with regard to how it pertained to computers and their use.
“Mr. Jones,” Perry said, “I’ve never written a program.”
“Have you ever attempted to do any programming of the computer?”
“I don’t understand your question,” Perry responded. “I just think it’s because you’re probably just not using the correct vocabulary with me. When you say that, are you asking if I wrote software programs? I’m not . . . trying to be truculent here, I’m just trying to understand what you’re saying.”
“Have you ever modified a program?” Jones
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