Читать книгу Savage Son - Corey Mitchell - Страница 11

December 10, 2003, 8:30 P.M.

Whitaker Residence

Sugar Land, Texas

Detective Marshall Slot got the call for a shooting on Heron Way in the Sugar Lakes Subdivision. It was an unusual occurrence in Sugar Land, but the ten-year veteran detective knew he needed to get over there as quickly as possible. He wrote a note so his wife and kids would know he would be gone, grabbed his keys, and headed over to the Sugar Land police station to pick up his camera and pocket digital recorder.

Detective Slot arrived at the Whitaker house, slightly after 9:00 P.M. When he pulled up to the street, he witnessed a Life Flight helicopter ascending out of the neighborhood. He had no idea who was inside the rescue vehicle; however, he knew it must be serious.

Slot exited his car, walked up to the front porch, and noticed several Sugar Land police officers on the scene. When he entered the house through the front door, he saw the prone body of a young man. It was obvious the man was deceased.

Slot turned to one of the police supervisors on the scene to get the lay of the land, and as much detail about the crime scene as possible. Slot asked another officer to give him a walk-through of the Whitaker house. The detective scanned every room and made special note of the awkward way the drawers were pulled out in the rooms. The manner in which they were pulled was an obvious red flag to the seasoned detective. His first thought was that he was staring at a staged robbery.

While upstairs in the Whitaker house, Detective Slot made his way into what looked like a young college student’s bedroom. It was bedecked with sports equipment, desktop computers, and a framed Texas A&M poster, which had not yet been hung up on the wall. There was even a sheathed ceremonial sword propped up in the corner of the main room.

A quick stroll through the bedroom led Slot into a smaller room with a sloped ceiling. It was readily apparent that this was someone’s game room. A couple of videogame consoles lay on the floor next to at least ten videogames in their cases. College textbooks were laid out on a table, and even more Texas A&M posters were found.

As Slot worked his way farther into the game room, he spotted something a bit out of character. He noticed a couple of boxes of bullets, along with a fairly large black metal box. He could see that the box appeared to be some sort of safe. Upon further inspection, he noted that the safe had been pried open with some sort of metal device. The door to the safe had been bent back, and the black paint had been scraped off around the edges.

Slot made his way back downstairs and to the back door, which was unlocked. He also noticed a window had been cracked open slightly; however, he could see no signs of entry through it. He noted that all of the outside screens for the windows remained intact. Slot also observed that the majority of the knickknacks inside the house, as well as the recent Christmas decorations, were mostly left undisturbed.

Once Detective Slot completed his walk-through, and felt sufficiently updated on what had occurred, he exited the home through the back door, so as to let the crime scene technicians perform their tasks. Outside, the detective continued to search for evidence of escape by the shooter or shooters. The only potential pieces of evidence he spotted were some loose pickets on the family’s backyard fence. He could not determine for sure, though, whether they were loose prior to or after the break-in and shooting.

Detective Slot exited the backyard and made his way around to the front yard. There he encountered Deputy Keith Pikett, from the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office. Pikett was the canine handler for the sheriff’s department. His specialty was scent-tracking dogs. Pikett was working with three bloodhounds in an attempt to track down the shooter.

Slot stood back as Pikett and his four-legged fellow officers did their magic. The animals made their way over to a Yukon SUV, parked in the street directly in front of the Whitaker home. Slot walked over to the truck, when he noticed a plastic evidence number stand near the right back tire. It was difficult to see in the dark, but he saw a black glove next to the evidence indicator placard. It lay in between the bumper and the curb on the street. One of the police officers walked up to Slot and informed him that he had discovered the glove moments earlier.

Slot continued to work the crime scene at the Whitaker house. He sent Detective Billy Baugh out to check up on Kent, Tricia, and Bart Whitaker. He had no idea that Tricia Whitaker would not make it to the hospital. She passed away while on board Life Flight en route to Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital.