Hauler.'
In addition to detailed descriptions of the murders of Jamie Zimmerman
and four other women, the writer also describes his involvement in a
violent sexual assault upon a victim he refers to as 'the girl who was
dumped in the Gorge last Feb[ruary].' He claims that, as he had done
prior to and since Zimmerman's murder, he went with a friend to look
for a prostitute to share.
He says, 'I knew we were going to kill the girl when my friend couldn't
[achieve an erection]. He started working her over and it brought out
the urge in me. Maybe the Gorge is my lucky spot. That couple took
the fall for me after I did Jamie, and now the cops think some other
guy did the other girl. I guess the bad luck is that this time she
lived. (Ha-ha.)'
The writer's description of the incident closely matches the crime for
which Frank Derringer is currently on trial. Derringer is accused of
raping a thirteen-year-old girl and leaving her for dead in the
Columbia Gorge with an unidentified accomplice. During his trial,
Derringer has claimed to be the victim of a mistaken eyewitness
identification. Because of similarities between the offense and
Zimmerman's murder, Derringer has suggested that the crimes were
committed by the same person or persons.
I reached the end of the front page text of the feature story and
opened the paper to jump to the continuation. Apparently, the writer
gave detailed descriptions of the five murders, but the Oregonian was
declining to publish any potentially identifying information until law
enforcement officials verified its authenticity.
An exasperated sigh from Griffith reminded me that I was supposed to be
rushing. I closed the paper back to the front page and looked up at
him.
'I'm sorry, Sam. Was I disrupting your reading?'
'I was getting through it as quickly as I could,' I said. 'So the
paper agreed to keep the details quiet until we figure out if this
guy's for real?'
Griffith didn't hide his annoyance. 'Yeah, IA's trying to find any
cases matching up to what this guy says. But I wouldn't concern
yourself with that right now.'
I wanted to ask him why the bureau's Internal Affairs Division would be
investigating a potential serial killer, but I could tell Duncan wasn't
in the mood to answer any more of my questions.
'What are you willing to tell me about this thing with Forbes?' Duncan
snatched the paper from my hand and gave it a couple of hard creases,
exposing a smaller sidebar on the front page, then handed it back to
me. 'That,' he said for emphasis.
Dan Manning was a little shit. That was all I could think when I found
myself staring at the headline:
DA-DETECTIVE RELATIONSHIP CLOUDS DERRINGER CASE
The deputy district attorney prosecuting Frank Derringer is involved in
a romantic relationship with a lead detective in the investigation of
the murder of Jamie Zimmerman and the rape of which Derringer is
accused, the Oregonian has learned.
Samantha Kincaid of the Drug and Vice Division of the Multnomah County
District Attorney's Office is handling the current trial against
Derringer, who is accused of raping and attempting to murder a teenage
girl last February. The defense has raised the possibility that the
crime was committed by the person or persons who murdered Jamie
Zimmerman three years ago.
The Oregonian has learned that Detective Charles Forbes,
Jr.' of the Major Crimes Team of the Portland Police Bureau, has spent
multiple nights with Kincaid at her home since the beginning of the
Derringer trial.
Forbes is a member of the team that investigated the case against
Derringer. He was also a central figure in the prosecutions of Jesse
Taylor and Margaret Landry, who have been convicted of Zimmerman's
murder. Forbes, the son of former Governor Charles Forbes, was the
only witness to statements by Landry that incriminated her and Taylor
in the murder.
When contacted for comment, Lisa Lopez, Derringer's lawyer, raised
concerns about the objectivity of the District Attorney's Office. 'Mr.
Derringer has been trying to tell the police and the District
Attorney's Office that there is something seriously wrong here. One
girl is dead and another one brutally assaulted,' Lopez said. 'While
the real assailant runs free to write taunting letters to the media,
the Portland Police Bureau's Major Crime Team is so eager to close
cases that they're going after innocent people like Mr. Derringer. If
the prosecuting DDA is having a romantic relationship with this
particular detective, I have real questions about the fairness of the
process.'
Ms. Kincaid did not return calls requesting her comments.
Little shit didn't begin to describe the enormousness of Manning's
