Saturday, January 31, 2004 -- 8:00 AM

The witness, who discovered the victim's body, was interviewed by the Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's Department. The interview was conducted by Detectives Armstrong and Murphy. The interview was recorded on a portable tape recorder with the witness' knowledge and consent.

TA = Detective T. Armstrong
SM = Detective S. Murphy
BL = Bill Lamar

SM: Thank you for talking to us, Mr. Lamar. We appreciate the time.

BL: Anything. Anything I can do to help.

SM: Can you please state your name and address?

BL: My name is William Lamar. Everyone calls me Bill. I'm really living in Paris right now. Do you want my mother's address?

SM: That'll be fine.

BL: She lives at 638 North Lamar. Here in Oxford.

SM: And what's your occupation?

BL: I'm a student mainly.

SM: Can you elaborate on that a little?

BL: I have a flat in Paris. I'm studying art

TA: We've been told you've got quite a head for business. Everyone says you're a natural.

BL: I learned a lot about business pretty early on in my life from my family. So I guess I'm pretty good. I did all right with the division I ran in Paris -- it was the Fragrances division of Lamar Cosmetics. But I quit. It's not my calling, art is -- even though I get calls to solve problems. Nowadays, I just wash dishes or wait tables. Just being over there is my reward. I'm not all that worried about work. I have Lamar Cosmetics to take over, so I know that is waiting for me in the future. Even with my art, I stay involved in the business, even from such a distance.

SM: That sounds really interesting. But I'm afraid we're going to have to discuss less pleasant matters.

BL: Yes, of course. Please forgive my babbling. I guess I didn't want to face the topic at hand.

TA: Tell us about the night of January 30 and the early morning of the 31st.

BL: I don't even know where to begin. That's the night when I found-- found Barbara. You guys know that.

SM: Start at the beginning of the evening.

BL: Around six on the 30th, there was a big dinner party. They were really making a big deal of the gala party for the finalists. I was there. My mother was there. Most of the judges and the contestants. The usual people. Just who you would think. But no one out of the ordinary.

TA: Was Barbara Dubois there?

BL: Of course. She was one of the finalists.

SM: Did y'all get a chance to talk?

BL: No, we kept missing each other. We nodded and waved to each other from opposite sides of the room, but we didn't really get to catch up.

SM: You two were friends, right?

BL: Yes, in high school we were very close.

TA: We've heard that you guys might have been more than friends.

BL: Yes, we dated.

TA: So you see your old flame after all these years and you don't say hello? What kept y'all apart?

BL: I don't know. High school was a long time ago and we've both grown up since then. This was a business function for both of us. And our relationship -- well, that was ancient history. High school kid stuff.

SM: Okay. So what happened after the gala?

BL: There was a big photo shoot with all the finalists. And then my mom grabbed me and we had to go look at some urgent business papers.

SM: What time was this?

BL: About 10:30.

TA: What kind of business is that urgent at 10:30?

BL: It's no secret that Lamar Cosmetics isn't doing too well, Detective. When the family business is on the line, there is no such thing as nine-to-five.

SM: Okay, then what?

BL: I worked with mom for about half an hour, give or take. Then I had to take a call from Paris. A colleague of mine there. I'm helping him market his website and he's trying to help us break Lamar Cosmetics into some boutique stores in Paris. I talked to Henri for about ten or fifteen minutes. I just sort of roamed around the conference center after that. I wasn't sleepy. So I tried to catch back up with my mom and couldn't find her. I caught up with her about midnight. Then I went to the hotel lounge. I was bored. Wired. Couldn't sleep and the jet lag was still getting me down.

SM: I've never had that.

BL: Yeah, you hear people talk about jet lag all the time. And it's weird. Sometimes, it doesn't affect me at all. Other times, it just beats me down. So anyway, I was exhausted but couldn't sleep because my body clock was all off. I'm in the lounge, so I figured, what the hell? I hit it pretty hard.

TA: Get liquored up?

BL: Yeah, I was pretty tanked. I mean, I'm legal. And I wasn't driving, so why not? I left the lounge about one and passed out.

SM: What do you remember next?

BL: I don't remember how I woke up. It's kind of hazy. I think it was the commotion in the hallway. Or maybe the phone in my room was ringing. But the main thing I remember was Mary pounding on my door. She said Barbara was missing. I was still in my clothes from the night before. I started, I began searching. I was still in a daze. I just started yanking on doors. And that's when it happened. That's when I found her.

SM: Who was the Mary knocking on your door?

BL: Mary Jones.  An old friend.  I've known her for years.

SM: Okay.  Do you remember what time it was when you found Barbara?

BL: I think it was about seven.

TA: The uniformed officers said they found you holding Barbara's body.

BL: Yeah. At first, I was... I was stunned. It was like being in shock. I couldn't... couldn't move much less touch anything. Then I couldn't stand seeing her like that.

TA: Like what?

BL: All dumped, curled up in that closet. I thought she might be sick, or passed out. I had to hold her just to be sure.

TA: There's blood on your hands, Bill. And on your shirt and trousers.

BL: It's hers.

TA: We'll need to have our technicians get a sample. Just procedure.

BL: Of course.

SM: I think that will be about all for now, Bill. But before we go, can you think of anything that was weird? Anybody who didn't belong or was out of place? Anything seem out of the ordinary?

BL: No, not at all.

SM: Okay. We thank you for your help.

Interview ends 8:37 AM