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Friday, March 4, 2005 --
2:00 PM
Following up on information gleaned during a canvass of the Coles
Point neighborhood, YCSD investigators located Louie Montclair who may
have been in the vicinity of Floyd's Bait Shop in the early morning
hours of December 23, 2004. Mr. Montclair was interviewed at the
Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's Department by
Detectives Armstrong and Murphy. The interview was recorded on a portable tape
recorder with the witnesses' knowledge and consent.
- TA = Detective T. Armstrong
- SM = Detective S. Murphy
- LM = Louie Montclair
TA: Sorry to drag you down here, Mr.
Montclair.
LM: Not at all, not at all. I live alone. There's
not much going on today that wasn't going on yesterday or
will be tomorrow.
TA: Yes, sir. Just for the record, would you state
your name, age, address and occupation?
LM: Certainly. My name, Louie Montclair. My
age, 74. My address, 4507 Coles Point Road in Sardis,
Mississippi. My occupation, retired engineer and full
time fisherman.
SM: Mr. Montclair, we understand you may have been at or near
Floyd's Bait Shop late on the night of December 22, 2004 or early in the
morning of December 23rd. Is that correct?
LM: Yes, I was.
SM: Did you happen to see anything out of the ordinary there
that night?
LM: Well, ma'am, as probably figured, I keep strange
hours. I usually wake up at a quarter to 4:00 in the afternoon and do my
business at night. Of course, I've made concessions to accommodate you and your police business.
I'd usually be sleeping about now.
SM: Yes, sir. We thank you.
LM: No trouble at all. I just shift my schedule is
all. Now, where was I?
SM: You wake up at quarter of 4:00...
LM: Oh, yes. Well, you see, I enjoy frog giggin', and
that was the activity that called me out in the wee hours
of that very night. I usually head out from home around
midnight with my bucket and flashlight and, of course, my
frog poker. See, I catch the frogs that Floyd's
wife Doreen serves weekends over at the bait shop.
She fries the finest frog legs you'll ever eat.
Maybe if you aren't too busy we could take this interview
over there and sample some?
SM: Uh, We're kind of under the gun, I'm afraid.
LM: Oh, I see, I see. Now, where was I?
TA: You were out frog giggin' around midnight, you
say. When did you return?
LM: Yes, yes. I had me a good pail full of frogs
when I decided to head back, I guess it was two hours
later. Probably around two or so. Oh, yes, I remember
it was 2:30 'cause I got one of them glow-in-the-dark watches. My niece sent it to me. She's been studyin' in Prague for the past two semesters.
TA: Which way did you return from the lake? I assume
it was the lake.
LM: Yes, correct, correct. I was down at the lake,
on the bank there behind Floyd's. And I was comin' up
around the left side of the building to get into the ice
cooler. I always get me a bag of ice on the way home
to keep the frogs cool, you know. And I was walkin'
around to that side, which is right there by the
pay phone, and I could hear some snifflin'. Sounded like
somebody cryin' or somethin'. And she must've heard me
comin' around there, crunchin' on the ground cause she
hollered out. She had a sailor mouth on her, I tell you
what. She cursed out into the night. You want me to say
it?
TA: If you don't feel comfortable....
LM: I don't mind sayin' it, now. I never did curse
around children, but we're all over 18 here, right?
TA: Heh. Yes, sir. What did she say?
LM: She cried out, "Hey, you old **********, wherever
you are! You better not ******* come around this corner
'cause I got a busted beer bottle and I'll spilt your
******* face open!" Well, needless to say, I stood right where I was and kept my mouth shut. There wasn't no way in hell I
was comin' round that corner. I could tell by her voice
she meant business. So I sat there and waited and she
sniffled a little more. My legs started gettin' cramped,
but I didn't dare make a sound.
TA: What finally happened?
LM: Well, a car pulled up out front in the gravel,
and she called out to it. I remember hearing the door
openin' and the little dingin' bell was goin'. That's
when the girl called out, "Is that you?" And I
heard a woman's voice call back from the car, "It's me,
honey. C'mon and get in." Then I heard the girl crunch
across the gravel and get in the car. She slammed the
door and the car sped off, slingin' gravel and the whole
bit. I tell ya, I like to wet myself from the
excitement. Took a nice long whizzer as soon as they
left.
SM: Did you get a look at the driver?
LM: I caught a glimpse of a woman in the driver's
seat. She had short hair and glasses, and that's about
all I could say about her.
TA: What sort of car was she driving? Could you
tell?
LM: Yeah, I looked out as it was leaving, under the
street lamp there. It was a burgundy car. I placed it
right off as one of them new Saturns. And I even saw the
tags, Yoknapatawpha County. Didn't get the letters though, I
hate to say.
TA: Which direction did the car come from?
LM: It came from the west, from Highway 6. And
that's the way it left.
TA: Did you hear any other words exchanged between
the two parties?
LM: No... No, that was it. Just the, "Is
that you?" And the, "C'mon and get in, honey." They
sounded familiar. Sounded sweet, a lot sweeter than when
she threatened me with the busted bottle. Lord have mercy!
TA: And you returned home after that?
LM: That's right. Grabbed my bag of ice and took it
to the house.
TA: And did you see the car again later or the next
day?
LM: No, sir. Not a wink of it.
TA: Do you know where Joey Grimes's cabin is
located?
LM: He's that record producer, isn't he?
TA: That's right.
LM: Yeah, I know where it is. I been giggin' around
there. He's never there.
SM: Did you happen to walk by there that night?
LM: No, sir. I just mainly stayed behind Floyd's.
Although that ain't too far from Grimes's place.
SM: Did you hear any noises or voices coming from
over there?
LM: Nothin' but the melodious tunes of the amphibians
and cicadas, my friend. It's like music to these old
tired ears.
SM: Okay, then, Mr. Montclair. You've been a great
help.
LM: Anytime, young lady. And you folks or your deputies or
whoever you can find with a
healthy appetite, y'all come on up one evenin' and I'll
take you over to Doreen's kitchen and we'll put down some
frog legs. That sound good?
TA: You bet. Looking forward to it.
LM: Well, all right.
Interview ends --
2:33 PM |
