Monday .March 10, 2008, 9:15 am  

Detective Armstrong and Detective Murphy of the Yoknapatawpha Sheriff’s Department interviewed the witness, who is the victim’s best friend. The interview was conducted at the Yoknapatawpha Sheriff’s Department and recorded on a portable tape recorder with the witness’s knowledge and consent.

Detective Samantha Murphy
Detective Ted Armstrong
Olivia Nicole Murphy

Detective Murphy: Please state your name and address.

Olivia Murphy: Olivia Murphy, I live at 142 Colonial Road.

Detective Murphy: We have asked you here  to go back over the events of the day you spent with Marissa McConnell and we are also going to ask you some personal questions about Marissa’s life, and yours.

Olivia Murphy: Ok. I’ll do anything I can to help find who killed her. She was so full of life and we had big plans for our futures.

Detective Murphy: Olivia, now that you’ve had a few days to think, can you think of anyone who would have wanted to see Marissa dead?

Olivia Murphy:  In all of Oxford, to my knowledge, there is only one person who even disliked her. Betty Richards.

Detective Armstrong: Enough to kill her?

Olivia Murphy: I don’t think so. See, Betty was in love with Robby but Robby was all about Marissa.

 Detective Murphy: What about Robby? You did say he was acting odd that day.

Olivia Murphy: Rob couldn’t have done it even if he wanted to. He wouldn’t even hunt because he thought “Thou shall not kill” meant exactly what it said.

Detective Armstrong: So, Rob was religious?

Olivia Murphy: Very! That’s why they broke up. Mari wanted to have sex but Rob was a Promise Keeper and had vowed to not have sex until his wedding night. Mari got tired of waiting and dumped him.

Detective Murphy:  When Marissa didn’t return to the Laundromat you said you thought that she went to party with the boys from the skate park. You said that one of the boys called her names and made a threat. Why is it that you weren’t worried about her?

Olivia Murphy: Mari is street smart. She can take care of herself. Well, she always could before that day. I don’t get how anyone could have done that to her. She would have fought like a wildcat and screamed her head off. How come no one saw or heard her?

Detective Murphy: That’s what we are trying to figure out Olivia. Did Marissa have her cell phone with her when she left the Laundromat?

Olivia Murphy: Her battery was almost dead but I saw her put it in her shirt pocket. Didn’t you find it on her body?

Detective Murphy: No we didn’t. What was her number and can you describe the phone?

Olivia Murphy. Her number is 236-xxxx and it was a hot pink Motorola Razr.

Detective Armstrong: Tell us about the man you hid from at the library. What did he look like, what church did he attend?

Olivia Murphy: He was clean cut with dark skin. He was big and creepy. One of his eyes didn’t move right. I never knew which eye to look at. He never mentioned the name of his church but we joked that it was probably in his basement or something.

Detective Armstrong: What do you mean by big. Was he fat?

Olivia Murphy: No, he was skinny, he was like a basketball player, all knobby.

Detective Armstrong: You were the last person to see her alive. Did you kill her?

Olivia Murphy: Me? No way. She’s my best friend. I...I loved her.

Detective Armstrong: Were you “in love” with her?

Olivia Murphy: It wasn’t like that. It was never like that. We were just friends.

Detective Armstrong: We know that Marissa was bi-sexual Olivia.

Olivia Murphy: Yes, But I’m straight and she respected that.

Detective Armstrong: Were you jealous of the boys in her life?

Olivia Murphy:  Sometimes. Of course I was. She was like a dude magnet and I admit I envied that.

Detective Armstrong: Did you ever fight over boys?

Olivia Murphy: Yep, we sure did. There was a time or two when she hooked up with guys I liked and it upset me.

Detective Murphy: Were you upset with her the day she died? Did you argue before she left the Laundromat?

Olivia Murphy:  No.

Detective Murphy: Do you have any thoughts on who might have killed your friend?

Olivia Murphy: When I first heard that she was found at the Shell Mart I thought of Johnny.

Detective Murphy: Why is that?

Olivia Murphy: Mari knew that he had a crush on her, so every chance she got to make him squirm she jumped on. For instance, when her and Rob would go in there together, she would kiss Rob in front of Johnny. Then when Rob turned away she would wink at Johnny and lick her lips. She really teased him a lot. I felt so sorry for him; he was a big time blusher. I thought maybe this time she went too far and he snapped.

Detective Murphy: I have seen you and Mari many times with your skates and headed for the park. You always had inline skates, why did Mari have on roller skates?

Olivia Murphy: Her inline skates broke and her Dad said the glue wasn’t dry yet, so she took the rollers.

Detective Murphy: There wasn’t any money on Marissa, how was she going to purchase the snacks?

Olivia Murphy: Her purse was still in my car but she always had cash on her, in her cell phone. She would fold a 5 or 10 in half and close it in her flip phone.

Detective Armstrong: Thank you for your time, we appreciate it.

Olivia Murphy: You’re welcome. I hope you find her killer.

Interview ends: 9:45 am