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On the evenings of Thursday, July 31, 2003 and Friday, August 1, 2003, Deputy P.J. Watson and Officer Maria Richards interviewed employees of Duffy's Bar & Grill, 2201 Jackson Avenue West. The officers spoke with 23 employees, of whom 13 were working the night of Thursday, July 3, and/or the night of Monday, July 14. The 13 employees were questioned about:
any unusual circumstances the night of July 3, and whether they had seen Andrew Fine and his wife, Cynthia, in the bar.
whether they had seen John Reagle and the hand he brought to the bar the night of July 14.
These interview synopses, provided in summary and not verbatim, are the most relevant to the investigation and are representative of all interviews conducted.
Jack Beaudette, bartender/server | Ramon Castellon, line cook | Patrick Mulvaney, bartender
Marilyn Pearl, server | Elisa Rodrigues, bartender | Ida Thornley, server | Greg Wilks, busser
Jack Beaudette --
Duffy's bartender/server, age 31, residence: 1016 Benbow
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Beaudette was working July 3 as a server and behind the main bar.
Beaudette said he is finishing up at business school and helps out at Duffy's
mainly on weekends and for special events. He said Andrew Fine was a regular
-- "he's a number one a****** type." He said
Fine always drank a lot and seemed to get in a lot of fights; Patrick Mulvaney
(another
Duffy's bartender) had to escort him out "on more than one occasion." Beaudette
guessed Fine came to the bar at least three times a week and had "caused trouble" at
least five times in the past two years.
Beaudette said he was working the back bar for much of the night of July 3
because it was so busy, but at one point he was serving food and drinks to
customers in the booths along the window. He said Andrew Fine seemed to be "on his high horse," flashing a lot of money and "hassling" people. Carl and Andrew Fine were at the pool table, "acting loud," and Eddie Dooley was sitting with a woman at one of the tables nearby. Said he had never seen the woman before, but Eddie Dooley was "a piece of work" who
once brought in some shoplifted merchandise and tried to sell it to him.
Beaudette said Andrew and Carl began fighting around 12:30 a.m., and Mulvaney
had to stop them; Carl ended up leaving at that point. Beaudette didn't notice
any violence before then, said the crowd was "loud but not rowdy."
Beaudette said Mulvaney was trying to calm Andrew down until after closing,
Andrew was asking everyone if they'd seen his watch. Beaudette said Mulvaney
was too nice to Andrew and if it were up to him, he'd kick "[Andrew's] sorry
ass the hell out of
here."
Beaudette said he went home at 1:00 a.m., and didn't notice anything unusual
in the parking lot. He said he saw Andrew Fine heading out the door of the
bar as he drove off. He said he hadn't seen Andrew or Carl Fine in the bar
since then, but Eddie Dooley was "definitely still around."
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Ramon Castellon --
Duffy's line cook, age 24, residence: 212 Chandler avenue
Castellon was working both nights in question in the kitchen.
Castellon said, on July 3, he was taking a break in the parking lot around
7:30 p.m. when he saw a couple arrive. Said they caught his eye because "they
didn't look too happy." Woman was wearing an "old-fashioned" dress and the
man was wearing jeans and a cheap polo shirt. "She
looked nice, he not look so nice."
Castellon said the couple weren't talking to each other and the man was pulling
the woman along "like she didn't want to go in." Castellon said the woman was
asking about getting some dinner and the man told her to shut up.
Castellon said he didn't recognize the couple and didn't know the patrons
that much. He works in the kitchen, never behind the bar or on the floor, and
usually works from 4:00 p.m. to midnight -- "nobody wants no food after that." He
said he didn't notice anything unusual when he left, and didn't notice if the
couple's car was still there.
On July 14, Castellon was working in the kitchen for the duration of the evening,
took a break but didn't see anything unusual. Around 10:00 p.m., he said he
heard the police were in the bar "arresting some drunk," but he didn't know
anything about it.
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Patrick Mulvaney -- Duffy's bartender, age 25, residence: 1538 Jackson Ave E, Oxford
Mulvaney was working on both nights in question behind the main bar.
Re: July 3, 2003
Mulvaney saw Andrew and Cynthia Fine arrive just before happy hour ended at
8:00 p.m. and saw Cynthia Fine leave at around midnight, maybe a little after.
Mulvaney said Andrew is a regular at the bar, but Cynthia rarely accompanies
him -- "he's a ladies man, likes to talk with the ladies."
Mulvaney said he didn't notice Cynthia much because she was sitting at a table
away from the bar, but said Andrew and his brother, Carl Fine, were "monopolizing" the pool table all evening, apparently wagering. Andrew Fine was also drinking heavily and ordered five pitchers of beer from him "and more from Ida" over
the duration of the evening.
Mulvaney said, at around 11:00 p.m., Andrew Fine began harassing another man who was sitting at the table with Cynthia and the man left. He said he heard later it was Dudley Brinkman, who he had seen in the bar a couple of times before.
Mulvaney said that after Cynthia Fine left, Carl and Andrew Fine began arguing
and Andrew threw a punch, at which point Mulvaney stepped in and "broke up the proceedings." Mulvaney
said Andrew told him that Carl stole his watch, which Carl denied vehemently
before leaving the premises around 12:30 a.m.
Mulvaney said he helped Andrew search for his watch, quizzing everyone on
duty and other patrons until past closing. He said Andrew insisted he brought
the watch with him to the bar. Mulvaney said he suggested that maybe Cynthia
took it home with her "for safekeeping," at which point Andrew began swearing about "how
that bitch wasn't gonna be safe tonight."
Mulvaney said he then suggested maybe it was misplaced or "some punk" stole
it, whereupon Andrew began swearing and declared Eddie Dooley, who'd been sitting
with Cynthia Fine at the table, was the culprit. Mulvaney said Andrew allegedly
demanded to be taken to Dooley's residence immediately.
Mulvaney said he declined to help Andrew find Dooley and suggested Andrew
return the following night, as Dooley is also a regular and was bound to show
up again. Mulvaney said, "I locked the door after him -- it was after 1:00,
I was beat, he needed to dry out and get the hell home."
Mulvaney said Andrew was not in the parking lot when he left for the night around 2:00 a.m. He said he didn't see anyone else loitering in the parking area and there were no other cars in the lot. Mulvaney said he didn't see Andrew or Cynthia Fine in Duffy's after that night.
Re: July 14, 2003
Mulvaney said John Reagle arrived around 6:30 p.m. in high spirits and began
drinking heavily. Mulvaney said Reagle had a plastic Tupperware-style container "like for leftovers" and was telling everyone at the bar he had a hand inside it. Mulvaney said Reagle also brought the container around to the tables and talked with acquaintances, including Eddie Dooley and "Razz" Huddlestein. When Reagle opened the container for Dooley, Dooley yelled, "Peeeeeww" and ran outside holding his nose, "like
for laughs."
Mulvaney said, by 8:00 or 9:00 p.m., the joke was wearing thin. He said a couple of women complained to him about Reagle, saying Reagle had approached them more than twice and offered to show them the hand. Mulvaney said he approached Reagle and asked to see the hand; Reagle showed him the container. Mulvaney said he decided to contact authorities at that point.
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Marilyn Pearl --
Duffy's server, age 48, residence: Trailor City, 436 Highway
6
Pearl was working July 3 as a server in the lounge/bar area.
Pearl said she knew Cynthia Fine from church -- "an absolute angel, God's honest truth." Pearl said she saw Cynthia come in with Andrew Fine around 7:30 p.m. Pearl said she didn't know Andrew well, but Cynthia told her he was a "challenge." Pearl said she'd heard from the other servers Andrew was a "bastard" and
he seemed to be a regular who got in a lot of fights. Pearl said the gossip
in church was that Andrew hit Cynthia, but Cynthia never said so.
Pearl said, because of the holiday, the bar was extremely crowded and she
didn't have time to talk with Cynthia except to say hello. Pearl said she
also saw Dudley Brinkman at the table with Cynthia until Andrew Fine "bullied him
away." Pearl said she'd seen Brinkman in the bar once or twice before, but
not on a regular basis, and didn't know him well except that he seems "timid,
kind of a
wimp." Pearl said Eddie Dooley was also at the Fines' table for
a while and left around 11:30.
Pearl said Andrew and Carl Fine were at the pool table placing bets for most
of the night and Andrew appeared to be "wasting all his wages" because he went
through a lot of cash.
Pearl said business was just quieting down enough for her to go chat with
Cynthia when Andrew "blew up at Cindy and nearly slapped her across the face right in the middle of the bar." Pearl
said Cynthia left right after that, and it was close to 12:30 a.m. at that
point.
Pearl said she left the bar at about 12:45 a.m. She said she didn't see anyone loitering in the parking lot and went straight home as usual.
Pearl said she hasn't seen Andrew or Carl Fine at the bar since then. She said Cynthia has been to church every Sunday since, but Pearl did not attend church herself the weekend of the 4th of July so she doesn't know for sure if Cynthia went.
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Elisa Rodrigues -- Duffy's bartender, age 28, residence: 102 Combs St, Oxford
Rodrigues was working July 14 behind the main bar.
Rodrigues said John Reagle arrived before 7 and began drinking "lots of Bud". She said Reagle was eager to show her a plastic box that he said contained a hand, but she declined -- "Johnny's nothing but trouble and I didn't want to know what he was up to." Rodrigues said she's seen Reagle in the bar several times before but he's "not a real regular." Rodrigues said she was glad when Patrick Mulvaney called the cops -- "it's
about time someone straightened Johnny out."
Rodrigues said she also knows Eddie Dooley -- "he's a real regular" -- and Carl Fine. She said she knew Andrew Fine, but he hadn't been in the bar that night of July 14. She said she last remembered seeing him the night of Tuesday, July 1. Rodrigues said she had a week off after that and never saw Andrew again. She said Andrew was at the bar "all the time" and frequently propositioned her for sex. She said Andrew called her "my little enchilada" and once mentioned going to "his mansion in the woods for a little night romance." Rodrigues
said she'd complained about Andrew to management but was told that kind of
thing goes with the territory.
Rodrigues said she didn't know Andrew's wife, Cynthia -- "she must be some saint" --
and had never seen Andrew come to the bar with a woman.
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Ida Thornley --
Duffy's server, age 26, residence: 549 North 9th Street
Thornley was working on both nights in question as a server in the lounge/bar area.
Re: July 3, 2003
Thornley said Andrew and Cynthia Fine arrived around 7:30 p.m. and took a
table in her section. She said the premises was extremely crowded due to the
holiday weekend and so she didn't notice much, but Andrew "was drinking like a fish" and
ordered three pitchers of Bud from her.
Thornley said Andrew was a regular and came to the bar three or four times
per week --"he was a real handful" and sometimes tried to grab at her. She said Cynthia had been to the bar "once
or twice."
Thornley said Eddie Dooley was sitting at the table with Cynthia Fine while "Andy and his damn fool brother" were at the pool table most of the night. She said she didn't recognize another man who sat at the table briefly, but said Andrew "hassled him real good" and
the man left without having any beer from the pitcher on the table.
Thornley said Andrew and Cynthia had an argument -- "I thought that poor girl was gonna faint, she was so scared" -- and then Cynthia left the premises immediately afterwards, around 12:15 a.m. Thornley said she noticed the exact time because "my
shift ends at 12:30 and by that time, I watch every minute."
Thornley said there were still 10 or 11 patrons in the bar when she left,
including Carl and Andrew. She said Eddie Dooley left before midnight some
time, "definitely before Cindy." She said she didn't notice anything unusual
in the parking lot when she left, and didn't see Andrew or Cynthia Fine in
the bar again after that night.
Re: July 14, 2003
Thornley said she heard John Reagle and Eddie Dooley "whooping it up as usual" in
another section of the bar around 9:00 p.m. and didn't notice anything unusual.
She said Reagle approached her later in the evening with a box and offered
to show her a human hand. She said when she asked him about it, he boasted, "You
know that b****, Lisa? I done cut her arm off!!" Thornley
said she took a peek at the box and Reagle opened the lid a little -- "it smelled
worse than a baby's diaper" and she had to go outside to get some fresh air.
Thornley said Reagle was at the bar for quite a while and was pretty loud. She said the bar wasn't crowded, so he kept on showing his box to the same people over and over. Thornley said she saw the police car pull up, but didn't know anything much about it.
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Greg Wilks -- Duffy's
busser, age 21, residence: Pike house, Fraternity Row
Wilks was working both nights in question, bussing tables.
Wilks said he liked hanging out at Duffy's and was excited to get a job there
in March -- "it's like being paid to party." He said he knew Andrew and Carl Fine pretty well and said they are both regulars and he talked with them occasionally -- "They're hella funny." Wilks
said Eddie Dooley was also a regular, but he didn't know him too well.
Re: July 3, 2003
Wilks said the bar was crowded and he was "working too hard to have fun." He said he had to keep going out on the floor to retrieve empty glasses so they could restock the bar. He said Patrick Mulvaney was "riding my ass" and kept ordering him around. Wilks said Mulvaney was always breaking up the fights Andrew started, though Wilks said Andrew was "just kidding around" most
of the time.
Wilks said he saw Andrew and Carl playing pool and they invited him to join
them -- "I was totally bummed. He would've bought me shots. He had like this huge stash of money he was waving around." Wilks said Eddie Dooley was sitting at one of the tables near the pool table with a woman. He said there were "three or four" pitchers
on the table at one point, and several glasses. Wilks said the woman had ordered
a hamburger and a Coke and barely had room for her plate on the table.
Wilks said there was some kind of fight between Andrew and another man, and
then later Andrew and Carl began "messing around." Wilks said the woman left before Andrew and Carl were "messing around," but
Wilks didn't notice anything unusual about her.
Wilks said he left around 1:00 a.m. that night and walked back to campus. He said he didn't notice anything unusual in the parking lot or environs of the bar.
Wilks said the place hasn't been the same since the news about Andy -- "he
sure liked to party hearty."
Re: July 14, 2003
Wilks said the bar was pretty quiet, and after happy hour was over, he poured
himself a beer and relaxed. He said "some weirdo guy" was in the bar, telling everyone he'd cut off a woman's hand and had it with him in a box. Wilks said it was "hella
funny -- he was totally freaking out the girls."
Wilks said he wanted to see the box, but Mulvaney called the cops before he
got the chance -- "Pat always ruins the fun."
Wilks said he left early, around 11:30 p.m., and walked back to campus. He said he didn't see anything unusual in the parking lot.
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