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Wednesday, September 3, 2003 - 11:30 a.m.
Martha Brinkman, identified as the mother of Dudley Brinkman, was interviewed
at the Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's Department by Detectives Armstrong and
Murphy. The interview was recorded a portable tape recorder with the subject's
knowledge and consent.
- TA = Detective T. Armstrong
- SM = Detective S. Murphy
- MB = Martha Brinkman
SM: Thank you for coming in to talk with us, Mrs. Brinkman.
MB: Oh my! I've never been in a police station before. Am I going to
be interrogated? Are you going to play bad cop-good cop like they do on TV?
I'm so nervous. I don't know why you want me here. I really don't know anything
about poor Andy's murder.
TA: That's all right, Mrs. Brinkman. It's not an interrogation. We
are just talking to people who knew Cindy and Andy to see if we can shed some
more light on this situation. Before we get started though, would you please
state your name and address for the record?
MB: I'm Martha Brinkman and I live at 634 North Lamar here in Oxford.
Don't you have to read me my rights?
SM: That isn't necessary, Mrs. Brinkman. You're not under arrest or
even a suspect. We're just gathering information about Andy and Cindy and the
night of the murder.
MB: I don't see how I can be of any help. I didn't even see either
of them the night of the... of that awful thing happening.
SM: How well did you know Andy and Cindy Fine, Mrs. Brinkman?
MB: I've known Cindy and her family, the Campbells, for many years.
Cindy and Dudley went to school together, and Michael Campbell was Dudley's
piano teacher for many years. I didn't really know Andy that well, just from
hearing Dudley talk about him, mostly.
TA: What did your son have to say about him?
MB: Well, Andy used to pick on Dudley when they were boys. Andy would
call him names and make fun of him. You know how cruel young people can be
to each other sometimes. Poor Dudley hated the kids making fun of his name.
They used to call him Dudley Do Right because he was such a good student. And
then when he got older they would tease him about preferring to practice Chopin
to playing baseball. Poor Dudley. I sometimes wish we'd chosen another name
for him. The worst was when they'd call him a dud -- and Andy was the one who'd
always do that. And, of course, if he thought it bothered Dudley he would just
do it more. That Andy... he had a mean streak in him. He never seemed to grow-up
or outgrow being mean to Dudley.
SM: Did you ever witness Andy taunting Dudley or bullying him in anyway?
MB: No. I was never around Andy that much. Mostly just saw him with
Cindy. He was always polite enough to me, but I didn't trust him -- and I didn't
like him because of the way he treated my Dudley. That's a mother's privilege,
I guess, to dislike anyone who's mean to her family.
TA: Yet you went to his funeral?
MB: Of course! But that was for Cindy and her family. I may not have
liked him, but we have known and liked Cindy and her parents and her sister
for a long time. Besides, it is just common courtesy to offer your condolences
to the family of the deceased, no matter what kind of a person he was. I'm
glad I went with Dudley. There really weren't very many people there. I felt
so sorry for Cindy. She seemed so devastated. Oh, dear, this whole thing is
so distressing!
SM: Yes, ma'am. Did Dudley ask you to go with him, or did you suggest
going to the funeral?
MB: I don't remember exactly. We were just talking about the service,
I think, and both agreed we would go to offer support and sympathy. So we just
naturally went together.
TA: I see. Can you remember back to the night and early morning Andy
was last seen? That's July 3rd and July 4th.
MB: Yes, I think so. Nothing much happened around my house those days
though.
SM: Can you remember where Dudley was the evening of the third and
the morning of the fourth?
MB: Well, let's see. On the evening of the third of July we had dinner
together then he said he was going down to Duffy's for a while to see what
was going on. On the fourth, he slept real late. I was sort of surprised at
that. He's usually up early, but he did have to go to work at the hospital
in the afternoon, so I figured he was resting up for his double shift. He's
so good about that, you know.
TA: What do you mean, Mrs. Brinkman?
MB: He volunteers for extra duty on holidays so the people with children
can spend the time with their families. He does the same thing on Thanksgiving
and Christmas. He's such a sweet boy, my Dudley. I'm sorry he hasn't married
and had a family of his own. Hasn't found the right girl I guess.
SM: If he was tired, maybe he was out late the night before. Do you
know what time he got home the night of the third?
MB: Oh my, no. I don't keep track of Dudley's comings and goings. He's
a grown man and entitled to his privacy. He doesn't have to account for every
minute to me -- nor I to him.
TA: Did you happen to hear him come in that night though?
MB: No, Detective. I retire by 11:00 p.m. or I'm zombie the next day.
Once I hit that pillow, I'm out and I sleep like a log. The advantages of clean
living I guess. I never hear him if I'm asleep when he comes in. With the hours
he keeps -- his schedule at the hospital, you know -- if I woke up every time
he came in, I'd never get a full night's sleep.
SM: Do you have any idea what time Dudley came home that night?
MB: No. I just told you, Detective. I was asleep and didn't see hide
nor hair of him until almost noon on the fourth.
SM: Other than that night, are you generally familiar with the hours
Dudley keeps? If he's not at home, do you typically know where he is -- at
work, out with friends, and so forth?
MB: Well, as I said, I don't keep track of him every moment. He usually
tries to let me know what his work schedule is, so I'll know whether to expect
him for dinner. Other than that, sometimes he tells me where he'll be and sometimes
he doesn't. He is an adult, after all. I don't expect him to tell me everything
he does and everywhere he goes.
SM: So, for example, if he went out in the evening or at night, would
he tell you where he was going or when he'd be back?
MB: Not necessarily.
TA: Does he do that kind of thing often? Go out in the evenings by
himself?
MB: He does go out from time to time. I don't know whether you'd call
it often or not.
TA: Does he go out by himself?
MB: He leaves here by himself, but I really can't say who he sees after
he leaves. My son is entitled to his privacy and I don't like to pry. If you
want to know these things, you'd do better to ask him.
TA: Yes, ma'am. Let's go back to Cindy Fine. What is Dudley's relationship
with her?
MB: They were childhood friends. Dudley's known Cindy more than half
of their lives. They were friends and even dated briefly in high school. Since
then, Dudley mentions seeing Cindy at church occasionally, but since her marriage,
they really didn't travel in the same circles. He expressed concern for her
sometimes after he'd talk to Robyn. That's Cindy's sister, you know. She sees
Dudley at the hospital from time to time. I gather that Cindy and Andy's marriage
was not made in heaven and Robyn worried about her sister.
SM: What kind of problems did they have in their marriage? Do you know?
MB: Well now, I don't know... I don't have any firsthand knowledge,
you understand. I'm not sure I feel comfortable telling you since I can't say
for sure whether it's true.
SM: We understand, but any information you have -- no matter how you
got it -- could turn out to be helpful.
MB: Well, okay... if you say so. I... I gather that Andy could be cruel
to poor Cindy. She's such a sweet girl. I can't understand what would make
him want to be mean to her.
SM: Do you know how he was cruel to her? What did he do?
MB: Well... remember, I can't promise any of these stories are true,
you know?
SM: Yes, ma'am. Go ahead.
MB: Apparently, sometimes Andy would... hit her or... drag her out
of the house in the middle of the night or... yell at her and belittle her
in front of other people... maybe he even... maybe he even forced himself on
her. Terrible, terrible things! Believe me, I understand the importance of
taking marriage vows seriously, but if even half the stories I've heard are
true, I honestly don't know why she never left him.
SM: Where did you hear these stories about Cindy and Andy?
MB: Oh, I don't know. The usual places. At the beauty parlor... at
church...
TA: From your son?
MB: Yes, some from him. As I told you, Robyn sometimes talks to him
about her worries about Cindy. Sometimes he would talk to me about what Robyn
told him.
TA: Did Dudley ever do anything to try to help Cindy?
MB: Oh, no. I don't think so. He would never go sticking his nose into
someone else's personal, private relationship. You're just asking for trouble
when you go meddling in someone else's life.
TA: What was Dudley's relationship with Andy Fine like?
MB: I don't think they had much of a relationship, sir. They weren't
friends and Dudley tried to stay away from him because of the verbal abuse
he suffered from Andy as a youth. Dudley is not a confrontational type of person.
He just sort of closes down and walks away from unpleasantness. I sometimes
wish he'd stand up and punch somebody in the nose when they give him a bad
time, but Dudley would never do something like that. He doesn't have a violent
bone in his body.
SM: Is there a possibility Dudley might be confrontational if he thought
he was protecting someone else -- like Cindy, for example?
MB: Oh my, no! I really wish Dudley had more of a backbone, but he's
so sweet and gentle, he could never harm another person under any circumstances.
SM: Does Dudley own a gun?
MB: Absolutely not! And if he did, I wouldn't allow it in the house.
I hate guns. As far as I'm concerned, they can take them all and dump them
in the ocean! Just look what happened to Andy as the result of some nut shooting
a gun!
TA: Do you know if your son has ever handled a gun, or shot one?
MB: Yes. When he was a youngster, Warren -- that's my poor, dead husband
-- Warren taught him to shoot a gun. They used to go out and shoot at tin cans
and things until Dudley was comfortable handling a gun. Then one time Warren
took Dudley hunting. That was a disaster. After Dudley could see what shooting
did to animals, he never went hunting again, and swore he'd never touch a gun
again. He hates them more than I do. When Warren died, I got rid of all his
guns.
SM: Tell me, Mrs. Brinkman. Do you do any work on Dudley's clothing?
I mean do you launder his clothes for him, or sew buttons on his shirts or
darn his socks?
MB: I don't want you to think I baby him, Detective. Yes, I do some
of those things for him in return for the things he does for me.
SM: What things does he do for you?
MB: Well, for example, he orders and stacks the wood for the fireplace.
Sometimes when he hears of a good deal, he'll go out and chop the wood himself.
He takes care of my car for me. He isn't very mechanical, but he sees that
it stays running well, and he does yard work for me and some of my widow friends
when we need him to help us. I told you. He's a sweet, wonderful boy-- ah...
young man. In return, I sometimes do his laundry and when I notice something
needs mending, I do that. Not socks. I don't darn socks, just throw them out
and buy new ones. I'm not a slave to drudgery, you know. I have a life too.
Waste of time darning socks.
TA: That chopping and stacking wood can be hard on the hands. I know
it is on mine. Does Dudley have a way to protect his hands?
MB: Certainly. He has a pair of work gloves he keeps in his car all
the time. That way, they are right handy if he needs them.
TA: Are they some special kind of gloves?
MB: No, just those work gloves you can buy most anywhere. You know
the kind with the heavy leathery parts in the places that need the most protecting
when you're doing heavy work.
TA: Did you by any chance recently replace a missing blue button on
a shirt?
MB: You ask me the strangest questions -- buttons, gloves. A blue button?
Nooo. I replaced a button on a blue shirt, but it was just a regular shirt
button. Why would you ask me a thing like that?
SM: Just routine, ma'am. Something we're asking everyone. Did Dudley
say where he lost the button?
MB: Oh, I never mentioned it. I don't think he even knew he'd lost
a button. But that shirt was certainly dirty. I can't imagine what he did to
get it that soiled. He doesn't usually do dirty work in his good shirt. I figure
he must have changed a tire or something. It would be just like him to change
a flat tire in his good clothes for someone who needed help.
TA: Was that the shirt he wore the night he went out to Duffy's?
MB: Hmm... you know, I'm not sure! I hadn't thought of that before,
but I think it could have been.
SM: I know I hate to try to get stains out of clothes. Do you have
any secrets that would make it easier?
MB: Oh, I have a little booklet that tells how to get certain things
like blood or grass stains out of your clothes. I'm sure you know that you
should always soak bloodstains in cold water before you launder them. The hot
water will just set the stain. And then I have a pre-wash remover I use that
works pretty well on spots. I can't think of the name right off, but I'd be
glad to look it up if you'd like to call me sometime.
SM: Thanks. I think I'll do that.
TA: Ahem! Excuse me, ladies, but could we get back to our subject here?
SM: Sorry. You said Dudley's blue shirt was dirty. In what way was
it dirty?
MB: It has dirt on it. You know, earth? And it smelled like he was
sweating up a storm when he wore it. Whew! It was awful!
SM: Were there any stains on it?
MB: Stains? Let me think... seems like there might have been a little
oil or grease of some kind on it. Came right out with that pre-wash remover
I was talking about.
SM: Any bloodstains?
MB: Blood? No. He doesn't wear that shirt to work, so there wouldn't
have been any blood on it.
SM: Thank you, Mrs. Brinkman. You've been a big help.
MB: Oh really? I didn't think I told you anything of importance at
all. But I'll be real glad when you find out who did this terrible thing. Andy
may not have been a very nice person, but he was a human being. Dudley's...
we've all been so upset that this could happen to someone we know.
TA: We'll wind it up as soon as we can, Mrs. Brinkman. We're getting
closer to finding the murderer all the time. Thank you for your help.
MB: All right, then. Good day.
SM: Goodbye, Mrs. Brinkman, and thank you.
End interview - 12:17 p.m.
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