Canvass – Proud Larry's employees
On April 25 and 26, 2022, Detective Murphy and Deputy P.J. Watson spoke to employees at Proud Larry's to determine who may have seen Wendy Pane Holloway on the night of Friday, April 15. All employees were shown a photograph of Ms. Holloway to help them recall her if they did not know her by name.
Employee statements regarding their work hours for Friday, April 15, were verified against the payroll time records.
The interviews summarized are some of the most typical or relevant to the investigation and are representative of all interviews conducted.
Lee
Bobby Lee
doorman
254 Rebel Drive
Lee worked from 8:00 p.m. until closing on Friday, April 15. Shown a photograph of Wendy Pane Holloway, Lee remembered her.
He said Holloway was new in town and very attractive. Lee was pretty sure she had been there on Friday, April 15 when Sugar Whiskey was playing. She came in alone. He thought she arrived around the time of the first set at 10:00 p.m.
He said she had been to the club a few times and seemed very bright and bubbly, sometimes even manic. He had seen her driving a red BMW to and from the club.
—Interview conducted by Deputy Watson
Locke
Tom Locke
bartender
3016 Davis Drive
Locke worked the front bar from 6:00 p.m. to closing on Friday, April 15. He recalled seeing the woman in the photograph that night and had seen her other times when Sugar Whiskey was playing.
He thought she left Proud Larry's a while before closing on the 15th, while the band was still playing.
He remembered she asked him to pass on a song request to Willie King but said he forgot to do it because the bar was very busy. Locke couldn't recall what the song request was.
—Interview conducted by Detective Murphy
Madigan
Melanie Madigan
waitress
1413 Adams
Madigan worked from 6:00 p.m. until closing on Friday, April 15. She saw musician Willie King hug the woman Madigan identified from a photograph as Wendy Pane Holloway. Madigan thought he slipped something into the back pocket of her jeans.
Madigan then remembered seeing a woman shouting at Willie King and waving her arms. She recognized the woman from comedy night as Carmen Rodriguez.
At that point, Madigan saw Holloway walk away from King and Rodriguez to the back of Proud Larry's, going up the steps towards the restrooms.
Madigan didn't remember seeing the victim again that night but said Rodriguez remained near the stage where King was playing as far as she could recall.
—Interview conducted by Deputy Watson
Newsome
Jake Newsome
bartender
354 Jefferson Ave.
Newsome worked the back bar from 8:00 p.m. until closing on Friday, April 15. Shown a photograph of Wendy Pane Holloway, he recalled seeing her involved in a loud argument with a young man. He thought that the man confronted her as she left the ladies' restroom. He described the man as most likely in his early 20s, though he might have been younger, and well-dressed.
Newsome said the man did not seem intoxicated but remembered he was trembling and had his fists clenched. The man was yelling something about marriage and his father. Holloway tried to ignore him and push past him, but he blocked her path. Newsome recalls the man yelling something like "do the decent thing" and Holloway shouting back at him.
Newsome said he thought about calling the manager or the doorman because they were causing a scene and he was concerned for Holloway's safety because the man seemed so angry, but it was all over in a couple of minutes. The man went out into the main bar and music area, and Holloway laughed as he stormed off.
Newsome was distracted at that point by other customers and didn't see Holloway or the man after that. He did not recognize the man as a regular patron but thought he had seen Holloway a couple of times previously.
—Interview conducted by Detective Murphy
Whitten
Edward Whitten
waiter
113 Twin Oaks
Whitten worked from 7:00 p.m. to closing on April 15. After seeing the photograph, he recalled seeing Wendy Pane Holloway in the club that night.
Whitten saw her go up during a music break to speak to blues musician Willie King, who seemed happy to see her and hugged her. Then he remembers that a woman came storming through the crowd from the front entrance and shouted at King.
He believes that Holloway backed away and then went up the steps towards the rear of Proud Larry's. The other woman stayed up front, watching the next set.
Sometime later, he saw Holloway go up to the other side of the stage, away from the other woman, and say something to Willie. Whitten didn't see Holloway again after that.
—Interview conducted by Detective Murphy
Wright
Julie Wright
waitress
2317 University Ave.
Wright worked from 7:00 p.m. until closing on Friday, April 15. She recalled seeing the woman in the photograph being involved in a loud argument with a young man. Wright didn't know the man, who she described as in his 20s with dark hair and glasses, but thought his first name was Phil or Philip.
She said he did not appear to be drunk, but he was making a lot of noise. Wright said patrons in the restaurant area were staring at the confrontation, which lasted only a couple of minutes.
She believed the man was only in Proud Larry's a short time. She thought the man left after the confrontation because she did not see him again that night.
—Interview conducted by Deputy Watson
