Episode 5 - The Fifth Episode

The investigation begins to heat up as now Acting Interim Chief Taylor Branigan takes the lead on the case, and applies pressure to Margaret Mandragora-Jones. Teddy’s machinations against his sister come to light. Taylor uncovers the surprising news that Margaret and Teddy Putnam, whom she earlier described as being, “As thick as a glacier with a thyroid condition,” have become romantically involved. Meanwhile, Shady Grove’s mayor, Carl Lyons, leverages the pandemic funds for a new town hall.

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Transcript

Charlie Incarica: 0:01

Before we kick off today's episode, I should let you know one of our sponsors has withdrawn its ads from our podcast due to what they deemed unflattering coverage of their restaurant. But my primary responsibility isn't to any company. It's to you, the listeners, and of course, to the victims of this unspeakable tragedy that I speak to you about every week. Upholding their dignity in the interest of pursuing justice will always be the guiding principle here on the Murderer Killings. That's why we urge you to visit themurdererkillings.com to check out our merch, where we have t-shirts, hoodies, aprons, and very large kitchen magnets, with the phrase The Murderer Killings, a podcast upholding the dignity of the Shady Grove murder victims while pursuing justice for them, as well as coasters, coffee mugs, and water bottles that, due to size restrictions, simply have a graphic of a cup of pudding with a knife sticking up through it. And now, on with episode 5. In April 2020, the world was facing an unprecedented pandemic and had all but shut down. But for Shady Grove, there was extra cause for fear and confusion. The four murders that had happened there in the last month. And because of the lockdown, the residents believed the killer or killers could very well still be in their area or areas. One of those residents was Taylor Branigan. Although Tommy Ebner's name was still stenciled on the chief of police's door, he was also one of the murder victims, which at minimum presented a clear conflict of interest. So Taylor Branigan now had to take over. The city council had called an emergency session two days after Ebner's death to officially appoint her. But a bitter debate quickly ensued about whether she should be appointed as acting chief or interim chief. After weeks of tense negotiations, Mayor Carl Lyons crafted a compromise, and in the end, they agreed to appoint her acting interim chief. To her credit, Branigan didn't allow the political quagmire to distract her.

Taylor Branigan: 2:38

What was worse was that the town was shut down, and everyone started working virtually, and based on that, the police force lobbied to work remotely too. Mayor Lyons, because he needed their support in the upcoming mayoral election, approved it.

Charlie Incarica: 2:51

So you really had a lot working against you.

Taylor Branigan: 2:54

Yes, and no. In some ways, it was more freeing. And this was a police force entirely trained by Tommy Hebner, so I don't think it was necessarily a crippling blow.

Charlie Incarica: 3:04

Right, but were you being given enough resources to handle the case?

Taylor Branigan: 3:08

That was a little bit more complicated.

Mayor Lyons: 3:11

As I'm sure you can imagine, it was a particularly challenging time. This is Carl Lyons, Shady Grove's mayor. The effects of the COVID virus were horrifying. The paperwork was just overwhelming. We had to requisition for all sorts of crap. APE for everyone. And that stuff completely exploded our small town's budget for, you know, health and public safety and shit. About the budget.

Charlie Incarica: 3:37

Um there's been a lot of speculation that the town didn't spend nearly enough on resources to help with the murders.

Mayor Lyons: 3:45

I think you'll find the people who may be saying that are not on the inside and so are just speculating.

Charlie Incarica: 3:51

Taylor Branigan's the person who's most frequently leveled those charges.

Mayor Lyons: 3:55

Exactly. And when I say people without inside knowledge, I mean inside knowledge of a budget meeting. But it's another thing entirely to be inside the room hashing out the budget, trying to see how the sausage gets made. And believe me, this was a total sausage party. I mean, there were good people on both sides.

Charlie Incarica: 4:18

But for someone citing a tight budget as the reason he didn't give the police many resources, it's hard to understand the council's first major decision after the lockdown demolishing the town hall and constructing a massive new building to replace it.

Mayor Lyons: 4:32

Yeah, but what most people don't understand is building the new town hall was a direct result of the pandemic restrictions.

Charlie Incarica: 4:42

How so?

Mayor Lyons: 4:43

Well, the government demanded there be always six feet between everyone. Our old town hall simply lacked a size to accommodate that. We needed this new building to stay in compliance.

Charlie Incarica: 4:55

Yeah, that seems a little hard to believe, frankly, especially with the fact so many of the staff were now working from home.

Mayor Lyons: 5:02

Well, there was so much confusion in those early days about what regulations were going to stay in place for how long and such a situation was it was very fluid at that time.

Charlie Incarica: 5:13

Wouldn't that argue against committing so much money to build a completely new structure?

Mayor Lyons: 5:17

Oh, well, now you're getting into numbers. And I'm not a numbers guy, but the numbers don't lie.

Charlie Incarica: 5:24

The plan for a new town hall also made Branagan's job harder.

Taylor Branigan: 5:28

Yeah. I had to waste two days cordoning off the town hall for its demolition. Maryland's wanted the building implosion to be a big event. He somehow tried to make it also a tribute to the murder victims. He urged the town to come out, stand six feet apart, and hold a candlelight vigil, even though the demolition was at 10 30 in the morning. And because most of the police were working from home, I had to set up iPads on music stands around the perimeter about every ten feet or so. So an officer could tell the crowd to stand back via Zoom.

Charlie Incarica: 5:59

Sounds incredibly time consuming.

Taylor Branigan: 6:01

And stupid.

Charlie Incarica: 6:02

It was undeniably both. As a result of the demolition, the clerks working there had to scramble to store documents anywhere and everywhere they could. The police station, trunks of council members' cars, the dugouts at the Town Hall Little League field.

Estelle Hayes: 6:18

It was a logistical shit show. They asked me if they could use a library van, but I told them it was a fucking van filled with books. I offered them a room in my house with the documents via Airbnb, but at the last minute they complained about the shower pressure and bail.

Charlie Incarica: 6:35

In the interest of fairness, Estelle's shower pressure is often problematic. But they were able to bail in part because Teddy Putnam offered to store the town's documents and computers in its newly vacant pudding applications lab. It was a building the size of an airplane hangar, where Amanda had hired teams of scientists, social workers, and eminent members of the clergy to find other uses for pudding besides eating. Teddy had closed the program within minutes of Amanda's death, largely because he said he was a quote, proud science skeptic.

Estelle Hayes: 7:07

It's actually a very clever move. Now the whole town's records were literally controlled by the buttons.

Charlie Incarica: 7:14

Meanwhile, after weeks of politely being given the brush off, Taylor decided to visit Teddy on April 28th, not finding him at home or at his gym. In desperation, she tried his office, where shockingly he was. The following is from Taylor Branigan's police camera when she arrived at Teddy's office.

Taylor Branigan: 7:33

Mr.

Teddy Putnam: 7:33

Putnam? Depends on who's asking.

Taylor Branigan: 7:36

I'm acting interim chief Brannigan of the Shady Grove Police Department.

Teddy Putnam: 7:39

Ah, I've certainly heard of your name.

Taylor Branigan: 7:42

You've also known me since about the age of ten. We grew up together. You took me to prom.

Teddy Putnam: 7:47

Ah, well, that explains it. I have a terrible memory for dates. This uh little irregular deputy interim chief actor showing up and flashing your badge in front of my employees. You trying to get me to crack, hoping I'll be humiliated in front of my office? I didn't flash a badge, and there's no one else here. I noticed that too. Is it a holiday or something?

Taylor Branigan: 8:10

The country's in a lockdown.

Teddy Putnam: 8:12

Of course. That makes sense now. Amanda meant so much to people.

Taylor Branigan: 8:17

No, I mean we're in a nationwide lockdown over the pandemic.

Teddy Putnam: 8:20

Oh, of course. That makes even more sense. Well, what can I get you to drink? I had a fully stocked bar installed in my office after I watched Mad Men, which really made the days fly by.

Taylor Branigan: 8:33

No, thanks. I'm on duty. I just have a few questions about your late sister.

Teddy Putnam: 8:37

Ah, Amanda. I'm still quite broken up about it.

Taylor Branigan: 8:44

With all due respect, Mr. Putnam, you're saying you're broken up about it at the same time you're starting a game of Miss Pac-Man.

Teddy Putnam: 8:51

The thing is, Miss Pac-Man was our game. Our father left it to us, and it synthesized our strengths beautifully. Between Amanda's voracious appetite for hunting and destroying all who stood in her way, and my lifelong terror of ghosts, it complemented the two of us beautifully. We fit together like hand in knife.

Taylor Branigan: 9:12

You mean hand and glove?

Teddy Putnam: 9:15

What did I say?

Taylor Branigan: 9:16

You said hand and knife.

Teddy Putnam: 9:18

What an odd thing for me to have said.

Taylor Branigan: 9:21

I just want to ask you a few simple questions.

Teddy Putnam: 9:23

Should I have my lawyer here?

Taylor Branigan: 9:25

That's certainly you're right.

Teddy Putnam: 9:28

I think it'll be okay. These are just questions to rule me out of suspicion, right?

Taylor Branigan: 9:33

A few minutes ago you said I was hoping to make you crack. What do you think you might crack over?

Teddy Putnam: 9:38

I'd like my lawyer.

Charlie Incarica: 9:42

The next time they met, Teddy's attorney Ellen Newberry was sitting next to him. It's worth noting Ellen Newberry is a junior partner in the well-known international law firm Handley, Kelsey, Markowitz, and Jones. And if the name Jones sounds familiar, it should. And not simply because it's one of the most common surnames in the English language. It's the last name of Margaret Mandragara Jones. And that firm's senior partner, Tom Jones, is another name you might find familiar, as it's also the name of beloved Welsh-born singer Sir Tom Jones, whose hits include such pop classics as What's New Pussycat? and It's Not Unusual. But it's not that Tom Jones. To be clear, this wasn't another Erica Hobbs situation, in that Erica Hobbes turned out to be Erica Hobbes' mother or Erica Hobbes' daughter, depending on which Erica Hobbes you're using as a starting point. These Tom Joneses are of no relation to one another. But Tom Jones is related to Margaret Mandragara Jones, the lawyer Tom Jones, not the Grammy-winning singing star. Perhaps more importantly, however, he is Margaret's father. And that, to borrow from the other, more musically successful Tom Jones songbook, caused acting interim chief Branigan to think it's not, not unusual. In other words, she became suspicious.

Taylor Branigan: 11:04

Not only was it obvious that Margaret and Teddy struck up some kind of relationship, but it seemed possible they were in cahoots.

Charlie Incarica: 11:11

What did you think they were in cahoots about?

Taylor Branigan: 11:13

I wasn't sure at that point, but certainly it seemed cahooty.

DA Theresa Nolo: 11:17

A key stumbling block in all of this is that in the United States, the legal standard for establishing any level of cahootsing is exceptionally high.

Charlie Incarica: 11:26

This is Teresa Nolo, the district attorney for Upshaw County, whose jurisdiction includes Shady Grove, and who is among the last major characters to be introduced in this podcast.

DA Theresa Nolo: 11:36

The thing that struck me and my team is that the Jones family had to know the relationship between Margaret and her father would come to light. So why were the Joneses so eager to free Teddy Putnam from suspicion?

Charlie Incarica: 11:49

I asked Margaret directly about this.

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 11:51

Well, firstly, I reject the premise of your question. Why would we think the Shady Grove police would be able to make any connection between anything? This is a town that invested nearly $50,000 in Lederhosen because they continually confused Australia with Austria. It's a police force that met me at the airport with a motorcade, yet still managed to arrive late for my meeting at Town Hall because they had not once, but twice pulled over to let each other pass. Having said that, I don't think there's anything wrong with providing an acquaintance with a path to excellent legal counsel.

Charlie Incarica: 12:23

Had Teddy done you any favors during your stay in Shady Grove?

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 12:26

Well, we became friendly during the lockdown. I didn't find his conversation especially engaging, but he did have a very large supply of absinthe, so I figured he was worth knowing on some level.

Charlie Incarica: 12:37

Teddy's new lawyer immediately called for a change of venue. When Branigan and Nolo pointed out Teddy wasn't on trial, so there was no court venue to change, Newberry clarified she was calling for a change of venue for the interrogation room, claiming the color scheme of the walls in the room was a clear Eighth Amendment violation against cruel and unusual punishment.

DA Theresa Nolo: 12:59

This was clearly a power play, a naked delaying tactic. However, the actual color of the paint is called gulag green. And even though we'd hung a few cat-themed inspirational posters, cheered up a bit, it was still pretty grim. So her complaint wasn't without merit. We eventually settled on the back office of a funeral parlor.

Charlie Incarica: 13:20

The following is from the interview of Teddy Putnam.

Taylor Branigan: 13:24

Teddy, you were born on December 9th, 1972, correct? On the advice of my counsel, I plead the fifth. Sorry, quick word with my client. Of course.

Teddy Putnam: 13:33

Oh, I thought I thought you said that's what I'm saying. Oh, great.

Taylor Branigan: 13:41

And is it also true that you share your birthday with your sister, the late Amanda?

Teddy Putnam: 13:44

On the advice of counsel, I plead My counsel advises me I was born on the same day as my twin sister. And would you say the two of you were close? Very much so.

Taylor Branigan: 13:55

That's a little odd, Teddy. Because you told the first officer on the scene, Sergeant Joseph Rino, you two always saw the world in totally opposite ways.

Teddy Putnam: 14:03

I'm sorry, I thought you meant physically close. We were very physically close for a while, especially in utero. I see.

Taylor Branigan: 14:11

In what year did your sister start taking an active part in running the company?

Teddy Putnam: 14:16

Oh, gosh, like ten, fifteen or so years ago at this point.

Taylor Branigan: 14:20

2008?

Teddy Putnam: 14:21

2008, 2010, something like that. I do remember it was an even numbered year because in even numbered years our company Foosball Fantasy Leagues would hold a pure auction draft, whereas in odd-numbered years we did what's known as a snake draft.

Taylor Branigan: 14:38

Okay. Within 45 minutes you officially identifying the body of your sister, you made four phone calls. For the record, I am sharing with Mr. Putnam and his attorney a log of his calls that morning. The first was to the foosball wholesaler, who took the foosball tables out of your offices when Amanda stepped in. The second was to another foosball table distributor when you discovered the first foosball table company had gone out of business. The third to Margaret Mandragara Jones, and the fourth was to the head of your company's Pudding Research Division, informing them their department was immediately liquidated.

Teddy Putnam: 15:12

Right. Well, I'd sent an email to security ordering them to throw the researchers off company property, so I felt I owed it to the team to let them know why they were being, in many cases, physically thrown off our grounds. Why were you so quick to shut that program down? You'd known your sister was dead less than an hour. Amanda always valued efficiency. In a way, it was a tribute to her.

Taylor Branigan: 15:36

What did you talk to Miss Mandragara Jones about during your phone call that morning?

Teddy Putnam: 15:41

Well, I knew what an admirer she was of my sister and her liquor collection. I thought it best she'd hear it from me. Did you call her regularly? Define regularly. Did you speak to her on a regular basis? If that's what you mean by regularly, then yes.

Taylor Branigan: 15:57

What did you talk about?

Teddy Putnam: 15:58

Oh gosh, I mean I couldn't tell you exactly. Just, you know, life stuff. And sometimes I'd pick out words and ask her to say them in her accent, usually ones with lots of vowels like aluminum or hello. Did you discuss business? Well, in a sense. What sense? We discussed the business of being alive, of being thinking feeling organisms on this fragile blue marble most called Earth. Okay. Oh, and shady grove pudding. I almost forgot. We talked tons about that. Went into real detail. She had endless questions about my company.

Charlie Incarica: 16:35

Newberry immediately called an abrupt halt to the interview.

Taylor Branigan: 16:39

So, armed with this information, I brought Margaret back in for questioning.

Charlie Incarica: 16:43

At the funeral parlor?

Taylor Branigan: 16:45

No. I asked one of the few officers working at the station to get some paint and take care of it. Unfortunately, Mayor Lyons caught wind of it and denied the expense. So, then I had the officer check Craigslist for anything being given away we could use. I should have been more hands-on, as it turns out.

Charlie Incarica: 17:03

The police interview room had wallpapered over its unsightly paint. But to Branigan's dismay, it was wallpaper for a small child's room.

Taylor Branigan: 17:12

Less than ideal, but the important thing was to get Margaret in again. Okay. Margaret Mandrager Jones. Second interview on May 3rd, 2020. Present with her is her attorney, Ellen Newberry, and myself, acting interim chief Taylor Branigan. And assorted Muppets in Napies. The interviewee is referring to the temporary wallpaper in the room. Indeed, I am.

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 17:35

Remind me, who are the characters on the wall of this interview room in your actual police station? They're Muppet Babies, but I don't think so. No, agreed. Acting Interim Chief Branigan. I just wanted to hear you say it for the record. Well, I'd worry less about the wallpaper. You mean the Muppet Babies wallpaper that you, in one of your first command decisions as acting interim chief, ordered hung in your police interrogation room?

Taylor Branigan: 17:58

Yes.

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 17:58

Sorry, just clarifying. So you want me to worry less about the pictures of Kermit the Frog than what? The Paw Patrol decals, which no doubt festoon the inevitably unlocked room in which you store your firearms?

Taylor Branigan: 18:10

I'd worry more that you claimed your former assistant told you about the murders of March 9th, when Teddy Putnam claims he was the one who told you.

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 18:17

Well, you can't be taking anything he says seriously. Teddy Putnam's about as reliable as a watch built by a squirrel. I think on balance the infant Muppets are more troubling to me with all due respect. Well, if you have no further questions from my client, I'm Actually, I do.

Taylor Branigan: 18:32

For the record, I am handing Miss Mandragora Jones and her attorney a phone record registering a phone call between Teddy Putnam and Miss Mandragara Jones that took place between 1048 and 1122 on the morning of March 9th, 2020. You mean to tell me you and Teddy didn't discuss his sister's murder?

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 18:49

I'm sure it must have come up at some point, but we tended to focus our conversations on another topic. Which was Well, it's not strictly relevant to the murder inquiry.

Taylor Branigan: 18:59

Why don't we make that my call?

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 19:01

Most of our conversations, AIC Rannigan, centered around his asking me a series of sexually explicit knock-knock jokes.

Taylor Branigan: 19:10

Um what?

Margaret Mandragora-Jones: 19:12

Indeed. I feel that's the only appropriate reaction. However, his X-rated knock-knock jokes are the closest thing to the performing arts in this perforated ulcer of a community. And fair play to him, some of them weren't half bad. Of course, I'd been drinking far more absinthe than is medically prudent, which may have made me less than strictly objective on that front. Were you and Teddy sexually involved? My client doesn't have to answer that. I'm actually gonna side with my lawyer on this one. Unless you can prove to me the relevance of such a question to solving these horrible murders, which still seem to me aggressively unsolved, I don't feel I have the need to comment on my personal life any further. Besides, think of the cartoon Babies on Your Wall. We don't want them growing up too fast now, do we?

Charlie Incarica: 19:54

Margaret's reaction suggested Taylor Branigan had struck a nerve. Here's DA Theresa Nolo.

DA Theresa Nolo: 20:01

And though, as I said, the legal standard for proving cahootsing with malice aforethought is notoriously hard, we all felt confident we were onto something.

Charlie Incarica: 20:11

I requested a warrant to wiretap their phones, but then Teresa Nolo was going to share with you the surprising twist on that story, but I thought it was such a good twist that I wanted to do it. An hour after the judge allowed the police to tap the phones of Teddy and Margaret, the warrant was revoked. And it came all the way from the governor's mansion. Why would Alice Hart hinder an investigation into the murder of her daughter-in-law?

Estelle Hayes: 20:41

I've got some theories.

Charlie Incarica: 20:43

Indeed, Estelle does. And we'll hear about them next time. I'm Charles and Karika, and this continues to be.