Lieutenant Dave Messmore
Appearances
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 2. The Stories We Tell
He had told people that his family was very important back in Pennsylvania where they lived. Mainline Pennsylvania people. None of that was true.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 2. The Stories We Tell
He was pretty well known around the hospital and the doctor's areas for having girlfriends and picking up girls. And people I talked to, they said that he's pretty much a philanderer. The more I talked to, the worse it got. And I thought, well, it's not a normal situation. He's not a family man.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 2. The Stories We Tell
I talked to a nurse who had been dating him off and on, and she left town. And she went to Florida. She was afraid of him. He found her condo. She said she came home and found that he'd broken in there. He took all of her clothes that he had purchased for her and threw them into a bathtub and then urinated on them.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 2. The Stories We Tell
As an indication that, I guess, that you didn't stay around with me, but I picked up another girl, that type of thing. This is how bizarre he is. I mean, he's got a real deep, deep problem.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 2. The Stories We Tell
I called the Navy investigators in the Pentagon, and they looked him up and... And what did he do? Nothing. He never set foot on a boat. He couldn't fly. His whole life is a lie.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 2. The Stories We Tell
He would call me frequently, and I'd talk to him whenever I could. He was just worried, did you find my mother? And I said, no, Collier, not right now. I'm working on it, though. Just to reassure him.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 2. The Stories We Tell
Well, it kind of developed that way. I don't know that he was interested in it, but he had nobody else to confide in.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
So I called up there in Erie, and I said, look, here's what I've got. And I said, I'm very, very interested in getting in that new house. And they said, oh boy, you have any more than that?
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
That is something that sticks in your mind. Why would he want to lower the basement? What was he going to do?
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
And they said, we have a judge that we will take this to. The judge had been a former prosecutor, and he went, there you go.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
My captain was not behind me. The day that I got ready to serve a search warrant, Captain said, what are you doing? I told him what I was doing. He said, you got to be kidding. I said, no. He said, you really think that a doctor would kill somebody and take the body up to the area of Pennsylvania? I said, I don't know, but I'm going to find out.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
He said, you're going to embarrass the police department. I said, I don't care who he is. It has to be done.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
Disgusted and insulted for what he did to his family. The way he treated Collier, it was with a lot of disdain.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
The weather was bad. It was snowing and everything. So we drove up there through six inches of snow, and it got worse and worse.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
You couldn't convince me there was anything more bizarre than this. I was not prepared to dismiss any viable theory.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
I had an inclination to do things that maybe I wouldn't have done in other cases. Some people don't have any faith, and I have faith. I think God does lead you in the right directions a lot of times.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
By the time we got there, we were late, and the lieutenant up there had four guys ready to work with us. They said, well, it's nice you got here. I said, well, I'm lucky I got here.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
It was kind of enjoyable, yeah.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
All over this... Two and a half car garage was indoor-outdoor carpeting. I said, well, it's got to be under there.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
None of the concrete underneath was damaged or anything.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
That kind of made me concerned that maybe that wasn't what I was going to find her at.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
It was almost like a dampness in the air. And as I opened the door to the basement, this wave of drying paint came up.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
Jack had a contractor come in and build two by four shelving all along one wall. So the technicians were working and looking all along the walls and looking around that shelving that was built. And one of them said, gosh, this is like almost fresh concrete that didn't dry. Splattered on the wall.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
So the other lieutenant said, go get sledgehammers.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
And I'm thinking, oh boy, how am I going to explain this? But Dave proceeded. Hold it all down and then ripped up the carpeting that was glued to the floor.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
They did it with little tiny screwdrivers and everything, trying not to disturb anything.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
Then we found something I was looking for, and that was a green tarp.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
And I checked the picture I had of her, and it was very obvious when I looked at her that it was Noreen.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
I can't wait to get my hands on Jack. It's time to lock him up.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
And I said, I've got Noreen's body up here. He said, what? And I said, I've got Noreen's body. She's been murdered. I said, I want you to write up a murder warrant and take it and serve it on Jack before he gets away somewhere. He said, a murder warrant? And I said, yep. He was shocked about the whole thing.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
Jack was home. And he came out and they said, you're under arrest for homicide. And he says, OK, I don't have anything to say. Nothing. Nothing.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
Looked over in the corner, and there was a whole herd of ants eating somebody else's food. The thing was a dump. It was awful.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
I said, I need to talk to Collier.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
I said, it's better that you know what happened to her than go on for years and years and never find her. And I said, well, it's my job, Collier. It's for you, I said. I'm really sorry.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
I told him he might have to testify. It wasn't very often that prosecutors would use a young child to testify, but it was important. He said, absolutely.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
What happened was Jack got a contract in Erie, Pennsylvania to work for a large company. He'd been traveling back and forth to Erie to set this whole clinic up.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
So I called up to Erie and had a detective work with me. And he started to talk to people that knew him and had met him.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
The more this detective worked on it up there, he said, that's just a lot of strange things going on with this guy. I said, yeah, I know.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
He presented her as his wife. And when she signed her name, it wasn't her name.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
Talked to Kaya a lot about how his dad treated him. Even as a small child, his dad didn't like him.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
These little things kept narrowing it down to Erie, Pennsylvania.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
Collier told me that his dad came home from Erie, Pennsylvania, and his back and his arms were hurting, and Collier had to rub Bengay on him. I thought, you know, that's a little bizarre.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
That's called a hint.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
I kept thinking, is it possible this guy actually would bury the body in his house?
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
So I called Children's Services and I said to the head of it, I said, let me tell you what I'm doing. And I explained everything to him. I said, now this guy wants to take Collier on a vacation. My fear is that something will happen to Collier. And he goes, oh. He said, all right.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 3. The House on Wolf Road
He called me back later and said, we're going to remove Collier and put him in an approved home to stay with some people. I said, good. That's exactly what I want. I didn't trust Jack at all.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
We just got hooked on him and really liked him.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
He did things that he hadn't done before. You know, he liked being around my kids and they taught him how to play basketball and he bought jeans. I remember seeing him ride a bike around our neighborhood for a while and he came back all sweaty and everything. He said, boy, this is fun. Yeah, I said, yeah, I know it is.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
Oh my gosh, a sweet, smart little boy. He was something else.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
He looked up to Dave as his protector. I mean, he had every faith in Dave.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
My sister and I, we went shopping one Sunday and Collier was over at our house. So we took him to our mall and we went shopping, forgetting that he's listening to everything you're saying. I said, oh, this jacket is so cute. I really like it, but I don't think I'm going to buy it.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
Well, he chimes in, well, Mrs. Messmore, you should buy that jacket. You deserve it. Well, he actually talked me into buying the jacket.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
And Collier said, well, Mrs. Messmore, if Detective Messmore can find my mother, he certainly could find these packages. We didn't know what to say.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
Well, no. He was just, he was beyond his 12 years is all. He acted like a little adult.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
He'd always ask me, do you think my dad really did that? And I said, Collier, it was a trial, and I'm convinced, and you should be convinced now that he did it. As horrible as this whole thing is, unfortunately, your father's responsible for it. Dave felt bad for Collier. He's been traumatized too much. Way too much for an ordinary person. Oh, we love Collier, yeah.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
He said, I need to talk to you. And I said, OK. And he said, would you and Sue consider adopting me? I went, God, I didn't think about that. And I said, well, Collier, we'll have to talk about that a little bit.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
And I felt like Collier had no one. So I looked at him like this little boy who really was like an orphan. It just broke my heart. We had talked a lot about it. And yes, it was a decision.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
I don't know. I guess the problems that he might have. Emotional problems that he might have. And could I handle that? And we decided that if we did get him, we would go into counseling. I would want to know exactly the right way to handle questions if he had questions for us. Collier wanted to be here with us, and we wanted him to be part of our family.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
Sue and I talked for a day or two, and we kind of agreed that we could do it.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
And the judge says, you don't think I'm going to put you with a guy that locked up your dad, do you? He said, you're not going there under any circumstances.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
We thought the more people that love Collier, the better off Collier is.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 5. Lost Boy
We just said, we know that you are his adoptive parents, but we want to be a part of his life. An aunt and uncle. Not to interfere, nothing like that. And they absolutely said no.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 4. The Trial of the Century
His status as a doctor was somewhat elevated. So they wanted to beat that down and make sure that he's so discredited nobody would ever believe him.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 6. The Confessions of Jack Boyle
I went 30 years with Collier, trying to convince him that his dad was a liar. And he'd say, well, maybe he'll get out and he can live with me.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 6. The Confessions of Jack Boyle
I said, oh, that's a good idea. I said, it's just a matter of time until he kills you. You're the one that testified against him. If you think he doesn't forget that, you're very, very mistaken.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
He was beside himself. He didn't cry, but he was emotionally distraught. And he convinced me that there was something wrong. I'd never encountered a child that young to be so well-spoken. He was not like a little 11- or 12-year-old you'd normally talk to. He was just very astute. At that point, I couldn't really pass it off to another detective.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
He was in despair. I just wanted to get it done, and I wanted to be able to tell Collier that we found his mother.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
The more you talk to other people that are acquainted with him, you find out an awful lot about that person. And in his case, he had a completely different personality. You know, he was always laughing and joking around with people. But that wasn't him. That was a facade.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
She was listed as a missing person. by some of the friends of hers, not family, but that's not unusual.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
Somebody will run off and they have a dispute with their spouse and they'll run away and they come back and, you know, there's only so much you can do with a missing person.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
And she said, I'm telling you, this is not right. Noreen would never do that. And I said, well, maybe she was just upset. No, no, I'm telling you. I said, I'll stop over and see what's going on.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
He was not like a little 11 or 12-year-old you'd normally talk to. He was just very astute, very well-spoken. Whenever his grandmother would walk away, he'd say things that make you wonder if there was something wrong.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
He said, my mother would never leave without me, without me knowing where she was going.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
He said, something happened, and I said, okay, I'll work on that.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
Well, she said, that doesn't sound right. She said, that doesn't sound like a kid that doesn't know where his mother is. And I said, well... So I'm going to go back and see if I can't talk to him some more.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
And she said, what do you want? And I said, well, I'd kind of like to talk to you and Collier again. Well, why do you come around bothering people like this? I said, I'm not bothering anybody. I just like to solve this and find out where she is. I said, when is Dr. Boyle going to be home? Well, he should be back tonight. This is starting to bother me.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
On the door, when I got there, was a letter that said, no one in this house has permission to talk to the police. and was signed by an attorney I know. A note on the door wasn't going to stop Lieutenant Dave Messmore. So when I knocked on the door, the attorney answered the door. And I said, what's going on here? Well, the doctor doesn't really have anything to say. His wife walked out and left.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
There's nothing he can really tell you. I said, well, I'd like to talk to him. He said, well, he doesn't want to talk.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
Some of the guys that worked for me were ex-Marines. So they said, yeah, we know about Dr. Boyle. He's an ex-Navy doctor, retired Navy doctor, flew jets over in Vietnam. And he's just a great guy.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
Apparently there was some talk of divorce, but I didn't know exactly what the circumstances were.
The Binge Crimes: Finding Mom's Killer
Finding Mom's Killer | 1. A Little Vacation
He and I had a lengthy conversation. He described to me what he heard that night that she went missing.