Acknowledgments
Its an old clich, but this book would have never been possible without the help and cooperation of my family, friends and associates.
First and foremost, I would like to express my appreciation to Jack and Marie Summey and Jane Lovett. Thank you for your continued kindness and your willingness to share information, even at the risk of casting dark shadows on yourself and your family.
A debt of gratitude is owed to Detective Terry Altman, Captain Sam Hendrick, and many other members of the law enforcement and medical emergency team who provided valuable information and shared their special insights into the Brent Poole case.
I am also grateful to Attorney Bill Diggs for his contributions and giving me access to his files. Some of the same courtesies have been extended to me from attorneys Ralph Wilson, Greg Hembree, Fran Humphries, Tommy Brittain, and Morgan Martin. These officers of the court have never said no to my request for an interview and are always willing to assist in any way.
Thanks also to my agent, Peter Miller, who so gracefully presented this project, and to Michaela Hamilton and B. Tweed at Kensington Publishing Corporation.
Many thanks goes to my writing partner and close friend, Dale Dobson. Your continued faith, friendship, and encouragement has helped me through this project and many more like it. Included in that same list is longtime supporter and friend Jo Clayton.
To my friends and business associates who protect and keep me financially afloat while I am writing and ignoring my day job: my attorney, Ralph Stroman, my accountant, Morgan Lewis, my banker, Richard Causey, and my associates in the Eldercare business, attorneys Bruce Robinson Jr., Dennis Worley, and Paul Eksteryou have my deepest gratitude.
A special thank-you goes to Edward and Kathleen Burroughs for your long and devoted friendship. Youve always been there to keep us laughing and lift our spirits when weve needed it the most.
I would like to thank Kimberly Renee Poole, who has revealed the most intimate and deepest secrets of her life. That really took a lot of guts!
Finally, my deepest and heartfelt appreciation is reserved for my faithful and loving wife, Deborah, and my creative and high-spirited children, DJ and Deegan. You not only give me the time to write, but still continue to support me when my obsession fuels me at three oclock in the morning and on holidays.
And to my mom, Im eternally grateful for your encouragement and your continued love and support. I just wish Dad was still around to enjoy it. Hell always be the greatest storyteller in my life.
EPILOGUE
This case weighed heavily on my mind from the first day I read about it in the Sun News. I know and respect the persons who investigated, prosecuted and defended this case. Indeed, I consider many of them my friends. During the two trials, I also got to know the families and developed long, lasting relationships with some of them. And, from the very beginning, they proved themselves to be honorable, respectable and courageous folks.
Kimberly Renee Poole continues to serve her life sentence at Leath Correctional Institute. In a bizarre twist of fate, the person she was often likened to, Susan Smith, is one of her suitemates and they have developed a platonic relationship. On November 9, Renee celebrated her twenty-ninth birthday. She, Susan and several other prison inmates celebrated with an impromptu party.
Oh, youd be surprised how resourceful one can get in prison, Renee wrote to me.
An old college roommate of Brents had been visiting Renee regularly. They had agreed if she were to be released from prison, the two of them would hookup and give their relationship a try. Apparently, that friendship must have run its course, for Renee recently posted her profile and advertised for pen pals on the web.
Horry County solicitor Greg Hembree was reelected during the last election and is currently serving his second term. He and deputy solicitor Fran Humphries now argue their cases in a much improved, multimillion-dollar, state-of-the-art complex, sitting directly behind the older courthouse on Second Avenue. They are very confident John Boyd Frazier will be found guilty in his upcoming trial.
Well just prepare for trial a second time, get ready and do it again, Hembree said after he received the news from the supreme court. The videotape and lighting expert are another tool Fraziers attorneys can use to attack the witnesses testimony, but I think what they saw will hold up. The eye can pick up better than a video camera, so the testimony may not help him much. And as for allowing testimony about the photo-lineup IDs, the witnesses picked Frazier from the pictures because they saw him, not because of a description from someone else. Other evidence made the case against Frazier so strong that the new testimony should have little effect.
In August 1999, Captain Sam Hendrick resigned his post at Myrtle Beach police and accepted the job as chief of police, in Conway. Several months later, Sergeant John King gave notice he would be joining his old boss in Conway.
Detective Terry Altman is still employed in the homicide department at MBPD. Although his job requires more supervision and less hands-on investigation of crimes, he says he still gets a rush when he has the opportunity to interrogate criminals. Its the greatest job in the world. He smiles. I cant think of anything that excites me more than the moment when the criminal finally breaks down and admits he or she has committed the crime. And you walk away saying, I got em.
Bill Diggs still practices law in Myrtle Beach and Orrie West continues to represent those who cant afford to pay for an attorney. Diggs has visited Renee only twice since her conviction, yet he continues to work on her appeals. He is eminently qualified for this task, given the fact he served as the former chief attorney for the South Carolina Office of Appellate Defense for five years and has represented approximately one thousand clients at the appellate and postconviction levels.
The last time Diggs visited Renee was with Morgan Martin in 2004. He made the mistake of asking her, How do you like my hair? She told him she didnt give a damn about his hairall she was interested in was getting out of prison.
The Summeys are angry with Diggs and claim he wont return their phone calls. Marie said she was going to Myrtle Beach to have a talk with him. And true to form, she swore, Bill is going to look mighty funny in court with a foot up his ass.
Jane Lovett says that she has never had a problem with Johns attorney. It has been wonderful to know Morgan Martin and have him. God blessed us greatly with his presence in our life. He always talks with me when I call on him, and as soon as he can, he will call me back. He calls at night or weekends or anytime I need him. I have his home number, his cell number and his car number. I truly thank God for him and know God sent him to us in our desperate time of need.
The Pooles contact the MBPD homicide office just about every time they visit Myrtle Beach and have never failed to express their appreciation for bringing justice to their sons case. Each day they think about Renee, and how she not only murdered their son but inflicted a lifetime of trauma and loss on them and their family. Life will never be the same without Brent, but at least they have Katie to hold on to. They pray Renee will one day accept what she has done, and will at last acknowledge she is a murderer. But they know theyre only fooling themselves. It was Renees failure to face her sins in the first place that resulted in Brents death. They believe she never had any guilt or remorse for what she did or said to Brent while they were married and it is that same attitude now that has cost her her own daughter.