Although they had the scrapings from beneath Lisa’s fingernails, as well as the clothing that Fairley had worn during the attack, Castor had a problem.
“The people of Connecticut were so pissed off at Lee for working on the O.J. case that he was prohibited by executive order from working on any case outside Connecticut State Police lab cases. He told me I had to get permission from Governor Rowland. So I called his office. I explained to a secretary that I needed to talk to him. She said, ‘Hold on,’ and a guy comes on who says he’s the chief of staff. He’s a former prosecutor, so I explain the situation, and he says, ‘Wait by the phone.’ Twenty minutes later, the phone rings. It’s this guy. He says, ‘I interrupted the governor. He says you’ll have our full cooperation.’”
Peffall, Saville, and Castor made plans in secret to go to Connecticut. Castor knew that reporters were staking out his car, so he’d requisitioned an undercover vehicle. They planned to leave at 4:00 AM, but they had to get twenty-five Philly cheese steaks first—Lee’s “price” for doing this professional favor. The case would be expedited, so if they got a match, there was still time for a positive political impact as well. Castor knew they needed it.
CT Forensic Science Lab
When they arrived in Connecticut, they used pseudonyms to sign in. So far, so good. No one had figured out who they were. But Henry Lee was not yet available. He was in a meeting down the hall. The party from Philadelphia was shown to a waiting room and directed to where they could get coffee.
“We sat there a while,” Castor said, “and I decided I wanted coffee, so I walked down the hall. I got a cup of coffee and started back, and I happened to pass an open door. I looked in, and there was all the national media—CNN, Fox, and NBC—with their backs to the door and their cameras on Henry. He’s explaining some aspect of the O.J. case. The only person who sees me is Henry. There must have been 50 people with a dozen cameras. I watched with a bemused expression, whereupon Dr. Lee says, ‘I’m sorry, I have to cut this short. I have to see my excellent friend, the district attorney of Pennsylvania. He’s here to consult on a case of utmost importance to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,’ whereupon the cameras spun around to take a look at me. I would have been on every national media outlet in the entire nation! I ducked out, and his publicist got the message out that I was not to be on any shows.”
Once Lee was free, he looked at the fingernails under the microscope and saw blood and fragments of flesh. He told Castor they would rush it and get him the results as soon as possible. Castor had a gut feeling they would get a hit. Within a few days, he received word: the odds were overwhelming that Lisa Manderach had scratched Caleb Fairley. The deal they’d made with Fairley had paid off.
They still had a way to go.