Keanu May interview

Thursday, November 12, 2020 – 10:00 a.m.

Keanu May is one of the people who Claire Rivas said was in the woods with her and saw the same thing she did.

Detectives Armstrong and Murphy interviewed him at Yoknapatawpha High School.

Participants:

• Detective T. Armstrong
• Detective S. Murphy
• Keanu May

Detective Armstrong: Sorry to pull you out of class. We just need a few minutes of your time, Mr. May.

Keanu May: Sure. No problem.

Detective Armstrong: Thank you. First, for the record, we'll need you to tell us your name and address.

Keanu May: I'm Keanu May, and my address is 623 Washington Road. And my dad is Mr. May. Please call me Keanu.

Detective Murphy: All right, Keanu. We understand you were in the woods a few weeks ago and saw something we might like to know about. Does anything come to mind?

Keanu May: You mean what Claire told you, right?

Detective Murphy: Is that something you think we should know about?

Keanu May: Well, I guess so. I'm not sure it'll help, but, basically, a couple of weeks ago, me and Claire and Mitch saw something in the woods that kind of seems strange now.

Detective Armstrong: Claire and Mitch who?

Keanu May: Oh, sorry. Claire Rivas and Mitch Freedman.

Detective Murphy: Can you be more specific about where you were?

Keanu May: Sure, sorry. Claire's house. Around there. She lives, like, right there when you get into the Holly Springs National Forest.

Detective Murphy: Okay. Do you remember what day this was?

Keanu May: Saturday the 24th.

Detective Armstrong: And what were the three of you doing in the woods?

Keanu May: Basically, communing with nature, getting away from people.

Detective Armstrong: How often do you and your friends hang out there?

Keanu May: A few times a week, almost every week.

Detective Murphy: What do you do to commune with nature?

Keanu May: Just sit and enjoy it. We bring snacks and sit and talk. Sometimes we hike around a little, but mostly we just hang there instead of at High Point Coffee or Square Pizza. Basically, the point is to avoid the people who hang out at those places.

Detective Armstrong: So what did you see on October 24th?

Keanu May: We saw Jimmy's mom in the woods. Mrs. Bragg. We saw her.

Detective Murphy: You're sure it was Mrs. Bragg?

Keanu May: Yes, ma'am.

Detective Murphy: What time of day was it?

Keanu May: Around 5:00. Still light outside. I'm sure it was her. Plus, it was her voice.

Detective Murphy: Do you know her?

Keanu May: Yes, ma'am. She's at school a lot. She helps out here.

Detective Armstrong: Was she talking to someone when you saw her that day in the woods?

Keanu May: No, she was alone.

Detective Armstrong: What was she doing when you saw her?

Keanu May: Shooting arrows. She had a target set up and was pacing off steps.

Detective Murphy: What do you mean, pacing off steps?

Keanu May: Like measuring a distance.

Detective Armstrong: What's so strange about someone practicing archery out in the woods?

Keanu May: Well, at first we were joking about it. She was all swashbuckly.

Detective Murphy: Swashbuckly?

Keanu May: Yeah, she was shooting quick. Like quick draw. She was good, too. Especially considering what she was wearing.

Detective Armstrong: Why? What was she wearing?

Keanu May: One of those wool jackets they give out to the jocks at school.

Detective Murphy: And you're sure it was Mrs. Bragg?

Keanu May: Positive. Like I said, it was her voice, but it sure wasn't anything I'd ever heard her say before.

Detective Murphy: What was she saying?

Keanu May: Not much. Mostly she was laughing, which was weird. But she missed the target a couple of times and let fly with some loud cuss words.

Detective Murphy: How long did you watch her?

Keanu May: Oh, about a half-hour, I think. We thought it was funny at first, but then it got boring.

Detective Armstrong: Did you approach Mrs. Bragg in the woods?

Keanu May: Oh, hell, no! She never knew we were there.

Detective Murphy: Have you ever seen Mrs. Bragg out in the woods before this day you're describing?

Keanu May: No. I've never seen her out there.

Detective Murphy: What about since then?

Keanu May: No, and we've spent a lot more time out there since Mr. Miller was killed. People at school are way stressed about it.

Detective Armstrong: But not you?

Keanu May: No, I'm totally stressed about it, and so is everyone else, so we're spending even more time out there to get away from it. Trying to get unstressed, you know?

Detective Armstrong: When you're in the woods trying to get unstressed with your friends, do you do anything that might impair your judgment?

Keanu May: Like what?

Detective Murphy: Drugs?

Keanu May: No, ma'am. Never.

Detective Armstrong: Alcohol?

Keanu May: No, sir. We aren't out there drinking or drugging. I'll admit my friends smoke sometimes, but nothing else.

Detective Armstrong: But not you?

Keanu May: No, not me.

Detective Armstrong: What do they smoke?

Keanu May: Cloves. The dorks smoke cloves. Stupid, right? They're even higher in carcinogens than regular smokes. So, that may show poor judgment, but last time I checked, it doesn't impair judgment.

Detective Murphy: How do you get along with Mrs. Bragg?

Keanu May: She's okay. I mean, she doesn't give me any crap. Of course, I don't give her any reason to give me crap either.

Detective Armstrong: Why didn't you come forward with this information?

Keanu May: Because I don't know if what Mrs. Bragg was doing had anything to do with anything, and I didn't want to start any rumors based on a little bit of information when it might actually be no big deal if I knew the whole story.

Detective Armstrong: Did Claire tell you that she spoke to us?

Keanu May: Yeah, she told me.

Detective Murphy: Did you discuss what she told us?

Keanu May: No, nothing like that.

Detective Armstrong: Did y'all talk about what you saw in the woods that day just to make sure you were both remembering it right?

Keanu May: No, sir. She just said that she talked to the sheriff's office and that you guys were pretty chill.

Detective Murphy: Thank you, Keanu. Can you think of anything else that might help us?

Keanu May: No, that's it.

Detective Murphy: Okay, then. If you do think of something, please call either Detective Armstrong or me.

Interview ended – 10:23 a.m.