They say if you stick around long enough, you’ll see everything twice.
Ain’t that the truth.
Nearly 30 years after Patricia Talorico and I were part of a team covering the developing events after John du Pont fatally shot Olympic wrestler Dave Schultz on Jan. 26, 1996, we’ve revisited the scene of the crime, so to speak.
We were young reporters in January 1996. I still had plenty to learn about Delaware and how important and integrated the du Pont name is to the First State. But to me, this wasn’t about a man from one of America’s richest famllies having fatally shot an Olympic gold medal winner.
THE MULTIMILLIONAIRE MURDERER: The story behind how John E. du Pont killed Olympic wrestler
It just sounded like an interesting assignment when the editors asked for volunteers to stand watch outside du Pont’s sprawling estate overnight in case he was arrested. I’d never done that sort of thing, and I found it intriguing.
John du Pont sits in the trophy room of estate in Newton Square, Pennsylvania, in this Feb. 25, 1992, photo.
There’s a certain rush to this sort of news, at least for me, that to this day gives me an itch that can only be scratched by running out the door to see what’s going on. But as I age, I’ve learned to get as much information as I can before I run out the door.
Part of the reason for that is to better understand what’s going on so I can better explain the situation, especially in an online world where news is more instant than it used to be. So you want to be right when reporting early on.
Loading up on information, however, isn’t always possible with breaking news, and I’m not sure how much more it would have helped me in the du Pont situation nearly 30 years ago.
I was just a reporter waiting to see if there’d been an arrest. But I did learn some stuff.
THE MULTIMILLIONAIRE MURDERER: How John du Pont used wealth to try and avoid prison time
Then me vs. now me
I didn’t know much about the situation other than what the editors had told me. I didn’t even think to listen to radio news on the drive up.
Today’s Esteban would have solely been listening to news radio on the drive up and then reading anything and everything on my iPhone once I got there. Of course, internet in 1996 cellphones was something only found in dreams.
Back then, I just packed everything I thought I would need into my Chevrolet S-10 and headed to Newtown Square, Pennsylvania. This included my cocker spaniel, Mio.
If I had a dog now, I’d know to leave it home because it was cold!
Overnight temperatures on both nights I was there sank to the low to mid-20s. I remember seeing ice on the ground when I parked my pickup to go look for our photographer, Bob Herbert.
I had to leave the truck on so Mio wouldn’t freeze, and he was not happy about the cold potty breaks.
Not sure what I would do differently now about the cold, but I know I’d stay away from cigarettes. I’m sure I heard someone somewhere say smoking helped warm them up so I bummed a few cigarettes.
FYI, it didn’t help. I was still cold and I smelled bad.
When I wasn’t in the truck checking on Mio, I stayed near the pack of other reporters huddled outside the estate. We all were waiting through the night to see if an official would feed us some news.
The media huddles are still common these days, especially if you are the only person representing for your news organization – you don’t want to leave and chance missing out on the big announcement.
Most likely, Today Esteban would have ventured farther from the pack of reporters to see what news was available beyond where law enforcement told us to stay. I also would have been freaking out while I was away that something had broken.
Nothing broke during those two cold nights.
But I did notice motorists from across the region stop to ask reporters for any developments. I learned these are gawkers, and their interest in what’s going on can be newsworthy and could be turned into part of the larger story.
That’s something that has stuck with me.
“We just tried to see what was happening,” then-18-year-old Megan Riley said as she and her two friends drove up about 1:40 a.m. Jan 28. They were still in pajamas.
She was part of a steady stream of cars that snaked by Foxcatcher’s entrance throughout the night. Most slowed down; many pointed toward the estate trying to catch a glimpse.
“It’s just curiousity,” then 20-year-old Rob Whiddon told me in the early morning of Jan. 28 – about 12 hours before duPont was arrested. Whiddon and his friend, Josh Peters, had been watching news developments in New Jersey when they decided to check it out.
“Basically, we had nothing to do,” Peters fessed up, adding that the two had been using his rifle telescope to see if they could find du Pont’s mansion. “I’m a hunter. We took it [the telescope] off my rifle. I didn’t think it would be smart to bring my rifle.”
There also was a criminal justice major from Albright College, a guy from Bryn Mawr who brought a video camera in hopes of making a funny documentary, and a woman who honked her horn asking, “Did he come out yet?”
All small details that worked together can explain other aspects of a story and hopefully give a better and more rounded account of a situation.
Mark Trzaskawka, left, Mike Hoy and Stephen McMullen drove more than an hour from Reading, Pennsylvania, to watch proceedings at the John E. du Pont estate on Jan. 28, 1996.
Drive home
Not sure why, but I had the radio on to a news station as I drove home the afternoon of Jan. 28 and heard du Pont had been arrested.
I can’t remember if I had a cellphone or I had to find a payphone, but I called the office to report this. They already knew, and reporters Talorico and Chris Donahue already were on it.
I remember being asked if I wanted to head to the courthouse in Media, Pennsylvania. I probably should have, but I was exahusted and just wanted to get home so I missed out on that.
Not sure what Today Esteban would have done in that situation, other than maybe write from home instead of stopping in the office to write the story – but that was life before the internet.
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Send tips or story ideas to Esteban Parra at (302) 324-2299 or eparra@delawareonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: What I learned covering developments for 2 nights before du Pont arrest