On July 1, 1951, 67-year-old widow, Mary Reeser, and her son, Dr. Richard Reeser Jr., were spending the evening together in Mary’s small St. Pete apartment – located at 1200 Cherry St. NE. Between cigarettes, Mary complained about the Florida heat. She was looking forward to escaping the hot weather but told Richard she was anxious about the trip – in particular, she was worried it might fall through.

Richard talked her through her worries, ate dinner solo because Mary was too anxious to eat, and around 9 pm, Richard said he was heading out. Mary had taken 2 Seconal tablets that evening and said she might take 2 more before bed. Richard kissed his mother goodbye and left.

With Richard gone, Mary wound down for the night with her usual routine – she got into a nightgown, put on her black satin slippers, and opened the windows to have a cigarette in her comfy, overstuffed easy chair, which sat in her bedroom area, against the wall of the kitchenette. If only Richard had known, he was kissing his mother goodbye for the last time.