WILLIAM PHILLIPS
237
Robins took a set of instruments from a side pocket, walked over to
the large antique mahogany desk, probably from Paris, and went to
work opening the drawers.
"Here it is," said Hastings, who had been rummaging in the opened
drawers.
Robins and Hastings took the red leather appointment book to FBI
headquarters where they studied it. Some were obviously business ap–
pointments. And the names were first names, ostensibly to avoid identifi–
cation. There was one entry every day at four with a Doctor
1.
But
who was Doctor
L?
The next step was tedious but one the FBI was accustomed to. They
looked through the yellow pages of the telephone book for all the
physicians whose names began with "L" and had a woman's first name.
For those without a first name, they cross-checked with a list of doctors
they got from the AMA and a list of psychoanalysts they got from the
New York Psychoanalytic Association. They went through the list of
analysts, following the clue of the office manager at World Wide Books.
A
secretary spent two days on the phone before she found a Doctor
Lazarstein on Central Park West who said she had been seeing Gianelli
for several years.
Robins and Hastings made an appointment and went to sec Doctor
Lazarstein one morning at nine o'clock. She led them into a sparsely
furnished office. A well-worn, unobtrusive desk faced the window. Be–
hind it was an old wooden desk chair with a flowered pillow on the
seat. Next to it was an overstuffed easy chair, covered by a Mexican
throw, probably, they thought, to hide some torn spots. On the oppo–
site wall was a very plain cot covered by an Indian print. Behind the
head of the cot was another easy chair where Doctor Lazarstein sat when
her patients lay on the cot. Doctor Lazarstein pointed to the cot for
Robins and Hastings to sit on, and she sat in the easy chair facing them
"What can I do for you?" she asked.
"We want to ask you some questions about Alfred Gianelli. You
said he had been a patient of yours."
"It depends on what you want to know," she said. "You know that
the relation of patient to doctor is privileged, so what I can tell you is
limited."
"You know how he died?"
"Yes. I read it in
The Times."
"You have to answer our questions. This is a criminal investigation.
If you don't cooperate, you'll be subpoenaed."
"All right. Let's try. But even if I'm subpoenaed, I may have to
withold some information because of the inviolability of the doctor-pa–
tient relationship."
