Judgement Day - EPISODE 14 (The Bakersfield Three) | Forensic Files

spending time in a courthouse can be a surreal experience the raw human emotion from strangers playing out in front of
your eyes in a single trial you can see anger despair Joy Terror and relief each
with an intensity that's hard to put into words at the K County Courthouse judges
only allow such emotion from those on the witness stand when it comes to people in the audience Stern bayts May
threaten to remove even the victim's family members if they have an emotional Outburst of any kind so often times the
drama ends up spewing out in the long narrow hallway outside of the courtroom doors where everyone in the case
Witnesses jurors victims and suspects loved ones have to sit shoulder-to-shoulder on tightly packed
plastic chairs when court is in recess and it can get nasty particularly for Witnesses who often have no choice but
to be there after being subpoena so in an effort to offer those Witnesses some sense of soless there's a tiny room for
them on the top floor of the courthouse away from the chaos inside are a couple of small old couches a TV that has a few
channels all covered by a constant layer of static there are no windows and it has a thick metal door that takes both
hands to pull open with an automatic deadbolt lock when it's shut which to me screams if you're not not already scared
to testify maybe you should be there's miscellaneous children's toys scattered around the stained carpets giving the
room and even more depressing Aura this is where the mom's Micah's dad Lance and
I sat for what felt like forever waiting for a verdict I'm Olivia Lavo and this is the
Bakersfield 3 [Music] I'd been worried about Cheryl for 3 weeks she and Lance woke up at the crack
of dawn and drove an hour in a half to court where they sat for 8 hours often having to see a giant blown up image on
a projector of their son's skull and severed arm there was one day when Cheryl physically couldn't walk into the
courtroom on her own she was mentally and physically beaten down as we sat there waiting on the
first day of deliberations we talked about the concept of what was happening knowing that in another room in the same
building 12 strangers were working towards making a decision that would change so many lives everyone outside of
that room was powerless to what that decision would be or how long it would take jurors to make it this is how
Cheryl described it at the time very very raw very surreal I kind of feel a little
disassociated in a weird way so I'm kind of keeping an eye on my anxiety and we talked about what the trial had been
like it has been very difficult I did anticipate that so much so that I've have two therapists and a new
psychiatrist and a doctor on standby my medical doctor so we geared up Lance and I both
kind of geared up a bit for this by doing some grief counseling and and working through some
stuff I go home a lot of times and just put a book in my an audio book on or I'll we don't eat right we don't tend to
take care of ourselves in ways most people would people talk about self-care you know all that all that stuff goes
out the window so it may look like we're I mean we're dressed and we're here but
the rest of our lives from my perspective feel like feels like it's in turmoil it's illusion it's an illusion
you feel like it's an illusion that you guys seems so yeah together yeah because
internally we're not you know the the sun comes up the next morning whether you want it to or not whether you feel
bad or not whether you feel like getting up or not so you just get up and just do
what needs to be done there are definitely or neglect what needs to be done we do both Jane who had also been
there every single day often having to hear her missing daughter accused of a heinous crime utilized a tactic she'd
been taught during a week-long grief seminar during a particularly intensive therapy session Jane was asked to
visualize something in nature that would replace the horrible things she imagined
happen to her daughter Jane looked down and found a rock shaped as a heart since
then she's kept it in her pocket every day I have my bailey rock with me in court so the smooth side and the Rough
Side so when I would get really anxious I don't know if you guys saw me but I'd have my rock in my hand and I rub it and
it you know I do my distraction thing and sweet dye who also never missed a day being there for both Jane and Cheryl
for me in the recent weeks I feel like we've actually become even closer you said you said that you guys
felt like you got closer after the charges were announced now you feel You' got closer again again it's really
strange um we know how things are affecting the other person person Micah was James's
friend and I was so affected last week I was so upset haven't been able to eat or
sleep and I'm channeling Lance and Cheryl and and Jane it's just I didn't expect that to happen you know I didn't
think cuz we've always been close but I didn't think it would even be even closer and I know a lot of
people were expecting us to fall apart and to unravel at the seams Dy who tends to be the quietest in the trio then
shared another thought she'd had during the trial I've done a lot of reflecting like I believe you know I look at Matt
sitting up there and he's somebody's child you know there's another mom grieving of what their child did to
someone and was involved in and so I've been thinking a lot about that not making excuses for him but just
how much she has to be hurting too you know there's the other side of of the coin there's you know the victim's
families and then there's the families that are wishing that their loved ones wouldn't have done that you know because
they're in pain too when D said that I looked up at Jane and wondered if jurors or anyone who had heard the testimony
during trial had thought the same thing about her that she is a mother who was also hearing about their child being the
suspect in a brutal crime by the time the trial started it' been 2 years since Bailey was charged with Micah's murder
and when I first started trying to process that thought D was with me I think Sherl was at one of my counseling
things and it's just very hard you you know you're thinking about it and then when you hear it come out of the words
of law enforcement that this is true but I don't know if it's exact you know true
I'm hoping one day her murder charges will be dismissed because that's not who she was
at that time so did I answer the question or did I get sidetracked Jane's thoughts on
this topic can often come across scattered and I think a lot of that has to do with her working very hard to keep
it together especially if she's in public I tried not to F fill emotion because through all my counseling and
therapy in order to get information you can't seem like you're crazy it's been drilled into me you can't fall apart in
person or law enforcement isn't going to talk to you because they'll be afraid you'll break down and leak stuff and in
court during the hardest part of the trial for both Jane and Cheryl Jane stayed composed for another reason I'm
not going to get this [ __ ] Matt Queen the satisfaction of seeing me cry over a lie that he saying to try to
defend himself Queen's testimony about Micah's murder was a lot for them to sit through he actually starts
crying talking about cutting up my dead son I'm what the heck who does that in the court well I guess he does I don't
know and I just made me angry and I know it's part of the process but it just really even looking at all the other
evidence and all the other photos and all the other stuff him talking about that and calling Micah it it and when
needed to get it out of here I couldn't stand it I had to do something with it I
had to load it it's like okay a minute ago he had a name but now when you're talking about him he's an IT Bailey
could barely lift a 25 lb bag of dog food for you know her dog much less 40 lb dead weight lift it up and you know
drop it I think you would have to drop it from a pretty high height to crush somebody's
skull as the hours went by there were brief moments in that room when the conversation was somewhat light-hearted
which gave little glimpses into how much simpler life once was for the moms this
was especially apparent when at one point Cheryl and Lance's Love Story came up and how Carefree they were as
newlyweds all those years ago as Lance mentioned they were going on 40 years of marriage when is the big anniversary
less than a week May l a week the day before Micah's birthday which makes it always a little bitter
sweet anything I don't know really thought about I mean we had Haven have it cuz just been ' just been overwhelmed
yeah we've been very much in um hold very much in um status quo or just just getting through the day one
day at a time kind of thing and so thinking celebrate well we just going to sit at a restaurant and stare at each
other like we've been doing at home cuz that's what we've been doing staring at each other for 40 years years the point
right so I don't know I don't think I feel like celebrating at this point I think
someday we I will feel like celebrating again but right now celebratory things are really hard
for me most topics reverted back to the grief the moms were coping with by the second full day of waiting for a verdict
it was nearly impossible to discuss anything other than what we thought jurors might be discussing as the moms
put it what are they stuck on often times attorneys will say if the jury comes back quickly it's almost
definitely a guilty verdict if they're taking their time the thought is it's probably good for the defense but the
truth is how can anyone really know and at no point did any of the moms dare to say outright they were nervous which as
the hours went on I came to realize that's because the emotion was so much more than just the anticipation and the
uncertainty especially for Cheryl I recognized this as she talked about bouts of Despair she went through
during the trial there are definitely pits you know where at least I've fallen and
uh didn't know if I was waking up the next morning you know just didn't know if I wanted to be there in the morning
when the sun came up so so that happens but then there's also kind of this internal rage that
I've had and some of that has driven me too like you know like heck you're going
to get away with this right you just want to be there and watch this go down and so now no matter what the outcome
I'm fearful of the next steps cuz this theoretically will end this chapter for us so now how do we continue to be a
family that includes Micah that doesn't have him you know like what do we how how do we maneuver
that it was something I'd never considered what happens to a victim's family when everything's gone as far as
it can through the criminal justice system their ride through it whether getting
the outcome they wanted or not is over by the third day of waiting there was an air of anxiety in the room that
was starting to feel more and more like a cement Box by 300 p.m. we knew jurors only had 1 hour left before it was the
end of their day just as we were accepting we'd have to come back tomorrow Cheryl's phone buzzed the
verdict was in everyone jumped up and at first it felt something like excitement
but as we shuffled into the elevator to head down to the courtroom it shifted it wasn't a feeling of dread but
a suspense so intense you felt like you could just cry as we started to walk towards the courtroom Cheryl let out a
few sobs and began to tremble Jane D Lance and I took turns holding her hand we all wanted to say it'll be okay but
we knew we couldn't PA remain SE didn't come order department for anoun session first count
we the jury and panel to try the above entitled case find the defendant Matthew Richard Queen not guilty of felony to it
first degree murder of Micah Holden B we the jury and Pano to try the above entitled case find the following
circumstances and aggravation to be not true as to the crime charged in the first count of the information the crime
involved great violence great bodly harm threat of great bodly harm or other acts in disclosing a high
degree of Cruelty viciousness and callousness sign for person we the jury and pan to try the
above title case find the defendant Matthew Queen guilty and felony to it murder of M hon murder in the second
degree the verdict meant the jury did not find Beyond a reasonable doubt that Micah's murder was premeditated or that
it involved Micah being kidnapped and tortured but it also meant they didn't fully believe Queen's story either that
he was merely trying to wrestle a gun out of Micah's hand to protect himself when Bailey dropped a weight on Micah's
head the second deegree conviction felt almost like a middle ground between the two sides it took 45 minutes for the
jury to read their verdicts on the remaining charges Queen was facing in total he was acquitted of 10 and
convicted of 25 for the first First Time Queen wore a mask in court making it harder to see
what if any reaction he had when we walked out of the courtroom the mom seemed stunned a little
confused it felt like I was in the wrong court room at first and then I think that's when I realized okay I am
obviously not processing this it's like my brain is not processing this and so I'm going to rely on Dy I'm going to
rely on Lance or I'm going to wait and talk to Eric SMI you know that da and get the information
because obviously I'm not thinking clearly immediately after the verdict prosecutor Smith quickly reassured the
moms that Queen was still facing a lengthy sentence given all the other crimes he was convicted of and even
though jurors didn't believe the murder happened the way that Smith and investigators thought it did they still
got a murder conviction even if it was the Lesser offense as we walked out of the courthouse that day you could sense
the sheer exhaustion coming from the moms Jane said she needed time to process everything it's hard to explain
how I feel because I have been not letting myself feel things for so long I feel happy he'll never get out of
jail um that he was found guilty and um going to move on and still fight to F Bailey Cheryl said all she wanted was to
go home and sleep for a week maybe now we can just rest before Cheryl left a woman walked
up to her and introduced herself as sergeant Garrett's wife Cheryl immediately embraced her and again began
to cry as Cheryl says we've taken her husband away from her and her family for a long time and we're so
grateful about a month later the moms threw their third annual golf tournament raising money for secret witness so
cases could have rewards it was held at the nicest golf course in Country Club in town dozens of businesses were there
offering free services just glad to have a presence at what had become a popular
local event the moms raised $20,000 that day the next morning we were back at court for Matt Queen
sentencing before the judge would announce how long Queen would spend Behind Bars Cheryl was
given the chance to address the court here are some excerpts from her statement we deeply appreciate everyone
who has acknowledged Mah as a valuable man deserving of a thorough investigation and
protion despite decisions and behaviors in the end of his life my M was so much more than his last
few years was so much more M was murdered and dismembered and thrown out like trash throughout the
county he was stolen from us he is ours he has always been ours and now only God knows where most
of his body Li our family has been traumatized for more than 4 years fing our way back from very dark
places has been and continues to be unbelievably hard and even after all of these
individual blows we still came here here at all cuz he is ours and he is purely loved as I began there's no beauty in
all of this and what we have lost Cann be restored to us but we respectfully ask that the
maximum sense Allowed by law hand it down in this matter then Matthew Queen was given a
chance to speak here are some excerpts from his statement I thought a lot about what I
would say to my best parents even the chance but I know have put into words like
how guilt remorse sorrow disappointment shame overwhelming and just simply tell you
that I'm sorry I know and I know that you were told some pretty horrific stories about how Micha must have
died and now you have the truth and I'm start it took so long to get there all I can hope for is that you see
that I'm not the monster you would like to believe I was no matter how hard they tried or how
hard they wanted to be right they were wrong wrong about what happened my friends are wrong about
me I do have a heart and but what it's worth my heart goes out to you I love my children more than I love my
own life and I know that you love yours no less than I love mine which is why I'm trying
to express how S I am no matter what's been said about me no one can deny that I love my kids
and if you can if you can see me in that life for just a moment and maybe for that moment
you'll believe me when I tell you I'm story about everything I'm stor Queen was given a sentence of 86
years after the sentencing I sat down with Sergeant Garrett and brought up something I'd wanted to discuss for a
while Ba's loved ones and even myself you especially initially thought could she really have been involved in
murdering Micah or was she just there and terrified and maybe that's why she went missing but you think you think it
was more than that you think it was more than her you know being the girlfriend who was yes there's even testimony in in
both the prelim and the trial where uh she made comments to people that she was going to kill him if she got the chance
to do so she expressed her hatred towards him and she was Queen's girl just like one of the other subjects in
the case referenced uh he referred to them as Bonnie and Clyde and that's a pretty good analogy because they were
both involved in things together Jane minimizes her daughter's possible involvement and and I constantly had
that conversation with her and and I just keep remind her just because she was alleged to be involved
in something doesn't mean that's who she is as a person I knew her ants sir but after the trial I asked Jane
anyways do you think that Bailey killed Micah no I don't until I see evidence Beyond a
reasonable doubt if she was made to do something like that why would she want to do that to Micah when she would tell
me he would help her so I don't know what her motive was I've asked what would be Mo to be for killing
Rea or helping in his murder there's Queen's account and then there's investigators theory that the
murder stemmed from a stolen gun but myself and others have questioned if that's really why remember Bailey's
friend Molly who said Queen threatened her at gunpoint twice she testified at the trial about the missing gun debacle
she said it all started at a small New Year's Eve party at Queen's house to ring in
2018 it was an intimate Gathering just her and her ex-boyfriend Alex Bailey queen and mic she says everyone was
drinking and having a good time until Queen realized one of his guns was gone here's her
testimony he got very angry and came to me and accused my baby's father and then
went and accused Micah how was he acting horrible just a note here Molly often refers to
her ex as her baby's father anyhow she testified that she was adamant then and now that her ex did not take the gun
leaving Micah as the suspected Thief prosecutor Eric Smith then presented text messages between Molly and Bailey
from one week after Micah's murder the texts implied that Molly felt she was getting blamed for the missing gun and
she wasn't happy about it going to direct your attention to uh this is from March 30th
2018 you send a text that says he got my ass in a lot of [ __ ] almost killed yes
okay who's the he Micah and you continue but he stole from the wrong person and ever since nobody
can get a hold of him yes to your best your recollection who are we talking about Micah
I'd seen this text exchanged before in police reports that built the case against Queen the messages appeared to
support the theory that everyone thought Micah stole the gun and that Bailey and
queen were still upset about it several months later but then Queen's attorney Tim Hennessy got up to question Molly
about those same messages do you remember the the text we saw up there earlier yes and you're saying that you
believe who you're discussing there is Micah yeah yes okay now if I were to say that text thread begin with the question
have you seen Alex lately does that change your memory at all about who you're talking to in those
texts I don't remember exactly but I would assume it would be Micah again Alex is Molly's ex Hennessy then handed
Molly the full printed out text conversation does that help you remember that text conversation better yes okay
and who you're talking to there about who stole from the wrong person things you're talking about Alex
correct yes and there it was those text messages actually weren't about Micah after all
it wasn't a dramatic moment in court though it was dropped after that I wondered at one point if I was the only
person who thought it was significant and then later on I went through the police reports that discussed the same
text messages and now knowing they were about Alex they took on a new meaning as within this same conversation Molly
literally says to Bailey yeah he stole it but it wasn't done without the permission of you both letting him into
Matthew's house I know this may be starting to get a little convoluted and as my old boss
Michael trye would say a little too inside baseball but hear me out if the theory is Queen and Bailey murdered
Micah because they thought he stole Queen's gun on New Year's then why are they still seemingly grilling Molly
about her ex-boyfriend taking the gun 7 days after the murder and if that really
is why Micah was killed how absolutely shocking and devastating that one week later Molly admitted that it was in fact
her ex-boyfriend who stole the gun to be clear the prosecution doesn't have to prove a motive for a murder to get a
conviction they just have to prove it happened but obviously everyone wants to know why and outside of what was said in
court the speculation was endless I was UN sure whether to even mention this but in the event someone
listening is wondering if Bailey's sexual assault could have played a role there is an abundance of evidence that
says no Bailey was severely affected by her attack and many people say she didn't
want anyone but especially any man to think they could hurt her again as sergeant it puts it she's trying to get
her power back of the people that took power from her we know Bailey distrusted a lot of men but by all accounts Micah
wouldn't have been one of them even people who said Micah was erratic at times towards the end of his life all
agreed he was fiercely against women being taken advantage of or harmed it seem if anyone in that friend group
would be an ally to Bailey it would have been him some have questioned maybe Mike
and Bailey were having an affair and queen found out about it but there's been nothing to prove that at all I've
heard a couple people say maybe Micah helped Bailey terminate her pregnancy with Queen's baby and queen found out
but there's no evidence to prove that either though I have definitely thought about the timing of Bailey's pregnancy
loss of everyone I've spoken with no one could say for certain if Bailey miscarried or if she took the abortion
pill they tell me they either weren't sure or couldn't remember regardless it appears Bailey's pregnancy came to an
end within a day or two after Micah's murder here's a clip from an interview between Sergeant Garrett and Matt Vanda
Castile the context is that Vanda Castile was saying after Mike's murder things between Bailey and Matt Queen
were bad did you know I know him and Bailey have were fighting she had a miscarriage he beat the [ __ ] out of her
when that happened he [ __ ] his [ __ ] her mom's whole bathroom up at her house
mhm why because he thinks that she intentionally killed the baby in a previous episode you heard
Jane discuss going out of town for a couple days and returning to find her shower door replaced and other changes
made to her bathroom Bailey told her then that she had had a miscarriage in the shower and she was the one who'd
caused the damage it's possible that in either scenario miscarriage or abortion the timing isn't significant purely
coincidental but it's also a possibility that if she miscarried the extreme stress and Trauma for Micah's murder
could have contributed to that occurring on the other hand if she chose to terminate her pregnancy it's possible
that Micah's murder impacted that decision I think I've spent so much time thinking about this because it goes to
the question of what was going on in Bailey's mind around this time a week after Micah's murder and her pregnancy
loss Bailey posted photos on Facebook of a box of chocolates roses and a stuffed
animal as well as a shirtless mirror photo of Queen the post caption read I'm a lucky
lady it's a pretty standard thing for a 20-year-old girl to do subtly brag on social media about how great their
boyfriend is though it's hard to imagine that Bailey's mindset then was similar to that of other girls her age trying to
curate an image that says to the world look how happy I am look how good my life is it's hard to imagine it could be
that simple you know we have a lot of questions here's Cheryl the Wii she's referring to is her and Lance her
husband and Micah's father we would like to talk to her we would love to know what happened but she's not here and we
believe she has already paid more than the price of her participation in Micah's murder
we believe that that uh that her life was taken because she knew too much participated whatever there are several
theories about Bailey's disappearance but by far the most prominent is that Matthew Queen killed her and he did it
because as Lance said from day one of the case Micah's dead and she knew too much but even before anyone ever thought
about Queen being involved in Micah's disappearance and murder Queen already looked suspicious to many in Bailey's
case which is not surprising I even said to him once you're her boyfriend and the
last one to see her of course you're going to be a suspect it's nothing personal but aside from just that other
things piled up early on for one Queen told detectives that shortly after Bailey left his house he met up with her
to give her some of her clothes and then watched her get into a car with a man and never saw her again
according to police reports using cell phone data investigators cannot corroborate his story but Sergeant
Garrett did however notice that the last outgoing phone call made from Bailey's phone on the day she disappeared
connected to a cell tower by Matt Queen's brother's home the same brother Queen said this about on a recorded call
to his wife you're told they're still here and he has to take those to the job right away yeah go get them right now
cuz you know they listen to everything right now when questioned Queen's brother
admitted that tools were code for guns and that he hid Queen's guns before the cops could get to them which led
investigators to wonder what other evidence might his brother have helped Queen get rid
of the suspicion surrounding Bailey's phone activity didn't end there I had been messaging her on Snapchat trying to
get her attention see if I could get her to respond because on Snapchat I could see if she opened my message and it
would tell me when and it would give me a date you know so this is Bailey's friend Maddie describing an incident
that took place a few weeks after Bailey's disappearance and randomly one day she opened my message and she
started to type back and I was like oh my gosh and I'm waiting and nothing you know nothing I'm like okay what the heck
so I start typing back and I'm like who is this you know who has Bailey's phone what are you doing like answer me and so
I start calling it and calling it and nothing and then I get a message back and it's from Queen and he tells me oh
this is Bailey's boyfriend I have her phone I'm like crazy cuz you didn't have her phone which disappeared a few weeks
ago so how do you have it now you know I went off on it my did I was pissed there's no indication Bailey's
physical phone has ever been found but when Queen was arrested on a firearm charge a month after biley went missing
the phone he had on him that day had a SIM card that was attached to Bailey's phone number so when in theory it would
seem Queen could make calls or send messages from bayley's last no number I don't know what if anything Queen has
told investigators about the SIM card but the limited reports I have show he did admit to monitoring bayley's social
media accounts after she went missing he said he did it in hopes it would help him figure out where she was his
admission in my opinion complicates her case and the ability to determine if social media activity from her accounts
was her doing or Queens back in the summer of 2018 when I just begun looking into the case someone reached out to me
about a strange message they received on Snapchat from Bailey's account and sent
me a screenshot it was bizarre started out with a lot of profanity and accused this person of having involvement with
people who quote make a business out of abducting women then it went on to reference a
Bible verse it was aggressive and seemed nonsensical and it ended with quote this
is not a game you wish to play and then there's that Facebook message that her friend Jessica got a couple days after
Bailey was last seen prosecutor Eric Smith read it aloud during Queen's trial I [ __ ] up I need to disappear uh for a
little while Smith seemed to use the message as evidence pointing to Bailey being involved with mik's murder but
Jessica saw saw it differently so I thought that was so weird cuz I'm like normally she doesn't even write like
that like I don't even know if that's her that wrote it Queen adamantly denies sending any messages pretending to be
Bailey after she went missing but since he admitted to accessing her Facebook how can law enforcement know for sure
who sent it Jessica also shared what I thought was interesting information about how
Queen would drop by her house unannounced after Bailey's disappearance and talk to her about new numerous
different groups of people he thought could be involved he mentioned the Hell's Angels
a lot Queen also told people when Bailey left she said she was going to stay with
her quote cartel connected family this reminded me of Micah's trial when prosecutor Eric Smith grilled Queen for
starting rumors that the Hell's Angels and the cartel could be involved in Micah's
disappearance another thing that stands out is the timing of Queen's preliminary
hearing from the gun charges he was facing and Bailey going missing the next day I asked Sergeant Garrett what he
thinks about that I mean it's definitely part of the case can't go much further into that because it's still an active
case but definitely something to that uh to take note of you might remember a couple weeks before Micah went missing
biley gave a recorded interview to Dave Brown a private investigator working for
Queen's defense team at the time in that interview biley said the guns found in Queen's car were hers and that she put
them there without his knowledge she told Brown she had started carrying around guns after she was sexually
assaulted by multiple men I've often wondered if at that hearing Bailey was supposed to testify
on Queen's behalf or if her statement was to be presented to the judge in hopes the case against Queen would be
thrown out the attorneys involved won't discuss it with me but in transcripts from the hearing there isn't a mention
of Bailey taking responsibility for the guns in fact Bailey is barely mentioned at all and when Queen eventually went to
trial for the gun case once again Bailey's deposition was not mentioned so it's unclear to me how important
Bailey's statement really was and what if anything the timing of her disappearance and the hearing have to do
with each other here's the private investigator who used to be part of Queen's defense team Dave Brown if
Matthew Queen killed her which I believe he did okay it wouldn't make any sense for
him to kill her because of our statement Brown makes a good point logically you'd think if you were
fighting charges for something that someone else said they'd take the blame for you'd think you'd want that person
around but as Brown says we now know Queen and Bailey had much more to worry about than just those gun
charges I think at some point and especially after their crimes possibly together she was probably trying to get
away from him because he was just going over the top and you know I just think that again with her knowing everything
she knew that he just believed that you know I've got to get rid of this loose end and I think that's what happened
that's my personal opinion here's Bailey's sister Caitlyn there is absolutely no way she could have
witnessed all of that and queen thinking that she would be able to keep her mouth shut and not talk
about it a couple guys tied to the circle of friends said the same thing essentially Bailey wouldn't be the
person you would want to commit a crime with here's one of them the few times I'd hung around with her you couldn't
get her to stop talking I mean she might have been involved but I think she would have told
and I don't think she would have kept quiet about it like I don't think her psych would have allowed her to do that
and I think that's part of why she's not around during an interview between Sergeant Garrett and Matt Vanda Castile
Sergeant Garrett expanded on this possible loose End Theory it came up in discussion when Sergeant Garrett brought
up Sarah fanda castile's ex and Bailey's friend who started dating Queen after Bailey went missing Sarah has always
maintained she doesn't know what happened to Micah or Bailey eventually she did tell prosecutors she remembered
a night around the time Micah went missing where Queen and Bailey came over and Bailey was acting a little strange
and asked if she could borrow clothes but that's it anyhow Sergeant Garrett suggests to Vanda Castile maybe Sarah
could know more and is protecting Queen who at this point she had just had a baby with that's a whole other
interesting caveat to the dynamic of them because Micah goes missing right Matt thought Bailey was you know
possibly snitching possibly cheating who knows what but ultimately she's kind of
a loose link right that could get him caught up for whatever happened to Micah all a sudden she goes missing
right you're locked up so the only missing link for the people at your house that night that know what's going
on in Sarah it's the whole keep your friends close enemies closer Dynamic almost right to me it kind of out
outside looking in seems kind of weird being inside looks it looks [ __ ] weird their conversation seems to
suggest that Queen may have quickly coupled up with Sarah because she potentially knew things Queen didn't
want her to share but at the end of the day it's all just theories including the discussion
that Queen may be involved with Bailey's Disappearance in order to silence her it
appears no no one has ever told law enforcement that they have direct knowledge that Queen did anything to
Bailey including Matt vand Castile despite how convincing he may have sounded when he said this on the phone
to Sarah I'm going tell you straight up Bailey's in the same [ __ ] place that my kid Vander Castile did have
information that was key in solving Micah's case but when it came to Bailey like so many others he told Sergeant
Garrett all he had was just a hunch I don't think she would just up and leave I really don't Vandy Castile elaborated
on what others said about Bailey being someone you wouldn't want is your partner in
crime everyone has thought Bailey was been a snitch honestly I think Bailey was think she was a snitch I think
Bailey realized that she got herself at some point too deep into something M and
tried to get out of it but got pulled deeper in Vandy castile's response didn't quite answer
why he or anyone would think biley was snitch but I find what he said very telling
[Music] nonetheless I don't take reporting such serious allegations against someone
lightly especially when the person hasn't been charged with the crime they're being accused of Queen has never
been charged in connection with Bailey's disappearance and he deserves the opportunity to respond to what's been
said about him since the day I first came across bayy and Micah's cases I've tried hard to speak with him both when
he was a free man and since he's been in custody whether it was showing up at his
front door or trying to communicate with him through his attorney for 5 years nothing worked and I couldn't wait
forever this story would have to be released without him and just when that was about to
happen my phone rang this is global CH L you have a prepaid call from Matthew Queen that's next time on the final
episode of the Bakersfield 3 [Music]

EPISODE 14/15

Judgement Day A verdict is handed down.

When two friends go missing back-to-back, and in between their disappearances, a third friend is murdered, their mothers begin their own investigation. As the connections between the three cases are explored, the mothers navigate devastating twists and turns, including one revelation that shakes the community to its core.

-----

The Bakersfield Three Podcast https://casefilepresents.com/the-bakersfield-three/

----- CREDITS

Writing & Narration – Olivia Lavoice Audio Editing - Anthony Telfer Production and Music – Mike Migas Animation - Mat Rydzik, Paulina Szymanska

Special thanks to the mothers and family of the Bakersfield 3 & KGET News Station

-----

Brief Summary

The episode reveals the emotional turmoil of families during a murder trial and the impact of the verdict on their lives.

Key points

The Emotional Toll of Court. Witnesses and families experience intense emotions in the courthouse, often leading to outbursts.
Cheryl's Struggle. Cheryl describes her overwhelming anxiety and the toll the trial has taken on her mental health.
The Verdict. The jury's decision leaves the families in shock, grappling with mixed emotions.
Cheryl's Statement. Cheryl addresses the court, expressing her grief and the trauma her family has endured.
Queen's Apology. Matthew Queen expresses remorse in his statement to the court, attempting to convey his humanity.
Molly's Testimony. Molly testifies about the night Micah was murdered, revealing tensions and accusations.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

You feel like it's an illusion that you guys seem so together.

4:27WatchMay 20, 2024

Tension

75/ 100High tension

More from Casefile

Solve the Crime

Read a real case one clue at a time, then see how your call held up against the investigators.