Justine's Voice | Full Episode | Forensic Files

[Music] Auburn California above the fog and below the snow the perfect place rural steep
Cliffs wooded areas dirt roads there are a lot of places to bury a body [Music] what were you doing that brought you
here in 2003 I was conditioning a horse to do endurance those Labor Day weekend Saturday that I came up on a my just my
normal training ride right about here yeah I saw a freshly dug hole in the brush the rest of my ride I kept trying
to justify why it was there it sort of haunted you it sounds like did it [Music]
did we had just come home from our summer house up in the Sierra I barbecued at dinner were Don and L at
Vander shoot their daughter Justine and her boyfriend Danny no one had any idea what nightmare was about to unfold after
that meal I gave her a kiss on forehead said good night I love you I spoke to her on the phone I told her that I loved
her I was leaving for work at 5 5:30 in the morning Lynette walks into Justine's
room Justine is not there the dog is on the bed the front door is open and her car is
gone 17 years old disappears leaves everything behind without trace it felt Sinister we're going to find her we
searched and searched everywhere there were searches set the banders shoots organized and then there were searches
that we did on our own with our search and rescue teams I try to imagine what it was like
and what it's going to be like when she comes back Danny and his roommate Brandon were on the sheriff's radar
quickly friends started to come forward about how jealous Danny was of Justine they were interviewed that first day
they said oh no we were home all night there's a belief right away that they are concealing something about Justine's
disappearance okay have a seat have you ever seen anyone die Brandon tone changes story changes he
confesses Brandon claims that Danny killed Justine she's laying down and he's over her and his hands were not
released but she he explained that Danny was choking her and that he helped bury
her let's go at the end of the interview Brandon led the in investigators to the
location of Justine's body Justine vander's body discovered buried in a shallow grave the Auburn Journal had a
photo of just the brush where Justine had been buried and I went oh my gosh I saw freshly dug hole 3 days prior to her
disappearance I immediately you know contacted the sheriff's department that was a big piece of evidence that's
absolutely coldblooded premeditated the vandero family says they are relieved the decision was made
to accept please to murder from both defendants and give them a life sentence hopefully we can all move on from here
no one would have ever imagined that 20 years later we would still be fighting for justice for Justine and her family
in 2020 Brandon Fernandez filed a petition to get out of his murder conviction if Brandon's petition is
granted one of Justine's Killers will walk free we're fighting for her that's why we're here she doesn't have a voice
so we're her voice [Music] [Music] [Music] it's 21 years since we've lost Justine
but it's still very fresh in our mind it was September 18th 2003 when Justine vander's remains were discovered in a
remote location more than 2 weeks after she disappeared but it's here in this Garden
outside her bedroom window that her parents da and Lynette still come to find her this is actually Justine's little
little footprint footprint there MOS of their youngest child and condolence flowers that poured in after her death
are now permanently rooted here we call this Justine's Garden at the center a towering dogwood tree a reminder of her
favorite trips to the Sierra mountains and a sobering measure of how long she's been gone when we celebrated the 17th
anniversary Christine said she's been gone as long as she was here on Earth Justine's older sister Christine sums up
what those years have been like for her in one word lonely she was my best friend we were only 18
months apart we did pretty much everything together since day one how would you describe Justine what was her
personality vibrant charismatic just life of the party she made you laugh every time
she'd say something she was a spark in our household that's for sure little firecracker cheerleader baseball soccer
she was always on the go at 17 Justine was on the verge of graduating high school and wanted to pursue a career in
fashion and Beauty did she know what she wanted to do in life After High School she would sew and design her own shirts
and shoes she had to stand out and that was what she wanted to do for other people was make them stand out and feel
beautiful instead her family is now forced to Grapple with her murder and it's aftermath I don't ever want to
forget about her but I don't want to be reminded of what happened but it's not so easy to just pack it up and put it
away right no it's not in fact the vandero say it remains an open wound thanks to ongoing efforts by Justine's
convicted murderers Danny bezer and Brandon Fernandez to get out of prison retired pler County Sheriff Ed boner
including parole hearings I think the vandero have been back to court seven times in the last seven years always
facing the possibility it's hard to imagine that both men were once welcome in the family's home first came Brandon
I believe it was probably 7eventh or eighth grade that I started to become friends with him a few years later he
introduced the Vander shoots to his friend Dany it was actually at a birthday party for me we had a pool
party and Danny was actually coming to the house to meet me but it was Danny and Justine who clicked and while she
was only 15 and he was about 17 they quickly became serious yes from that party on they were always always
together they even talked about perhaps getting married is that right yeah they were very serious he became kind of like
a fixture in her family his dad wasn't really in the picture and he didn't really have a mom so to come into our
household and see how a real family was I think that was something that he was attracted to as well the Vander shoots
offer Dany the support and stability of a happy family life I considered him like a brother almost Dawn even got Dany
his first real job working with him at an auto dealership and his own key to the house but looking back the Vander
shoots now see red flags they didn't recognize then controlling telling her who she could see and who she couldn't
monitoring her texts and her cell phone calls her frustrations were really starting he was so jealous and very
possessive over her she couldn't go out and hang out with friends without him freaking out and getting upset and
pouting Lindsay Morris was Brandon's girlfriend and says Justine confided in her about problems with Dany she even
said I don't know if I break up with him if he'll ever really let me go towards the end she was trying to pursue certain
things and he was trying to hold her back from he didn't want anything to change and she was sort of growing up
and maybe growing apart from him at that point yes I think so retired plaster County detective
Angela Ford says Danny's fears of Justine leaving him reached a fever pitch in April of 2003 when Justine met
someone during a spring break trip to Florida Justine had developed a friendship with a Navy sailor there at
Pensacola did she tell you about the man she met in Florida she did she liked him
I think it kind of opened her eyes when Justine came back she was definitely about this guy and telling all of her
friends about how amazing he was and how attractive he was and how she wished she
could spend more time with him Danny had gotten wind of this he thought he was losing
her and they say Dany became consumed with the idea that Justine was cheating on him Danny had asked me would I be
willing to wear a wire so I can get her to confess this he wanted the proof I told him absolutely not and there was
another troubling Dynamic among Justine Danny and Brandon once Justine came into
the relationship their friendship wasn't the same as it was before Justine beli Brandon Was a Serial cheater and a bad
influence so she gave Dany an ultimatum him or her Danny and Brandon lost touch for about a year but by late 2002 they
reconnected and decided to become roommates it was a triangle that was sort of toxic at that point exactly
um and it kind of really fueled when Danny and Bron moved in together Justine continued to be a thorn in Brandon's
side Brandon hated Justine with a passion would constantly say that she was a and that she would
manipulated Danny in 2003 a few days before Labor Day Justine attended a party at Danny and Brandon's apartment
we sat on the front porch just talking and we both agreed that we were going to get rid of these guys and that we wanted
a fresh start and that we could do better Justine was getting ready to go to the next stage Danny was not going to
allow it [Music] in the early morning hours of Tuesday September 2nd 203 Lynette vanders found
her daughter's bedroom empty and her truck gone from their driveway this was so unch characteristic of their daughter
so different from any behaviors in the past she has no money no ATM no credit card no no identification on her at
all Justine's family frantically turned to the community for help sweater the Vander shoots
passionate and they got organized this is my sister she's been missing since Tuesday we went through all of Auburn
hanging the missing poster Flyers tying the pink ribbons around cuz pink was her favorite
color Justine we love you we're all out looking for you please call us and let us know you're okay pretty soon everyone
was looking for Justine was Dany assisting in any of these search efforts in the beginning Danny
showed up a number of times and he would wear the t-shirts he seemed really concerned she's been gone for 3 days now
and concern is growing the first break in the case came when Justine's truck was located at a parking ride about 5
miles from the vandero home it was parked right here in this parking space and once we had that then our belief was
that you know she was not far Matt scrier was out riding his horse when he saw Searchers gathered at the
parking ride like many in the area he had seen reports of Justine's disappearance I thought well they might
be searching this area because at the time there was a direct access from the park and ride to this area a week
earlier he had seen a freshly dug hole along the trail but as he rode through again this time did you know no anything
different the hole was not there anymore there was debris over the top of it but the significance of
that would not become clear until later I wasn't thinking like that nobody thinks like
that as the search continued pler County district attorney Morgan guy says investigators considered the possibility
that Justine had left the state the park and ride is located on a very busy interstate interstate 80 that runs the
the length of our country we have a car that is locked and looks as if it was left intentionally did she meet someone
there and jump on the freeway Danny had told detectives early on about the Navy man Justine had met in Florida Danny was
actually one of the first people to say well maybe she's off in Florida because there's some guy she likes in Florida
you have to assume everything's possible our detectives made contact with the naval intelligence service they tracked
him down right away boom they did an extensive interview with him and it was determined that he didn't
have anything to do with her disappearance Danny however kept throwing that out there Danny told the
media about a strange call he had received there's been an inquiry to my credit in Florida someone tried to get a
credit card there and I'm really hoping it's Justine they call tonight's vigil the vigil of hope her loved ones clung
to the hope that she was still alive and thought she was possibly being held against her will it's you guys that keep
us going all the support we're all going to bring her home we're going to find her she's going to get away she's a
she's a fighter meanwhile Danny appeared to be the distraught boyfriend on the local news 2 and a half years of my life
been devoted to that girl and now that part of my life is gone holding a photo of Justine and an engagement ring
appraisal he made his own plea she means more to me and her family than she does
to you and whoever it is needs to just let her go and let her come home but suspicion
was growing around Dany and friends were coming forward about his toxic relationship with
Justine Danny's possessive he's jealous he's angry he believes Justine is cheating on him he's
angrier and all those things begin to roll detectives also began looking deeper into his relationship with
Brandon as we interviewed more and more people find these guys were together generally what they did they did
together by most accounts Danny sort of looked up to Brandon Brandon was known to be smart somewhat cunning he sort of
had an edge to him they had some things in common like juvenile brushes with the
law Danny bmer had a history of thefts burglaries possession of stolen property Brandon Fernandez had been prosecuted
for essentially computer hacking for somebody who was a total geek he was very very confident in himself Dany was
more of a follower and detectives learned they shared a disturbing fixation with murder they talked about
killing people they talked about disposing the bodies beating polygraphs well before The Disappearance
of Justine vandero he had told me there's a couple spots where if I ever wanted to kill you nobody would ever
find you this was something he had just said as a joke Brandon had created a website ranking levels of violence he
had pictures of people dead dying things that give you chills up the back of your
neck one of the levels discussed thinking about committing some form of violence but not doing it another level
talked about committing the violence contemplated on an animal I mean that's not normal behavior for a young man it
is not normal behavior and it is certainly consistent with those who find Value and thrill in killing other human
beings investigators questioned Danny and Brandon throughout the investigation both of them said they had
spent the evening alone together in their apartment the fact that each boy was the other's Alibi is a red flag and
that wasn't the only red flag as detectives retraced Justine's last steps they knew her cell phone shut off in the
area where her truck was found but then they found something very interesting they got the last two incoming phone
calls to her on the night she was murdered they were both from Branda [Music] Fernandez as the search for Justine
vandero entered its third week day 15 that Justine Banner shoot has been missing there was no sign of the missing
teen alive or dead we had no body we didn't have a lot Sheriff's detectives decided to up the ante they Enlisted the
help of the FBI to interview Dany and Brandon again we needed separate them number one but have one roll on the
other on September 17th 2013 detectives questioned Danny bezer at Sheriff's headquarters tell me why you didn't do
it CU I was sleeping the same afternoon detective Angela Ford and FBI agent Jeff
reyck and his partner drove Brandon Fernandez from his job to the FBI building in Sacramento did he seem
nervous I mean when the FBI shows up at your job and wants to talk to you he he didn't seem nervous he seemed like he
had nothing to hide Brandon told the agents he had jet skied all day with co-workers and after going home he went
out to run an errand because he wasn't feeling well I went down to uh get a VA juice I had the flu at this point he
said he got pulled over for running a stop sign and accidentally called Justine twice Justine's cell phone is
right next to my girlfriend's number he said he returned home and went to bed Brandon said Dany had also been home
after having dinner with the Vander shoots but the agents were about to catch Brandon in a big lie Danny and
Brandon first said no we were by ourselves well now it turns out that they weren't Sheriff's detectives had
received a tip from Brandon's cousin Clayton Cole he told them that he and a friend had stayed at Brandon and Danny's
place the night Justine went missing and saw them leave they knew that Danny and
Brandon didn't come back until much later we're going to play something to you what is this what Brandon didn't
know is that the investigators had a recorded phone call after receiving that tip detectives had asked Clayton to call
Brandon and recorded the conversation to my dad about soul and I had to go to the cops today on the call
Brandon repeatedly told Clayton to lie to police and to say that Clayton and his friend weren't there that
night seriously like you anything and at that point he knew we had a lot more information
with Brandon now rattled agent ryck asked a key question have you ever seen anyone
DME Brandon yes he went white Brandon broke and admitted he knew where Justine was but
first he said he needed protection from Danny can you take me somewhere safe can
you bring my girlfriend somewhere safe he wants to tell you a little bit more but he's pointing it towards Dan it's
all towards the end I had nothing to do with it he's scary intelligent he has built everything in lies he is a great
actor he's a monster it's all right how long was it planned to hurt Justine long like he had
planned it forever almost Brandon told them he knew Dany had tapped Justine's phone to catch her cheating and confront
her I didn't know what was going to happen that but Brandon insisted he had no idea Danny would seek revenge that
night he says as far as he knew they were just going to meet up with Justine to steal marijuana plants from a farm he
now said those calls to Justine's phone were him trying to get hold of Danny to back out and Dany said no man you need
to come up here Brandon said he met up with Danny and Justine at the parking ride around midnight and they got in his
car with Danny giving directions when he parked he said Danny wanted to talk to Justine alone so he walked away for a
bit I went down this hill and I was looking around and I figured oh he's still up there for a while after a few
minutes he says he heard the car horn followed by a scream he hurried back to find Dany had strangled Justine his
hands still around her neck and a taser next to her lifeless body he looked at me and he just was Psycho his eyes were
just bulging out and he was laughing he was saying I win I win Brandon said those words were in reference to a song
called the game the Danny had playing on a loop in Brandon's car a soundtrack to her murder
the lyrics detail a girlfriend's infidelity and her ultimate Murder by her boyfriend and interspersed with that
song are vignettes of Justine own words as she's talking either to another boy or about another boy and some of the
lyrics Just excruciating you always wanted people to remember you don't you know your wish is coming true today
another victim dies tonight the fear that she must have faced I can only imagine if you saw it in a movie you
probably wouldn't believe it even though Brandon had initially said Justine was dead when he made it back up the hill
his story began to evolve what he was doing was slowly putting himself at the scene of the death did
you hear her exhale yes it was like it was like a a really screwed up breath like kept happening according to
Brandon she was still alive at that point and also according to Brandon she was already dead at that point his own
statements internally are inconsistent and demonstrate where he's trying to lie to get out of this Brandon said Dany
removed her clothing and put her in a grave they dug that night and poured a liquid over her to decompose the body he
says he prayed for it to end I said please just go you wanted her to die so it' be
over I thought she might have still been alive but he was going to do something more brutal than she was he's watching
her die and he's not helping her he's not helping her no but Brandon said he was scared Dany would kill him too
he made me beer and he made me promise and say that I was his brother that I would never say anything and he said he
would kill himself or others and then he had mentioned my girlfriend and Justine's family he said he was going to
take them out next after a 4 and 1 half hour interview Brandon agreed to take them to the scene it was about 9:30 at
night so dark walking through this I can only imagine when we first pulled up to
come here there was something shiny on the ground it was a piece of her jewelry it was two little cherries put
together a few yards away in a clearing among the trees her grave lay hidden under an old
[Music] mattress Danny yes I'm Sergeant McDon I want to show this to you it wasn't long
before detectives informed Danny who said very little during his 6-hour interrogation that they'd found the
grave site I just got back from there guess who took us there and guess who he's blaming
for the whole thing the next morning a team of investigators digging through the hard clay dirt une Earth Justine
Vander shoots remains there's a relief and then there's pain Danny and Brandon were both
arrested and charged with Justine's murder after 2 and 1 half weeks the search was finally over but Justice
would prove elusive I drove home and I see the chaplain and I see detectives my mom's
crying and my dad said your sister's not coming home I passed out literally and it's
still hard to relive that moment yeah on September 18th 2003 Justine's family shared their heartbreak with the
community I almost sensed Lynette just crumbling and I put my hand on her shoulder I just kind of propped her up
and we announced that uh this family's worst fears had come true Danny bezer and his
roommate Brandon fernandz were arrested Wednesday if the two gentlemen that are in custody now are responsible for this
uh they need to burn in hell detectives interviewed Danny bezer again and told him they needed
information about Brandon Fernandez's role in the murder just talk about Brandon don't talk about Dan believing
Brandon has a deal with the FBI Danny tried to haggle how can I get the same brand I don't have the authority to play
Let's Make a Deal okay ultimately he broke down and started talking I really want to tell you everything
do Danny admitted he had started to strangle Justine but then she said four words that just changed my
mind those words for Danny I love you but he said Brandon was the one who encouraged him to keep going he tells me
it's too late now it's already attempted murder Danny admitted he had poured drain cleaner over Justine's body but
said Brandon had poured it down her throat there was a black tar substance on top of her and then after the autopsy
there was a black tar substance inside of her lungs Justine's official cause of death
was listed as homicidal violence but further testing suggested she had also ingested
dirt there is no other way to be that far down and into the bronchial canals means she inhaled it she was
alive taking into consideration the family's wishes to avoid a painful prolonged trial prosecutors at the time
offered a plea deal as a condition of his plea agreement Dany spoke with detectives again and gave new details
about Brandon's role what was the story he started to tell Danny tells a story ultimately that involves Brandon as the
Mastermind Brandon is claiming he is merely a victim of circumstance and he panicked and participated in the cleanup
and the getaway so we know the truth lies somewhere in the middle it really does and Brandon does a pretty good job
of incriminating Dany and Danny does a pretty good job of incriminating Brandon in 2005 Danny bezer pleaded
guilty to first-degree murder in exchange for a sentence of 25 years to life Brandon Fernandez pleaded to second
degree murder and received 15 years to life a piece of Justice was served at least we can put some of this behind us
part of their plan was to receive a life sentence that allowed them to at least become eligible for perole and maybe
have a chance someday Justine's family made it their mission to ensure that would never happen Brandon Fernandez
came up for parole in 2017 and was denied every time they get denied I Justice for her the family breathed a
sigh of relief but their lives would soon be upended once again in 2018 California changed the law of murder in
2020 Brandon Fernandez filed a petition to get out of his murder conviction based on the new
law the new law reduced the fault of defendants who didn't actually do the killing like a getaway driver Brandon
wanted to have his life sentence for second deegree murder thrown out and to be be resentenced as an accessory after
the fact he still has not taken any responsibility he's guilty just as much as Danny Brandon's defense attorney Steve D
philippus maintains his client was only guilty of being taken in by Danny schemes clearly Brandon was in the wrong
he shouldn't have participated in the cover up of this and that's what he did and absolutely he should be convicted of
that but shouldn't be held responsible for a murder the judge presiding over the resentencing case in 2020 denied
Brandon's motion but that ruling was reversed by the court of appeals and sent back due to yet another shift in
the legal standard both sides would now have to fight it out in court in an evidentiary hearing we had to call all
of the witnesses and we had to prove Mr Fernandez's guilt the district attorney has to prove the case Beyond A
Reasonable Doubt and the judge has to make findings Beyond A Reasonable Doubt in May 2024 it would be up to
Deputy da Tim WS to prove that Brandon Fernandez helped plan and Carry Out Justine's murder once they started
kicking this idea around they they built off each other his key witness was Danny
besser who over several days testified how he and Brandon Fernandez were two pillars in the plot to lure Justine to
her death Danny talks about how he doesn't want let Brandon down when they're out
there digging the grave and Brandon says this better not be for nothing Danny described how he and Brandon assumed
different responsibilities Danny was going to kill her and Brandon was going to be involved
into the coverup side of things the forensics as he described it Brandon purchased the chemicals that were poured
over Justine according to Danny he and Brandon pre-dug the grave over several days the last time they go to the Grave
before they bring Justine there is that Mondays during the day to check it out in the light and possibly do some
digging and Danny says Brandon provided the tools used to dig including a pickax
he took from his parents house after they kill Justine and bury her they throw them over the fence at Brandon's
parents house and the police go and corroborate that the prosecution says it found other evidence at Brandon's
workplace that he never mentioned like pieces of the recording device used to tap Justine's phone and in his Shredder
a receipt for a brand new set of tires he was already covering his tracks the day after what we call in the in the
prosecution World consciousness of guilt Brandon's defense attorney insists Brandon was only trying to hide his role
in the cover up not the murder and he says that relying on Danny besser's testimony is a sign of the prosecution's
desperation they don't have a case I often wonder will I ever get a 100% of the truth I don't think we ever
will you think he's still a danger yes definitely Brandon's defense attorney Steve D philippus says Danny besser is
the real danger and points out it was Danny who broke bread with Justine's family knowing he was going to kill her
that night this said t Bundy in the making somebody who has no conscience somebody who has no empathy for other
people basically a psychopath and he argues Dany will say anything in court to improve his chances of being paroled
he wants everything to look like Brandon made him do this he's at that point told
either four or five different stories about what happened in his cross-examination D philippus picks
apart inconsistencies in Danny's statements about Brandon's involvement you can't corroborate any of his story
and that's deliberately done by him because he knows that it can't be refuted in fact he argues that the
evidence contradicts Danny's story for one thing he says if Brandon was really in charge of forensics he wouldn't leave
a trail of evidence the guy who is in charge of forensics is not going to do any of the things that Brandon did
Brandon takes the shovel and leaves it at his parents home why would you put something involved in the homicide at
your parents' home why would you drive your car up to the scene knowing that you're going to leave tire tracks on the
dirt he wouldn't do that and another discrepancy Danny's claim that he and Brandon pour drain cleaner on Justine
doesn't match the autopsy findings instead those results indicate she ingested methanol a toxic chemical
compound found in a variety of products but not drain cleaners but Tim warts counters that Danny has no reason to lie
about that I don't know what theory under which the parole board might look favorably upon Drano but unfavorably
upon methanol being poured on her the only explanation is that he's honestly mistaken and the only way he'd be
mistaken is if he wasn't the one that bought it and D philippus says Brandon has an alibi for that Monday afternoon
before the murder when Danny claims they went to the grave site we know that Brandon was up to the lake that day WS
points out that there was a 2-hour window when Brandon left to pick up tools to fix a broken jet ski it's just
not an alibi there's plenty of time for him to done what he said D philippus says the timing still doesn't match up
with Danny's story Danny also said that the digging was later in the day it was not in the morning time which is when
Brandon got the tools and went back but the prosecution argues that the defense can't get around Matt scribner's
testimony that he saw a freshly dug hole three 3 days prior to the murder which is consistent with Danny's account of
digging the grave over several days this wasn't a panicked dig that they did at the last minute where Brandon's
terrified for his life the way it actually pans out Brandon is given immense power Brandon knows where the
body is after more than two weeks of testimony the judge gets the case if Brandon's motion is granted he will walk
free it's a familiar fear for the Vander shoots the hand shaking and just trying
to get ready just brings the emotions up all over again you don't know what to expect on August 1st 2024 before a
courtroom packed with the Vander shoots and their supporters as well as Brandon Fernandez who appeared via video
conference and his parents the judge issued his ruling was there a palpable concern for the Vander shoots that one
of their daughter's murders could go free that fear that concern you could cut it with a knife cameras were allowed
in court but we were not allowed to record audio the judge denied Brandon Fernandez's motion and upheld his
conviction so I was very nervous I let out a big sigh as soon as he said it so it was just yay feels really good some
justice justice for Justin again he did not get out very relieved the judge said
it was difficult to parse the truth truth from lies told by both Danny and Brandon but he says ultimately it was
evident Brandon was in on the murder plot and easily LED investigators to Justine's body through rugged terrain in
the dark Brandon brought you here and pinpointed exactly I mean he knew exactly where it was he did he gave us
instructions and um even said you wouldn't find it on your own the rolling is a big win for the Vander shoots but
only temporary relief in 2 years we've got two more parole hearings coming up we're not going away we're never giving
up I'll be there with my cane I think this one right here is my favorite they're critical of evolving laws that
have allowed Brandon Fernandez to keep Rel litigating his role in Justine's murder I kind of like feel at times
we've been on pause we really haven't been able to move forward because we have to relive it in issuing his ruling
the judge acknowledged that the legal system can seem unfair to the victim's families and to survivors I
wholeheartedly agree often times it feels as if the only rights we are trying to respect are those of the
convicted and the guilty and not grieving family member that underlies the problems with this law because it
decreases people's faith in the system that there's finality it's something the vanders
shots are trying to change by advocating for victim's rights we're trying to do everything we can to prevent this
happening to somebody else's family they also partnered with the pler County DA to sponsor new state legislation
Justine's law as it's called passed in 2023 and provides teen Dating Violence prevention education in high schools
throughout California what do you want Justine's Legacy to be now to help educate other
boys and girls even if it saves one life it's worth everything Matt scrier says he can't
ride through these Trails without thinking of Justine in one aspect it's quiet they cleaned the area up it's
beautiful in some ways it's almost like Justine is shining here I believe that we think of her as hummingbirds
come to us a lot of times when we're back here working in their Garden I'll have a little hummingbird
she'll come right up to my face and I'll I'll talk to her and I think of her she's saying hi to
[Music] me you've probably heard of the NCIS from the hit TV series but we're about
to take you inside its real life work listen to 48 Hours NCIS early and AD free on the 48 hours Plus subscription
on Apple podcasts

After a teenager is strangled and buried alive, her family takes on the fight to keep her convicted killers behind bars. “We’re her voice” says Justine’s sister. "48 Hours" contributor Natalie Morales reports in this episode which aired on Feb. 15, 2025. Watch more full episodes of "48 Hours" on Pluto TV.

True crime. Real justice. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

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Brief Summary

Justine Vander shoot's murder case reveals toxic relationships and ongoing legal battles for justice.

Key points

Justine's Disappearance. Justine Vander disappears without a trace, leaving her family in turmoil.
Confession and Discovery. Brandon confesses to the murder and leads investigators to Justine's body.
Justine's Garden. Her family creates a memorial garden in her honor, symbolizing their ongoing grief.
The Vigil of Hope. Loved ones hold a vigil, clinging to hope that Justine is still alive.
Brandon's Revelation. Brandon admits to knowing about Justine's murder and seeks protection from Danny.
Brandon's Confession. Brandon admits to a chilling desire for Justine to die, revealing his true nature.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I don't ever want to forget about her, but I don't want to be reminded.

A family member grapples with the memory of Justine.

6:55WatchFeb 20, 2025

Tension

80/ 100High tension

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