Mugshots: Knoller and Noel - The Attack Dog Scandal | Forensic Files

tonight a bizarre death That Shook San Francisco I've never seen anything like it
everybody who saw it was in shock the accused two celebrated attorneys the accompli two dangerous convicts the
weapons two huge dogs with the strength to kill these dogs when their blood gets
heated they're not coming back that's a horrible way to die and a show trial full of surprises she's trying to
protect Miss Whipple from the jaws of this berserk Beast I think it was a Confluence of two of the meanest lawyers
around and two of the meanest prisoners around and two of the meanest dogs around Unleashed margerie noler and
Robert Noel next on mug shots [Music] [Music] at 400 p.m. on January 26th 2001 Diane
Whipple a 33-year-old college lacrosse C coach entered her apartment building in
the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco with grocery bags in tow and plans to
make dinner Whipple rode the elevator to the sixth floor and slid her key into the lock of her apartment door in
moments she would be fighting for her life 911 yes I'm just arrest please send police to 2398
Pacific Avenue Corner Filmore we have two rampaging out in the hall at 4:05 an elderly neighbor alerted by barking and
screaming in the hallway peered through her peephole before calling 911 please hurry I hear her screaming and I
don't dare open the door these dogs are ferocious Bane the male and Hera the female were rare praa Canarios massive
animals weighing more than 110 lb each and Bane was attacking Diane Whipple tearing her clothes from her body and
biting her repeatedly Police Inspector Sydney laws and her partner were the first to arrive on the
sixth floor minutes later I see a dog come from my left and go to the right as my partner gets out of the elevator she
announces that uh we have a victim with multiple dog bites we don't see anything
until we see Marjorie noler appear out of her apartment with bloody clothes bloody hair almost like a ghost S me I
mean it felt like I was in a stepen King movie Diane Whipple had not been alone in the hallway the victim's neighbor
marjerie noler who owned the dogs with her husband had seen everything she would later tell police a harrowing tale
of a well behaved animal gone berserk that had dragged her down the hallway and of her attempt to Shield Whipple
from Bane with her own body judging by the state of the hall that attempt had failed it was horrifying
it was uh I've never seen anything like it it's still um when I think about it it
bothers me still Sergeant Paul Morris was among the swarm of police Animal Control Officers and
paramedics who responded to the scene after the paramedics took her away and looking down the hall and seeing the
keys in the door that was just it was wrenching it was heart-wrenching as the dogs were captured by Animal
Control Officers the victim was rushed to San Francisco General Hospital doctors operated to repair her crushed
windpipe and other wounds but Diane Whipple had lost a third of her blood and at 9:00 that night she lapsed into
cardiac arrest and died Whipple's best friend Sher derbo got the call I had trouble hearing cuz I was at a concert
and I thought she said Dian was hit by a car so I of course collapsed and was hysterical and only found out probably
15 minutes after my breakdown that it was a dog I just I it was so surreal to me I could not believe that that had
happened not to Diane the people of San Francisco couldn't believe it either the Bay City is a
dog's Paradise with few attacks and no human fatalities till now but these were no ordinary dogs or ordinary owners they
have to be from a different planet they're not human neither one of them ever expressed any remorse they were
just like Stone they were thinking about uh being lawyers I'm sure margerie noler
and her husband Robert Noel were two enigmatic attorneys who seemed to have little money few friends and a belief
that they and their dogs could do no wrong why did this incident that has brought us here happen I can't explain
it I wasn't there for the incident I came for the aftermath the behavior was was totally out of
character for either one of them but few seem to be buying their story including
Sergeant Morse Edward 1104 I really wanted to see if I could find out what really had happened there when
I walked in the door one of the tenants came up and said man this isn't the first time we've had a problem with
these dogs and so I got a statement from him and uh and from that point on it was like
the the floodgates opened people came out of the woodwork to tell us hey that dog tried to bite me hey that dog leaped
at my child hey one of those dogs bit me as I was trying to get out of the elevator a tragic accident or a terrible
crime San Francisco's district attorney Terrence henin assigned prosecutors Jim hammer and Kimberly gilfoil Nome to the
case my first thought was what a terrible tragedy and I've said that because until you look at the facts
behind it which is what gives rise to criminal responsibility on its surface it looks like a terrible terrible
tragedy once you hear about the 34 prior incident you realize what a crime and in
fact what a murder people were intimidated you people did not come out of their Apartments when they heard Nola
and Noel in the hallway with the dogs they didn't want to risk it because they knew that something very bad could
happen a criminal investigation into the dog mauling death of Diane Whipple was soon underway at its Center two
attorneys who had once traded success for obscurity marjerie noler and Robert Noel when mug shots continues
the investigation into the death of Diane Whipple focused on margerie noler and Robert noell two lawyers who had
once climbed San Francisco social ladder and had seemed unlikely to Fall From Grace
Marjorie noler grew up far away from the bay area in the leafy Midwood section of
Brooklyn New York well Midwood is a very close knitted community and it's a quiet neighborhood
she lived with her parents here she was a very friendly girl margerie was the adopted daughter of David noler a
dentist and his wife Harriet a beauty queen who was named Miss Brooklyn in 1935 she was born June 20th 1955
she was a very smart little girl she walked when she was very young she talked when she was very young she was
always a daddy's little girl uh she was very happy she was happy with us she was
happy in school Marjorie attended nearby Midwood High then Brooklyn College where she was a
presidential scholar who dreamed of becoming a lawyer she applied to I'd say about six schools and they were all in
California because when she was a young girl we took her to California and she said this is where I'm ending up so she
ended up at McGeorge University wasn't that it no MC George School of Law of law that's where she ended up and that's
where she graduated Marjorie noler married and got a job as a pargal at a law firm in San Francisco in 1987 she
was assigned to a case with a seasoned lawyer 14 years her senior named Robert Noel
Noel grew up near Baltimore where he graduated from Law School in 1967 he rose through the ranks of the justice
department eventually becoming an assistant us attorney in San Diego in 1985 he left his job his wife of 23
years and his three children and moved to San Francisco he was already married for the second
time when he met met marjerie noler he quickly took the daddy's little girl from Brooklyn under his wing I had a lot
of respect for Robert and uh I thought he was teaching her too because he was sort of a scholar
in the field and I think she learned a lot from him marjorie's quiet manner seemed to compliment Robert's dominating
personality and before long there was a mutual attraction there's no doubt that they loved each other they did the same
things they thought the same way so it was it was a match made in heaven the pair divorced their spouses and quickly
married the following year they started their own law practice out of their apartment the two lawyers in love had
freedom and money they went to the Opera of the symphony they traveled uh it seems to be they went at a
different place every other weekend if I I saw margorie noler in Pacific Heights where she frequently shopped she
would look exactly the same as any other young professional businesswoman Mary Karen fippinger is a San Francisco
socialite who served with margerie noler on the board of The Little Gym Club the
city's most prestigious charity my impression of margorie noler was that she was a caring
and uh very sympathetic person to other people in need Robert and margorie success only allowed them to pursue
their shared interest in volunteerism and their pro bono legal work on behalf of the homeless and AIDS patients earn
them praise throughout the city in 1994 the husband and wife attorneys accepted a case that would change
everything their client was a correctional officer with a grievance against the California Department of
Corrections similar cases followed soon they were representing not only correctional officers but inmates whose
life stories found a sympathetic audience in marjerie noler and Robert Noel the lawyers began helping some of
their incarcerated clients for free and their income suffered she had clothes made at uh Neiman Marcus he brought her
bought her jewelry and then all of a sudden everything came to a standstill it's like they needed financial help I
don't know what he spent his money on noler and Noel spent more time visiting prisons like like Pelican Bay
California's maximum security lockup for Dangerous criminals the married lawyers
had found a new calling it wasn't like an instant overnight change with these people Aphrodite Jones is a crime writer
who has been following the case it was a long-term happened over a period of a few years
thing in which they distan themselves from society and and C certainly San Francisco Society but distan themselves
from society period by getting themselves wrapped up in the prison world the pair stopped attending the
symphony and gradually gave up their charity work then in 1997 Robert Noel and marjerie noler met an inmate who
would have a profound effect on both of them the dangerous prisoner who would complete their family when mugshots
continues [Music] by 1997 attorneys margorie noler and Robert noell had dropped out of San
Francisco society and were providing legal counsel to correctional officers and prisoners at Pelican Bay in Northern
California it was here that a chance meeting with a violent inmate would prove to be a life-changing encounter
Devin Hawks is a special investigator for the California Department of Corrections
Paul Schneider met Robert Noel and Mar marer noler um threw another case that they were working up at Pelican Bay my
understanding is they became very impressed by him 40-year-old Paul cornfed Schneider has a rap sheet that
confirms his standing as the most dangerous inmate in California originally imprisoned in 1983 for
robbery he is now serving life for stabbing a lawyer in court with a weapon he made in his cell
Schneider is also a prominent member of the Aran Brotherhood a white supremacist
prison gang still even prison officials admit cornfed can be very charismatic in all my dealings with him he's always
been professional and upfront even with the prison staff he's usually pretty respectful um however if we are in the
way I don't think any of us doubt that he would do something to remove us from his potential to escape
the two prison lawyers were drawn to Schneider's charm they began a pen pal friendship and discovered they had much
in common all three were fans of JRR tolken fantasies and big dogs Schneider a jailhouse artist sent noler and Noel
drawings incorporating both themes soon the attorneys were smitten I believe that Noel and noler became
Enchanted by Mr Schneider and got to know him from a different point of view than perhaps the rest of
us knew their enchantment grew deep in letters Noel referred to their relationship as the Triad and at least
one letter alluded to unrequited sexual fantasies I wanted to thank you for the thoughts
expressed about your feelings about how comfortable you would feel about Marjorie and I inhabiting your body and
mind there were overtones in the letter that there could have been a romantic relationship Mr Schneider was still
separated from any physical contact because he was behind glass during those visits they
are I believe in love with Paul Schneider both of them in a sexual sense of every sense of the word noler and
Noel were not the first Outsiders to get personal with Paul Schneider I don't know what would make some of the
individuals fall in love with Mr Schneider I I wouldn't even venture to to guess but I know that it has happened
in several occasions and in each of those occasions he ends up using them to participate in his criminal Enterprise
in 1997 Schneider discovered a new scheme in the pages of dog fancy magazine buying breeding and selling
guard dogs Schneider's cellmate and fellow Aryan Brotherhood member Dale bretches a convicted murderer became his
partner and other inmates contributed the startup dollars Schneider also came up with a name for
his fledgling Enterprise doggo War kennels although prison rules prohibit inmates
from starting a business Schneider and bretches Drew up a business plan with a focus on a particular breed the praa
Canario a canine from the Canary Islands with the perfect temperament to be a guard dog come on over here come here
sit sit good boy Richard Kelly has bred nearly 400 praa Canarios from his home in New Jersey they're an alpha breed uh
they're a dominant dog they will stand their ground they're very defensive very territorial so should a threat come at
me or a family member or an invasion of of his territory uh he'll stand and scope it out trying to determine is it a
real threat and if it continues to come then I guarantee you they'll react pra Canario can react with size and strength
good boy we have some that are up to 150 lb that's a lot of potential power they
are extremely muscled very athletic Big Bone dogs okay they have a good gripping
power they're impervious to pain pain towels is exceptionally high and that's all the things the attributes that make
him a good Guardian Pressa Canario experts also consider the breed to be stable and family friendly they're
excellent companion they love children they love the family they they are wary of strangers but once they're introduced
the dog will accept them probably lick them and love them to death from his cell at Pelican Bay Paul
Schneider chose kennels in Chicago and Ohio and instructed prison missionary Janet kums another of his outside
friends to start buying pra Canarios kums used four dogs to breed four more on her Farm in Northern California
dog o War kennels was now a reality but there were immediate problems the dogs had little obedience training inadequate
food and no facilities to separate them these dogs were allowed to run as a pack
on a farm and that they literally killed all the livestock probably for food for
no other purpose but then once the taste of blood then actually they were reverted back to the their primitive
mode the woman that was in control of that became frightened and chained them up to the
restricted their movement that affects the dog psyche still cornfed Schneider thought the dogs were not Tough Enough
and in late 1999 he asked Marjorie noler and Robert Noel for help Mr uh Noel and
miss noler being attorneys were asked by Schneider to intercede when they did not
like the way that Miss kums was raising the dogs in fact the term that she used with me is that Schneider did not want
wussy dogs and that goes to show what kind of dogs he was looking for these mean aggressive
dogs noler and Noel went to court to get control of the eight pra Canarios and in
April of 2000 the husband and wife lawyers retrieved the dogs from Janet kums according to authorities six of the
dogs were delivered to Associates of the Aryan Brotherhood in Los Angeles noler and Noel took custody of two Bane and
Hera I believe that she didn't know what she had what they had in their possession
Bane and Hera make their mark on the neighborhood and the aftermath of the attack when mugshots returns
in April of 2000 marjerie noler and Robert Noel had acquired two dogs from an illegal breeding business run by
Prison inmate cornfed schne it's absolutely clear that they were both 100% involved not just in these
dogs but in this broader operation called dog of war this this breeding business they didn't want happy puppies
they didn't want golden retrievers noler and Noel's new roommates Bane and Hera were adult Pressa Canarios with little
obedience training and a history of abuse by the time they got the dogs the dogs are already uh mature it's a little
tough to to then uh work with a mature to a dog that's already had an imprint of being trained to do something other
than uh you know a safe environment the couple had hired a veterinarian to examine the dogs before their arrival in
San Francisco after the exam the vet wrote a letter to the attorneys concerned about the dog's behavior
these dogs are huge they have had no training or discipline of any sort these animals would be a liability in any
household but noler and Noel ignored the warning and soon the forsome was a fixture on
the streets of Pacific Heights while Bane and Hera often appeared docel they sometimes behaved aggressively in
public places like the nearby dog run Kathy Brooks met margerie noler with Hera and tried to pet the dog and
everything was fine I wasn't worried until she had her muzzle right near my neck and stopped sniffing
and at that point I kind of looked up at her and she had squared her chest off and her shoulders were rolled forward
and her ears were flat back against her head she her eyes had narrowed and her tail was straight out behind her clearly
a very aggressive aggressive stance so I slowly withdrew my hand and I slowly leaned back and backed away and stood up
Brooks and her dog Archie met Robert Noel with Bane a few weeks later and Noel warned her that his dog was not
friendly I said well you know look you're nearing the offleash area of the park you've got
a dog in a harness he looked at me and he said I can walk my dog wherever I godamn well please this was a a very
aggressive guy who clearly didn't care that he had an aggressive dog who clearly didn't care about anyone else's
safety they got off on the fact that I think their dogs intimidated people on January 11th 2001 Robert Noel wrote a
letter to Paul Schneider as soon as the door opens at 6 one of our newer female neighbors a timorous little mousy blonde
who weighs less than Hera is met by the dynamic duo exiting and almost has a coronary the muts show only passing
interest as she gets in and goes down the blonde was Diane Whipple and 15 days later she would be mauled to death by
Bane and Hera on January 29th 3 days after the bizaar attack the people of San Francisco
received more strange news Marjorie noler and Robert Noel had finalized an adoption and Paul cornfed Schneider was
now legally their son [Music] I think they were living in another world to be honest uh and they got uh um
swept up into this relationship with these Aryan Brotherhood guys and the dogs and the whole kind of cult aspects
to this thing and and really just got way way off base on January 31st Robert Noel circulated
an 18-page letter to the local press threatening the district attorney and suggesting that Dian Whipple may have
been to blame for her own death Miss Whipple may have been wearing a pheromone based cosmetic or scent or
that as a serious athlete she may have been a user of steroids which could have triggered the initial interest of ban
they told us that they'd never do a day in you know jail that we weren't going to get anywhere with the indictment they
were very boastful and very arrogant about it is the Department of animal control ready to proceed yes we are Bane
had been killed by lethal injection shortly after the attack two weeks later a hearing was held in a San Francisco
Court to decide the fate of Hera several witnesses to the dog's past Behavior attended as I went around them um the
dog Hara bit me um at which time I jumped away um turned around and said hey your dog just bit me I immediately
looked up and I see these two dogs coming at me I mean very quickly snarling I put down my mail I grabbed my
cart and just in time put it in front of the dogs the dog lunged jumped on my dog
knocked it down got its mouth over the back of my dog and uh looked to be basically digging its teeth into its
back to break its back I suspect Robert Noel and Marjorie noler then took the stand claiming their dogs were nothing
more than overgrown house pets Hera and Bane were not the least bit aggressive he loved uh to lick people he licked me
all over he licked Marjorie all over um very approachable just walk right up to him Hara was the same way she's a
wonderful animal she's loving she's caring um I ni name her a certified lick therapist because when you're not
feeling well she knows it I believe that Harold was trying to protect me from ban
by whatever action she did she was never involved in the attack on Miss Whipple she was barking hysterically in the
hallway one week later Hera was ordered put to death meanwhile a warrant search of
cornfed Schneider cell had yielded a treasure Trove of personal letters from his new parents for homicide prosecutor
Jim Hammer the letters proed that Noel and noler knew their dogs were dangerous one Saturday as I was going through
letters written by the defendants we came across this letter where Mr noell had mocked Diane Whipple weeks before
she died and called her a timorous mousy blonde and how frightened she was in that moment uh in light of the jury
instructions that cover murder I said for the first time to myself this might be a murder case they really did know
not just they knew they liked it so that's kind of the point we reached when we got up to the grand jury and gave
them the option whether or not to indict for murder on March 9th 2001 a grand jury convened
in San Francisco to assess the evidence against Marjorie noler and Robert Noel 3
Days Later Diane Whipple's partner Sharon Smith filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the two attorneys
the lawsuit sparked Street demonstrations by gay rights groups eager to change a California law that
does not allow a same sex partner to sue for wrongful death I just want to say um
I have always felt that you need to stand up and fight for what you believe is right and certainly this has only uh
furthered that conviction in my mind on March 27th the district attorney announced indictments marjerie noler and
Robert noell were indicted for involuntary manslaughter and owning a mischievous animal that kills and
marjerie noler alone was indicted for second degree murder involuntary manslaughter carries a penalty of 2 to 4
years in prison but second-degree murder could put margerie noler behind bars for
the rest of her life [Music] I definitely believe she was guilty of murder if I didn't believe that ethic I
never would have prosecuted that case but it's really not that much different I don't think than drunk driving or
firing a gun where you have repeat repeat notice over and over and over again of the danger and what you could
do to prevent the danger and you basically say I don't care I'm going to do it anyhow
California's first dog murder trial begins when mugshots continues [Music] in March of 2001 margorie noler and
Robert Noel were indicted for multiple crimes in the dog mauling death of Diane Whipple the most severe second deegree
murder from margerie noler on March 27th the pair were arrested at dinner and taken into custody
with no money to make bail the husband and wife attorneys sat in jail for months pre-trial publicity forced a
change of venue and the trial was moved to Los Angeles in January of 2002 a year
after Diane Whipple's death the state of California versus margerie noler and Robert Noel began in the midst of a
media frenzy all right please division 53 of the Los Angeles Superior Court is now in session the honorable James
Warren judge presiding assistant district attorney Jim Hammer spoke for the prosecution the issues in this case
are what knowledge did they have if any of the danger of the dogs of their ability to control these dogs and to
protect other people and what did they do Hammer explained the attack leading the LA jury through police accounts and
crime scene photos so what kind of dogs could do this what kind of dogs killed Diane Whipple how were these dogs in San
Francisco in a crowded apartment building in a small hallway these two dogs were selected by two prisoners
at Pelican Bay State Prison the prosecution presented the letters written to Paul Schneider by noler and
Noel as evidence of the couple intimate relationship with the inmate the Aran Brotherhood and Dogg of War kennels this
is a page seized from Pelican Bay State Prison a draft of a website that the prisoners were preparing to sell and
Market these dogs that they were breeding and raising look what it says over to the left about Bane Warg
assassin Bane on the bottom right corner we've blown up here sort of definition of Bane death
ruin destruction the prosecution also introduced their star Witnesses nearly 30 people who had seen Bane and hara's
aggressive behavior firsthand the witness list included Janet kums Kathy Brooks and even the victim Diane Whipple
Diane Whipple was killed on January 26 2001 by these two dogs but before she died back in December 1st 2000 she
herself was bitten by one of the dogs one of the dogs jumped up and bit her in the hand it wasn't a serious bite she
had three small red marks in her hand and you know what Robert Noel does after that he just looked at her Jim Hammer
next focused on the defendant's own words from Grand Jury testimony and statements to the press in the grandury
testimony Miss noler compared Hera to to a Chihuahua Mr noell this is what he had to say this
is after Nan's dead Okay Bane was a wonderful mut no he wasn't a vicious dog but no Bane Bane had never shown any
signs of people aggression according to Mr Noel he had no notice at all of any danger by either dog the prosecutor also
took issue with margerie oler's account of the attack and its aftermath margerie
noler testified to the grand jury that she gave brief first aid to a Dian Whipple and after she did that she put
both dogs away now what will the evidence show on those claims by Miss noler when the police ared the dogs
aren't secured one is still running loose with Diane Whipple alone and you know what else the evidence will
show that after margin erer went into her apartment she never never called 911 the climax of
the prosecution's opening was an interview noler and Noel had given on National Television before their arrest
Mr Noel had either of these dogs ever exhibited any signs of aggression before as far as aggression toward people no do
you think miss Noah that you bear any responsibility at all for this attack responsibility no uh why not you you
owned the dog you brought them into the building you were unable to control them
why aren't you at all responsible I I wouldn't say that I was unable to control them and you couldn't stop the
dog from attacking Diane Whipple I wouldn't say that it was an attack and I did everything that it was humanly
possible to avoid the incident uh Miss Ripple had ample opportunity to to move into her apartment she was in her
apartment she could have just slamed the door shut I would one thing is clear from this video from the evidence
neither defendant shows any remorse for what their dogs did defense attorney Nedra Ruiz focused on the attack itself
casting marjerie noler as a hero marjerie was yanking on the leash and telling Bane to stop stop and yanking on
the leash and the harness to make him uh go back to the apartment Bane overpowered her and actually pulled
margorie off her feet and dragged her down to where Miss Whipple was standing by her now open apartment door margerie
was very concerned she had never uh been in a situation where Bane had pulled her
off her feet she had never been in a situation where uh Hara was barking hysterically as Bane was jumping up on
someone Ruiz demonstrated how her client had fallen on top of Diane Whipple while
pushing her away from the dogs and the dog begins to bite Miss Whipple Miss Whipple is flailing of course she's
terrified she's panicked as is margorie and in in this flailing she flings an arm up and gets uh contact with with
marjorie's face marjerie is stunned for a second and sees horrified the dog bite Miss Whipple on
the back of the neck Marjorie is screaming stop stop she's trying to get uh keep
her her her whole body around Miss Whipple to protect Miss Whipple from the jaws of this
uh berserk Beast the evidence will show that Marjorie was screaming at the top of her lungs and knew that someone would
call 911 was hoping that someone would come to her Aid no one did no one did this picture was taken within an hour of
the incident this picture was taken because it reflects the condition of margerie noler
I know you've seen terrible pictures of Diane Whipple today you've seen how Bane rent her flesh
but the evidence will not show that Marjorie stood back and let that horrible thing happen to that beautiful
girl the trial of margorie noler and Robert Noel lasted a month jury deliberations
began on March 19th 2002 with both sides anticipating Victory the defense uh feels that uh the jury has sufficient
facts before them to acquit marjerie and Robert of uh any prior knowledge that these dogs would seriously harm or kill
anyone I'm proud of everything we've done in this case we've bowed to no one's pressure we fought all along to
put on a fair case and now leave it up to the jury to decide what the right charges in this case are the verdict and
the aftermath nobody expected when mugshots returns [Music] after a month-long trial the fate of dog
Mall defendants Marjorie noler and Robert Noel was in in the hands of a jury if convicted of murder noler faced
life in prison on March 21st the jury announced it had reached verdicts on all counts
verdict as to marjerie noler count two we the jury in the Ed as the courtroom waited for the murder verdict Noel and
noler were found guilty of the Lesser charges of involuntary manslaughter and owning a mischievous animal that kills
then the moment came for marer noler verdict as to margerie noler count one we the jury in the above entitled action
find the defendant margorie noler guilty of the crime of Murder in the second degree in violation of section when we
were out in the hall everybody said she's not going to get it maybe manslaughter she turned around to me and
she said I love you I really think the murder 2 verdict was most appropriate for margerie noler I mean we lost a life
we lost human being and um she should not have had those dogs no one should have had those dogs those dogs should
never have existed with this ladies and gentleman of the jury uh you are excused
to the Jury Room this court is in recess it's been a long 14 months and uh a lot of that time was spent
focusing on this moment so it's this a very emotional moment for me um I always felt that this should be
be the outcome and I'm incredibly grateful that it was the outcome if not now when if not these defendants then
who and I think that was really the question to this jury if 30 warnings Aren't Enough is Dian Whipple just a
warning and uh this jury did Justice so was I surprised not based on the facts this was the right thing to do a murder
conviction is difficult that's the most serious crime that we have Miss noler could well spend the rest of her life in
prison marjerie Nola's murder conviction was the first of its kind in California but
her legal battle was far from over we are ready to proceed at sentencing noler appell at attorney Dennis Reen asked the
judge to throw out the murder conviction due to a lack of evidence there is a huge moral difference between doing an
act which might result in death and doing an act which you intend to result in death you intend to kill another
human being the difference between an act which is dangerous and an act which has a high probability of death is
enormous in this case we argued very strenuously not only that margerie noler didn't know that the dogs were likely to
kill in her own mind she didn't walk out there saying these dogs are likely to kill somebody today but that there was
no evidence that the dogs were likely to kill them the sentencing was delayed for
10 days while Judge James Warren pondered marjerie noler murder conviction on June 17th he rendered a
shocking decision I believe unfortunately Mr Noel miss noler that you are the most despised couple in the
city I don't believe anybody likes you uh I defy either defendant to stand up and tell me they had no idea that those
dogs were going to hurt somebody one day can they stand up and say that they knew
subjectively that these dog were going to kill somebody that is the ultimate question in the case on the state of the
evidence I cannot say as a matter of law that she subjectively knew that her conduct was such that a human being was
likely to die the court finds that the evidence does not support it with those words the murder conviction of margerie
noler was thrown out Jim Hammer responded I Fe I fear I fear because what you have done today and that's why
I'm going to ask you to reconsider it that you will forever have robbed Sharon Smith and Diane Whipple and everyone who
knew the woman and 12 jurors in Los Angeles and 19 Grand jurors in San Francisco and everyone in California
have a sense of justice I was shocked uh because of what he himself had said about the evidence I think judges are
often tempted to split the baby um I'm not sure justice has always achieved that way though citing multiple
instances of lying under oath the court gave marjerie noler and Robert Noel the maximum sentences for involuntary
manslaughter in the death of Diane Whipple 4 years in prison I don't get the justice system anymore I don't what
if that was your your best friend or your wife that died how' you feel for what 3 four years you get to go lock
get locked away someone is dead so but in the long run of it all I don't think there's really any justice just
because we can't bring her back prosecutors are appealing the Court's decision to throw out margerie no's
murder conviction let me tell you something if there's one person in in the whole world who was sorry about what
happened it was Margie she not doing good at all and it makes me cry because I get these letters they're terrible
from prison margorie noler has written letters to her parents I'm 47 years old had a whole life ahead of me and now
it's gone it's gone because of a godamn dog that I wanted to get rid of Robert was attached
to him and his anger was too much for me to deal with how I wish it was January 26th 2001 at 3:00 so I could do the
afternoon over again I still find all this hard to believe and keep hoping that this is still a nightmare and I
wake up and everything will be better including time served and good behavior marjerie noler and Robert Noel will be
freed from prison in 2003 I am going to be in a world of animals animals behind cages and now I'm going
to be one of them as well [Music] [Music] sh [Music] [Music] [Music] he

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Brief Summary

Diane Whipple was killed by dogs owned by attorneys Noler and Noel, leading to a controversial trial for murder and manslaughter.

Key points

A Bizarre Death That Shook San Francisco. Diane Whipple's tragic death by dog attack shocked the community.
The Attack. Diane Whipple was brutally attacked by two large dogs in her apartment building.
The Aftermath. Diane Whipple succumbed to her injuries after a brutal dog attack.
The Investigation. Authorities uncovered a troubling history of the dogs involved in the attack.
The Verdict. On March 21st, the jury announced their verdicts in the case against Marjorie Noler and Robert Noel.
Shocking Decision. Judge James Warren rendered a surprising decision regarding Marjorie Noler's murder conviction.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It was horrifying.

3:27WatchJul 29, 2014

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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