Stranger Danger | “48 Hours" Full Episodes | Forensic Files

I don't like to go back and think of her at the bottom of the box of the stairs.
>> Who in Marty's life who would have done this? >> She was found in a pool of blood. Blood
>> who has done this to Marty. >> I had no idea why he'd have done it. >> Could it have been somebody at work?
>> Whoever did it was still out there. Out there. She's such a good person. Who would do that to somebody? How could
anyone do this to my daughter? >> To my daughter Marty. >> I think that day will stay with me
forever. September 8th, 2010 was a normal day at the office. Then there was a 10:00
production meeting and Marty wasn't in it. That was extremely unusual. Marty is very dependable and reliable.
Marty is a big bunch of dynamite in a little bitty package. She might weigh 97 pounds, soaking wet, but she gets stuff
done. She is a genuine, good-hearted, outgoing, fun person. She is a hard worker and she's always
trying to make everything better. >> We work for an apparel company. It's a small manufacturing facility. It's a
tight-knit group. The meeting was over and I asked, "Where's Marty?" And somebody said, "We
don't know." I sent her a quick text. Maybe something had come up. No reply to the text. I called her a few times. She
never phoned me back. That's why I knew that something was wrong because she would not just miss work.
There was a real sense of concern, tears. What do we do? What should we do? About 11:30, I decided to drive by her
house. When I arrived there, her car was sitting in the driveway. I walked up, rang the doorbell, no
answer. Knocked on the door, no answer. So, I went back to my car and my cell phone and I called the office and said,
"The house seems eerily empty. I think perhaps you should call the police." The neighborhood is a very quiet
residential neighborhood. We don't get many calls in that area. I went up to the front door. I noticed
that the door was closed [music] and not locked. I opened up the door and said, "It's the
police department. Marty, are you home?" I said that over and over again. I do notice what appears to be a woman's
purse uh sitting on a table in the kitchen or dining area. Seeing the purse there told me that, you know, I'm
married and I have, you know, my wife doesn't go anywhere without her purse. So, at that point, I was kind of
thinking, well, maybe she is here somewhere then. I saw no clues upstairs that would
indicate any kind of struggle. And then I started walking down the stairs to the basement.
When I got to about two or three steps from the very bottom, I noticed that there was a person laying on the floor
kind of in a fetal position, covered head to toe in blood. And there was a large amount of blood surrounding this
person on the floor. Marty was breathing. It seemed like it was somewhat labored.
I knelt down next to her and I asked her over and over again, "Who did this? Who
did this to you, Marty? Who did this to you?" I wanted to get I guess what could
have been a dying declaration if if that was what that was going to be. and when I walked in, they had just
wheeled her in. I could not tell if it was a man or a woman. Couldn't tell if she was young or old. Couldn't tell what
race she was. It was what appeared to be a lifeless form with dried blood in this swollen
head. My first thing was to assess to see had they brought me a live person or not.
What we found was the major veins, skin, muscle of the left neck had been completely cut through and the major
artery actually had a couple of scrapes on it. So, it's literally millimeters away from having been cut through.
For the next hour and a half, we just meticulously cleaned and put back together all of those injuries.
I remained still very concerned about her head. In addition to the cut, she had all these bruises and swelling to
her face. And head injury to me is something that I take very seriously. Concussions, which is essentially what
she had, can lead to swelling. And they can look fine initially and then die 24,
sometimes 72 hours later. Some of the nurses were starting to get very quiet and tears sort of welling up.
And then in the back of my mind, I'm going, "Wait a minute. This happened in my neighborhood.
Let me get a call into my wife. Let me find out where my kids are." It starts slowly hitting you in waves,
the enormity of what really had happened. My grandma picked me up and went to the
hospital and they took me straight back to the ICU. I had no idea how serious it was because
I wasn't getting a lot of information. I didn't even know what happened. I saw my mom and I just I started
balling. I didn't I didn't recognize her. Her eyes were swollen shut. Her arms, her legs, her hands were the only
thing that I could recognize. I don't know how to describe it other than you just have knots in your stomach
and you're in disbelief. Marty's head was swollen like three times the size of her normal head. It
was just unbelievable. You're kind of in shock that this is your daughter laying
there. my brother. I just know my brother was very angry because it's his mom. It's
our mom, but no one can do that to his mom. Like, that just really got him worked up. The fact that both of us, the
fact that somebody could just hurt our mom, like, you can't just try and take our mom away from us.
As a teenager, of course, I'd been sassy with my mom and we'd gotten in arguments.
Seeing her in that state just made me feel so bad for everything that I had said ever, any little teenager thing. I
just wish I could take it all back. I got really close to her and I said, "I will never be mean to you ever again."
When we got to the hospital, some key things that I noticed was that her clothes appeared to be intact, her bra
appeared to be intact, and there was no signs of a sexual assault. Every step of
the process, you're looking for some sort of motive. At that time, I was advised her mother
had arrived at the hospital, and I went to speak with her to obtain any information we could to assist us with
this investigation. >> They were asking me if I could think of anyone who might have done this to Marty.
>> Marty's mother tells us that she has an ex-husband by the name of Steve Hill.
Uh, she advised us that Marty and Steve, they communicate regularly. Her mother also told us she was a workaholic. She
very rarely left the house. To her knowledge, she wasn't dating anybody. And if she was not working, she was
typically at home. Marty was still unable to communicate with us. We had very limited information
as to who she might have been with, who she may have had recent communication with. And naturally, your first thought
is possibly the ex-husband might be responsible. The detectives asked me about my
parents. I kept asking like, "Do your parents get along?" I remember being really defensive, like my dad would
never do this, and no one that I know would. >> We go to Marty's ex-husband's house,
Steve Hill, to interview him that night. >> He was very cooperative, invited us in
the house. He gave us the full account of what he had done that day and told us about his history with Marty and that
they had had some rough times together, but he loved her and he would never hurt
her. He wanted to know who did this just as bad as we did. And that's where it became very difficult for us. We were
stuck with the information of Mr. Hill was not a suspect and very limited after that.
>> Me and my dad had a lot of conversations trying to get to the bottom and think of
who would have done it. Someone had broken into my grandma's house a few days before. Maybe it was the same
person and maybe someone was after our family. They had bandages over her cuts in her
neck, so we really couldn't see them, but we could see the blood coming from her eyes. It was just kind of tears with
blood dripping down her eyes. At that point, we still weren't sure what was going to happen. We knew she
was fighting to stay alive. I just remember I started crying and saying, "All I want to do is talk to my
mom." Like, the only thing I wanted to do is be able to talk to my mom. There was quite a fear really among the
office. Could somebody else be a target? You're looking over your shoulder even at the office and when you're leaving
the office and everywhere you go wondering who has done this to Marty and if you know them.
[music] Prairie village detectives came to the office. Obviously they're just trying to
get a sense of Marty's routine just looking for any ideas that perhaps would would give them a direction in which to
turn. Marty's mother told us that there was a company by the name of B&J Construction
who had recently done work at her house who she had actually referred to Marty. She told me that the supervisor of that
construction company was named Brian and that he seemed to be a nice guy. >> I thought Brian was a hard worker
and a family man and he did good work. Actually, that is why Marty decided to go ahead and use him because he did some
stuckcoing inside my house and he did a really good job. >> When I initially called Brian, I didn't
even know his last name. He called me back and told me that his last name was Pennington. He was 26 years old, lived
in Leon, Missouri, approximately an hour and a half from the Kansas City metro area.
We decided that we wanted to just ask him some basic questions. We arrived at Brian's house a little
after 9:00 p.m. When we initially pulled up, it was a very dark house. It's kind
of secluded. When we knocked on the door, we were invited in the house. My partner and I
followed Brian into the kitchen. He was very polite, cooperative. >> How long did you work at Marty's house?
Um, >> I'd say three or four days. >> What did you think when you heard that Maria got attacked?
>> I really didn't know what to think. She's a really, really decent lady. >> Have you heard what happened to her at
all? >> No. Her mother-in-law was looking on the news channel earlier and showed pictures
of her house and stuff and I really didn't look at that. During this conversation,
I noticed that Brian had several scratches on the left side of his face. >> Where are the scratches from on your
face? >> Big dog sitting outside. >> What kind of dog you have? >> Pit bull. >> When did those happen?
>> Uh, yesterday. She just jumps all over me. And when I went down yesterday to unhook the chain, she jumped up and
caught me in the side of the face. When I looked at the scratches, they didn't appear to be consistent with what
a dog would do. I felt like he was hiding something from me. I asked him if he had attacked Marty. He told me that
he had not. He kept stressing to us that he was having financial difficulties and there
was no way he could drive to Kansas City to commit this crime due to the fact he
didn't have enough money for gas. I talked to Brian's wife, Jessica, in the living room of the house. Has
Brian been here all this week? >> I asked her if Brian had been home on the morning of the attack.
>> He finished that job last month and he's been here with me for two weeks. >> Okay. At night.
>> Night and day. >> Night and day. >> Yeah. He ain't going nowhere tonight. I can't sleep at night if he's not here.
>> She said there was no way that he could have done this attack because he had been with her the entire time. I also
asked Jessica about the scratches on Brian's face. Did you know I got those? >> They're from a dog. I swear.
>> I did not believe Jessica. She seemed like she was very naive. She was very young. I think she was 20 years old at
the time of this. She had two young children. And I thought she would say anything possible to help protect her
husband and to have him around. >> We have no doubt that we're going to find the person that's responsible for
this. >> Brian doesn't have a heart for that. >> I I hope so. Believe me, I hope you're
right. Um, >> I'm just scared. I've never been in this kind of situation. >> Yeah. And if you're telling me the
truth, you don't have a thing in the world to worry about. >> Besides my kids, I know he did work on
that house. >> Oh, >> that's what I'm scared about. >> And then I asked Brian if he happened to
have any clothes that had blood on him in his house. He immediately told me that he didn't. I asked him if I could
look through his clothing, his dirty clothing, and he told me that I could. I saw a hamper in the corner of the
bathroom. When I started pulling clothes out, I found a pair of jeans near the bottom of
the hamper. When I pulled the jeans out, I immediately saw they were covered in a
red stain. Most of the stain was [music] towards the knees and down towards the bottom
portion of the pant leg. You know what this stuff is on the bottom? Grease. Grease. Something I don't know. Not
blood though, right? No. Okay. When I saw the red stains, it was definitely a moment of we might have
something. I tried to remain calm and [snorts] friendly with Brian and asked him if he
would give me consent to take the jeans from his house. Brian signed a written consent form that
I could take jeans, shoes, DNA swabs, and also pictures of the scratches on his face. I guess the best word, we were
surprised that we were getting this sort of cooperation with the recovery of these items.
>> I think Brian Pennington thought we would not follow up, we would not do any other investigation, that we would just
believe what he said and believe what his wife was telling us. My partner and I drove directly to the
crime lab. I think we got there around 11:00 at night. Actually, within 30 minutes of being at
the crime lab, we were told that the stains on the genes tested positive for human blood. We did not know who the
blood belonged to. It could have been anybody's blood at that point, and we would have to wait a couple more days to
determine who the blood belonged to. We did not tell anybody about this. We were told that Marty would be able to
talk to us eventually. We did not want to interfere with the investigation and have them give Marty ideas. We wanted
anything that Marty would say to come directly from Marty and nothing we gave her thoughts or suspicions about. So, we
were kind of in a holding pattern waiting to get Marty's side of the story. And in fact, on that Saturday
morning, the morning after leaving Mr. Pennington's house. We were contacted that Marty was talking at the hospital.
I don't remember those first days. I don't remember feeling any pain. I do remember feeling like I had too
much medicine in me. I didn't feel good. >> I believe it was the third day when I
started speaking. Suddenly, it all kind of flooded back what had happened. There was no
questions. I knew who it was and what he had done. I [music] remember the day that Marty
said her first word. My daughter Monica and I were walking in [music] and the doctor said she just
spoke. As soon as we got in there, we asked her if she could remember who did this.
And she said, "Brian, I had gotten up early. I heard a knock at the door. Looking out
the window, I saw that it was Brian Pennington, the man that I had hired to do some work
on the house. I couldn't really understand for sure why he would be there. It was odd that he was there that
early. It was odd that he didn't call first. I went to the door, let him in, and I
remember it just being a fairly brief conversation. He mentioned that he remembered something that was in the
basement that he thought I should have done. So, we started walking to the basement. I was leading.
Um, I I do remember talking, but I also felt like he was being quiet, like you would at least say, "Huh? What? Huh?"
Okay. I was getting an odd feeling as we're going down the stairs. And then just two steps from the bottom
of the stairs, he grabbed my throat. It was very tight and very strong. I kept saying, "What are you doing?" It
was just silence. He never said a word. My voice kept getting lower, softer, and
suddenly my voice I couldn't speak. My voice couldn't come out and I passed out.
[music] We received a call from the crime lab. The blood found on the [music] jeans was
in fact Marty Hill's blood. >> We knew we had enough for an arrest warrant. At that time
on Monday, September 13th, 5 days after the attack, we go to Brian's house [music] in Leon, Missouri.
We find Brian driving down the road. He was laid back in the front passenger seat. It appeared his wife was driving.
He was taken into custody at that time. >> He showed no signs of being upset. He
showed no signs of any anger. There was absolutely no emotion. When my mom got the call and and they
told her that they had arrested Brian Pennington, she almost fell over. It was extremely emotional for my mom
because she actually referred Brian to Marty. She had actually worked with Brian for two years prior to that. Knew
his wife, knew his kids, and felt that Brian was a safe person. So hearing that they actually had enough evidence to
arrest him made it real that it was really him and that he really did this and this was a person that she knew.
>> I believe that Mr. Pennington is a an evil person. One of the theories we have
in this investigation is not only did Mr. Pennington strangle Marty initially. It's our belief that he then beat her
head into the concrete floor which caused multiple facial fractures. And if that was not enough, he then slit her
throat three to four times, leaving her to die in her basement that morning. I believe that Mr. Paintington
was surprised when we arrived at his door and told him that Marty Hill was still alive.
I don't believe Mr. Pennington thought that he would be caught. >> We always have a little saying that
[music] the trauma surgeons save these patients lives, but we have the opportunity to
get them back to living their lives. The first time I met Marty, she had been in the hospital for about a week.
Her brain was stunned and in shock. She could walk, but it wasn't pretty. Her feet [music] were very far apart. She
couldn't put her feet together and stand still without falling over. She had some
issues with her vision. She had difficulty with her hearing. Um, difficulty with her memory, difficulty
with processing things. Um, she would change topics at the speed of light. The attack was very difficult for both
Steven and Mackenzie. Marty's [music] kids. Steven is very protective over his mother. He lives in Houston and he flew
up that same evening and he [music] he took it very hard. He actually cleaned the blood off of the floor of Marty's
house. He wouldn't let anybody in the house. He didn't want [music] anybody to see her blood all over the house.
I grew up a lot through the whole thing. I spent my 16th birthday in the hospital
and I remember her giving me a card and her handwriting on the card was something that really like really made
it real for me. Her handwriting just didn't look like her handwriting. It was almost like she had to start over like
being a kid again and build up to where she is now. Marty's daughter McKenzie played a huge
role in Marty's recovery. I feel that McKenzie's biggest role was Marty could feel like a mother. I have a
responsibility. I have things that I need to get done for my daughter. What comes after you start feeling
better physically is the unseen trauma, the emotion of realizing what happened to you. So after she had left the
hospital and gone home to my mom's, it became more about the emotional trauma that had to start healing.
At that point, I was still just processing it. how someone that seems perfectly fine, perfectly normal could
be that could could be that violent. Brian Pennington had been arrested for attempted first-degree murder.
My goal was to put Mr. Pennington in prison for as long as our legal system would allow.
The most important thing that we had was the DNA evidence on Mr. Pennington's genes. We also had facial scratches on
his cheeks that he advised were from a pitbull. They were strong evidence for us, but defense attorneys can always
find ways to try to cause reasonable doubts. >> The frustrating part about this investigation is that we absolutely have
no motive that we are aware of. >> There was no theft that occurred from Marty's house. She had money laying out.
Her purse was laying out. He did not take it. There was no sexual assault. There was no history that they had
spoken since the work had been conducted at her house in late August. While preparing to go to court, we did
more background investigation on Brian. I checked our computer database and noticed that Mr. Pennington had a prior
police record. I believe he had over 60 contacts with law enforcement officers. He was
involved in several domestic violence incidents where injuries occurred to wives, to girlfriends.
Battering women was nothing new to him. Jessica Pennington was a key witness to this case. She provided her husband an
alibi at the time of the initial interview by the detectives. She told the detectives that her husband was home
during the entire time frame [music] of the attack. That was going to be hard to
get around in front of a jury. The night before the preliminary hearing, Marty was very nervous [music]
about seeing Brian Pennington. She was also very nervous about what she was going to say, what the attorneys,
what questions they were going to ask. The pressure was tremendous because in our opinion, Brian was and is a very
dangerous individual and if we failed at the preliminary hearing, he would be released. He would
be free. I was very concerned about Marty's physical health. When I first met her,
she was struggling just to walk and sit down in a chair. And one of my concerns was even as aggressive of a prosecution
that we were going to have, I didn't want to cause her more emotional harm or physical harm. The other concern was her
memory. We knew that if she could identify Mr. Pennington as her attacker in the
courtroom that we could get a conviction. The problem was with all of the injuries to her, we didn't know if
she would be able to do that. We were in the courtroom and they brought Brian in and they seated him to
the far right of our family. It It was very emotional and unbelievable. It just made you want to cry.
It was very hard to see him. Brian Pennington had no one on his side of the courtroom.
Not even his mother. Okay. He always stared straight at the wall and he never looked around until Marty
walked in the door. The only time he moved his head from straight forward was when she walked in
the room and I saw his eyes go like this. Almost like he saw a ghost. I will always remember that.
I could see it and feel it that he couldn't believe she was walking down that aisle going to go up and speak.
>> When Marty first walked into the courtroom, she was very slow. She was a little bit hunched over and I was
concerned if she was going to be able to make it [music] through this. I've always told her just to focus on
me. You and I are going to have a conversation. Block everybody else out. It's it's going to be you and me. We can
do this. I remember while I was speaking I that I could out of the corner of my eyes kind of see him glancing at me.
>> Something about the basement. It was still hard to process because I'm seeing
this person that had come to work for me and I thought he was fine. He showed no
emotion. I felt he was very detached from the situation and it didn't bother him that he had
almost killed a woman. The defendants that detach and show no emotion are the ones that frighten us
the most. It's still too hard to understand someone that you felt like you knew was capable of something like
that. >> I held my breath until she identified Brian as the person that attacked her
because I was very concerned with the traumatic brain injury with everything she'd been through if she was going to
be able to do that. And she did it. I felt that it was important that I got up there and could do what they needed me
to do. >> I smiled at her. I wanted her to know she did a great job. One of the other keys to the case was
Jessica Pennington. I thought that she would be a very hostile witness and would testify in his
behalf, say he was home that entire time frame. We were able to get her alone with the
detectives and tell her how important it was to tell the truth. I think the key factor with Jessica was
learning how severely beaten Marty was and how close Marty came to dying. And I think Jessica, the human side of her,
understood that and realized it was more important to tell the truth than to protect Brian.
and Jessica Pennington broke down and at that time admitted to us that she had lied and that in fact her husband
Mr. Pennington was not at home with her during the time of the attack. >> I learned from Jessica that Brian had
attacked her on numerous occasions, assaulted and threatened her. In the end, Jessica became one of our best
witnesses against Brian. At the end of the preliminary hearing, the judge ruled there was enough
evidence to take the case to trial. It didn't appear that Brian had a lot of fight left when it came to the case. And
it was made clear to us through his defense council that he wanted to work out a deal. The issue with the deal was
how long would he serve in the Kansas State prison system. We could go through the jury trial
[music] and get 38 years or we could work out a plea and get less than that. A key factor in the evaluation was
Marty. We knew that she still had physical issues, mental issues, and I believe that Marty wanted to work out a
deal. There was a day when she called me and said, "It's hard enough for 12 people to
decide where to go to lunch, let alone decide what how to convict someone." It took several months, but we finally
agreed on 28 and a half years because that was going to end it for Marty. She wouldn't have to testify. And
also I thought it was important for her children to have closure on this too. The sentencing, we expected it to be
brief and short and to the point and for him to be convicted and sentenced. I walked into the sentencing hearing.
I looked at Brian Pennington. I looked at the defense council. And I knew something was wrong.
At the sentencing hearing, Brian and his defense council were not speaking with one another. Brian looked angry, so I
knew that there was an issue. We were told that Brian wanted to withdraw his plea. He wanted to go to trial.
It was my perception that Brian had six weeks since the plea date to think about
serving 28 years in prison. Keep in mind he had not been alive for 28 years. So I
don't think he could get his head around the fact that he would serve more time in prison than he had been on this
earth. My initial thought was I had told Marty it was going to be over today and
that may not happen. The courtroom was filled with tension. Many of Marty's family members were very
upset. Everyone who had traveled from miles and miles and spent a lot of money on plane tickets was like, "Oh my gosh,
you know, he's going to change his plea right here." It was decided that we would go in court
and that Brian would tell the judge the reasons why he wanted to withdraw his plea.
Brian simply told him it was the pressure and that it was too much time. The judge tells him that those are not
sufficient reasons to withdraw his plea. We then moved on to the victim's statements and their family members.
I was almost excited to be able to talk to him. >> I will never understand why you did this
to my mom. You put my entire family through something that no family should ever have to go through. And you put me
through something that a 15-year-old especially should never have to go through. I looked at him straight in the
face the entire time I was talking. I got to tell him how strong our family was. And even though he pretended like
he wasn't listening, he wouldn't look at me. I knew that he heard what I was saying.
I finally felt powerful towards him. The most powerful part to me was when Marty stood up and faced the man that
tried to kill her. She said to Brian, "I was nothing but nice to you." And asking
him, "Why did you do this to me?" And he just sat there, no response. The judge asked Brian if he had anything
to say before he gave him his sentence. The attorneys came back and said he that
he had nothing to say. That he has the right to say nothing is very hard. It feels like he should at least owe us an
explanation. >> Hopefully one day he'll communicate why he did it. I think it would help us all
understand that it wasn't just a random event, that there was some motive behind
it, some reason why it happened. The judge followed the plea agreement and sentenced Brian to 28 and a half
years in the Kansas prison system. I felt like we had a big team working together that made things right.
Great detectives, great attorney, great family support, great friends. I'm so proud of my mom. I need to become
more like her and the person that she is. I need to have her work ethic and her personality and just to be a likable
person so that if anything like that happened to me that I would be able to make it through it like she did.
I'm so thankful for the people at my mom's work that [music] stepped up. It wasn't just like someone is missing
from work. It was that one [music] of their friends hadn't shown up and they were wondering why. I think that the
co-workers were definitely like my mom's angels. >> I don't think any of us consider
ourselves heroes in this. It's Marty's the hero. She could have decided this thing can beat me and it it's made her
an amazing person. I think the kick kickboxing it initially started as just something to push myself
a little further working out. I knew [music] that that was going to be a key role in getting back to my regular
life. >> I do have scars. I have all across my neck still. I tend to probably pull my
hair forward and cover it up. I still have tingling down the left side. My face feels like a mannequin from here on
and my ears very tight. So, it's always a reminder for sure. I think she's still dealing with the
emotional part of it that it's never going to be something that we can just put in the past. Even though it's over
with and he's in jail and everything, that it's still there. I think about the attack and the event a
lot. How is someone 26 and how do they get to a level that they could be that vicious
and and be capable of doing those things? If I could ask Pennington anything, it would be
why or what? What were you doing? I And yes, just why? >> [music] [music] [music]
>> This wasn't [music] just a crime scene, was it? >> No, it was not. This one was bad.
Two innocent people that were on their first date had their lives destroyed. For what reason?
How well [music] did Leslie Reeves know Chris Smith? >> First date. Chris was in a band and a [music] singer
and they had connected and he asked her out. >> The night before Thanksgiving, they
decided just to meet up and go to the bar. >> He lived 65 miles away in a really small
farming community. >> The bar that night was very busy. The place was packed wall to wall.
Chris and Leslie were talking a lot, laughing, getting along with everyone around them. She texted me around 10 and
she said, "Everything's going okay." She did then text a second text that said, "I feel like something's a little bit
off or something. I'm not sure what she meant." >> Was that text the last time you heard
from Leslie Reeves? >> Yes, it was. Did you try texting her in [music] the morning?
>> Mhm. >> And did she respond? >> No. >> I just started driving towards Farmersville cuz I had the address and
called the police department in that area. >> Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. This
is Jeff. >> Hi. I'm greatly concerned about my friend. Can someone do a welfare check?
>> What are you feeling at this point, Nana? a lot of anxiety because I don't know what I'm going to walk into. Uh
going up there to this house. I pulled up in front of the address. >> And then who came while you're sitting
there? >> While I'm sitting there, uh who's this uh woman parked? I said, "Well, maybe I'll roll my window
down and talk to her." >> I asked her if she was checking on Chris, and she said she was checking on
her friend. And that's when I went up to the door. I saw the back door was broken and then
I saw Chris laying there and then I ran back to my car and called 911. >> Nobody's answering the door and and the
back window shattered and there's a body and there's a foot I saw on the floor. I'm only 16. I can't deal with this.
>> I was in shock, I think. >> Sheriff's office. Jeff. >> Jeff, give me some help. I got one alive
and one dead. >> I just remember them bringing Chris out on the stretcher to the ambulance. I
remember there being a sheet over him. So, it made me panic a little bit. >> I got a call from our command center in
Springfield. >> So, you are the lead crime scene investigator? >> Yes. >> Were you really prepared for what you
faced when you walked into that house? >> I was not. Why would somebody do this to him? Why
would they try to hurt my baby? That's all I kept thinking. He's my baby. Someone hurt him. Going on a first date
and they both end up getting shot is insane. On the afternoon of Thanksgiving Day
2021, Nanette Styber sat in her car and watched anxiously as EMTs and Montgomery
County Sheriff's deputies descended on a house in the tiny village of Farmersville, Illinois.
>> I was quite upset and kind of going crazy in the car. Nanette had been unable to reach her
good friend Leslie Reeves. Nanette knew Leslie had gone to that house the night before to go on a first
date with Chris Smith, a man she had met online. >> She was very excited. She thought, "Oh,
this this might be um a really good connection." >> But now Nette was worried. She'd seen
Chris get taken away in an ambulance, but there was no sign of Leslie. >> I kept hoping, you know, okay, bring
Leslie out, please. >> Finally, a detective approached and asked Nette for a photo of Leslie. She
showed him her phone and he gave her the horrible news. >> I'm so sorry to have to tell you this.
your friend has um been murdered, you know, shot, he said. He didn't tell me where, but he did say,
"I want you to know that she went very quickly." EMTs had found Chris [music] barely
conscious and unable to say anything about the shooting. They rushed him to the hospital and deputies searched the
house. Later that day, crime scene investigator Josh Eastston of the Illinois State Police was called to the
scene and he began cataloging the mayhem inside. What do you see when you first approached the door?
>> I noticed the side door of the house. The glass in the door has been broken out. The refrigerator was pulled away
from the wall. The kitchen table was pushed. The the chairs were knocked over. No weapon was found, leading
investigators to suspect that a third person was involved. Een took note of every detail, including the burnt pizza
in the oven. >> I assume that maybe they were cooking a pizza for the night, and the
suspect shows up at the door. They both tried to fight him off. And when Chris was shot, Leslie went to the living room
to try to hide. >> How many times was she shot? She's only shot one time >> in the head.
>> In the head. >> Leslie's body was in the living room while Chris had been found in the
kitchen. Een said of the 1,800 crime scenes he had been to, this was one of the most horrific.
>> There was blood everywhere. The cabinets, the refrigerator, the countertop. There was blood from
corner to corner in the kitchen. Eastston spotted two silver colored bullet casings from a 9 mm gun. One in
the kitchen and the other near Leslie's body. As Eastston processed the scene, detectives began learning about the
victims. Chris Smith was a 48-year-old divorced father who worked for a pool contractor.
>> Chris was a nice guy. He would hang out here frequently, was friends with most
people in town. Everybody knew him. >> Bartender Dena Lrand says Chris was well known in town as the guy who grew banana
trees and giant pumpkins. >> I remember one Halloween he donated hundreds of pumpkins for decorations for
any of the kids to paint. He gave back to his community. Did either one of you ever worry about
Chris? >> No. >> No. >> Sharon Gastanza is Chris's mother, [music] Ashley Hulcom, his sister.
>> Chris is a stayhome person that literally would just work in his backyard. Chris lived with a dog named Tiki.
[music] And an EMT told the family that Tiki may have helped Chris [music] make it
through the night by huddling with him for the roughly 12 hours that Chris was [music] bleeding before being rescued.
>> I think Tiki protected Chris. I think she probably laid right next to him. >> Chris's close-knit family could not
imagine anyone wanting to kill him. It was like, "No way. How? Why?" Like, >> who? Yeah. Who would have done that?
>> Investigators had the same questions about Leslie and learned that she was a divorced mother of two children who
lived in Troy, about an hour south of Farmersville. Although Leslie had a master's degree in
engineering, she chose instead to teach Pilates and to promote self-defense classes for women.
>> Hi, I'm Leslie from All You Studio and >> Leslie posted this video to her YouTube
channel to advertise one of her classes. >> Empower yourself against aggression and
assault as we teach you easy to learn self-defense techniques. Power up. Leslie tried to help women in abusive
relationships, but friends say she had her own troubles. Nanette told deputies she was worried about a former
boyfriend, a contractor by the name of Robert Tar known as Bobby. >> She said, "I am going to completely
block Bobby from email, texts, phone calls. I I have to go no contact." Later that evening, news of Leslie's
murder began circulating and reached another close friend, Amy Steinhower. She had met Tar, a divorced father of
three, and did not have a good impression of him. But >> you never see someone and think that
they can kill my friend. >> Amy called the sheriff's office that night to give them Tar's name.
By then, detectives had already set out to find Bobby Tar. While 85 miles to the
north, surgeons were fighting to try to save the life of Chris Smith. A bullet still lodged in his brain.
I just wanted [music] to get there. I just wanted to get there as fast as I could.
>> After learning that Chris had been shot in the head, his family rushed to the
[music] hospital in Springfield, Illinois, 2 hours from their home, >> I was on the phone to everyone I could
think of because I just needed prayers from everybody. Doctors removed part of Chris's skull
and some bullet fragments in his brain before putting him in a medically induced coma. His family, struggling to
piece together what had happened, learned that he had been out with a woman named Leslie Reeves. Had you ever
heard the name Leslie Reeves before? >> No. I looked her up and then I tried to reach out to her friends and then I
found my best friend Nanette. Nanette told them the same thing she had told investigators.
She suspected Leslie's ex-boyfriend, [music] Bobby Tar. That night, sheriff's deputies went to
Tar's home in Collinsville, an hour south of the crime scene. Authorities say he never asked why they wanted to
talk to him, and he agreed to go to the police station without a lawyer. >> T Margaret. Although her friend said the
couple had broken up, Tar told investigators that he and Leslie were still together.
>> You and Leslie have a lot of problems. I would say no worse than any average couple.
>> It was Leslie that detectives wanted to talk about. >> I want you to to dig down deep here and
be as honest with me as you can. Okay. Leslie is dead. What? Can you help me shed some light on this?
How did she die? She was murdered. What happened? That's why we're here with you. You help
me believe that you're not involved in this. I'm not involved in anything. >> Investigators asked Tar about
Farmersville, the scene of the crime. >> You know what Farmersville is? Farmersville.
No, I can't say that I do. Never been there. I've never heard of it. >> And they asked Tar where he had been the
night before Thanksgiving. >> I went to a buddy of mine's house. He left and left me some money out of
his shop and I opened it up. >> The friend lived a short distance from Tar's home.
>> Remember the time he came back? Yeah, it wasn't that long. maybe 6:30ish, something like that.
>> Investigators believe the shooting took place sometime early on Thanksgiving morning after 1:00 a.m. Tar said after
he got back, he was home all night. >> You can talk to my daughter about me being home.
>> That's exactly what they did. Detectives brought Tar's 17-year-old daughter, Shelby, to a different room at the
police station, and she told them that her father actually left home twice that night.
>> So, first time he left was roughly 6:30, >> right? >> And then he he came home about a half
hour later and they said he had to go back, right? >> And then it was 9:15ish when he got back
home. Shelby said he had been gone for more than 2 hours and when he got home he was
upset. >> He gets home he was crying, you know, sobbing. He said he missed Leslie.
>> Shelby said she went to sleep around 9:30 and was awakened by her father around 2:45 a.m.
>> He started laundry. He was pacing, walking around and he was like, "I can't sleep."
Detectives went back to Tar and told him Shelby's story did not match his. Tar then changed his story and said he had
gone to his friend's house twice, but still insisted he was home by 8. As Tar sat at the police station, detectives
searched his house and found his phone and a Glock pistol. Shelby had told them her father had a different gun, but they
didn't find it. >> It's little. It's like this big. My green the army green. >> Shelby told investigators she had seen
it the day before Thanksgiving in her father's sock drawer >> yesterday morning. Actually, I think his
>> was there yesterday and not today. >> Okay. Bobby Tar sat at the police station overnight while authorities
continued to investigate. They had already learned that his car had been captured by license plate reader cameras
just after midnight the night of the shooting. The cameras were near a gas station and investigators discovered
that Tar had bought gas there just after midnight. Back at the police station, they confronted him with a gas station
receipt. cuz I don't remember going. >> You don't remember being out after midnight when you have told us?
>> You are 100% positive. >> The gas station is here in Troy. >> Yes. >> And the murder occurred here in
Farmersville. >> Correct. >> The gas station was near Tar's home, an hour from the crime scene. Andrew
Affronty is the Montgomery County States Attorney. He has donia, a condition that
causes muscle ticks and tremors. So why is it significant? Cuz it's so he went out and got some gas.
>> It was significant to us cuz why would he lie about it? >> Just want to get fuel. What does that
prove? >> Investigators believed it was proof Tar was lying about his whereabouts that
night. They placed him under arrest. >> You're under arrest for murder. A fronty says they arrested Tar
immediately because they feared Chris's life was in danger and they hadn't found the murder weapon.
>> If he was out of custody, could he take further steps to dispose of the evidence?
Just one day after Leslie Reeves was killed and Chris Smith was left fighting for his life, investigators believe they
had the man responsible in custody. I'm Aaron Morardi. >> Bobby Sar. >> But in his only media interview, Bobby
[ __ ] tells 48 hours they got the wrong guy. >> There is so many things untold that will
prove my innocence. Bobby Tar charged with the murder of Leslie Reeves and the attempted murder
of Chris Smith is nothing if not unflapable. >> Did you kill Leslie Reeves? >> No.
>> Did you shoot Chris Smith? >> No. He kept his cool even when confronted with a litany of lies he told
investigators. You told the police you only left the house once. >> That wasn't true.
>> Correct. >> You told the police you had no idea where Farmersville is. >> Mhm.
>> That was a lie. >> Mhm. >> You lied about getting gas in your car that night.
>> Mhm. When he spoke with us, Tar admitted he was at Christmas house the night before Thanksgiving, placing himself at
the scene of the crime. He says the night began when he met Leslie at her part-time job at this loft store.
>> She had said she was going to go meet some friends because one of their friends was playing in a band. and she
asked me if I wanted to go. I said, "Well, you know, I would go, but I have my youngest daughter staying with me for
a week." >> Tar says that when he declined the invitation, Leslie asked if he would
follow her to Farmersville because her van was unreliable. And so he did. That makes no sense to Leslie's friend Amy
Steinhower. >> She was terrified of him, rightfully so. Just a few weeks earlier, Amy says
Leslie told her that Tar had shown up while she was on a first date with a different guy. After that incident,
Leslie told Amy she was frightened by Tar and texted Amy. I could be killed by him someday if I don't cut all contact.
So, you're telling me now that this woman who was scared of you, who had actually texted a friend that she
thought you might kill her, asked you to follow her to another man's house? >> Mhm.
>> Does that make any sense? >> No, I understand. Um, so I don't understand that text in general.
>> Why did she think you might kill her? >> I don't know. I've got no clue. Tar says Leslie lied to her friends
about their relationship. He insists she asked him to follow her north to Farmersville.
>> So I went with her up there. I think we arrived there around 7:30. I parked in front of her van in front of
his house. That's as far as I went. I left. I never went back to Farmersville again.
If he had an innocent explanation for why he was in Farmersville, why did he lie to detectives?
>> My daughter, her and Leslie, there was a little bit of tension between both them.
I did not want her to know that I was going to meet Leslie that night. >> Tar claims that after he lied to his
daughter Shelby about seeing Leslie, he stuck to that lie at the police station because he was afraid they would tell
her. And he never corrected those lies, even when detectives arrested him. Why not just say, "Look, between you and me,
I lied to my daughter, so let me tell you the truth, but let's just not share that with her." Why wouldn't you do
that? >> I should have done that. >> He's quick to point out the lack of physical evidence connecting him to the
bloody crime scene. Investigators searched his white Jetta, but did not find any shards of glass or blood
stains. >> Two tests by the state police were done on my car. Zero blood found in my car.
There's zero DNA of mine at the crime scene, anything from the crime scene in my car or on me or any of my clothing or
my shoes. Zero. Prosecutor affronty has to concede that point. >> Was any of Ty's DNA found inside the
house? >> No. >> Were any of his fingerprints found inside the house? >> No. >> And authorities still had not found the
murder weapon. But a week after the shooting, they got a phone call from Tar's friend, Billy Adams. Adams said
Tar called him from jail. That call was recorded. What's your day look like today? Cuz I need 10 minutes of your
time. >> Tar asked Adams to go to his house and look for some deck brackets. >> I got some special aluminum brackets
and that I need you to get because they're for another job that I didn't tell Dad about yet. So, don't say
nothing to him. >> Instead, Adams contacted the sheriff's office. Deputy suspected Tar knew the
phone call was being recorded and was speaking to his friend in code about something other than deck brackets.
>> Yeah. Get him and get rid of him. >> They thought that was suspicious, which was why they went over and searched.
>> Investigators were on their hands and knees in Tar's yard looking for a gun. Dan Folultz is Tar's defense attorney.
They searched that area thoroughly. No gun. You know what? They did find deck brackets.
>> A few days later, they got another phone call. This time from Tar's brother, asking them to come back to the house.
Tar's family gave deputies a Ziploc bag they said they had found in the same yard that had been searched just days
earlier. Inside a Springfield Hellcat 9mm pistol and silvercoled ammunition. The Illinois State Police determined the
gun was the murder weapon and the ammunition matched the casings found at the crime scene.
>> We still to this day don't know how that ended up there specifically in the spot
that they searched. >> Are you saying you were set up? Someone was framing you? >> Yes.
But if someone was framing Tar, he or she would have to be pretty detailoriented,
the state police say Tar's fingerprint was on the Ziploc bag. >> He is adamant that he would not have
been dumb enough that he would have carried it all the way back to his home and said, "hm, where would I put this
gun on my 1 acre lot? I think I'll put it next to the front door." And Tar points out neither his prints nor DNA
were found on the gun itself. >> Nothing on the firearm. No DNA, no prints of mine on the firearm.
>> What I think what happened is is that the gun was clipped and Mr. Tar just missed a spot.
>> That spot was Leslie's DNA, say police found on the guide rod of the gun. Tar's
explanation, the gun wasn't his. It belonged to Leslie. I purchased the Hellcat and Leslie purchased it from me.
>> As investigators continued to build a case against Bobby Tar, they say he was
hatching a plan to silence the only eyewitness. >> Did you ask a inmate to shoot Chris
Smith? >> [music] >> Leslie accompanied me here on several occasions. >> If there's anyone who knew what guns
Leslie Reeves owned, it's Howard Bolton, her close friend and firearm instructor.
>> When I would hold [music] classes, she would actually shoot with us. Leslie was
becoming a very good shot. >> Bolton says Leslie had organized a class called Girls with Guns not long before
she was murdered. >> We put the girls through their paces. They would move and fire. They would go
forward and fire. They would come back and fire. And Leslie did very, very well at that. Bobby Tar insisted [music] to
us that Leslie owned the Hellcat that was used to kill her, but Howard says he never saw her use it.
>> Leslie never brought a Springfield, let alone a Hellcat, to class. >> So then, how did Leslie's DNA get on the
guide rod of the murder weapon? Howard believes that Leslie's DNA could only be on that guide rod if the gun was fired
at her at close range. So when he shot her, wherever it was he shot her would have contaminated that part of the gun.
>> In fact, Howard says Leslie owned a different gun. Her friends say they wish she had taken it with her the night she
was killed. >> Had Leslie taken the gun with her, I assure you the outcome would have been
different. Tar declared his innocence, but the case against him could hinge on what Chris
Smith, the only survivor, remembers. Would he be able to identify him? That was the question. As Chris remained in a
coma, >> we were talking to him, singing to him, [music] and I was always holding his
hand. While Chris Smith lay helpless, authorities say Tar was plotting to silence him forever.
A grand jury indicted Tar on two counts of solicitation of murder. Those charges
are based on allegations by an inmate who says Tar paid him $10,000 to shoot and kill the lead detective.
And Chris, >> did you ask a inmate to shoot Chris Smith? >> No, ma'am. >> And to kill Detective Roach?
>> No, ma'am. >> Tar says the alleged plot was a lie concocted by a former cellmate. Tar says
he loaned that cellmate $10,000 for his bond and that it had nothing to do with Chris Smith. Were you worried he was
going to testify and point to you as a shooter? >> No, I was not worried one iota.
>> The truth was that no one knew what Chris Smith remembered. The first time he regained consciousness was in early
January 2022, about 2 months after the shooting. >> Like young. >> Chris's voice was so weak in those early
days. >> It's already over there. that his old friend Mark Rearen, a talk show host in
St. Louis, >> 522 971 FM talk, >> barely recognized Chris on the phone. >> I could not believe that I was hearing
from this guy and I cried. He cried. Just talking about that moment really brings me chills because I just thought
he was never going to be someone that was in my life ever again. >> What did Chris tell you? Well, when
Chris came on of this, I was pretty sensitive to ask him about what had happened that night because I think I
was a little afraid of even having those conversations. So, most of the conversations that we had were really
focused on, hey, how are you? Are you going to be okay? >> After intense physical therapy, he's
made incredible strides. He's much stronger than when he awoke from a coma, but he discovered there are gaps in his
memory. What does he remember from that terrible night? >> I wish to God I could remember
something. I mean, even just a a smidgen of something, but I remember nothing. >> He remembers nothing of the shooting or
Leslie Reeves. >> I said, "Who the heck's Leslie? I don't know Leslie." >> You had no idea.
>> No, nothing. >> Nothing. >> Nothing. >> Is Chris the same person who used to come on your show before he was shot?
>> Yeah. I think at the core, he's still the same guy that I knew. He's still the
smartass. He's still the guy that's going to talk about how good he is and how good he was and how much he could
lift weights. >> Chris works out at the gym most mornings trying to regain muscle so that someday
he'll be able to walk without assistance. >> He's even back to being the lead singer
in his rock and [music] roll band. I don't know how he did make it. I don't understand how he did. He's a miracle.
>> But Chris is aware his life is very different from what it once was. >> So, I'm half the man I used to be, but
I'm trying to get it back as hard as I can. And then my left leg is uh partially paralyzed from my hip to my
knee, then from my knee to my toes completely paralyzed. So, if there's any neurosurgeons out there, any researchers
out there, please get a hold of me. I'll be your guinea pig. Just make me normal
and give me my life back, please. >> It's tough, isn't it, Chris? >> It's tough. Doesn't even describe it.
Doesn't even describe it. >> Chris is resigned to living with part of that hollow point bullet in his brain.
Doctors say it's in a spot that makes it too dangerous to remove. >> So, that's where you got shot?
>> Yeah, right here. There's a Yep. You still feel it in my skull? Right there. After decades on his own, Chris had to
move back into his mother's house. >> I thank my blessings daily that he's here with us. I just wish that this guy
didn't take everything away from him. >> Chris visits with his loyal dog, Tikki,
[music] but no longer lives with her, and he'd love to see his 12-year-old daughter more often, but he can't drive,
and he's living in St. Louis, almost 2 hours away from his daughter and ex-wife. I miss her. She was my little
pee in the pod. I mean, we did everything together. [music] >> The trial of Robert Tar was set for
April 2024, but Chris would not be there. He told the prosecutor he was too angry to attend.
>> You didn't think you'd be able to just sit there. >> Oh, no. No way. I I know myself. There's
no way. No. >> But Chris's alleged shooter, Bobby Tar, will be there. and he said he was eager
to tell the jury that he's not a violent man. But on this one night early morning, did you snap?
>> No, that's not my nature. I don't lose it. Snap. When Bobby Tar went on trial in April
2024, prosecutors told the jury that he killed Leslie Reeves rather than allow her to
live the life she wanted, a life without him. >> Mr. Tar couldn't deal with the fact that
Leslie was seeing somebody else and he had to go and take care of it. >> Andrew Aphrante says Tar secretly
followed Leslie to Farmersville early that evening and shortly afterwards his phone began showing some interesting
activity. >> He had actually searched Chris Smith on his phone and tried to find his Facebook
profile. Tar headed home and texted his friend Billy Adams. I don't feel like she would drive that far for a party or
go out with a girlfriend. I think it's for a dude. He also searched whether police could track his phone if he was
using a VPN, a virtual private network. >> He was researching to determine whether
or not that would mask where his location was while he was using the phone. Authorities say around midnight tar left
home stopping at that gas station and then according to a fronti surveillance videos and cell tower records show that
tar drove back to farmersville. You believe he intended to kill both Chris and Leslie?
>> I 100% believe that he went up there with the intent [music] to do serious harm to both of them. With one victim
dead and the other with no memory, it's difficult to say with certainty what happened, but the prosecution argued
that sometime after 1:00 a.m., Bobby Tar tried to enter through the back door of
Christmas house. Leslie and Chris tried to keep him out. >> There was some kind of altercation or
struggle and that's when the glass was broken. Crime scene investigator Josh Eastston
told the jury what he had observed inside the kitchen. >> The refrigerator was pulled away from
the wall where it appeared it normally was. >> Prosecutors believe Leslie was trying to
use the refrigerator to block the door. And based on where Chris was shot in his
head, they think he was crouching down to help Leslie. I think that while Chris was crouched
down trying to hold the door shut, Bobby shot through the door and struck Chris.
[music] >> With Chris incapacitated, Aphrante says Leslie hid in the living room. Tar
tracked her down, shot, and killed her. >> I strongly believe that he walked in and
executed her. >> Defense attorney Dan Folultz disputes all of that. There is simply no evidence
that that's what happened. There's no evidence that Leslie pushed the refrigerator. There's no fingerprints
and blood on the refrigerator of Leslie's. >> Folult says evidence of a fight in the
kitchen tells a different story. >> The amount of blood in that kitchen was astonishing.
>> From looking at that crime scene, do you believe that Christopher Smith had to
fight his his asalent in the kitchen? It would appear to me that there was some significant struggle in that
kitchen between him and someone else. >> And he says the asalent could not have been Bobby Tar because he would have
been covered in blood. >> They did not identify a single piece of DNA in his car. They didn't identify a
bloody fingerprint. They did not identify anything tying him to that crime scene. But prosecutors argued the
house wasn't bloody when Tar left. They said Chris bled heavily in the 12 hours it took for help to arrive. And while
the prosecution did not have a lot of forensic evidence linking Tar to the crime scene, a fronti says his phone
activity, his lies to investigators, and the evidence found on the Hellcat all prove his guilt. When you put all of
that together, that's when you get the clear picture of what happened. >> When it was the defense's turn, Tar says
he wanted to tell his story to the jury, but he chose not to testify. Why didn't you just decide you were
going to talk to the jury and tell this story if in fact you have a story to tell?
>> I should have. I very well should have. We made a strategic decision because [music] it may have opened the door for
a whole lot of other more damaging evidence to be used uh to cross-examine him. >> The defense didn't put on any witnesses
and counted on the jury to find reasonable doubt in the lack of physical evidence.
After 3 hours, the jury found Bobby Tar guilty of firstdegree murder and attempted murder. Everyone clapped and
Bobby just sat there shaking his head. >> Two months later, Tar was back in court
[music] for sentencing and this time so was Chris to tell the judge how the shooting impacted him and his family.
Cameras were not allowed in the courtroom. >> Lost my house, lost my truck. I've
literally lost my life without being killed. Tar also spoke and denied [music] shooting Leslie and Chris. The judge
sentenced him to 85 years. >> I hope the rest of his time on this earth is hell.
>> Leslie Reeves friends are focused on keeping her memory alive. >> She was a light of a lot of people's
lives. She was always smiling. She was a very good mother. lived for her kids and was an advocate
and champion of women, women's rights, and especially women that were abused. >> If it can happen to her, it could happen
to anyone. So, we all need to be careful. >> Chris Smith says he never expected [music] he'd be a victim of domestic
violence and cautions other men to take a hard look at their behavior. If guys, you feel like that you want you want to
hurt a woman, get help. >> While Chris mourns his old life, he's writing a book about his experiences
[music] and says he's working to make what he calls poor man's margaritas out of the
lemons and limes he's been handed. >> I've got a doover. Good Lord, give me a doover. Not many people get a second
chance in life. Chris has found love with Michelle Alrech. >> She's an angel. Loving me and accepting
me the way that I am. >> He proposed to her on stage. >> I just asked her if she married me.
Guys, >> what's the most important lesson out of all of this? >> Don't ever give up on anything ever. No
matter how bad things are, don't ever give up. 48 hours. Don't miss an episode. >> [music]
[music] >> every time I seen her. She would be texting or Facebooking and she was
constantly on her phone. >> I'm Nicole Lville and I'm I've been nominated for the ALS Ice Bucket
Challenge. >> Go. She's a happy golucky kid. >> She smiled and she sang all the time.
>> Tonight, the search intensifies [music] for a missing teen from Blackburg. Take
a good look. This is Nicole Levelvel. She's 13 and was last seen in the Lantern Ridge area of Blackburg between
midnight and 7 Wednesday morning. [music] >> Her father posted this message to Facebook. Nicole, honey, if you see
this, if you're out there, you can come to me. I'm not mad at you. I'm worried about you.
>> Police are looking into whether an app popular with teens was used to lure the
girl. >> That night, I was going to knock on the wall and tell her to come in and sleep
with me like she usually does, and I didn't do it. It's with a heavy heart that I have to announce that we've
located the remains of 13-year-old Nicole Madison Levelvel >> 100 SECOM in Route 89 West Snowbird
Curve. >> So, where was [music] Nicole Levelvel's body? >> Nicole was from what we understand in
the trunk of the car and they move her right over here. got close to the edge and just
>> a very preliminary determination of the cause of death is stabbing. >> I went to high school with David
Eisenhower. [music] Everything he did he worked hard at and he wanted to be the best at.
Investigators have said the 18-year-old college athlete and engineering student knew the little girl and quote [music]
used the relationship to his advantage to abduct her. >> At 12:39 a.m. Just past midnight, Nicole
sends her last electronic message to Dr. Tombstone. David Eisenhower's kick [music] account
username. >> I want to go to jail. I didn't do anything wrong. A second Virginia Tech student, Natalie
Keepers, has also been charged. >> Natalie Keepers was an extremely smart person. She was very [music]
academically driven. She had connections to NASA. >> They stop at the Walmart. They buy
cleaning supplies, gloves, wipes, bleach. The defendant purchased a garden shovel.
>> I'm so sorry. I wish I could have stopped. >> I trust the courts will do what [music]
they feel is just. This is really scary. I don't think anyone ever expected any of our classmates to become a alleged
murderer. It's no longer a situation where you worry about your child meeting a stranger in the park. You really need to
worry about the stranger your child's meeting on the phone that you gave them for Christmas. This is the new crime of
our time. 48 hours killer app reported by Peter Vans. Every morning I come out here, sit with her for an
hour. It's just been a nightmare. I still hope that she would come around the corner
when she gets off the bus or she'll come out of her room. The nightmare for Nicole Levelvel's
mother, Tammy Weekes, began on the morning of January 27th, 2016. >> I pushed the door open and
the nightstand was up against the door. >> Sometime in the middle of the night, the
13-year-old had climbed out of her bedroom window, taking along her phone and her favorite blue cartoon blanket.
>> Did you call her cell phone? Oh yeah, a bunch of times. >> And what would happen?
>> It go straight to voicemail. I text message her. Everybody was calling her, texting her.
>> Tammy called police and began scouring the area. Before long, a neighborhood mother gave her some chilling news.
>> Nicole had been playing with her daughters and said that Nicole was said she was going out on a date.
[music] Like millions of teens, Nicole spent a lot of her social time online. So Tammy
feared she might have left to see someone she'd met on the internet. >> You must be a bit panicked at this
point. >> Yeah. The FBI has now joined regional and state law enforcement in the search.
This afternoon, they canvased her name. >> Nicole's disappearance also sent shock
waves through her hometown, Blackburg, Virginia. More than 12,200 searchers are on a
mission to find the 13-year-old. >> Volunteers even brought this infrared drone.
[music] >> I know she wouldn't go nowhere for that many hours without her medicine.
>> Nicole was born with a damaged liver and needed a transplant before her first
birthday. Now a teenager, she still needed her anti-rejection medication every day to survive. Her illness and
surgical treatment had left [music] Nicole with scars on her stomach and neck. Tammy says Nicole had emotional scars as
well. >> So she was being bullied. >> Yes, she did. She hated going to school. She would always make me write her a
note for Jim because they would pick on her about her scar. Nicole's social media posts reveal a sadly typical
teenage story. So lonely she had suicidal thoughts, longing for love and convinced nobody cared for her. Tammy
says Nicole not only had trouble fitting in, she also had a difficult relationship with her father, David
Levelvel. He did prison time on a drug charge and he's had other problems with the law.
She wanted his attention. She wanted his love. >> I have regrets that I wasn't there. I
feel, you know, what did I do wrong? Why wasn't I there for her more often? >> He'd left Tammy before Nicole was born.
The two were never married. >> When you would go to work, was there anyone supervising her?
>> Yeah, my parents. >> Your parents? Did they live at the house? >> Yes. >> So, she never went unsupervised?
>> No. No. But Nicole was leading an unsupervised life online through the social media apps on her smartphone.
>> It's like a loaded gun. >> Good morning, Blake County. It's your district attorney, Pamela Casey.
>> Alabama DA Pamela Casey is on a national crusade warning people about the dangers
of social media. >> If you pick up your child's phone and you don't know the password, that's a
problem. If you don't know, >> she began speaking out long before Nicole Levelvel disappeared in Virginia.
and her online safety videos have been seen by millions across the country. >> I could actually go live on Periscope
and post updates to you guys. If I can do that live sitting in my office, then your child can do that live in their
bedroom. Years ago, you had to worry about your kid getting snatched. Parents don't realize that essentially your kid
can get snatched um their life taken by somebody they meet in their own bedroom.
>> By late on the day Nicole Levelvel vanished, her parents' hope was fading with the winter light.
>> We love you, Nicole. [music] We miss you. We want you home. >> I didn't sleep at all that night. I
waited. But it would be 3 days before Nicole's parents had to face the horrifying news
that her body had been found. Your whole world just comes tumbling down cuz she was my everything.
Coley had a passion of for pandas, music, dancing. Nicole touched many people throughout
her short life. Shock and sadness were everywhere, but investigators had gotten a big break,
and it came from Nicole Levelvel herself. She'd left behind virtual evidence of a real life murder.
Nicole's dad, David Levelvel, says even before her body was found, investigators
had found a solid lead, something she had handwritten on her bedroom wall. >> She wrote all her usernames and
passwords to all her accounts. FBI computer forensics experts traced Nicole's account information and quickly
established that she'd regularly used Kick, a popular chat app attractive [music] to teens in part because they
can communicate anonymously without their parents knowing. When you had her phone, did you ever
click on the Kick app just to see what was inside? >> No, I just made her delete it, uninstall
it. Do you believe she reinstalled it? >> Yeah. >> So, the FBI puts in what they call an
emergency disclosure request to kick. They want to see Nicole's personal account, and they make a startling
discovery. It turns out that in the last two days of her life, she'd been messaging with a person who had a
chilling username, Dr. Tombstone. Using an IP address provided by Kick, investigators traced the Dr. Tombstone
screen name to this young man, David Eisenhower, 18, a freshman engineering student at Virginia Tech.
>> I will personally not stop until I reach my peak performance. >> Track and field champion from Maryland.
>> David Eisenhower seemed the last person in the world capable of killing a 13-year-old girl. He'd been a high
school track star. Former classmate Dorothy Callahan says his brains and charisma were as strong as his strides.
>> He was a very celebrated student. He always had straight A's and he was sort of cocky and he was like, "Yeah, I'm
David Eisenhower. I was just on the local news. I'm a big deal." Three days after Nicole went missing, Eisenhower
was picked up by police at his dorm and taken in for questioning. His roommate Jeremy Bazeo walked in on the startling
aftermath. >> I went to my room and I saw the door open. I got turned around by the
Virginia State Police and the FBI. >> And what did they say? >> They said, "Don't worry. It's not about
you. It's about your roommate." Baso told 48 Hours that Eisenhower's behavior the night Nicole Levelvel vanished was
really odd. >> He put on boots, but it wasn't raining that hard for boots, but you know, I
just let it go. And then he came back at 2:00 in the morning. >> And did you ever see a knife in the
room? >> Yes, he usually leave it on his desk. >> Was it on his desk when the cops showed
up? >> No, they couldn't find it. Eisenhower soon admitted to police he talked to Nicole outside her house that
night. He was arrested and charged with abduction. Eisenhower's statements led them to another young woman, Natalie
Keepers. She was brought in for questioning, too. >> Finding a job in this economy has gotten
to be extremely important. >> What did 19-year-old Natalie Keepers know about what happened to Nicole?
keepers. Another Virginia Tech freshman and another unlikely person of interest.
Mark Jenkins used to be her boyfriend. >> She wanted to study engineering and be
like her father who worked for uh NASA. >> Investigators strongly suspected Natalie
was involved. She too was arrested. >> 18-year-old Eisenhower, a Virginia Tech freshman engineering major, and
>> his friend Natalie Keepers. With two people in custody, police made a grizzly
discovery. Nicole's nude body was located 90 miles away in North Carolina, says Suriri County Sheriff Graham
Atkinson. >> What kind of wounds were on her body? >> She was stabbed. Her throat was cut
and then the thoughts turned to who were the animals that could have done something like this [music] to her.
>> Sometimes it's usually the people we least expect. DA Pamela Casey says David
Eisenhower may represent a new kind of predator. >> They could be your next door neighbor.
They can stay behind their phone and hide behind their phone and just like your child is doing.
>> Casey says criminals often use apps like Kick. Why? Because it's where kids hang
out online. In fact, Kick, a Canadian company, claims that millions of American teens use their app every
month. With David Eisenhower behind bars, it wasn't kick, but an online gaming site
that led investigators to this man's door, Bryce Dustin. I almost felt like he was like a little brother.
>> It was on this gaming site that Bryce first chatted with Eisenhower. And though they never met in person,
they began a six-year long internet friendship. David, you know, kept coming back to me
for advice on everything. What kind of problems would he ask you [music] advice about? Um, girls was a big one.
>> Dustin told us he remembers Eisenhower talking about a problem he had with one
girl in particular. A girl Dustin now believes was Nicole. He told [music] me that he found out she
was underage and that she wanted to be with him and that she was going to expose him if he wasn't with her.
>> He says Eisenhower was worried about being outed in a relationship with an underage girl. So he offered some big
brother kind of advice. >> If she wants to be your girlfriend, you know, let her. But don't be the greatest
boyfriend, you know, just like just don't text her. Just ignore her. She'll go away.
This family was about to have one of their daughters go away as well in the car of an online predator in Spokane,
Washington. >> This guy wants to kidnap my daughter tonight. He's planning to kidnap my
daughter tonight. Her last moments is what flashes through my mind. That's my nightmare.
>> David Levelvel wishes he had done better in protecting Nicole. >> If it can happen to my family, it can
happen to anybody. I mean, [music] flat out, anybody. It can happen to any family, including
one here in Spokane, Washington, about 2500 miles from Virginia. The parents here got a tip that their 15year-old
daughter was being targeted by a 30-year-old man. And what's worse, the two were planning to run away that very
night. She's going to leave her iPad, hop in the car with a man she doesn't really even know.
It was June 7th, 2013 when Detective Elise Robertson of the Spokane Police Department's Special Victims Unit got
[music] the kind of call cops all over the country have come to expect. A father was saying that his daughter was
having a internet relationship with a 30-year-old man and he had just found out.
>> And then [music] that's when everything broke loose. >> Until that moment, Brandy Srirachan and
her husband Brandon seemed to have the quintessential American family. She teaching at a local church. He studying
for a PhD in psychology. They'd been hands-on parents, raising their two sons, Joshua and Josiah, and
two daughters, Ariel [music] and Elizabeth. >> They shared a love of God, country,
sports, and each other. >> "My parents were pretty strict." >> "Sometimes too strict," said Elizabeth,
18 at the time of our interview. I felt like my parents were holding me back from what the average kid gets to
experience. >> And how much did your parents monitor your life? >> I would say that they thought that they
were monitoring me. They didn't understand that they actually weren't monitoring me. They probably had no clue
about kick and those dating sites. >> But her parents did become suspicious when Elizabeth, then 15, suddenly
started acting strangely. She would be going to bed earlier than normal. >> Elizabeth seemed distracted, less
interested in family activities, in church, even in friends. Her parents took her smartphone away and asked to
see her social media accounts. She refused. >> And at that point, you're like, "Okay,
yeah, something's really wrong here." >> They were stunned to learn just how wrong. It all started with a phone call
from Elizabeth's best friend's mother. a call that turned their world upside down.
>> Elizabeth is dating a 30year-old and he plans on coming down and getting her at
3:00 in the morning >> that very day. >> Yeah. And we're like, "What?" >> Elizabeth was [music] angry and evasive,
but her parents finally got her passwords and soon discovered [music] the truth. She had been communicating
with a stranger, a 30-year-old Seattle area man named [music] Jason. >> Jason Richards says, "When I see you,
baby, I'm grabbing you, pulling you close to me and holding you tightly." >> What does Elizabeth say?
>> No kiss. And Jason says, "Baby, I'm going to kiss you deeply. This guy's evil. She's fooled. She's
lured in. >> Initially, Elizabeth told Jason she was 18, [music] but later admitted her real
age, 15. The Sirochans were stunned to learn that the pair had already met in person and been intimate. They were even
discussing leaving the country. The two had used apps including Facebook and Kick. This is playing out in some ways
like your own personal family horror film. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> The horror continued as the Syrians
realized that within hours Jason would be driving the 280 m from Seattle to Spokane to pick up their daughter. They
locked Elizabeth in her room with no phone or internet access and called police.
>> This guy wants to kidnap my daughter tonight. He's planning to kidnap my daughter tonight. Were your hands kind
of tied? >> What do you do at that moment? You have a 15-year-old girl who's your only
witness who's denying everything. >> Detective Robertson says that without hard evidence of an actual crime, police
had to stay on the sidelines. >> So, there's nothing they can do for you. >> There's absolutely nothing they can do
for me. >> When you hear that, you feel totally helpless. And it's like, okay, well,
what are you going to do now? What they did was hatch their own plan to turn the
tables on the man who was about to lure their daughter away. >> This is my daughter and nobody's going
to mess with her and nobody's going to get her and I'm going to do what it takes.
>> Jason had already messaged from the car. >> I needed to communicate with him to get
him to our house. >> Gritting her teeth, Brandy went online, impersonating her own daughter.
>> For seven hours, I sat there and listen to him. Oh, baby, I can't wait to see you. I can't wait to get you
in my arms. Lay in the same bed together, wake up in the morning. [snorts] And for seven hours, I communicated back,
"Oh, baby, I love you, too. I can't wait." >> In the pit of your stomach, that must
have >> It made me sick. Jason is getting ever closer to your house, ever closer to your daughter.
>> My wife was up there and she was on the iPad. >> She's communicating with him.
>> Yes. >> Posing as your daughter. >> Exactly. Yes. While Brandy kept the conversation with Jason going,
in the alley behind the Syrich's house, Brandon and his friends had set up a sting operation, like something out of
an action movie. >> I am over here with my car and my friend Phil. We're getting updates from my wife
on the phone. My friend Damon is on this side of the street. >> So, the idea is like a pinser, right?
You're going to you're going to trap. It's like a bear trap that's going to close.
>> Brandon's friend Phil brought his 12 gauge shotgun. He'd been trained in special forces and had no idea how Jason
would react. >> Are you ready to use this? >> If I have to. Yes. He pulls right in this drive right here.
>> It was 3:00 a.m. in Spokane, Washington, but could just as easily been high noon.
>> He comes all the way in here and about >> as Brandon Srirachin and his team laid
in wait, headlights appeared at one end of the alley. a 30-year-old man's sexual
road trip to take a 15-year-old girl from her family was about to come to a shocking end.
>> He pulls in. At this time, we go ahead and we call Damon down here and Damon is
just books it and I'm pulling in here. Jason pulls in right there. >> Brandon's friend Phil quickly approached
the vehicle. Shotgun raised. >> I said, "Driver, put your hands on the steering wheel. Do not move or I will
shoot you. Couple of times he moved his hands and I said, "What part of do not move do you not understand?"
>> If Jason makes some sort of move, are you prepared to pull that trigger? >> If he exited the car abruptly, I would
have shot him. >> They called the police who arrived minutes later and arrested Jason. In his
SUV, they found cell phones and a pair of hunting knives. >> He was caught, but it wasn't over.
90 minutes later, Jason comes face to face with Spokane Detective Elise Robertson. So,
>> Jason, tell me a little bit about yourself. >> I work for Royal Cup Coffee. >> Detective Robertson learned Jason was
actually Jason Richards, a 30-year-old divorced coffee distributor from the Seattle area. Like David Eisenhower and
Natalie Keepers in the Lovevel case, Jason Richards seemed nice and successful on the surface. Who is this
guy? >> Jason is the guy next door. >> He tried to turn his crime into a love story.
>> Pretty much fell for her very quickly. We said I love you uh pretty quickly, probably about a week and a half
[snorts] into really talking with each other. >> At first, Richards insisted he had no
idea Elizabeth was only 15 until a policeman told him at the time of his arrest. He told told me that she wasn't
18. >> Okay. >> I responded with come again [snorts] and like she's no like she's 18.
>> He was lying the whole time. He was lying the whole time over and over over. Lie lie lie lie lie.
>> To see if her instincts were right. >> Would you give me a permission to look
at your account? >> Detective Robertson asked to see Richard's Facebook page. There were
literally hundreds of exchanges between him and Elizabeth. >> And I start looking at it and I
realized, oh, he knew. He knew before he ever came over here. She was 15. Want to
tell me the truth now? >> Well, I looked right at him and I said, "So, you going to tell me the truth
now?" >> I fell in love with her and I didn't know what to do. >> And she told you that she was 15 and
still in school >> eventually, >> right? >> This is our first meeting spot. Elizabeth told her parents she was going
jogging but instead came to this parking lot. When you actually saw him face to face, what did you think?
>> Holy crap. Like I think it became a reality to me that it's not just somebody that I'm talking to over the
internet. >> Elizabeth says Jason took her to a hotel, got down on one knee, and
proposed marriage. And then they got in [music] bed. In the following weeks, he came to town
again. On those visits, did you have sex with him each time? >> Uh, yeah, we did.
>> For you, Jason is what? >> He's a sexual predator. >> Completely just up my life.
>> My life was destroyed. [music] This hits you right now like a like a punch across the face, right?
>> It's just absolutely unbelievable. Richards pleaded guilty to child rape and [music]
communication with a minor for immoral purposes. His lawyer argued Richards has autism, which can be a mitigating factor
for several crimes in Washington state. He got a light sentence, 3 years. These apps are apps that children are
using. Take them. >> DA Pamela Casey says far too many internet predators are turning to apps
like Kick and their alleged crimes are making headlines across the US. >> A lot of stuff's happening without
parents knowing. I don't think people would let a, you know, a 50-year-old felon into their house to hang out with
their daughter, but that's exactly what they're doing online sometimes, and they
don't know. >> Jason Richards served his sentence [music] and was released in 2017 with
restrictions, including a restraining order to keep him away from Elizabeth. The Syrich say they wish the judge had
given him as much as life in prison. It's >> just hard knowing he only got three
years for everything. The pain that he caused me. It's way more deserving than 3 years.
And he's danger. [snorts] It's not right. >> In Virginia, Nicole Levelvel's mother
says there [music] is no punishment severe enough for David Eisenhower and Natalie Keepers.
>> I want both of them to suffer. >> And she says they aren't the only ones who should have to answer for her
daughter's murder. She blames Kick, too. They need to shut Kick down. It's just disgusting.
>> Kick is reported to be a billiondoll company. >> Please welcome to the stage Ted
Livingston from Kick. >> We caught up with the CEO at a tech conference in Brooklyn.
>> That's him right there. Mr. Livingston. >> Peter Vans, how are you? >> I'm good. How are you?
>> CBS News. Just want to ask a quick question. >> Sure. What personal responsibility do
you have to make sure that children are safe who use the Kick app? >> Yeah, I I think I have a huge
responsibility. >> I'm sure you're familiar with Nicole Levelvel, a 13-year-old girl in
Virginia. What would you say to Nicole's parents? >> Like when we heard about that case, like
that hit the office and hit me super hard. Like many social media companies, Kick posts an online guide for parents
and in a statement told 48 Hours the company cooperates with law enforcement. >> Ted Livingston claims his app is as safe
as the competition. >> I think it's no different than Facebook or Snapchat and or Instagram. You know,
you have bad people going. >> As a parent, I disagree. I can check my child's Facebook account and Twitter
account. I friend them. But with Kick, I can't. >> Yeah, I think that's no different than
Instagram. You have a private mode. You can have private messaging. All that exists there.
>> That's true. But Kick's design is attracting millions of teens in part because many believe it's parent proof.
The best app to keep their social lives secret. >> Kids are going to use a messenger. If we
were to shut down Kick tomorrow, there will be 10 right behind it. >> And she's like, "Hey, do you want to
message me on some app called Kick?" And I was like, "Sure." Kick isn't on trial,
but two once promising college students would soon be in the murder of Nicole Levelvel.
[music] It was Nicole Levelvel's digital footprint that led police to Virginia Tech freshman David Eisenhower. [music]
When they brought him in for questioning, he said he'd recently encountered the young girl on an
anonymous chat app. And they moved over to Kick >> and she's like, "Hey, do you want to
message me on some app called Kick?" And I was like, "Sure, whatever." >> Eisenhower said he met Nicole in person
just once the night she died. that he went to meet her, quickly saw how young she was, and left her alive.
>> I see someone who probably looked like she was 11 years old climbing out of the
window, and I was like, "Oh, uh-uh. Not for me." And I'm sitting here just like thinking to myself, "You got to get out
of here. You got to get out of here. You got to get out of here." >> But Nicole's kick account told another
story altogether that they had been on kick for months. They had met in person at least once before and most likely
been intimate. With reason to worry, Eisenhower volunteered. He just purchased a new snow shovel and offered
up his friend. >> Would it help to mention I had someone else with me when I bought the shovel
for snow purposes? Her name is uh Natalie Keepers. >> And so police rounded up that second
Virginia [music] Tech student, Natalie Keepers. They recorded her telling a stunning tale beginning the day before
the murder >> on Monday. There was a general idea that okay, he has to get her into the car
somehow. >> Keeper said Eisenhower feared Nicole was about to expose their relationship and
asked for help brainstorming ways to kill her. >> On Tuesday, that's when the official
plan started coming together. They bought the shovel, went out to [music] dinner, and then Eisenhower
dropped Keepers at her dorm. He had a pre-arranged date with Nicole. Then Keepers told the officers
Eisenhower picked Nicole up, drove her into the woods, and stabbed her to death. The next day, he and Keepers went
back to Walmart for cleaning supplies and disposed of the body together. >> Okay. Where is she? She's on a road that
finds grandparents house. >> Armed with this news, officers raced to find Nicole's body. Eisenhower and
keepers were arrested. For Nicole's family, a long wait was just beginning. >> Is there any doubt who is responsible
for the death of your daughter? It took two years, but in February of 2018, Eisenhower went on trial for her
murder. >> Okay. Couple things. >> Prosecutors describe Nicole's final hours as she waited for her secret date.
>> She gives her mom a kiss and she tells her she's going to bed. Cole pushes her dresser in front of the
door. She climbs out of the window into the snowy night >> and into Eisenhower's waiting car.
Nicole's mother described the horror of finding her daughter gone. >> When was the next time that you saw
Nicole in her coffin? Security footage showed Eisenhower and keepers buying the shovel. Photos
revealed blood stains and the bloody shovel found in Eisenhower's [music] car. >> That is a receipt.
>> And a Walmart employee read a list of items they purchased [music] before discarding Nicole's body.
>> Top job basic bleach cleaner, Great Value disinfectant wipes, and two pairs of cleaning gloves.
Eisenhower's lawyer said Natalie Keepers killed Nicole. And he said a bloody handprint on the shovel proves it. The
palm print that made that bloody palm print on the shovel was not David Eisenhower.
It was ruled out as being David Eisenhower. It was Natalie Keepers. But on the fourth day of testimony came
a bombshell announcement. >> Guilty or not guilty? >> No contest. >> Facing a mountain of incriminating
evidence, Eisenhower suddenly changed his plea from not guilty to no contest. >> Prosecutors read one of his last kick
messages with Nicole into the court record >> from the defendant. But I can't stress
enough that you don't tell anyone about me because they will find a way to hurt you. From Nicole Low. Who will hurt me?
Who's they? Why are you scaring me? Mr. Please stand. >> The judge accepted his revised plea and
ruled Eisenhower guilty. >> Find you guilty of ab charged in the indictment. But Nicole's family still had one more
ordeal to sit through. In September 2018, Natalie Keepers went on trial [music] as an accessory to murder. She
had already pleaded guilty to helping Eisenhower conceal Nicole's body. Prosecutors told new jurors the same
story that David Eisenhower killed Nicole Levelville, but he had help from Natalie Keepers.
>> Over several weeks, they planned out the murder. They considered shooting her,
poisoning her, making it look like it was a suicide. >> Prosecutors played audio recordings of
keepers describing Eisenhower's messages to her on kick. He would say off her kill the [ __ ] Um,
kill her. >> Keeper said she knew it was wrong. >> Had no emotion. He became a sociopath and he thought of
me as a sociopath in training. Hey guys. >> Keeper's attorney called a neurossychologist who examined Keepers
and diagnosed her with seven mental disorders, including borderline personality disorder and a disorder like
schizophrenia. >> These people may look odd. Their sense of reality is off. Their
ability to relate to others is off. Their interpersonal skills are off. The doctor said Keeper's mental state could
have made her interview with the officers unreliable. >> Such a person would be highly easily influenced and gullible
and would be easily led. >> And Keeper's lawyers say she was playing along with Eisenhower to keep his
friendship and had no idea he would really kill Nicole. You will hear her actually describe that
she thought it was a fantasy, something that wasn't real. >> I thought he was joking. I didn't think
David could actually kill her. >> But the prosecutors disputed that notion and read keeper kick messages to
Eisenhower after the murder, telling him he deserved a good night's sleep. >> She's proud. She's proud of what she and
David Eisenhower did. It's almost like congratulating someone for getting through five finals in a
week. You deserve it. Get some sleep. >> The jury took just over one hour to reach a verdict.
>> Will you, the jury, unanimously find the defendant, Natalie Marie Keepers, guilty
of being an accessory before the fact. >> Natalie Keepers was sentenced to 40 years in prison and David Eisenhower was
sentenced to 50 years in prison. Neither is eligible for parole. They both apologized to Nicole's family.
>> I wish I could have stopped. I never intended for this to happen. [snorts] >> Nothing can ever undo what has been
done. And for that, I am deeply, sincerely, and forever sorry. >> Even with guilty verdicts, the question
of why may never be answered. The shell shock community of Blackburg still doesn't understand how two
intelligent college kids with their lives in front of them would take the life of a 13-year-old
girl. >> I wish he would have done it to me instead of her. I would trade places with her in a
heartbeat. cuz she deserved to live >> and nothing's the same. >> Nicole Levelvel's death is a dark
reminder of how social media >> I'm Nicole Level >> have profoundly changed society
>> for the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. I hope everybody learns from this. Hold their kids tight because it can
happen to you. >> Today, our children have a host of new ways to live and new ways [music] to die as well.
>> 48 hours. To miss it would be a crime. >> Were you at all prepared for what happened in this case? Hey, hey, hey.
[music] [music] [music] >> [music]

“48 Hours” cases involving encounters with strangers. Watch the YouTube mini-marathon, which includes "The Stranger You Know," "Fatal First Date" and "Killer App."

00:00 The Stranger You Know 42:19 Fatal First Date 01:24:07 Killer App

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

Marty Hill survives a brutal attack by contractor Brian Pennington, leading to a complex investigation and emotional recovery for her family.

Key points

The Discovery. Marty is found in a pool of blood, raising immediate concerns about her safety.
Marty's Recovery. Marty begins to regain her memory and recounts the attack.
Marty's Recovery Journey. Marty reflects on her recovery and the role her daughter plays in her healing.
Confronting the Attacker. A family member confronts Brian Pennington during victim statements, seeking answers.
Leslie's Self-Defense Classes. Leslie empowers women with self-defense techniques, but struggles with her own past.
Bobby Tar's Alibi Unravels. Bobby Tar's story about his whereabouts on the night of the murder begins to fall apart.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I will never be mean to you ever again.

8:11WatchAug 1, 2026

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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