Triumphant Clues | "48 Hours" Full Episodes | Forensic Files

As a mother, Michelle was awesome. I called her the picture girl. Pictures, pictures, pictures.
She looked like a million dollars. Wear high heels and [music] carry a baby on her hip. When she was a child, it was
hard not to have a close friend relationship with her, even though I had to be the mom.
>> A woman has vanished from her Houston apartment. Her family and friends are fearing the worst.
>> I got the phone call from my son and David said something's wrong. >> Authorities say Warner's arange
boyfriend claimed she stormed out of the apartment following an argument. >> Mark Castellano was Michelle's boyfriend
for a while. Mark and Michelle did meet at work. She captivates a room when she walks [music] in. That part about her is
completely true. She mesmerizes people. [music] >> They had a son together who was Kaden.
Michelle was living with Mark the night she disappeared. We called the police. Everyone was searching.
>> We don't have a scene. We don't have a witness. We don't have evidence. We don't have a body.
The more we thought about it, we kind of looked at each other and said, "Let's go
back and let's search it. So, will you explain to me how you use the iPhone and FaceTime?
>> They tried to follow it like a treasure map. >> Like that kind of thing, right?
>> Correct. >> Well, it was in real time. >> So, you were facetiming. Correct. So, it's like I'm aiming it at this tree
here and you say, "Do I go to the right of the tree or is it more to the left of
the tree?" That kind of thing. >> Correct. Exactly what I'm looking at right now.
>> A week went by. Michelle was still missing. We heard about Dr. Phil and Mark Castellano was going on his show.
>> Today, we will take you inside a national news story as it unfolded in front of our cameras in real time. Mark
was going to be on Dr. Phil. [music] When he said he wanted to talk with you, what'd you do?
>> I got on an airplane, flew to Odesscent. There was a woman missing and like everybody else, we wanted to help find
her. >> I'm staying strong for my son. I cry every once in a while. >> But you're hurting inside.
>> Yes, I'm hurting inside. This is killing me. >> Friends describe her as bubbly. Those
same people describe you as psychotic. >> Well, they don't like me too much. She
has to be alive. I'm sorry. She does. She has to be out there. >> If she is watching this right now with
>> she can come home. And >> what do you say to her? >> She We can fix this. >> It was the worst week of my life.
Michelle was just gone. I'm Tracy [music] Smith. Tonight on 48 Hours Gone. [music]
>> [music] >> It's just about a 45minute drive from the refineries of the Texas coast to the
highrises of downtown Houston. And in 2000, 20-year-old Michelle Warner moved to the big city. She was a new mom
looking to make a fresh start. Michelle did have the small town girl in her, but Michelle always desired to go
to the big city. Donna Malone is Michelle's mom. >> She loved to talk to people. Um, she
never met a stranger. >> We were really, really close when we were young kids, and I mean really
close. >> Her brother David, >> from the time we were born, we did pretty much everything together. I was
her child, not theirs. She just grew into this beautiful swan, you know, and she had the long pretty hair and um a
beautiful smile. She started going to college and started studying criminal justice.
But things didn't exactly work out. Michelle may have been a saint, but she was also a sinner. She married right
after high school in 2001 [music] and had a daughter, Haley. When that marriage went south in 2003, little
Haley went to live with the ex-husband and Michelle was on her own. >> Michelle was a great mom. Um, but she
ran into some tough times in her life. >> She fell in with a bad crowd. She even
disappeared a couple of times and she was arrested for possession of cocaine. But that was eight years ago. And her
family says Michelle's dark days were behind her. >> She was finally turning around. She was
no longer on any kind of drugs. She was going to work every day. >> In 2008, she also began a relationship
with a man she met at work, a man named Mark Costellano. >> My impression of Mark from the very
beginning was what an odd duck. What a strange little man. >> Mark Costellano and Michelle had met on
the job. She was a secretary at a medical firm. He was the IT guy. You know, the person who fixed computers. I
absolutely do not know what Michelle saw in Mark. >> He's always been, you know, a little
off. >> In 2009, Michelle and Mark had a son, Kaden. But Donna says Mark Costellano
wasn't much of a dad. >> Kaden was about 2 months old, and Mark just went away. Just I can't handle
this. It's too stressful for me. Everything was always about me, me, me, me, me, me. In those early days, life
was tough for Michelle as a single mom, bouncing from job to job >> and no child support. He did not pay any
child support. Michelle was doing it on her own, struggling to do it on her own.
Um, it was very difficult for her. >> Then in the summer of 2012, she got a break, a new job at a law firm in
Houston. All she needed was a place for her and Kaden, now 3 years old, to stay.
She reached out to the one person she knew there, Mark Costellano. He agreed to let them stay at his Houston
apartment, but Michelle set down some rules. When Michelle moved back in with Mark, the agreement between them was
that they would live together, raise the child together, but not as a romantically involved couple.
>> But just three months after moving in with Castellano, on Saturday, September
22nd, 2012, Michelle was gone. A woman has vanished from her Houston apartment. Family and friends are fearing the
worst. >> When Michelle's brother, David, couldn't get a hold of his sister, he called
Castellano and confronted him. >> Do you have any idea where she may be? You're the last person I know of that's
actually seen her. >> Yeah. Yeah, I am. I am. But I, like I said, I don't know where the hell she
went. >> Costellano told David that he and Michelle had had a fight. She walked out
and left her car and her toddler behind. David was surprised to learn on the night Michelle disappeared, Castellano
took Michelle's car and drove Kaden more than 500 miles, over 8 hours, to his parents' house in West Texas.
>> Mark's story did not make any sense. >> Almost immediately, Michelle's family
filed a missing person's report. 5 days passed, nothing. That's when Houston homicide detectives got the case.
>> Where are we? >> We are at the apartment complex where Mark and Michelle live together.
>> Veteran Houston homicide detectives Phil Waters and Sergeant Brian Harris. >> When you first came here, you went in
and what did you do? >> Went to the apartment. Uh the family was there. Actually, it was interesting that
Mark's story was what happened. You know, I mean, in terms of uh the story that he was telling everyone,
>> Castellano had told David in that phone call that he and Michelle had been arguing over Kaden when she walked out.
>> All of the events leading up to it, the fight, all of that stuff that happened
here, >> accurate happened, at least what he's telling us. The only people in the
scenario that are casting any kind of suspicion on Mark are Michelle's family. That's where all of that is coming from.
And they're not saying things like, "You know what? Michelle told me yesterday that if anything ever happened to me,
it's Mark." >> Instead, you were getting >> we were getting, "We don't like Mark.
It's Mark's the bad guy." And it's more personality dislikes about Mark. >> But back at the apartment, [music] cops
did find something strange. >> We knew that Mark was an IT guy. He's a techie nerd. So then what becomes
noticeable in the apartment, there are computers, but all the hard drives are gone.
>> The homicide detectives wanted to talk with Castellano, so they called him at
his parents' house in West Texas. Turns out he had an unusual question for them.
>> He said, "Can I ask you a question, though? I need some advice." And I said, "Sure." And he said, "Do you think I
ought to let Dr. Phil interview me?" >> What'd you say? >> Well, I was a little stunned. I said,
"Dr. Phil." And I said, "Absolutely. Let Dr. Phil interview you." As the week passed, the search for
Michelle expanded quickly from Houston to West Texas all the way here to Los Angeles and the Dr. Phil show.
>> Today, we will take you inside a national news story as it unfolded in front of our cameras in real time. It
was Dr. Phil McGrath, not the police, [music] who would first interrogate Costalano about Michelle's mysterious
disappearance. >> Let's talk about the night she disappeared. >> Okay. >> You had a fight.
>> Yes, sir. >> And was this a physical fight or an argument or both? >> Basically, I come home. Um, she's in her
room. First thing she does is start yelling at me that the Caden has made a big mess. We start fighting. She walks
up to me and she gives me this kind of sucker punch while I'm on the fort. I mean it she she hits me all the time and
I don't retaliate, but she hit me and said, "And clean it up, right?" expletative expletive and she goes in
and slams the door. >> What was your first impression of him? >> That he was a game player. He thought he
was the smartest guy in the room and he wanted everybody to know it. >> You go back in to resume the argument,
frankly. >> Yes. And >> she's gone. >> She's gone. >> I would take her pictures out and say
out loud, "Michelle, where are you?" You know, just call me, text me, please. >> More troubling information in the search
for a missing mother. >> No one has heard from Warner in a week. Today we're talking about the story of a
beautiful young mother, Michelle Warner, who went missing after a violent fight with her ex-boyfriend, Mark Castellano.
>> From the very beginning, Dr. Phil McGra felt there was something suspicious about Mark Castellano. Why do you think
Mark Castellano wanted to come on your show? >> Well, you know, I think this guy is a
narcissist. I mean, I really do. >> She basically owns me in a in a lot of ways, and I I admit that. I I caved to
Michelle nine ten of the time. >> Costalano was on the defensive. >> He said to you she could have just
disappeared again. >> Right. >> That was a possibility. >> He says it was a possibility. She could
have gone in the bedroom, locked the door, gone out the door and left. But her car is still there.
>> And her son is still there. >> Her son is still there. Her car is still there. But she's gone off the grid.
>> Meanwhile, in Houston, 500 m to the east, the cops were searching the grid, trying to find Michelle.
>> We do something called the psychological autopsy. We start breaking down the person's life. And so that's what we
were having to do with Michelle. >> Back in West Texas, Dr. Phil continued his interview with Costalano.
>> He had a hunch that those missing hard drives might [music] be connected to Michelle's disappearance. So he grilled
Mark. >> You said you would show them to me when I have. >> Do you have them here?
>> Yes. >> Can we Can we look at them? >> Yeah, I'll bring them to you. One second.
>> Um, no. I don't have them cuz he still has them. >> He's still copying. >> Okay. Well, you can come back.
>> Okay. Sorry. I thought I already He brought them back, but he didn't. >> You said you were going to show those to
us and you got up and walked to the door and then said, "Oh, that's right. They're not here." But not 15 minutes
before we got here, you told my producer they weren't here. You already knew they
weren't here when you got up to go get them. >> My mind is scatterrained right now. I
mean, I I forgot. >> I forgot. >> Bells are going off right now. I'm talking to him and I'm watching the
theater of what's going on. >> What was he doing? >> You know, he's playing games here. To
him, it's a manipulation. And I'm wondering why he's not putting all of his effort, all of his emphasis on
finding Michelle. You know, my dad used to say, "For every rat you see, there's 50 you don't." When he tells you that
lie, there's 50 more. >> Dr. Phil relentlessly peeled back Costellano's story. >> He also admits throwing her cat down the
hallway, throwing her cat into a wall. And that is very troubling to me. >> Each revelation led him closer to the
conclusion that Costalano killed Michelle. >> Was there violence? >> There was violence. She and I would
would wrestle, push each other around. Um there was one time I choked her. >> He admits to being violent with her.
>> He admits to being violent with her to the point of choking her. Now think about this. if he in fact is culpable in
her disappearance, why in the world would he admit that? >> So, let's look at the moment when you
asked him the big question. >> It's really odd for a mother to just not check on find out anything about a
child. If you think something has happened to her, why aren't you looking for her? I mean, as far as everybody has
exhausted the leads that I have, I don't know where where else to go. I They the
police are looking for her. They're professionals. >> Did you do anything to her that would be
considered foul play or criminal? >> No. No. >> Did you kill her? >> No, sir. So, as you left,
where did you stand with Mark Castellano? What did you think? It is clear in my mind. I'm not believing a
word he is saying. When I walked out the door, I said, "He killed her." No doubt
about it. >> You said it then. >> He killed her. >> But Castellano hadn't confessed to
anything. After Dr. Phil returned to LA to get his show ready for broadcast, detectives
brought Costalano in and turned up the heat. This is where it happened. Houston Homicide Division. Here in the interview
room, it wasn't exactly what you might think. There was no tough guy posturing, no rolled up shirt sleeves, guns on the
hip, no raised voices. It was pure psychology. >> I was like, Phil, when you go in there,
it's like it's like walking into a minefield because one, you don't want to upset him and make him angry where all
of a sudden he says the L word, lawyer, or he says, I want to leave. >> Detective Waters takes the lead. Okay.
So, the first thing, you're not under arrest. And again, I've told you I certainly appreciate you coming here and
talking to us. >> I want Michelle to be found. >> He's spending a lot of time here.
[music] >> I want Michelle to be found. That's what Costalano just said. That's his story
and he's sticking to it. >> Have you tried to call her >> at this point? No, I don't want to call
her. >> This was it. This was it. We had no evidence. We had nothing. >> So, all this stuff is going. So,
Detective Waters started looking for motive. >> If Costalano was a killer, [music] did
something push him over the edge? >> Pressure is building. >> The pressure is building on me. Yes.
>> Got it. >> When she gets mad, she's violent. She'll hit you. She thinks she has the right
to. You know, man has to take up crap. She's a pretty girl and she gets everything she wants. She She has a
princess attitude. >> Wow. >> That princess attitude phrase was a flag for detectives, an insight into how
Costalano viewed the relationship. we kind of get a flavor for your relationship. And this is just my
impression is that when it's when it's good, it's like intensely good, but when it is bad, right,
>> it is intensely bad. >> Detective Waters approach, no tough questions yet. He's trying to get
Castellano to trust him. >> Let's get to last Saturday, the 22nd. Okay. >> Walks out and slams the door to her
room. And about 10 15 minutes later, I opened the door to say, "Well, you know what?" And it's gone.
>> She's gone. >> Once that narrative was complete and he felt like he had told his story. It was
at that point that I'm now going to confront you. >> I need you to explain to me what
happened. We >> This is a dance. I'm letting Mark play the music and then at one point another
song comes on and it's mine and now the dance changes. >> We both know. We both know Michelle did
not walk out of that apartment. I don't love her. I'm not in love with her. I mean, I don't want anything to
happen. I I wish Michelle would pop up right now. Hey, when she gets mad, she's violent. I'm I don't care what anybody
says she is. If she >> I said something about Did you take too many pills? You can't watch Kaden or
something. >> Detective Phil Waters sat for hours talking to Mark Costellano, gaining his
trust. >> She was like, I can't tolerate Kaden. and she was like, "I need help with
him." She's like, "He's driving me nuts." >> Waters finally discovered a way to bring
out the truth about what happened that night. >> You brought up Kaden. >> Yes. >> So, your your concern for Kaden is
mainly centered on when Michelle is the primary >> right >> caregiver. Kaden was the most important
part of his life. So, I knew that I was going to have to frame whatever he did in that apartment in that context.
>> That context, getting Castellano to admit his actions that night were to protect Kaden.
>> It wasn't about hurting Michelle. It was about the love and the strength of that
love that you have for Kaden and protecting him from anybody that would threaten or hurt him. And that's what
you're going to have to explain now. >> The strategy worked. >> So, I want you to be honest with me and
tell me what happened. >> When he took his glasses off, I went, "Here it comes."
>> You knew? >> I just knew it. >> She's getting dressed and she's finishing up and she's still yelling and Kaden's
hiding. >> [snorts] >> I grabbed her and I broke her neck. >> Boom. There he comes with it.
>> I'm sorry. Um, >> gave me the death penalty. That's fine. >> I deserve it, >> Mark. Look, I'm proud of you.
>> Life is over with anyway. >> Your your life's not over with, Mark. I push her and then grab her and then
>> But by the time Sergeant Harris came into the room, Costellano seemed to pull
himself together and physically demonstrated how he killed Michelle. >> Costalano claimed Michelle's erratic and
abusive behavior pushed him over the edge. >> She'll hit you. She thinks she has the
right to. >> He painted this picture of Michelle as an abusive woman. >> Yes. >> When you talk to other people, did they
say that she was volatile? She had a temper. She was abusive. >> Everyone we talked to described her as a
not just family members, but um as a loving mother. >> Was there any evidence that Michelle was
abusive to Mark? >> Not anything that was documented other than Mark's story. >> I'll be right back.
>> After his confession, he was left alone with his phone. But instead of calling a lawyer,
>> hey, mom, >> he called his parents. >> Well, I confessed I did it. >> He called his brother.
>> I'm sorry that all the facade that I put up for a week, but I can't take the guilt anymore.
>> A friend >> and I wanted you to know that she's dead. >> He even talked with Dr. Phil's producer.
>> It was a moment of rage. I just I couldn't take it anymore. I pretty much confessed to everybody I
can think of. >> Castellano had also told Detective Waters what happened moments after he
killed Michelle as he stood over her body lying on the bed. >> He said that Kaden walked in and said,
"What's wrong with mommy?" And he turned around and his response was, "Oh, she's
taking a nap." >> He put Kaden in a bath and then dragged Michelle's body into the closet. That's
when he loaded Kaden into Michelle's car [music] and drove through the night over
500 miles to West Texas. He left Kaden [music] with his parents, turned around and drove all the way back
to Houston, back to the apartment where he had left Michelle. >> How did he get her out of the building?
>> He packaged her up in a large container, plastic container, and duct taped her
hands and feet, put a bag over her head. He said he explained that he put the bag
over her head because he was tired of looking at her. Uh >> he was tired of looking at her.
>> Tired of looking at her. >> With the container loaded in the backseat of Michelle's car, Costellano
once again made that long drive back to West Texas. Outside of Midland, he buried Michelle in a shallow grave.
It turned out Michelle's body was somewhere out here in these endless West Texas oil fields. Costalano had drawn a
map and given police a rough idea of where the grave was, but it wasn't a good enough description. The key to
finding Michelle's body was as close as an iPhone. >> Hello. >> Hi, Sergeant Harris. It's Tracy from 48.
Well, you can see that, right? Harrison Waters stayed in Houston with Castellano
while local police and FBI agents tried to locate Michelle's body with the map, but it only got them in the general
vicinity. >> So, they called us in the interview room and we decided to try the FaceTime.
>> FaceTime is the Apple iPhone's video phone. You can see and hear whatever the
person on the other end of the line wants to show you. Mark was actually speaking to the detectives and they were
holding their phone out >> like that kind of thing. Right. >> Correct. And he was able to see. Then
they did much what we're doing right now. >> Just walking around aiming it. >> Correct. And so they panned the area and
then he told them to stop and he directed them towards it was like more of a big scrub brush.
When they got closer, that's when the FBI agent, we could hear her say, "I found her. I found her."
[music] With the discovery of Michelle's body, Castellano was finally arrested and
charged with murder 8 days after Michelle went missing. An exclusive interview. >> Dr. Phil's show went on TV a few days
later. >> Mom vanishes. The killer confesses. [music] >> Until Mark's confession, Caden had been
staying with his relatives. But now, authorities moved him in with Michelle's family.
With Costello behind bars, I got the chance to confront him. And what he told us was a brand new version of what
happened that night. Hi Mark. I'm Tracy Smith from CBS News 48 hours. >> From the start.
>> You okay? >> Yes, [music] ma'am. >> Mark Costellano had told everyone >> she's gone.
>> She's gone. >> Yes, sir. >> Lies. >> So, we wanted to set the ground rules before our interview.
>> So, here's the thing, Mark. You lied to the cops. You lied to Dr. Phil. You lied
to your parents. >> Mhm. >> Why should we believe you now? this point. So, there's no point to lie
about anything. I don't like lying. I don't like lying at all. It's not me. I'd rather just go ahead and tell the
truth and get it over with. >> Are you telling me the truth now? >> Yes, of course I'm telling you the
truth. >> The first thing Costellano wanted to tell us. >> We got into a fight. It just it just happened all wrong.
>> Was that he was not a murderer. >> It was, you know, not my finest hour. >> Not your finest hour?
>> No. >> Why do you say that? Well, I mean this the whole thing wasn't my finest hour,
but like >> he says yes, it was true the couple had a fight that night, but he was the
victim. >> It got violent. >> Well, yet they always get violent. She beats the hell out of me. I've been
beaten by this woman for a long time. >> But this time, Castellano says he'd had
enough. Remember, there's never been an official report of abuse in this case. >> So, did you just snap
>> to to retaliate back from her swinging at me? Yeah, I snapped her, hit her back. This time I was tired of being hit
and yeah, then I was going to defend myself this time around. >> So, you threw stuff back and forth and
then you grabbed her. >> I didn't grab her yet. She punched, she threw another punch at me.
>> And then >> that's when I I grabbed her and lunged forward. >> This is where Castellano's story
changes. >> I grabbed her and I broke her neck. I'm sorry. >> From his confession to the police.
>> So, I want to go back to this confession. what actually happened that night. >> That's what we don't really talk about.
>> That's Costalano's lawyer at all, telling him not to reveal all of what happened that night. Still,
>> I should have done this. I should have done that. >> He did tell us a few details. [music]
Costellano now says it was all an accident. In the struggle, he says Michelle died when he ended up falling
on top of her neck. Michelle's death was my fault because I'm the one that fell on her.
>> That fell on her. >> Yes, I did fall on her. She just I like that. I mean, she was just lifeless and
all of a sudden, you know, her body let go and but it was an accident. >> Michelle's mother, Donna Malone, can
barely contain her disgust. >> First of all, I will never believe it was just an accident. You don't just an
accident murder someone and feel nothing. >> You drive a car and you hit somebody.
Did you want to hit them? No. You're like, it was an accident. You might be at someone's house and they just had
brand new carpet put in and reading velvet cake and you drop it on the floor. Do you want to do it? No. You
feel bad about it? Yes. But still, accidents are accidents. They're not planned. That's why they're called
accidents. That tear was the only time during our interview that Costellano showed any emotion.
>> He's a liar. Comparing it to spilling cake on someone's floor, but to murder someone,
that's a a violent act. >> Did you choke her? >> No, I didn't choke her. >> But you said you were angry.
>> I was very angry. >> You said you snapped. >> Yeah. To to to go ahead and actually
raise my hands against her. I had a gun. I've always had a 9 mm. If I really wanted to kill Michelle, I would have
shot her. I would have taken my gun and shot her. >> That he could just have shot her if he
wanted to kill her. That's just nonsense talk. It's nonsense. >> What did you do with Michelle's body?
>> Um, it stayed it stayed um it stayed in the closet, you know. I looked at her
and it was just like, "Oh my god." So that's when I put the bag over her head and I put her in the closet.
>> Why the bag over her head? Because just her face, the way he was frozen, I knew I messed up.
>> Did it occur to you as you were handling her body that this was the woman that
you loved? This was the mother of your child. >> I did. It did. And I also know I
couldn't bring her back. >> 3 days later, Costellano would dump Michelle's lifeless body in that shallow
grave. How do you feel about misleading people for so long? >> Well, it was a tough call. It was a very
tough call. I didn't plan on getting away with this. If I had planned on getting away with this, I would have got
away with it. >> I feel very angry about the fact that Mark lied to all of us. He could have
just told the truth from the beginning. It was obvious that everyone was on to him, family, law enforcement. Why not
just tell the truth? Get it over with. >> She did attack me first. The more Costalano talked, the more it seemed he
was angry with women. >> I mean, women are now y'all are replacing men in a lot of aspects. Y'all
are becoming the big time aggressors. Women are now the new aggressors. She's beautiful and you're beautiful
woman yourself. Life's a little easier for for women like you because people just can't put
[snorts] bad things with pretty people. >> It sounds like you resent that a little
bit, Mark. Well, when you sit there and have been told that when you're not a pretty person that you know life's going
to suck for you. >> Mark Costellano's bizarre answers during our jailhouse interview raised more
questions about what makes him tick. >> I'd rather just go ahead. >> So, we wanted to talk more about it with
Dr. Phil. I got to say I really screwed myself over the way I confessed everything because first of all I didn't
really describe everything accurately and second of all I didn't really think I was going to every word I was going to
say was going to be used completely out of context which it was in a lot of ways.
>> He's criticizing the process. Things were taken out of context. Well, here's the context. Did you kill her or did you
not? I think this guy has such an inferiority complex. And that's one of the things about narcissism. There's a
false sense of superiority, but it's a false sense of superiority. >> The truth is they really feel inferior.
>> They really feel very inferior, very put upon. And he felt very much that he had
reached above his level with Michelle and >> that she was out of his league. out of
his league. She was way over his head in this instance. She did not reject him. He had the ultimate rejection of her.
>> What do you think his motive was? >> I think this guy is very hedonistic. I I
think this relationship was on the downslope. I think it was falling apart and I think he felt her slipping away. I
I think it was one of those situations where if I can't have you, nobody will >> come up.
>> At his trial, Castellano's [music] attorneys will present his new version of what he says is the truth.
>> We the jury, >> but will the jury buy it? It was very hard to wait on the trial.
We wanted some form of justice for Michelle. We felt that we were building up to this this pinnacle that would
bring us some sort of peace. May 27th, 2014, Mark Costellano is on trial for the murder of Michelle Warner,
the mother of their son, Hayden. This is a case about obsession, rage. >> Assistant District Attorney Jamie Raina,
>> and this defendant's calculated attempts to get away with murder. He became so upset with Michelle that he
grabbed her by the neck, that he started to choke her. He started to squeeze her
in the neck. You'll hear him tell those officers he choked her for one and a half to two
minutes. call investigator Phil Waters. >> At the center of the prosecution's case,
Mark's own words, that videotaped confession to Detective Waters. >> And we both know, we both know Michelle
did not walk out of that apartment. >> So, I want you to be honest with me and tell me what happened.
I grabbed her and I broke her neck. >> Okay. >> The state medical examiner testifies
Michelle was strangled >> high up in the neck. >> Her hyoid bone just beneath her jaw was
broken. Mark Costellano does not take the stand. Instead, his lawyer, Eric Davis, presents that very different
story. Michelle's death was an accident. >> She comes at him and he grabs her and
he's controlling and he falls down with his weight on hers and hears the pop. When he reached out to defend himself to
protect himself, he didn't anticipate that she would fall and break her neck. >> I didn't find any real evidence that the
throat was disturbed. >> An expert for the defense, a forensic engineer, testifies Mark's accident
story was a possibility. There's no physical evidence that shows any type of squeezing or sideways forces. All of the
physical evidence shows is forces applied from the front. >> So, what's the detective's reaction to
Castellano's defense? >> Is that possible that he fell on her and that's how her neck snapped?
>> No. >> The problem is is that you cannot accidentally strangle someone for a minute and a half
to two minutes. >> Show me what you think he did. what he told you he did to Michelle. What did he
do? >> He's so mad. He follows her in the bedroom and he goes and whatever takes
place, he reaches out and he's just grabbing her for a minute and a half and two, he's grabbing her, grabbing her,
and she has nowhere to go. >> If Castellano thought the jury might take pity on him, prosecutors would
present more [music] evidence that shows the actions of a cold, callous killer. Weeks after Mark's confession,
detectives discovered a chilling piece of surveillance video. So that's their apartment right over
there. And across the way on that building there, there was a camera and that camera showed a shadowy view of the
back stairs of Castellano's apartment. So he drags her body in a bin down the stairs.
>> Uh you see him stop and he has worn himself out. He even says when he's on the phone with people that he's
confessing to, you know, Michelle had gained a lot of weight. So, it was really a a really an exercise
to bring her down the steps and put her in the car. As for those hard drives that seemed to
be so important in the early days of the investigation, turns out they weren't relevant to the case.
If you cannot remain composed when the verdict's read, you should step outside at this time because
>> after more than a week of testimony, 19 witnesses, and six hours of deliberations, a verdict ending an
anxious wait for Michelle's family. >> If you'd stand, please. Mr. Castiano. We the jury find the defendant
guilty of murder as charged in the indictment. >> Mark Costellano guilty in the strangling
death of Michelle Warner. >> I was very pleased with the fact that he was um declared guilty. I said, "Okay,
good. They did this quickly." So, I believe that that this is in the hands of a good, solid jury and they'll do the
right thing. >> The next day, Michelle's loved ones are back in court for Castellano's
sentencing. [music] Ironically, it's also Michelle's birthday. She would have turned 33.
>> Each side will be given 25 minutes to argue their case. Mark Costellano's attorney begs for mercy and argues his
client's much talked about confession was a show of remorse. >> I'm sorry. Crime was solved because of a man's
conscience. In fact, if Mr. Kasiano had kept his mouth shut, we wouldn't be here. But he did what most criminals
don't do. He told on himself. No matter what you do, he's going to the penitentiary. The question is how long.
>> Michelle's family wants to see Costalano receive the harshest penalty, life in
prison. >> I do not think that he has any sense of remorse. None. I hear nothing but
excuses that it was Michelle's fault that he did what he did and we all have free choice and he chose to kill her.
>> The jurors spent four hours debating [music] his fate. All rise of the jury. >> Finally, a decision.
>> The jury having found you guilty of murder. You're now sentenced to 27 years in the institutional division of the
Texas Department. >> The sentence feels like a slap in the face for Michelle's family.
>> One word went through my mind when I heard 27 years. Seriously. After several months, it's still
impossible for the family to [music] understand the jury's decision. I don't know what happened in in the room while
the deliberation was going on because I've not had not one juror come forward and speak to me. I do not feel that I
got closure for my daughter's death and neither does any of the rest of her family. None of us do. Now it is up to
Michelle's family to explain to two kids, a daughter living with her ex-husband [music] and little Kaden why
their mother is gone. >> Is like taking your entire world and flipping it over. You You don't expect
anything like that to ever hit that close to home for you. And it's turmoil. >> I miss the the laughter that I shared
with her. And I I just miss the conversation. I can't have that anymore. And that's
very sad. It's very lonely. It makes me feel lonely. So, it's an empty hole that will always
be there for the rest of my life. And that's a hard thing to swallow. [music] >> [music]
[music] >> Heat. Heat. >> [music] [music] >> The morning of [music] February the
15th, um I got up early, brought my wife coffee in bed, and then we had our Valentine's celebration. [music] I gave
her a card. She gave me a card. >> I think that the Valentine's Day was always a very special day for her.
>> He painted a picture [music] of of lovers. He talked about how how sweet and caring and tender they were with
each other. [music] >> She wrote me a card said I was the most important person in her life and she
loved me very much. That morning >> after the breakfast, Alan McNton told us that he went to his mother's house in
Sandy Springs, [music] Georgia, about 35 miles away. >> Hey, baby, it's me. I'm leaving mother's
house. I love you. I'm >> Alex said that when he arrived home that that evening, he found that all the
lights were off. >> I walked through the house. I called out her name. I turned the corner and went
to her office and I saw her on the floor. I saw blood under her arm, blood on the
wall. So I called 911. >> 911. What's your emergency? >> I need help right now. I just got home.
My wife's on the floor with blood all over. I don't think she's breathing. >> When I walked in, the first thing I
noticed was cast off blood [music] that ran up the wall. I noticed that there was a large pool of
blood on the floor around her body and I could see cuts in her clothing and I could see, you know, open gaping wounds
where she had been stabbed on her torso. >> My sister called me [music] and she was
frantic and she basically said that the Kui County Police Department [music] needs us to come down that something's
happened to mom. >> I called my mom's phone, no answer. Called the house, no answer. [music]
Called Alex's phone, he answered. He was crying and I said, "Ale, [music] Alec, what's going on?" "Your
mother." >> He's like, "Your [music] mom, your mom." Like, he couldn't finish what he was
saying. >> "Your mother's gone, honey. Your mother's gone." >> I got another call from my sister. And
again, she was frantic. And she said, "Mom's [music] dead. Mom's dead." And I was like, "What? What are you talking
about?" I was in complete shock. I felt paralyzed. It was unreal. When they conducted a search warrant on
the house, they began to find [music] evidence. >> We did come upon a place in the back of
the closet. There were some objects there that were separate. They weren't shoes. They weren't clothes. It was a
bag and some cameras. >> It was a [music] critical piece of evidence. She did in fact speak from the
grave. I'm Richard Slesinger. Every picture tells a story. When I first walked into the home, there
wasn't any signs of forest entry. There were no broken door locks. Drawers weren't pulled out. clothing items
hadn't been tossed around the house. >> Criminal investigator Jason Fentner was only 29 and had just started working
homicides in Kawita County, Georgia, not far from Atlanta. >> Miss McNton was wearing jewelry, gold
and diamond jewelry on her person that had not been broken or ripped off or stolen.
>> This was his first major murder case and it was a doozy. >> It looked like a horror house that you
might go in on Halloween. Kathy McNottton had been stabbed [music] more than 30 times.
>> What took place? What kind of murder? >> But she was a most unlikely victim. >> By all accounts, Miss McDnolton was a
really nice person with no enemies. Everybody loved her. >> She was definitely chatty, very chatty.
We called her Chatty Kathy. >> Michelle Mendenhal is Kathy's youngest daughter. >> She always saw the best in people.
Always gave people the benefit of the doubt. [music] Kathy had retired after a long career at Delta Airlines and was in
training to join an investment firm. >> She worked from the bottom up at Delta when she started.
>> So your mother was really sort of a self-made woman. >> She was she always was independent,
financially independent. She used to always say, "Don't rely on a man, you know, financially."
>> But emotionally, she was not as independent as she would have liked. After nearly 21 years of marriage, Kathy
got a divorce. >> I don't [music] think she thought in her middle age she'd be divorced.
>> Heather Mendenhal is Kathy's oldest daughter. [music] >> It's kind of like I'm 50 years old and
you know, I'm lonely. >> Her two adult daughters were on their own. Kathy dated, but there was no one
special. >> She wanted to be happy and grow old with somebody. She went looking for love online and
that's where Kathy met Alec McNottton, a lawyer from Enid, Oklahoma. >> She was intelligent. She was well read,
wellraveled. We had a lot of those things in common. I mean, love is something that just happens. There's not
a whole lot of logic to it sometimes. >> Alec McNorton was 55. He'd been married
three times, and Kathy fell for him quickly. and hard. >> They had dated for about five, six
months and then they were already talking engagement. We definitely question like, "Mom, don't you think
this is a little too fast?" And she'd just be like, "Well, I you know, he's it. He's it. He's my soulmate."
>> And then on November 15th, 2004, less than one year after they met, Kathy and Alec became husband and wife.
>> It was a small wedding. My mom wore a big white dress. Was that out of character for your mother? I mean, did
did she do things quickly, impulsively? [music] >> No. >> So, what did you make of this?
>> I thought that she was happy. >> There were some problems. [music] McNottton told Kathy he was having
trouble getting his Georgia law license, so he became a car salesman, but they managed.
>> How was the [music] marriage? >> Very good. >> You were happy together? >> We were.
But the good times ended when McNorton's daughter, Alexis, from a previous marriage, was killed in a car accident
at the age of 22. >> This girl was a showstopper. Columbia University, women's studies major, had
interned with Hillary Clinton. She was going somewhere. >> What did that do to you?
>> Well, it almost killed me. I went into a depression. >> Did that affect your marriage?
>> Oh, yeah. It affected me and uh you don't recover from something like that. My wife saved my life.
>> And when police questioned him after the murder, McNaught told them he and Kathy
were still very much in love. >> I loved her to the the depths of my heart. >> He told me that he didn't know what
happened to his [music] wife and that he wanted to find out. >> But I want you to find whoever killed my
wife. Okay? You know what? Police spent hours with an emotional McNorton over the next couple of days.
>> I got enough effort. My life's over. [snorts] >> It was important to go over the details
involving his daily activities so that we could exonerate him and move on to find out who did murder his wife.
>> McNottton told police where he had been that day. >> He said he left his home sometime around
11 a.m. or 12:00 p.m. that day. He said he went to his mother's about an hour away and he had left Kathy this message
on their home answering machine saying he'd arrived there. >> Hey honey, it's me at Mother's. I love
you baby. Bye. >> McNorton also told Fetner that he did not return home until 7:30 p.m. when he
discovered his wife's body. >> He was very specific about the time frame that he gave to the authorities.
>> McNutton seemed to have a solid alibi. He was cooperative and had willingly locked himself into a timeline that
investigators could now check. >> He was allowed to leave the sheriff's office and I believe he went and stayed
with his mother >> as the victim's husband. Of course, there was reason [music] to suspect
McNottton, but there was no physical evidence against him. >> I didn't see any blood on him. There was
no blood on his hands. There was no blood on his clothes. [music] >> Jason Fentner had to figure it all out.
What you've got is no murder weapon. You have a husband that's a former attorney that says he didn't do it
and a woman who's been stabbed to death. It's not your [music] traditional crime
scene. >> And there was one other thing to consider. Kathy's ex who lives in Texas.
>> That's true. She does have an ex-husband. [music] >> It was their wedding anniversary that
day. He was in town that day. What was his motive? His jealousy. Long before Kathy met Alec McNottton,
she was married to an airline pilot, Gary Mendenhal. And their daughter, Heather, [music] remembers a happy
childhood. I think that we were a pretty typical American family. Two working parents, two kids, lived in suburbia,
good schools. >> But the relationship was troubled. Eventually, Kathy and Gary divorced and
he moved to Texas. >> From time to time, Mr. Minhal would come to the Atlanta area on business or to
visit with his daughters. >> Sheriff's investigator Jason Fentner, >> and he happened to be in town on the day
after Valentine's Day. the day Kathy McNotton was murdered. And >> one of the first things Mr. McNottton
did is began throwing out a list of people that he quote highly suspected. >> I think somebody that knew her went
there with that purpose. [snorts] >> Gary Mendenhal was on McNorton's list. >> Tell me what you told the police.
>> I said, "Look, I I can't imagine who would kill Kathy. She's nice and sweet. The only person I know she's ever had a
problem with is her ex-husband." Fentner called Menenhal in for an [music] interview.
>> What is your relationship to Kathy McNorton? >> Uh, I'm the ex-husband. I was married to
Kathy for approximately 21 years. >> Why did you get divorced? >> For irreconcilable differences.
>> As they talked, Fentner noticed something interesting about Menden Hall. He had a cut on his hand.
>> What happened to your thumb? >> Oh, right there. I was I was cleaning up Heather's uh apartment here yesterday
and washing the countertop and I caught the some kind of wrap she had in it. >> Tore it up.
>> It takes forever for those to heal. >> Oh, I know. >> When you stab somebody 31 times like the
killer murdered my wife, your hand slips down the knife and you cut your hand. Gary Menenhal's dominant right thumb was
cut. >> And there [music] were some other potentially troubling things about Mendal. According to prosecutor Kevin
McMurray, >> he drove a silver car. There was a silver car seen [music] at the residence.
>> A silver car was seen leaving Cathy's home the day she was murdered. And Gary
Mendenhal had rented a silver car that very day, but Alec McNorton also drove a silver car. Two men with two alibis.
Rookie homicide investigator Jason Fentner had his work cut out for him. and I'm [music] looking at it and
saying, "I need to make sure I'd run down all these different leads." >> The first priority was figuring out when
Kathy McNottton died. The medical examiner could not establish a time of death, so police turned elsewhere.
>> From the phone records, we determined that Kathy McNotton had a call from inside her house to her friend in
California. And that phone call ended at 11:55. So, we knew Kathy McNotton had to
be alive at 11:55 a.m. >> McNorton had already given investigators a detailed account of his whereabouts
that day, and he told them he left home between 11:00 a.m. and noon. Alec McNorton [music]
also told investigators he was at his mother's house about an hour away when he left Kathy a phone [music] message at
about 2:30 p.m. There's one problem with that story, though. that cell phone tower right over there. Tower number
309. >> The critical piece, the the piece that matters is that cell phone call was
originated on tower 309. A tower that is less than 2 mi from his house. And that
tower is 40 miles from his mother's house. So Mr. McNottton is not at his mother's house when he's calling his
home phone. Investigators believe they had caught McNottton in a lie and [music] they
wanted to know why an innocent man would be lying about the day his wife was murdered.
>> Where were you when you made that call at 233 and think about this cuz it's important.
>> Um I was at my mother's house. >> The police were quite certain when they found these cell phone records that they
had caught you in a lie. >> That's right. And they made a big deal about me lying. and I didn't lie about
anything in this case. >> McNotton insists the phone records, no matter what they show, are just plain
wrong. But Fentner was starting to poke more holes in McNotton's story. Listen to the
911 call. >> She's not moving and she's not breathing and her eyes are not moving. She won't
she won't respond. There's blood on her on her on her hands and her on the wall.
He claimed he was kneeling down at his wife's body, that he was touching her body, that he was tilting her head back
and moving her body and trying to render aid to her. >> I want you to kneel by her side,
>> okay? >> Close to her head, >> okay? >> And bear her chest, okay? >> Okay. By her chest, okay.
>> Fentner wondered, "Why didn't McNorton have any blood on him?" >> There was blood soaked into the carpet
around her body. If you knelt down next to her body, it would be reasonable to believe you have blood on your pants, on
your hands. >> But McNorton says it's more important that the police didn't find any
scratches on his body when they looked. He says that helps prove he's innocent since Kathy desperately tried to fight
off her killer. >> She fought for her life. Her hands were cut up from the killer's instrument and
her fingernails were broken off from fighting the killer. But watch what happens when
investigators even raise the possibility that McNaught killed his wife. >> You're full of I didn't kill my wife. I
love my wife. She loved me. And I'm tired of the questions. So you either arrest me or take me home.
>> Police weren't ready to arrest anyone, but they [music] were ready to clear someone. Very soon they concluded Gary
Mendenhal had absolutely nothing to do with Kathy's death. >> In fact, we actually got it down to an
exact time frame where it's nearly impossible for one to believe that Mr. Minhal could have flown here from Texas,
did the things [music] that he did, murdered his ex-wife, clean up, get back, change clothes, and then meet with
his daughters for dinner. Uh, the time frame didn't work out. It wasn't Mr. Menhal.
>> Fentner continued his investigation. He got an earful when he talked to Heather
and Michelle about McNottton. >> They painted a picture of a selfish man that didn't like his wife that much.
They said that he was argumentative, that he was very controlling and and doineering.
>> At the same time, Fentner was being [music] inundated with calls about McNorton.
Some of the calls were from people who knew McNorton very well. We received calls from his own siblings who called
us and said, "Hey, I want to be off the record cuz I'm scared of him, but I think my brother did it."
>> His own family. >> Correct. >> If you talk to people in prison, if somebody gets arrested or accused of
murder, the family turns against him nine times out of 10. >> Well, I don't know about that, Mr.
McNut. I mean, I I I don't think my family would call and say he's a murderer. food.
>> I didn't think so either, Richard. >> All of them expressed an extreme fear of
Ally. And that's just something else that you add to this pile of things that are that are mounting against him. Why
is everybody afraid of you? >> Fentner was about to find out. The police found those three disposable
cameras in Cathy's closet [music] with unprocessed film inside. >> We knew we had to find out what was on
them. >> They say every picture tells a story. And this one was a shocker. Everything that my mom knew about Alec
was [music] all the good things, like everything that he had achieved, everything that he
had acquired, [music] his accomplishments. >> At least that's what Heather thought.
But in May 2006, a year and a half after Kathy married Alec McNottton, Heather had a terrifying phone call with her
mother that began with a dinner invitation. >> She said that she'd love to come to
dinner, but she couldn't. She sounded funny on the phone. I just, you know, kept pushing her a little bit and she
said, "I I can't." Soon, Kathy confided in her daughter and told her a shocking story that her husband, Alec McNottton,
had beaten her. >> She was on her way to work and he had violently followed her out to the car,
opened the car door, and pulled her out and took her by the hair and was like literally like dragging her.
>> Dragging her by her hair. >> Mhm. He was in violent rage. >> [music] >> She said that there's no way that she
could like be seen in public. But McNottton says he and Kathy had only a small argument over a car. He says he
tried to grab the keys from Kathy in the driveway and she fell off her high heels.
>> She fell off her heels as we were struggling and skinned her elbow, I think, and her knee and her chin. She
fell off her heels. >> Yeah, she stumbled and we fell. She got scuffed up. >> What did you think?
>> I was frightened. >> I'm like, "Well, did you call the police?" She's like, "No, I did not call
police and I'm not going to." >> Instead, Kathy started her own investigation of Alec [music]
and even kept a secret file, notes, and undeveloped photos in disposable cameras. Police found it all hidden
inside her closet. >> I took the [music] three disposable cameras to a local developer here in the
area. When I got it back, I was shocked. There were pictures of her doing this, holding her hands up,
and there's a huge bruise on her face, and she's got bruises and scratches on her arms.
>> McNutton has his own explanation for all the bruises. He says Kathy's ex Gary
Mendenhal must have done it. >> I just knew he had done that. >> You're saying that Gary Mendenhal beat
her up? >> That's my opinion. Yes. >> But that was not investigator Jason Fentner's opinion. Heather told him that
McNottton had beaten Kathy and Fentner knew those photos could be a key piece of evidence against McNottton if the
police could answer some crucial questions. One of the first questions that came up then was who took these
photos. >> Photographer had to authenticate the photos, say when the pictures were
taken, and if Kathy said Alec had injured her. >> How come nobody's called to say, "Hey, I
took pictures of her when she was beaten up." >> The police began searching for the
photographer. But there were other important things in Cathy's closet. Very damaging notes about shady financial
deals. and worse. >> She had written down that he threatened to kill me. >> Prosecutor Kevin McMurray.
>> She describes all the lies he's told to her. >> Kathy was on to him, but she was [music]
conflicted. She compiled this list of pros and cons about McNorton. And despite the abuse, under pros, she wrote
sweet, loving, handsome. Under cons, she wrote, "No sex, depression, bankruptcy."
>> Alan McNton told us that they had a perfect relationship, that they had never had any physical altercations,
that they that they were deeply in love, and that they shared a a wonderful marriage.
>> But that sure looked like a lie. Kathy's daughter, Michelle, says Kathy and Alec
were having a lot of problems and argued constantly about money. >> The marriage she basically was financing
And then one night, the couple's [music] disagreements over money exploded into a
loud argument. You know, I told you I got your credit BECAUSE I DIDN'T HAVE A problem with my credit.
>> And Alec McNorton taped it. >> I always carry a tape recorder in my [music] briefcase my whole career. She
was out of control. So, I just took my tape out so that if later on she said something, I'd just play it back and
say, "You lose your temper over minor stuff." you start recording. >> I could tell from listening to it that
she did not know she was being recorded. >> And I'm going to call a attorney. >> You could hear Kathy screaming [music]
at the top of her lungs at Ally. >> Investigator Jason Fentner says the recording backfired on McNorton when
Kathy began referring to the time she said he beat her. >> You ever wear your hand to me again to
even fire to strike me? It is over. I'll get on that boat and I'll learn more. >> She says, [music] "I've got pictures.
I've got affidavit." >> Yeah, that was right after we'd had the struggle in the driveway over the car.
So, I knew what she was referring to. >> But, as it turned out, this was not the
first time McNottton was accused of [music] abuse as Fentner learned after tracking down McNottton's first wife,
[music] Linda. >> And they said Alec McNottton has murdered his wife. Linda McNorton had
divorced Alec nearly 40 years earlier. >> And my [music] stomach sank to my toes.
>> Despite the decades that have passed, she has never forgotten what she says her ex-husband did to her.
>> He beat me with his fist with a Coke bottle. He broke my nose. He fractured my jaw.
He beat me hard. I never [music] abused my wife or any woman ever. >> The evidence against McNorton was piling
up. His [music] past, that tape, the photos of Cathy's bruises, her notes, [music] and those cell phone records
that seemingly proved McNottton was not where he said he was on the day of the murder. Fetner called McNaught in for a
follow-up interview, and the former lawyer [snorts] sneered at the evidence. I think the comment he made was there's
not a a snowballs chance in hell that a jury would convict me on this. >> Well, that's very different from I
didn't do this and they're lying. >> It is. It sounds like a challenge to me. >> And on February 27th, 2009,
>> stand up, turn around, put your hands behind your back. >> Alec McNottton was arrested and charged
with murder for stabbing his wife Kathy more than 30 times. He was thrown in jail with no bail.
>> They railroaded me. They put the blinders on that night. That homicide detective in his very first murder case
was overwhelmed. He didn't know what to do. And he decided it was me right there
at the scene and never considered anybody else. >> And now the prosecutors had one very big
problem. They still had no idea who took those damning photographs. And without that crucial information, the law says
the photos could never be shown to a jury. >> We had to connect it to the crime. We
had to be able to show that it was [music] Mr. McNottton who had done this. >> All right.
>> And the trial was about to start. As the murder trial of Alec McNottton approached, prosecutor Kevin McMurray
was haunted by the photographs Kathy McNottton left behind. >> It became obvious that Ms. McNottton was
making an effort to preserve what had happened to her. >> But the law says if McMurray wanted to
show those photos to the jury, he'd have to find the photographer. So he had to scramble.
>> For the longest time, we really [music] ran into some dead ends. We took these
pictures to witnesses and asked, "Have you seen these injuries? Did you take these pictures? Are you familiar with
any of this?" And time after time, the people closest to her said, "No." The trial was only a month away, and
McMurray was getting desperate. He finally turned to Delta Airlines where Kathy had worked [music] to see if
she had asked anyone there for help. >> And that was the turning point. >> It was.
>> At the point that I saw her, it was obvious she had bruises on her body. >> Sandra Harmon was a counselor who did
some work with Delta. >> Kathy looked very disheveled. Sandra says Kathy told her McNotton had
attacked her outside their home just the day before. >> The first thing Kathy did when she sat
down was to ask me if I would take pictures of her. >> Sandra agreed to take the photos
and now found herself thrust into the middle of a murder trial. Now, Miss Harmon, did you have any confusion over
whether or not she was talking about her current husband or someone that she had
been previously married? >> Oh, absolutely no confusion whatsoever. She was very clear.
>> And you understood to be to be who? >> Um, Alec McNottton, her husband. >> She's lying if she says that my wife
said that I beat her up. McNotton, who was a practicing lawyer, says Sandra's testimony, is nothing more
than hearsay. >> Why would she make that up? >> Because she's the star, Richard. She's
the prosecution star witness. She's the surprise. >> She seemed like a liar to you.
>> People don't lie intentionally, but people get persuaded by the police when they are the star witness in a
high-profile murder case. It happens all the time. Those photos were powerful evidence, and McNorton's defense lawyer,
Michael Cam, could not make them disappear, even though >> this actually looks like I've cut this handkerchief in two.
If you were, >> he happens to be a semi-professional magician. >> Cam says the law is a lot like magic.
[snorts] >> All about altering perceptions. There was a complete lack of evidence.
Clearly, this was a violent death. I mean, she had numerous, numerous stab marks. There was blood all around her.
There's blood under her. He had no bruises. There was nothing to indicate that somebody had actually cleaned up
the crime [music] scene. There was no um evidence of his DNA on her fingernails.
>> But the prosecutors had more damaging evidence. >> Call [music] your next witness. They put
all three of McNorton's ex-wives on the stand. His first wife, Linda, describes what she says happened after she refused
to have sex with him. >> He then beat me badly. >> How did he beat you? Could you please
describe that? >> With his fist and with a Coke bottle. >> She's lying. There's no witness alive
that corroborates her story. >> [music] >> McNauton's second wife, also named Linda, tells jurors what she says
happened. The one time she said no to her then husband. >> And he grabbed me by either shoulder and
just slung me over into a glass top dining table that that fell over. >> Were you scared of the defendant after
he threw you? >> I was scared of him before that. >> Second wife, did you throw her into a
coffee table? >> I pushed her out of the way. She's exaggerating. She's not lying.
>> But it is Susan Knox, McNautton's last wife before Kathy, who tells the most frightening story.
>> She says there was always tension between Alec and their daughter, Alexis. But it got dangerous one night when
McNorton pulled out a shotgun. >> I just said, "Uh, Alec, what are you doing with that gun?"
>> What was his response? He said in a very slow monotone voice, he said, "I'm going
to kill Alexis and then I'm going to kill you and then I'm going to kill myself."
>> Alexis was in another room listening to it all and dialed 911. >> Oklahoma City 911.
>> Hi. Um, I just woke up. My parents have had a huge fight last night and I was
listening downstairs and my mom woke up and my dad said he's going to kill us and and he's capable of doing that. So,
[laughter] >> okay, we'll send it off there. >> Officers calmed everyone down and took
away McNottton's shotgun. >> That normal behavior? >> Of course not. I mean, it's it's
emotional behavior. My daughter is 18 and brilliant and beautiful and admitted to Barnard College at Columbia and you
know her life's work is there in front of her and she decides to drop out of high school.
>> Would you have shot her? >> Of course not. Or shot anybody in my life, not even a bird.
>> The testimony of McNorton's three ex-wives is hugely important. >> It was devastating.
>> Although McNorton doesn't seem to notice, >> he thought everybody loved him. He
thought he was the smartest guy in the room, no matter what room he was in. >> I'm showing you what's been marked and
admitted as states exhibit 10. >> In this room, the courtroom, someone needs to explain McNottton's side of the
story. >> I didn't kill [music] my wife. I love my wife. >> And Alec McNottton decides there's no
one better than Alec McNorton. You did not want [music] him to take the stand. >> I did not.
>> Did you tell him that? >> Yes. and not so politely either. I said, "You [music] are so arrogant and
unlikable. I'm afraid that you're going to blow it when you take the stand." >> But McNorton insists.
>> So when you heard them stand up and say, "We call Alec McNorton," what was your
first thought? >> My first thought was, "This is a rare opportunity. My name is Alec McNotton.
>> Alec McNorton is either the smartest man in this courtroom or the dumbest. >> You understand that you have a right to
remain silent. >> Yes, sir. I do. >> The alleged killer is about to gamble his freedom on his way with words. He
can't get death, but he could get life. >> I hoped that Mr. McNautton [music] would
take the stand. >> As he takes the stand in his own defense, >> he underestimates everyone else,
overestimates his own abilities, and the result is he's easily trapped in his lies.
>> Defense lawyer Michael Cam wastes no time getting to the heart of the matter.
>> Alec, did you kill your wife, >> Kathy McN? >> No. >> One question, that's it.
>> Cross examination, Mr. McMurray. Immediately, prosecutor Kevin McMurray begins tearing apart McNorton's story
about where he was on the day his wife was murdered. [music] >> He wasn't as smart as he thought he was.
>> McNottton has always maintained that at 2:30 that day, he was already at his mother's house about an hour away in
Sandy Springs, Georgia, when he called home and left a message. >> Hey, it's me. I'm up at Mother's. The
cell phone records show he was actually within a few miles of his home. >> You were not in Sandy Springs
at 2:33 p.m. on February 15th, 2009. Isn't that true? >> It's not true. I was I was at my
mother's. >> So, those records are wrong. >> They are. >> That phone call was absolutely critical
to this case from the very beginning. And it was Mr. McNautton's fatal mistake. >> McNotton talked to police early in the
investigation. Detectives poked holes in his story almost immediately, and prosecutors say McNotton should have
known better. Considering he's a lawyer. >> Had he not talked to the police initially, it would have been a very,
very difficult case to prosecute. >> And why did you talk to them? >> Because I wanted to find out who killed
my wife. and and I I I would have done anything. And so that that need to find out who
had killed my lovely wife overrode my legal judgment. >> But investigator Jason Fentner thinks
McNorton had another reason. [music] >> He did his best to mislead that that dumb redneck investigator.
>> Who's that dumb redneck? >> I think that's me. >> You told investigators that you had
never hit Kathy McNutton, but that wasn't true either. >> That is true. He clearly lied about a lot of things on
the stand. >> That is untrue, isn't it? >> No, it's true. >> I knew what the truth was.
>> Kathy's daughters, Heather and Michelle, watched McNorton, testify. >> I can't believe my mom was married to
someone like this. Who is this person? >> I didn't hit her. I did not kick her. >> Even his own lawyer can see the effect
McNottton is having on those in the courtroom. I'm looking at the court personnel and the expressions on their
face changed and they were giving me the >> There are times during that cross-examination that what Mr. McNotton
said in the face of the evidence was so preposterous. >> There was a robbery. >> There was a robbery.
>> Yes, sir. >> Was there a TV missing? >> No. >> Was there a computer missing? >> No.
>> Was her watch taken? >> No. >> I think everyone, myself included, sought to not visibly display our our
disbelief. [music] >> That's a lie. McNorton denies everything his accusers say about him.
>> She's lying. I didn't know such things. And that's not true. >> McNorton has had his say.
And now the lawyers get their last chance to persuade the jury. >> For the first time in my career, we have
a case where the victim has spoken from the dead. She recorded what has happened
to her with that man. And the evidence shows who killed Kathy McNotton. There were no calluses on his hands, no cuts,
no bruises, no blood, no DNA. The only only verdict you can render is Alec McNorton is not guilty of any offense.
>> The jurors begin to deliberate on what looks to most people like an open andsh
shut case. >> Obviously, I was nervous. >> That first night, the jury goes home.
>> The waiting and the waiting. No verdict. >> It was just torture. >> And then at the end of the second day,
the jurors announce they've decided. >> That's to count one malice murder. We, the jury, found the defendant guilty.
>> Guilty of murder. Alec McNorton, the man Kathy once thought was her soulmate, is convicted
of killing her, stabbing her more than 30 times in the home they shared. >> Were you surprised when you were
convicted? >> Yeah, I I was stunned. >> Mr. McNottton, come forward, please. >> I still believe that justice will
prevail, and my wife's killer will be found tried, convicted, and executed. >> This [snorts] is a question I ask a lot
of people in your situation. What does justice feel like? >> It definitely doesn't do anything to
fill the void that she's not here that we'll never physically see her again. I'll never hug
her again. It doesn't it doesn't help with those things. >> It also doesn't answer one lingering
question. How did a woman like Kathy, a strong woman with friends, [music] family, and money, end up a victim of
domestic violence? >> I feel like if my mom had said [music] one time's enough, you know, maybe she'd
still be here today, and I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you. >> And even though it is Alec McNottton who
stands convicted, it is Heather and Michelle who are left feeling guilty. >> For good year, you know, that's all I
felt. Guilt. guilt and regret that I didn't [music] say anything and that I just kept it, you know, to myself that I
didn't speak up [snorts] when I had the chance. And, you know, you can't, it was too late.
>> [music] [music] [music] [music] >> My name is Carol Dodge and I am the mother of Angie Dodge
who was brutally murdered in June of 1996. And for 23 years, I've traveled every
road there is, turned every stone there is to find justice for my daughter. As the officers arrived at the crime
scene [music] and found Angie Dodge laying on the ground and it was obvious that there was a very brutal murder that
had happened. a lot of blood. During the investigation, we came across a significant amount of DNA that we
believe is from the killer. >> Would you say that this crime scene provided really good evidence?
>> Excellent evidence. >> For nearly two decades, police could not find a match to the killer's DNA. So in
2014, they went way outside the box and searched a public DNA database owned by ancestry.com.
It led us to this Michael Jr. who just happened to be a filmmaker [laughter] films of homicide. Um kind of a murder
mystery filmmaker. Then he cuts off her head. [screaming] [crying] >> My name is Michael Usher. Uh I'm a
filmmaker and was a suspect in the Angie Dodge case. Murderabilia. It was then I knew it was
a girl and she was young. Got me the reputation of being a person who is really into murder and things
like that. >> And I shoved her body over in the shower. I just kept stabbing her. It was pretty
creepy. We had Louisiana State Police call him. He had agreed to come down to the state
offices there in New Orleans. The majority of the time that I was in the interrogation room, I just didn't
know what they were talking about. They finally had to look at me and go, "No, we think that you, Michael Lushery,
you know, we think that you're involved in this murder case." >> My whole purpose is to find uh who
killed Angie Dodge. >> The ability to kill is obviously somewhere in all of us because it
happens every day. [music] >> [music] [music] [music] >> Grief has no time limit. I just can't
[clears throat] I can't let go. I can't let go of her. >> Carol Dodge lost her daughter Angie when
she was just a teenager. >> She was just discovering who she truly was and wanting independence.
She says, "Just let me grow up. Let me make my own mistakes. You know, you don't need to watch me. You know, you
don't need to be my shadow. It was the summer of 1996 in Idaho Falls, Idaho, a mostly Mormon community
where neighbors knew each other by name and doors were rarely locked, says former chief of police Mark McBride.
>> But it was very, really a very quiet, peaceful town overall. >> Just 3 weeks before her death,
18-year-old Angie got her own apartment in this house. I saw her the night that she was killed.
She said, "It's so hard growing up." And she laid her head on my shoulder and we
just kind of rocked back and forth. And I'm so grateful for that moment. Extremely grateful that
my last words were that I love her. >> The next morning, Angie didn't show up for work at a local beauty supply store.
We got a phone call at our 911 center about 11:00 in the morning and one of her friends at work came to
check on her and the door was unlocked. She went in and she found a body laying there on the floor and a very bloody
crime scene. >> There were no signs of forced entry, but there were signs of a struggle.
>> You think she fought for her life? >> Yes, I do. Angie was stabbed and cut 14 times and
left half naked. The killer ejaculated on her, leaving behind what DNA expert Greg Hampian calls a pristine profile.
>> It's a single profile, uh, complete identification, one man to the exclusion of everyone on the planet.
>> [snorts] >> Police began collecting the DNA of dozens of local men and spent months
interviewing everyone Angie knew, including this young man, Christopher Tap. [music] Although his DNA didn't
match and Tap denied any involvement, after more than 28 hours of interrogation over 23 days, Tap [music]
confessed to participating in Angie's murder. >> You were there, correct? >> Correct. Did you know Christopher Tap?
>> No, didn't know. Had no clue. >> Tap told police that the night of Angie's death, he and two friends
stopped by her apartment. During an argument, Tap claimed one of his friends started stabbing Angie while he held her
down. >> You're holding her down, okay, while she's being cut. You're holding her down while she's
being >> [music] >> But when Tap went before a judge, he pled not guilty of raping and murdering
Angie Dodge. >> I said, "You beast, you horrible beast. How could he do this to my daughter?"
>> Defense argued Tap's DNA didn't match the killers. But on May 28th, 1998, it took a jury approximately 13 hours to
reach a verdict. >> Guilty. Nearly 2 years after Angie Dodge was murdered, Chris Tap faced his punishment
with Carol Dodge glaring at him. >> You are guilty of the crimes of murder in the first degree and rape.
>> His sentence 30 years to life, but the murder of Angie Dodge was still an open
case. Chris Tap did not match the DNA and he wouldn't tell police who did. >> I just couldn't understand why he would
go to prison and take a life sentence and not give the other person up. >> Tab did give authorities several names,
including someone named Mike. >> How sure are you that he's first name? I'm dead [music] said positive. But
police could never make a DNA match, so the case went cold. But not for Carol Dodge.
>> I never stopped looking for the actual person who matches the DNA. >> By 2009, the killer's DNA had been
entered into the national criminal database known as COTUS. But there was still no match. So, Carol called
well-known DNA expert Greg Hampian. >> I had this message, they don't know who killed my my daughter.
>> By then, there had been many advances in DNA technology. And so, with Hampian's
help, Carol Dodge pushed authorities to use a new controversial search process called familial DNA. It looks for anyone
who may be related to Angie's killer, >> which means going into that database in
Idaho of the convicted offenders and looking for a family member that might match this DNA partially.
>> Idaho doesn't allow familial searches in their criminal database, so Hampian made
an even more controversial suggestion. a familial search through public databases.
>> I'm the one that went to the Idaho Falls Police Department and the prosecution
saying, "We need to do this." >> Imagine you're one of millions of Americans to open up a kit like this,
spit into a test tube like this, and then send your DNA off to a commercial database. Well, now that database owns
your DNA profile, and you may not realize it, but police may be able to access it.
We're interested in solving a crime and we're going to use any technique we can that we can legally use.
>> In the summer of 2014, detectives searched a public DNA database owned by ancestry.com.
They got a hit. >> I was told they got 34 out of 35 markers, I believe. >> Is that good?
>> Yeah, that's that's [music] a good investigative lead. It was a close enough match to make Detective Patrick
[music] McKenna think they had found a relative of Angie's killer. So, police got a warrant for ancestry.com to reveal
his identity. It was a man named Michael Usri Senior. >> We know it's not that individual or we
would have had 35 out of 35 on that. So, that's when we started doing research into the family. That led investigators
to suspect Usri's son, Michael Usri Jr. [music] Detective McKenna wondered if this could
be the Mike that Chris Tap once named. >> And then we started researching him and
the films that he was making. It was a little eerie to uh try to think that that could possibly be a solid suspect
in the case. [music] I have to ask you this question. >> Yes. >> Do you have a particular interest in
murder? [laughter] >> I I don't have a particular interest in murder. Um, >> it sure seems like it based on your
phone. >> I know it does, but no, I I really have quite an aversion to it. >> But authorities investigating the brutal
murder of Angie Dodge weren't so sure. >> Precisely at 2:00, three uh gentlemen came to my door.
>> In December of 2014, more than 18 years after Angie's murder, Michael Usri Jr.
was living in New Orleans when two detectives from Idaho Falls and a Louisiana state police officer brought
us to a state police office near the New Orleans Super Dome and started grilling
him. >> They said, "So, what about your travels to Idaho? Have you ever been to Idaho?"
And um I had in fact actually went up there with some friends for just one night. He was 19 years old back then and
he and his friends drove to Rexburg, Idaho, passing right through Idaho Falls. >> Well, they were really interested in
that. >> A little surprised that we were we were able to actually place him in Idaho
Falls. >> It was a big red flag for Detective Patrick McKenna. >> It's kind of weird, but I just really
didn't didn't get it. Then one of the officers pulled out a warrant and swabbed his cheek for DNA.
>> At that point, I went, "Hey, what what's going on here, you guys? Should I get a
lawyer?" >> Once they had his DNA, they drove Michael Usri home without any explanation.
>> I just basically stood on my sidewalk in a days. >> It was a call to a close friend that
finally shed some light. and uh he said, "Well, what's the case? What what is this?" And I go, "Well, they wouldn't
tell me anything except that it was a high-profile murder case in Idaho Falls." So, he gets on the computer and
within 20 seconds, he's like, "Oh, yeah. This is the case right here. It's some girl named Angie Dodge."
>> The filmmaker whose movie featured a convict describing how he stabbed a woman to death.
>> Watched her insides spill out all over the floor. was now suspected of doing just that to Angie Dodge.
>> I mean, it was very much a case of an overkill. They stabbed her and cut her and it was just a a butchery.
People were like, "Wow, what does this imply?" You know, for your career, what is for your life, for your family, for
your family's name? >> Usri remembers being terrified, spending days holed up at home, worried what
police would do next. pretty sure that they were capping my phone calls, uh, possibly staking me out, certainly
checking my computer searches. >> But Usri knew he hadn't killed anyone, and he wanted answers. A local newspaper
reporter showed him a copy of the warrant investigators used to obtain his DNA. And right there, the answer to the
question, why him? dated back about 17 years. >> And I went, "Wow, this is because of my
dad." >> The filmmaker's father, Michael Estri Senior, participated in a genealogy
project at his local church. A sample of his DNA went to that public database, which was later purchased by
ancestry.com, and that's where police came across it. >> There are 34 out of 35 LL's that match.
It seems shocking to me. >> 34 out of 35 DNA markers sounds like a stunningly close match to Angie Dodge's
killer, but the reasons police honed in on him instead of any of his other relatives are detailed in the warrant.
>> I told you Mike is the first name. Okay, >> remember Chris Tap told police a guy
named Mike was involved in the murder. Police took to Facebook and found his profile. Bingo. Facebook showed us had
friends living in the Idaho Falls area. And then there's Oshri's films. And then
bludgeoned her to death with this very hammer. >> The more Ushri read, the more furious he
grew that anyone would think he was a killer. But even more troubling was the idea that Angie Dodge's killer might be
someone in his family. Just knowing [music] that somebody in my family would possibly do something like
that is disturbing. I mean, to say the least, you know, >> [music] >> Michael Usri worried every day. He knew
that Idaho Falls police suspected him of murdering Angie Dodge. And the uncertainty of what would happen next
kept him up at night until January 13th, 2015. More than a month later, >> they sent me an email and it says,
"Michael Jr., we just wanted to let you know that your DNA did not match our crime scene DNA, something you already
knew." >> In an email from police, Michael Usri was officially cleared of the murder of
Angie Dodge, but he was still thoroughly traumatized. >> You were angry at Ancestry.
>> I was angry at everybody. the police, scientists, you know, these database companies, you know, how could they
misfire so bad? >> 48 hours asked ancestry.com about USR's experience. In a statement, they said
they will not share any information with law enforcement unless compelled to by a
court order or search warrant. Usri's case, they say, was unique and the only time they have received a formal legal
request for DNA related information. After what happened to Usri, ancestry.com told us they took action.
[music] The public database used by authorities was made private and can no longer be
accessed by the public or police. >> Can't control fate and what happens to you. So, I just figured that this was
there was a reason for this uh happening. >> Michael Usri decided he wanted to try
and prevent it from happening to anyone else by making a documentary about his experience. He was shocked when Angie
Dodge's mother was willing to talk. What he didn't realize is that Carol Dodge had an agenda of her own.
>> She's fairly certain that a killer is in my bloodline. I remember Mike and I sitting down and I says, "Okay, Mike,
here's a piece of paper. Now, I want you to write down from your great-grandfather to your grandfather,
your dad." And he did me a genealogy sheet. My grandfather, he had six other brothers. Carol just wonders, "Hey,
maybe it's somebody you don't even know. Maybe it's an illegitimate son of one of your papy's brothers."
Despite all that, Carol Dodge and Michael Ushri have forged a rather odd close bond.
>> You're a really special person. >> You are too, Carol. >> And after hearing Carol and Angie's
story, the focus of Usri's documentary changed dramatically [music] to Carol Dodge's search for her daughter's
killer. He immersed himself in the case, starting with the man who had confessed,
Chris Tap. How many times did you stab her before you let go >> that first time?
>> Usri quickly learned that Chris Tap was now claiming his confession was forced
and the Idaho Innocence Project headed by that DNA expert Greg Hampian was now working to set Tap free.
>> Based on the DNA, is there any way that Chris could have been in that room? >> No, not based on the DNA. The more Carol
Dodge learned about DNA, the more she questioned Chris's confession that he held Angie down while she was being
stabbed. >> It wasn't until I started studying science that I said, "It's impossible.
How could Chris admit in doing what he said he did and there be no physical evidence?"
>> But it wasn't just the science that bothered Carol Dodge. She believed Chris Tap's confession was coerced by the
detectives who interrogated him. >> I mean, come on, man. I mean, you're the heat of the moment. She's putting up the
fight. Do you know you're caught? You're right there in the middle. >> I watch it,
>> right? >> And it's so frustrating. >> This was Chris Tap when we first met. At
40 years old, he'd been inmate number 56265 for 20 years. You look at that 20-year-old kid, you know, and you
realize, God, I was just an idiot. >> Think hard about it. I know it's >> I know it's there. You know,
>> Chris Tap says his confession was a lie. A story fed to him by police and then
forced back out of him on tape. >> You can see him specifically pointing out facts to me or or giving little
innuendos. >> This would be the stairs going up. Okay. So, you went up these stairs. [music]
Okay. or hints of how the murder went down. >> Well, it's a porch that goes outside.
>> It all started because Chris Tap's friend, a man named Ben, who also knew Angie, was arrested in Eli, Nevada for
assaulting a woman at Knife Point. To investigators, the crime seemed similar to the attack on Angie. So,
while Ben was in custody in Nevada, investigators brought Chris in for questioning.
Emphatically, I said, "I had nothing to do with it. I don't know what you're talking about.
>> I'm going there. I knew there's no way." >> But instead of leaving it at that, Tap,
then just 20 years old, cooperated. >> I felt like, trust him. They're not going to do anything wrong.
>> He doesn't know they can lie to him. And most innocent people have no idea that
the interrogators can lie to you. First, Tap was told there was irrefutable evidence that his friend Ben
killed Angie and that Tap was there when it happened. >> I'm pretty sure we're [music] we know
what happened and who did what, how, when, where, and why. >> Tap kept denying all knowledge of the
crime. >> Did you hear her scream or anything like that? >> I [music] wasn't there.
>> But detectives persisted and even though he had a lawyer, Tap kept talking. And
so when they offered you a polygraph, seemed like a good idea. >> Yeah, seemed like a great idea. I had
nothing to hide, no reason not to do it. >> But Tap was told he was being deceptive
and detectives promised him full immunity, no jail time in exchange for the truth as long as he hadn't
participated in the actual murder. That's when Tap says he started telling police what he thought they wanted to
hear. >> Now, are you sure Ben's there? >> Yes. >> You're positive? >> Yeah. >> Yes.
>> Okay. >> Tap told detectives he was there when Ben killed Angie Dodge. >> He told him, "No, don't do it. Don't do
it." >> Yeah. >> Okay. So, did he did he have the knife? >> Yeah. But just hours later, detectives
learned that Ben did not match the killer's DNA. A desperate Chris Tap started changing his story, blaming
several other friends for the murder. >> I continue to lie. I continue to give them story after story, and it they
should have just stopped, but they didn't. >> But Chris, why didn't you stop? >> I didn't think I could. When none of the
men he named matched the DNA, Tap says police still refused to let up. After 23 days and seven interrogations, Chris Tap
confessed to participating in Angie's murder, and authorities voided his immunity agreement.
>> You're holding her down, okay, while she's being cut. You're holding her down while she's
being >> cut. That's what was the end of it all. That's what brought me to prison.
>> Authorities have repeatedly dismissed Tap's claims of a forced confession until an astonishing discovery would
change the game. >> No, you're fine. >> Never before seen videotapes of seven polygraph exams administered to Chris
Tap. Tapes that convinced even Carol Dodge that Chris Tap is innocent. Chris Tap
basically just got railroaded. >> Carol Dodge took on a new mission to free the man convicted of her daughter's
murder and find the killer who left his DNA, [music] even if it turned out to be
a member of Michael Usri's family. You always got to have a little faith. Got to have a little hope. I haven't
accepted this as my end. >> I can't imagine spending one day in prison, let alone 20 plus years.
Mike Heavey is a retired superior court judge who believes so strongly that Chris Tap is innocent. He spent the last
four years trying to prove it. >> When you look at the interrogation videos, he knows nothing.
>> So Chris Tap, >> he struggles. >> Let it out >> for details. >> Let it out. You're there.
>> Why? Cuz he wasn't there. Heave runs a wrongful conviction project called Judges for Justice and took on Tap's
case after watching the interrogation tapes. >> I wasn't tired. I wasn't even down the
stairs. I wasn't nowhere around. >> Judge Heave became convinced that Chris Tap had been coerced into changing his
story an astounding six times and knew that something was missing. >> I was concerned. He went from one day
saying, >> "I wasn't there." >> And the next day, >> you're standing above her like this like
her head's right here. >> Yeah. >> I'm at the crime scene and I stabbed her. I couldn't see how he made that
jump. So, I went back to look at the polygraph and my jaw just dropped. >> Help us say that [music] I'm nervous.
>> In between Chris's nine interrogations, detectives administered seven polygraph
exams. All of them were recorded, but no one had ever bothered to look at the tapes because polygraphs are
inadmissible in court, and the sound is barely audible. >> I have to adise your rights.
>> Polygraphs are typically used to assess the credibility of the witness when they're done honestly.
>> And how was the polygraph used in this case? >> This case was used to trick Chris Tap
into giving false testimony. Our polygraph expert says it was used like a psychological rubber hose to get him to
implicate himself in the murder of Angie Dodge. >> Judge Heavey says that detectives in the
case broke the rules in the polygraph room and thought no one would ever notice.
>> United States Supreme Court has held that it's improper to threaten. You can't threaten because it leads to false
confessions. They threaten him with the gas chamber, being accessory to murder, and being a conspirator to murder.
>> You know what an accessory to murder is? That's being charged with just like they get [music] life imprisonment.
>> They figured no one's going to look at the polygraphs, so it'll be hidden. No
one will ever see it. >> Heave says Chris Tap was brainwashed. >> I'm scared. You're scared. The reason
why is because you [music] subconsciously remember it. >> Chris Tap eventually comes to believe
that the polygraph is an all- knowing scientific instrument that can read his subconscious and is telling the machine
that he was at the crime. Protect your I wouldn't say this about you. You got trapped.
Chris finally says, "Yes, I stabbed her because Ben threatened me." And then Chris said, "Did I do it?"
>> The police officer walks over, says, "Give me your hand." Like he passed the polygraph.
And that gets Chris Tap, 30 years to life, charged with the death penalty. Ugly stuff.
>> Do you remember that moment? >> Yeah. Scared. Scared. That's pretty much the day my
life ended. >> But Tap never told anyone about what happened during those polygraph exams.
>> I didn't know what they did in the polygraph tapes was wrong. I didn't know. If I would have known these things
20 years, 15, 10 years ago, then maybe we wouldn't be here today. >> Idaho Falls police deny any wrongdoing.
and I don't remember seeing >> in their interrogations or polygraph exams. >> Do you think the polygraph was used as a
coercive tool? >> I don't know that was the intent. I think the intent is find out the truth.
>> Over the years, the courts have upheld Tap's confession as valid and admissible
and not the product of coercive police conduct. I don't think they were trying to cause harm. It wasn't any malicious
intent. I don't think >> it's hard for me to wrap my head around what the police are thinking.
>> John Thomas is Chris Tap's appellet attorney. >> It's okay. You made a mistake. Just say,
"Hey, I made a mistake. We got the wrong guy. Let's all rally around and let's get the right guy."
Mike Heave was hoping that the newly discovered polygraph tapes would be enough for a judge [music] to grant
Chris Tap a new trial. >> Those polygraph videos now new evidence. They're the wedge to get Chris in front
of a judge to see the coercion that went on. >> I hope he walks out a free man. It's not
often you hear the mother of a victim say that about the only man serving time for her daughter's murder.
>> True. [music] It was March 2017 and Chris Tap was just two weeks away from two hearings that
his lawyer, John Thomas, hoped would set him free. >> We have too much evidence showing that
Chris Tap wasn't there. >> Have you ever found DNA that matched Chris Tap at the scene?
>> No. But police chief Mark McBride maintained that given Tap's confession, the absence [music] of his DNA at the
crime scene proved nothing. Then in a stunning turn of events, the district attorney's office wanted to make a deal.
Tap's murder conviction would stand, >> but the rape conviction would go away and there would be no probation.
Chris Tap would just take his lumps on his 20 years and and walk walk a free man.
>> Victory. >> VICTORY. [cheering] >> Tap took the deal. That was in 2017. 2 years later.
>> I've got a full-time job. I'm married. I've actually become that productive member of society that I truly thought I
could become. >> Meanwhile, Carol Dodge never stopped hunting for Angie's killer. I've done a
lot of research on technology and I was found determined I was going to solve my
daughter's case. >> Not long after Chris's release, Carol got some help. New police chief Bryce
Johnson says he already had his sights set on Angie's case. >> I talked to all the detectives and I
kind of told them, "Let's not worry about what's been done over the past 23 years. We have one mission. to find out
who left this DNA sample. >> It wasn't easy, but 2 years later, there was news. >> Today, we are here to share developments
in the homicide investigation of Angie Dodge. >> On May 16th, 2019, >> thank you and thank you for being here.
>> Chief Johnson told the world they had finally found and arrested the man who matched the DNA.
>> Carol inspired us all to try harder and to do better. The thing about Carol is
she knew more about DNA than I knew about DNA. >> What Carol knew is that this woman,
>> Good afternoon, CC Moore and a company called Parabon Nanolabs had been making
huge strides in solving cold cases using genealogy and public databases. >> This is our 56th case this year at
Parabon using genetic genealogy to identify unknown suspects and victims. Moore and Parabon were able to generate
an even more complete DNA profile of Angie's killer than ever before. That profile could now be uploaded to a
large public DNA database called Jed Match, a free website that allows people to upload their own DNA profiles in
search of relatives. In return, if users opt in, their data can be accessed by law enforcement. When we upload that
data, we get a list of people that share significant amounts of DNA with the unknown suspect.
>> Moore found a family tree that she was confident contained a killer. And it was
Michael Usri's family tree. >> He apparently was a split off of the Usri family from something like over a
hundred years ago. So, we're talking about right family tree, but the branch is way off on the other side.
>> Way off. Yeah. >> Did you know anything about this sort of offshoot of your family?
>> No, totally not. >> Now, Detective Sage Albbright and Captain Bill Squires were laser focused
on the men in this way off branch of Usher's family tree. It had been whittleled down to a list of persons
that I think was around 10 or 11 people that we were able to reduce down further
just because they weren't in Idaho at the time or they were 3 years old at the time.
>> Left with six possible suspects, detectives had to secretly collect their DNA, following them around for days,
waiting for discarded cigarette butts, soda cans, or plastic straws. One guy was a tobacco chewer. The detectives
came out, kind of scooped that up. We sent it off to the lab, came back negative. It wasn't the person we're
looking for. >> Then they started running out of men and a fear set in. >> The thing we were concerned about is
there a child out there that nobody knows about, right? Did someone have a baby and it's not in the genealogy
record? >> They were right. And this obituary miraculously led CC Moore to a missing
usery. This woman, Helen Darnell, had a daughter who was once married to an usri. After their divorce, a son was
born under a different last name, Brian Drips. >> When we looked at that name, uh, we
realized we had talked to him in the first days of the investigation. He lived across the street from Angie.
>> I literally said, "You got to be kidding. Brian Drips, he was right across the
street. that it took me 23 years when they had it in the first 25 pages [gasps] of the
investigation. >> The police report indicates that the day of Angie's murder, a young police
officer who was canvasing the neighborhood had briefly questioned a then [music] 31-year-old Brian Drips.
>> Everyone in that neighborhood got got a knock on the door. Drips denied any knowledge of the crime [music] and
police never asked for his DNA about 7 weeks after the murder. Drips left Idaho Falls. He was living in Idaho about 300
miles away when a cigarette butt linked his DNA to the crime and detectives picked him up for questioning.
>> It was obvious he was nervous. He he put on a pretty good game game face, but his
his hand started to shake. For several hours, Drips denied any involvement in Angie's death.
>> And then when we told him, "Oh, we have your DNA at the crime scene," uh, he there was there was a noticeable change
in his demeanor. And eventually he he told us that he had been involved. >> Detective Albbright says Trips also
reported that he acted alone. That meant Chris Tap could not have been there. Two months after Drips was
arrested, Tap was back in court. >> As third convincing evidence, the defendant was convicted of a crime for
which he not connect. >> This time to be fully exonerated. [applause] This case is the world's first
exoneration by way of genealological DNA testing. >> I'm extremely happy for him. I hope that
he can piece together his life again. >> But Usri says he still has doubts about
the use of genealogy. >> Kind of a scary thing to me to think about what this world is going to be
like. Um, if all of our genetic codes are in a computer database, once it's in a computer, uh, that's almost like more
permanent than carving something in stone nowadays. But I think that we really really need to be uh cautious and
and and take a step back and look at this technology. >> Carol Dodge disagrees. >> Without technology, without
genealogology research, uh we would have never found Angie's killer. It is the key that opens the
door to justice. >> [music] [music] [music] [music]

"48 Hours" stories that cover the important clues that helped solve these crimes. Watch the YouTube mini-marathon, which includes " Gone: The Search for Michelle Warner," "Every Picture Tells a Story" and "The Twisted Case of Angie Dodge."

00:00 Gone: The Search for Michelle Warner 42:45 Every Picture Tells a Story 01:22:35 The Twisted Case of Angie Dodge

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

Mark Castellano confesses to murdering Michelle Warner after a violent argument, leading to her body being discovered in Texas.

Key points

Mark Castellano's Alibi. Mark claims Michelle stormed out after an argument, but his story raises suspicions.
Confession of Violence. Mark admits to being violent with Michelle, raising alarms about his involvement.
Discovery of the Body. Michelle's body is discovered after a FaceTime call with detectives.
Trial for Murder. Mark Costellano goes on trial for the murder of Michelle Warner, revealing shocking details.
A Shocking Discovery. Investigators find critical evidence that suggests Kathy spoke from the grave.
A Troubling Relationship. Kathy's daughters reveal troubling details about her marriage to Alec.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

I would take her pictures out and say out loud, "Michelle, where are you?".

11:14WatchJun 6, 2026

Tension

85/ 100High tension

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