Original subtitles

Yes. Crow?

Yes. Okay, Mike. My name is Ralph Claytor. I'm a detective with the

Police Department. I work in the Homicide Unit.

Okay, so what I'd like to do, Mike, is go over some of the details of what's

happened and get your side of the story. Is that okay?

Yes. Okay.

What I'd like to do is just make sure you understand what your rights are.

You have the right to remain silent. Do you understand that?

Yes.

Anything you say may be used against you in court. Do you understand that?

Yes. You have the right to the presence of an attorney.

Do you understand that?

Yes. If you can't afford an attorney, one will be appointed free of charge

before we question you.

Do you understand that?

Yes.

Have you talked to anyone else about this? Any of your friends?

Yeah. My friend, Josh.

Josh.

Did you jokingly tell Josh anything that you were involved or that you had

something to do with it?

No.

What I'd like you to do is just tell me what you know about this.

I stayed home from school Monday and again on Tuesday because I had

Hey, Michael.

Soup's done.

Mom, what do you mean soup?

Just an expression, honey.

Michael, pizza's here.

I told you to knock first.

We're eating, so come on.

There's fungus on here.

You're so filthy.

I saw Mrs. Abbott at the video store. She said you blabbed too much in class.

She did not. She'd never say that.

You never say that. At least I don't get D's and F's. Just a lot of blabbering.

Hey, come on, guys. We're ready to eat.

No, Michael, you're not going to eat in here. Let's go.

Congratulations.

But you hit me at a bad moment, Fred.

I got an A -plus on my English paper.

Good for you.

Only Stacey Sandler and me did. And I.

Stacey Sandler and I.

I went to pick up our photos today, and they said they lost them.

Really? Yeah, they said they filed it under somebody else's name or something.

Okay, Stephanie, Shannon, let me get a picture of you guys.

Come on, you too, Michael. The three of you.

Come on, humor me. It'll take two seconds.

Take it off me.

Okay, kids, try and act like you love each other.

Yeah, I know. It's tough.

There you go.

Okay,

here's one for us.

See, variables stand for a number.

The name variable is picked because it can stand for different numbers at

different times China said Wednesday Smart

kid,

you know, I know that that's not the issue Honey, it's freshman year. You

remember what freshman year was like for me. Come on. Cheryl, you don't got to

make excuses for him. I'm not making excuses for him.

I think that thing the other night with the teachers, that was really good.

Yeah. And he promised that he's going to study harder, and they said they'd give

him more challenging work.

They said he could be doing college work. Right. That's why he's pulling Ds.

He's bored.

Bored. Well, welcome to the world. I get bored, too, paying cars all day long,

but that's just life. It's a part of living.

You know, growing up, he's got to show some responsibility.

Well, we took away that PlayStation thing.

Yeah, frankly, I don't even think he needs that. He can play those games in

head.

Honey, look at you. That's gorgeous.

That's the dress for the volunteer banquet. The library thing. Get these

You're going to hurt yourself. Come here. You're always joking.

You look real pretty, sweetheart. You do.

Now go change so this dress still looks like new.

Hey, Mommy.

Hi, Daddy. I love you. I love you, too.

Brush your teeth.

I will.

It's just a cat.

I went to sleep.

I don't know how long after, but the next thing, I heard the pounding coming

from somewhere.

I thought someone was knocking on the door and someone had got it.

So I went back to sleep.

The next thing I remember, I woke up with a bad headache.

I turned on the TV so I could see because it was dark.

The clock hit 4 .30.

So I got up, opened my door, and went to the kitchen to get something

for my headache.

I got a glass of milk, some Tylenol, and I took that back to my room.

And I took the Tylenol, drank the milk.

I turned off my TV, shut the door, and went to sleep.

When you were coming back, do you remember if Shannon's door was open or

When I walked back, all the doors...

I pretty much remember all the

doors being shut.

The door to Stephanie's room, too?

Yes, I think that was true.

talk to each other.

Who all was here? Just the immediate family. They inside?

Yes, sir.

Session Walden walked off the perimeter of the house.

No sign of forced entry.

Some of the window screens are bent.

They've got dust and cobwebs on them. They haven't been moved.

Now, one entry was unlocked.

It's a sliding door in the master bedroom.

Someone could have come through there?

Maybe.

Maybe not.

Highly likely that the killer or killers was flattered with blood during the

attack.

Strange looking guy, dirty blonde hair, roaming the neighborhood last night.

When I asked him what he wanted, he said he was looking for someone named Tracy.

Yeah, he knocked on my door too, looking for this Tracy.

Oh, 30, I saw him standing in the driveway here looking toward the house.

I told him to go away, then I called 911.

Good. So that's your room.

And Stephanie's down here.

Who's better with it?

Michael.

Did your sister have any boyfriends?

She had lots of friends.

Any in particular that you can think of who maybe didn't like her?

Would she confide in you and tell you things?

Personal things?

Usually.

And sneak?

recently hasn't come to you with any problems he was having with somebody?

No. Any problems between her and your folks?

No.

Anything you ever noticed between your dad and her?

Anything that was maybe kind of not right?

No, not at all.

I need to see my kids.

I don't understand.

Where are my kids?

Where is my husband?

We have to talk to each of you separately first. Now, you were saying

woke you.

It sounded like a bedroom door opening.

I figured it was a cat.

Is your daughter sexually active?

She was very outgoing.

She's very well liked.

She's got an award.

At school, she won the citizenship award.

Who'd want to hurt her?

There's no one.

I wouldn't know anyone. She's 12 years old.

What kind of relationship would you say you had with your daughter? Would you

say you were close?

Would you say there was anything about your behavior that someone might look at

and characterize as unsuitable or, say, inappropriate?

No, of course not.

Of course not.

Officer, my little girl was killed.

She was killed in my own home, and I didn't stop, but I couldn't do anything

about it.

They're saying now that they want to take some pictures of us.

Detective, no.

You know what I mean? They can't.

So, no more today, please.

Mr. Crow, this will help us to eliminate all the family members. No, I'm telling

you that that's it. We're not going through any more here today.

Well, fine. You can either cooperate or you can wait in a cell till we get a

court order.

Either or.

It could take days.

Listen, guys.

They're saying that they... Michael.

Michael.

Listen, they're telling me that they just want to take some photographs of us

now.

Okay, so that's all right. We'll just do that.

Okay? We'll just do like they say.

All right.

It's the police.

Josh, Stephanie's dead.

She's dead.

Someone broke in and killed her.

Laying there on the floor.

We've got a few more questions for you guys.

You want to go with Detective Farber for a few moments?

It's okay. You go ahead.

Go ahead. We'll see you in a minute.

It's okay, sweetie.

We're taking your children into protective custody.

What?

With an in -house killing, it's standard procedure to take the surviving

children to a shelter. They just lost their sister!

I want to see my kids! I want you to bring me my kids right now!

Stephen, if they're going to find who did this, Stephanie, we have to do what

can to help.

Dad, let them take us, please. It's going to be okay. I don't want to go,

These guys are good guys, and we're going to come and get you as soon as we

Daddy. It's okay, honey. Your mom's right, okay? It's all right.

I know it's hard.

I need you to be very strong.

These are all here.

They're doing everything they can to do their jobs.

You have to trust them.

They're going to do what's best.

And we love you so much. We love you both so much.

So much. It's okay.

It's okay, sweetie.

Okay.

It's all right. It's all right. It's okay, Michael.

We love you, honey.

We love you. We love you. We love you.

I don't mind.

I just want to help you guys out any way I can.

Mr. Crowe, your brother.

Stephanie's dead, David.

My little girl's dead.

I know.

I know.

Somebody... I know.

They wouldn't let us see you sooner.

What? They said they have to keep them.

Okay, come on.

We're taking you back to our place.

Richard Tewitt, I'm Detective Baker.

Remember we talked down here yesterday about those girls that you followed into

that apartment complex?

This is something different.

Richard, a lot of folks up Valley Center Road claim they saw someone with your

description wandering around there last night.

Were you?

Who's Tracy, Richard?

My girlfriend.

Does she live up that way?

Sometimes she does.

And were you looking for her last night?

Richard, we have to keep your clothes for testing, so you can just keep these

brand new ones. Is that okay?

Okay. Okay.

Well, we're letting you go.

And I don't want to see you in here again, all right?

Will our parents be coming too?

We'll see what happens in the morning.

I want my mom.

I want mom. It's okay, it's okay. Now, there are a couple of blankets there. If

you need anything, someone will be down the hall at the desk.

Clothes in the morning if you need anything anything at all

I don't think I can bear this.

I don't understand.

What do you mean we can't see them or talk to them? Why would you separate

children from their parents? It's pretty much routine in cases like these.

But at a time like this? With what they've been through?

Detective.

How are my children supposed to understand?

They're so young. They need us.

Mr. Crow, we're going to want to talk to you again later today.

Josh Dreadway?

Josh, who is it?

What's this?

A wood carving project I'm doing for school.

He says he just wants to ask me some questions.

Whose is this?

The knife?

My brother's.

My mom's on her way home.

That's fine.

This is just routine. We're just going around talking to some of Michael's

friends.

Well, we've pretty much finished searching the area.

Found an igloo cooler and an old pair of blue socks.

No knife.

Keep looking.

Anything we should know about?

Autopsy showed eight stab wounds.

Was she molested?

No. No evidence of it. Detective, there's something I think you should see

there.

Final Fantasy VII.

Here's another one he did himself.

It's all about Dungeons and Dragons.

Look at that.

Many have entered, none have left alive.

You know, we're really trying to believe what you say.

Would you have any problem taking a truth verification exam?

What's the problem, Mike?

I feel like... I just feel like... Tell me what you feel

like.

I spent all day away from my family.

I feel like I'm being treated like I killed my sister, but I didn't.

All right, Mike, you need to trust me on this.

This is going to work out.

Like I told you, I'm not blaming anyone.

We're just trying to get to the truth.

Mike, this is Chris McDonough.

Chris is with the Oceanside Police Department.

Hey, Michael.

How you doing, pal?

I don't know.

Pretty hurt?

I have a son. He's 14.

If my son ever did something, which he has, he took some candy out of the store

and got caught.

And the hardest thing for him to do was... What do you think?

You ever heard that saying, no man got to the top of the mountain by falling

there?

How does a man get to the top of a mountain?

He's got to climb. Yeah.

You got to climb.

Sometimes that's difficult.

Sometimes things get out of control. And sometimes, just like anything else,

nobody wants to say, yeah, I made a mistake.

And you?

Of course not.

That doesn't make you a bad person, does it?

Of course not.

This instrument is what they call a computer voice stress analyzer.

It's so accurate it was controlled by the government for a long time because

it's so accurate.

If you had done this...

Would you tell us?

Yes.

And why?

Because if I did this, I mean, I'd have to be out of my mind.

I would feel like I would need to be punished.

Punished or helped?

Punishment's a hard word.

If I did that, I should be punished.

Because, I mean, once you've done that, you can't forget

it.

I don't believe that it's possible to ever forget it.

Kind of grinds on you, doesn't it?

Yeah.

Almost like a cancer.

Eventually the only freedom an individual gets is you have to let it

Yeah. I sense that there is something there that we need to talk about. I'm

being honest with you, okay?

Now, I don't know because I'm not in your mind, okay?

But if there was something that we should be aware of, you know, I'm a

good guy. You obviously can sense that.

Yeah.

This will help.

It's a duel.

And it won't lie.

Is the wall gray?

Yes.

Are you sitting down?

Yes.

A little louder.

Are you sitting down?

Yes.

Do you know who took Stephanie's life?

No.

It was today, Thursday.

Yeah.

Did you take Stephanie's life?

No.

I don't know why I said I was lying right there. I was being truthful.

Michael, these investigators out at your house, they're top notch. They're going

to find all sorts of stuff.

You know that?

I know.

I don't know what to do anymore.

I'm being told that I'm lying, and I'm not lying.

Uncle, I'm not saying that. I don't know who did this, I swear.

One of the investigators told me they found some hair.

Whoever did this, she pulled some hair. What if it's your hair?

It couldn't be.

I'm just saying, what if it is?

You want some water or something?

No, I'm fine.

I just want... You want this to be over with?

I want this over with. I want this over with for you, too.

Look, what if they come back and say, Michael, we found your hair in her hand?

Hypothetically, could that have happened?

No, not that I know of. Not that you know of?

Like I said, I would have to be completely unaware of it.

Have you ever blacked out before?

No, never.

What are you pushing back?

Nothing.

I can see. You're tightening up. Like you're fighting yourself.

I'm just trying to get through this.

I loved her.

I loved her deeply.

I know you did.

I mean, this is your sister.

We understand that.

police station tonight to see if I could... Stephanie and I,

we found a cute dress for that banquet.

So cute.

And I called them to see if I could get it so she could be buried in it.

They have her things, her clothes.

I can't help it. I'm thinking about her there.

They have her.

Oh.

And I can't help it. I'm thinking that she's never

going to go to New York like she always talked about.

Did you know what she wanted to do?

And she's never going to graduate.

And she's never going to go to college herself.

And she's never going to get married.

Let me explain a few things.

We have a lot of things going for us in the way of technology.

We do things like, we don't just get the type of hair and color of hair.

We go all the way to the roots, and we get things like the DNA.

And with the DNA, we can tell the exact person with a 99 .9 % accuracy.

You remember there was a lot of blood.

See, it's very different. Mike.

Hey, Mike.

Mike.

You need to stay with me.

It's very difficult for the person who did it not to get blood on them and not

to transfer that blood to other parts of the house.

We found blood in your room already.

God,

where'd you find it?

I'm sure you know.

It's easy to make mistakes in the dark.

God. Rather than put our team through any more... God! Can you tell me what

did with the knife?

No, I don't know. I didn't do this. Does that mean you can't tell me about the

knife?

You're 14.

Yes.

You've got your whole life ahead of you, don't you?

I don't know if I have it anymore.

Mike, why did this happen?

I'm going to die.

Are you getting sick?

I didn't do it. You need to help me here, Mike.

You need to help me here, Mike. I know, I know.

It's terrible. You know what?

You know what? It is terrible. Oh, God.

And you know what else?

We can live through it. You can live through it. I didn't do it. I didn't.

you know what else? We can help you with that. But you need to help us

understand how to help you.

Now, just because a person makes a mistake and does something bad, A, it

mean that the world comes to an end, and B, it doesn't mean that you're a bad

person. Good people do bad things.

Why are you doing this to me?

If I did, I don't remember it.

God.

You know what?

That's possible.

Have you ever blacked out before?

Not that I know of.

What happened?

I'm going to try everything that the system can muster to help you through

But you know what?

It can't be done.

God.

God.

Oh, God.

The whole life is just on the drain now.

I don't even remember.

Michael, you were gone so long. Where were you?

John.

Michael, where were you?

I think I did it.

Now, the reason you're back today is because we feel there's evidence that

warrants us talking to you in greater detail.

Okay. It really doesn't matter to me whether we even get that far.

We could just talk about you.

And quite frankly, that's more interesting than that other stuff for

How do you feel about that?

I don't know.

It's just... That night was the worst night of my life.

Have you ever had one of your siblings killed?

So, we're all set for day after tomorrow.

After the service, we'll proceed from the church to the cemetery.

Just take all the time you want.

It was real pretty.

Once everybody understands, I know that people will be able to forgive.

But I didn't do it.

The good part of Michael didn't do it.

The Michael who helps his sister.

The Michael who helps her with her math.

I didn't do this.

You know what I think?

I kind of think there's two parts to Michael.

The part who loved your sister and who did good for your sister, and then the

other part that's not so good and that unconsciously comes out.

That's true. That's the most horrible thought in the world.

What's your greatest fear right now?

That I'm crazy.

There's someone else inside of me, and I don't know who they are or what they

do.

They could lock me up for something I can't even remember for a very long

I'm not sure that locking you up is the answer.

You know what else?

What?

We don't do that to 14 -year -olds.

What do you do to them?

We look for understanding.

And we try to help.

But it's a two -way street. You cooperate with me.

I cooperate with you.

I wish I could help you.

But I don't know what happened.

I swear to you.

Mike, did Shannon kill Stephanie?

No. Why not? She's much too sweet for that. What about your mom?

How are you so sure?

Because I just don't want to think that. Well, you're going to have to help us

out here, Michael, because we have a responsibility to Stephanie.

We have to think.

Who in that house was capable of doing this?

What about your dad?

No, he couldn't have. We can prove that nobody came in that house.

All the doors were locked, the windows showed, no signs of being entered. We

know the person who did it was inside that house. Now it's either Shannon, or

it's your mom, or it's your dad, or it's you.

I don't want it to be anyone else in my family.

I don't want it to be me.

But you said you knew his points toward me.

Asking me questions I can't remember.

Mike, look at me.

It's not that you don't remember.

It's that you selectively remember.

This has been going on now for a couple of days, Mike.

You're sharp enough to have planned that out very well.

And you know what, son?

I'm reaching the point to where I'm not buying it anymore.

Think very seriously.

Because there's two paths.

The path of punishment, which is jail.

And the path that says, hey, I'm sorry for what I did.

I've seen genuine tears.

And you know what, son?

I don't see them, okay?

I see the eyes of a child who's willing to sit here in front of two adults and

say, hey, I can pull this selective memory.

Get away with it.

If you say I'm guilty, I must be.

I want to go down that one path, but I can't. Cut it out, Mike.

Quite frankly, this is not a video game. This is reality -based, okay? This

interactive game is reality -based, and there's only two paths.

Only two.

Maybe it would help if you just started talking.

Mike, the reason I'm beginning to sound impatient, Mike, is because the 11th

hour is rapidly approaching.

We put a rush on some things that, quite frankly, are going to bury you, my

friend, and you need to head that off at the pass.

Let's hear it, Mike.

I wish I could.

I can't.

It's the worst thing that could happen to me.

The worst thing is not saying what happened, and you live with this the

your life.

That's the worst conceivable thing.

What would they do with me?

The one path, you could spend a considerable amount of time in jail.

The other path, we can see what we can do to help you live with this.

Right now, Mike, you're sitting here all by yourself.

Whatever happens, what got you here is loneliness. Let us come into your room

and let us help you out. Michael, that's not the kind of life you want.

It's not the kind of life you saw your sister leading.

Have you ever seen a prison yard?

No. I've been there, okay?

You shower, you take a crap, you take a leak in the presence of hundreds of

other people who you don't know from Adam, okay?

You do some things that... Some of your most private and intimate things are

going to be done in front of prison guards. You have no privacy, okay? We

want that to happen.

What we want is we want you over here where you can get some help.

Time's up. These people are rushing me here.

I want to go back now.

Are we out of here, Mike?

I guess.

And eventually, someday, I will be able to tell you. You ought to do it now,

man.

Mike?

Tomorrow's not going to work. No, it won't work. Because the reality is, if

didn't come up tonight, it ain't never going to come up.

What I tell you tonight won't be true.

You're at the crossroads.

What do you have to tell me?

Tell us the story, Michael.

Okay.

But I'm telling you right now, I'll have to make it up.

Tell us the story.

Okay.

This is true.

I am extremely jealous of my sister.

Okay.

She's always had lots of friends.

Good friends. People my age.

I mean, all the popular girls and stuff like that. That's true, okay?

Let me know when you get to the lie part.

Okay.

Here's where I'll start lying.

That night, I got pissed off.

I couldn't take it anymore.

So I got a knife, went in, and I stabbed her.

Then I pulled her off the bed.

How many times did you stab her?

This is going to be a lie.

Three times.

I hate telling you that.

Well, then tell me what the truth is.

The only reason I'm trying to lie.

You presented me with two paths. How about beginning at the beginning? Where

you get the knife? I don't know.

What did you do with the knife afterwards? Do you want me to lie? I

details. Details.

Not your hollow lie.

Hello? Yes.

Yes, this is he.

Yes. You have?

A confession?

Well, who?

Who is it? Who did it?

But you said Michael killed Daphne.

What are you talking about?

He confessed.

Michael, I want to hear you say it.

I want you to say it with your own mouth.

Did you have anything to do with this?

Did you murder Stephanie?

I don't know.

I guess you know I did.

Michael?

They told me I did.

What do you mean, they told you?

They kept telling me.

What? What do you mean?

They kept telling me that I killed Stephanie.

For two days.

I don't think I did.

But they said I just don't remember.

I don't know what to believe anymore. Two days?

Nobody even told us that they were questioning you.

They said you knew.

They said that you'd seen the evidence and you knew I did it. Michael, that's

not true.

They said you weren't coming back for me. They said that you never wanted to

me again.

Michael, listen.

I don't know what they've told you, but we haven't seen anything, okay? Nobody

has told us anything.

We would never, ever say we didn't want to see you, that we weren't going to

come back for you. All we've been doing is waiting for you. We need to get your

sister back. Please, Sarah.

And they told us we have to. It's okay.

Dad,

I'm sorry.

I'm so sorry.

I can't remember.

I'm doing this on purpose that I don't want to remember.

I was there in that room all those hours.

Everything made sense, but now it doesn't.

Michael, why would you tell anyone?

You're having to stay here.

Just for now.

Michael, please, just please, one minute.

The district attorney told us that there's going to be a court appearance,

in a couple of days, okay? And they're going to appoint an attorney for you,

right? So listen, it may take a little while, but we're going to get you out of

here, okay? So you've got to trust us on that, Michael.

Okay? So you have to believe that.

All the time we thought they were being taken care of.

He didn't do it.

Why would the police say that... They obviously had something to go on.

how could you for one minute... Cheryl, they said that they found evidence,

blood in his room. Stephen, you saw him in there. I know. I know I did.

But why would they, you know... And I know that he didn't do it.

I don't know what they did to make him say that.

Whether they pressured him until he had a breakdown or... I know.

But he didn't do it.

Will Michael be coming home with us to Uncle David and Aunt Jill's?

Listen, honey, Michael's in the juvenile hall.

And he's going to have to stay there for a while.

How long?

No, don't worry.

I'm going to get him out.

We're going to get him out as soon as we can.

Experience has taught me to assume the worst about a client because... Good

morning, thank you.

There's a 90 % chance that he's guilty.

But in this case, I watched these tapes last night, all 11 -plus hours of

them, and got this horrible feeling.

Michael's innocent, and he's looking at a life sentence.

Make yourselves comfortable. Can I get you anything?

Coffee? Water?

No, thank you. We're fine.

Wouldn't there have been blood on his shoes or his clothes?

Or fingernails. I know it's absurd. The facts don't support any of it.

But a confession is a powerful thing. It's just about the most powerful

prosecution can have. The jury almost always accepts it. Ms. Sorensen, why did

they zero in on our son?

They were suspicious for two reasons.

He seemed to them...

oddly unaffected by his sister's stabbing. They don't know him. And he

story about walking by her room two hours before she was found without

anything. They thought that he should have seen her body in the doorway. We

weren't even told that they were talking to our kids. We would have been there.

I mean, can they do that without our permission?

Oh, yes, by law, they certainly can.

They are allowed to interrogate a juvenile without a parent present as

the child is aware of his Miranda rights and agrees to waive them.

Why would anybody waive their rights?

Oh, many people do. Over 80 % of criminal suspects.

And it's always against their best interests.

He's a child.

How is he supposed to know his best interests?

It really doesn't make a difference whether he's a child or an adult. Most

people don't know their rights when they're arrested, what they can or

do.

A lot of times I think that the police, they make the suspect feel as if it's a

friendly situation and calling a lawyer will only make things more difficult. In

fact, if you are being interrogated, As a suspect in a crime and you have not

yet been charged, you have the right to walk out of the police station.

I didn't know that.

This is from the first session, which was the day after the murder.

You need to let it go.

It's going to get very intolerable and it's going to eat you like a cancer.

Listen to me for a second.

Maybe there's something that we need to understand about Michael and about your

sister that we didn't understand.

Are you getting sick?

I didn't do it.

You need to help me here, Mike.

I know.

I would, but I didn't do this.

We found blood in your room already.

God.

There's two paths.

The path of punishment, which is jailed, or the path that says, hey,

I'm sorry for what I did.

See, the Agatha Channel is going to sit in front of two adults and say, I can

call the selective memory and get away with it.

Do you think he got punished for something that maybe Stephanie should

punished for? What do you think?

Amy Daly.

She's Green Mom.

Bingo, I'm in trouble. Sent to my room.

That's why I hid in there.

I tried coming out. Doesn't work.

They don't want me around.

I tried explaining that to them, and they looked at me like I was psycho.

So, geniuses and gods and goddesses. Me? I'm just fine. I don't deserve to be in

the room.

I think they made the assumption that he was guilty before they even started

talking to him. Oh, they had a theory, and they stuck to it.

Once they decide to do an interrogation, there is one goal. It is not to get the

truth. It is to get a confession.

They told him that they found blood in his room.

Can they do that?

Lie like that?

Absolutely. It is not illegal for the police to lie about evidence during an

interrogation. Unbelievable.

They can do just about anything they want. They also told him that they could

prove nobody got into the house when, in fact, not all the doors were secured.

They can tell him they found his fingerprint, that a witness saw him,

evidence was found, blood, whatever, that points to him, that he failed a lie

detector test. None of it has to be true.

Right. And what was that voice stress machine thing?

A crock is what it is. It is seemingly so high -tech. But studies show that its

reliability in determining deception is less than a coin toss. It's just a way

for them to intimidate.

And interrogation is deliberately designed to be intimidating.

It is plain as day that this boy was psychologically coerced, and that'll be

basis of Michael's defense.

Thank God we have it on tape.

Detective Claytor, I'm Susie Hauser.

My son's Aaron Hauser.

He's friends with Michael and Josh Treadway.

Yes.

Sorry, but I know this may be nothing, but when this happened, I insisted that

Aaron check his knife collection.

So he did.

And he says one's missing.

It just seemed like something you might want to know about.

Yes, Mrs. Hauser, it is.

I'll probably be in touch.

Is this your knife, Josh?

Joshua Treadway, you're under arrest.

You have the right to remain silent.

Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.

It's all there left of him.

Like the time you raised him.

I can't even stop to grieve for her.

And if we do, we'll lose our son, too.

I know.

I know.

I can do anything.

Thanks, Bill.

That homeless guy, I thought that was going to turn into something.

He was pounding on everybody's door that night saying he was looking for some ex

-girlfriend.

I wasn't the only one who reported him.

Are the police sure that he had nothing to do with it?

What homeless guy?

Detective.

Detective, this man.

This transient.

Mrs. Crowe, we brought him in and we questioned him a couple of times. He

murder your daughter.

You're...

certain of that. He's too mentally incapable to have carried out a random

in a household with people.

Look, your son's responsible.

How can you say that?

Detective, tell us how you came to that conclusion.

Sibling rivalry that just got out of hand.

Sibling rivalry? It doesn't make sense.

We know Michael. And whatever, every kid says that kind of stuff about his

sister. You show me a 14 -year -old kid who isn't moody and belligerent at

times. Detective, my son has never been in trouble a day in his life.

He's never even been to the principal's office.

We've made two more arrests.

Joshua Treadway and Aaron Hauser.

What did Josh and Aaron tell them?

What the police wanted to hear.

I saw the tapes.

The police told each of them that the other two had ratted on them.

They kept telling Josh Treadway that he was the lookout until he told them that

he was.

How could they do that?

They kept him in there all night. He couldn't even go to the bathroom.

Josh said that he got up and he walked over to Aaron's house.

That's over ten miles away. Josh gets lost five blocks from home.

Then Josh said that he and Aaron walked to your place and Aaron and Michael went

in and killed Stephanie while Josh was the lookout.

And did Aaron confess too?

No, he said that he was at home studying for finals.

They asked him how he would kill someone if he wanted to, hypothetically, and he

told them, rather convincingly, I'd say, and now they have all three boys in

juvenile hall.

Would you excuse me just for a moment?

They didn't do this.

What are we supposed to do now?

For starters, we can't afford to believe a thing the police tell us.

Not anymore.

I think you're really going to like the new place.

It's actually a lot closer to town now. We're two blocks from the video store.

Much closer to school.

Maybe that's not so hot.

Your room's great.

It definitely looks great in it.

Yeah.

Here. We got you something.

Shannon thought you'd like that.

She bought it with her own money.

Tell her I said thanks.

She... Is she going to do anything this summer?

I don't know.

Be a volunteer at the library.

Just looking into that.

Tell her I think that's cool.

Okay.

Listen, there's going to be something called a 707 hearing coming up in a

of weeks. Where they decide whether they'll try us as juveniles or adults.

That's what I've been told.

Right.

Well, she says that these hearings are, you know, just pretty in and out, you

know, no big deal.

They try me as an adult, then they can ask for life.

Right. Somebody in here told me that. Michael, Miss Arntzen knows that your

confession was coerced.

Okay? Yours and Josh's. She's trying to get them thrown out.

If they show those confessions, everybody will hear those awful things I

about Stephanie and you guys.

We know what happened.

But you keep saying that.

But you can't ever know how they break you down, what it's like.

Sweetheart.

We'll be back on Sunday.

Then Thursday again, and the next Sunday.

I still let Shannon come.

From each other? Yeah.

Oh, I can't stand this.

Sometimes I feel like I can't breathe.

My heart starts racing like mad, like it's going to burst out of me.

Michael. Let's go. Michael, you know what? You call us, okay? Listen.

You call us when you're feeling that way. I can't. I can't do that. They

in. They'll just twist what I say.

Michael. Michael, no, you didn't do this. And we're doing everything we can

get you out of here.

Listen, you've got to believe that, okay? Just be strong, okay?

We love you.

Don't forget that.

All right.

The upshot is that they lack forensic evidence, so they're going to be relying

very heavily on the confessions to make their case. Right, which is what worries

us. Well, thank God the confessions were taped.

They show all the tricks the police used.

I've consulted with Richard Offshe, a professor at Berkeley. He's an expert on

coercion. He's investigated dozens of false confessions in murder cases.

You wouldn't believe how many times this happens in this country.

He has reviewed the tapes and concludes that these are classic examples of

coerced confessions.

Michael caved in to threats and all sorts of promises, and Joshua was fed

details of the crime and used them to make up a story.

Offshe will say as much in court.

Will that prove them innocent?

Well, there'll be no deciding innocence or guilt here. This will be a hearing

about whether to try them as adults or juveniles.

The judge will look at all the evidence, including their confessions.

If the judge decides to try them as adults, there's good news and bad news.

know the bad news.

Well, if they're tried as adults, we'll finally be able to postpone and bring

them home.

The prosecutors do not have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the three

committed the crime in order for them to be tried. The issue that is before the

judge is whether there is a strong suspicion the three killed Stephanie.

So, we are going to prepare for the 707 as if it is an all -out trial rather

than a hearing.

I am getting them to agree to let us preview all the evidence.

What are you doing in there? Storing the evidence or cooking it?

Can I see the other side, please?

Richard Tewitt's clothes.

Yeah, the transient.

Hmm.

This could be blood set in the powder powder.

I want this tested for DNA.

It was tested. I told you before, no sign of blood was found.

I don't care. I'm entitled to have it tested again.

I've been tracking this Richard Tewitt. Yeah, me too.

He's got to be our guy. He's got a string of convictions.

In a 1993 arrest for stabbing a guy with a steak knife in a transient cannon. I

know. In another arrest shortly after Stephanie's murder for ogling two 12

-old girls on a bus and then following them home. They brought him in on that,

Dorothy. They questioned him. Well, he's just been arrested again for attempted

burglary. He's in jail pending trial.

Police have never taken him seriously as the suspect in this case.

I know.

I talked to Claytor about it. He says...

Because of the mental illness to its incapable of being a killer, even if you

want it to. Boom.

Just saving face. Hey, the guy survived on the street all this time, kept

himself fed and clothed. He obviously had loose moments.

I have looked at almost 40 hours of tapes, read all the transcripts.

It's important to recognize at the outset we're here because a 12 -year

girl was brutally murdered in her bedroom at night, and three young boys

been charged with that murder.

We all know what's in our hearts, all the confusion, the emotions, the

incredible issues that impact these kids, their families, the community.

But what will rule?

are the careful legal thoughts, the careful argument, the carefully thought

issues and facts and law that will ultimately determine the issues that I

to decide.

The Serological Research Institute lab has issued its report.

It's all in our favor. What does it say?

There was no DNA or blood found on Aaron's knife.

The hair in Stephanie's hand cannot be positively identified.

The only prints in the house are yours, your family's.

And there were no prints found either on the knife, but Josh's. Now Michael's or

Aaron's. But the police aren't going to contend that it was the murder weapon,

even if they can't prove it. Why?

Because they really believe the boys did it. They just don't have any hard

evidence to back it up.

All they really have are the damn confessions.

Yeah? Ed made us here. Ed, hey, what's the deal? Nothing yet. I need the DNA

results. Richard Tewitt's clothes are still at the lab, Dorothy.

When I know, you'll know.

Now these are not three...

Everyday, ordinary teenagers who happen to enjoy interactive video games with

fantasy themes.

There are much darker forces at play here.

All along, they were plotting evil.

Look at the evidence in Michael Crow's bedroom.

The games, the books, the medieval theme items like Dungeons and Dragons.

Now, the darker reality is that these...

Three boys became so wrapped up in the fantasy of these games that they crossed

the line and became perpetrators of cold -blooded murder.

I'm going to cut to the chase.

I find that the people have established a prima facie case.

But these...

Confessions slash admissions are troublesome.

I've read and reread the transcripts.

Looked at the videotapes until I'm blue in the face.

I believe that when Michael broke down, he gave the scenario that had been

handed to him.

And the same techniques were used on Joshua.

There are problems in here.

There are things that will have to be answered.

And that's something a jury will have to decide.

That said, they will be tried as adults.

I will release all three minors on their own recognizance, pending trial in the

Superior Court.

Ms. Thornton, how do you think this decision will affect your case?

Is this the judgment that you expected?

What it means is that a neutral party has finally raised some pretty serious

questions about the nature of these alleged confessions.

Do you think the district attorney's office will drop the case?

Well, I wouldn't want to speculate on that.

Come on, Michael.

Wait till you see how big my room is. Take it easy on us. I want to show him

I fixed it up.

What about

lunch, guys? How about some pizza?

Yeah.

Pizza will be great.

Come on, Michael. I want you to see my room.

Honey, maybe he wants to see his own room, huh? Did you ever think of that?

How was the first day of school?

Nobody asked how I spent my summer vacation.

Well, I was going to run down and maybe get a movie.

Want to come with me? Maybe we'll get something up.

You know, I don't know any of these movies, so I need your help.

I've been staring at them up for one day, thank you.

You have to ignore it.

You have to just be yourself.

And in time, it will be okay. I'll never be okay again.

You have no idea what my life is like.

You're right. Everybody thinks I killed my sister.

I wish I'd been killed, too.

Oh, God, Mike.

No.

No.

No. You're right. I can't know what you're going through.

Nobody can.

And it isn't fair.

And there's nothing I can say or do.

But you have to find a way to just get on.

When I left Stephanie and I had to stand by while they did all those awful

things to you, I had to find a way to get on. And I didn't think I could do

I didn't think I had it in me.

At most days, I'm still not that sure.

But you just do.

Just do.

And I'm here.

will be excluded from their trial, which is expected to begin early next month.

Public defenders in this case are hopeful that the statements will not be

allowed. The district attorney was on it. She kept on calling her the will -is

-dead police.

Well, this is how this system works, then.

If something happens now, some emergency, what are we supposed to do?

Call these cops?

Can't call these cops.

It was a very important person.

She had a name. Nobody even remembers that.

All of us do.

The people who knew her and loved her.

So bright a light shall never truly fade away.

I'm afraid I'm going to forget her. Stuff about her.

Her voice.

What she sounds like.

You won't.

So bright a light.

Did you write that, Michael?

Bye -bye.

Well, this is it.

Whatever happens here.

If Judge Thompson decides that confessions can be used in trial, well,

just hope he doesn't. How are you feeling, Michael?

I feel good. Good. You just keep thinking that way.

Whether intentional or unintentional, police engaged in a coercive scheme that

led to promises of leniency for Michael Crow if he admitted involvement in the

homicide.

As a result, a statement by him cannot be used at trial.

Though Ehrenhauser provided a hypothetical description of killing

detectives did not advise him of his Miranda rights.

I'm barring Ehren's statement as well.

Joshua Treadway's statement.

I'm excluding all but the last two hours, because while it was voluntary,

coerced, there were no Miranda rights until the final two hours.

At that point, Joshua repeated how the killing was planned and executed.

I will allow that part.

But it can only be used against Joshua Treadway, and not the other two boys.

Judge Treadway's going to be tried first. That's right. The judge indicate

Michael and Aaron will be tried. At some later date, though, now they cannot use

his alleged confession at the trial.

The detectives testify that their primary motivation was to get at the

What these police officers wanted to get at was their version of the truth, not

the truth itself.

Michael's confession, so -called, has been seen for what it is. Now this trial

will have to be about the facts.

Not one of these potential jurors believes that somebody could confess to

something they didn't do.

Dorothea Sorensen.

It's Ed Mathers.

We need to get you and the prosecutor and the other attorneys on the line at

same time.

You have the DNA results, don't you?

The DNA results on Richard Tewitt's red sweatshirt?

The results are definitive.

What do you mean definitive? On three areas of the sweatshirt.

Are you sure?

Yes. It means that you can rule out anybody who ever walked the planet Earth

the donor of that bloodstain on Richard II's sweatshirt, except... Stephanie

Crowe. Oh, God, thank you! Oh!

Mr. Richard Toot.

I

can't

believe this nightmare is over.

You know what? It's not.

Why not?

Judge Thompson is going to allow them time to explain why Stephanie's blood

found on Richard Toot's sweatshirt.

Why? What is to explain? Oh, there's all sorts of speculation out there.

Did Toot somehow come in contact with the boy?

Did he maybe find bloody clothes the boys had thrown away?

Oh, come on. Was the shirt somehow contaminated by equipment at the crime

or by me?

By you. How could you have done it? They're suggesting that I put the blood

there somehow.

Ridiculous. Ed Mathers, the DNA guy, says the drops on the shirt are spatter

-type stains, indicating they were projected forcefully onto the shirt, not

through accidental contact. But despite that, they're not going to throw in the

towel on this yet.

You can count on it.

Richard, can you tell me why you're in here right now?

I'm in here right now because they think I burglarized something.

I did not burglarize anything.

We don't want to talk about that, okay?

Do you remember the little girl that was killed up in Escondido?

No.

We're here to find out if you had something to do with that.

A lot of people are trying to say that maybe you did.

They're bringing up a lot of questions, and we're just trying to maybe get some

answers.

Richard, you're not in any kind of trouble.

We're here to help you.

You're here to help me?

How can you help me?

Richard, there are some people that think you killed that little girl.

Did you?

You know what? We believe you. We do. We're not the ones who say you did it,

there are some people who say you did.

All we want to know is what you can tell us about when you were up there and

when Detective Baker took your clothes.

Well, obviously I'm not responsible for killing anybody.

Do you remember giving a shirt to somebody or giving somebody a shirt that

blood on it?

Do you remember giving your clothes to anybody else besides Detective Baker up

in Escondido?

Did you give your shirt to somebody?

This is the thing we've been hoping for, isn't it? No.

They're dismissing the case without prejudice.

When you hear the word dismissal, that's not what it means.

You lost me. What it means is they still think the boys are guilty.

Why? Why? What do you mean? They've put together a 40 -page motion to dismiss

that lays out their case against the boys, saying they think they're guilty,

they just can't prove it right now or ever, and they need more time to

investigate. Right. So where did that leave us?

It leaves us nowhere.

It leaves us...

knowing that the prosecution can come back any time they want and charge

again. Come on, that is ridiculous.

Yes, basically they're saying despite the DNA evidence on Richard Tewitt's

shirt, they still think all the boys are guilty. Wait a minute.

Don't they care about the truth? No, if they cared about the truth, they'd go

after Richard Tewitt. This is about something else. It's about their not

this to be another John Benny Ramsey investigation.

They made a hasty and unwise judgment, and by God, they're sticking with it.

We can't let them get away with this.

Stephen and Cheryl Crow have filed a civil suit against the city of

the Escondido Police Department, and the San Diego County prosecutors.

Stephen, Cheryl, why file suit now? Didn't the judge dismiss the case?

Without prejudice, meaning they can refile against the boys at any time. Why

you think the prosecution chose that route?

Because they don't want to admit the obvious.

They were prosecuting innocent people and they let a murderer walk free.

And this is still hanging over our son's head.

How are we supposed to explain to him that he gave up a year of his life, I

a year, so that the police department in this town could save faith?

It's not right.

Thank God these interrogations were taped.

If Michael and the other boys had just written out their confessions and signed

them, can you imagine where we would be?

the judge might very well not have thrown them out.

Every interrogation and confession in this country ought to be videotaped.

is all there is to it. In this day and age, there is no reason not to.

They're saving face at Stephanie's expense and Michael's and

our family's.

We don't intend to let them do that.

Whatever we have to do to see that the truth comes out, that there's justice,

we have to see that the truth comes out.