Original subtitles

ANNOUNCER: Tonight on Unsolved Mysteries.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Michelle O'Malley

says it started with a single vivid dream

about her deceased grandfather.

Over time, the dreams became more frequent and more real,

leaving Michelle convinced that her grandfather's

spirit was actually communicating

with her from beyond the grave.

In Connecticut, a wealthy community

is shocked by the brutal death of a 15-year-old girl.

Does the key to her murder lie with the sons

of a prominent family who lived across the street?

For Jean Warren, a foster child named Rodger Lindsley became

the loving son she never had.

But after three years together, the authorities

placed Rodger with another family,

launching Jean on a poignant search that has

spanned nearly three decades.

Also, we've traveled here to Washington state

for a startling report.

New information has surfaced on the baffling

case of the Green River Killer.

Over a two year period, it claimed at least 49 victims,

all of them young women.

He set in motion one of the greatest

criminal investigations in history,

yet no arrest was ever made, and the name of the killer

remains a mystery.

Incredibly, this man claims to know what the police do not,

the identity of the Green River Killer.

It all began here along the Green River near Kent,

Washington, where the bodies of the first victims

were found in 1982.

More than a decade later, the search for answers continues.

Join me with this fascinating edition of Unsolved Mysteries.

[mysterious music]

What happens when we die?

Is there a life beyond this one?

Remarkably, four out of 10 people

say they've experienced some form of communication

with the dead, often through dreams.

These visits are called direct contacts.

What makes them unique is the specific, previously

unknown information passed on to those who have been visited.

Consider the case of Michelle O'Malley

in Portsmouth, Virginia.

It was November 15th, 1993.

Three months after the birth of Michelle's son, Benjamin,

that evening, Michelle had an extraordinary dream,

the first direct contact with her deceased grandfather.

MICHELLE (VOICEOVER): In the dream, I saw my grandfather

and he came up to me.

And he asked me--

Did you make that French toast?

MICHELLE (VOICEOVER): And all throughout my dream,

he kept coming up saying--

Did you make that French toast?

MICHELLE: At first, I thought it was just one of those things

where I must have had him on my mind.

And you know, thinking it was just a dream.

And I asked one of the family members.

And they said, oh yes.

He loved French toast.

You know?

And I was like, OK.

Well, this must be a coincidence.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Michelle

was just 10 when her grandfather,

Benjamin, passed away.

As she grew up, specific memories faded,

but Michelle never forgot his warmth,

his strength, his kindness.

Michelle always knew she would name her first son Benjamin,

in honor of her grandfather.

But she never imagined the profound impact

it was to have upon her life.

A second dream came just days after the first.

Michelle's grandfather reappeared with a message

for his son, Greg, Michelle's father.

Michelle, tell Greg to get a pail of water

and meet me at the railroad tracks.

MICHELLE: I didn't know it was all in my head

again, like the French toast or not.

And I asked my dad, I said what did he mean by this?

And I was just stunned.

I didn't say anything.

She says, does that make any sense?

I says it makes perfect sense.

Now Greg, one of the things we've got to watch out for--

GREG (VOICEOVER): And I remembered

back when I was a child.

He had asked me on Labor Day to go fishing with him.

BENJAMIN: Take a look at this.

GREG (VOICEOVER): And I remember taking the pail

and caught an eel.

Yes, we got we got another one.

Hooray, fantastic!

GREG (VOICEOVER): And my job was to carry it back in the pail.

And it was kind of a scary, scary thought.

I mean, those things squirming around in this pail

walking back with it.

Michelle had no way of knowing.

I became a believer at that point.

I knew that it wasn't something she

was just remembering, bits and pieces

of memories from her childhood.

That these were things that she could

possibly have no knowledge of.

One of the most fascinating evidences of life after death

contained in direct contacts is the fact

that the loved ones who have passed on

will often through particularly vivid dreams

tell us little bits of information, tell us things

that we could not possibly know.

Michelle, I'm so happy you named him Benjamin.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Over time, Michelle's dreams began

to feel more and more real.

Michelle actually appeared in some dreams

herself, conversing with her grandfather.

I'm so proud of my grandchildren.

Michelle, ask Greg if he knows your uncle's Purple Heart is.

What purple heart, grandpa?

When I asked my father about the Purple Heart,

my dad was like, no, Michelle.

You know, none of my uncles, not that I know of,

had a Purple Heart.

And one day, I happened to be speaking to my mother.

And I asked her about it, and she says, oh yeah.

She says your uncle got a Purple Heart, and she had it.

And it was wrapped in a flag, which my father had also

told Michelle that that's the way she

would find the Purple Heart.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The dreams

began to take Michelle to places she had never been before,

places her grandfather spent some of the happiest days

of his life.

MICHELLE: Grandpa?

Grandpa?

We're late for the track.

I'm sorry, honey.

You have to go back.

Now go on home.

But tell Greg I've got his lucky pencil.

MICHELLE (VOICEOVER): I thought now I'm really losing it.

This did not make sense whatsoever.

So I called dad.

When I told him about the lucky pencil,

dad just sat there again on the phone and he was real quiet.

And he told me that when he was a little boy,

they used to all go to the racetrack.

Lucky pencils, get your lucky pencils!

GREG (VOICEOVER): My mom had a box of pencils,

of little stubs and full length ones.

And I took that down off the shelf,

and I stood at the gate of the racetrack,

and sold lucky pencils.

Lucky pencils, get your lucky pencils!

Would you like to buy a lucky pencil?

No?

GREG: She was coming up with little nuances that I had no--

I couldn't imagine how she was picking these things up,

because we had never talked about it.

And there would be no way for her to know these things.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Another dream at the racetrack

brought more information and the unexpected appearance

of family members Michelle had never met.

BILL: Michelle?

Hey, Michelle.

Come on up.

Come on. - Come on.

MICHELLE (VOICEOVER): I walked up the bleachers

after they called.

I did not recognize them.

Honey, you remember me.

It's you're uncle, Don.

Remember your uncle, Bill?

Uncle Bill.

Oh, it's so good to see you, sweetie.

Is my grandpa here?

Oh, your grandpa. He's here, honey.

He's down with the guy who runs the time on the times

on the horses every morning.

MICHELLE (VOICEOVER): Come to find out,

my uncle said that yes, my grandfather

used to talk to a man who would clock

the horses in the morning.

And he would try to get the good score so he would know

who to bet on during that time.

So yeah, and I had no way of knowing that, none.

He said he will always watch over me and Benjamin.

So in the way, I look at it as a guardian angel.

I often wondered why me? - He's so beautiful.

He's such a good--

JOEL: Michelle had named her baby Benjamin,

after her grandfather.

I believe that's the reason grandpa came back to her.

It was a way of affirming that he's there.

It was a way also, of saying thank you.

Hey, that's nice.

Just the way if somebody here on earth named child after you,

you'd say well, thank you.

How flattering.

That was all.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Two years and more than 100 dreams

later, Michelle O'Malley looks forward to each encounter

with her grandfather, just as one would anticipate

the visit of an old friend.

MICHELLE (VOICEOVER): I just kind of look at it

as a blessing, a gift.

One thing he did tell me was that I was going to help

a lot of people with my story.

And I don't know how I'll know that, but I believe him.

Because when Grandpa speaks, I listen.

Michelle, tell Greg to get a pail of water

and meet me at the river.

Did you make that French toast?

So happy you named him Benjamin.

Because your next child--

Tell Greg I've got his lucky pencil.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Is there

an earthly explanation for Michelle O'Malley's

extraordinary experiences?

A skeptic might say her dreams are just wishful thinking.

That hardly matters to Michelle, who credits the visions

of her grandfather with teaching her the true meaning of family.

Next, a special report.

This man believes he has evidence that the Green River

Killer was his own brother.

And later, murder rocks a wealthy community

and two teenage boys become suspects.

[mysterious music]

I'm standing by the Green River, 13 miles

south of Seattle, Washington.

It was here in the summer of 1982

that the bodies of five young women were found.

It was the beginning of the hunt for a heinous mass murder,

a hunt that has yet to end.

Tonight, we'll re-examine this disturbing case

and take a closer look at one of the key suspects,

a man who many believe was the infamous Green River Killer.

It remains the largest unsolved serial

murder case in US history.

Two years, 49 victims, all young females.

Most of them prostitutes who operated along the SeaTac Strip

near the Seattle-Tacoma airport.

Nearly all of them strangled and dumped in a remote area.

Thousands of leads were investigated, hundreds

of suspects interrogated.

Today, more than a decade later, one man in particular

stands out.

His name, William J. Stevens.

Bill Stevens was a petty thief, in and out of trouble

with the law for most of his life.

In 1981, he simply walked away from a minimum security

facility where he was serving time for burglary.

Over the next eight years, Stevens

avoided the authorities, dividing

his time between Seattle, Spokane, and Portland, Oregon.

THORP: Bill Stevens was an alienated,

disaffected individual who never held a job.

He fit all the FBI profiles of serial killers.

His poor relationships with women,

a mother who throttled his personality in development.

He was raging to his friends about how

with the prostitutes of the SeaTac Strip

were spreading the AIDS epidemic.

My brother told people on several occasions

that he wanted to kill women.

He wanted to torture them.

He wanted to cut them up, dissect them.

He wanted to fill them with rocks.

He wanted to fill them with concrete.

And he wanted-- still put all of this on tape.

He thought that would be neat.

Green County police.

Chris, take the back.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): January, 1989.

Acting on several tips, police search Steven's

parents' house in Spokane.

They uncovered a cache of guns and police badges.

They also found dozens of Polaroids of nude women,

most of them prostitutes.

In another room, police came upon dozens

of pornographic tapes and fraudulent credit card receipts

from 1981 to 1989, covering the years

of the Green River killings.

Stevens also had a fully equipped police car,

which he had managed to get registered

to a non-existent city.

He had an ambulance, a police motorcycle.

Those factors tended to make him more of a suspect, in that it

would have provided some ease for contacting

potential victims.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Investigators later

searched a second house in Portland,

where Stevens lived until 1985.

[beeping]

[whirring]

In the basement, there was a secret room

which could only be accessed by using an automatic garage door

opener.

THORP (VOICEOVER): The secret room first

came to the attention of a neighbor

who lived outside Portland at the same time Stevens did.

He invited her in to see this room.

And in the room, as I remember, there was a bed.

And on the bed was a mannequin, a store dummy

that was dressed in women's underwear,

and was struck in an obscene pose.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): In January of 1989,

Bill Stevens was arrested and charged

with felony escape and a series of weapons violations.

That summer, Stevens was also publicly named

as a prime suspect in the Green River killings.

But within months, authorities had cleared Stevens,

primarily because of an alibi provided

by his younger brother.

I visited him in the King County Jail

before he was transferred back to Spokane.

And he mentioned that he couldn't have done

the killings, because he was on a trip in Connecticut

visiting me in 1982 when the killings first happened.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): After the visit,

Bill Stevens and his parents continued

on a cross-country trip.

Bob's team was produced receipts which seem to prove that Bill

was still traveling with their parents

when the first five victims were murdered.

Additionally, we were able to determine that Stevens

was not in the Seattle area.

He was either in Spokane, or Portland, or Vancouver,

Washington on the day before or the day after 19 Green

River victims were last seen.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Today, many people

still believe Bill Stevens got away with murder at least

49 times.

Perhaps the most surprising convert

is Steven's own brother, the person who

provided him with his alibi.

I really believe my brother is the Green River

Killer, that the police had had the killer behind bars in 1989.

And I helped get a killer away free.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Bob Stevens

now questions whether his brother was

in fact with their parents when the first five

murders were committed.

BOB: My dad had told me that my brother

didn't always leave with them.

He would always just maybe--

just kind of join them somewhere and just appear on their trip,

and then leave again.

That was his way of writing a paper trail.

He used my parents as his alibi.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Bob Stevens believes his brother

had his own unique MO.

He would travel to various parts of the country,

establish that he was there, fly back to Seattle

to commit murder, and then return to his vacation

spot to reestablish his alibi.

TOM: Bob Stevens has never contacted us

and provided us with any information contrary

to what he initially gave us.

This is basically news to me.

The police are involved in this direction

here, because they don't want the public

looking too closely at the various roles

Stevens played in his life.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Roderick Thorp claims

that the authorities are not reinvestigating William

Stevens for one simple reason.

Thorp believes that Stevens was a police informant.

THORP (VOICEOVER): Police are only as good as the information

they get, which they get from people who live as Stevens did,

on the edge of society, committing crimes

that the police have to overlook.

Because a guy like Stevens is constantly

giving them information about more serious criminals.

So he was a good police informant,

but at the same time, he was indulging in his little sport

there, which was the murder of young girls.

But they never could believe it.

Bill Stevens was never an informant

for any of the local police departments

and was never affiliated with any of the local police

departments.

There's no cover up with regards to the investigation

of William Stevens.

He's simply not the Green River Killer.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Bill Stevens died of cancer in 1991.

Today, Detective Jensen is the only police officer actively

working the Green River case.

Officially, the murders themselves ceased

in the early months of 1984.

TOM: We've explored the reasons why

the killings may have stopped.

The suspect could be dead, could it be

incarcerated for another crime.

He could have moved to a different part of the country.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): But have

the killings truly stopped?

At least six unsolved murders in Seattle

in the late 80's and early 90's bear an eerie resemblance

to the Green River killings.

If William Stevens was in fact, the killer, then

who could be responsible for these latest deaths?

THORP: It seems very clear that Stevens did not work alone.

Steven's phone bills were in the possession of the police,

and one of the detectives told me

that they were puzzled about hours

and hours of long distance calls to a certain number.

What were they talking about?

TOM: There is no evidence to support the theory that there

was more than one killer.

Long telephone calls to a friend are not in any way

incriminating, and in many cases,

tend to provide him with alibis.

There have been killings since that

are Green River type killings.

All right?

Suggesting that the person who was Steven's accomplice

has continued in a very random way, because that's

the way to get away with it.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Was William J.

Stevens a Green River Killer?

Did he work with an accomplice, or was the killer someone else?

Someone who may still be on the loose?

[intense music]

In a moment, a woman needs your help to find the foster son

she still loves as her own.

[mysterious music]

Here's his things.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): For Jean Warren and her family,

February of 1967 was a time of tearful parting.

Where's my truck?

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Five-year-old Rodger Lindsley,

who had been living with the Warrens as a foster child,

was leaving.

Here you go, sweetie.

She's here.

JEAN: I think the whole family was

on edge because we knew that we were going to lose Rodger.

And it just broke my heart, because Rodger was our family.

And I had all intentions of adopting him,

and my husband also, as our son.

But it didn't work out that way.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): It's been

almost 30 years since Jean Warren said

goodbye to Rodger Lindsley.

Tonight, Jean needs your help to find the foster son

she still loves as her own.

CHILD: Mom, they're here.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): They met in 1964.

Jean and her husband, Don, and three young daughters

were living in Queens, New York.

But the Warrens had always longed for his son,

and Jean had a special reason for wanting

to be a foster parent.

JEAN (VOICEOVER): I was a foster child.

And because of this, I guess I wanted a foster child

to do what somebody did for me.

Hello, Rodger.

Hello.

Hello, Rodger.

Welcome to our family.

JEAN: It's the tender loving care.

To me, this is what's important, giving a child

the love, the attention that he needed,

and not just a bed to sleep in.

Rodger, this is Carol, and Wendy, and Donna.

Donna, this is Rodger.

Hi.

Do you want to come play with my toys?

JEAN: He was kind of shy.

But Donna, she was a year older than Rodger,

and she took to him.

WOMAN: Now, the agency did tell you about his little problem,

didn't they?

Problem?

Well, Rodger's a little slow.

He has trouble picking up on things.

You just have to be patient with him.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Jean and her family

were more than patient.

Donna especially, took her new brother under her wing.

All three of us girls tried to help as much as we could.

But since I was closest to his age,

I think that's why we got along so good.

He was my buddy and my brother.

I thought of him as my brother.

I never thought of him as a foster child.

He was Rodger, my brother.

I'm ready to go.

Rodger, you've got them on the wrong feet again.

DONNA (VOICEOVER): He'd come to me and go, I got my shoes on.

And then I'd look down at his feet, and they'd be on wrong.

You know?

And I was always trying to show him, you know,

which side to put on which foot.

I'm going to take your shoes off

so I can get them on the right feet, OK?

DONNA (VOICEOVER): It took a awhile,

but he finally did learn, and he learned to tie

his shoes really quickly.

And pull, OK?

That's how you tie your shoes, OK?

Rodger, do you remember with this is?

You said the word yesterday.

Is it soda?

Can you say that for me?

Soda.

JEAN: Very good.

Would you like some?

There you go.

JEAN (VOICEOVER): Within a year's time,

I have to say Rodger developed so wonderfully.

He started smiling a lot, laughing a lot, you know.

He was no longer that shy little boy that walked in that day.

You're doing real good, Rodger.

I'm proud of you.

JEAN (VOICEOVER): I think adjusting in our family

was the best thing for Rodger.

Whatever we did, he was there with us.

And each day, I was loving this child more, and more, and more.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Rodger lived with the Warrens

for three years.

Then in 1967, Don and Jean had to move to Ohio.

They were heartbroken to learn that they could

not take Rodger with them.

JEAN: I questioned the agency, because I

wanted to adopt Rodger.

And they told me that was impossible,

because he had family.

Then I asked them would it be possible to take Rodger to Ohio

with us?

And that was also denied, because a foster child

couldn't be taken out of state.

- Mr. Warren? - Yes.

Come in, please.

He's ready.

Rodger, you're going to go with this nice lady.

But I don't want to.

I want to stay here.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Despite the fact

that Rodger had relatives in the area,

he would not be returning to them.

Instead, he was to go to another foster family.

Rodger will be well taken care of.

Did you find a nice home for him?

Well, I'm afraid we haven't found him a permanent home yet,

but we found a family who can take him in temporarily.

I'm afraid they don't speak English,

but they're a very good family.

I don't understand.

What do you mean they don't speak English?

Well, I'm afraid they only speak Spanish.

Oh, you can't do this.

We've worked so hard with Rodger.

He's doing so well, he's made so much progress.

JEAN (VOICEOVER): This kind of troubled me, because I felt

that Rodger would more or less forget

everything that he was taught.

Please don't do this.

JEAN (VOICEOVER): I just thought that would

be the worst thing for him, but there was nothing I can do.

But I cried, naturally, even more so.

I didn't want to let him go.

Come on Rodger, time to go.

JEAN (VOICEOVER): When she took him to the car,

he looked at us, and looked at me.

And I remember putting out his hand and crying.

I don't want to go, I don't want to go.

And--

You be a good boy, Rodger.

JEAN (VOICEOVER): I could only say, Rodger, be good.

Take care of yourself, and I love you.

And I'll always remember you.

Mommy!

Well, let's go back.

[up tempo music]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): When we return,

the unsolved murder of a teenage girl

fuels controversy and scandal in a wealthy community.

[mysterious music]

On the night before Halloween 1975,

15-year-old Martha Moxley of Greenwich, Connecticut

disappeared.

For 12 hours, her family was in a panic.

The entire neighborhood spread out in search

of the missing teenager.

The next day, another 15-year-old girl

took a shortcut through Martha's yard

and made a shocking discovery.

I became an adult very young.

I saw something I should never have seen.

I saw this beautiful, wonderful, sweet girl maimed,

I mean, just devastated.

I saw how cruel people can be to people.

I-- I found Martha.

Sheila.

I--

DORTHY: Sheila was crying.

And I said well, is she all right?

And she said she didn't think so.

And so I stayed in the house and this friend went with Sheila.

And they came back in a couple of minutes.

And my friend said it's Martha, and she's dead.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The murder

of Martha Moxley stuns the wealthy gated community

of Belle Haven.

Initially, everyone assumed the killer had to have been

someone from outside the area.

In fact, among the suspects then and now,

are two young men who live less than 200 yards away.

LEONARD: You have a case here, which really should be called

getting away with murder.

And I believe that were this not a prominent family,

nobody would have gotten away with this crime.

It's been more than 20 years since Martha Moxley was

murdered, but the case remains open, and is perhaps

now more than ever solvable.

Not only because of advances in forensic technology,

such as DNA analysis, but because

of stunning new revelations allegedly made by two

of the suspects themselves.

We've got a 15-year-old female found about an hour ago.

Martha Moxely--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): October 30th,

1975 had begun innocently.

Martha Moxley and several friends

went out for an evening of teenage pranks.

Early the next afternoon, Martha's body

was discovered in her own backyard.

Her jeans and underpants were pulled down around her knees,

but there was no evidence of sexual assault.

JACK (VOICEOVER): Martha was struck with a golf club.

She received several blows to the head.

The head of the club was found 50 feet

from the portion of her driveway where

we believe she was accosted.

And subsequently, we were able to determine that she

was stabbed in the neck.

It's believed that the portion of the shaft of the golf

club that was used was later used as a weapon

to stab her with.

That particular section of the club,

which is a probably about a foot long, was never located.

Here are the clubs you requested from that set.

It's the only set like that that we have.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The golf club turned out

to be part of a set belonging to the Skakel family, who

lived across the street from the Moxleys.

Rushton Skakel is a brother of Ethel Kennedy,

Robert Kennedy's widow.

JACK: The fact that the club now was determined to have

come from the Skakel resident.

I think it was a significant piece of evidence,

and made us obviously, focus our investigation in that household

and within that family.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The police

estimated that Martha had been murdered between 9:45 and 10:00

PM.

15-year-old Michael Skakel told police he had

been with Martha that night.

17-year-old Thomas Skakel was with her as well.

Thomas in fact, was the last person known

to have seen Martha alive.

Well, we wanted to listen to some tapes,

but my brother and my cousin were inside the house

listening to music on the big stereo.

So we decided to go ahead and listen to music in the car.

[rock music playing]

THOMAS: This song's cool, this song's cool.

I like it.

Well, that's--

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Thomas told detectives

that he and Martha, along with Michael and two other friends,

sat in the car from around 9:00 to 9:30.

Well, we were in the car for a while.

And my brothers came out and kicked

us out of the car, because my cousin Jim needed a ride home.

We're going to have to get out.

You know they're going to want to use the car.

[car door opens]

When was this, about what time?

Oh, maybe 9:15, 9:30.

And then?

Well, then Brian left and then Alexander left.

And a few minutes later, Martha left.

I had a paper due on Abraham Lincoln,

so I went back inside the house and up into my room.

And what time was it?

Say about 9:30.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): The police later

checked with Thomas's school.

They found that no such report had been assigned.

Michael Skakel corroborated part of his brother Thomas's story.

Michael told police that at 9:30, he

went with his two oldest brothers John and Royce Jr.

to give their cousin a ride home.

But if Michael was in the car and Thomas

was in his room, what happened to Martha Moxley

on her short walk home?

Investigators found yet another suspect

in the Skakel household.

Um, 'till about 12:00, 12:30.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): 24-year-old Kenneth Littleton

had just been hired as a live in tutor for the Skakel children.

He had moved into the house on the morning of the murder.

I spent the entire time watching TV.

DETECTIVE: What were you watching?

KENNETH: French Connection.

DETECTIVE: Anybody see you in there watching TV?

KENNETH: Sure.

Mrs. Watson, she's the housekeeper.

Mr. Littleton, I just heard some noise

going on outside my window.

Could you go and take a look, please?

Sure, Mrs. Watson. I'll go check.

Thank you.

DETECTIVE: What time is that?

That was about um, 9:45.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Before he went outside,

Littleton said that he decided to check

on the seven Skakel children.

The four oldest boys, Rush Jr., John Michael,

and Thomas were still not home.

JACK: What his story was, he had heard

some noises coming from the bushes on the property

and leaves rustling.

But he claimed he did not see anything

at the time he was out.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Littleton

said he didn't see Thomas until 10:25, when Thomas

joined him in front of the TV.

The other three boys came home within half an hour.

Over the next several months, detectives

interviewed more than 200 people and gave

several polygraph exams.

According to the police, Thomas Skakel was given two tests.

The first was inconclusive.

Thomas passed the second.

Then after months of cooperating with the authorities,

the Skakel's, on the advice of their attorney,

abruptly put a halt to all further questioning.

DONALD: No one has an obligation to cooperate with police.

But most instances, individuals who may have some knowledge

that may lead to the identification of an individual

who has committed a violent crime,

are more than pleased to contribute

that information to the police.

So it's most unusual when an individual possessing

information decides that he does not

want to give that information to investigators.

You know who killed Martha Moxley?

No.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Eventually, attention

shifted again to Kenneth Littleton,

who had been dismissed by the Skakel's after six months.

In July of 1976, Littleton was arrested

in Nantucket, Massachusetts for burglary and theft.

According to the police, he was given a polygraph regarding

the Moxley murder and failed.

Still, authorities felt that wasn't enough evidence

to make an arrest.

The case became inactive.

And you can always count your family, don't you?

If you're implying that my family is lying to protect me,

you're dead wrong.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Incredibly, 16 years later,

it was a media attention surrounding the rape trial

of William Kennedy Smith that brought

the Moxley case back to life.

The connection between the Skakel and Kennedy families

served as the impetus.

Within weeks, the Greenwich police had

reopened their investigation

DONALD: The opinion of the-- most of the investigators

or trained police officers is that whoever was responsible

for this crime probably was in the Skakel home at some time

that evening.

And we've been told in no uncertain terms, that

under no circumstances would they ever speak or agree

to any type of interviews, or come forward and meet with any

of us at any time ever.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): In 1991, the police

had brought in forensic pathologist Dr. Henry Lee, who

would later gain national prominence during the OJ

Simpson murder trial.

Dr. Lee was able to utilize technology unavailable in 1975.

We was able to re-examine certain evidence, we was able

to find some newer evidence.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Among the items examined by Dr. Lee

were clothes found discarded in the Skakel's garbage

shortly after the murder.

This included a pair of pants and sneakers, which

reportedly belonged to Michael.

DR LEE: There we would found some hairs and fibers,

some of the hair microscopically similar to hers,

other hair dissimilar to her.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Doctor Lee

determined that the hair belonged to a male Caucasian,

but he didn't have a hair sample from any

of the possible suspects and was unable to make a match.

However, after studying the crime scene photographs,

Dr. Lee was able to provide a possible motive

for Martha's murder.

DR LEE: The blood smear on her body

indicates somebody tried to use force.

It suggests could be a sexual motivated homicide.

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): Leonard Levitt

is an investigative reporter for the Long Island-based "Daily

Newsday."

He has been looking into the Moxley case since 1982.

There were no defense wounds, which indicates

that she knew her attacker.

Really, the fact that she was hit repeatedly with a golf

club, indicates some kind of rage,

which personalizes this thing.

Which indicates that there was such anger

that the two had to have known each other,

that it was a crime of passion.

Time and again, the trail led back to the Skakels.

By 1985, Thomas Skakel was 37 years

old, a successful businessman, married, and the father of two.

Years earlier, Thomas's father, Rushton Skakel,

set out to clear the family name once and for all.

He hired his own private investigators,

but what they allegedly discovered

about the night in question was nothing short of a bombshell.

In November of 1995, a full 20 years

after the murder of Martha Moxley, Leonard Levitt

reported in "Newsday" that Thomas and Michael

Skakel had made startling admissions

to the private detectives.

LEONARD: Both Thomas and Michael told the investigators

that they had lied to the police about their accounts

the night of the murder.

Thomas said to them that after 9:30, he went inside his house

and then he went back out and spent

another 20 minutes with Martha.

He claims now that he and Martha engaged in a sexual act,

and then left her at about ten to 10:00.

If you go back now, and you look at the story that he told,

it just doesn't add up.

I'm-- I'm very sorry to be calling you so late, but I'm--

I'm looking for my daughter, Martha.

THOMAS: At 1:00 AM, Martha's mother

called around the neighborhood looking for Martha.

They awaken Thomas, who was asleep.

And his story is I last saw her at 9:30 PM.

If Thomas doesn't know that Martha is dead,

why doesn't he say then I last left her at ten to 10:00?

Why is he lying before he even knows that something

has happened to her?

That's a question that nobody has resolved.

His younger brother, Michael, says that around midnight, he

went out to Martha's house, climbed up a tree,

threw stones at her window to awaken her.

The only thing that possibly makes any sense was

that if Martha was dead at 10:00,

and he's up there at midnight, he didn't know she'd

been killed.

Then climbed down and passed what police now say

is the murder site.

Says he saw and heard something, saw nothing, and went home.

Now, what this all means, nobody can quite figure out.

Clearly, we're at a different situation

now than we've ever been, because we've

got these admissions from Thomas,

that he lied to the police.

That he's put himself with Martha at precisely the time

that the police believe she's murdered.

If you take those articles as being factual,

the question arises, why did they lie?

And why have they 20 years later,

decided to change their stories?

There's certainly a strange and different change in stories

here that firmly indicate to me that the answers to this case

are within that family.

It's frustrating to know that for 20 years,

they've known that they lied.

And they know something was going on.

And I'm not saying that they did it,

but they know something that could help us.

It was just very exciting to think

that we've actually had some little breaking down

in their story.

And just that the hope that if one thing breaks down,

maybe other things will break down.

And it's bound to happen.

Any time I can do anything to help it, I'm going to do it.

And I won't give up.

And I have to do that for Martha.

[intense music]

[mysterious music]

ROBERT STACK (VOICEOVER): On our next Unsolved Mysteries,

do you believe in ghosts?

Perhaps you will after taking the unofficial tour

of the legendary Comedy Store in Hollywood.

Some people say that once the celebrities go home,

the real show begins.

Join me next Friday at our regular time

for another fascinating edition of Unsolved Mysteries.

[mysterious music]