All language subtitles for The Murder Tapes S01E06 I Did It

Yee-haw!

We were always trying
to protect Michelle.

I tried to call her, but she's
not answering her phone.

Saw dried blood,
and the victim's face

was unrecognizable.

There's a dark secret here.

He would get totally
out of hand.

He would choke her
and raise her up in the air.

Holy cow.
This could be our guy.

So we start looking
at those traffic cameras.

And it's the old clue game,
trying to figure out, you know,

who done it
with what weapon in what room.

Dubuque police officer
Brandon gudenkauf is on patrol

when he receives the call --

a possible homicide
in an apartment on Iowa street.

Our dispatch did not have
much information,

so I was going to call blind.

When I arrived on scene,
I noticed a group of subjects

standing outside
of the residence.

I approached them and began
talking to them.

The bystanders,
including the 911 caller,

tell officer gudenkauf

that they're concerned
about their neighbor,

a woman who they know
only as "auntie."

I then went inside the apartment
with my partner.

But I had no clue
what I was walking into.

Due to all the clutter,
I could not tell

if someone was hiding.

I didn't know
where the victim would be.

When I looked into the kitchen,

I saw a naked female.

And I saw dried blood
all over her body.

There was blood
all over the cabinets

and the refrigerator and stove.

First responders
notice dozens of puncture wounds

as well as evidence
of blunt-force trauma.

I saw multiple stab wounds,

and the victim's face
was unrecognizable.

It's clear that her
death was no accident.

I had just about
four years of experience.

At that point, I had not seen
a murder scene.

You never forget

the first homicide in
law enforcement that you go to.

And this one, just with
the brutal nature of it

and complete shock of walking in

and seeing that,
being the first one in there,

is something that I'll never
forget for the rest my life.

When we have a crime scene,

usually we tape off a lot more

than what we actually need from.

From there,

everything that's within that
crime-scene tape stays there.

Officers speak
to the woman who called 911,

who identifies herself
as a neighborhood friend,

for more information.

The 911 caller explains
that she noticed

the decorations normally
used to cover her windows

were missing.

She tells officers

she then decided to check
in her apartment,

and that's when she discovered
her bloodied body.

Although the neighbors
know her as "auntie,"

no one seems to know
her real name.

But investigators
soon manage to I.D. The victim.

We're a family of seven --
five kids --

and we grew up
on a midwest farm

and always played together

Michelle is a character.

She was kind.

She was sweet.

She was an old soul

but had a childlike spirit.

Michelle's favorite time
of the year was Halloween,

and she loved to dress up.

Here goes Michelle!

She loved the water.
It was her favorite.

The faster we went, the better.

We tried to knock her off,

but she would hold on forever.

Yee-haw!

I got a call
from the dubuque police,

and they said,
"I'm sorry to tell you

that your sister is deceased.

She was murdered."
And I yelled, "murdered?!"

Everything was going
through my mind,

all these questions --

who? What? Why? How?

You never think in your
wildest dreams

it would happen to your family.

Back at the scene,

lead detective Chris gorrell
begins his investigation.

When I first got to the scene,

she was lying on the floor
on her back.

Her clothes were off.

It looked like
she had been beaten.

There was clearly
a big struggle.

There's cabinet doors
that are pulled off.

There were multiple
puncture wounds

from being stabbed
numerous times with something.

Quite honestly, almost anything
can be used as a weapon.

And, you know,
it's the old clue game

trying to figure out, you know,

who done it
with what weapon in what room.

And that really is
what's happening.

So when we're
processing the scene,

there's a bloody
kitchen knife.

We found a fork
that was kind of bent

and had blood on it.

It became evident to US
at that point, then,

that this fork
obviously was used, too.

You could see the four tines

where they had penetrated
the body in different spots.

I had not seen that kind
of injury on somebody before.

I'd been on the force
for 20 years.

Michelle's would rank up there

in terms of
some of the worst scenes.

You could just tell

that there was a lot of pain
and injury that she suffered.

Investigators discover

a bloodstained bra
in the kitchen

and a bloodied pair of men's
shorts in the adjoining room.

When we have no idea
who perpetrated a crime

such as this,

we start to look at the victim.

That's where we begin.

What was her lifestyle like?

Did she live with anybody?
Did she have a boyfriend?

Her shirt's
completely off her body.

Her pants
are completely pulled down.

So, obviously, sexual assault
is something that comes

to the forefront of your mind,

thinking, "are we looking
for somebody that she knew

that she was intimately
involved with?"

Police begin
canvassing the neighborhood.

As part
of an investigative step,

we'll go out
into the neighborhood

and just try to find witnesses.

So we're knocking on doors

when people
are generally asleep.

None of Michelle's neighbors

can think of anything
to help investigators.

But then the woman next door
tells detectives something

that stops them dead
in their tracks.

She was telling US
that Michelle openly

welcomed people
into her apartment.

Michelle Kinney --
she took people in

that she didn't even know.

For US, it's like,

"now our suspect pool
just got huge."

We have, essentially, a person
that knows everybody

and has contact with everybody.

So, who is our suspect?

We had no idea.

Police in dubuque, Iowa,

have found the body
of 53-year-old Michelle Kinney.

And investigators are reviewing
their suspect list

after learning Michelle often
let strangers stay in her home.

Michelle would go to church

a couple times a week,

and she would meet people

down on their luck,

and she would provide for them.

Many people have been in
and out of her apartment

where she has helped them.

With that open-door policy,

our pool of suspects
just got larger.

She kept an unlocked door,

and people in the neighborhood
knew that,

so it was concerning

that anyone could have gone
in that apartment.

It appeared that she might have
gotten friendly, too friendly,

with the wrong person.

While investigators
dig into Michelle's background,

looking for potential suspects,

the next day, the results
of the autopsy come back.

The autopsy revealed that she
had been stabbed 41 times

throughout her head, torso,
and neck,

and she had some blunt-force
trauma to her head and face.

But they did not find evidence
of a sexual assault.

Detectives hope
the bloody men's shorts

found at the scene

will help point them
in the direction of a suspect,

but it will be days

before DNA results
come back from the state lab.

DNA doesn't happen overnight.

This isn't "CSI."

This isn't any of these shows
where you watch it

and, literally, I can send it in

and they can call me
an hour later and say,

"this is your suspect."
It doesn't happen that way.

Investigators next return
to Michelle's neighborhood...

Looking
for additional witnesses

who hadn't answered the door
the previous night.

We'll follow up
with witnesses a lot,

and we'll follow up two,
three, four times sometimes.

The canvass extends
into the evening

as detectives
continue connecting

and reconnecting
with Michelle's neighbors...

...including the woman
who lives next door.

Any information that
a witness can give US helps US.

It's not just people
that see things.

It's all senses.

You know,
did people smell something?

Did people hear something?

We really rely on that.

Hearing this,

investigators
can't help but wonder,

could Michelle have been
arguing with her killer

earlier that evening?

Unfortunately,
without more to go on,

investigators acknowledge

identifying
the mystery individual

with Michelle that night

will be difficult.

However, detectives learn
from another neighbor

that Michelle once had
a troublesome roommate --

a man known only as "drew."

While speaking to the witnesses,

we learned that Michelle

had recently taken in

an individual

that didn't have anywhere to go
or live or anything like that.

He was going through
some hard times,

and she allowed him
to stay with her,

and this person became
a suspect pretty quickly.

Now detectives wonder
if drew was the voice

heard arguing with Michelle
the night of her murder.

Later, detectives connect

with another
one of Michelle's neighbors...

...and are provided with yet
another name to investigate.

Detectives now have
two possible suspects --

a former roommate named drew

and Tom, a recent ex-boyfriend.

But while they know little about
drew, aside from his name,

they quickly confirm Tom's
identity from family members.

First person that came
to my mind was Tom le grand...

'Cause I knew
he had beat her up before.

Michelle and I talked

about the relationship
with her and Tom.

I didn't like the way
it was going.

She didn't, either.

I think she tried to have him
leave several occasions prior,

and, eventually, then,
he did leave.

It got a little volatile,
I believe.

I heard that police were called.

Detectives easily
track down Tom

and bring him into
the law enforcement center

for questioning.

We wanted to know

what kind of contact did he have
with Michelle?

Was it recent? Was it old?

Were they in a relationship
at any point in time?

And so, obviously, we need
to go talk to that person,

try to alibi them out,
see where they were at,

see what they know about this.

Tom claims he and
Michelle were still in contact

after the breakup

and he was heartbroken
to hear of her death.

But Michelle's family doubts
his sincerity.

He was an alcoholic.
I know he drank vodka.

And he would get
totally out of hand

where he would choke her
and raise her up in the air

by choking her.

She would tell me that he tried
to come back into her life,

and she wouldn't have it.

Detectives hunting
Michelle Kinney's killer

have their eye on Michelle's
ex-boyfriend Thomas le grand.

Under questioning,

Tom admits
he and Michelle broke up

because he had
a drinking problem.

Tom insists he had nothing
to do with Michelle's murder.

He does, however, confirm

another name
familiar to detectives.

While investigators have
heard drew's name before,

they aren't about to dismiss Tom
as a person of interest.

We were struggling
a little bit

to try to narrow down
our list of suspects.

As detectives
keep pushing forward,

the Kinney family gathers
to Bury their beloved Michelle.

Her wake/funeral was all in one.

I know in my heart of heart

we did all we could do
to celebrate her life

with glitter, sparkles,
sequins, buttons, everything.

She wouldn't want it
any other way.

So many people
came to celebrate her life,

sharing their stories about how
Michelle touched their lives.

I wasn't doing so well.

I missed her funeral,

and I missed my son's wedding,
as well.

It happened that same weekend.

Though...

...i wanted to be there,
but I couldn't.

I didn't get to see
her funeral.

I didn't get to go.

Investigators are focused

on two persons of interest --

Michelle's ex-boyfriend
Thomas le grand

and her ex-roommate drew.

But his location
still remains a mystery.

So they turn to the city's
traffic cameras for help.

We found that there was
at least one camera

that pointed directly
towards the front door

of Michelle's apartment.

Officers scroll
through hours of footage

from the day she was killed...

When they come across
an important discovery.

An unidentified man

arrives with Michelle

at her apartment.

He actually helps
carry some groceries

up to her building.

We watch on traffic cams as the
two enter into the building.

We were able to show that
that person entered the house...

...and that person
exited the house

in between the time
that she was killed

and the time that she was found.

Nobody else
went into that house.

So we're able to use
this footage

to say, "there's our suspect."

Investigators decide
their best chance

of identifying this man is to
use the city's traffic cameras

to track his movements after
he left Michelle's apartment.

We track him
from the apartment,

and he walks
around the downtown area

and eventually walks to a bar
on central Avenue

and is seen going
inside that bar.

The same bar

where police arrested a man

on the night
of Michelle's murder.

We were able to identify him
as garry James.

He was somebody that was causing
some issues in the bar

with other women.

And they were basically
wanting him

to be asked to leave.

He was ultimately found
to be intoxicated.

Officers forcibly remove James
from the premises...

...and the arrest was captured

on dubuque police body cam.

I observed
a beer bottle in his hand.

He was holding it in a manner
that would be more consistent

with somebody that was
gonna use it as a weapon.

And as soon as
I made contact with him,

the individual became
extremely irate with me.

And he was going to become
a violent person.

So one of those things
is just the fact

that he became very verbal
with US.

I could tell
that he had been drinking.

It was evident
that something else

was going to happen
at that point.

James was then brought
to the law enforcement center

for booking...

...where he became
increasingly aggressive.

Once we see
that he's arrested

for public intoxication...

...the likelihood of him still
being in jail is pretty slim.

The fear we had was
he's no longer in dubuque,

and then how are we going to
track him down from there?

If he is involved in this,

obviously, our concern
is the public

and what is he capable of?

If he's capable of this once,
he's capable of this again.

Police in Iowa are zeroing in

on the person they believe
is responsible

for the murder of 52-year-old
Michelle Kinney...

Garry James, who was captured
on traffic cameras

leaving the victim's
apartment complex

and was later arrested
at a nearby bar

for public intoxication.

But investigators now fear
he may be back on the streets

and a danger to the public.

In this case,
the subject was arrested.

Normal public intox arrest,
we arrest somebody,

we bring him to jail,
they put him in a holding cell.

They'll give him a mat
and they'll sleep it off.

And normally, the next day,
he sees a judge,

and the judge releases him.

Investigators continue
to dig into James's background

and discover
yet another incident

involving the police
captured on body cam.

Just a day
prior to Michelle's murder,

police responded to the home
of a woman named Pam

who feared James had returned
to her apartment

after she had kicked him out.

The lady had taken him in,

and then he started doing some
things that really caused her...

Concern.

So she kicked him out.

He's essentially kind of
stalking her.

So she calls US.

With body cameras recording,

responding officers
entered Pam's residence.

Although he got away
from them that night,

detectives working
the Michelle Kinney murder

discovered James's
current location.

The jail was called, and we
realized he's still in jail.

There was kind of this moment,
like, "holy cow.

This potentially could be --
this could be our guy,

and he's still here."

But while detectives
have James in custody,

before interviewing him...

...they decide to circle
back to Pam to understand

his state of mind in the days
leading up to Michelle's murder.

Armed with this
alarming information,

they decide to roll the dice
and question James directly.

When we got him in that room
and read him Miranda

and I was sitting
in the second chair...

We almost always
interview somebody

with two investigators.

Part of that is

so that my person doing
the questions can stay focused

on the questions
and doesn't have to

try to record the responses.

Typically,
an interrogation starts out

with an interview.

I'm just building rapport,
getting to know that person.

And that may take
a good half-hour to 45 minutes

before it kind of turns
into an interrogation

where I start
questioning them on

what they're telling me
if I know it to be a lie.

Investigators press James

on details of his relationship
with his female friend.

As I interview people,
you know, I guess my goal

is to get that confession.

I try to have them save face.

It's tough when you're working
a homicide.

You can't sell it any different
than what it is.

Detectives reveal
part of their hand

by showing him a screenshot

taken from traffic
camera footage

that shows him
with Michelle Kinney.

As investigators,
we kind of keep our cards

close to the chest here

and not give out
everything we know

we don't leave our cards
all out at once

so we get them back on track.

We may feed them a little bit
information --

"well, we saw you on video going
into that that building."

He admitted that that was him

and that he didn't remember
meeting this lady

and the lady asked him
to help carry some grocery bags.

Believe she had told him
that if he did,

she'd give him $3 for his help.

This point in the interview with
garry, he's not even admitting

that he walked
into the apartment.

He said that he took her to the
front porch of the building

but didn't go in.

Camera footage shows
this guy going into the house.

You can't lie your way
out of that.

A lie that we can prove is a lie

is almost better
than a confession.

But it's not a sure thing.

We need a whole bunch more.

Dubuque detectives
are three hours

into questioning garry James,

quite possibly the last person

to have seen
Michelle Kinney alive.

Although James admits

he helped Michelle
with her groceries...

He claims he didn't go
into her apartment.

But traffic camera video
proves otherwise.

I try to appeal
to some sensibility

or some just common sense

and say, "garry,
help US understand this."

We've got you on video.

He was hung up on

not changing his clothes
in that apartment.

He didn't want to put himself
in that apartment.

Garry was a tough sell.

He certainly wasn't
going to give me

anything that I wanted
to hear that day.

But I think I've planted
the seed in his brain

to do some thinking,
do some soul-searching

as to what type of person
he was,

what type of person
his mother raised him to be.

Detectives let James
sit with his thoughts overnight.

The next day, they decide
to change up their tactics.

We know something
about garry James.

He thinks religion
is important to him.

We can use that.

So I kind of went
into a religious theme.

I told him there's going to
come a time

where he has to sit across
from a higher power

and answer to the sins

or the crimes
that he's committed.

It was like
the floodgates opening,

and he just said, "I did it.

I did it.
I killed that woman."

That was, essentially, the final
piece of the puzzle

that fit in there.

Basically came down to,
he states, is misplaced rage

against the girl
that threw him out, Pam.

He adamantly denied that
there was any motive,

any intent, or actually any
sexual assault that happened.

James insists
Michelle's clothes

were ripped off
during the struggle.

How can he do that
to another human being

and walk away in her jeans

because his are too bloody
to wear?

He goes to the bar

and drinks with money

which he just took
from the lady he just killed.

As investigators, what we want
to know is why.

What triggered you?

What made you do this,

or what did she do that was so
bad that you had to kill her?

And garry really didn't do that.

He didn't really tell US
exactly why he did this.

Garry James pleads
guilty to second degree murder

and is sentenced
to 50 years in prison

for the murder
of Michelle Kinney.

This case is important

because it validated
our camera program.

This is a whodunit,
and our cameras speed up

our investigations immensely.

There's that whole mantra
that the first 48 hours

of an investigation
is so important.

With our camera system, it comes
down to that first 48 minutes.

We are
literally moving that fast.

I thank god
that there were cameras

and that he was caught.

I can't imagine the families
going through this

not ever getting closure.

It has helped me heal and...

Get to where I am
to be able to move on.

Here goes Michelle!

If Michelle was sitting
across from me,

I'd just give her a hug
and say I love you.

Thanks for being there for me.

I think one of the things

that Michelle really
would want US to know

is never stop being kind.
Don't be fearful.

Stop and say hello
to those people

that really needed the most.

I miss you.

I miss your good spirit...

Your good hugs.