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It's Michael, right?

Yes.Crowe?

Yes.Okay, Mike, my name is Ralph Claytor.

I'm a detective with the Escondido 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?

Yeah. 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. Okay.

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?

Um... Yeah. My friend Josh.

Josh Treadway.

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 bronchitis.

Hey, Michael. Soup's on.

Mom, what do you mean, soup?

It's just an expression, honey.

Michael, pizza's here.

Told you to knock first.

We're eating, so come on.

There's fungus on here.

You're so filthy.

Saw Mrs. Abbott at the video store.

She says you blab too much in class.

She did not. She'd never say that.

Never say that.At least I don't get Ds and Fs.

At least am not a blabbermouth.

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

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

Congratulations,

but you hit me in a bad moment, Frank.

I got an A+ on my English paper.

Good for you.Only Stacey Sandler and me did.

"And I." Stacy Sandler and I.

Went to pick up our photos today, and they said they lost 'em.

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 of me. Me!

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

Yeah, I know it's tough.

There you go.

Revenge!

Okay, and 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...

I hope you're not getting Michael's bug.

Hmm... No.

Oh, it's just a headache.

Is he studying?

Oh, he's helping Stephanie.

He's a smart kid.

Oh, 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 was gonna study harder,

and they said they'd give him more challenging work.

They said he could be doing college work.

Right. So that's why he's pulling Ds?

He's bored. Bored?

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

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

You know, growing up. He's gotta 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 his head.

Hey!Honey, look at you. That's gorgeous.

That's the dress for the, um, volunteer banquet.

The library thing.Ah! Nice.

Get these out, you'll 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.

Night, Mommy. Night, Daddy. I love you.

Good night. Love you, too.Love you.

Brush your teeth.I will.

It's just the cat.

I went to sleep.

I don't know how long after,

but the next thing,

there was a 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 said 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 shut?

Um...

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 shut.

Oh, God!

Oh, God! No! No!

Oh, my God! No!

Cheryl...No! My baby!

Oh, my God! No!

She's not breathing.

Oh, Stephen!

Stephen, she's so cold!

Oh, Stephen, she's cold!

It's my daughter!

She's laying on the floor. She's not breathing.

There's blood all over the place.

Please, someone's gotta help her. My daughter's dead!

Please, do something!

Somebody, do something!

My baby! My baby girl!STEPHEN: 1475...

14750 Valley Center Road.

Please, you gotta... You gotta get here fast!

Nobody talk to each other.

Who all was here?Just the immediate family.

They inside?Yes, sir.

Betesh and Walden walked off the perimeter of the house.

No sign of forced entry.

Some of the window screens are bent,

but they've got dust and cobwebs on them.

They haven't been moved.

One entry was unlocked.

It's a sliding door in the master bedroom.

Someone could have come through there?

Maybe. Maybe not.

It's highly likely that the killer, or killers,

were splattered 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.

12:30, I saw him standing in the driveway here, looking towards the house.

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

I want my mommy!

Where are you taking my kids?

We have to separate you to take you to the station.No!

It's standard procedure.No! You can't take my kids!

You can't take my kids!OFFICER: Get in the car, ma'am.

Watch your head.

I need my kids!

No! No! I need my kids!

Mom!

Please!

Good.

So that's your room, and Stephanie's down here.

Whose bedroom is this?

That's Michael's.

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 she recently hasn't come to you with any problems she 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!

Mrs. Crowe...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 something woke you.

A sound.

Like a bedroom door opening. I figured it was the cat.

Was your daughter sexually active?

She's 12 years old.

She's a 12-year-old little girl.

She was very outgoing.

She was very well liked.

She just got an award at school.

She won the citizenship award.

Who'd wanna hurt her?

There's no one.

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

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

Would you say you were close?

She was...

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...

My little girl was killed.

She was killed in my own home.

And I didn't stop it.

I didn't... I didn't... Couldn't do anything about it.

You?

Stephen, how could they, even for one minute, think you had anything...

Listen, they... They're saying now that they wanna take some pictures of us.

We...

Detective, no.

You know, I mean... They can't.

So, no more today, please.Mr. Crowe,

this will help us to eliminate all the family members.

No. I'm telling you. That's it. We're not going through any more here, today.

Fine. You can either cooperate,

or you can wait in a cell till we get a court order.

Either/or.

It could take days.

Now, listen, guys.

They... They're saying that they... Michael.

Michael.

Listen. They're... They're telling me that

they just wanna take some photographs of us now.

Okay? So... So that's all right.

We'll just do that.

Okay? We'll just do... We'll just do like they say.

Right.

It's the police.

They're here to help us.

Josh?

Stephanie is dead.

She's dead.

Someone broke in and killed her.

I saw her laying there on the floor.

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

You wanna go with Detective Farber for a few moments?

It's okay, you go ahead.

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

It's okay, sweetie.

We're taking your children into protective custody.

What!

Protective custody?

What the hell! Protective custody from who?

You people have done nothing but lie to me all day!

With an in-house killing, it's standard procedure

to take the surviving children to a shelter.

"Standard procedure." They just lost their sister!

I wanna see my kids! You...

I want you to bring me my kids right now!

Stephen?

If they're gonna find who did this to Stephanie,

we have to do what we can to help.

Dad, don't let them take us, please.

It's gonna be okay.I don't wanna go, Mommy.

These guys are... They're good guys.

And we are gonna come and get you

just as soon as we can.

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

It's all right.

I know it's hard, but I need you to be very strong.

The police are all here.

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

We have to trust them.

They're gonna do what's best.That's right.

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

We love you both so much. So much.

It's okay. It's okay.

It's okay, sweetie.

Okay.

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

Love you, honey.We love you. Be strong, Michael.

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

We'll get you soon.

No! No!

Stephen...

I don't mind.

I just wanna help you guys out any way I can.

Mr. Crowe, your brother.

Stephanie's dead, David.

My little girl is dead.

I know. I know.

Somebody killed her.I know.

They wouldn't let us see you sooner.

They took Michael and Shannon.

What?They did. They...

They said they have to keep them.

Okay, come on. We're taking you back to our place.

Richie Tuite? I'm Detective Baker.

Remember we talked down... 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.

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 Mommy.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.

It's okay.

Clothes, for the morning.

If you need anything, anything at all.

I don't think I can bear this.

I don't think I can bear this.

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. Crowe, we're gonna wanna talk to you again later today.

Josh Treadway?

Josh, who is it?

What's this?

A woodcarving project I'm doing for school.

He says he just wants to ask me some questions.

Whose is this?The knife? My brother's.

Uh... My mom's on her way home.

That's fine. This is just routine.

We are 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 is something I think you should see in here.

Final Fantasy 7, Gauntlet...

Here's another one he did himself.

It's all about Dungeons & Dragons.

Here, look at that.

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

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've 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 gonna 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?

Uh... I don't know.

Pretty hard?

Okay.

I have a son who's 14.

If my son ever did something,

which he has.

He took some candy out of a store and got caught.

And the hardest thing for him to do was...

What do you think?

Admit it.

Yeah.

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 gotta climb.Yeah.

You've gotta 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."

I mean, do 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 harsh word.

If I did that,

I should be punished.

Because...

I... I mean,

once you've done that,

you can't forget it.

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

Kinda grinds on you, doesn't it?

Yeah.

Almost like a cancer.

Eventually, the only freedom an individual gets is,

you have to let it go.

Yeah.

I sense that there is something there

we need to talk about.

I'm just being honest with you. Okay?

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

But if there was something that we should be aware of, you know...

I'm a pretty good guy. You obviously can sense that.

Yeah.

This'll help.

It's a tool,

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.

Is today Thursday?

Yes.

Did you take Stephanie's life?

No.

I don't know why it says 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.

Michael, 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... 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.

I called, um,

the police station tonight, to see if I could...

Stephanie and I,

um, we found the cutest little dress

for that banquet.

So cute.

And I called them to see if I... If I could get it,

so she could be buried in it.

They have her things, her clothes.

All her things.

What did they say?

Oh, Cheryl.

I can't help it. I just

keep thinking about her there. Where they have her.

All alone.

And I can't...

I can't help it, I keep thinking that

she's never gonna go to New York like she always talked about.

Did you know that she wanted to do that?

Yeah, she told me.

And she's never gonna graduate.

And she's never gonna go to college herself.

And she's never gonna get married, have kids.

I lived here my whole life,

and I always thought it was safe!

And my baby...

I'm just so sorry.

Oh, God.

Mike, 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 did you find it?

I'm sure you know.

It's easy to make mistakes in the dark.

God! God!Rather than put our team through any more,

can you tell me what you 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?

I don't know what you're talking about.

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 throw up.

Are you getting sick?

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

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

I would, but I didn't do this. I didn't.

This is horrible!

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.

And 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 doesn't mean that the world comes to an end,

and B, it doesn't mean that you're a bad person.God! God!

Good people do bad things.

Why are you doing this to me?

I didn't do this!

If... If I did,

I don't remember it.

God!

You know what?

That's possible.

Have you ever blacked out before?

No... Not that I know of.

What's gonna happen to me now?

Even though I don't even know if I did it,

what's gonna happen?

I'm gonna try everything that the system can muster to help you through this.

But you know what? It can be done.

God!

God!

God!

Oh, God!

My whole life is just down the drain now,

and I don't even remember.

Oh...

God.

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

What's wrong?

Michael, where were you?

They think I did it.

Now, the reason you're back today is because we feel there is 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 me.

How do you feel about that?

I don't know.

It's just...

Last night was the worst night of my life.

Okay. Why?

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.

My God. This... This dress.

It's pretty.

She looks 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.

If it'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,

and they could lock me up

for something I can't even remember,

for a very long time.

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 is much too sweet for that.

What about your mom?

How are you so sure?

Because I just don't wanna think that.

Well, you're gonna 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 say the evidence points toward me.

I can't remember.

You're 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 selected memory

"and get away with it."

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

I wanna 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 eleventh hour is rapidly approaching.

We put a rush on some things that, quite frankly,

are gonna 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.

What's the worst thing that could happen to me?

The worst thing is not saying what happened,

and you live with this the rest of 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.

That'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 gonna be done in front of prison guards.

You have no privacy, okay?

We don't 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 wanna go back now.

Are we out of here, Mike?

I guess.

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 it didn't come up tonight,

it ain't never gonna come up.

What I tell you tonight won't be true.

We'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.

And I pulled her off the bed.

How many times did you stab her?

This is gonna be a lie.

Three times.

God! I hate telling you that. God!

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 did you get the knife?I... I don't know.

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

I want details. Details. Not your hollow lying.

Hello.

Yes.

Yes, this is he.

What is it?

Yes.What's he saying?

You have?

A confession?

Well, who?

Who is it? Who did it?

Stephen...

What?

Tell me.

Tell me.

Police say Michael killed Stephanie.

What are you talking about?

He confessed.

No.

No.

No.

Michael, I wanna 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.

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? What?

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 see 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 that we didn't

wanna see you, that we weren't gonna coma back for you.

All we've been doing is waiting for you.

Waiting to get your sister...GUARD: Please...

Cheryl. Cheryl. Cheryl.You and your sister back,

like they told us we have to.STEPHEN: It's okay.

Dad, I'm sorry.

I'm so sorry.

They said that I can't remember.

That I'm doing this on purpose. That I don't wanna 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 don't know what it was like!

They said that they found blood in my room,

that, that, that I could have blacked out.

But wouldn't I remember?

No! No, don't leave. Don't leave me here, please!

Honey, we can't.

Honey...Please don't keep me here, Mom.

You have to stay here, just, just for now.

Time to go.Michael... Please, just please, one minute.

The district attorney told us

that there's going to be a court appearance, okay?

In a couple of days.

Okay? And they're gonna appoint an attorney for you.

All right? So, listen, it may take a little while,

but we're gonna get you outta here, okay?

So, you gotta 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...Stephen.

They obviously have something to go on.

Stephen, how can 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. He would never...

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

Whether they pressured him till he had a breakdown or...

I know, 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 a juvenile hall.

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

How long?

We're not sure.

Come here. Don't worry.

No, don't worry.

We're gonna get him out.

We're gonna get him out as soon as we can.

Experience has taught me,

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 eleven-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. no. Thank you. We're fine.

No, thanks.

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 evidence the prosecution can have.

Jury almost always accepts it.

Miss Sorenson, 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 told a story

about walking by her room

two hours before she was found

without noticing 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 long 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 is 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 cannot do.

A lot of the 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.

This is gonna get very intolerable, and it's going to eat you like a cancer.

Listen to me for a second.

Maybe there's something we need to understand about Michael

and about your sister that we didn't understand.

Are you getting sick?

I... I didn't do it.

You need to help me here, Mike.

I know.

I would, but I didn't do this!

They found blood in your room already.

God!

There's two paths.

The path of punishment, which is jail,

or the path that says,

"Hey, I'm sorry for what I did."

I see the eyes of a child who's willing to sit here

in front of two adults and say,

"I can pull this selective memory and get away with it."

How often do you think you got punished for something that maybe

Stephanie should have got punished for?

What do you think?

Maybe daily.

She'd scream, "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!

How?

They're geniuses and gods and goddesses,

but me, I'm just slime.

I don't deserve to be in the room.

I think they made the assumption 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 fingerprints,

that a witness saw him.

That 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.

An interrogation is deliberately designed to be intimidating.

It is plain as day

that this boy was psychologically coerced.

And that'll be the basis of Michael's defense.

Thank God we have it on tape.

Detective Claytor?

I'm Susie Houser.

My son's Aaron Houser.

He's friends with Michael and Josh Treadway.

Yes.

Sorry, uh, 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 wanna know about.

Yes, Mrs. Houser, it is.

I'll probably be in touch.

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.

No.

Oh, my God.

This is all they left of her.

It's like they're trying to erase every trace of her.

My baby.

Can't even stop to grieve for her.

If we do, we'll lose our son, too.

I know.

I know.

If I can do anything...

Thanks, Bill.

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

Oh, 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 didn't murder your daughter.

You're, you're certain of that?

He's too mentally incapable to have carried out a random murder

in a house filled with people.

Look, your son's responsible.

How can you say that?

Detective, just tell us how you came to that conclusion.

Sibling rivalry that just got out of hand.

Sibling rivalry? It just doesn't make sense.

Look, we know Michael.

Okay? 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 Houser.

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.

But 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 10 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.

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?

Hello, Mr. Parker...

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 gonna... Really gonna like the new place.

It's actually a lot closer to town now.

We're two blocks from the video store.

So...

Much closer to school.

Maybe that's not so hot.

Your room's great.

Your stuff 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 gonna do anything this summer?

Uh...

Maybe volunteer at the library.

She's looking into that.

Tell her I think that's cool.

Okay.

Listen, uh, there's gonna be something

called a 707 hearing

coming up in a couple of weeks.

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

Ms. Sorenson told me.

Right.

Well, she, 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.

Michael...Somebody in here told me that.

Michael, Ms. Sorenson 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'll hear those awful things I said about Stephanie and you guys.

Honey, we know what happened.

You keep saying that!

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

Sweetheart...

Okay, that's it.We'll be back on Sunday.

Then Thursday again, and the next Sunday.

I wish they'd let Shannon come.

You'll see each other soon.

Mom, I can't stand this.

Sometimes I feel like I can't breathe.

My heart starts racing like mad,

like it's gonna burst out of me.

Michael...

Let's go.Michael, then 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 listen in. They'll just twist what I say.

Michael...

Michael, we know you didn't do this,

and we're doing everything we can to get you out of here.

Listen, you gotta believe that, okay?

Just you be strong. Okay?

We love you. Don't forget that.

Hello, Cheryl, nice to meet you.

All right, um, 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 Ofshe, a professor at Berkeley.

He is 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.

Ofshe will say as much in court.

Will that prove them innocent?

Well, there'll be no deciding innocence or guilt here.

This'll 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 is good news and bad news.

We know the bad news.

Well, if they're tried as adults,

we'll finally be able to post bond 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're going to prepare for the 707

as if it 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 Tuite's clothes.

Yeah, the transient.

Hmm.

This could be blood set in a spatter pattern.

I want this tested for DNA.

It was tested. I told you before.

And no sign of blood was found.

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

I've been tracking this Richard Tuite.

Yeah, me, too.

This has gotta be our guy. He's got a string of convictions,

and a 1993 arrest for stabbing a guy with a steak knife

in a transient camp.I know.

And another arrest shortly after Stephanie's murder

for ogling two 12-year-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 a suspect in this case.

I know.

I talked to Claytor about it.

He says because of the mental illness,

Tuite's incapable of being a killer,

even if he wanted to.

Bull! He's just saving face.

Hey, the guy survived on the street all this time,

kept himself fed and clothed,

he obviously has his lucid moments.

All rise.

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-old girl

was brutally murdered in her bedroom at night,

and three young boys have 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, and the community.

But what will rule are the careful,

legal thoughts.

The careful arguments.

The carefully thought out issues and facts and law

that will ultimately determine the issues that I have to decide.

The Serological Research Institute Lab has issued its report.

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

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

The hair in Stephanie's hand could not 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.

Not Michael's or Aaron's?

But the police are 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 Mathers here.

Ed, hey. What's the deal?

Nothing yet.I need the DNA results.

Richard Tuite'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 Crowe's bedroom.

The games, the books.

The medieval-themed items, like Dungeons & Dragons.

No, 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 gonna 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 re-read 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 a superior court.

Ms. Sorenson, 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.

Shannon, slow down, all right?

Take it easy on him.

I wanna show him, I wanna show him

how I fixed it up.STEPHEN: You've got lots of time.

What about lunch, guys? How about some pizza?

Yeah.

Pizza would be great.

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

Uh, honey, maybe he wants to see his own room, huh?

Did you ever think of that?

Okay.

Come on.

Mike.

How was the first day of school?

Nobody asked how I spent my summer vacation.

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

Wanna 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 stared at enough for one day, thank you.

You have to ignore it.

You have to just be yourself.

And in time, it will be okay.

How? It'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...

I can't know what you're going through.

Nobody can.

And it isn't fair.

And there is nothing I can say or do.

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

When I lost 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 it.

I didn't think I had it in me.

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

But you just do.

You just do.

And I'm here.

Today began the second week of pre-trial hearings...

Thanks.Anytime.

...in the Stephanie Crowe murder case.

Judge Thompson will determine whether statements obtained by the police

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.

She kept on calling her "the little dead girl."

They say that without them, there is little hard evidence to convict the three boys.

So tired of this.

If 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.

She was a very important person. She had a name.

Nobody even remembers that.

All of us do, people who knew her and loved her.

So bright a light, shall never truly fade away.

I'm afraid I'm gonna 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 the confessions can be used in trial...

Well, let's just hope he doesn't.

How are you feeling, Michael?

Uh, 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 Crowe

if he admitted involvement in the homicide.

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

Though Aaron Houser provided a hypothetical description of killing someone,

detectives did not advise him of his Miranda rights.

I'm barring Aaron's statement as well.

Joshua Treadway's statement,

I'm excluding all but the last two hours.

Because while it was voluntary, not 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.

Josh Treadway is gonna be tried first?

That's right.Did the judge indicate

when Michael and Aaron will be tried?

At some later date. Though now they cannot use

his alleged confession at the trial.

The detectives testified that their primary motivation

was to get at the truth.

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.

Hey.Hey.

Well, not one of these potential jurors believes that somebody

could confess to something they didn't do.

Dorothy Sorenson.

It's Ed Mathers.

We need to get you and the prosecutor

and the other attorneys on the line at the same time.

You have the DNA results, don't you?

The DNA results on Richard Tuite'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

as a donor of that bloodstain

on Richard Tuite's sweatshirt, except

Stephanie Crowe.

Oh, God, thank you!

Oh!

Oh!

Thank you.

I can't believe this nightmare is over.

You know what, it's not.

Why not?

Judge Thompson is gonna allow them time to explain

why Stephanie's blood was found on Richard Tuite's sweatshirt.

What? Why? What is to explain?

Oh, there is all sorts of speculation out there.

Did Tuite somehow come in contact with the boys?

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

Oh, come on.

Was the shirt somehow contaminated by equipment at the crime scene?

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 wanna 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.

And now 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,

but there are some people who say you did.

All we wanna 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 had blood on it?

No.

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 have been hoping for, isn't it?

No. They are dismissing the case without prejudice.

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

Uh, 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 does that leave us?

It leaves us nowhere.

It leaves us knowing that the prosecution

could come back any time they want

and charge Michael again.

Come on. That is ridiculous.

Yes, basically they're saying,

despite the DNA evidence on Richard Tuite'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 Tuite.

This is about something else.

This is about their not wanting this to be another

JonBenet 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 Crowe have filed a civil suit

against the city of Escondido,

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 re-file against the boys at any time.

Why do 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.

You know, I mean, how are we supposed to explain to him

that he gave up a year of his life?

I mean, a year,

so that the police department in this town could save face, you know.

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.

That 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 is justice.

We have to see that the truth comes out.