Original subtitles

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [indistinct radio chatter]

[indistinct radio chatter]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [indistinct radio chatter]

[indistinct radio chatter]

- In some homicide investigations,

the cases are so unsettling,

they'll dig under your skin and not let go,

and the more you learn about what happened,

the more the case gets in your head.

♪ ♪

Tonight, on "The First 48: Critical Minutes"...

[dramatic music]

- The victim got shot up like crazy.

♪ ♪

- A shooting sets off a chain of events.

- I've never had a case that has evolved

into this type of situation.

♪ ♪

- Unlike anything Tulsa Homicide has ever seen.

♪ ♪

- It makes me sick to my stomach.

♪ ♪

- And in Tucson, a homeless woman is brutally gutted.

- She's got a gaping wound in her side.

Looks like she's kind of eviscerated.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

[indistinct radio chatter]

- There are times when detectives arrive

at a crime scene that's so unnerving

at a crime scene that's so unnerving it's hard not to be rattled by it.

it's hard not to be rattled by it.

In Tucson, detectives were called to a gruesome murder

of a homeless woman under an overpass.

♪ ♪

[car chiming]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

[camera shutter clicks]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - Her clothing is off.

- Her clothing is off.

It's under her so we can't tell

if it's removed or cut off.

She's got a gaping wound in her side.

Looks like she's kind of eviscerated.

Looks like she's kind of eviscerated. [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- More cuts along the back side.

♪ ♪

There's some ligature marks on her neck.

There's some ligature marks on her neck. [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

[dramatic music] [camera shutter clicking]

[camera shutter clicking]

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

[camera shutter clicks]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - 666 in blood on the wall.

- 666 in blood on the wall.

[camera shutter clicks]

[camera shutter clicks] [eerie music]

[eerie music]

- Yeah.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [camera shutter clicks]

[camera shutter clicks]

[papers rustling]

- Hey, Dorer. - Yeah?

[dramatic music]

- Smears.

And we're gonna get a mixture on the lip

of hers and the suspect's.

- We're gonna send this bottle

and the rest of the evidence off to the lab.

[dramatic music]

With any luck, we'll get some good DNA.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

- Working a case in the transient community

is difficult.

While they all seem to have

While they all seem to have a lot of contact with each other,

a lot of contact with each other,

they don't keep track of where everybody is at.

She went through a lot before she died.

She went through a lot before she died. Nobody deserves that.

Nobody deserves that.

[lively music]

♪ ♪

- Good news or bad news for me?

- Interesting news. - Interesting news.

narrator: Detective Chris Brown

from the Adult Sexual Assault Detail

tells Dorer about a case that may be linked

tells Dorer about a case that may be linked to the homicide.

to the homicide.

- Suspect started ripping her clothes off.

Started getting mad because she was screaming and fighting.

She tells me that this person

before sexually assaulting her says,

"I've been sent here to kill you.

I am the son of Satan."

[tense music]

♪ ♪

- Hmm. - [sighs]

- She was then strangled with a belt

that she thought was his.

The suspect then started hitting her in the head

with a cement block.

narrator: He says the victim survived

because a homeless man wandered onto the scene

because a homeless man wandered onto the scene and scared the suspect off.

and scared the suspect off.

- He sent the belt and some other items

- He sent the belt and some other items to the lab for testing.

to the lab for testing.

- OK. All right.

Well, we're gonna see if we can come up

with any forensics that tie these things in positively.

♪ ♪

[phone ringing]

narrator: Three days later...

- This is Dorer.

OK.

narrator: The DNA from the bottle on the homicide scene

matches the DNA found on the belt

in the sexual assault case.

in the sexual assault case. [tense music]

[tense music]

[tense music] - So our suspicions were correct.

- So our suspicions were correct.

We're dealing with the same guy in both cases.

Unfortunately, we didn't get a hit on the national database.

A little frustrating but now we know

that the rape and the homicide are connected

and that may help us track this guy down.

[eerie music]

♪ ♪

[phone ringing]

- This is Dorer.

♪ ♪

Thank you. Bye-bye.

♪ ♪

narrator: The next day...

Apollo Ortega is arrested at his probation officer's

and brought in for questioning.

- Yeah, it's very difficult to sit across the table

- Yeah, it's very difficult to sit across the table and talk to someone

and talk to someone

that's capable of this level of violence

because you have to keep your emotions in check.

There are a lot of things that you wanna say.

There are a lot of things that you wish that you could say.

There are a lot of things that you wish that you could say. So it's a very surreal feeling

So it's a very surreal feeling

to be in a room with somebody that you knw

have committed a crime to that magnitude.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

narrator: Brown shows Apollo photos

of the sexual assault victim's injuries.

♪ ♪

[eerie music]

♪ ♪

narrator: Apollo admits to stabbing,

narrator: Apollo admits to stabbing, sexually assaulting,

sexually assaulting,

and hitting the surviving victim on the head

and hitting the surviving victim on the head with a cement block.

with a cement block.

narrator: Dorer shows Apollo a photo of Margie Ortiz.

[tense music]

narrator: Apollo says he was with Margie

narrator: Apollo says he was with Margie and one of her friends.

and one of her friends.

He says he wanted to buy some crack.

narrator: He says Margie's friend

disappeared with his money and didn't return.

disappeared with his money and didn't return. Apollo blamed Margie.

Apollo blamed Margie.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[papers rustling]

[door creaks]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - He confessed to everything.

- He confessed to everything.

Gave us a lot of details that match up to the crime scene

so I think it's gonna be our guy.

And was that a real battle between good and evil?

Or was that just something he's throwing out there

to try and better his cause?

I don't know.

I don't know. [tense music]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

- In Tulsa, when Detective Jason White

was called to the scene of a shooting,

little did he know he was about to take on

one of the most disturbing cases of his career.

[dramatic music]

[dramatic music] [indistinct radio chatter]

[indistinct radio chatter]

- So right down this little walkway.

- Right here? - Yeah.

Victim shot several times in the upper torso.

♪ ♪

So he's at St. Francis.

So he's at St. Francis. Doc said it doesn't look good.

Doc said it doesn't look good.

[solemn music]

narrator: The victim is 39-year-old Carl Harris,

known as Duke.

Doctors are desperately trying to save him.

Doctors are desperately trying to save him. [tense music]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

narrator: Investigators believe the shooting

occurred inside the apartmen.

- Is it our victim's apartment?

- No, it is not.

♪ ♪

[eerie music]

- We've had a lot of shots that have been fired

inside of this apartment.

[camera shutter clicking]

The victim got shot up like crazy.

At this point, we don't know what led to the shooting

so we need to figure out who was up inside this apartment

to figure out what went down.

[tense music]

narrator: As they wrap up the scene...

narrator: Patrol locates the victim's girlfriend

in the parking lot.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Tell me, uh, what happened.

♪ ♪

[camera shutter clicking]

- Where was Courtney when all that that was going down?

[tense music]

♪ ♪

- Courtney Palmer.

I've ran across him a handful of times

I've ran across him a handful of times over the last few years.

over the last few years.

He's a gang member

and his name came up in a lot of various things and...

narrator: Courtney is 23 years old

and has a history of drug use,

assault, and traffic violations.

assault, and traffic violations. - He's a decent kid.

- He's a decent kid.

But he hangs around a lot of bad people.

I'm pretty confident that he might be able

to shed some light on what happened there tonight.

[tense music]

[tense music] - Courtney's here. - Perfect.

- Courtney's here. - Perfect.

- [whistles]

♪ ♪

Can I get a cigarette?

- I'll see if I can get one for you.

♪ ♪

- How about tonight? - Tonight? Tonight.

- How about tonight? - Tonight? Tonight. - Sit down, man. Relax.

- Sit down, man. Relax.

- Nah, I gotta walk [indistinct]

- Nah, I gotta walk [indistinct] because I'm ASD Bipolar.

because I'm ASD Bipolar.

because I'm ASD Bipolar. Carl was just trying to help me.

Carl was just trying to help me.

He went into the house for me.

He went into the house for me. - I know. - And I wanna prove to [bleep]

- I know. - And I wanna prove to [bleep]

that I did not set him up.

[tense music]

- Really. Sit down and relax.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - Is he dead? - No.

- Is he dead? - No.

The last time I heard, he was stable.

So that's good. - OK.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ And I want you to put me on a GPS.

And I want you to put me on a GPS.

Can you get me a GPS?

- Why do you need a GPS?

♪ ♪

- I just need to know who shot your friend.

- I just need to know who shot your friend. - Who? - Tonight.

- Who? - Tonight.

Who shot him? - Who shot him?

Who shot him? - Who shot him? - Yeah. Who pulled the trigger?

- Yeah. Who pulled the trigger?

- Look me in my eyes. I'ma tell you right now.

Teddy.

[dramatic music]

- I don't feel confident enough

to be able to get a warrant for Teddy

based on Courtney's statement alone.

He's all over the place

and he's not on his medication.

What he's telling me could be true.

It could be false. I don't know.

♪ ♪

When he takes his ADHD medication,

we might be able to revisit this.

I think he needs to go home to his mom.

He's had a long day. He's been through a lot.

♪ ♪

Courtney, Courtney. - What's up?

- They're gonna take you home.

How about you call me after you take your ADHD medication?

How about you call me after you take your ADHD medication? - OK. - Will you do that?

- OK. - Will you do that?

- OK. - Will you do that? - Hell yeah. - See you, bro.

- Hell yeah. - See you, bro.

- All right, bro.

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Tomorrow, I'm gonna go and try to visit with Duk.

- Tomorrow, I'm gonna go and try to visit with Duk. And hopefully he's awake

And hopefully he's awake

and he's gonna be able to tell me who shot him.

[tense music]

♪ ♪

- The victim's still out, intubated, and everything.

So talked to the family.

It sounds like this guy's gonna make it.

- I need to talk to Courtney again.

If he's been at home with his mother

and taking his medications,

hopefully he's gonna be able to give me a better account

as to what happened that night and who the shooter is.

♪ ♪

narrator: Before White can locate Courtney...

- Can you come down here to my office?

narrator: The caller says he was in the apartment

when Duke was shot.

- All right. I'll see you in a little bit.

It's been four days since the shooting.

He said he had information in reference to the case.

So I'm dying to hear what he has to say.

[suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

Yeah, just have a seat right there.

♪ ♪

I'm Detective White. This is Detective Brown.

- [distorted voice] OK.

- I just wanna--

- I just wanna-- [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - Start off from the very beginning

- Start off from the very beginning

of what all transpired.

♪ ♪

[tense music]

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Why didn't you just come forward

and tell me this, like, days ago?

♪ ♪

- Yeah.

- [sighs]

- I about fell out of my chair

when he said, "I'm the shooter."

I didn't know what he was gonna tell me.

[laughs]

[tense music]

[tense music] His statement is consistent

His statement is consistent

with the evidence that we hae at the scene.

It appears to me that this guy

was shooting at Duke in self-defense

thinking that he was an intruder into his apartment.

♪ ♪

narrator: White will turn the case over to the DA's office,

and they'll decide if charges will be filed.

♪ ♪

- Courtney comes up here

basically....terrified

that people are now blaming him

that he had set this up somehow.

And so my hope is

is that he is listening to what I told him,

staying at home with his mother.

And hopefully this will all blow over.

♪ ♪

narrator: A week later,

while they wait for the DA's decision,

a Crime Stopper's tip comes in.

- Courtney might be dead.

[dramatic music]

Supposedly, he was killed in retaliation

for Duke's shooting.

narrator: According to the tipster,

Courtney may have been murdered

in the bathroom of a house in Tulsa.

- Now do we think that's true?

- Yeah, I think it's definitely a possibility.

I think people are blaming him,

and they think that he set Duke up.

- Carl was just trying to help me.

- I know. - And I wanna prove to [bleep]

- I know. - And I wanna prove to [bleep] that I did not set him up.

that I did not set him up.

[tense music]

- Well, where'd we get that from?

- All of this info

was told to the tipster by a female friend.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ Oh, this is another thing.

Oh, this is another thing.

Supposedly, they've got pigs

in a town called Summit

which is just outside of Muskogee.

Basically, the rumor is is that

he was sent down to the hogs in Summit.

he was sent down to the hogs in Summit. [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

- Courtney was sent down to the hogs?

- Yeah.

- Man, that's just--wow.

♪ ♪

- So I'm really concerned.

♪ ♪

- It is a detective's worst nightmare

when a witness goes missing.

when a witness goes missing. It doesn't happen often

It doesn't happen often

but it does occur.

Typically, it's because the suspects

want them to be quiet.

want them to be quiet. They want to shut them up.

They want to shut them up.

In this case, Courtney went missing

because there were rumors that he set Duke up.

- Hang on. - All right, man.

- But actually, he didn't.

- But actually, he didn't. [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Dude, I'm telling ya.

I couldn't go to sleep last night.

I was sitting there tossing and turning

because I'm worried about this kid.

♪ ♪

- [distorted voice]

[dramatic music]

[keys clacking]

[keys clacking] [eerie music]

[eerie music]

narrator: 39-year-old Charletha Mack

has multiple convictions

including larceny and harboring a fugitive.

♪ ♪

- The plan is is for us to hit the house.

So I'm gonna luminol the tar out of that bathroom.

See if there's any signs of wrongdoing

with respect to Courtney.

♪ ♪

I do not have a good feeling about this at all.

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

[knocking on door]

- Tulsa police with a search warrant.

Open the door.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - Step out. Step out.

- Step out. Step out.

Step out, Charletha. Anybody else in the house?

Step out, Charletha. Anybody else in the house? - Step out.

- Step out.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [indistinct chatter]

[indistinct chatter]

♪ ♪

[camera shutter clicks]

[eerie music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [camera shutter clicks]

[camera shutter clicks]

- Oh, yeah.

- Oh, yeah. [camera shutter clicks]

[camera shutter clicks]

[dramatic music]

There's blood in here.

[camera shutter clicks]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - I've kept up hope

- I've kept up hope

that Courtney's gonna

turn up somewhere alive.

But at this point,

it's just not looking good for Courtney.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ We're gonna take them downtown.

We're gonna take them downtown.

narrator: Charletha, her son, and the son's girlfriend

narrator: Charletha, her son, and the son's girlfriend are taken to Homicide.

are taken to Homicide.

- We're one person away from telling us what's up

and could lead us to where he is at.

[tense music]

♪ ♪

This kid here... - Mm-hmm.

- Is missing.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

Do you know what happened to him?

- No, I do not.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [door opens]

[door opens]

[door closes]

♪ ♪

- How you doing?

narrator: Detectives turn to Charletha's son.

- [distorted voice]

♪ ♪

- Who's they?

♪ ♪

narrator: He says his mom's friend Gerald

narrator: He says his mom's friend Gerald and Gerald's girlfriend

and Gerald's girlfriend

had been staying with them for a couple of days.

- Where were you?

narrator: He says he walked down the hall

narrator: He says he walked down the hall and saw Courtney

and saw Courtney

curled up in the bathtub.

♪ ♪

narrator: He says Gerald and his girlfriend

blamed Courtney for Duke's shooting.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[eerie music]

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Here's some scary people.

[keys clacking]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ Here's Gerald Lowe.

Here's Gerald Lowe.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ He's got multiple felony convictions

He's got multiple felony convictions

including three assaults on police officers,

using a weapon in a felony,

distributing drugs.

narrator: Lowe is 39 years old.

- If I can get the female identified,

- If I can get the female identified, we're gonna be really cooking well.

we're gonna be really cooking well.

we're gonna be really cooking well. And I really would love

And I really would love

to find out where Courtney ended up.

He was telling us that he was afraid for his life.

And apparently, he was right.

♪ ♪

[suspenseful music]

narrator: Detectives turn to Charletha Mack,

the woman who rents the house

where Courtney was allegedly killed.

♪ ♪

- She reached and got a pocketknife from somewhere,

- She reached and got a pocketknife from somewhere, and sliced him right there.

and sliced him right there.

- Tell us about how your bathroom and all that stuff

gets cleaned up.

- I cleaned my own bathroom.

- I cleaned my own bathroom. [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

- I am absolutely sick to my stomach

at the fact that he's dead.

♪ ♪

And really, the sad part about this is

they killed him really for no reason.

♪ ♪

They spent hours literally torturing him.

It had to have been horrible for the kid.

I wish we could've done something for him

and gotten him out of here.

[solemn music]

- Homicide investigators are human.

They have to listen to some very horrific storis

with some very horrific details.

But good homicide investigators

don't necessarily get caught up in the gore.

They're looking for evidence.

Things that only people that witnessed this case,

only the suspect that's possible for this

would know these particular facts.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

narrator: The next day...

- I see this QT video.

narrator: Detectives have video from the store

where the female suspect went to buy the ice

used to allegedly torture Courtney.

♪ ♪

- Hopefully we can find that girl

showing up to this store,

and then hopefully the truck

to help Jason identify these people.

Maybe we'll get lucky and see something.

Maybe we'll get lucky and see something. [tense music]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Is that the little girl that was in the house

whey they did the search warrant?

- Are you serious?

narrator: One of the women in the video

is Jeannetta, the girlfriend of Charletha's son.

- Do you know what happened to him?

- No, I do not.

[tense music]

- She is a stone-cold liar.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

- This is the lady that cut him.

♪ ♪

- Do y'all got ice?

- Be right there in the lower freezer.

- Thank you.

♪ ♪

- So it looks like they--

they got two bags each.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

And we can see it's GMC

And we can see it's GMC and this damage right here

and this damage right here

is what's really gonna stand out on this.

is what's really gonna stand out on this. [tense music]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

- I can't believe that girl right there lied her butt of.

- Yeah. I can't either.

I'm not really happy about it.

And I'm not gonna forget it.

I'm gonna have patrol go out and find her.

She needs to tell me who's in the video with her.

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

[knocking on door]

[knocking on door] [tense music]

[tense music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - Well, I was looking for Tierra.

- Well, I was looking for Tierra.

Needed to speak with her.

♪ ♪

[rain pattering]

All right.

Come on over here to this car right quick.

[tense music]

- Here's the warrant for your place.

You want me to keep it with them?

narrator: Leatherman shows her a copy of the search warrant

with the female suspect's picture on it.

- [distorted voice]

[scoffs]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Aela what?

♪ ♪

[mysterious music]

♪ ♪

[tense music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- When was the last time you--

Aela and Gerald were over at your apartment?

narrator: She says Michaela and Gerald moved out

three days ago. - Yeah.

- Where does she live right now?

[dramatic music]

narrator: She gives White Michaela's number.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [keys clacking]

[keys clacking]

♪ ♪

- The truck, it's got so many distinguishable parts.

♪ ♪

When we see it, we're gonna know it.

♪ ♪

Huh.

There's an extended cab, white...

There's an extended cab, white... truck backed in

truck backed in

of the GM family--

Z71 two-tone.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ Could that be my truck?

Could that be my truck?

That might be my truck.

♪ ♪

Write it down. Put that down.

That's my truck.

- It is very difficult not to put yourself

in a victim's shoes.

But in some cases, you have to do that.

You have to say, "What would I want done

"if this was one of my family members?

"Would I want the person responsible

"for this investigation

"to go through extraordinary means

to find the people responsible for this?"

The answer to that is yes.

[tense music]

♪ ♪

narrator: Detectives and the Warrants squad

stake out the truck through the night.

[tense music]

♪ ♪

[birds chirping]

♪ ♪

[phone ringing]

- What's up?

♪ ♪

Oh, really? [dramatic sting]

Beautiful.

narrator: Jeannetta has turned herself in.

♪ ♪

- All right, sweetie.

I don't like getting lied to. I told you that.

- I know.

- I know. I just--I'm just scared.

I just--I'm just scared.

[ominous music]

♪ ♪

I said, "Yeah, sure."

I didn't know what the ice was for.

I didn't know what the ice was for. When we got to the house,

When we got to the house,

I put a bag of ice on the counter.

She took the bag and threw it at Courtney's head.

Just threw it at him.

Into the tub.

And, you know...

the beating got worse.

It got worse and it got worse.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ I believe it was torture but...

I believe it was torture but...

Hands,

feet,

hot water,

ice.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - There's a lot more torture

- There's a lot more torture

going on up in that bathroom than what we realized.

A lot more.

It's one of the most horrific murders

It's one of the most horrific murders I've ever worked.

I've ever worked.

I can't imagine.

It's--it's sickening. It really is.

♪ ♪

Nobody deserves that. Nobody deserves that.

Nobody deserves that. Nobody deserves that. [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- Did you hear about Margo's research?

- No.

narrator: Intelligence analyst Margo Heyne-Bell

has been researching the apartment complex

where Gerald's truck is parked.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ [phone ringing]

[phone ringing]

- That apartment right there.

♪ ♪

- Hands! - Hands!

- Down on the ground now! - Get on the ground now.

- Crawl to me. - Get on the ground!

- [indistinct]

- [indistinct] [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- What's your name, sir?

- OK.

[ominous music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ - What's your name, dear?

- What's your name, dear?

- What's your name, dear? [indistinct radio chatter]

[indistinct radio chatter]

- Yeah, it was [indistinct]. - That's crazy.

Man, get the [bleep] camera out of my face.

Man, get the [bleep] camera out of my face. - Come on.

- Come on.

- [bleep] get the mother[bleep] camera out my face.

- Let's go. Come on.

[tense music]

- [bleep]

♪ ♪

- Right now, you're sitting here

with some serious warrants for your arrest.

- For what?

- Assault and battery with intent to kill

which is basically attempted murder.

Which is likely gonna turn into murder

for the disappearance of Courtney Palmer.

- [scoffs, laughs]

- [scoffs, laughs] Where's y'all evidence at?

Where's y'all evidence at?

Y'all don't have no evidence against me.

- We've got a motherload of evidence.

- Y'all don't have no evidence against me.

- Yeah, we do. - No, you don't.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ I'm ready to go right now.

I'm ready to go right now.

I'm ready to go right now. I don't know why I'm supposed to be here.

I don't know why I'm supposed to be here.

- You're pathetic to be honest with you.

- You're a sorry excuse for a woman.

- A woman? That's a good one.

[ominous music]

♪ ♪

[door opens]

[door shuts]

♪ ♪

narrator: With Gerald and Michaela off the streets...

- Jason, that was a hell of a job.

But we got a long way to go.

narrator: The team focuses their attention

narrator: The team focuses their attention on finding Courtney.

on finding Courtney.

- Did we wanna even say anything about Muskogee?

- Did we wanna even say anything about Muskogee? Put that eye through?

Put that eye through?

Put that eye through? - Yeah. Why not?

- Yeah. Why not?

Let's put 'em on the news.

Let's just burn it down. Let's see what happens.

[tense music]

- Homicide detectives are afraid

someone killed Courtney Palmer,

then disposed of his body by feeding it to hogs

in Muskogee County.

in Muskogee County. [ominous music]

[ominous music]

narrator: The next morning...

narrator: The next morning... - How do you know Gerald?

- How do you know Gerald?

narrator: A man calls in saying Gerald Lowe

used to live near him in Muskogee.

♪ ♪

- So it's gonna be that place right there.

♪ ♪

narrator: The next morning...

♪ ♪

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪

- What?

♪ ♪

[grass rustling]

♪ ♪

- Back here.

♪ ♪

- Yeah. I think it's a person.

- Yeah. I think it's a person. I think that's a skull.

I think that's a skull.

I think that's a skull. There's your eye sockets right there.

There's your eye sockets right there.

- Yeah.

[solemn music]

♪ ♪

- That looks Courtney-sized to me.

♪ ♪

- That's gonna be him, dude.

♪ ♪

- You try not to get emotional or emotionally attached,

you know, too deep on a lot of these cases.

But in some of these cases, you just can't help

but, I mean, you're a human being for God's sakes.

Just the sheer brutality

that they inflicted on that young man,

it's just beyond

most things that we deal with here in this unit.

It breaks your heart.

It breaks your heart. Just evil, evil to another level.

Just evil, evil to another level.

Some of these cases,

we'll--we'll live with forever.

And this is one of those cases that I'll never forget.

[solemn music]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[keys jingling]

♪ ♪

- I've been retired now for about five years,

and there are cases

that still haunt me to this day.

The Lester Street case bothered me the most

because no child should find themselves

to be the victim of a horrific crime,

especially a homicide.

I hate that I saw the things that I saw.

Even though we solved it,

that's gonna be a case that's gonna stay with me foreve.

that's gonna be a case that's gonna stay with me foreve. [dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

♪ ♪