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Crime and Justice With Ashleigh Banfield
Killer On TV, Pretends Lover Is Missing; Poisoned To Death By Mom`s Boyfriend; Bombshell Autopsy; Hunt For Killer; Two Men Bash Pedestrian With Baseball Bat; One More Thing. Aired 6-8p ET
Aired July 19, 2018 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you`re listening --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When his pregnant girlfriend went missing, he stood in front of live TV cameras, tearfully begging for her back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It doesn`t matter what`s happened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But before those cameras started rolling, police say he killed that woman, then buried her body in a shallow grave.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Doesn`t matter what type of trouble.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was she killed to keep her from exposing his secret double life? Tonight, some bombshell developments in the case.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s nothing we can`t fix together.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She is 3 years old, we have looked everywhere in our house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shocking new details revealed in the death of a 3-year- old girl who went missing. Her mother`s live-in boyfriend could face the death penalty.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s just a shock to me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A beautiful young nurse strangled to death in her own home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was wrapped up in a blanket in the corner of the bed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tonight, police are desperately seeking the killer.
And the hunt for two men caught on camera, attacking another man with baseball bats in broad daylight.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TROY SLATEN, GUEST HOST, HLN CRIME AND JUSTICE: Good evening, I`m Troy Slaten, in for Ashleigh Banfield. This is "Crime and Justice." Tonight, a
possible roadblock in the case against Tyler Tessier. The man suspected of killing his pregnant girlfriend and lying through his teeth when everyone
thought she was missing. Laura Wallen was four month`s pregnant and a beloved local teacher. Only Miss Wallen never showed up for the first day
of school. Not exactly something a teacher of the year would do. So she was reported missing. And when police and her family held a press
conference to get the word out, her boyfriend tagged along, delivering what some would call an Oscar-worthy performance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TYLER TESSIER, BOYFRIEND OF VICTIM: Laura, if you`re listening -- I don`t know where she is, that is all. I don`t know. Myself and your family,
like, I don`t -- and I`m asking for you to just let us know that you`re safe. I know we`re all trying to do everything we can. I know what she
means to me, I know what she means to everybody else. I pray that she is safe. We just want to know she is OK, we just want here back. That is all
I care about right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Two days later, police dogs found Laura`s body, buried in a field, in a shallow grave, with a gunshot to the back of the head. Prosecutors
say Tessier would soon admit to putting it there. He reportedly said that Laura lunged at him during a fight, but instead hit a wooden post and died,
so he buried her, and shot her, to make sure that she still wasn`t alive and suffering. Whether or not that is true, a jury may never hear that
admission, but the jury will probably hear clips from that press conference and see every single one of Tessier`s tears. The only question now is
whether he`ll still be crying in court.
Joining me now, Kylie Khan, a reporter with CNN affiliate WDVM. Janine Driver, a body language expert. Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law
enforcement consultant, and veteran defense attorney, Ashleigh Merchant. We`ll have a lot more on this tragic story at the top of the hour.
First to you, Kylie. Set this up for us. Tell us what was going on with bringing this suspect who the police thought was guilty of her murder, to a
press conference.
KYLIE KHAN, REPORTER, CNN AFFILIATE WDVM: Well, police have said that they wanted to see what he was going to say. Obviously us in the media, we had
no idea that he was even a suspect at the time. Nobody knew except for the detectives, and I believe her parents knew as well. So her mom said that
she was holding her hand and she was shaking, because she knew that he was a suspect, but they just wanted to see what he had to say.
SLATEN: Do you know what it was that brought the police attention to Tessier?
KHAN: I don`t remember the specifics of that, because it`s been a while, but I do know that, you know, because he was the father of her unborn child
that definitely made him a suspect in this case.
[18:05:11] SLATEN: Out to Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement consultant. Tom, is this unusual, to bring somebody, who the
police think is a suspect, and even the family was told that he is a suspect in her murder, and to parade him out in front of the press, to
answer questions from everybody?
TOM VERNI, FORMER DETECTIVE, NEW YORK POLICE: Well, this is not -- first of all, my sincere condolences to the Wallen family. This is just an
awful, unbelievable tragedy for them. And I feel awful for them. But this is, yes, it`s not a usual occurrence. It does happen from time to time.
Every police department and detective squad in that department is going to have different tactics of how they might get someone to you know, to admit,
if they feel they are the prime suspect, and they have enough evidence to back it up, to admit that they were involved in some way.
If they`re the person of interest or beyond that point. So, yes, I`m not surprised. I`ve seen this before. It`s not something that you see every
day, but in his utterance of these statements, that along with the fact that he had changed his story numerous times and brought them to where the
body was, there`s so much evidence here against him. Yes, it seems very clear to me that he is the guy, right? One would think that.
SLATEN: What about allowing the family to be a part of this, essentially, charade? Is that something that police often do? Because, I know as a
trial attorney, you never know what a witness is going to do. Especially these people aren`t trained in law enforcement and investigation tactics.
But is it common to involve the family in a pretext like this, to try and get their suspect to incriminate himself, to hang himself with his own
words.
VERNI: I wouldn`t say it`s a common occurrence. Again, I have seen it happen before. In my experience, it was not a common occurrence, no.
Again, this could be one of a number of different tactics that the detectives may use to try to find out, get a little more information than
they may have gotten in a one-on-one interview with him. You know, personally, I kind a feel both ways about using, you know, having the
family involved, not so much of a safety issue, but really, you are kind of putting them in a situation where they have to kind a play a part that they
might not be able to play emotionally, right?
SLATEN: Yes. Ok. So let`s hear Tyler`s own words at the press conference.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now I`d like to ask Laura Wallen`s boyfriend, Mr. Tyler Tessier to step to the podium to say a few words on Laura`s behalf.
TESSIER: Thank you all for coming here. Laura, if you`re listening, it doesn`t matter what`s happened, it doesn`t matter -- it doesn`t matter what
type of trouble, there`s nothing we can`t fix together.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Well, if I had watched that myself, I would think that he -- this is a grieving husband. Out to Janine Driver, body language expert.
Janine, knowing what we know now, obviously having the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, what`s your impression of his Oscar-worthy performance there?
Knowing that at that moment, he knew exactly where his wife was.
JANINE DRIVER, BODY LANGUAGE EXPERT: I think, people are trying to weigh that I am saying, Troy like the guess you had on, we probably will tell
you, I know I can tell you for sure, far from Oscar-worthy. There`s a reason why we have a doctor called the ear, nose and throat doctors.
They`re all connected. When someone is sad, we`re looking for a runny nose, not just sighs. Ears, nose and throat. So there should be a runny
nose. We don`t see that. Also, we see a lot of shoulder shrugs, which are uncertainty, but we don`t know the catalyst did, right. Maybe he is
uncertain where she was. Right, but we see the uncertainty shrugs.
Here with body language, we`re not seeing genuine sadness. This is fake sadness through and through. We see a pacifier, when stands up to those
feet, he rubs the side of his leg. We see this all the time. We saw this type of behavior with Scott Peterson who murdered his wife Lacey Peterson
and their unborn son Connor just like a couple of decade ago and you see it all again. Troy, very suspicious at one point, that someone in the
audience asks a question, hey, what was your last -- one of the reporters, what was your last conversation like with your wife, with Laura?
[18:10:00] And he pauses for 17 seconds. For 17 seconds and says nothing and then diverts. Another thing that we see here, or rather hear here with
this section, is a lot of start, stop sentences. Over 42. I was counting there, I just got called in as a guest, over 42. I counted in the short
amount of time I had to watch this footage. A lot of deceptive people have start-stop sentences, because the truth is coming in, but they have to
divert to the deception. Also, one last thing --
SLATEN: Hold it right there. I want you to watch another piece of video that we have of Lieutenant Sean Gagen at that press conference. He knows
at this point exactly what he is doing with regard to, trying to get Tessier to hang himself. And I want you to watch him right here when he is
asked the question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LIEUTENANT SEAN GAGEN, MONTGOMERY COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT: We continue to conduct investigation as if she is a missing person at this point in time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is there any reason to believe that there`s foul play here?
GAGEN: None at this time that I`m aware of.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: So the detective says, oh, there`s no foul play, none that I`m aware of, but there absolutely is foul play. They think that she is dead
and killed at the hands of Tessier. What do you make of his performance there?
DRIVER: Well, you know, words are just as important as body language. And here, not that I`m aware of, instead of just ending the sentence, he is
giving this squishy language, and we see the same thing with Tyler Tessier, who says, I don`t know where she is, that is all. He can just simply say,
I don`t know where she is, period. It`s like when we hear athletes say, I never took steroids. That is all I can tell, that is all I can say here.
That indicates there`s something you can`t say, there`s something you can`t tell. So the language, as much as the body language are crucial when it
comes to separating fact from fiction.
SLATEN: Let me go to veteran defense attorney, Ashleigh Merchant. Ashleigh, Tessier here gave several different stories. First at the press
conference he is saying that he wants the public`s help in finding her. And then when the police start talking to him, he comes up with a story
that he helped her disappear and that she wanted to disappear and he was just following her wishes in helping her.
And then his story changed once he was arrested, and said that he was kidnapped, that they were both kidnapped by two African American men, taken
out into the field, she was shot, and his life was spared once he was able to plead with them.
And then his story changed even a third time when he said that she tried to attack him with a pair of scissors and it was only when he ducked out of
the way, she crashed into a wooden post, killed herself, collapsed to the ground, and then he took her out into the field and buried her. And just
to make sure that she wasn`t dead and suffering, shot her in the back of the head. Doesn`t this show consciousness of guilt?
ASHLEIGH MERCHANT, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: This shows something that a defense attorney definitely doesn`t want to have to deal with, multiple different
versions of what your client is telling to be the truth. Because if a jury hears all those different versions, all they are going to see is that he is
a liar, and they`re not going to like him and they are not going to believe anything he says.
SLATEN: So how do you defend him? So, Ashleigh, let us say you`re retained, and his family walks into the office to retain you, how do you
start this defense?
MERCHANT: I fight like hell to get these statements out, to keep these statements out of court, and that is exactly what his lawyers have been
doing. They have been fighting like hell to keep these statements from coming before a jury. So the more that they can minimize the statements,
and one of the ways they`ve done that, and they`ve been successful with the last statement, is that they`ve been able to say that the police should not
have interrogated him when he actually had a lawyer. Because he had a lawyer. And once you have a lawyer, police have to stop talking to you.
And they didn`t follow the rules. And so the Judge has said, they can`t use those portions that they interrogated after he had a lawyer, they can`t
use those in front of a jury. The problem now is overcoming these first interviews, these early interviews, where he just looks like, you know, the
body language expert has made clear, he looks like he is lying, he looks like he is not telling the truth, he looks unsympathetic and the problem
with jurors is once they see that, they sort of shut down and they don`t listen to anything else.
SLATEN: Ashleigh, stay with us. We`ll have a lot more on this tragic story at the top of the hour.
When Earl Kimry was arrested for the murder of 3-year-old Mariah Woods it was shocking enough, but there`s now new information on how this little
girl died and it`s horrific. That story when we return.
[18:15:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SLATEN: Tonight, dark new details in the case of Mariah Woods, the adorable 3-year-old girl who vanished from her home overnight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[18:20:00] KRISTY WOODS, MARIAH`S MOTHER: My last time with her was feeding her and putting her to bed. And telling her I love her and she
loves me.
Please bring her back and I love her, I would do anything that I can, whatever you want. Just bring her home, please, safe and sound. She is my
baby, she is my everything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: It was her mom`s live-in boyfriend who reported Mariah missing the next morning, and for days, the question haunted the region, where is
little Mariah. Hundreds of people went looking for her. The FBI even joined the search. And a week later, little Mariah was found, and little
Mariah was dead. But we never knew how she died or the condition of her body -- until now. According to a newly released autopsy report, Mariah
was poisoned with chloroform, before she was wrapped up in trash bags and stuffed into a couch cushion cover that was then filled up with cement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHERIFF HANS MILLER, ONSLOW COUNTY SHERIFF`S OFFICE: We suspect that this chemical was used to disable the child. And according to the autopsy
report, it led to her death.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Police say that live-in boyfriend did it, Adolphus Earl Kimrey II, who could now have his own life taken, if he is convicted of taking
Mariah`s. Joining me now, Amanda Thames, reporter with the Jacksonville Daily News, veteran defense attorney, Ashleigh Merchant, and Joseph Scott
Morgan, certified death investigator and professor of forensic at Jacksonville State University. First to you, Miss Thames. Tell us what
happened here.
AMANDA THAMES, REPORTER, JACKSONVILLE DAILY NEWS: With the autopsy, the report that came out?
SLATEN: Yes. Tell us, what did it say?
THAMES: It confirmed that the cause of death as determined by the autopsy was chloroform toxicity, it was I believe 34 milligrams per liter, and we
weren`t able to find an expert to tell us if that is an enormous amount for a child, but being that she was just 28 pounds, I`m guessing it was. She
was wrapped in three white trash bags, and they were tied around her neck. She was also inside of a plaid couch cushion, and it had the curb of cement
weighting it down inside the water.
SLATEN: Now, the mom`s live-in boyfriend, Adolphus, goes by Earl, Kimrey II, is obviously suspected in her murder. Do we have any reason why he
would do it?
THAMES: We haven`t been told of any motive, if the sheriff`s office has anything like that, they`re definitely keeping it close to the best until
the trial.
SLATEN: But he is no stranger to violence. His neighbors have talked about him as being a pretty violent guy. Destroying a van with a bat.
What was that about?
THAMES: Those were some of the records that some of his neighbors at the time that came forward, talking about -- accusing him of having a violent
streak in him beforehand.
SLATEN: He also has quite a rap sheet. He is been charged with larceny, assault and threats against the government, drunk and disorderly conduct,
another larceny charge. These are all misdemeanors and aren`t really felonious conduct, but it was Adolphus, or Earl, who first called 911.
Let`s listen to that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now tell me exactly what happened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She is nowhere to be found. We have looked everywhere at our house and out in our yard and our little girl, I mean, her little
girl, she is missing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. How old is she, sir?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She is 3 years old.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Let me get some information from you, OK?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, ma`am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right. So when was the last time you`ve seen her?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It would have been last night. We went to bed at the same time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And what time was that, sir?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe 8:00, 8:30.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Out to Joseph Scott Morgan, certified death investigator and professor of forensic at Jacksonville State University, thanks for joining
us, Joseph.
JOSEPH SCOTT MORGAN, PROFESSOR OF FORENSIC, JACKSONVILLE STATE UNIVERSITY: Thanks for having me.
SLATEN: So what does this chloroform toxicity mean, and how does somebody get chloroform in the first place? Is it something they can make at home?
Do you buy this on Amazon? Why is this the weapon of choice here do you think? What`s going on?
[18:25:12] MORGAN: Yes, Troy, this is, you know, chloroform for years has been, you know, has been alluded to as a literary device when people are
doing murder mysterious and this sort of thing. And it is -- an individual is capable of making chloroform at home. There are documented cases of
this. And generally all that is required is some very simple household cleaning supplies, which I`m not going to go into in this particular case,
but let`s keep in mind here Troy, what we`re dealing with.
This is not an adult. This is not, you know, a 35-year-old woman or a 35- year-old man. This is a 3-year-old little girl. So what might not have been lethal to someone in our age bracket, for her, has a particular level
of lethality to it. And it`s hard to know, you know, lots of times you think about chloroform in history as a surgical application, they could
measure this out very easily and kind of, you know, control it. When he is applying this, if in fact, he did. He is not going to be able to measure
this out very well. She is got a significant amount of (inaudible) they found --
SLATEN: Joseph?
MORGAN: They found it not just in her aorta, but also in her peripheral --
SLATEN: She also had bruises on her forehead, she had suffered some sort of traumatic brain injury. There is no signs of sexual abuse.
MORGAN: No, there`s not.
SLATEN: What does this tell you, you`ve read the autopsy report? What does it tell you that she is got this bruising? And then the manner in
which her body was disposed of, she was wrapped with bags and put into a couch cushion that was then filled with cement and then discarded. What
does that tell you?
MORGAN: Let me kind of address this. First off, one of the first things that my mind come flew to, relative to this trauma that she sustained on
her head, none of the trauma is related as lethal trauma. However it is significant that there is some hemorrhages. She is got bumps and bruises
on her head. And almost, you know, Troy, I began to think about this, I`m thinking, you know, maybe he attempting or someone is attempting to subdue
this little girl, you know, but how much do you have to subdue a 3-year- old?
SLATEN: This is a 3-year-old little girl.
MORGAN: Yes, and she may have been fighting or resisting in order to have the chloroform application. Now, go to the plastic bags. Again, for us as
adults, it would take quite a bit of force in order to block our airway. If she was in what is referred to a per mortem state, that is kind of
twilight between life and death, the application of the bag could eventually, along with the chloroform, push her over the edge toward a
postmortem state.
SLATEN: Stand by, Joseph. I want to bring in Ashleigh Merchant, a veteran defense attorney. Ashleigh, listens to Onslow County Sheriff Hans Miller.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MILLER: When we lose a young life, 3 years old, a little girl, for no reason, it hurts everybody. Not only the family, but also the whole
community is suffering because of it. This case is not over. We will continue to investigate to make sure that little Mariah`s justice will be
served.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: So, Ashleigh, Earl Kimrey has been charged with her murder. And he is being held on over a million dollars bond. He is not going anywhere,
but the sheriff said that the investigation is not over. Number one, how do you defend this guy if you`re brought in? And what does it tell you
that this investigation is not over? Are they potentially looking at the mother who has not been charged in this case?
MERCHANT: Oh, yes. They`re definitely looking at the mother. They`re definitely looking at everybody else who was in that house. They`ve
probably interrogated him. He is probably given them certain versions of events, and they`re taking those to try to follow up on those leads. We
don`t have a lot of information here.
That is what I first noticed about this case.
SLATEN: But we do know Ashleigh that this is a bad guy. He is got a long criminal history, and he is got also a history of being violent. His
neighbors said, actually, quote, he is no stranger to violence.
MERCHANT: Yes.
SLATEN: That doesn`t help his defense?
MERCHANT: No, it doesn`t. And it does look like he is a bad guy and that is probably one of the reasons that the police focused in on him. Because
he is probably the person that was around this child that had the opportunity and has the bad record. So that is one of the reasons the
police would focus in. There was also the main reason that they focused in on him was a neighbor who said she or he saw him put something in his car
that night, something like a bag shape.
[18:30:00]
So that led them to believe that he had done something. And that is what led to these charges. We just don`t know enough at this point, though.
There`s not enough evidence against him.
SLATEN: Ashleigh, is he facing the death penalty if convicted here?
MERCHANT: He is facing the death penalty. And I would expect to see a lot more in a death penalty case.
SLATEN: Stand by with us, Ashleigh. When Samantha Stewart, a New York nurse, wasn`t answering her phone, her family grew worried. But when her
younger brother arrived at her home, what he saw will likely haunt him forever. That`s next.
[18:35:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SLATEN: Tonight, the hunt for a killer after a beautiful young nurse was found dead in her bedroom. Samantha Stewart`s little brother supposedly
found her, rushing to her New York home when Samantha stopped answering her phone. She wasn`t answering because she`d been strangled to death and
brutally attacked. Her family is saying she was left lifeless with her teeth knocked out and her tongue hanging outside her mouth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KENNETH STEWART, FATHER OF SAMANTHA STEWART: I am heartbroken. I am distressed. She was wrapped up in a blanket in the corner of the bed. Tried
to turn her over and tried to shake her, called Samantha, no response. I realized that when I turned her over, she was dead. We thought she was
sleeping. So we didn`t really think of anything. When she`s sleeping, we try not to disturb her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: But police say there are no signs of someone breaking in. So the question now is, whether the notoriously friendly young nurse actually
welcomed her own killer into her own home, and whether or not they may have known each other.
Joining me now: Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement consultant; Lisa G., a reporter with NBC News Radio-24/7 News; and once
again, defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant.
First out to you, Lisa G. It`s been reported that she was a beloved nurse and she didn`t show up. Her family got worried and her brother and father
went out to look for her.
LISA G., REPORTER, NBC NEWS RADIO-24/7 NEWS (via telephone): Yes, that`s true. You know, when you live in New York City or more of an urban area and
you`re single, you know, you just think that a sibling has their own life and they don`t always check in. So it`s not unusual that someone might not
answer a phone.
But they started on Monday and they continued into Tuesday. And then when one of the brothers went over to return a car that he had borrowed, he just
felt like something wasn`t right because no one was home. And that`s when he and his father went inside the home and found their beloved sister
brutally murdered.
And from what I understand, police reportedly say there were no signs of forced entry and they are looking for what is being called her boyfriend.
SLATEN: Well, they actually broke into her house using a butter knife when she wasn`t responding, but the day before that, her brother called her cell
phone and somebody answered.
LISA G. (via telephone): Yes. From what I understand from one of the newspapers, there was reporting that he when he called, someone answered, a
man answered. The brother needed to borrow the car keys and went over. A man came downstairs and the brother said, you know, who are you, and this
man mumbled something under his breath. He couldn`t really understand what he was saying.
He took the car keys, this was Monday. And then when he returned the car on Tuesday, that`s when he felt something was up and that`s when they used the
butter knife to break in and they found their sister.
SLATEN: Do they think that this guy, this strange man who answers her phone and says he accidentally has her car keys, they think this is the
boyfriend?
LISA G. (via telephone): Well, in most criminal cases, when a woman is killed, and like your other guests might explain, they usually go to either
the boyfriend or the husband.
SLATEN: Lisa, let`s go to Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement analyst. Tom, there is no sign of forced entry. Does that mean
automatically that it`s somebody that she knew or somebody that she invited in? And what does it tell you that some other guy has got her cell phone
and car keys?
TOM VERNI, LAW ENFORCEMENT CONSULTANT, FORMER NYPD DETECTIVE: Yeah. My condolences to the Stewart family for this awful tragedy that they`re going
through. One of the first things we would look for certainly would be to see if there`s any forced entry, right, just to see if this may have been a
burglary, maybe a burglar gone wrong, had the burglar been surprised by the occupant of the house.
[18:40:05] SLATEN: Police are saying -- Tom, police are saying it was no burglary.
VERNI: Right.
SLATEN: And that there was no sign of forced entry. There was no robbery. So that`s not the situation here.
VERNI: Exactly. I`m just saying that`s what we would normally look for first, one of the first things to look for to see what sort of entry was
there. So since there was no forced entry, that erases the possibility or probability rather that this was some sort of burglary gone bad.
The fact that this other person came downstairs to meet the brother to deliver the keys and then spoke to him for seems like nothing more than a
few seconds, and I feel bad for the brother too because I`m sure that they are, you know, kind of getting on themselves, that they didn`t investigate
that a little bit more, if the hair on the back of their neck was standing up a little bit or things seemed a little out of sorts.
But they can`t really blame themselves because the only person to blame here is the person responsible for her horrific death. Certainly I would
imagine NYPD is going to be looking at the surveillance footage in the area to find out who this person is, if they can maybe try to get a good capture
of his face and maybe through facial recognition, would be able to look him up, if he`s within the system.
SLATEN: So she was strangled and had trauma to her neck and head. Ashleigh Merchant, really quick, I`ve got about 30 seconds. What are police gonna do
to be looking for this guy? And if this -- assuming that it`s a man, is your client and he`s being hunted by the police, what are you going to
advise him?
MERCHANT: I`m going to advise him not to speak to the police, but I think the police are going to be looking for forensic evidence at this point.
They are going to be looking for -- they can now get DNA off your fingerprints. So if it was a manual strangulation, they can get touch DNA
from your fingerprints. And so they are looking at that.
They are probably going to be doing some cellphone triangulation, getting search warrants for the cellphone data to try and figure out who this
person is.
SLATEN: I assume that they`re going to be looking at all of her social media and all of her phone and everything to see where that potentially
would take them.
Next, it was a vicious attack in broad daylight on the streets of New York City. We`ll show you the video and the suspects that the NYPD are
canvassing the city for.
[18:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SLATEN: Tonight, the hunt is on for two men who attacked a pedestrian with baseball bats. Luckily, the whole thing was caught on camera, so we can
help track down the guys who got him. First, you see them step out of a Range Rover and run towards the busy sidewalk, where the first suspect
swings at a man in red, sending him to the ground, before his buddy comes to hit him again. Then they walked off like nothing happened.
Fortunately, the man they attacked is reported in stable condition. And fortunately, the suspects` faces show up clearly on surveillance footage.
Now police are looking for two Hispanic men in their 20s or 30s, one bald, one with black hair. So be sure to give NYPD a call if they look familiar
to you.
Joining me now, again, Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement consultant, and veteran defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant.
Tom, we`re seeing cameras. Everyone`s got a cellphone on them. Every building has got video cameras and video surveillance. How are police going
to use this to help catch these horrific, brutal attackers? And can they be using something that we`ve been hearing a lot more about, which is facial
recognition software?
VERNI: Yes, they certainly will use that. Listen, welcome to New York City 2018, the return of the good old, bad old days, apparently. And these
buffoons that are running around the streets seem to forget that we`re living in the digital age now. So like you have mentioned, people are
walking around with cellphones and taking video, aside from the surveillance cameras that are up all over the place.
So the fact that these guys think that they can just get out and beat somebody over the head with baseball bats and get away with it, my guess is
that these are probably two local jerks that the community will know. The community is very good. When it comes to stuff like this, people are
horrified. They don`t want to be the next person to get bashed in the skull with a bat.
So if they see the faces of these buffoons, they will hopefully call them in and get them. Otherwise, yeah, we could also turn to tools like facial
recognition, if these are former clients of ours, which my guess would be probably yes, that they will be able to track them down through that as
well. And then we will have more of a targeted place to check on them.
SLATEN: Let me bring in defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant. Ashleigh, as a former prosecutor, this would really be a prosecutor`s dream, once these
guys are picked up. And they are going to be picked up eventually.
[18:50:00] And they`re brought in, and I simply say to the jury, these are the guys, here`s the video, and then I can go and have a seat. As a defense
attorney, how do you defend someone that`s caught on camera? You don`t want to go to trial with this kind of evidence.
MERCHANT: No. You pray for mercy. You beg for mercy. You try to show what happened that caused them to have whatever this temporary lapse in sanity.
Were they on drugs? What was it that caused them to do these senseless acts of violence and terrorize this community?
SLATEN: What does it matter? What does it matter what caused them to do this? They jumped out of a car and struck somebody with baseball bats.
Somebody that is just walking down the streets of the republic.
MERCHANT: It doesn`t matter for guilt or innocence, Troy. What it matters for is what`s the appropriate sentence. And sometimes as a defense lawyer,
that`s what we have to focus on, not who did it. This isn`t like some of the other stories we talked about where we don`t know if the person did it
or not. They did it. We`ve got photos of them.
So now the question is, why did they do it? Because the best thing that I can do at this point as a defense lawyer is try and convince you as the
prosecutor, why my client deserves some amount of mercy and hope that you or the judge will feel that mercy because of something in their life to
explain why they did this, not that they`re just random vigilantes that are out there terrorizing people, and hope I can find something like that.
SLATEN: So Ashleigh, this case is about a plea bargain. Once these guys are brought in, you`re looking to get the best possible result for them as
opposed to saying that they didn`t do it because clearly you got them on video?
MERCHANT: Right. Right. I mean, this isn`t a case of who done it. This isn`t a case of we need to wait for the DNA results. This is a case of what
caused them to do it, why did they act this way, and what can I do to help my client get a better deal from the government.
SLATEN: These aren`t very sympathetic defendants, driving a luxury SUV, jumping out of their Range Rover to then attack somebody with a bat on the
side of the road.
MERCHANT: Right.
SLATEN: Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD crime stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-tips, 1-800-577-8477. Or
you can submit your tips by logging on to the crime stoppers` website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com.
When you buy a house, you should be able to paint it any color you want. Right? Well, did this homeowner take it a little too far? We`ll have all
the colorful details, next.
[18:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SLATEN: More than 40 million Americans don`t have enough food to eat. Yet at the same time, up to 40 percent of the food supply in the United States
is wasted every year. It`s a paradox that Maria Rose Belding saw firsthand when she was just in the eighth grade. What she decided to do about it is
why she is this week`s CNN hero.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIA ROSE BELDING, CNN HERO: There was a food pantry in my church that I grew up working in. You would have way too much of one thing and would be
in desperate need of a different thing. Inevitably, some of it would expire. And I ended up throwing a lot of it away.
When I was 14, I realized that doesn`t make sense. The internet was right in front of us. That`s such an obvious thing to fix. This has not been
claimed. It has turned green. You would really think of the novelty of it would wear off. It doesn`t.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: To see Maria Rose`s simple yet brilliant fix and action, go to cnn.heroes.com. While you`re there, you can nominate someone that you think
should be a CNN hero.
One more thing tonight. A Florida couple has won a legal battle to save the distinctive look of their home. The couple originally painted the house to
look like Vincent van Gogh`s "Starry Night" for their son who has autism. But the city of Mount Dora told the couple that the house violated the city
code and fined them thousands of dollars.
The couple sued the city for violating their right to free expression and said that the painting was a way to calm their son. Now, the city council
is revising the city code and it unanimously agreed that the house can stay just the way it is.
It`s a good thing, because repainting that entire house could have cost an arm and an ear.
The next hour of "Crime & Justice" starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Laura, if you`re listening --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): When his pregnant girlfriend went missing, he stood in front of live TV cameras, tearfully begging for her back.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It doesn`t matter what`s happened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): But before those cameras started rolling, police say he killed that woman, then buried her body in a shallow grave.
An autopsy revealed she was shot in the back of the head. Was she killed to keep her from exposing his secret double life?
[19:00:03] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s nothing we can`t fix together.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): She`s three years old. We`ve looked everywhere in our house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice over): Shocking new details in the death of a 3- year-old girl who went missing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Telling her I love her and she loves me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her name`s Mariah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her mother`s live-in boyfriend could face the death penalty.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Her violent death has shaken this entire neighborhood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A beautiful young nurse, strangled to death in her own home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We thought she was sleeping. So we didn`t really think (INAUDIBLE). When she sleeping, we try not to disturb her.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tonight police are desperately seeking the killer.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TROY SLATEN, HLN HOST: Good evening, I`m Troy Slaten, in for Ashleigh Banfield.
This is the second hour of CRIME & JUSTICE.
Tonight, a Maryland man sits behind bars, but we have yet to find out whether Tyler Tessier was a grieving man forced to bury his pregnant
girlfriend or a cold blooded killer who lied through his teeth after shooting her dead. His girlfriend Laura was four months` pregnant and a
beloved local teacher. Teacher of the year, in fact. But Miss Wallen missed the first day of school. And soon she was reported missing.
At the press conference police held to get the word out, her family cried for her return, but Tessier, the star of the show, the distraught boyfriend
delivering what some would call an Oscar-worthy performance. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TYLER TESSIER, BOYFRIEND OF VICTIM: Laura, if you`re listening --
I don`t know where she is, that`s all.
I don`t know. Myself and your family, like, I don`t -- and I`m asking for you to let us know that you`re safe. I know we are all trying to do
everything we can. I know what she means to me. I know what she means to everybody else.
Pray that she`s safe. We just want to know she`s OK. We just want her back. That`s all I care about right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Two days later, police dogs found Laura`s body buried in a field, in a shallow grave with a gunshot to the back of the head. And prosecutors
say Tessier would soon admit to putting it there.
He reportedly said that Laura lunged at him during a fight, but instead hit a wooden post and crumpled to the ground and died. So he buried her and
shot her to make sure that she wasn`t still alive and suffering.
Whether or not that`s true, a jury may never hear that admission. But the jury will probably hear clips from that press conference and see every
single one of Tessier`s tears. The only question now is whether he will still be crying in court.
Joining me now, Kylie Khan, a reporter with CNN affiliate WDBM, Janine Driver, former investigator with the ATF and CEO of the Body Language
Institute, Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement consultant and veteran defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant.
First out to you, Kylie. We heard Mr. Tessier give these crocodile tears at that press conference that you see right now on the screen. But he was
a bit of a ladies man. He had several relationships going on at the same time. What can you tell us about those?
KYLIE KHAN, REPORTER, CNN AFFILIATE WDVM (on the phone): Well, I know he did have another girlfriend. And there were some text messages between her
and Laura, saying that Laura wanted to meet up with her. And I think that he might have even been engaged to the second woman, if I remember
correctly.
SLATEN: So, apparently Laura sent texts to her sister, but we now believe that it was actually Tessier who had her phone and was sending texts to her
sister, making her think, trying to make her think that it was her, but it was really him. He said, I am like 95 percent sure that Tyler is not the
father. I`m probably going to lose my job over this. I`m trying to get a hold of Antwan, but she spelled Antwan wrong and that`s what made her
sister get suspicious. And she said Tyler`s never going to forgive me. If he tries to call you, please tell him that he is a great guy, because I
know I really hurt his feelings. So that spelling of Antoine made the sister suspicious.
Kylie, what do we know about the sister told the police?
[19:05:16] KHAN: Well, I mean, his real name was spelled Antoine, and the sister and Laura were very, very close. They text each other all the time,
so she would know how Laura would speak and she would recognize any inconsistencies and be able to tell if it wasn`t actually her.
SLATEN: Let`s listen to what Tyler said was the last conversation that he had with Laura.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your last conversation with her?
TESSIER: I`m sorry?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any of your last conversations with her?
TESSIER: I don`t know where she is. That`s all. I don`t know. Like, I know we`re all trying to do everything we can to find her, and I just pray
that -- I pray that she`s safe and she comes back. That`s all I care about right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: We know now that those were certainly crocodile tears.
Out to Janine Driver, our body language expert. Janine, thanks for joining us. You got a chance to listen to that and watch the video. We know at
that point he knew exactly where she was. He knew exactly where she was buried. And so when he was asked a very simple question, do you remember
your last conversation, he freezes. What does that tell you?
JANINE DRIVER, FORMER ATF INVESTIGATOR: But you know, it`s devastating that this beautiful, wonderful young woman is gone, and their unborn son.
That pause that we just heard is 15 seconds long. Think about how much you pay for a super bowl commercial for a 15-second commercial, 15 seconds
long, that`s unbelievable.
And then the question was, what was your last conversation with her. Instead of, well, we talked about what kind of rug to buy, or what we
should name the baby. He said after 15 seconds, quote "I don`t know where she is, I don`t know. We are all trying to do everything we can to find
her." Listen, he hasn`t answered the question.
SLATEN: Janine, I want you to listen to one more clip that we have where it`s at the press conference and he has a complete loss for words. Listen
to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TESSIER: It`s just a complete shock. I mean, I think leading up to -- leading up to the weekend that she`s missing, I mean, I don`t -- I don`t
believe anybody has any inclination to think that something was wrong or --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Out to Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement consultant.
Tom, you told us earlier in the last hour that this was some very good police work here. Explain to us exactly what the police were doing by
bringing him out there and letting him hang himself, which it`s clear that he did.
TOM VERNI, FORMER NYPD DETECTIVE: Yes. And once again, my condolences to the Wallen family.
This guy is a ladies man. He`s a calculated, cold-blooded, disgusting killer is what he is. And you know, clearly, not only the body language
expert just explained, you know, the way he acted, the loss of words, you know, the crocodile tears, those are all just corroborating, you know,
things that come into play when we are trying to get someone to figure out whether or not this is the guy that we are looking for.
So aside from the circumstantial evidence and the real forensic evidence, now we have someone who has changed his story multiple times. He has other
ladies waiting in the wind for him, which I would hope they are long gone by now.
But you know, here now to bring the family out and be part of this, that`s a tough move to make, right. So they have to be willing to emotionally go
through this. And the officers in the background also are really kind of playing a part too, because you know, at this point, they pretty much feel
or know that this is their guy. And to not want to get him into handcuffs and take him away, takes a lot of strength. It takes a lot of resolve to
not let your own emotions as a detective standing there.
[19:10:07] SLATEN: I want to talk to you a little bit about the interrogation tactics that the police used, which was very effective,
because they got him to change his story several times. So once you get a suspect changing their story, you know, for a detective, that`s blood in
the water. They are going to be able to exploit that.
And here he gave three different stories. First he said that, well, once he felt like the jig was up, he said, well, I helped her to escape. And
then he said that two African-American men had taken both of them and he witnessed her murder. And then the third and final story was that she came
at him, she tried to attack him. That`s when he was really grasping at straws and said that she tried to attack him with scissors and he ducked
out of the way, she ran into a wooden post and killed herself by crashing into that wooden post. And so he did the only thing he could do, which is
bury her. When she thought she may not be dead, shot her in the back of the head.
VERNI: Yes. I mean, this is how ridiculous could one person potentially be. I mean, even if the story was true that they had a fight, listen,
domestic quarrels happen all the time. And you know, playing devil`s advocate, because he is the devil, that she came at him with scissors and
she ran into a pole and then knocked herself out and he thought she was dead. How about calling 911 and maybe getting, I don`t know, some EMTs out
there to check her out?
You are going to put a bullet in the back of her head to make sure that she is dead. I mean, it`s the most preposterous thing I have ever heard. It
is just unreal. The amount of change in the story too.
SLATEN: Tom, let`s bring in Ashleigh Merchant, veteran defense attorney.
Ashleigh, you have a client here who has given at least three different stories, all very different to the police. I think that the jury
instruction here talks about consciousness of guilt.
ASHLEIGH MERCHANT, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Right.
SLATEN: How are you going to defend this if you have got this client?
MERCHANT: Right. It definitely does. And I think what the defense attorneys have to do is try and get some of these statements thrown out,
which I understand they filed motions and have been able to at least get the last statement thrown out that he made, because he had a lawyer at the
time, but they didn`t bother to call that lawyer and they interrogated him anyway.
But the problem you have is that these stories are very inconsistent. And they paint him in a very bad light, a very negative light. And so, when a
jury hears this first interview that he gave, they are going to wonder why he lied, why he acted so suspect, why he didn`t really show remorse because
he looks like he is lying. And I`m not an expert on body language, but he still, he doesn`t look believable.
And jurors are just common sense, everyday Americans. And they are going to look at this, because they are probably not going to hear from him on
the stand, if he goes to trial. And so, this is their image that they are going to have in their head. This is what they have got to determine
whether or not he is telling the truth. And I don`t think he did a wonderful job doing that.
As a defense lawyer, a big decision for me would be whether or not to put him on the stand because he has made statements. And it`s almost like he
needs that opportunity to clear them up. But as you know, any good prosecutor will tear him apart based on these inconsistent statements he`s
made.
SLATEN: Ashleigh, let`s listen to him in his own words, pleading to the public that somebody has her, somebody has Laura.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TESSIER: If somebody has her, please understand that you have taken away a huge -- a huge person in so many people`s lives. Friends and family and
students that she has. I know what she means to me. I know what she means to everybody else. We just want to know she`s OK. We just want her back.
Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much, Mr. Tessier.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Thank you, everybody, for joining me.
I want to thank Kylie Khan, reporter from CNN affiliate WVDM. And Janine Driver, body language expert. Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law
enforcement analyst. And r veteran defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant.
Thank you everybody for joining us.
Next, when 3-year-old Mariah Woods was found dead days after her disappearance, it rocked the community. But new information on how this
young girl died has recently been made public and it`s horrific.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:19:52] SLATEN: Tonight, dark new details in the case of Mariah Woods, the adorable 3-year-old girl who vanished from her home overnight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[19:20:03] KRISTY WOODS, MARIAH`S MOTHER: My last time with her was feeding her and putting her to bed. And telling her I love her and she
loves me.
Please bring her back and I love her. I would do anything that I can, whatever you want. Just bring her home, please, safe and sound. She`s my
baby. She is my everything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: It was her mom`s live-in boyfriend who reported Mariah missing the next morning. And for days, the question haunted the region, where is
little Mariah. Hundreds of people went looking for her. The FBI even joined the search. And a week later, little Mariah was found, and little
Mariah was dead. But we never knew how she died or the condition of her body -- until now.
According to a newly released autopsy report, Mariah was poisoned with chloroform, but she was wrapped up in trash bags and stuffed into a couch
cushion cover, that was then filled up with cement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHERIFF HANS MILLER, ONSLOW COUNTY SHERIFF`S OFFICE: We suspect that this chemical was used to disable the child. And according to the autopsy
report, it led to her death.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: Police say that live-in boyfriend did it, Adolphus Earl Kimrey II. Who could now have his own life taken if he`s convicted of taking Mariah`s.
Joining me now, Amanda Thames, reporter with the Jacksonville Daily News, veteran defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant, and Joseph Scott Morgan,
certified death investigator and professor of forensics at Jacksonville state university.
First to you, Miss Thames. Tell us what happened here.
AMANDA THAMES, REPORTER, JACKSONVILLE DAILY NEWS (on the phone): With the autopsy, the report that came out?
SLATEN: Yes. Tell us, what did it say?
THAMES: It confirmed that the cause of death as determined by the autopsy was chloroform toxicity, 34 milligrams per liter, that was in her and we
weren`t able to find an expert to tell us if that`s an enormous amount for a child. But being that she was just 28 pounds, I`m guessing it was. She
was wrapped in three white trash bags, and they were tied around her neck. She was also inside of a plaid couch cushion, and it had the curb of cement
weighting it down inside the water.
SLATEN: Now, the mom`s live-in boyfriend, Adolphus, goes by Earl Kimrey II, is obviously suspected in her murder. Do we have any reason why he
would do it?
THAMES: We haven`t been told of any motive, if the sheriff`s office has anything like that, they are definitely keeping that close to the vest
until the trial.
SLATEN: But he`s no stranger to violence. His neighbors have talked about him as being a pretty violent guy. Destroying a van with a bat. What was
that about?
THAMES: Those were some of the records that some of his neighbors at the time that came forward, talking about -- accusing him of having a violent
streak in him beforehand.
SLATEN: He also has quite a rap sheet. He`s been charged with larceny, assault and threats against the government, drunk and disorderly conduct,
another larceny charge. These are all misdemeanors and aren`t really felonious conduct, but it was Adolphus or Earl, who first called 911.
Let`s listen to that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tell me exactly what happened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She`s nowhere to be found. We have looked everywhere at our house and out in our yard and our little girl, I mean, her little
girl, she is missing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. How old is she, sir?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She`s 3 years old.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. So let me get some information from you, OK?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, ma`am.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right. So when was the last time you have seen her?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It would have been last night. We went to bed at the same time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And what time was that, sir?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Maybe 8:00, 8:30.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SLATEN: Out to Joseph Scott Morgan, certified death investigator and professor of forensics at Jacksonville state university, thanks for joining
us, Joseph.
JOSEPH SCOTT MORGAN, CERTIFIED DEATH INVESTIGATOR: Thanks for having me.
SLATEN: So what does this chloroform toxicity mean, and how does somebody get chloroform in the first place? Is it something they can make at home?
Do you buy this on Amazon? Why is this the weapon of choice here do you think? What`s going on?
[19:25:16] MORGAN: Yes, Troy. This is, you know, chloroform for years has been, you know, has been alluded to as a literary device when people are
doing murder mysteries and this sort of thing. And it is an individual is capable of making chloroform at home. There are documented cases of this.
And generally all that`s required is some very simple household cleaning supplies, which I`m not going to go into in this particular case.
But let`s keep in mind here, Troy, what we are dealing with. This is not an adult, OK. This is not, you know, a 35-year-old woman or a 35-year-old
man. This is a 3-year-old little girl. So what might not have been lethal to someone in our age bracket, for her, has a particular level of lethality
to it. And it`s hard to know, you know, lots of times you think about chloroform in history as a surgical application, they could measure this
out very easily and kind of, you know, control it. When he`s applying this, if in fact, he did. He`s not going to be able to measure this out
very well. She`s got a significant amount --
SLATEN: Joseph?
MORGAN: They found it not just in her aorta, but peripheral --
SLATEN: She had bruises on her forehead, some sort of traumatic brain injury. There is no signs of sexual abuse.
MORGAN: No, there`s not.
SLATEN: What does this tell you? You`ve read the autopsy report. What does it tell you that she has got this bruising? And then the manner in
which her body was disposed of, she was wrapped with bags and put into a couch cushion that was then filled with cement and then discarded. What
does that tell you?
MORGAN: Let me kind of address this first off. One of the first things that my mind can a flew to, relative to this trauma that she sustained on
her head, none of the trauma is related as lethal trauma, however it is significant. There`s some hemorrhages. She has got some bumps and bruises
overhead. And almost, you know Troy, I began to think about this, I`m thinking, you know, maybe he is attempting, or someone is attempting to
subdue this little girl, you know. But how much do you have to subdue a 3- year-old?
SLATEN: This is a 3-year-old little girl.
MORGAN: Yes, and she may have been fighting or resisting in order to have the chloroform application. Now, go to the plastic bags. Again, for us as
adults, it would take quite a bit of force in order to block our airway. If she was in what is referred to as per mortem state, that is the kind of
twilight between life and death, the application of the bag could eventually, along with the chloroform, push her over the edge toward a
postmortem state.
SLATEN: Stand by, Joseph. I want to bring in Ashleigh Merchant, veteran defense attorney.
Ashleigh, listen to Onslow County sheriff Hans Miller.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MILLER: When we lose a young life, three years old, a little girl, for no reason, it hurts everybody. Not only the family, but also the whole
community is suffering because of it. This case is not over. We will continue to investigate to make sure little Mariah`s justice will be
served.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: So Ashleigh, Earl Kimrey has been charged with her murder. And he is being held on over a million dollars bond. He is not going anywhere.
But the sheriff said that the investigation is not over.
Number one, how do you defend this guy if you`re brought in? And what does it tell you that this investigation is not over? Are they potentially
looking at the mother who has not been charged in this case?
MERCHANT: Oh, yes. They are definitely looking at the mother. They are definitely looking at everybody else who was in that house. They have
probably interrogated him. He has probably given them certain versions of events, and they are taking those to try to follow up on those leads. We
don`t have a lot of information here. That`s what I first noticed about this case.
SLATEN: But we do know, Ashleigh, that this is a bad guy. He has got a long criminal history. And he has got also a history of being violent.
His neighbors said, actually quote "he is no stranger to violence."
MERCHANT: Yes.
SLATEN: That doesn`t help his defense?
MERCHANT: No, it doesn`t. And it does look like he is a bad guy and that`s probably one of the reasons that the police focused in on him.
Because he is probably the person that was around this child that had the opportunity and has the bad record. So that`s one of the reasons the
police would focus in.
There was also the main reason that they focused in on him was a neighbor who said she or he saw him put something in his car that night, something
like a bag shape. And so that led them to believe that he had done something. And that`s what led to these charges.
We just don`t know enough at this point, though. There is not enough evidence against him.
SLATEN: Is he, Ashleigh, is he facing the death penalty if convicted here?
MERCHANT: He is. He`s facing the death penalty. And I would expect to see a lot more in a death penalty case.
SLATEN: Stand by with us, Ashleigh. When Samantha Stewart, a New York nurse, wasn`t answering her phone, her family grew worried. But when her
younger brother arrived at her home, what he saw will likely haunt him forever, that`s next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:35:45] SLATEN: Tonight, the hunt for a killer, after a beautiful young nurse was found dead in her bedroom. Samantha Stewart`s little brother
supposedly found her. Rushing to her New York home when Samantha stopped answering her phone. She wasn`t answering because she`d been strangled to
death, and brutally attacked. Her family`s saying she was left lifeless with her teeth knocked out and her tongue hanging outside her mouth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KENNETH STEWART, VICTIM`S FATHER: I am heart broken, I`m distressed. She was wrapped up in a -- in a blanket in the corner of the bed. Tried to
turn her over and tried to shake her to see -- I called Samantha, and no response. I realized that when I turn her over, she was dead. We thought
she was sleeping so we didn`t really think of anything. Because when she`s sleeping, we don`t -- try not to disturb her.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: But police say there are no signs of someone breaking in. So, the question now is, whether the notoriously friendly young nurse actually
welcomed her own killer into her own home, and whether or not, they may have known each other.
Joining me now, Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement consultant. Lisa G., a reporter with NBC News radio, 24/7 news, and once
again, defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant. First out to you, Lisa G. It`s been reported that she was a beloved nurse and she didn`t show up, her
family got worried, and her brother and father went out to look for her.
LISA GLASBERG, REPORTER, NBC NEWS RADIO 24/7 NEWS: Yes, that`s true. And you know, when you live in New York City, or more of an urban area, and
you`re single, you know, you just think that a sibling has their own life and they don`t always check in. So, it`s not unusual that someone might
not answer a phone. But they started on Monday, and they continued into Tuesday. And then, when one of the brothers went over to return a car that
he had borrowed, he just felt like something wasn`t right because no one was home. And that`s when he and his father went inside the home and found
their beloved sister brutally murdered. And from what I understand, police reportedly say there were no signs of forced entry, and they are looking
for what is being called her boyfriend.
SLATEN: Well, they actually broke into her house using a butter knife when she wasn`t responding, but the day before that, her brother called her cell
phone and somebody answered.
GLASBERG: Yes. From what I understand from one of the newspapers was reporting that he went -- he called, someone answered, a man answered, and
the brother needed to borrow the car keys and went over. A man came downstairs and the brother said, you know, who are you, and this man
mumbled something under his breath, so he couldn`t really understand what he was saying. He took the car keys -- this was Monday. And then when he
returned the car on Tuesday, that`s when he felt something was up, and that`s when like you said, they used a butter knife to break in and they
found their sister.
SLATEN: Do they -- do they -- do they think that this guy, this strange man who answers her phone and says he accidentally has her car keys, they
think this is the boyfriend?
GLASBERG: Well, in most criminal cases, when a woman is killed, and like your other guests might explain, they usually go to either the boyfriend or
the husband.
SLATEN: Well, Lisa, yes, let`s go out to Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement analyst. Tom, there is no signs of forced entry. Does
that mean automatically that it`s somebody that she knew or somebody that she invited in? And what does it tell you that some other guy has got her
cell phone and car keys?
TOM VERNI, FORMER NYPD DETECTIVE AND LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Yes. My condolences to the Stewart family for this awful tragedy that they`re going
through. You know, once -- I mean, one of the first things we would look for certainly would be to see if there`s any forced entry, right? Just to
see if this may have been a burglary, maybe a burglar gone wrong, had the burglar been surprised by the occupant of the house -- of the premises.
[19:40:08] SLATEN: But police are saying -- but Tom, police are saying this was no burglary, and that there was no signs of forced entry, there
was no robbery. So, that`s not the situation here.
VERNI: Right, exactly. I`m just saying, we -- that`s what we would normally look for first. One of the first things we would look for to see
what sort of entry was there. So, since there was no forced entry, that erases, you know, the possibility -- or probability, rather, that this was
some sort of burglary gone bad. Now, the fact that this other person came downstairs to meet the brother to deliver the keys and then -- and then
spoke to him for maybe not -- it seems like nothing more than a few seconds.
You know, and I feel bad for the brother too, because I`m sure that they are, you know, kind of getting all on themselves, that they didn`t
investigate that a little bit more. If -- you know, if the hair on the back of their neck was standing up a little bit, or seem -- things seemed a
little out of sorts, you know, but you can`t really -- you know, they can`t blame themselves because the only person to blame here, you know, is the
person responsible for her horrific death. Well, certainly, I mean, I would imagine NYPD is going to be looking at the surveillance footage in
the area just to find out who this person is, if they can maybe try to get a good capture of his face, and maybe through facial recognition, would be
able to look him up, if he`s within the system.
SLATEN: So, she was strangled and had trauma to her neck and head. Ashleigh Merchant, really quick, I`ve only got about 30 seconds. What are
police going to do to be looking for this guy? And if this -- assuming that it`s a man, is your client, and he`s being hunted by the police, what
are you going to advise him?
MERCHANT: I`m going to advise him not to speak to the police, but I think the police are going to be looking for forensic evidence at this point.
They`re going to be looking for -- they can now get DNA off your fingerprints. So, if this was a manual strangulation, they can get touch
DNA from your fingerprints. And so, they`re looking at that. They`re probably going to be doing some cell phone triangulation, getting search
warrants for the cell phone data, to try and figure out who this person is.
SLATEN: I assume that they`re going to be looking at all of her social media and all of her phone and everything to see where that potentially
would take them.
Next, it was a vicious attack in broad daylight, on the streets of New York City. We`ll show you the video and the suspects that the NYPD are
canvassing the city for.
[19:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SLATEN: Tonight, the hunt is on for two men who attacked a pedestrian with baseball bats. Luckily, the whole thing was caught on camera, so we can
help track down the guys who got him.
First, you see them step out of a Range Rover and run towards the busy sidewalk, where the first suspect swings at a man in red, sending him to
the ground, before his buddy comes to hit him again. Then, they walked off like nothing happened. Fortunately, the man they attacked is reported in
stable condition, and fortunately, the suspects` faces show up clearly on surveillance footage. Now, police are looking for two Hispanic men in
their 20s or 30s, one bald, one with black hair. So, be sure to give NYPD a call if they looked familiar to you.
Joining me now, again, Tom Verni, former NYPD detective and law enforcement consultant and veteran defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant. Out to you,
Tom, we`re seeing cameras, everyone`s got a cell phone on them. Every building has got video cameras and video surveillance. How are police
going to use this to help catch these horrific, brutal attackers? And can they be using something that we`ve been hearing a lot more about, which is
facial recognition software?
VERNI: Yes, they certainly will use that. And listen, welcome to New York City 2018, it`s the return of the good old, bad old days, apparently. And
you know, these buffoons that are running around the streets seem to forget that we`re living in the digital age now. So, like you had mentioned,
people are walking around with cell phones and taking video, aside from the surveillance cameras that are up all over the place. So, you know, the
fact that these guys they think that they can just get out and beat somebody, you know, over the head with baseball bats and get away with it,
you know, my guess is that these are probably two local jerks that the community will know.
And the community is very good. When it comes to stuff like this, people are horrified. They don`t want to be the next person to get bashed in the
skull with a bat. So, if they see the faces of these -- of these buffoons, they will hopefully call them in and, you know, and get them. Otherwise,
yes, then we could also turn to tools like facial recognition, if these are former clients of ours, which you know, my guess would be, probably yes,
that they will be able to track them down through that as well. So -- and then we`ll have more of a targeted place to check on them.
[19:50:01] SLATEN: Let me bring in defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant. Ashleigh, as a former prosecutor, this would really be a prosecutor`s
dreams, once these guys are picked up. And they are going to be picked up eventually and they`re brought in, and I simply say to the jury, these are
the guys, here is the video, and then I can go and have a seat. As a defense attorney, how do you defend someone that`s caught on camera? You
don`t want to go to trial with this kind of evidence.
MERCHANT: No. You pray for mercy, you beg for mercy. You try to show what happened that caused them to have whatever this temporary lapse
insanity, or were they on drugs, what was it that caused them to do these senseless acts of violence and terrorize this community.
SLATEN: What does it matter? What does it matter what caused them to do this? They jumped out of a car and struck somebody with baseball bats,
somebody that is just walking down the streets of the republic.
MERCHANT: It doesn`t matter for guilt or innocence, Troy. What it matters for is what`s the appropriate sentence. And sometimes as a defense lawyer,
that`s what we have to focus on, not who did it. This isn`t like some of the other stories we`ve talked about where we don`t know if the person did
it or not -- they did it. We`ve got photos of them. So now, the question is why did they do it? Because the best thing that I can do at this point
as a defense lawyer is try and convince you as the prosecutor, why my client deserves some amount of mercy and hope that you or the judge will
feel that mercy because of something in their life to explain why they did this, not that they`re just random vigilantes that are out there
terrorizing people, and hope I can find something like that.
SLATEN: So, Ashleigh, this case is about a plea bargain. Once these guys are brought in, you`re looking to get the best possible result for them, as
opposed to saying that they didn`t do it because clearly you got them on video.
MERCHANT: Right. Right. I mean, this isn`t a case of who done it. This isn`t a case of we need to wait for the DNA results. This is a case of
what caused them to do it, why did they act this way, and what can I do to help my client get a better deal from the government?
SLATEN: These aren`t very sympathetic defendants driving a luxury SUV, jumping out of their Range Rover to then attack somebody with a bat on the
side of the road.
MERCHANT: Right.
SLATEN: Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS, 1-800-577-8477, or
you can submit your tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Web site at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com.
When you buy a house, you should be able to paint it any color you want, right? Well, did this homeowner take it a little too far? We`ll have all
the colorful details, next.
[19:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SLATEN: More than 40 million Americans don`t have enough food to eat, yet at the same time, up to 40 percent of the food supply in the U.S. is wasted
every year. It`s a paradox that Maria Rose Belding saw firsthand when she was just in the eighth grade. And what she decided to do about it is why
she is this week`s CNN Hero.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIA ROSE BELDING, CO-FOUNDER, MEANS: There was a food pantry in my church that I grew up working in. You would have way too much of one thing
and would be in desperate need of a different thing. Inevitably, some of it would expire, and I ended up throwing a lot of it away. When I was 14,
I realized that doesn`t make sense. The internet was right in front of us. That`s such an obvious thing to fix.
This (INAUDIBLE) haven`t cleaned, it is turned green. You would really think that the novelty of it would wear off, it doesn`t.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SLATEN: To see Maria Rose`s simple yet brilliant fix and action, go to cnnheroes.com. While you`re there, you can nominate someone that you think
should be a CNN Hero.
"ONE MORE THING" tonight, in Florida, a house that was painted by a couple to look like a work by Vincent van Gogh, will get to stay the way it is.
The couple originally painted the so-called "Starry Night House" for their son who has autism. But the City of Mount Dora told them that the paint
job violated the code, and fined them thousands of dollars. They in turn, sued the city for violating their right to free expression, and said that
the painting was a way to calm their son. Well, now, the city council is revising the code and letting the house keep its distinctive look, and the
couple even received an apology from the city`s mayor.
We`ll see you right back here Monday night at 6:00 Eastern. You can listen to the show any time, download the podcast on Apple Podcast, iHeart Radio,
Stitcher, TuneIn, or wherever you get your podcasts for your CRIME & JUSTICE fix. I`m Troy Slaten in for Ashleigh Banfield, thanks for
watching. "SOMETHING`S KILLING ME" begins right now.
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