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Crime and Justice With Ashleigh Banfield
Mysterious Death of a Young Mom. Aired 8-9p ET
Aired November 21, 2017 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
[20:00:00] JEAN CASAREZ, HOST, CNN: A young mother and a fatal fall from an apartment parking garage. Moments before her death, security cameras
capture her walking with a man inside. But could that mysterious video lead to answers in her death?
A security guard charged with raping and killing a young woman.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This defendant crushed Sasha Samsudean`s throat, beat her about the head, all while attempting sex inside the bathroom.
CASAREZ: But the defense says there is not enough evidence.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That`s a lack of evidence, ladies and gentlemen, and a conflict in the evidence.
CASAREZ: Now the jury has made their decision.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who was driving?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have no idea.
CASAREZ: Police say a driver hit two cars after drinking. Her sidewalk confession.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am very drunk.
CASAREZ: Captured on body cam.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I had a lot to drink, but I wasn`t driving.
CASAREZ: Then they found out something very interesting about the alleged drunk driver.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I work for the police department.
CASAREZ: A man beaten unconscious inside a convenience store. Hope that $35 was worth it. That attacker is going to prison for a long, long time.
Good evening. I`m Jean Casarez. This is Primetime Justice. Thank you so much for joining us.
Tonight, two young children in Texas are going to bed without a mother. Family members say they were her biggest joy in life. But one Saturday
night out she fell to her death from the top of an apartment parking garage and police are still trying to figure out if it was an accident, suicide,
or murder.
They do know who Taylor Gruwell-Miller was with in her final moments - a friend she had recently met. A friend captured on a surveillance camera.
You`re seeing him right there. Just before midnight, seemingly holding her hand before they disappear to the rooftop.
But police say his version of the events, they just don`t quite stack up. And now this mystery man is refusing to talk. They are trying to figure out
what these guys might know - men who were also in the parking garage that night as Taylor`s family waits for answers.
And with me tonight joining us, Taylor`s father Rich Gruwell and her sister Caroline Gruwell. I`m so sorry. We are all so sorry for what happened to
your daughter and what happened to your sister and the way that she died, plummeting over what we now know is a five-story parking garage. Mr.
Gruwell, how did you find out your daughter had died?
RICH GRUWELL, TAYLOR GRUWELL-MILLER`S FATHER: I was at work. My son-in-law called me. He said two words with just the most plain-speaking English he
could ever speak. He said Taylor`s dead. That was -- I asked if he was joking. He said he wasn`t.
I think I got in my car and called my wife. And then I called him back. I asked to speak to the -- I tried to get the phone number for the detective
that was assigned to Taylor`s case. And I called him. He didn`t answer right away. I called him back. I was driving. I remember exactly where I
was when he said that my daughter succumbed to her injuries. So, yes. That`s how I found out.
CASAREZ: It`s horrible, just horrible. And Caroline, your sister is beautiful. I mean, we are looking at pictures of her here. And I know that
you have seen the videotape inside the garage.
CAROLINE GRUWELL, TAYLOR GRUWELL-MILLER`S SISTER: Yes.
CASAREZ: She`s with a man.
C. GRUWELL: Yes.
CASAREZ: You know her. You see her demeanor in that video. What is she saying through her body language in that parking garage?
C. GRUWELL: She didn`t seem like she wanted to go. There was definitely some type of argument taking place.
[20:05:01] If you notice in the video, she kind of pulls back, almost like she`s hesitant to keep going with him. Yes. You can just tell that she
definitely did not want to go up there. She was very hesitant.
CASAREZ: Now, Mr. Gruwell, this is the last video, this is the last known pictures of your daughter alive. And police are saying that she did get in
the vehicle, although they stopped the video. We don`t see the video where she gets in the vehicle.
R. GRUWELL: Yes.
CASAREZ: But police say she did. And with he in the driver`s seat and they went up to the roof deck. And police are saying that that`s when it all
happened. And they are still not telling you what they believe the theory is. They are saying murder or suicide. There is also the theory of
accident. But what do you think?
R. GRUWELL: Well, I want people to understand something when they see that surveillance video. And I want to make this perfectly clear. That`s not all
the video. Everyone is not seeing all the video. I can`t tell you what`s on the video. I promised the detective that I wouldn`t.
But anyone that thinks that`s all the video, there is more. So I can assume what happened to my daughter, but I do know more than most after watching
that video. So I`m just going to let people -- and when I say people, I think they know who I`m talking about -- just keep saying what they are
saying now because in time they`ll be able to view the rest of the video.
CASAREZ: The guy that she was with, we see him leaning on the car. His body language is very interesting, too. Because he`s sort of in a defensive
posture, you could say. He`s leaning on the car. He doesn`t get right into the driver`s seat.
R. GRUWELL: Yes. Right.
CASAREZ: Did you know about him? Do you know about him? And he is not a suspect. He is not even a person of interest at this point. But what do you
know about him?
R. GRUWELL: No. I didn`t know that person existed until my daughter died. But just watching that video of her and him walking to the car, she clearly
makes a gesture like I don`t want to go to your car. I don`t want to talk to you. I don`t know what I`m doing here.
And then when he`s leaning on the back of the car, it looks like he`s trying to coax her to get in the car like -- that`s my assumption. I`m just
going -- you know, I can only go by his body language and her body language.
CASAREZ: Now Caroline...
R. GRUWELL: But...
CASAREZ: I`m sorry, go ahead. Keep going with your thought.
R. GRUWELL: No. I just -- like I said, you all, even has not seen the rest of the video. So I`m going to leave it at that.
CASAREZ: You know, Caroline, police have said -- I mean, they are really keeping things close to the vest. We don`t know everything. But they have
said that this mystery man that she`s with, that he did speak to police. And that what he said was that they went up to the roof deck and he left
her there with a dog and then he went to go visit a friend. And then...
R. GRUWELL: That`s...
CASAREZ: ... he came back and she was gone. But there was never a dog, right?
C. GRUWELL: No. There was no evidence of a dog. The detectives -- his car was impounded. There was no trace of a dog whatsoever. Surveillance footage
clearly shows that there`s no dog. He sent in a written statement.
(CROSSTALK)
R. GRUWELL: Yes. They haven`t...
C. GRUWELL: He has refused to speak to the police. He`s refusing to cooperate.
R. GRUWELL: Yes.
So he did provide that written statement.
C. GRUWELL: Yes.
CASAREZ: And what about, Mr. Gruwell, that he was found in his car later on? What did he say?
C. GRUWELL: The next morning, the next morning he was found in his car sobbing saying that a close friend of his had died which contradicts his
statement.
CASAREZ: Because he said he didn`t know what happened to her.
C. GRUWELL: Yes.
R. GRUWELL: Well, if you know as much information as I know to this point that would be at least story number two. So if you go by his written
statement, you go by the questions and answers that morning when he was found passed out in his car, you can`t draw conclusions from those two
different statements or questions.
[20:10:04] CASAREZ: And this man is not a suspect. He has not been arrested. He is not a person of interest.
R. GRUWELL: That`s correct.
CASAREZ: But police want to look at his phone. We understand...
R. GRUWELL: Absolutely.
CASAREZ: ... that he is not allowing them to do that. Is that your understanding?
R. GRUWELL: Yes. They got his phone that morning. And it`s an iPhone, its password locked. You know, if I was -- I`m not accusing anyone of a crime.
But if I was accused of a crime, if I was a suspect in a crime, if someone suggested that I was a suspect in a crime and you have my phone I`m going
to -- I`m going to let you look in my phone. You can look at my phone until you`re blue in the face. That`s not happening here.
So, like I said, I can`t comment too much further into that. But you can look at my phone any day of the week. So you can draw your own conclusions
about the cell phone.
CASAREZ: You know, with us also tonight is Jeffrey Boney, he is the associate editor for the Houston Forward Times. Jeffrey, what is the story
of this mystery man? What did he say in his written statement?
JEFFREY BONEY, ASSOCIATE EDITOR, HOUSTON FORWARD TIMES: Well, basically, he`s not saying much. But the mystery man through his attorney is saying
opposite factual information that doesn`t match up with what was seen on the video.
He told authorities that he, as you mentioned, he left Taylor and his dog at the top level of the parking deck, went to visit a friend, was gone.
When he returned he was sobbing in the car, telling people who had found him that someone had died.
Furthermore, authorities are saying that he didn`t call the cops or the fire department or notify anybody of a fall and, you know, so it`s a
situation where he`s not saying much and, of course, as there`s also aforementioned he refuses to unlock his phone and refusing to share any
other information.
CASAREZ: And joining us also tonight former prosecutor Loni Coombs. So good to have you here. I know you`re normally in California. I`m sorry this is
such a horrible case you`re here with. But the written statement that he gave, he must have not realized that there was surveillance video.
LONI COOMBS, FORMER PROSECUTOR: Right.
CASAREZ: And that can be a prosecutor`s best friend right there.
COOMBS: Yes. And it`s interesting. He won`t meet in person. However, he did submit this written statement. And once you have a statement from someone
that can be some of the strongest evidence used against them in court if it does get to that point if he ends up being a suspect.
But so far just like Taylor`s father pointed out, there are so many questions about his behavior. The fact that he won`t meet with the police,
the fact that his written statement doesn`t match up what is seen on the video.
And now that perhaps that the video is out there on television will he see this and perhaps change his statement? There`s also some reports that a few
hours after Taylor died he texted a friend of hers saying do you know where she is? Is she with you? I left her somewhere. And when I went back she
wasn`t there. And the friend said no and then a few hours after that texted again, saying do you where she is, is she with you?
CASAREZ: And the surveillance video shows he never went back to that parking garage.
COOMBS: Yes.
CASAREZ: It`s a really good point. I forgot about that. You know, we`re not finished with the story. There are some other people in that garage, and
there is video of them and police want to talk with them also. They think they might know something. Not involved but they might know something.
And Rich and Caroline, do please stay with us because we want to keep talking about Taylor and what may have happened to her. I know her birthday
would be tomorrow. We`ll be right back.
[20:15:01] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CASAREZ: We are still talking about the Texas mother of two who mysteriously fell to her death, 26-year-old Taylor Gruwell Miller whose
body was discovered below the rooftop of a Dallas parking garage where she was spotted with a friend one Saturday night seemingly holding hands in the
moments before her death.
But one possible problem -- police say that his story isn`t straight. And he`s no longer talking. Taylor`s father Rich Gruwell and her sister
Caroline are back with us tonight. And I know you want answers. Was an autopsy done on your sister and your daughter?
R. GRUWELL: We don`t have that yet.
CASAREZ: You don`t have it yet.
R. GRUWELL: We don`t have -- no.
C. GRUWELL: No.
R. GRUWELL: We don`t have any -- we don`t have any reports from the medical examiner yet.
C. GRUWELL: No.
CASAREZ: So you don`t know a cause of death.
R. GRUWELL: No.
C. GRUWELL: No. Hasn`t been determined yet.
CASAREZ: OK.
That`s important. That`s very important. Because it can show so much in a cause of death. Your daughter and your sister, we see two beautiful
children. We know she was a young mother. Where are those children tonight?
R. GRUWELL: They`re here, actually here in Texas. I flew them back with me last night. So they`re here with Taylor`s mother. We`re going to split time
with them. They`re great little kids. They don`t know that their...
[20:20:04] CASAREZ: So young.
R. GRUWELL: Yes.
CASAREZ: Do they know their mother has died?
C. GRUWELL: No. We haven`t told them yet. How do you tell a 2 and a 4-year- old that their mom is dead? So, no, we haven`t gotten to that part yet.
CASAREZ: I understand that. I definitely understand that. There are other men in the video that we`ve seen in that parking garage.
And police believe that they may have known your daughter and the guy she was with not involved at all in what happened to her. But they want to talk
to them. Can they not find them?
R. GRUWELL: Right.
CASAREZ: What have you heard? What have police told you about these other men?
R. GRUWELL: Well, the reason they put out the surveillance video in the first place was to help identify those other two individuals. Since the
video came out, actually they haven`t been able to identify them. But my family and friends have been doing their own little investigative work. We
were able to -- we might be able to help the police on that.
CASAREZ: Wow. Wow. Because and anybody...
(CROSSTALK)
R. GRUWELL: So, to those individuals...
CASAREZ: ... else that sees this video and could know them could possibly help, too.
R. GRUWELL: Yes. That`s what we`re hoping. And if those people are watching tonight or they see this later, social media is big nowadays. I don`t know
if they know that. But that`s how we were able to possibly help identify one of them. I can`t go any further than that.
CASAREZ: And this is a luxury apartment complex in Dallas, Texas. This is where it is. This was one of the floors of the parking garage. I think
third floor. But one of the floors -- went up to the top floor which was actually -- there it is right there. That`s how far your daughter fell. And
I`m sure part of the horror in this is to know that she plummeted that far. How was she found?
C. GRUWELL: She was found by just a random person walking by. They called 911.
R. GRUWELL: They thought she was drunk.
C. GRUWELL: They thought that maybe she had passed out drunk or something like that.
CASAREZ: Never dreaming she had fallen over. And I think one of the things that`s perplexing is that the gentleman that she was with who has not been
charged, is not a suspect, but his story doesn`t add up.
And if he knew that she went over, that she was pushed -- so murder, suicide or accident. At least you would call 911.
R. GRUWELL: that`s it.
CASAREZ: At least you would contact authorities and no one did.
C. GRUWELL: No.
R. GRUWELL: That`s the part that, as a father, I have trouble dealing with. There were statements made about caring about my daughter, friend of -- you
know, they were a friend of my daughter. But my daughter was in the medical examiner`s office for two days. She didn`t have identification on her.
If you care about someone, if you truly care about someone or just care about a human being, you don`t -- you don`t run and hide. You call 911. You
don`t run away. You render aid. This person could have at least went to the paramedics and said, hey, I know this girl. This is Taylor Gruwell. That
wasn`t done. My daughter was gone for two days and we didn`t know because no one notified anybody, so, that`s...
CASAREZ: Loni, what does this tell you?
COOMBS: You know, it`s an interesting point. The father just told us that she was not identified for two days and yet when this man was found earlier
the morning that she died he was already saying, sobbing, someone close to me has died. I thought perhaps he saw a media report or something. So, you
know, to give him a way to know this without having been there.
But if she had not been identified how else did he know this happened unless he was there and was aware of it? Because there is always the
argument perhaps he wasn`t aware of what exactly happened. Maybe he was there and then he did leave. That`s his story. But that doesn`t make sense
that he`s sobbing over the death of this person.
CASAREZ: Yes.
COOMBS: And especially that he didn`t do anything. Like you said, if it was an accident or suicide, why not call for help? Why not run down? Why not
get the paramedics? There is nothing to do but help at that point. You don`t have to worry about yourself. You`re trying to help this poor girl.
[20:25:10] CASAREZ: To Rich and Caroline, Loni makes just a fabulous point here. Because if he`s saying close in time, the next morning, that a good -
- a friend of his has died, was this publicized on television right away? She was at the medical examiner`s office not identified. Was it on
television already?
C. GRUWELL: No.
CASAREZ: Then -- then common sense tells us, how would you know that?
C. GRUWELL: Exactly.
CASAREZ: How would you know that if it wasn`t wall to wall on the television. So, obviously police I think have their leads. They want to
talk to more people. You know, the police also were saying that it is their belief that the other men may have been told what had happened because they
went up to the top after he came down without her in his car.
R. GRUWELL: Exactly.
C. GRUWELL: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
R. GRUWELL: There`s...
CASAREZ: Yes?
R. GRUWELL: I said this before. There`s at least one person that knows what happened to my daughter. I`m begging for that person to come forward. But
there`s, like I said, there is at least one person. I believe there`s more. I believe that -- I`ll always believe when bad people do bad things they
like to talk about it.
So I`m not accusing this person of being a bad person. But you can`t tell me that someone that hurt my daughter, if they did hurt my daughter, didn`t
tell someone, so.
CASAREZ: Tomorrow is her birthday. How old would she have been?
R. GRUWELL: Yes.
C. GRUWELL: Yes.
CASAREZ: And tell us about her. Tell us about this Dallas Texas mom of two.
C. GRUWELL: She would have been 27.
R. GRUWELL: She was born on Thanksgiving.
C. GRUWELL: She was born on Thanksgiving. My mom was in the hospital when she was born. She always talked about her kids. They were like her number
one passion in life. Always. They were all she talked about ever. She always just wanted to talk to her kids, face time them, talk on the phone.
R. GRUWELL: Take them to the zoos, the park.
C. GRUWELL: We took them to the zoo all the time. Take them to the park.
R. GRUWELL: Her and Emery were inseparable.
CASAREZ: Mr. Gruwell, what do you want to tell people out there that may know something to give you answers? Because that`s what you want. You want
answers.
R. GRUWELL: I can put it -- I can put it in the simplest of terms. I wrote someone a letter a few days ago. I just said if this was your child, forget
about the manner of death. But if you know someone dies, if you know how they died or why they died, you should come forward. There`s no -- there`s
no excuse, whether you are involved with this or involved with that, I don`t care. This is my daughter. I just want -- I just want to know how and
why.
CASAREZ: All right. Well, thank you for joining us. Those answers will come. They will come.
R. GRUWELL: Thank you.
C. GRUWELL: Thank you.
CASAREZ: Your close they will come. And we will continue to follow your case. Thank you for being with us tonight.
R. GRUWELL: Thank you for having us.
C. GRUWELL: Thank you for having us.
CASAREZ: A security guard on trial accused of killing a young woman in the building he patrolled. The defense claims he didn`t even go in her
apartment. But what did the jury decide?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AARON DELGADO, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Let`s assume he lied. Let`s assume that he went in the apartment. For any reason other than to commit a crime. To use
the bathroom. To check on Miss Samsudean. (Inaudible) of Miss Samsudean. For any of those reasons, does that explain things now?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[20:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
JEAN CASAREZ, CNN AND HLN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Did a security guard rape and murder the woman he was supposed to protect? A Florida jury has spoken,
after learning about the gruesome death of 27-year-old Sasha Samsudean. She lived in the building where he worked. She came home intoxicated and
keyless.
And she was later found strangled to death in her own apartment. Stephen Duxbury, the security guard for the apartment said, he never had stepped
foot inside that apartment. But according to the prosecution, he completely took advantage of her.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The evidence did show that this defendant crashed Sasha Samsudean`s throat, beat her about the head, injured her hips, injured her
buttocks,
[20:35:00] injured her wrists, injured her arms, all while attempting to commit sexual battery, all while committing burglary in her apartment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: The two were captured on camera together in the building. His fingerprints were found in her apartment. And his DNA on her breasts. Then
there was the video of Duxbury carrying trash bags that prosecutors say were full of evidence, but the defense argued that none of it proved beyond
a reasonable doubt his guilt.
They didn`t even call witnesses. They said it could have been someone else pointing to DNA from two other people found in Sasha Samsudean`s apartment.
Not to mention a bag containing her belongings, discovered in the building`s garage months after she was killed while he was in jail, charged
with the crime. Meaning there were holes in the state`s story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AARON DELGADO, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: You start saying to yourself, well, you know, there are some unanswered questions, the bag, the fingerprints, the
DNA, the lack of wounds on him, the lack of the evidence that his shoes were in the apartment. He wears size 10-1/2. These are size 9.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: Today it was up to the jury to decide if Stephen Duxbury is guilty and going to face the possibility of spending the rest of his life behind
bars. With us tonight, Ray Caputo. He is a reporter for News 96.5 WDBO Radio in Orlando. You were in the courtroom, you saw these closings. What
was the most important point you would say of all that the prosecutor made?
RAY CAPUTO, REPORTER, NEWS 96.5 WDBO: Well, the physical evidence, Jean. You know, I have said it last night when I was on the show. It`s really
hard to refute Stephen Duxbury`s own words that he said in court to those police interviews that he never stepped foot inside that apartment. And,
you know, that flies in the face of physical evidence.
We have two thumbprints, we have a shoe print, and of course his DNA evidence which a DNA expert said really is highly unlikely that could come
from any other person but Stephen Duxbury. So it`s kind of more of the same that he had a lot of physical evidence stacked against him and his own
words were "I have never been in that apartment".
CASAREZ: Right. And, Ray, that surveillance video that was shown hours of it, shown to the jury, extremely important. Let`s listen to a part of the
prosecution`s closing arguments today that once again the jury got to see on tape. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That`s the last key fob entry, that`s the last camera trigger until we see him again at 6:36, benevolently taking someone`s trash
out to the dumpster. Even according to the defendant, he`s parked on the second floor. You know from the key fobs that`s where he likes to park, is
on the second floor. I would submit to you trash did not go into the dumpster.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: And remember, he`s the security guard. He`s not the maintenance man. And he`s taking the trash out of the building. And they`ve got trash
reciprocals in an apartment building. Ray, the defense`s case had a lot of holes, like you said, in the prosecution`s case. What was the strongest
point they made today?
CAPUTO: Well, I`m not sure if it`s a strongest point, but the most memorable was a line that Duxbury`s attorney pulled straight out of the
O.J. trial. It was in regards to the shoe. They were arguing that the shoe print they had didn`t fit Stephen Duxbury. It was a size nine, and his show
size is 10-1/2.
So, straight from the mouth of the late Johnnie Cochran, he said if it doesn`t fit, you must acquit. You know, other than that, the defense didn`t
do a bad job poking and prodding at the prosecution`s case. They brought up the DNA evidence. They really took a lot of potshots at the Orlando Police
Department and blamed them for shoddy detective work.
CASAREZ: And, Ray, do you know what else the defense did today? Because he had said himself, this security guard, I have never, ever been in that
apartment. Today in closings, the defense had to get around that because his fingerprints were found, his DNA was found. Listen to how they did
that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Duxbury is also not on trial for whether he lied or not. Let`s assume he lied, let`s assume that he went in the apartment. For
any reason other than to commit a crime. To use a bathroom, to check on Miss Samsudean. To have an affair with Miss Samsudean. Or any of those
reasons. Does that explain things now?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: So, they had to admit that maybe he was in there, but it was for a pristine purpose. There was nothing of a criminal
[20:40:00] nature as to why he was in the apartment. The forensics. You has mentioned this, Ray, how important the forensics was. Let`s listen once
again because his DNA was found on her breasts. We now know on the top, but under the shirt, which is an important fact. Devil is in the details there.
Let`s listen to the DNA expert explain how conclusive the DNA was to this defendant.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDGAR PEREZ, FDLE DNA EXPERT: This statistic exceeded -- it was greater than 700 billion.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And how do you -- can you call that a match?
PEREZ: Basically when it hits that threshold since the world population is approximately 7 billion people, we are looking at it being a hundred times
the world population at that point. So, it`s established to be a match at that point. The real statistical significance is 860 trillion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: Dr. William Morrone, medical examiner. You know, the prosecution had to prove beyond a reasonable doubt sexual battery. And there was bleach
that had been poured in her private area. And they could not find any DNA to establish if there had been sexual activity.
So, you know what prosecutors relied on today in the closing arguments. The injuries she had to her hips, to her buttocks, to her arms. And they showed
that was violence right there. They equated that to sexual battery that she had to endure. Very creative on their part by not having the forensics in
the specific area.
DR. WILLIAM MORRONE, MEDICAL EXAMINER AND FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST: That`s true because usually what they would be looking for is semen samples that were
destroyed. But hips and buttocks are still very sexual. When you put violence in those areas, that`s criminal sexual conduct.
The other thing is, we don`t have any explanation for why a man has DNA on another woman`s breasts. The sexual part of this, the violent part of this
clearly relates to the homicide.
CASAREZ: That`s right. And Dr. Morrone, the jury got the case early afternoon. They deliberated and before you knew it they had a verdict.
Let`s listen to the verdict in this Orlando courtroom just hours ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We, the jury, find the defendant guilty of first- degree murder as charged in the indictment, guilty of attempted sexual battery with physical force, guilty of burglary of a dwelling with an
assault and battery.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: Guilty across the board. You`re looking right there at Sasha Samsudean`s family, her friends. You see a lot of them are in red. That was
her favorite color. They wore red throughout this entire trial. The judge went straight into sentencing and, of course, you have victim impact
statements. I want you to listen to Sasha Samsudean`s mother.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We, the jury, find the defendant guilty of first- degree murder as charged in the indictment, guilty of attempted sexual battery with physical force, guilty of burglary of a dwelling with an
assault and battery as charged in the indictment. So say we all dated at Orlando, Orange County, Florida, on this 21st day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: All right. Sasha Samsudean`s mother said that she will never be able to see her daughter again, to have dinner with her daughter again,
that her daughter will never be married, she will never be able to walk her daughter down the aisle to be married.
She also said that she was very sad because two families were destroyed today. And in this moment of grief, she thought about the family of the
defendant. Now convicted murder, that his family, they have lost him. Loni, your thoughts?
LONI COOMBS, FORMER PROSECUTOR: That`s an extraordinary mother to be able to think about the other family involved here. She`s absolutely right.
There are victims all around in a case like this.
And this was such a horrific crime for her daughter, that she was taken advantage of. She was clearly intoxicated, couldn`t find her own apartment.
Was taken advantage of sexually and then to cover up his crime, used bleach on her private parts.
CASAREZ: Horrible.
COOMBS: You know, it was a terrible thing to happen to this beautiful young woman. The mother showed such grace in that statement. I think the judge
was appropriate in his sentence of life in prison.
CASAREZ: Life in prison, day for day. That`s exactly right. Police say a suspected drunk driver hit two cars before coming to a stop. But the real
shocker caught on the officer`s body camera was where she said she worked.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is your name?
[20:45:00] BETH RICKETTS, ARRESTED FOR DUI: I`m Beth and I wasn`t drinking.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What`s your last name, Beth?
RICKETTS: Ricketts. I work for the police department.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And now you said you had a lot --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CASAREZ: Drunk driving, it ruins lives. And thankfully this alleged drunk driver didn`t take a life. But wild body cam footage from an Athens,
Georgia police officer shows the harsh reality of what appears to be driving under the influence. After police say a woman ran a red light and
slammed -- look at those cars -- into two of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What happened?
RICKETTS: I`m just sitting here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. You are driving this car?
RICKETTS: No.
[20:50:00] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No?
RICKETTS: I didn`t drive this car. I was just sitting here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who was driving it?
RICKETTS: I have no idea.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody else is saying that you were driving. All the witnesses here say that you were driving. Home come they`re saying that
you`re driving -- why would they be saying that if you weren`t? Where were you coming from?
RICKETTS: You know me. I was just sitting here. I really wasn`t driving.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How much alcohol have you drunk tonight?
RICKETTS: I had a lot of to drink. But I wasn`t driving.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where were you drinking at?
RICKETTS: I was at 9D`s (ph) bar.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 9D`s (ph) bar? What is a lot to you? Can you put a number to that?
RICKETTS: Yes, I am very drunk.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are very drunk, you said?
RICKETTS: I`m very drunk.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CASAREZ: The officer continues to question her. Trying to get answers and some sobering truth comes out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What is your name?
RICKETTS: I`m Beth and I wasn`t drinking.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What`s your last name, Beth?
RICKETTS: Ricketts. I work for the police department.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And now you said you had a lot to drink. How many -- how many glasses of whatever did you drink?
RICKETTS: I didn`t have that much. I`ve had like three glasses.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Of what? Beer, liquor, wine?
RICKETTS: Beer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What were they called?
RICKETTS: Gin and tonic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What time did you start drinking?
RICKETTS: Five.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Five?
RICKETTS: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: P.m.?
RICKETTS: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When was your last drink?
RICKETTS: Five p.m.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you started at 5:00 and you ended drinking at 5:00?
RICKETTS: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right. Put your hands behind your back, OK? How old are you?
RICKETTS: I`m old enough to know better.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ma`am, you`re under arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CASAREZ: You know, Loni, we watched her. I wonder what she thinks when she looks at this. By the grace of God, she`s alive, but other drivers are
alive. By the grace of God, there weren`t fatalities here. Those cars are totaled.
COOMBS: They are. And she also ran a red light before she hit those two cars. You know how dangerous that is. Anybody could have been coming from
that intersection or pedestrian. So, she is very fortunate that she is standing and walking too.
She wasn`t injured that badly. And the fact that she didn`t kill someone and she then would have been charged with that as well, you know, that
would have ruined her life even more. The fact that she lost her job over this, probably very appropriate.
CASAREZ: Right. And she was -- she had scuff marks. That`s how they realized that the air bag was only on the driver`s side and so she had to
be the driver of that vehicle.
COOMBS: That`s right. Which is very important. Because when someone is in the passenger seat and the police are trying to determine if they`re driver
or not, if you`re not driving, it`s a very different situation, then you`re just drunk in public as opposed to driving under the influence and causing
all the damage.
And somehow, it appears that she realized that if she just sat there in the passenger seat and said I was just sitting, I wasn`t driving, that would
lesson her culpability. But you`re right, her injuries gave her away, that she sustained when she was driving. It was clear that she had been in the
driver seat.
CASAREZ: And the responsibility, when you drive, a car is a deadly weapon.
COOMBS: That`s right.
CASAREZ: You have a responsibility. If you`re going to drink, you hear this, but just don`t drive. We are approaching a holiday weekend, think
about this video, think about what could have happened.
A man in Texas is recovering from serious injuries after a merciless attack that seems to just come out of nowhere. Two men in line at a convenience
store. The man in back pulls $35 from his wallet. And suddenly the man in front of him takes it and awkward shuffle ensues as another customer leaves
the store.
The casual thief intimidating the victim, and then knocking him out, knocking him out cold, sending him flying into rack of sunglasses, beating
him down to the ground, before stomping on his head and kneeing him in the face. Punching him again and again and again.
The beat down lasts 24 seconds as the store clerk simply watches and the thief gets off with the man`s wallet. But not for long. He was arrested ten
minutes later and charged with aggravated robbery. He`ll spend the next 20 years behind bars for taking just $35 and a wallet.
When police officers respond to a call, they never know what to expect, but they probably didn`t foresee this, after pushing a broken down vehicle to
the side of the road.
[20:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CASAREZ: Some police officers in Texas, they are lucky to be alive after what happened on a busy road outside of Fort Worth. It was all captured on
dash cam video. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CASAREZ: Those officers were tending to a car on the side of the road when another driver came speeding up and side swiped their patrol car. You saw
it, barely missing the officers. Eventually that car comes to a stop and the 26-year-old driver is reportedly charged with --
[21:00:00] you got it, a DUI.
Thank you so much for watching. I`m Jean Casarez. We will see you back here tomorrow night at 8:00 for "Primetime Justice." "Face of Evil: The Charles
Manson Murders" is up next. Good night, everybody.
END
