1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,902 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 2 00:00:04,371 --> 00:00:06,306 [SEAGULLS SQUAWKING] 3 00:00:09,209 --> 00:00:11,144 [WATER SLOSHING] 4 00:00:15,048 --> 00:00:18,952 Mom loved the beach. 5 00:00:19,018 --> 00:00:22,622 We would go every weekend in the summer. 6 00:00:22,689 --> 00:00:23,690 She was fun. 7 00:00:23,757 --> 00:00:26,593 She was spunky, young mom. 8 00:00:26,659 --> 00:00:29,629 My name is Angelina Fernandes, and Stephanie Fernandes 9 00:00:29,696 --> 00:00:30,263 is my mother. 10 00:00:33,900 --> 00:00:36,803 Angelina is my everything. 11 00:00:36,870 --> 00:00:42,342 I really can't imagine anything without her. 12 00:00:42,409 --> 00:00:45,512 I just remember feeling the joy when 13 00:00:45,578 --> 00:00:49,382 she would tuck me in at night and give me the nighttime kiss. 14 00:00:49,449 --> 00:00:53,653 I feel like I've done a pretty good job with raising her. 15 00:00:53,720 --> 00:00:56,356 [BROODING MUSIC] 16 00:00:57,257 --> 00:01:00,960 She wanted to have that picture-perfect, 17 00:01:01,027 --> 00:01:06,199 all-American-dream family with a nice house and kids. 18 00:01:06,266 --> 00:01:07,367 Who are these two people? 19 00:01:07,434 --> 00:01:14,007 The lady is my mom, and the man is Andrew Wagner. 20 00:01:14,073 --> 00:01:17,043 My mom met him when I was six years old. 21 00:01:17,110 --> 00:01:19,446 It's been said that you would call him your stepdad. 22 00:01:19,512 --> 00:01:20,914 Is that true? 23 00:01:20,980 --> 00:01:22,916 {\an1}Yes. 24 00:01:22,982 --> 00:01:23,983 He had really nice eyes. 25 00:01:24,050 --> 00:01:26,519 He was very handsome. 26 00:01:26,586 --> 00:01:29,355 He liked to work out, so he was really big. 27 00:01:29,422 --> 00:01:30,957 [DARK MUSIC] 28 00:01:31,024 --> 00:01:33,359 I was with him for five years. 29 00:01:33,426 --> 00:01:35,428 There was a lot of signs in the beginning. 30 00:01:35,495 --> 00:01:39,199 Severe jealousy, a lot of control. 31 00:01:39,265 --> 00:01:42,402 He would say, I trust you. 32 00:01:42,469 --> 00:01:44,137 It's the other people I don't trust. 33 00:01:44,204 --> 00:01:46,239 I don't trust other men. 34 00:01:46,306 --> 00:01:47,607 I would hear them arguing. 35 00:01:47,674 --> 00:01:50,443 I heard her screaming and crying. 36 00:01:50,510 --> 00:01:52,111 I had a talk with my mom. 37 00:01:52,178 --> 00:01:55,148 I know what's going on between you two, and I don't like it. 38 00:01:55,215 --> 00:01:56,816 You guys need to stop. 39 00:01:56,883 --> 00:01:58,518 It can't happen anymore. 40 00:01:58,585 --> 00:02:01,387 [BROODING MUSIC] 41 00:02:02,789 --> 00:02:06,926 I walked down, and I saw my mom and the neighbors in the house. 42 00:02:06,993 --> 00:02:10,296 I'm like, what is going on? 43 00:02:10,363 --> 00:02:13,433 I knew Andy was hurt. 44 00:02:13,500 --> 00:02:19,806 I knew my mom was in distress, and she was crying. 45 00:02:19,873 --> 00:02:20,640 You could see blood? 46 00:02:20,707 --> 00:02:21,441 {\an1}Yeah. 47 00:02:21,508 --> 00:02:23,610 Blood, footprints. 48 00:02:23,676 --> 00:02:27,380 Just blood everywhere. 49 00:02:27,447 --> 00:02:28,147 I was shocked. 50 00:02:28,214 --> 00:02:29,616 I didn't even know what to think. 51 00:02:29,682 --> 00:02:34,387 I just remember wanting to make sure my mom was OK because I 52 00:02:34,454 --> 00:02:35,922 didn't know where she went. 53 00:02:35,989 --> 00:02:36,723 She was just taken. 54 00:02:36,789 --> 00:02:38,892 [SIRENS BLARING] 55 00:02:38,958 --> 00:02:39,759 Please, please. 56 00:02:39,826 --> 00:02:41,628 I need someone, please. 57 00:02:41,694 --> 00:02:43,396 I don't know what to do. 58 00:02:43,463 --> 00:02:45,732 I'm going to freak out. 59 00:02:45,798 --> 00:02:49,469 There was a knife in the sink in the bathroom. 60 00:02:49,536 --> 00:02:51,070 There's only two people in the house, 61 00:02:51,137 --> 00:02:52,939 and we can only talk to one of them. 62 00:02:53,006 --> 00:02:56,509 Where did all the blood come from, Stephanie? 63 00:02:56,576 --> 00:02:58,011 This is Andrew's blood. 64 00:02:58,077 --> 00:03:00,146 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 65 00:03:00,213 --> 00:03:01,714 {\an1}Please. 66 00:03:01,781 --> 00:03:03,883 All right, we're going to go check, OK? 67 00:03:03,950 --> 00:03:06,152 I know you're not. 68 00:03:06,219 --> 00:03:09,088 Please tell me he's alive and in the hospital bed. 69 00:03:13,092 --> 00:03:16,596 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 70 00:04:04,377 --> 00:04:07,113 I don't know what's going to happen. 71 00:04:07,180 --> 00:04:08,281 {\an1}Please. 72 00:04:08,348 --> 00:04:09,649 Please tell me if he's OK. 73 00:04:09,716 --> 00:04:10,416 {\an1}Please. 74 00:04:10,483 --> 00:04:13,886 {\an1}No, no. 75 00:04:13,953 --> 00:04:17,390 In the predawn hours of May 8, 2014-- 76 00:04:17,457 --> 00:04:19,692 This is like a nightmare, a walking nightmare. 77 00:04:19,759 --> 00:04:22,362 --Stephanie Fernandes was desperate to learn 78 00:04:22,428 --> 00:04:26,833 from police what had happened to her fiance, Andrew "Andy" 79 00:04:26,899 --> 00:04:27,600 {\an1}Wagner. 80 00:04:27,667 --> 00:04:28,968 What happened to him? 81 00:04:29,035 --> 00:04:31,337 I know this is a traumatic night, OK? 82 00:04:31,404 --> 00:04:33,206 No, please tell me Andy's OK. 83 00:04:33,272 --> 00:04:34,907 Oh, please tell me Andy's OK. 84 00:04:34,974 --> 00:04:35,541 {\an1}Please. 85 00:04:35,608 --> 00:04:38,244 What I'm going to do right now is I'm going to read you-- 86 00:04:38,311 --> 00:04:40,613 At around 10:30 the night before, 87 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:43,182 after a sudden bloody encounter with Andy 88 00:04:43,249 --> 00:04:46,919 at their home in Worcester, Massachusetts, Stephanie says 89 00:04:46,986 --> 00:04:49,088 she couldn't find her cell phone, 90 00:04:49,155 --> 00:04:52,358 so she rushed to a neighbor's house to get help. 91 00:04:52,425 --> 00:04:54,427 [SIRENS BLARING] 92 00:04:57,430 --> 00:05:00,733 It's coming up on the left. 93 00:05:00,800 --> 00:05:01,234 Which house? 94 00:05:01,300 --> 00:05:02,402 Right here. 95 00:05:02,468 --> 00:05:04,070 On the left. 96 00:05:04,137 --> 00:05:08,074 Stephenie's daughter, Angelina Fernandes, now 20, 97 00:05:08,141 --> 00:05:11,244 was just 11 years old that night. 98 00:05:11,310 --> 00:05:12,278 Where was your bedroom? 99 00:05:15,481 --> 00:05:16,315 {\an1}Upstairs. 100 00:05:16,382 --> 00:05:18,117 But can you still remember? 101 00:05:18,184 --> 00:05:18,618 {\an1}Yeah. 102 00:05:18,685 --> 00:05:19,385 It's like pictures. 103 00:05:19,452 --> 00:05:22,255 [CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING] 104 00:05:23,690 --> 00:05:30,663 So I was sleeping, and I heard the door slam shut. 105 00:05:30,730 --> 00:05:32,498 And it woke me up. 106 00:05:32,565 --> 00:05:36,969 And then I just heard my mom from outside, help me. 107 00:05:37,036 --> 00:05:39,472 Someone help me. 108 00:05:39,539 --> 00:05:42,709 And then I just hear my mom screaming and crying. 109 00:05:42,775 --> 00:05:46,479 When you look from that balcony down 110 00:05:46,546 --> 00:05:49,148 and could see your mother and Andy-- 111 00:05:49,215 --> 00:05:49,849 {\an1}Mm-hmm. 112 00:05:49,916 --> 00:05:51,617 There was blood everywhere, and then I 113 00:05:51,684 --> 00:05:56,889 saw them giving CPR on him. 114 00:05:56,956 --> 00:06:00,526 I just remember my mom-- 115 00:06:00,593 --> 00:06:02,929 and then she spotted me upstairs, 116 00:06:02,995 --> 00:06:05,298 and she pointed at me. 117 00:06:05,364 --> 00:06:07,100 And she was like, someone get her. 118 00:06:07,166 --> 00:06:08,201 Someone get my daughter. 119 00:06:08,267 --> 00:06:09,869 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 120 00:06:09,936 --> 00:06:13,039 Police took Angelina to a relative's house. 121 00:06:13,106 --> 00:06:16,542 Andy was rushed by paramedics to the hospital. 122 00:06:16,609 --> 00:06:18,644 Police took Stephanie to the station, 123 00:06:18,711 --> 00:06:21,514 where she was led into an interrogation room 124 00:06:21,581 --> 00:06:24,517 and interviewed for almost three hours. 125 00:06:24,584 --> 00:06:25,118 {\an1}No. 126 00:06:25,184 --> 00:06:25,718 {\an1}No. 127 00:06:25,785 --> 00:06:27,053 Please tell me Andy's OK. 128 00:06:27,120 --> 00:06:28,688 Oh, please tell me he's OK. 129 00:06:28,755 --> 00:06:30,456 I can't even talk. 130 00:06:30,523 --> 00:06:32,258 He's my life. 131 00:06:32,325 --> 00:06:33,993 It doesn't even matter. 132 00:06:34,060 --> 00:06:37,163 I love him so much. 133 00:06:37,230 --> 00:06:38,898 {\an1}Please. 134 00:06:38,965 --> 00:06:40,433 {\an1}No, no. 135 00:06:40,500 --> 00:06:42,435 I don't know what to do. 136 00:06:42,502 --> 00:06:45,471 I'm going to freak out. 137 00:06:45,538 --> 00:06:48,107 Sit down for a second. 138 00:06:48,174 --> 00:06:49,675 I don't want to hear nothing. 139 00:06:49,742 --> 00:06:51,577 I don't want to hear nothing. 140 00:06:51,644 --> 00:06:53,613 And if anything bad happened to my family, 141 00:06:53,679 --> 00:06:58,217 no, please don't tell me. 142 00:06:58,284 --> 00:06:59,919 I know I look psycho. 143 00:06:59,986 --> 00:07:00,987 {\an1}Please. 144 00:07:01,053 --> 00:07:02,688 Stephanie, just for right now, I just 145 00:07:02,755 --> 00:07:04,157 want to get some basic information. 146 00:07:04,223 --> 00:07:04,757 {\an1}OK. 147 00:07:04,824 --> 00:07:08,828 Detective William Pero led the questioning. 148 00:07:08,895 --> 00:07:11,697 Before we talk about the incident that occurred tonight, 149 00:07:11,764 --> 00:07:13,132 I have to read you your rights. 150 00:07:13,199 --> 00:07:13,766 {\an1}OK. 151 00:07:13,833 --> 00:07:15,067 You have the right to use a telephone 152 00:07:15,134 --> 00:07:16,068 to contact an attorney. 153 00:07:16,135 --> 00:07:17,737 Do you understand this right, Stephanie? 154 00:07:17,804 --> 00:07:19,605 Right now, we can't talk to Andrew. 155 00:07:19,672 --> 00:07:20,873 I can talk to you. 156 00:07:20,940 --> 00:07:21,674 {\an1}OK? 157 00:07:21,741 --> 00:07:24,177 Why can't you talk to him? 158 00:07:24,243 --> 00:07:27,013 The officers press on, telling Stephanie 159 00:07:27,079 --> 00:07:29,148 that Wagner is in the hospital. 160 00:07:29,215 --> 00:07:32,685 Stephanie appears to settle down a bit. 161 00:07:32,752 --> 00:07:33,820 Well, something did happen. 162 00:07:33,886 --> 00:07:34,821 You're covered in blood. 163 00:07:34,887 --> 00:07:35,655 {\an1}No. 164 00:07:35,721 --> 00:07:36,255 {\an1}No. 165 00:07:36,322 --> 00:07:37,089 {\an1}Oh, yeah. 166 00:07:37,156 --> 00:07:38,524 You have a lot of blood on you. 167 00:07:38,591 --> 00:07:40,059 I would assume that's Andrew's blood? 168 00:07:40,126 --> 00:07:44,030 Yes, this is Andrew's blood. 169 00:07:44,096 --> 00:07:48,100 Stephanie changes into a white cover-up and two hours 170 00:07:48,167 --> 00:07:53,139 into her interview, finally learns Andy's fate. 171 00:07:53,206 --> 00:07:55,308 Andrew is no longer with us. 172 00:07:55,374 --> 00:07:59,779 [CRYING SHAKILY] 173 00:07:59,846 --> 00:08:01,447 And there's a reason why that happened, 174 00:08:01,514 --> 00:08:04,050 but we don't know that reason yet. 175 00:08:04,116 --> 00:08:05,651 {\an1}Oh my god. 176 00:08:05,718 --> 00:08:08,287 {\an1}Oh my god. 177 00:08:08,354 --> 00:08:11,724 Stephanie is told Andy is dead. 178 00:08:11,791 --> 00:08:15,628 She begins to reveal details of what happened that night. 179 00:08:15,695 --> 00:08:17,997 What happened was we got into an altercation, 180 00:08:18,064 --> 00:08:19,298 and he was hitting me. 181 00:08:19,365 --> 00:08:20,399 And that's what happened. 182 00:08:20,466 --> 00:08:22,568 And he pulled out a knife and gun. 183 00:08:22,635 --> 00:08:25,671 He started choking me and hitting me and stuff. 184 00:08:25,738 --> 00:08:28,407 An autopsy would later reveal Wagner 185 00:08:28,474 --> 00:08:31,811 had bled to death after being stabbed in the neck. 186 00:08:31,878 --> 00:08:33,112 Can I see him? 187 00:08:33,179 --> 00:08:36,382 Stephanie was later charged with first-degree murder. 188 00:08:36,449 --> 00:08:38,618 I can't believe-- 189 00:08:38,684 --> 00:08:42,989 I never, never, never would kill someone, 190 00:08:43,055 --> 00:08:45,758 harm someone in that way on purpose. 191 00:08:45,825 --> 00:08:48,594 Stephanie Fernandes is talking publicly 192 00:08:48,661 --> 00:08:52,698 for the first time about the death of her fiance, Andrew 193 00:08:52,765 --> 00:08:55,301 {\an1}Wagner. 194 00:08:55,368 --> 00:08:57,603 I will always love him. 195 00:08:57,670 --> 00:08:59,939 But how did it come to this? 196 00:09:00,006 --> 00:09:02,708 Just five years earlier, Stephanie 197 00:09:02,775 --> 00:09:05,478 was smitten with Andrew Wagner. 198 00:09:05,544 --> 00:09:09,548 Blue eyes, really nice smile, nice hair. 199 00:09:09,615 --> 00:09:14,887 Just really handsome and really fun personality. 200 00:09:14,954 --> 00:09:15,888 Very talkative. 201 00:09:15,955 --> 00:09:19,425 And did you feel an attraction to him right away? 202 00:09:19,492 --> 00:09:20,693 Yes, I did. 203 00:09:20,760 --> 00:09:23,629 We had chemistry, a lot. 204 00:09:23,696 --> 00:09:27,566 At the time, Andy worked at the tire shop of a Costco. 205 00:09:27,633 --> 00:09:30,236 He dreamed of working in law enforcement. 206 00:09:30,303 --> 00:09:33,873 In the beginning, Angelina got along with him. 207 00:09:33,940 --> 00:09:36,342 What kind of things did you guys do together? 208 00:09:36,409 --> 00:09:40,179 We used to watch Criminal Minds together. 209 00:09:40,246 --> 00:09:43,983 Did your mom ever tell you, "Angelina, I love Andrew. 210 00:09:44,050 --> 00:09:46,819 I'd like to marry Andrew someday"? 211 00:09:46,886 --> 00:09:47,687 {\an1}Yes. 212 00:09:47,753 --> 00:09:52,124 She wanted that so bad. 213 00:09:52,191 --> 00:09:59,865 A stable family for me and her, she just she wanted that. 214 00:09:59,932 --> 00:10:02,868 But what Angelina didn't know at the time 215 00:10:02,935 --> 00:10:05,538 was that her mother's life with Andy Wagner 216 00:10:05,604 --> 00:10:09,775 also had a violent side, recalled Stephanie's friend 217 00:10:09,842 --> 00:10:11,744 Danielle Lord. 218 00:10:11,811 --> 00:10:16,816 She constantly had grab marks on her arms. 219 00:10:16,882 --> 00:10:21,120 She had marks inside of her legs like I have never 220 00:10:21,187 --> 00:10:22,088 seen in my life. 221 00:10:22,154 --> 00:10:25,157 [DARK MUSIC] 222 00:10:33,099 --> 00:10:36,102 [SOFT MUSIC] 223 00:10:43,576 --> 00:10:47,847 The little girl is me, and my mom is next to me. 224 00:10:47,913 --> 00:10:51,584 Stephanie Fernandes. 225 00:10:51,650 --> 00:10:56,789 So tender and loving, and she was high energy. 226 00:10:56,856 --> 00:10:58,858 And I was like her little sidekick. 227 00:11:01,994 --> 00:11:05,631 Angelina was just six years old when Andrew Wagner 228 00:11:05,698 --> 00:11:07,400 came into her life. 229 00:11:07,466 --> 00:11:11,570 She remembers good times at the beach, family gatherings, 230 00:11:11,637 --> 00:11:13,639 and vacations. 231 00:11:13,706 --> 00:11:16,475 We would actually go to Cape Cod every summer 232 00:11:16,542 --> 00:11:21,847 to his parents' Cape house, which was fun. 233 00:11:21,914 --> 00:11:22,681 She loved him. 234 00:11:22,748 --> 00:11:25,184 She wanted a house with him. 235 00:11:25,251 --> 00:11:26,552 She wanted to get married to him. 236 00:11:26,619 --> 00:11:27,987 She wanted babies. 237 00:11:28,054 --> 00:11:31,624 In those early times, Angelina says her mom never 238 00:11:31,690 --> 00:11:34,393 said how she met Andy Wagner, never 239 00:11:34,460 --> 00:11:38,030 revealed what she did for a living that kept her away 240 00:11:38,097 --> 00:11:39,632 {\an1}at night. 241 00:11:39,698 --> 00:11:41,434 She was beautiful. 242 00:11:41,500 --> 00:11:44,336 She just had these piercing eyes, first, that you notice, 243 00:11:44,403 --> 00:11:47,740 and her hair was just beautiful. 244 00:11:47,807 --> 00:11:50,009 Danielle Lord worked with Stephanie 245 00:11:50,076 --> 00:11:52,545 in a Massachusetts nightclub. 246 00:11:52,611 --> 00:11:53,979 We both were very intimidating. 247 00:11:54,046 --> 00:11:56,015 A lot of men would say that we were intimidating, 248 00:11:56,082 --> 00:11:56,916 especially together. 249 00:11:59,285 --> 00:12:00,986 That's attractive to men. 250 00:12:01,053 --> 00:12:03,589 We just became this kind of duo. 251 00:12:03,656 --> 00:12:05,591 What did you do at the nightclub? 252 00:12:05,658 --> 00:12:07,193 I was a topless dancer. 253 00:12:07,259 --> 00:12:08,894 Exotic dancer-- 254 00:12:08,961 --> 00:12:11,130 Exotic dancer, stripper, yeah. 255 00:12:11,197 --> 00:12:13,966 And had you been trained in dancing at all? 256 00:12:14,033 --> 00:12:16,569 I took dance classes when I was younger. 257 00:12:16,635 --> 00:12:19,638 Not in that way. 258 00:12:19,705 --> 00:12:21,707 Stephanie was a single mom. 259 00:12:21,774 --> 00:12:24,844 She says after she split up with Angelina's father, 260 00:12:24,910 --> 00:12:27,880 she needed to earn a paycheck. 261 00:12:27,947 --> 00:12:30,416 I would go in there, make a lot of money, 262 00:12:30,483 --> 00:12:33,719 and then I would get out and be there 263 00:12:33,786 --> 00:12:35,121 for my mom and my daughter. 264 00:12:35,187 --> 00:12:40,860 One night, back in 2009, a new guy at the club caught her eye. 265 00:12:40,926 --> 00:12:44,497 I was on stage, and he was there. 266 00:12:44,563 --> 00:12:47,967 We just started talking talked for an hour. 267 00:12:48,033 --> 00:12:50,102 She was instantly attracted to him. 268 00:12:50,169 --> 00:12:51,971 She wanted to be with him. 269 00:12:52,037 --> 00:12:53,772 She didn't look at him like a customer. 270 00:12:53,839 --> 00:12:55,708 She was like, oh, this a cute guy. 271 00:12:55,774 --> 00:12:57,009 I like him. 272 00:12:57,076 --> 00:13:00,179 At first, Stephanie loved the attention. 273 00:13:00,246 --> 00:13:01,947 I thought, oh, he's just into me. 274 00:13:02,014 --> 00:13:03,482 He just really likes me. 275 00:13:03,549 --> 00:13:05,951 I think she just had stars in her eyes. 276 00:13:06,018 --> 00:13:09,054 Danielle says Stephanie and Andy's relationship 277 00:13:09,121 --> 00:13:12,358 quickly became a little obsessive. 278 00:13:12,424 --> 00:13:16,629 A lot of alarms went off whenever Steph met Andy, 279 00:13:16,695 --> 00:13:19,331 alarms that she couldn't hear. 280 00:13:19,398 --> 00:13:22,268 He was completely possessive right from the beginning. 281 00:13:22,334 --> 00:13:27,072 Andy was calling her nonstop, messaging her, 282 00:13:27,139 --> 00:13:31,577 and showing up at the club right from the beginning. 283 00:13:31,644 --> 00:13:35,014 Stephanie and Andy moved in together almost immediately 284 00:13:35,080 --> 00:13:36,749 in Worcester, Massachusetts. 285 00:13:36,815 --> 00:13:40,653 Danielle says their relationship moved from obsessive 286 00:13:40,719 --> 00:13:42,755 to dangerous. 287 00:13:42,821 --> 00:13:45,457 I've never in my life seen bruises like that, ever. 288 00:13:45,524 --> 00:13:47,826 And I don't even want to think of what she went through 289 00:13:47,893 --> 00:13:49,862 to get those bruises. 290 00:13:49,929 --> 00:13:51,230 We were covering it with makeup. 291 00:13:51,297 --> 00:13:52,798 When she had the bruising down there, 292 00:13:52,865 --> 00:13:54,567 there was nothing you could do to cover it. 293 00:13:54,633 --> 00:13:57,236 Soon after moving in together, Stephanie 294 00:13:57,303 --> 00:14:00,406 says Andrew demanded some changes. 295 00:14:00,472 --> 00:14:04,043 Did he demand that you stop dancing? 296 00:14:04,109 --> 00:14:04,944 {\an1}Oh, yeah. 297 00:14:05,010 --> 00:14:05,678 {\an1}Yes. 298 00:14:05,744 --> 00:14:08,647 His girl was not going to dance at a club. 299 00:14:08,714 --> 00:14:14,587 And I said, jokingly, nervously, jokingly, well, 300 00:14:14,653 --> 00:14:15,888 who's going to pay my bills? 301 00:14:15,955 --> 00:14:18,157 And why did he want you to quit? 302 00:14:18,224 --> 00:14:21,026 Because of the attention, the men, 303 00:14:21,093 --> 00:14:24,129 taking off my top in front of men. 304 00:14:24,196 --> 00:14:26,732 Stephanie says she stopped dancing, 305 00:14:26,799 --> 00:14:29,268 but the violence continued. 306 00:14:29,335 --> 00:14:32,104 He's hit me in my head and my face. 307 00:14:32,171 --> 00:14:33,272 He's choked me. 308 00:14:33,339 --> 00:14:37,309 Stephanie says she took this photo in 2010. 309 00:14:37,376 --> 00:14:39,445 Body shots all over the place. 310 00:14:39,511 --> 00:14:41,981 My mouth, my eyes, everywhere. 311 00:14:42,047 --> 00:14:44,617 Why didn't you ever call the police 312 00:14:44,683 --> 00:14:47,586 and report this violence? 313 00:14:47,653 --> 00:14:51,624 I was told that bullets can go through paper. 314 00:14:51,690 --> 00:14:55,728 It would mean nothing with a restraining order. 315 00:14:55,794 --> 00:14:59,698 He would get to me way quicker than the cops would, 316 00:14:59,765 --> 00:15:03,869 and I would die if I left him. 317 00:15:03,936 --> 00:15:05,571 I can't explain it. 318 00:15:05,638 --> 00:15:09,308 It's very hard to leave a domestic-violence situation. 319 00:15:09,375 --> 00:15:10,576 You don't have your own money. 320 00:15:10,643 --> 00:15:12,678 You don't have anywhere to go. 321 00:15:12,745 --> 00:15:15,581 You're broken down completely. 322 00:15:15,648 --> 00:15:17,316 Your brain is like scrambled eggs, 323 00:15:17,383 --> 00:15:19,318 and you can't think for yourself. 324 00:15:19,385 --> 00:15:23,622 And you just walk around every day like-- you're in shock. 325 00:15:23,689 --> 00:15:25,557 You just want to end the day, and when 326 00:15:25,624 --> 00:15:28,294 you wake up the next day, it's just another day 327 00:15:28,360 --> 00:15:29,595 doing the same thing. 328 00:15:29,662 --> 00:15:31,563 So I think she was just stuck in a situation 329 00:15:31,630 --> 00:15:33,198 that she didn't know how to get out of. 330 00:15:33,265 --> 00:15:35,567 In spite of their volatile relationship, 331 00:15:35,634 --> 00:15:39,438 in 2012, Stephanie and Andy were engaged. 332 00:15:39,505 --> 00:15:44,043 A short time later, Andy became a corrections officer. 333 00:15:44,109 --> 00:15:45,978 You and Andy had bought a condo together. 334 00:15:46,045 --> 00:15:47,179 You were planning a wedding. 335 00:15:47,246 --> 00:15:47,680 {\an1}Correct? 336 00:15:47,746 --> 00:15:48,180 {\an1}Yes. 337 00:15:48,247 --> 00:15:50,149 You seem happy in that picture. 338 00:15:50,215 --> 00:15:52,117 What went wrong? 339 00:15:52,184 --> 00:15:54,320 Severe jealousy. 340 00:15:54,386 --> 00:15:57,623 But Stephanie admits it wasn't just Andy. 341 00:15:57,690 --> 00:16:03,128 Sometimes she antagonized him, teasing and tormenting him 342 00:16:03,195 --> 00:16:04,530 with texts. 343 00:16:04,596 --> 00:16:06,532 They're pretty vicious. 344 00:16:06,598 --> 00:16:07,232 {\an1}Yeah. 345 00:16:07,299 --> 00:16:08,367 You admit that, right? 346 00:16:08,434 --> 00:16:08,867 {\an1}I do. 347 00:16:08,934 --> 00:16:10,235 It's embarrassing. 348 00:16:10,302 --> 00:16:12,905 I asked Stephanie to read a few. 349 00:16:12,971 --> 00:16:14,773 I'm going to F your best friend. 350 00:16:14,840 --> 00:16:16,408 You should kill yourself. 351 00:16:16,475 --> 00:16:18,544 Hope a car falls on you. 352 00:16:18,610 --> 00:16:20,646 I admit I'm flawed. 353 00:16:20,713 --> 00:16:22,247 Yeah, I can get upset. 354 00:16:22,314 --> 00:16:25,851 She says Andrew would get upset, too, especially when she 355 00:16:25,918 --> 00:16:29,722 wore outfits that might make her attractive to other men. 356 00:16:29,788 --> 00:16:31,990 He's freaked out over the tank top 357 00:16:32,057 --> 00:16:37,162 that I was wearing, grabbed me, and then threw me on my bed 358 00:16:37,229 --> 00:16:39,765 in the room and tore it off. 359 00:16:39,832 --> 00:16:43,469 Took out his gun, made sure I knew there was bullets in it, 360 00:16:43,535 --> 00:16:46,438 and jammed it down my throat. 361 00:16:46,505 --> 00:16:48,307 Did he threatened to kill you? 362 00:16:48,374 --> 00:16:50,676 Did he threaten to pull the trigger? 363 00:16:50,743 --> 00:16:53,579 During that time, if I didn't listen to him, 364 00:16:53,645 --> 00:16:58,150 yes, that he was going to kill me. 365 00:16:58,217 --> 00:17:01,286 When he was mad, he'd turned into a different person. 366 00:17:01,353 --> 00:17:03,956 His whole face would get red. 367 00:17:04,022 --> 00:17:06,058 His pupils would dilate. 368 00:17:06,125 --> 00:17:11,096 It was like possession of demonic entity. 369 00:17:11,163 --> 00:17:16,268 Angelina recalls seeing Andrew trying to headbutt her mother. 370 00:17:16,335 --> 00:17:18,303 He'd go like-- like that. 371 00:17:18,370 --> 00:17:20,038 Would he bump her? 372 00:17:20,105 --> 00:17:22,207 When he'd headbutt, it would literally make contact? 373 00:17:22,274 --> 00:17:23,008 {\an1}No. 374 00:17:23,075 --> 00:17:24,543 But it would go right up in her face? 375 00:17:24,610 --> 00:17:25,310 {\an1}Yeah. 376 00:17:25,377 --> 00:17:26,245 {\an1}An mm. 377 00:17:26,311 --> 00:17:27,279 {\an1}Yeah. 378 00:17:27,346 --> 00:17:28,847 And she called that a headbutt, right? 379 00:17:28,914 --> 00:17:29,615 {\an1}Yeah. 380 00:17:29,681 --> 00:17:31,283 And did that bother her? 381 00:17:31,350 --> 00:17:32,785 {\an1}Mm-hmm. 382 00:17:32,851 --> 00:17:37,189 By early 2013, Stephanie decided she and Angelina 383 00:17:37,256 --> 00:17:38,657 needed a change. 384 00:17:38,724 --> 00:17:41,760 She left Andrew and began a new relationship 385 00:17:41,827 --> 00:17:44,863 with an old boyfriend, Mike Laramee. 386 00:17:44,930 --> 00:17:49,234 I left Andy to get away from the abuse in a number of things. 387 00:17:49,301 --> 00:17:53,572 Stephanie says both men knew about each other. 388 00:17:53,639 --> 00:17:55,941 What I did with Andy, Mike knew about. 389 00:17:56,008 --> 00:17:57,843 What I did with Mike, Andy knew about. 390 00:17:57,910 --> 00:18:01,613 She says Mike treated her very well. 391 00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:03,315 He spoiled me in every wave. 392 00:18:03,382 --> 00:18:06,985 He would carry me into bed if I fell asleep on the couch. 393 00:18:07,052 --> 00:18:09,788 And just months after they got back together, 394 00:18:09,855 --> 00:18:13,692 Mike proposed, and Stephanie accepted. 395 00:18:13,759 --> 00:18:17,229 Mike brought me to Niagara Falls. 396 00:18:17,296 --> 00:18:21,667 He did take out the ring and asked if I would marry him, 397 00:18:21,733 --> 00:18:23,702 and I did wear the ring. 398 00:18:23,769 --> 00:18:28,207 Both men knew that you were engaged to the other man? 399 00:18:28,273 --> 00:18:29,675 {\an1}Yes. 400 00:18:29,741 --> 00:18:31,810 About a month later, Laramee says 401 00:18:31,877 --> 00:18:34,012 he broke off the engagement. 402 00:18:34,079 --> 00:18:36,715 Stephanie got back together with Andy, 403 00:18:36,782 --> 00:18:40,919 but she says it was more out of fear than love. 404 00:18:40,986 --> 00:18:43,555 If I didn't go back with Andy, he 405 00:18:43,622 --> 00:18:45,657 would have killed Mike or definitely myself 406 00:18:45,724 --> 00:18:46,925 if I didn't go back with him. 407 00:18:46,992 --> 00:18:49,361 He never would have let me live. 408 00:18:49,428 --> 00:18:53,031 Once Stephanie was back, she says the cycle of abuse 409 00:18:53,098 --> 00:18:54,066 {\an1}resumed. 410 00:18:54,132 --> 00:18:58,303 Just three days before his death, Andy texted her. 411 00:18:58,370 --> 00:19:02,708 He said, I'm going to effing kill you. 412 00:19:02,774 --> 00:19:05,444 Do you remember him texting that to you? 413 00:19:05,511 --> 00:19:09,948 I remember him texting that, saying that, all the time. 414 00:19:10,015 --> 00:19:16,688 Then, on the night of May 7, 2014, everything exploded. 415 00:19:16,755 --> 00:19:19,291 Angelina was upstairs in bed. 416 00:19:19,358 --> 00:19:22,728 Stephanie says she was in the kitchen preparing dinner 417 00:19:22,794 --> 00:19:25,631 when Andy started an argument about what 418 00:19:25,697 --> 00:19:29,201 she'd been doing that week while he was away at work. 419 00:19:29,268 --> 00:19:32,638 And that's what started the questions. 420 00:19:32,704 --> 00:19:36,208 What have I been doing all week, things like that. 421 00:19:36,275 --> 00:19:38,143 Just escalated. 422 00:19:38,210 --> 00:19:40,979 She says Andy wanted to have sex. 423 00:19:41,046 --> 00:19:43,081 Stephanie didn't. 424 00:19:43,148 --> 00:19:48,620 He was punching me in the head, trying to pin me down, 425 00:19:48,687 --> 00:19:51,957 trying to remove my pants. 426 00:19:52,024 --> 00:19:54,426 Then, she says, he pulled out a gun 427 00:19:54,493 --> 00:19:57,963 and tried to pin her against the couch. 428 00:19:58,030 --> 00:20:00,966 I was in fear of my life. 429 00:20:01,033 --> 00:20:04,836 I was trying to get away. 430 00:20:04,903 --> 00:20:08,774 Stephanie says she grabbed this knife to scare him. 431 00:20:08,840 --> 00:20:14,713 What unfolded would soon end one life and destroy another. 432 00:20:14,780 --> 00:20:15,914 It just was so quick. 433 00:20:15,981 --> 00:20:18,317 He just charged at me, went to headbutt me, 434 00:20:18,383 --> 00:20:20,252 as he always would do. 435 00:20:20,319 --> 00:20:21,520 How were you holding the knife? 436 00:20:21,587 --> 00:20:22,020 {\an1}Like this. 437 00:20:22,087 --> 00:20:23,388 {\an1}Show me. 438 00:20:23,455 --> 00:20:26,458 So you have it up, and he's coming at you, right? 439 00:20:26,525 --> 00:20:27,292 {\an1}Yeah. 440 00:20:27,359 --> 00:20:28,327 And what happens? 441 00:20:28,393 --> 00:20:30,696 That's when I'm like, stay away from me. 442 00:20:30,762 --> 00:20:33,231 Stay away from me, as he's screaming, I'm going to [BLEEP] 443 00:20:33,298 --> 00:20:34,166 {\an1}kill you. 444 00:20:34,232 --> 00:20:37,836 He's on the other side, and he goes to grab my hand. 445 00:20:37,903 --> 00:20:41,239 And it must've nicked his neck, the 1-and-1/2- 446 00:20:41,306 --> 00:20:43,041 or 2-and-1/2-inch, whatever it was. 447 00:20:43,108 --> 00:20:48,013 You held the knife that cut your fiance's artery, 448 00:20:48,080 --> 00:20:50,082 and he bled to death. 449 00:20:50,148 --> 00:20:52,551 And people would think, well, you murdered him. 450 00:20:52,618 --> 00:20:55,187 My actions led to him dying. 451 00:20:55,253 --> 00:20:56,355 {\an1}They did. 452 00:20:56,421 --> 00:21:00,158 But I didn't make a decision to take his life. 453 00:21:00,225 --> 00:21:02,027 I did not want that to happen. 454 00:21:02,094 --> 00:21:05,197 But if it wasn't him, that would have been me in the ground. 455 00:21:05,263 --> 00:21:08,200 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 456 00:21:09,201 --> 00:21:11,269 Hear more from Angelina and learn more 457 00:21:11,336 --> 00:21:13,405 about the case at 48hours.com. 458 00:21:23,348 --> 00:21:26,351 [BROODING MUSIC] 459 00:21:27,853 --> 00:21:31,156 As Stephanie Fernandes' trial finally approached, 460 00:21:31,223 --> 00:21:34,259 her legal team prepared her defense. 461 00:21:34,326 --> 00:21:36,828 Domestic violence or intimate-partner violence 462 00:21:36,895 --> 00:21:38,864 was central to the entire case. 463 00:21:38,930 --> 00:21:42,401 Maura Tansley was one of Fernandes' attorneys. 464 00:21:42,467 --> 00:21:45,370 It set up the nature of the relationship between these two 465 00:21:45,437 --> 00:21:47,539 people and I think raised questions 466 00:21:47,606 --> 00:21:50,142 about what happened that night that Mr. Wagner died. 467 00:21:50,208 --> 00:21:51,710 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 468 00:21:51,777 --> 00:21:55,947 The trial had been delayed by procedural arguments, and then 469 00:21:56,014 --> 00:21:57,649 the COVID pandemic. 470 00:21:57,716 --> 00:22:00,786 Stephanie had spent those years in home custody, 471 00:22:00,852 --> 00:22:02,854 wearing an ankle bracelet. 472 00:22:02,921 --> 00:22:08,093 In June of 2022, eight years after Andrew Wagner was killed, 473 00:22:08,160 --> 00:22:12,364 the murder trial of Stephanie Fernandes finally began. 474 00:22:12,431 --> 00:22:14,166 {\an1}All rise. 475 00:22:14,232 --> 00:22:16,268 Andrew Wagner's family was there-- 476 00:22:16,334 --> 00:22:19,171 his mother, Melissa, his father, Tom, 477 00:22:19,237 --> 00:22:22,240 and his sister, Jillian Cristaldi. 478 00:22:22,307 --> 00:22:24,943 They declined our request for an interview. 479 00:22:25,010 --> 00:22:27,279 Surrounded by supporters, they were 480 00:22:27,345 --> 00:22:29,448 hoping that by the end of this trial, 481 00:22:29,514 --> 00:22:32,851 Fernandes would be behind bars. 482 00:22:32,918 --> 00:22:36,421 In his opening statement, prosecutor Terry McLaughlin 483 00:22:36,488 --> 00:22:39,091 said that Stephanie Fernandes stabbed 484 00:22:39,157 --> 00:22:43,261 her fiance, Andrew Wagner, in the neck, cutting an artery 485 00:22:43,328 --> 00:22:44,863 and killing him. 486 00:22:44,930 --> 00:22:47,165 McLaughlin says that Stephanie told 487 00:22:47,232 --> 00:22:51,069 different stories about what exactly happened that night. 488 00:22:51,136 --> 00:22:55,941 She said, quote, "He was waving a gun around, so I stabbed him. 489 00:22:56,007 --> 00:22:58,076 And to a neighbor, she said, quote, 490 00:22:58,143 --> 00:23:01,113 "He hit me, so I hit him." 491 00:23:01,179 --> 00:23:04,983 And McLaughlin said Stephanie had fits of rage 492 00:23:05,050 --> 00:23:07,519 and that she was the aggressor. 493 00:23:07,586 --> 00:23:09,621 [SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC] 494 00:23:09,688 --> 00:23:12,858 Lead defense attorney Peter Ettenberg told jurors 495 00:23:12,924 --> 00:23:17,863 that Andrew Wagner was, quote, "189 pounds of fury 496 00:23:17,929 --> 00:23:21,967 and frustration who violently came at Stephanie and said, 497 00:23:22,033 --> 00:23:24,136 quote, "I'm going to kill you." 498 00:23:24,202 --> 00:23:27,539 Ettenberg says Stephanie thought she would be killed, 499 00:23:27,606 --> 00:23:30,475 so she acted to protect herself. 500 00:23:30,542 --> 00:23:32,878 We believe that when he grabbed her hands 501 00:23:32,944 --> 00:23:35,714 and went to go and headbutt her, he pulled, 502 00:23:35,781 --> 00:23:38,049 and that pulled the knife into his neck. 503 00:23:38,116 --> 00:23:40,418 But prosecutors presented witnesses 504 00:23:40,485 --> 00:23:43,789 who testified Stephanie has a long history 505 00:23:43,855 --> 00:23:45,857 of violent outbursts. 506 00:23:45,924 --> 00:23:49,528 Assistant DA Julieanne Karcasinas. 507 00:23:49,594 --> 00:23:53,331 How many times did you see Ms. Fernandes strike Mr. Wagner? 508 00:23:53,398 --> 00:23:54,800 Multiple times, ma'am. 509 00:23:54,866 --> 00:23:57,369 This is Daniel DiStefano. 510 00:23:57,435 --> 00:24:01,273 He was a friend of Wagner's and a former police officer. 511 00:24:01,339 --> 00:24:05,911 He says he saw Fernandes hit Andy at a wedding reception 512 00:24:05,977 --> 00:24:07,445 back in 2010. 513 00:24:07,512 --> 00:24:08,814 And can you please tell the court 514 00:24:08,880 --> 00:24:11,917 where Ms. Fernandes hit Mr. Wagner? 515 00:24:11,983 --> 00:24:16,288 She very precisely struck him in the face and the head 516 00:24:16,354 --> 00:24:17,889 with a closed fist. 517 00:24:17,956 --> 00:24:21,960 Do you admit that at times, you have hit men in your life 518 00:24:22,027 --> 00:24:23,061 with a closed fist? 519 00:24:23,128 --> 00:24:23,862 {\an1}Hit? 520 00:24:23,929 --> 00:24:24,596 {\an1}Hit them. 521 00:24:24,663 --> 00:24:27,399 No, I hit-- well, yeah, I hit Andy once. 522 00:24:27,465 --> 00:24:28,867 He punched me in the head. 523 00:24:28,934 --> 00:24:30,101 I punched him back. 524 00:24:30,168 --> 00:24:31,736 [TENSE MUSIC] 525 00:24:31,803 --> 00:24:36,107 And Stephanie's former fiance, Mike Laramee, testified. 526 00:24:36,174 --> 00:24:39,411 He told the court that Stephanie pulled a knife on him 527 00:24:39,477 --> 00:24:40,879 at his home. 528 00:24:40,946 --> 00:24:44,149 This is audio of Laramee's testimony. 529 00:24:44,216 --> 00:24:47,152 All of a sudden, I heard a ching of a knife coming out 530 00:24:47,219 --> 00:24:48,086 of the butcher block. 531 00:24:48,153 --> 00:24:51,723 And I came inside, and I hit it out of her hand. 532 00:24:51,790 --> 00:24:54,359 And there was another knife incident. 533 00:24:54,426 --> 00:24:56,862 She went to my dining room table, 534 00:24:56,928 --> 00:24:58,296 and she was going to carve it up. 535 00:24:58,363 --> 00:25:00,732 And I was afraid for my life. 536 00:25:00,799 --> 00:25:03,001 I grabbed the chair, and I wasn't 537 00:25:03,068 --> 00:25:04,603 going to let her come near me with it. 538 00:25:04,669 --> 00:25:09,007 And she stabbed the chair with it three or four times. 539 00:25:09,074 --> 00:25:11,943 After this happened, what, if anything, did you do? 540 00:25:12,010 --> 00:25:14,646 I grabbed all the knives, and I got rid of them. 541 00:25:14,713 --> 00:25:18,884 The things that Mike Laramee said are not true. 542 00:25:18,950 --> 00:25:20,852 You never came after Michael Laramee 543 00:25:20,919 --> 00:25:22,220 with a knife in your hand? 544 00:25:22,287 --> 00:25:23,054 I never did. 545 00:25:23,121 --> 00:25:25,423 You never damaged his furniture with a knife? 546 00:25:25,490 --> 00:25:26,625 No, I did not. 547 00:25:26,691 --> 00:25:28,760 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 548 00:25:28,827 --> 00:25:33,999 As Stephanie's defense began, they called an unusual witness. 549 00:25:34,065 --> 00:25:35,600 My name is William Pero. 550 00:25:35,667 --> 00:25:37,068 I'm a Worcester police sergeant. 551 00:25:37,135 --> 00:25:41,072 The detective who interviewed her the night Andrew died. 552 00:25:41,139 --> 00:25:44,075 The defense showed the jury that police video, 553 00:25:44,142 --> 00:25:48,313 a video that prosecutors had decided not to show. 554 00:25:48,380 --> 00:25:51,016 In that interview, Detective Perot 555 00:25:51,082 --> 00:25:53,318 points out Stephanie's bruises. 556 00:25:53,385 --> 00:25:56,154 I look at the bruises on you, OK? 557 00:25:56,221 --> 00:25:58,623 Please tell me he's OK. 558 00:25:58,690 --> 00:26:01,226 And they're not old bruises. 559 00:26:01,293 --> 00:26:03,061 They're fresh. 560 00:26:03,128 --> 00:26:04,629 The fact that there are fresh bruises 561 00:26:04,696 --> 00:26:06,331 on her, that's consistent with how 562 00:26:06,398 --> 00:26:09,200 she described Andrew Wagner grabbing her and coming 563 00:26:09,267 --> 00:26:10,168 towards her. 564 00:26:10,235 --> 00:26:12,938 I don't know what else would be better to lay the foundation 565 00:26:13,004 --> 00:26:14,906 that she was acting in self-defense. 566 00:26:14,973 --> 00:26:18,610 You have bruises on your face, on your arm, on your body. 567 00:26:18,677 --> 00:26:19,778 I can see them, Steph. 568 00:26:19,844 --> 00:26:23,448 Prosecutors show Pero photos taken that night. 569 00:26:23,515 --> 00:26:26,184 He says he sees a bruise on her arm 570 00:26:26,251 --> 00:26:29,087 but not on Stephanie's face. 571 00:26:29,154 --> 00:26:31,289 And do you see any injuries to the defendant's face 572 00:26:31,356 --> 00:26:32,090 in this photograph? 573 00:26:32,157 --> 00:26:33,758 Objection, Judge. 574 00:26:33,825 --> 00:26:35,260 {\an1}Overruled. 575 00:26:35,327 --> 00:26:36,161 {\an1}I do not. 576 00:26:36,227 --> 00:26:38,630 And do you see any injuries to the face of the defendant 577 00:26:38,697 --> 00:26:39,998 in this photograph? 578 00:26:40,065 --> 00:26:40,932 {\an1}I do not. 579 00:26:40,999 --> 00:26:44,135 The prosecutor suggests that during that interview, 580 00:26:44,202 --> 00:26:46,438 he may have been playing Stephanie. 581 00:26:46,504 --> 00:26:47,839 Some of your questions or comments 582 00:26:47,906 --> 00:26:49,507 are designed to get the person you're 583 00:26:49,574 --> 00:26:52,610 interviewing to drop their guard and/or talk to you, correct? 584 00:26:52,677 --> 00:26:55,647 To show empathy and to relate to me? 585 00:26:55,714 --> 00:26:57,315 You want them to start talking, correct? 586 00:26:57,382 --> 00:26:58,283 {\an1}I do. 587 00:26:58,350 --> 00:26:59,484 [BROODING MUSIC] 588 00:26:59,551 --> 00:27:03,121 Two people thought that night back in 2014, 589 00:27:03,188 --> 00:27:05,557 and only one survived. 590 00:27:05,623 --> 00:27:09,194 The defense decided they had no choice but to put 591 00:27:09,260 --> 00:27:10,929 Stephanie on the stand. 592 00:27:10,996 --> 00:27:13,999 --the truth, whole truth, and nothing but the truth, 593 00:27:14,065 --> 00:27:15,000 so help me God. 594 00:27:15,066 --> 00:27:17,769 Her defense attorneys walked her through the hours 595 00:27:17,836 --> 00:27:20,171 leading up to Andy's death. 596 00:27:20,238 --> 00:27:22,674 We tried being intimate. 597 00:27:22,741 --> 00:27:23,608 That morning? 598 00:27:23,675 --> 00:27:24,142 {\an1}Yes. 599 00:27:24,209 --> 00:27:24,776 {\an1}OK. 600 00:27:24,843 --> 00:27:25,977 And did it happen? 601 00:27:26,044 --> 00:27:26,878 {\an1}No. 602 00:27:26,945 --> 00:27:31,016 She says Andy became angry when she made fun of him. 603 00:27:31,082 --> 00:27:33,018 I made the comment as I got out of the bed, 604 00:27:33,084 --> 00:27:38,056 walking into my bathroom, and he came in there 605 00:27:38,123 --> 00:27:42,093 and smacked me a few times. 606 00:27:42,160 --> 00:27:45,663 Later that evening, with Angelina upstairs in bed, 607 00:27:45,730 --> 00:27:50,869 Stephanie says Andy, with a gun in hand, attacked her. 608 00:27:50,935 --> 00:27:55,106 Hit me in the head with the gun, choked me, 609 00:27:55,173 --> 00:28:00,578 and he wanted [BLEEP] sex. 610 00:28:00,645 --> 00:28:02,547 Somehow, we were on the floor. 611 00:28:02,614 --> 00:28:07,519 And I was crying, and I ended up getting away. 612 00:28:07,585 --> 00:28:13,058 And I ran screaming and away, like, don't come near me. 613 00:28:13,124 --> 00:28:14,626 Don't come near me. 614 00:28:14,692 --> 00:28:19,030 And he was screaming, I'm going to kill you, you [BLEEP].. 615 00:28:19,097 --> 00:28:21,966 When I ran and I kept on saying, don't come near me, 616 00:28:22,033 --> 00:28:24,803 don't come near me, I-- 617 00:28:24,869 --> 00:28:26,471 Did he listen to you when you said that, 618 00:28:26,538 --> 00:28:28,840 or did he keep coming near you? 619 00:28:28,907 --> 00:28:32,877 It happened so quick where I ran to the kitchen, 620 00:28:32,944 --> 00:28:37,982 I picked up a knife and held it and said, screaming, 621 00:28:38,049 --> 00:28:40,218 anyways, the whole time, don't come near me. 622 00:28:40,285 --> 00:28:41,152 Don't come near me. 623 00:28:41,219 --> 00:28:46,758 And he ran to me and said, give me the knife, you [BLEEP],, 624 00:28:46,825 --> 00:28:51,729 and put his hand on my throat and grabbed my hand 625 00:28:51,796 --> 00:28:54,833 and went to headbutt me. 626 00:28:54,899 --> 00:29:01,739 And he went, Steph, I think I got stabbed. 627 00:29:01,806 --> 00:29:03,041 I just stood there. 628 00:29:03,108 --> 00:29:04,075 I was in shock. 629 00:29:06,911 --> 00:29:08,546 I think we both were in shock. 630 00:29:20,191 --> 00:29:23,661 [SOFT DRAMATIC MUSIC] 631 00:29:27,132 --> 00:29:29,801 After Stephanie Fernandes took the stand 632 00:29:29,868 --> 00:29:31,936 and told her version of events-- 633 00:29:32,003 --> 00:29:33,505 Good afternoon, Ms. Fernandes. 634 00:29:33,571 --> 00:29:34,739 Good afternoon. 635 00:29:34,806 --> 00:29:38,176 --the prosecutors got their turn to challenge her, 636 00:29:38,243 --> 00:29:41,379 as Assistant DA Julieanne Karcasinas 637 00:29:41,446 --> 00:29:44,849 zeroed in on Stephanie's history with men. 638 00:29:44,916 --> 00:29:46,818 You claim that you were a loyal woman. 639 00:29:46,885 --> 00:29:48,720 Isn't that correct? 640 00:29:48,786 --> 00:29:49,487 {\an1}Correct. 641 00:29:49,554 --> 00:29:53,958 Now, were you loyal to Andy when you cheated on him with Mike? 642 00:29:54,025 --> 00:29:55,126 {\an1}Yes or no? 643 00:29:55,193 --> 00:29:56,728 I didn't cheat on him. 644 00:29:56,794 --> 00:29:58,830 Mike was Mike Laramee. 645 00:29:58,897 --> 00:30:03,468 Now, July 26, 2013, you were in Niagara Falls. 646 00:30:03,535 --> 00:30:04,335 Isn't that correct? 647 00:30:07,138 --> 00:30:08,106 {\an1}Correct. 648 00:30:08,173 --> 00:30:11,409 And you accept a $44,000 engagement 649 00:30:11,476 --> 00:30:14,245 rate from Mr. Laramee while on that trip. isn't that correct? 650 00:30:14,312 --> 00:30:15,313 That is correct. 651 00:30:15,380 --> 00:30:17,248 I put it on my finger, yes. 652 00:30:17,315 --> 00:30:20,218 Do you get engaged to all your guy friends? 653 00:30:20,285 --> 00:30:21,352 {\an1}No. 654 00:30:21,419 --> 00:30:24,022 [BROODING MUSIC] 655 00:30:24,522 --> 00:30:26,691 On Stephanie's second day on the stand-- 656 00:30:26,758 --> 00:30:28,326 You may proceed. 657 00:30:28,393 --> 00:30:30,695 --the prosecutor tried to pick apart 658 00:30:30,762 --> 00:30:34,432 her account of the day Andy died. 659 00:30:34,499 --> 00:30:38,736 Ms. Fernandes, how many times did Andy choke you that day, 660 00:30:38,803 --> 00:30:41,206 on May 7, 2014? 661 00:30:41,272 --> 00:30:42,674 {\an1}That day? 662 00:30:42,740 --> 00:30:43,241 {\an1}Yes. 663 00:30:46,244 --> 00:30:49,681 In the morning and at the nighttime of the event. 664 00:30:49,747 --> 00:30:55,653 And then how long did he choke you for that morning? 665 00:30:55,720 --> 00:30:56,688 I'm not sure. 666 00:30:56,754 --> 00:30:57,555 I didn't count. 667 00:30:57,622 --> 00:30:58,523 I'm not sure. 668 00:30:58,590 --> 00:30:59,691 It was quick. 669 00:30:59,757 --> 00:31:01,926 And you had no marks on your neck? 670 00:31:01,993 --> 00:31:03,628 I don't remember. 671 00:31:03,695 --> 00:31:05,930 Stephanie had described a struggle 672 00:31:05,997 --> 00:31:08,399 around the couch in the house that night, 673 00:31:08,466 --> 00:31:11,869 but the assistant DA says the crime scene pictures 674 00:31:11,936 --> 00:31:14,572 don't show any sign of that. 675 00:31:14,639 --> 00:31:17,842 The coffee table is in front of the couch on-- 676 00:31:17,909 --> 00:31:18,376 {\an1}Yes. 677 00:31:18,443 --> 00:31:19,210 --at our house, yes. 678 00:31:19,277 --> 00:31:19,944 {\an1}Yes. 679 00:31:20,011 --> 00:31:22,280 And it's not pushed out of the way, correct? 680 00:31:22,347 --> 00:31:26,985 I can't tell with that couch and how close the couch coffee 681 00:31:27,051 --> 00:31:30,989 table is, but it does not look crooked. 682 00:31:31,055 --> 00:31:31,556 {\an1}Correct. 683 00:31:31,623 --> 00:31:34,559 It's not pushed to the side or anything like that. 684 00:31:34,626 --> 00:31:36,327 How was he choking you on the couch? 685 00:31:41,266 --> 00:31:44,002 It all happened so quick. 686 00:31:44,068 --> 00:31:46,504 And Karcasinas tries to cast doubt 687 00:31:46,571 --> 00:31:51,175 on Fernandes' recollection of the night. 688 00:31:51,242 --> 00:31:54,545 So you do not have a memory of certain parts of that evening. 689 00:31:54,612 --> 00:31:57,148 Isn't that correct? 690 00:31:57,215 --> 00:32:02,320 I would say that's correct, the time and stuff like that. 691 00:32:02,387 --> 00:32:04,756 And, finally, Karcasinas questions 692 00:32:04,822 --> 00:32:07,358 Stephanie's credibility, especially 693 00:32:07,425 --> 00:32:09,727 her claims that she had lived her life 694 00:32:09,794 --> 00:32:12,463 in fear of Andy Wagner. 695 00:32:12,530 --> 00:32:14,265 Were you afraid of Andy Wagner when 696 00:32:14,332 --> 00:32:17,201 you told him he was stupid? 697 00:32:17,268 --> 00:32:18,169 {\an1}Yes. 698 00:32:18,236 --> 00:32:21,439 Were you in fear of Mr. Wagner when you said to him, 699 00:32:21,506 --> 00:32:23,875 I hope a car falls on you? 700 00:32:23,941 --> 00:32:24,776 {\an1}No. 701 00:32:24,842 --> 00:32:27,879 And were you in fear of Mr. Wagner when you sent him 702 00:32:27,945 --> 00:32:30,748 a photograph of yourself performing 703 00:32:30,815 --> 00:32:32,717 [BLEEP] sex on Michael Laramee? 704 00:32:32,784 --> 00:32:34,686 Yes or no, ma'am. 705 00:32:34,752 --> 00:32:36,321 {\an1}No. 706 00:32:36,387 --> 00:32:37,889 No further questions, Your Honor. 707 00:32:37,955 --> 00:32:38,489 {\an1}Thank you. 708 00:32:38,556 --> 00:32:39,590 {\an1}All right. 709 00:32:39,657 --> 00:32:42,827 Both sides called in domestic violence experts 710 00:32:42,894 --> 00:32:44,962 who interviewed Stephanie. 711 00:32:45,029 --> 00:32:47,231 Good morning, members of the jury. 712 00:32:47,298 --> 00:32:49,667 Carol Ball testified for the defense, 713 00:32:49,734 --> 00:32:53,171 saying that Andrew Wagner's escalating verbal threats 714 00:32:53,237 --> 00:32:55,940 and physical violence left Stephanie 715 00:32:56,007 --> 00:32:59,277 with post-traumatic stress disorder. 716 00:32:59,344 --> 00:33:02,480 My opinion is that she experiences 717 00:33:02,547 --> 00:33:05,383 the symptoms of battered-woman syndrome, also known 718 00:33:05,450 --> 00:33:07,819 as intimate-partner violence. 719 00:33:07,885 --> 00:33:11,022 That cycle repeats itself over and over. 720 00:33:11,089 --> 00:33:15,293 And prosecutors called up their expert, David Adams, 721 00:33:15,360 --> 00:33:18,529 who concluded that Andrew, not Stephanie, 722 00:33:18,596 --> 00:33:20,898 was the victim of abuse. 723 00:33:20,965 --> 00:33:25,703 Well, I actually didn't see any evidence 724 00:33:25,770 --> 00:33:27,138 that she was fearful of him. 725 00:33:27,205 --> 00:33:29,807 I think this case raises some interesting questions 726 00:33:29,874 --> 00:33:31,843 about what it means to be a victim. 727 00:33:31,909 --> 00:33:34,045 Stephanie is not a sympathetic victim, right? 728 00:33:34,112 --> 00:33:37,482 She is a flawed person, and yet she is still a victim 729 00:33:37,548 --> 00:33:39,884 and still has a right to act in self-defense. 730 00:33:39,951 --> 00:33:42,987 It's much easier for us to understand someone 731 00:33:43,054 --> 00:33:46,224 as a victim of domestic violence where they have a perfect past, 732 00:33:46,290 --> 00:33:49,694 where there's no other anger issues or anything else. 733 00:33:49,761 --> 00:33:51,996 But that's not what we have. 734 00:33:52,063 --> 00:33:55,900 The defense believes that this case will ultimately come down 735 00:33:55,967 --> 00:33:59,103 to whether jurors believe Stephanie intentionally 736 00:33:59,170 --> 00:34:01,105 murdered Andrew Wagner. 737 00:34:01,172 --> 00:34:05,743 A medical examiner who testified couldn't say for sure. 738 00:34:05,810 --> 00:34:09,714 He couldn't rule out the fact that this was an accident. 739 00:34:09,781 --> 00:34:12,917 And after 10 days of witnesses, the defense 740 00:34:12,984 --> 00:34:16,387 presented their closing arguments. 741 00:34:16,454 --> 00:34:19,357 She picked up a knife and said, Andy, stay away. 742 00:34:19,424 --> 00:34:21,225 {\an1}Stay away. 743 00:34:21,292 --> 00:34:23,161 {\an1}He didn't. 744 00:34:23,227 --> 00:34:26,998 This time, for whatever reason, it was too much. 745 00:34:27,064 --> 00:34:29,467 And the prosecution hasn't proved 746 00:34:29,534 --> 00:34:33,104 that this wasn't an accident, and they have not proved 747 00:34:33,171 --> 00:34:35,940 that it wasn't in self-defense. 748 00:34:36,007 --> 00:34:38,776 What the prosecution hasn't proved 749 00:34:38,843 --> 00:34:43,548 is that Stephanie Fernandes is a murderer. 750 00:34:43,614 --> 00:34:47,218 Prosecutor Terry McLaughlin disagreed. 751 00:34:47,285 --> 00:34:48,486 She's the aggressor. 752 00:34:48,553 --> 00:34:49,954 She's the one with the temper. 753 00:34:50,021 --> 00:34:51,722 She's the one with the mouth. 754 00:34:51,789 --> 00:34:53,558 Ladies and gentlemen, I would suggest to you 755 00:34:53,624 --> 00:34:56,127 that this is first-degree murder. 756 00:34:56,194 --> 00:34:57,995 Premeditated and planned. 757 00:34:58,062 --> 00:35:03,201 She got him from the side, or she got up from the back 758 00:35:03,267 --> 00:35:05,470 from behind. 759 00:35:05,536 --> 00:35:09,507 She grabs a knife, and she stabs him when he's not looking 760 00:35:09,574 --> 00:35:11,242 or he's not ready for it. 761 00:35:11,309 --> 00:35:15,179 With that argument, the case would go to the jurors. 762 00:35:15,246 --> 00:35:18,649 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 763 00:35:18,716 --> 00:35:21,853 What do you think of Stephanie's decision to take the stand? 764 00:35:21,919 --> 00:35:25,523 Chat now with the 48 Hours team on Facebook and Twitter. 765 00:35:33,664 --> 00:35:36,634 [SOFT ROUSING MUSIC] 766 00:35:40,104 --> 00:35:42,206 If convicted of first-degree murders, 767 00:35:42,273 --> 00:35:46,444 Stephanie Fernandes could face life in prison. 768 00:35:46,511 --> 00:35:49,914 But the question is, did you murder him? 769 00:35:49,981 --> 00:35:52,316 {\an1}No. 770 00:35:52,383 --> 00:35:57,522 It makes me nauseous just to even think of that. 771 00:35:57,588 --> 00:35:59,557 {\an1}All rise. 772 00:35:59,624 --> 00:36:02,426 After about nine hours of deliberation, 773 00:36:02,493 --> 00:36:07,665 jurors reached their verdict, guilty of a lesser charge-- 774 00:36:07,732 --> 00:36:11,068 voluntary manslaughter-- which carries the possibility 775 00:36:11,135 --> 00:36:14,205 of up to 20 years in prison. 776 00:36:14,272 --> 00:36:18,876 Shane Bernard and Gayla Bieksha sat on the jury. 777 00:36:18,943 --> 00:36:23,047 I think that both of them are equally controlling and abusive 778 00:36:23,114 --> 00:36:25,149 to each other. 779 00:36:25,216 --> 00:36:25,983 {\an1}I agree. 780 00:36:26,050 --> 00:36:31,589 I think they were both in this vicious cycle that just-- 781 00:36:31,656 --> 00:36:32,990 they couldn't stop themselves. 782 00:36:33,057 --> 00:36:35,560 He was a more physical abuser, where she 783 00:36:35,626 --> 00:36:38,262 was more psychological abuse. 784 00:36:38,329 --> 00:36:42,500 I do believe she didn't want to kill him, but she did. 785 00:36:42,567 --> 00:36:45,836 As for Fernandes' claims of self-defense, 786 00:36:45,903 --> 00:36:49,941 juror Gayla Bieksha believes Wagner made contact 787 00:36:50,007 --> 00:36:52,343 with the knife when, Stephanie says, 788 00:36:52,410 --> 00:36:54,912 he attempted to headbutt her. 789 00:36:54,979 --> 00:36:57,615 The. headbutt was a huge piece for us. 790 00:36:57,682 --> 00:36:58,282 {\an1}Right. 791 00:36:58,349 --> 00:37:00,918 We went off the medical examiner's report 792 00:37:00,985 --> 00:37:05,756 saying that the knife went in from the front. 793 00:37:05,823 --> 00:37:08,793 The angle was in from the front and downward 794 00:37:08,859 --> 00:37:10,795 And that she had actually had a stabbing motion. 795 00:37:10,861 --> 00:37:16,500 So that in a sense was what ruled out self-defense. 796 00:37:16,567 --> 00:37:20,237 Before sentencing, Andrew Wagner's family finally 797 00:37:20,304 --> 00:37:23,374 got to speak directly to the woman they believe 798 00:37:23,441 --> 00:37:26,377 murdered their son and brother. 799 00:37:26,444 --> 00:37:29,347 My name is Jillian Cristaldi. 800 00:37:29,413 --> 00:37:31,749 I'm the sister of Andrew. 801 00:37:31,816 --> 00:37:37,188 My parents and I have waited to speak, to have a voice, 802 00:37:37,254 --> 00:37:41,993 to give my brother a voice, and to get him the Justice 803 00:37:42,059 --> 00:37:48,599 that he deserves, to clear his name from the blatant lies that 804 00:37:48,666 --> 00:37:52,703 have been spewed from Stephanie Fernandes and her attorneys' 805 00:37:52,770 --> 00:37:55,906 mouths for over eight years. 806 00:37:55,973 --> 00:37:58,042 When you look at Stephanie Fernandes, 807 00:37:58,109 --> 00:38:01,012 you are looking at a face of evil, 808 00:38:01,078 --> 00:38:05,249 of someone who gives no consideration for her actions, 809 00:38:05,316 --> 00:38:10,454 who is incapable of love, and has shown no remorse or guilt 810 00:38:10,521 --> 00:38:12,390 for killing my brother. 811 00:38:12,456 --> 00:38:15,059 Andrew's mother, Melissa Wagner. 812 00:38:15,126 --> 00:38:18,095 She took away Andrew's joy and love of life. 813 00:38:18,162 --> 00:38:21,732 She took away all of Andrew's family and friends. 814 00:38:21,799 --> 00:38:25,503 She took away Andrew's dreams of a family of his own. 815 00:38:25,569 --> 00:38:28,839 She took away all of Andrew's money. 816 00:38:28,906 --> 00:38:32,009 She took away Andrew's dignity and self-respect. 817 00:38:32,076 --> 00:38:35,913 And when there was nothing, nothing, nothing left 818 00:38:35,980 --> 00:38:41,652 for her to take, she took away Andrew's life. 819 00:38:41,719 --> 00:38:44,789 I beg you, Judge Reardon, and I beg you, I beg you, 820 00:38:44,855 --> 00:38:48,959 I beg you, take away the one thing that matters most to her. 821 00:38:49,026 --> 00:38:52,997 Take away her freedom for as long as possible, please. 822 00:38:53,064 --> 00:38:55,332 Please, please. 823 00:38:55,399 --> 00:38:58,269 {\an1}Thank you. 824 00:38:58,335 --> 00:39:02,306 I realized that number sentence I impose in this case 825 00:39:02,373 --> 00:39:03,941 can do perfect justice. 826 00:39:04,008 --> 00:39:06,577 Judge James Reardon reminds everyone 827 00:39:06,644 --> 00:39:10,748 that Stephanie Fernandes was found guilty not of murder 828 00:39:10,815 --> 00:39:13,484 but of voluntary manslaughter. 829 00:39:13,551 --> 00:39:17,521 Ms. Fernandes is being sentenced for that conviction, 830 00:39:17,588 --> 00:39:19,957 not for her relationship with Andrew 831 00:39:20,024 --> 00:39:24,462 Wagner or any other individuals or for her past life. 832 00:39:24,528 --> 00:39:26,397 I sent Ms. Stephanie Fernandes to a term 833 00:39:26,464 --> 00:39:29,667 of not more than 10 years and not the less than eight years 834 00:39:29,734 --> 00:39:30,968 in state prison. 835 00:39:31,035 --> 00:39:33,971 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 836 00:39:35,906 --> 00:39:39,677 After all this, according to what you have said, 837 00:39:39,744 --> 00:39:44,014 Andrew struck you, choked you, threatened you with a pistol. 838 00:39:44,081 --> 00:39:46,150 Do you still have some sort of emotion 839 00:39:46,217 --> 00:39:49,253 for this man, some sort of love for this man? 840 00:39:49,320 --> 00:39:51,889 {\an1}I do. 841 00:39:51,956 --> 00:39:53,491 I know it bothers a lot of people. 842 00:39:56,527 --> 00:39:58,629 I will always love him. 843 00:39:58,696 --> 00:40:03,434 Stephanie says the night Andy died could have been avoided. 844 00:40:03,501 --> 00:40:05,002 Maybe the night wouldn't have happened 845 00:40:05,069 --> 00:40:07,905 if I got him help, if I got us counseling, 846 00:40:07,972 --> 00:40:12,810 if I got him therapy. 847 00:40:12,877 --> 00:40:15,045 Angelina, why did this happen? 848 00:40:15,112 --> 00:40:20,951 Because he was abusive, and my mom was his victim. 849 00:40:21,018 --> 00:40:24,021 But his family blames your mother for that. 850 00:40:24,088 --> 00:40:26,423 They're going to believe what they want to believe. 851 00:40:26,490 --> 00:40:29,193 I can't imagine the pain they're going through. 852 00:40:29,260 --> 00:40:32,830 I don't think they want to see their deceased son that way, 853 00:40:32,897 --> 00:40:36,333 so they're trying to blame my mom for all of the wrong he 854 00:40:36,400 --> 00:40:39,703 did towards her. 855 00:40:39,770 --> 00:40:43,974 Angelina is now studying to become a forensic psychologist, 856 00:40:44,041 --> 00:40:46,744 and she hopes to work with victims in court 857 00:40:46,811 --> 00:40:48,479 and with children. 858 00:40:48,546 --> 00:40:52,216 Angelina says she looks forward to the day she'll be 859 00:40:52,283 --> 00:40:55,252 able to reunite with her mom. 860 00:40:55,319 --> 00:40:57,087 When she's out of jail, she'll be 861 00:40:57,154 --> 00:41:00,524 able to see all of my successes, and she'll 862 00:41:00,591 --> 00:41:06,263 be able to see everything that I've accomplished. 863 00:41:06,330 --> 00:41:07,865 I want to accomplish all of my dreams 864 00:41:07,932 --> 00:41:11,769 so my mom can experience the happiness afterwards. 865 00:41:17,775 --> 00:41:20,778 [DRAMATIC MUSIC] 866 00:41:37,795 --> 00:41:42,533 I'm Erin Moriarty, and this is My Life of Crime. 867 00:41:42,600 --> 00:41:45,102 Listen to My Life of Crime from 48 Hours 868 00:41:45,169 --> 00:41:47,571 wherever you get your podcasts. 869 00:41:47,638 --> 00:41:50,641 Here at the CBS Evening News, we focus on solutions, 870 00:41:50,708 --> 00:41:53,043 finding solutions to help people understand 871 00:41:53,110 --> 00:41:57,348 what are the right choices to make for you and your family. 872 00:41:57,414 --> 00:42:00,451 [AUDIO LOGO]