1 00:00:02,794 --> 00:00:04,212 - NARRATOR: After his family endured a heartbreaking tragedy, 2 00:00:06,548 --> 00:00:10,176 she stepped in to fill the void left behind. 3 00:00:10,218 --> 00:00:11,594 - She agreed to adopt us all 4 00:00:11,636 --> 00:00:13,471 and become basically our new mother. 5 00:00:13,513 --> 00:00:15,306 - NARRATOR: And after years of turmoil, 6 00:00:15,348 --> 00:00:18,351 she finally felt she belonged. 7 00:00:18,393 --> 00:00:21,146 - She had a very noticeable and deep scar 8 00:00:21,187 --> 00:00:23,565 that she carried with her for the rest of her life. 9 00:00:23,606 --> 00:00:27,736 - He didn't see that, he saw the beautiful person on the inside. 10 00:00:29,571 --> 00:00:31,072 - NARRATOR: But a terrible crime 11 00:00:31,114 --> 00:00:34,409 abruptly upends the life they built together. 12 00:00:34,451 --> 00:00:38,913 - The family found him inside of his vehicle. 13 00:00:38,955 --> 00:00:40,331 He was struck, blunt trauma, 14 00:00:40,373 --> 00:00:43,209 right side of the head over the ear. 15 00:00:43,251 --> 00:00:46,129 - It didn't happen in the vehicle. 16 00:00:46,171 --> 00:00:48,131 - NARRATOR: As an investigation launches, 17 00:00:48,173 --> 00:00:51,051 detectives must wade through a sea of lies 18 00:00:51,092 --> 00:00:53,636 and deception to catch a killer. 19 00:00:53,678 --> 00:00:57,307 - She pretends to be an entirely made-up flight attendant. 20 00:00:57,349 --> 00:00:58,725 He seems confused. 21 00:00:58,767 --> 00:01:01,436 And he says he's never even heard of the couple. 22 00:01:01,478 --> 00:01:04,439 - She was using me in a lot of her scams and cons. 23 00:01:06,066 --> 00:01:09,235 - NARRATOR: Detectives quickly find that outward appearances 24 00:01:09,277 --> 00:01:12,405 can't disguise the monster within. 25 00:01:12,447 --> 00:01:14,574 - When a person closes the door at night, 26 00:01:14,616 --> 00:01:17,410 nobody knows what goes on inside. 27 00:01:17,452 --> 00:01:20,580 - They would get into huge fights, 28 00:01:20,622 --> 00:01:25,293 and they were all yelling fights, screaming matches. 29 00:01:25,335 --> 00:01:28,755 - She goes ah, "I don't remember anything about this murder. 30 00:01:28,797 --> 00:01:32,342 I don't remember being a part of the murder". 31 00:01:32,384 --> 00:01:34,427 - If the word evil could be applied to a person, 32 00:01:34,469 --> 00:01:36,137 it would definitely be applied to her. 33 00:01:37,806 --> 00:01:43,728 - * 34 00:01:50,318 --> 00:01:51,945 - NARRATOR: In the late 1980s, 35 00:01:51,986 --> 00:01:55,824 Wilton Manors, Florida had all the charm of a beach town 36 00:01:55,865 --> 00:01:59,744 without the hustle and bustle of visiting tourists. 37 00:01:59,786 --> 00:02:01,955 - Wilton Manors has been a small, quiet area 38 00:02:01,996 --> 00:02:04,374 where people move to to get away from Ft. Lauderdale 39 00:02:04,416 --> 00:02:07,502 and the noise that you would get from the beach area. 40 00:02:07,544 --> 00:02:10,213 - A quiet bedroom community for the most part, 41 00:02:10,255 --> 00:02:11,840 definitely a low crime area. 42 00:02:15,343 --> 00:02:19,723 - NARRATOR: But on March 24, 1987 at 9:22 PM, 43 00:02:19,764 --> 00:02:22,892 an urgent 911 call comes in from the family 44 00:02:22,934 --> 00:02:27,689 of 37-year-old Bernie James, reporting a dire situation 45 00:02:27,731 --> 00:02:30,650 outside the family home. 46 00:02:30,692 --> 00:02:33,570 - It was reported to us that the, uh, victim's wife 47 00:02:33,611 --> 00:02:37,615 found him inside of his vehicle with the, uh, front seat, 48 00:02:37,657 --> 00:02:41,077 the front passenger seat fully reclined. 49 00:02:41,119 --> 00:02:42,746 He was slumped over to the side. 50 00:02:42,787 --> 00:02:45,957 He was unresponsive, and the family, as reported, 51 00:02:45,999 --> 00:02:49,377 removed him from the vehicle and began CPR on him. 52 00:02:50,712 --> 00:02:54,758 EMS responded, along with Wilton Manors P.D. 53 00:02:54,799 --> 00:02:57,510 - When the first unit responds on scene 54 00:02:57,552 --> 00:03:01,890 the person was on the lawn being attended to with CPR. 55 00:03:01,931 --> 00:03:04,726 - EMS determined that the, uh, victim was deceased. 56 00:03:08,396 --> 00:03:10,732 - NARRATOR: Assessing his injuries, it's clear 57 00:03:10,774 --> 00:03:16,488 37-year-old Bernie James didn't die of natural causes. 58 00:03:16,529 --> 00:03:18,365 - The first officer observed that there was some blood 59 00:03:18,406 --> 00:03:20,617 on the right side of the ear. 60 00:03:20,658 --> 00:03:24,287 - There's blood inside the car by the center console. 61 00:03:24,329 --> 00:03:26,706 There's clear trauma to the right side of, uh, 62 00:03:26,748 --> 00:03:28,083 the victim's head. 63 00:03:28,124 --> 00:03:32,629 The victim also had ligature marks around his neck. 64 00:03:32,671 --> 00:03:36,466 That means that somebody was strangling him. 65 00:03:36,508 --> 00:03:39,886 - This was done to him and, uh, quite effectively, 66 00:03:39,928 --> 00:03:42,347 because he was lifeless. 67 00:03:42,389 --> 00:03:44,391 The first thing the officer is going to find out, 68 00:03:44,432 --> 00:03:47,477 how did he get there and what happened? 69 00:03:47,519 --> 00:03:49,562 - NARRATOR: When detectives arrive on the scene, 70 00:03:49,604 --> 00:03:52,732 they find three of Bernie's family members outside: 71 00:03:52,774 --> 00:03:56,319 his brother-in-law, Michael, his mother-in-law, Jane, 72 00:03:56,361 --> 00:04:00,115 and his wife, 36-year-old Patty James. 73 00:04:00,156 --> 00:04:01,741 - The family is shocked. 74 00:04:01,783 --> 00:04:04,661 This is not someone you would expect to be murdered. 75 00:04:04,703 --> 00:04:07,997 He's known as a man that everybody loved. 76 00:04:14,504 --> 00:04:19,009 - NARRATOR: Born on July 1, 1949 in Washington, DC. 77 00:04:19,050 --> 00:04:21,970 Bernie James was raised within a large family 78 00:04:22,012 --> 00:04:24,597 in the Maryland suburbs. 79 00:04:24,639 --> 00:04:26,766 - Bernie was the eldest of nine children. 80 00:04:26,808 --> 00:04:29,602 My father was really big into Boy Scouts and nature 81 00:04:29,644 --> 00:04:31,354 and, you know, he loved to camp. 82 00:04:31,396 --> 00:04:34,774 He loved to canoe, hiking. 83 00:04:34,816 --> 00:04:37,569 - NARRATOR: After high school, Bernie enlisted in the Marines 84 00:04:37,610 --> 00:04:40,947 and ended up in Vietnam. 85 00:04:40,989 --> 00:04:42,866 - He served two tours, 86 00:04:42,907 --> 00:04:44,784 was a lance corporal in the Marine Corps. 87 00:04:44,826 --> 00:04:47,746 He wouldn't talk about Vietnam very much, but I do know it, 88 00:04:47,787 --> 00:04:49,831 it had a profound impact on him. 89 00:04:52,709 --> 00:04:55,628 - NARRATOR: In the 1970s, Bernie returned to Maryland 90 00:04:55,670 --> 00:04:58,923 and joined the fire department. 91 00:04:58,965 --> 00:05:00,633 - He became a firefighter because he did- 92 00:05:00,675 --> 00:05:02,469 he did have a pro- very protective nature, 93 00:05:02,510 --> 00:05:03,803 and he loved to help people. 94 00:05:03,845 --> 00:05:05,680 He was a paramedic, which is how he met 95 00:05:05,722 --> 00:05:07,265 my mother, Lisa Jean Paul. 96 00:05:07,307 --> 00:05:10,060 They were both paramedics, and they actually met on- on a call, 97 00:05:10,101 --> 00:05:12,562 they were both responding to a medical situation. 98 00:05:12,604 --> 00:05:14,481 They kind of hit it off a little bit 99 00:05:14,522 --> 00:05:15,899 and one thing led to another, 100 00:05:15,940 --> 00:05:17,901 and they were married within a year. 101 00:05:17,942 --> 00:05:23,531 - My mom and dad just loved each other so much. 102 00:05:23,573 --> 00:05:27,118 They had, like, a magnetic attraction to one another. 103 00:05:27,160 --> 00:05:29,579 - NARRATOR: Bernie and his beloved wife, Lisa, 104 00:05:29,621 --> 00:05:33,375 welcomed three kids in just over three years of marriage: 105 00:05:33,416 --> 00:05:36,544 Michael, Irene, and Nicholas. 106 00:05:36,586 --> 00:05:38,922 - My brother is two years older than me. 107 00:05:38,963 --> 00:05:41,132 My sister is one year older than me. 108 00:05:41,174 --> 00:05:42,842 I am the youngest. 109 00:05:46,054 --> 00:05:48,682 - NARRATOR: But the close-knit family would be ripped apart 110 00:05:48,723 --> 00:05:52,102 just before Christmas 1980. 111 00:05:52,143 --> 00:05:56,147 - My mother, Lisa, had an aneurysm and collapsed. 112 00:05:56,189 --> 00:05:58,650 Unfortunately, there was nothing the doctors could do for her 113 00:05:58,692 --> 00:06:02,320 and after the 12 hours, they, you know, 114 00:06:02,362 --> 00:06:04,989 had to cease life support. 115 00:06:05,031 --> 00:06:07,701 - NARRATOR: With three children under three years old, 116 00:06:07,742 --> 00:06:11,246 Bernie struggled to hold his family together. 117 00:06:11,287 --> 00:06:13,832 - My mother's death had a huge impact to my father. 118 00:06:13,873 --> 00:06:15,583 He was completely distraught afterward. 119 00:06:15,625 --> 00:06:17,669 He didn't know what he was going to do, 120 00:06:17,711 --> 00:06:19,379 because he had to raise three children 121 00:06:19,421 --> 00:06:20,964 who were all very close in age. 122 00:06:21,006 --> 00:06:23,633 - I can imagine how difficult it must have been 123 00:06:23,675 --> 00:06:28,513 to be a single man with three very young children. 124 00:06:32,726 --> 00:06:34,019 - NARRATOR: As the years passed, 125 00:06:34,060 --> 00:06:36,980 the single father yearned to find love once again. 126 00:06:37,022 --> 00:06:40,442 And in 1982, yet another chance encounter 127 00:06:40,483 --> 00:06:42,736 would bring him just that. 128 00:06:44,612 --> 00:06:48,908 - My father was working dispatch for the fire station, 129 00:06:48,950 --> 00:06:52,245 and he was working in, you know, the emergency line. 130 00:06:52,287 --> 00:06:54,080 This was the days before 911. 131 00:06:54,122 --> 00:06:57,500 And this woman named Patty called him up. 132 00:06:57,542 --> 00:07:01,588 - She was looking for a different person, 133 00:07:01,629 --> 00:07:05,050 but he was the one on duty that day. 134 00:07:05,091 --> 00:07:07,927 They struck up a conversation and, you know, 135 00:07:07,969 --> 00:07:10,889 he told her about his problems, and they kind of build up 136 00:07:10,930 --> 00:07:14,017 a little bit of a friendship over the phone. 137 00:07:14,059 --> 00:07:15,393 - They got to talking. 138 00:07:15,435 --> 00:07:18,438 She would call every single day just to talk to him. 139 00:07:18,480 --> 00:07:20,190 - He'd been a widower for two years now, 140 00:07:20,231 --> 00:07:22,859 and was having hard time raising his children. 141 00:07:22,901 --> 00:07:27,781 So a woman expressing interest in him was appealing to him. 142 00:07:27,822 --> 00:07:30,533 She seemed nice. She really seemed to like us. 143 00:07:32,952 --> 00:07:35,497 Patty and her family were from Silver Spring, Maryland. 144 00:07:35,538 --> 00:07:37,207 Her father was a police detective, 145 00:07:37,248 --> 00:07:38,458 her mother was a banker. 146 00:07:38,500 --> 00:07:40,168 She was the middle child. 147 00:07:40,210 --> 00:07:42,420 - NARRATOR: Despite her stable upbringing, 148 00:07:42,462 --> 00:07:45,924 Patty struggled with her self-confidence. 149 00:07:45,965 --> 00:07:50,220 - She had this scar that literally dragged 150 00:07:50,261 --> 00:07:53,765 a portion of her face down. 151 00:07:53,807 --> 00:07:55,850 Um, so that physically is the first thing 152 00:07:55,892 --> 00:07:58,269 that you really notice with her. 153 00:07:58,311 --> 00:08:00,730 - Patty developed the tumor when she was very young. 154 00:08:00,772 --> 00:08:02,190 Had to have it surgically removed. 155 00:08:02,232 --> 00:08:05,652 That left her with a very noticeable and deep scar 156 00:08:05,694 --> 00:08:08,029 that she carried with her for the rest of her life. 157 00:08:10,198 --> 00:08:13,076 It became like, the- the focus of her life. 158 00:08:13,118 --> 00:08:15,745 Is like, you know, "I'm- I'm hideous, I'm deformed. 159 00:08:15,787 --> 00:08:18,081 No one's ever gonna like me or ever love me." 160 00:08:18,123 --> 00:08:19,833 - NARRATOR: In spite of her insecurities, 161 00:08:19,874 --> 00:08:23,795 Patty found love not once, but twice. 162 00:08:23,837 --> 00:08:25,547 - She had two prior marriages. 163 00:08:25,588 --> 00:08:27,966 Previously, she had been married to Richard Mahnken 164 00:08:28,008 --> 00:08:30,552 which was, who is a Ft. Lauderdale police officer. 165 00:08:32,345 --> 00:08:36,016 - NARRATOR: Divorced in 1982, Patty was ready to put herself 166 00:08:36,057 --> 00:08:40,478 out there again when she struck up her friendship with Bernie. 167 00:08:40,520 --> 00:08:43,231 - Things were going well with Patty and Bernie on the phone, 168 00:08:43,273 --> 00:08:44,566 you know, they just clicked. 169 00:08:44,607 --> 00:08:45,984 But she was a little apprehensive 170 00:08:46,026 --> 00:08:47,861 to meet him in person because of course 171 00:08:47,902 --> 00:08:51,156 she didn't know how he'd react to that scar on her face. 172 00:08:54,701 --> 00:08:58,496 - NARRATOR: Finally, Patty and Bernie agreed to meet. 173 00:08:58,538 --> 00:09:01,082 - He didn't see that scar on her face. 174 00:09:01,124 --> 00:09:02,500 He didn't see that. 175 00:09:02,542 --> 00:09:05,670 He saw the beautiful person on the inside. 176 00:09:05,712 --> 00:09:07,881 - As we speed up the relationship, 177 00:09:07,922 --> 00:09:10,091 she ends up moving in with, uh, Bernie. 178 00:09:10,133 --> 00:09:12,302 Patty ended up being the surrogate mom 179 00:09:12,344 --> 00:09:13,845 to these three children of his, 180 00:09:13,887 --> 00:09:16,890 because basically he was working all the time. 181 00:09:16,931 --> 00:09:21,186 - Patricia made it seem like she would be a loving, 182 00:09:21,227 --> 00:09:25,523 devoted mother to us, that she would help him, 183 00:09:25,565 --> 00:09:29,736 and that, you know, like I-I could imagine that he saw it 184 00:09:29,778 --> 00:09:32,906 as a great weight lifted off of his shoulder. 185 00:09:32,947 --> 00:09:35,742 - NARRATOR: The couple quickly married in 1982, 186 00:09:35,784 --> 00:09:38,244 and Patty took steps to show her commitment 187 00:09:38,286 --> 00:09:40,580 to Bernie's three toddlers. 188 00:09:40,622 --> 00:09:42,165 - She said, you know, she really loved us 189 00:09:42,207 --> 00:09:44,793 and she wanted to be our mother, you know, 190 00:09:44,834 --> 00:09:48,004 legally as well as, you know, in a name. 191 00:09:48,046 --> 00:09:50,757 So, you know, she- she agreed to adopt us all 192 00:09:50,799 --> 00:09:52,384 and become basically our new mother. 193 00:09:54,928 --> 00:09:56,680 - NARRATOR: About a year after their wedding, 194 00:09:56,721 --> 00:10:00,016 the James family made an abrupt move. 195 00:10:00,058 --> 00:10:01,851 - So we were living in Edgewater, Maryland. 196 00:10:01,893 --> 00:10:04,354 Our father's family is there and all of Patty's family 197 00:10:04,396 --> 00:10:06,940 has moved to Florida, so she decides to move us 198 00:10:06,981 --> 00:10:10,110 all down to Florida to be with her family. 199 00:10:10,151 --> 00:10:12,612 - NARRATOR: Florida provided a fresh start for Bernie 200 00:10:12,654 --> 00:10:15,949 to pursue something he was passionate about. 201 00:10:15,990 --> 00:10:18,910 - He finally landed the Florida State Park job, 202 00:10:18,952 --> 00:10:22,288 what, uh, affected his decision to become a park ranger 203 00:10:22,330 --> 00:10:26,543 and his love of the outdoors stem from his time in Vietnam. 204 00:10:26,584 --> 00:10:30,380 - I used to go with him, um, on some of his ride-alongs. 205 00:10:30,422 --> 00:10:34,050 He was charged with keeping for the alligators. 206 00:10:34,092 --> 00:10:36,136 So when we got down to Florida, 207 00:10:36,177 --> 00:10:38,638 you know, everything is hunky-dory. 208 00:10:38,680 --> 00:10:40,682 This is gonna be good for us. 209 00:10:43,893 --> 00:10:45,478 NARRATOR: But 3 years later, 210 00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:48,440 things have gone terribly wrong. 211 00:10:48,481 --> 00:10:52,235 - Patty discovers him seated in the front seat of the vehicle 212 00:10:52,277 --> 00:10:53,820 unresponsive. 213 00:10:53,862 --> 00:10:55,655 - NARRATOR: Patty explains to detectives 214 00:10:55,697 --> 00:10:57,699 she is willing to help with the investigation 215 00:10:57,741 --> 00:11:00,076 as much as she can, but first, 216 00:11:00,118 --> 00:11:02,829 she needs to tend to her children. 217 00:11:02,871 --> 00:11:05,999 - She's got to, uh, focus her attention on the kids, 218 00:11:06,041 --> 00:11:08,918 while the detectives are, like, standing outside 219 00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:12,297 trying to piece together, uh, what happened out there. 220 00:11:16,926 --> 00:11:19,012 - NARRATOR: While Patty and her family head inside 221 00:11:19,054 --> 00:11:21,139 to break the news to her children, 222 00:11:21,181 --> 00:11:25,226 outside a homicide investigation begins... 223 00:11:25,268 --> 00:11:29,439 - EMS and Wilton Manors P.D. then secures the scene, 224 00:11:29,481 --> 00:11:32,025 and we come in to do our job. 225 00:11:33,526 --> 00:11:35,820 We had motor oil off to the side 226 00:11:35,862 --> 00:11:38,031 and some tools inside the vehicle. 227 00:11:38,073 --> 00:11:41,951 The victim's wallet was, uh, a few feet from the vehicle. 228 00:11:41,993 --> 00:11:45,038 It was- it appeared to been rifled through and it was, 229 00:11:45,080 --> 00:11:47,916 uh, tossed all on the driveway area. 230 00:11:47,957 --> 00:11:49,918 - There was no cash, but his ID and credit cards 231 00:11:49,959 --> 00:11:52,170 was still in the wallet. 232 00:11:52,212 --> 00:11:56,966 - In my experience, if someone's gonna commit a robbery 233 00:11:57,008 --> 00:11:58,885 and they take a wallet or a purse, 234 00:11:58,927 --> 00:12:02,055 they're not gonna inventory it right there. 235 00:12:02,097 --> 00:12:04,974 They're gonna run down the street or hop in the car, 236 00:12:05,016 --> 00:12:07,769 and we'll find the purse or the, or the remnants of their wallet, 237 00:12:07,811 --> 00:12:11,898 you know, blocks away, not at the scene. 238 00:12:11,940 --> 00:12:13,650 That's an inconsistency with, 239 00:12:13,692 --> 00:12:15,193 uh, a traditional type of robbery. 240 00:12:17,570 --> 00:12:18,863 - NARRATOR: With Bernie's murder 241 00:12:18,905 --> 00:12:21,700 seeming less like a random act of violence, 242 00:12:21,741 --> 00:12:27,122 investigators suspect something more sinister may be at play... 243 00:12:27,163 --> 00:12:31,251 - So police were asking the question now, was this personal? 244 00:12:34,379 --> 00:12:35,672 - NARRATOR: Coming up: 245 00:12:35,714 --> 00:12:38,341 A potential suspect emerges... 246 00:12:38,383 --> 00:12:41,428 - She came out there and he was talking to a black guy. 247 00:12:41,469 --> 00:12:44,764 - NARRATOR: And a calculated scheme is revealed... 248 00:12:44,806 --> 00:12:46,599 - The scene was set up. 249 00:12:46,641 --> 00:12:48,476 - Somebody's not telling the truth. 250 00:13:02,907 --> 00:13:05,577 - NARRATOR: March 24, 1987. 251 00:13:05,618 --> 00:13:07,829 Wilton Manors, Florida. 252 00:13:07,871 --> 00:13:10,874 Investigators are inspecting a puzzling scene 253 00:13:10,915 --> 00:13:14,377 outside the home of murder victim Bernie James. 254 00:13:16,338 --> 00:13:18,631 - We have the wallet, which was strewn about. 255 00:13:18,673 --> 00:13:22,761 You also had the victim who was, 256 00:13:22,802 --> 00:13:25,096 again, out laying on the driveway, 257 00:13:25,138 --> 00:13:27,974 partially on the grass outside of the vehicle. 258 00:13:28,016 --> 00:13:29,476 We also have the vehicle, 259 00:13:29,517 --> 00:13:32,687 which is a significant piece of evidence 260 00:13:32,729 --> 00:13:36,900 because this is where the crime is alleged to have occurred. 261 00:13:39,235 --> 00:13:41,738 - NARRATOR: As the crime scene survey wraps up, 262 00:13:41,780 --> 00:13:45,075 and Bernie's body is sent to the medical examiner's office 263 00:13:45,116 --> 00:13:49,537 for a proper autopsy, reality sets in for Bernie's kids, 264 00:13:49,579 --> 00:13:53,500 who are just six, seven, and eight years old. 265 00:13:53,541 --> 00:13:56,878 - At that time, we were living with Jane Donahue, 266 00:13:56,920 --> 00:14:01,966 Patricia's mom, and Patricia woke us all up, 267 00:14:02,008 --> 00:14:04,803 and she brought us all into her bed. 268 00:14:04,844 --> 00:14:07,222 And she had said, you know, 269 00:14:07,263 --> 00:14:09,766 "I have something terrible to tell you. 270 00:14:09,808 --> 00:14:11,893 Your father has been murdered." 271 00:14:11,935 --> 00:14:14,187 And I remember crying. 272 00:14:14,229 --> 00:14:16,731 I started to shut down. 273 00:14:16,773 --> 00:14:18,149 - I'm in total shock. 274 00:14:18,191 --> 00:14:20,318 I-I can't believe anyone would ever kill my father. 275 00:14:20,360 --> 00:14:22,237 He was the nicest person in the world. 276 00:14:22,278 --> 00:14:24,531 No one should ever have had a reason to kill him. 277 00:14:27,534 --> 00:14:29,327 - NARRATOR: After settling her children, 278 00:14:29,369 --> 00:14:31,871 Patty heads back outside to recap 279 00:14:31,913 --> 00:14:36,167 the chilling events that led to the 911 call. 280 00:14:36,209 --> 00:14:39,379 - Patty initially told the detectives on the scene 281 00:14:39,421 --> 00:14:42,090 that they had just gotten home from the grocery store, 282 00:14:42,132 --> 00:14:43,925 and she was putting the groceries out. 283 00:14:43,967 --> 00:14:47,178 Bernie told her that he initially had to do, 284 00:14:47,220 --> 00:14:50,348 uh, take care of an electrical problem in the vehicle, 285 00:14:50,390 --> 00:14:53,101 and also had to do an oil change on the car. 286 00:14:53,143 --> 00:14:55,603 And she went- subsequently went inside the house 287 00:14:55,645 --> 00:14:59,315 and he stayed outside, uh, in the front yard with the vehicle. 288 00:15:01,359 --> 00:15:03,528 - Patty, she's in the house. 289 00:15:03,570 --> 00:15:06,406 She decides to go outside and check on Bernie. 290 00:15:06,448 --> 00:15:09,284 She came out there, and he was talking to a black guy, 291 00:15:09,325 --> 00:15:12,037 who's looking for some matches. 292 00:15:12,078 --> 00:15:15,331 He just wanted to light a cigar down the road. 293 00:15:15,373 --> 00:15:17,959 - NARRATOR: Patty says though she got a good look at the man, 294 00:15:18,001 --> 00:15:21,004 she didn't recognize him. 295 00:15:21,046 --> 00:15:22,630 - He was approximately six feet tall, 296 00:15:22,672 --> 00:15:26,009 in his twenties, spoke with a French accent, 297 00:15:26,051 --> 00:15:30,221 uh, was wearing a light-colored shirt and dark-colored pants. 298 00:15:30,263 --> 00:15:32,891 - NARRATOR: Though Patty thought the situation was good, 299 00:15:32,932 --> 00:15:37,187 she says her husband told her to go back into the house. 300 00:15:37,228 --> 00:15:39,564 - She said she went back inside the house. 301 00:15:39,606 --> 00:15:41,483 Uh, approximately twenty minutes later, 302 00:15:41,524 --> 00:15:43,485 she come back outside the house 303 00:15:43,526 --> 00:15:46,154 and that's when she found Bernie inside the vehicle 304 00:15:46,196 --> 00:15:49,032 and the black male gone. 305 00:15:49,074 --> 00:15:50,909 So she went back in the house and, 306 00:15:50,950 --> 00:15:52,494 and called her mother who came outside, 307 00:15:52,535 --> 00:15:56,289 and checked on him and found that he didn't have a pulse. 308 00:15:56,331 --> 00:15:58,083 - She then calls her brother, Michael, 309 00:15:58,124 --> 00:16:01,127 who lives just a few houses down the street. 310 00:16:01,169 --> 00:16:02,879 - That's kind of what- out of the ordinary 311 00:16:02,921 --> 00:16:06,341 to call her brother before she called fire and rescue. 312 00:16:06,383 --> 00:16:09,344 In stressful moments, people react differently, 313 00:16:09,386 --> 00:16:12,514 and sometimes panic and the first time, 314 00:16:12,555 --> 00:16:15,058 thing they do is they call somebody that they know 315 00:16:15,100 --> 00:16:16,685 to come help them. 316 00:16:19,938 --> 00:16:21,356 - NARRATOR: After speaking with Patty, 317 00:16:21,398 --> 00:16:23,733 police turn to her mom and brother, 318 00:16:23,775 --> 00:16:28,363 who'd rushed to her side after the discovery of the body. 319 00:16:28,405 --> 00:16:31,991 - Patty's mom, Jane, said that evening she was sick, 320 00:16:32,033 --> 00:16:34,786 and she went to bed about six-thirty, 321 00:16:34,828 --> 00:16:36,204 'cause she wasn't feeling well. 322 00:16:36,246 --> 00:16:41,710 And approximately 8:45, she was waken up by Patty, 323 00:16:41,751 --> 00:16:44,963 screaming, calling, telling her to come outside. 324 00:16:45,005 --> 00:16:49,634 And basically her story is consistent with Patty had said. 325 00:16:51,136 --> 00:16:53,763 - They corroborate everything that she, 326 00:16:53,805 --> 00:16:55,557 she's telling the police. 327 00:16:55,598 --> 00:16:58,852 Her brother saying, "Yeah, my sister called me 328 00:16:58,893 --> 00:17:00,729 and she's crying, she's screaming. 329 00:17:00,770 --> 00:17:02,689 I couldn't understand a word, but she said, 330 00:17:02,731 --> 00:17:04,774 "Get over here, something has happened to Bernie." 331 00:17:04,816 --> 00:17:06,484 So he rushes over. 332 00:17:06,526 --> 00:17:08,445 - Her brother came over to the house 333 00:17:08,486 --> 00:17:10,071 and removed him from the vehicle 334 00:17:10,113 --> 00:17:12,157 and then began doing CPR. 335 00:17:16,453 --> 00:17:17,996 - NARRATOR: With the immediate witnesses' stories 336 00:17:18,038 --> 00:17:22,500 all matching up, investigators take a different approach. 337 00:17:22,542 --> 00:17:24,252 - Patty works with a sketch artist 338 00:17:24,294 --> 00:17:27,130 to give him all the details and describe the man 339 00:17:27,172 --> 00:17:29,758 who she saw talking to her husband. 340 00:17:29,799 --> 00:17:32,552 - This is a quiet residential neighborhood in Wilton Manors, 341 00:17:32,594 --> 00:17:34,429 so things like that don't usually happen, 342 00:17:34,471 --> 00:17:36,806 and people know who's in the neighborhood. 343 00:17:36,848 --> 00:17:40,185 So once the sketch is done, the police went around 344 00:17:40,226 --> 00:17:42,437 knocking to, knocking on doors of several houses 345 00:17:42,479 --> 00:17:44,689 in the neighborhood, uh, showing the composite, 346 00:17:44,731 --> 00:17:47,233 and they got no response from anybody 347 00:17:47,275 --> 00:17:49,903 that had seen this individual. 348 00:17:49,944 --> 00:17:52,280 So the first night of the search basically nothing comes up. 349 00:17:52,322 --> 00:17:54,657 There's no, uh, suspect located that night. 350 00:17:57,994 --> 00:18:01,289 - NARRATOR: The next morning, investigators hope the autopsy 351 00:18:01,331 --> 00:18:05,710 will help explain the horrific chain of events. 352 00:18:05,752 --> 00:18:09,714 - The victim was struck, blunt trauma, 353 00:18:09,756 --> 00:18:13,343 right side of the head, over the ear. 354 00:18:13,385 --> 00:18:16,304 He had several ligature marks that were around his neck 355 00:18:16,346 --> 00:18:19,015 in a ascending position, which means somebody 356 00:18:19,057 --> 00:18:24,854 was p-pulling up on his neck with some type of ligature, 357 00:18:24,896 --> 00:18:27,565 whether it be a rope, whether it be wire. 358 00:18:27,607 --> 00:18:30,235 He died of asphyxiation as determined 359 00:18:30,276 --> 00:18:32,404 by the medical examiner. 360 00:18:32,445 --> 00:18:35,865 - Bernie doesn't have any defensive wounds at all, 361 00:18:35,907 --> 00:18:38,660 which means he was probably surprised by his attacker. 362 00:18:40,537 --> 00:18:42,747 - So basically, he didn't know it was coming. 363 00:18:42,789 --> 00:18:47,168 He just got hit, went down, ligature's applied. 364 00:18:47,210 --> 00:18:50,338 He's choked out. He dies of asphyxiation. 365 00:18:50,380 --> 00:18:53,174 And that could not have occurred in the car. 366 00:18:53,216 --> 00:18:54,718 - It didn't happen in the vehicle, 367 00:18:54,759 --> 00:18:56,511 because there was no room in the vehicle 368 00:18:56,553 --> 00:18:58,471 to be able to strike somebody in the head. 369 00:18:58,513 --> 00:19:01,266 And with blunt force trauma to the head, 370 00:19:01,307 --> 00:19:02,892 you're going to have a tremendous amount 371 00:19:02,934 --> 00:19:05,854 of bleeding coming from the ear and that area. 372 00:19:05,895 --> 00:19:09,816 Uh, so, in this instance when you have observed the vehicle 373 00:19:09,858 --> 00:19:12,110 and the passenger side, you're not seeing 374 00:19:12,152 --> 00:19:15,447 that amount of blood that should coincide 375 00:19:15,488 --> 00:19:18,783 with the type of injury that he has sustained. 376 00:19:18,825 --> 00:19:20,994 - Now detectives know that the murder 377 00:19:21,036 --> 00:19:24,789 didn't happen in that car, it happened somewhere else. 378 00:19:29,252 --> 00:19:32,505 - NARRATOR: After reviewing the medical examiner's findings, 379 00:19:32,547 --> 00:19:37,302 investigators turn to the victim's vehicle for more clues. 380 00:19:37,344 --> 00:19:39,763 - We have a garage facility where we conduct 381 00:19:39,804 --> 00:19:42,557 further investigation, uh, about the vehicle. 382 00:19:42,599 --> 00:19:44,768 We take blood samples from inside the car. 383 00:19:44,809 --> 00:19:48,646 We look for any other trace evidence that may be present. 384 00:19:48,688 --> 00:19:50,398 - One of the things that Patty said 385 00:19:50,440 --> 00:19:52,400 was that he was going to do an oil change. 386 00:19:52,442 --> 00:19:53,735 They checked the dipstick. 387 00:19:53,777 --> 00:19:56,196 They noticed the vehicle was at full. 388 00:19:56,237 --> 00:19:58,281 So that's inconsistent to what she had said 389 00:19:58,323 --> 00:20:00,408 that he was going to do an oil change. 390 00:20:02,952 --> 00:20:07,457 - NARRATOR: The discovery casts doubt on Patty's initial story. 391 00:20:07,499 --> 00:20:11,544 - The lack of excessive blood within the vehicle. 392 00:20:11,586 --> 00:20:14,255 The way the scene was set up with the, uh, the oil cans 393 00:20:14,297 --> 00:20:15,965 when the car didn't need oil. 394 00:20:16,007 --> 00:20:19,427 The fact that the wallet was, uh, rifled through 395 00:20:19,469 --> 00:20:23,473 within a couple of feet of the vehicle. 396 00:20:23,515 --> 00:20:26,059 When you look at all the physical evidence, 397 00:20:26,101 --> 00:20:30,271 it is absolutely inconsistent with the report to 911 398 00:20:30,313 --> 00:20:32,399 and to the police. 399 00:20:32,440 --> 00:20:34,567 - Somebody's not telling the truth, 400 00:20:34,609 --> 00:20:37,696 and investigators begin to look at Patty. 401 00:20:37,737 --> 00:20:39,489 - We need to talk to her again. 402 00:20:42,534 --> 00:20:43,993 - NARRATOR: Coming up: 403 00:20:44,035 --> 00:20:47,247 Investigators learn things aren't all they seem 404 00:20:47,288 --> 00:20:49,791 in the James household... 405 00:20:49,833 --> 00:20:52,460 - I could see it in my dad's eyes and face 406 00:20:52,502 --> 00:20:56,214 that he just wanted to get far away as possible. 407 00:20:56,256 --> 00:20:57,632 - NARRATOR: And a stunning confession 408 00:20:57,674 --> 00:21:00,927 adds a new twist to the investigation. 409 00:21:00,969 --> 00:21:02,887 - She paused for a second, she lowered her head, 410 00:21:02,929 --> 00:21:05,515 and said that she knows who killed him. 411 00:21:21,406 --> 00:21:23,324 - NARRATOR: Two days after beloved father 412 00:21:23,366 --> 00:21:26,411 and park ranger Bernie James was murdered, 413 00:21:26,453 --> 00:21:28,663 investigators in Broward County, Florida 414 00:21:28,705 --> 00:21:30,457 are beginning to poke holes 415 00:21:30,498 --> 00:21:33,418 in his wife, Patty's, initial statement. 416 00:21:34,878 --> 00:21:36,504 - Patty implied that the murder 417 00:21:36,546 --> 00:21:39,215 must have happened outside the house 418 00:21:39,257 --> 00:21:42,177 'cause she had seen him earlier with the black male, 419 00:21:42,218 --> 00:21:45,055 and then twenty minutes later, she comes out again 420 00:21:45,096 --> 00:21:46,473 and then he's dead. 421 00:21:46,514 --> 00:21:49,809 You know, just didn't make any sense. 422 00:21:49,851 --> 00:21:52,937 I think she totally made up the story. 423 00:21:52,979 --> 00:21:54,689 - NARRATOR: Rather than tip Patty off 424 00:21:54,731 --> 00:21:57,567 with probing questions, they begin digging 425 00:21:57,609 --> 00:22:01,613 into her relationship with Bernie through other means. 426 00:22:01,654 --> 00:22:04,824 - We want to know what their personal life was about. 427 00:22:04,866 --> 00:22:06,951 So we start talking to other people 428 00:22:06,993 --> 00:22:10,121 to see if there's any issues with the, with the two of them. 429 00:22:13,124 --> 00:22:17,087 - NARRATOR: On March 27 1987, investigators question 430 00:22:17,128 --> 00:22:20,757 Bernie's parents, Delores and Bernard James, Sr., 431 00:22:20,799 --> 00:22:22,884 and they paint a troubling picture 432 00:22:22,926 --> 00:22:26,262 of the couple's relationship. 433 00:22:26,304 --> 00:22:29,599 - Bernie's parents fly into town for their son's funeral, 434 00:22:29,641 --> 00:22:31,601 and detectives do meet with them. 435 00:22:31,643 --> 00:22:34,979 And they discover that after Bernie married Patty, 436 00:22:35,021 --> 00:22:39,192 there was definitely some bad blood within the family. 437 00:22:39,234 --> 00:22:42,612 - Patricia had told my dad "I'm the woman of the house now. 438 00:22:42,654 --> 00:22:44,614 Care for me, care for your children, 439 00:22:44,656 --> 00:22:46,241 don't care for other people." 440 00:22:46,282 --> 00:22:49,994 And so he kind of stopped helping out his parents. 441 00:22:50,036 --> 00:22:53,206 He stopped buying them food, you know, 442 00:22:53,248 --> 00:22:56,960 stopped doing all those things, and she had somehow 443 00:22:57,002 --> 00:23:00,046 convinced my dad to move down to Florida, 444 00:23:00,088 --> 00:23:03,299 because there was this rift in the family. 445 00:23:03,341 --> 00:23:04,801 - Bernie's mother, Delores, said 446 00:23:04,843 --> 00:23:07,012 she hadn't talked to her son very often. 447 00:23:07,053 --> 00:23:08,930 One of the things that she did bring up 448 00:23:08,972 --> 00:23:11,016 is that they left Maryland and moved, 449 00:23:11,057 --> 00:23:12,809 and they lost contact with them. 450 00:23:14,144 --> 00:23:16,354 Delores kind of said that the reason 451 00:23:16,396 --> 00:23:21,067 that Bernie married Patricia is to fill a void in his life 452 00:23:21,109 --> 00:23:24,404 and have somebody who could take care of his children. 453 00:23:24,446 --> 00:23:26,823 So in that capacity, he kind of rushed 454 00:23:26,865 --> 00:23:28,825 into this whole relationship with her. 455 00:23:32,203 --> 00:23:34,789 - I never saw them kiss. I never saw them hold hands. 456 00:23:34,831 --> 00:23:36,666 I never saw them hug. 457 00:23:36,708 --> 00:23:39,586 I saw it more of like a companionship 458 00:23:39,627 --> 00:23:42,756 or friendship-type relationship. 459 00:23:42,797 --> 00:23:45,258 - NARRATOR: Bernie's parents say that a lack of affection 460 00:23:45,300 --> 00:23:49,888 wasn't the only issue plaguing Bernie and Patty's marriage. 461 00:23:49,929 --> 00:23:53,683 - They would get into huge fights, 462 00:23:53,725 --> 00:23:57,979 and they were all verbal, yelling fights, 463 00:23:58,021 --> 00:24:00,857 screaming matches, and she would make him leave. 464 00:24:00,899 --> 00:24:04,819 As I got older, and I started to see their dynamic, 465 00:24:04,861 --> 00:24:07,781 I could see it in my dad's eyes and face 466 00:24:07,822 --> 00:24:12,827 that he just wanted to get far away from her as possible. 467 00:24:12,869 --> 00:24:15,872 - NARRATOR: Bernie's mother says that after years of silence, 468 00:24:15,914 --> 00:24:19,834 she finally heard from her son in the fall of 1985. 469 00:24:21,252 --> 00:24:23,463 - Before my father's murder was the first time 470 00:24:23,505 --> 00:24:25,548 he, he called his mother in years. 471 00:24:25,590 --> 00:24:27,342 My father told her that he was coming home, 472 00:24:27,384 --> 00:24:29,886 that he was going to leave Patty, that he had had enough. 473 00:24:29,928 --> 00:24:32,263 He was going to, you know, leave her, divorce her. 474 00:24:36,643 --> 00:24:37,977 - NARRATOR: But, Delores says, 475 00:24:38,019 --> 00:24:40,730 Bernie never followed through with the move. 476 00:24:40,772 --> 00:24:42,899 And almost a year later, she received 477 00:24:42,941 --> 00:24:47,112 a disturbing communication from her son. 478 00:24:47,153 --> 00:24:50,573 - Delores had said approximately six months prior to the murder, 479 00:24:50,615 --> 00:24:52,492 she received a typewritten letter 480 00:24:52,534 --> 00:24:55,954 supposedly coming from her son that he had been drinking 481 00:24:55,995 --> 00:24:59,082 and that he had been abusing Patricia 482 00:24:59,124 --> 00:25:00,959 and she felt that was kind of odd 483 00:25:01,001 --> 00:25:04,796 that he would send her a typewritten letter. 484 00:25:04,838 --> 00:25:07,257 - It was completely out of character for Bernie. 485 00:25:07,298 --> 00:25:10,635 So the family started to wonder if Patty wrote that letter. 486 00:25:16,516 --> 00:25:20,812 - NARRATOR: On April 8, 1987 investigators confront Patty 487 00:25:20,854 --> 00:25:23,523 with their suspicions about the staged crime scene 488 00:25:23,565 --> 00:25:27,485 and her strained relationship with Bernie. 489 00:25:27,527 --> 00:25:30,030 - So originally Patty, uh, was called down to the station 490 00:25:30,071 --> 00:25:33,199 to look at some mugshots and she, 491 00:25:33,241 --> 00:25:35,410 uh, said she couldn't identify anybody. 492 00:25:35,452 --> 00:25:38,121 And from that, they segued into some questions 493 00:25:38,163 --> 00:25:40,957 that they, uh, wanted to clear up. 494 00:25:40,999 --> 00:25:43,626 - Her story just doesn't make sense. 495 00:25:43,668 --> 00:25:45,503 I don't know who has an oil change 496 00:25:45,545 --> 00:25:47,589 that late at night, you know? 497 00:25:47,630 --> 00:25:50,175 - Whatever people say from the first time 498 00:25:50,216 --> 00:25:53,511 they speak to a law enforcement, they're locked into that. 499 00:25:53,553 --> 00:25:55,638 If they change their story, 500 00:25:55,680 --> 00:25:58,016 they're gonna have to explain why. 501 00:26:01,603 --> 00:26:03,688 - NARRATOR: As investigators push Patty, 502 00:26:03,730 --> 00:26:06,524 her demeanor suddenly shifts. 503 00:26:06,566 --> 00:26:07,859 - The detectives asked Patricia 504 00:26:07,901 --> 00:26:09,819 if there was anything else she had to say. 505 00:26:09,861 --> 00:26:11,738 She paused for a second, she lowered her head, 506 00:26:11,780 --> 00:26:15,116 and said that she knows who killed her husband. 507 00:26:19,204 --> 00:26:22,832 - NARRATOR: Investigators press Patty for more details... 508 00:26:22,874 --> 00:26:24,876 - Patty says she knows who killed Bernie, 509 00:26:24,918 --> 00:26:26,836 but she didn't see what happened. 510 00:26:26,878 --> 00:26:28,713 And she says the man that did it 511 00:26:28,755 --> 00:26:30,757 she met a few months ago at a bowling alley 512 00:26:30,799 --> 00:26:32,425 and his name is Tim Ott. 513 00:26:34,219 --> 00:26:36,680 - NARRATOR: According to Patty, she, Tim and Bernie 514 00:26:36,721 --> 00:26:39,349 were in a bowling league together, 515 00:26:39,391 --> 00:26:42,185 and Tim had witnessed firsthand the abuse 516 00:26:42,227 --> 00:26:45,230 she'd endured at the hands of Bernie. 517 00:26:47,023 --> 00:26:49,859 - One of the incidents she recalled is that one time 518 00:26:49,901 --> 00:26:52,737 her and Bernie were at a bowling alley, 519 00:26:52,779 --> 00:26:55,699 and Bernie became abusive with her, 520 00:26:55,740 --> 00:26:58,243 and Tim had seen that incident. 521 00:27:01,579 --> 00:27:04,791 - NARRATOR: Patty's new story is that a few weeks later, 522 00:27:04,833 --> 00:27:07,502 on the night of March 24th, she and Bernie 523 00:27:07,544 --> 00:27:11,589 went to Tim's house to discuss the bowling schedule. 524 00:27:11,631 --> 00:27:13,049 - Patty says when she gets there, 525 00:27:13,091 --> 00:27:15,885 she doesn't feel well, so she asked to use Tim's bathroom. 526 00:27:17,262 --> 00:27:18,888 - NARRATOR: Once she went to the bathroom, 527 00:27:18,930 --> 00:27:21,808 Patty says things took a turn. 528 00:27:21,850 --> 00:27:24,769 - She noticed the volume of the TV was up. 529 00:27:24,811 --> 00:27:26,563 She said when she tried to get out, 530 00:27:26,604 --> 00:27:27,897 the bathroom door was locked, 531 00:27:27,939 --> 00:27:29,983 and she was unable to get out of the bathroom. 532 00:27:34,404 --> 00:27:37,741 - Tim tells Patty to stay inside the bathroom. 533 00:27:37,782 --> 00:27:40,160 After a while, he lets her out. 534 00:27:40,201 --> 00:27:43,246 When she gets out, she doesn't see Bernie in the living room. 535 00:27:43,288 --> 00:27:46,458 Tim grabs her by the arm and takes her outside 536 00:27:46,499 --> 00:27:49,252 and that's when she sees Bernie inside of his car. 537 00:27:50,962 --> 00:27:55,383 - According to Patty, Tim drives her back to her home. 538 00:27:55,425 --> 00:27:59,971 Tim then drives back home, gets inside Bernie's car, 539 00:28:00,013 --> 00:28:03,516 and drives Bernie's car back to Patty's house 540 00:28:03,558 --> 00:28:06,519 and then leaves on foot. 541 00:28:06,561 --> 00:28:08,938 Patty says once she felt safe, 542 00:28:08,980 --> 00:28:11,358 she went outside and she checked on Bernie, 543 00:28:11,399 --> 00:28:14,819 but she says Bernie didn't have a pulse. 544 00:28:14,861 --> 00:28:18,323 - Patricia realizes that, uh, Bernie's dead. 545 00:28:19,824 --> 00:28:21,242 - NARRATOR: Patty claims that she felt 546 00:28:21,284 --> 00:28:24,829 she had to keep this horrible secret. 547 00:28:24,871 --> 00:28:27,832 - BARBARA: She was afraid of Timothy Ott. 548 00:28:27,874 --> 00:28:33,046 So she engineered this robbery scenario. 549 00:28:33,088 --> 00:28:35,382 - NARRATOR: To detectives, the thought that Tim 550 00:28:35,423 --> 00:28:38,051 would orchestrate such an elaborate plot 551 00:28:38,093 --> 00:28:43,139 to save Patty from Bernie's alleged abuse feels far fetched. 552 00:28:43,181 --> 00:28:46,059 - The police ask her to take a, a polygraph test. 553 00:28:46,101 --> 00:28:48,228 She said that she couldn't take it at that time, 554 00:28:48,269 --> 00:28:49,896 that they would reschedule it. 555 00:28:52,315 --> 00:28:54,943 - NARRATOR: Though Patty's story sounds extreme, 556 00:28:54,984 --> 00:28:56,861 without anything to hold her on, 557 00:28:56,903 --> 00:28:59,906 investigators release her and immediately bring in 558 00:28:59,948 --> 00:29:02,867 Tim Ott for questioning. 559 00:29:02,909 --> 00:29:04,411 - He agrees to cooperate with the police 560 00:29:04,452 --> 00:29:06,329 and go down to the police station. 561 00:29:06,371 --> 00:29:09,332 When they get down there, he's very soft spoken 562 00:29:09,374 --> 00:29:12,585 and very intelligent, and he proceeds to, 563 00:29:12,627 --> 00:29:15,422 uh, answer all their questions. 564 00:29:15,463 --> 00:29:18,341 - Detectives ask him about his relationship 565 00:29:18,383 --> 00:29:21,344 with Patty and Bernie, and he seems confused, 566 00:29:21,386 --> 00:29:25,598 and he says he's never even heard of the couple. 567 00:29:25,640 --> 00:29:30,353 - They then show him a Polaroid picture of Patricia James, 568 00:29:30,395 --> 00:29:34,190 and he goes and tells them, "I know her by the name of Demi, 569 00:29:34,232 --> 00:29:36,568 I don't know her by the name of Patricia." 570 00:29:39,738 --> 00:29:41,197 - NARRATOR: Coming up: 571 00:29:41,239 --> 00:29:46,036 Investigators unmask a master of deception. 572 00:29:46,077 --> 00:29:48,163 - She is pretending to be not only one, 573 00:29:48,204 --> 00:29:50,498 but two different people. 574 00:29:50,540 --> 00:29:54,252 - She was using me in a lot of her scams and cons. 575 00:29:54,294 --> 00:29:57,756 - NARRATOR: And a chilling plot is exposed... 576 00:29:57,797 --> 00:29:59,466 - They discussed several different ways 577 00:29:59,507 --> 00:30:01,176 on how to kill Bernie. 578 00:30:01,217 --> 00:30:03,345 They were going to ground out apple seeds 579 00:30:03,386 --> 00:30:06,097 and apricot seeds along with some Valium. 580 00:30:22,280 --> 00:30:23,990 - NARRATOR: Investigators sitting down with 581 00:30:24,032 --> 00:30:27,243 potential murder suspect Tim Ott 582 00:30:27,285 --> 00:30:31,122 are shocked to learn that the woman who accused him of murder, 583 00:30:31,164 --> 00:30:34,084 may be leading a double life... 584 00:30:34,125 --> 00:30:36,252 - They're presenting him with 585 00:30:36,294 --> 00:30:40,298 photo IDs of Bernie, 586 00:30:40,340 --> 00:30:43,718 the, the victim, and Bernie's wife, Patricia, 587 00:30:43,760 --> 00:30:47,389 and he's, like, confused, and he goes, "What?" 588 00:30:47,430 --> 00:30:51,518 He goes, "That's Booth and that's Demi." 589 00:30:53,186 --> 00:30:55,480 That's how I know them, we're on a bowling league." 590 00:30:55,522 --> 00:30:59,776 He goes, "Demi's a friend of my fiancée TJ." 591 00:30:59,818 --> 00:31:02,362 - Tim says T.J., his fiancée, 592 00:31:02,404 --> 00:31:06,324 is a woman that he's only met over the phone. 593 00:31:06,366 --> 00:31:11,037 - And he goes, "Booth was married to my fiancée TJ 594 00:31:11,079 --> 00:31:14,332 and she told me he's an abuser." 595 00:31:14,374 --> 00:31:16,292 - He also says that T.J. told him 596 00:31:16,334 --> 00:31:18,336 that Booth was a child molester. 597 00:31:22,132 --> 00:31:25,385 - NARRATOR: On the night of March 24, 1987, 598 00:31:25,427 --> 00:31:29,014 Tim says he and Demi, AKA Patty, 599 00:31:29,055 --> 00:31:32,350 put a murder plot into motion to stop "Booth" 600 00:31:32,392 --> 00:31:35,603 from hurting anyone else ever again. 601 00:31:35,645 --> 00:31:38,440 - Tim says that they show up at his apartment 602 00:31:38,481 --> 00:31:41,276 and Demi goes to the bathroom. 603 00:31:41,317 --> 00:31:45,447 Tim knows that this individual was a child molester 604 00:31:45,488 --> 00:31:47,782 and sometime during the conversation, 605 00:31:47,824 --> 00:31:49,909 he grabs, uh, a baseball bat 606 00:31:49,951 --> 00:31:51,786 and hits Booth on the side of the head. 607 00:31:53,913 --> 00:31:56,791 He said that he didn't go down, 608 00:31:56,833 --> 00:32:00,628 so he grabbed some wire and began to strangle him. 609 00:32:00,670 --> 00:32:04,549 And he said he had a hard time gripping the wires, 610 00:32:04,591 --> 00:32:08,386 so he had to have several times where he had to readjust 611 00:32:08,428 --> 00:32:10,055 the wires in order to strangle him 612 00:32:10,096 --> 00:32:12,098 where he had no breath left. 613 00:32:14,768 --> 00:32:18,229 Ott went on to say that they then load Booth in his car, 614 00:32:18,271 --> 00:32:19,898 and he drove 'em back to the house. 615 00:32:21,024 --> 00:32:24,110 - NARRATOR: After listening to Tim's chilling confession, 616 00:32:24,152 --> 00:32:26,404 detectives attempt to understand the roles 617 00:32:26,446 --> 00:32:29,115 of the other people involved in the plot 618 00:32:29,157 --> 00:32:32,535 and their real identities... 619 00:32:32,577 --> 00:32:34,245 - At this point they know that Patty 620 00:32:34,287 --> 00:32:38,416 is pretending to be Demi, and they know that Patty 621 00:32:38,458 --> 00:32:42,712 brought Bernie to the apartment to get killed. 622 00:32:42,754 --> 00:32:46,257 Now they're trying to figure out who is this mysterious T.J. 623 00:32:49,219 --> 00:32:50,720 - So Ott, uh, after making the statement, 624 00:32:50,762 --> 00:32:53,431 produces a picture of T.J. from his wallet 625 00:32:53,473 --> 00:32:55,225 and shows the investigators. 626 00:32:55,266 --> 00:32:58,353 It's not somebody that the investigators knew at all. 627 00:32:58,395 --> 00:33:02,148 - NARRATOR: Since Tim says he has never met TJ in person, 628 00:33:02,190 --> 00:33:04,401 investigators have a sneaking suspicion 629 00:33:04,442 --> 00:33:08,113 she may not even exist... 630 00:33:08,154 --> 00:33:10,323 - Based on all of Patty's manipulations, 631 00:33:10,365 --> 00:33:13,451 police are now realizing that Patty 632 00:33:13,493 --> 00:33:15,453 is pretending to be not only one, 633 00:33:15,495 --> 00:33:19,416 but two different people. She pretends to be TJ, 634 00:33:19,457 --> 00:33:22,293 an entirely made-up flight attendant. 635 00:33:22,335 --> 00:33:24,629 And then when she realizes that T.J. 636 00:33:24,671 --> 00:33:27,298 is going to actually have to meet Tim in person, 637 00:33:27,340 --> 00:33:29,426 she creates Demi. 638 00:33:29,467 --> 00:33:32,053 Demi is actually the one that goes 639 00:33:32,095 --> 00:33:33,847 and meets face to face with Tim 640 00:33:33,888 --> 00:33:36,808 and puts the entire murder plot in motion. 641 00:33:40,353 --> 00:33:43,398 - NARRATOR: Tim says he and Demi, AKA Patty, 642 00:33:43,440 --> 00:33:48,445 had discussed several potential plots prior to the murder. 643 00:33:48,486 --> 00:33:49,988 - They discussed several different ways 644 00:33:50,030 --> 00:33:51,531 on how to kill Bernie. 645 00:33:51,573 --> 00:33:53,992 One way was they were going to ground some Valium 646 00:33:54,034 --> 00:33:55,493 and bake it into a cake. 647 00:33:55,535 --> 00:33:57,746 They did that, but it only made him sick. 648 00:33:57,787 --> 00:34:00,040 Then they talked about shooting him, 649 00:34:00,081 --> 00:34:03,877 but they couldn't find a remote field to make that plot happen. 650 00:34:05,462 --> 00:34:08,381 - NARRATOR: Ultimately, the pair decides Tim's apartment 651 00:34:08,423 --> 00:34:12,510 was the most secure location to commit the crime. 652 00:34:12,552 --> 00:34:14,346 - Ott, after the statement, said that he tried 653 00:34:14,387 --> 00:34:16,931 to clean everything up, but there was still spots 654 00:34:16,973 --> 00:34:18,808 of blood on the carpet. 655 00:34:21,019 --> 00:34:23,688 - NARRATOR: Tim accompanies investigators to his apartment 656 00:34:23,730 --> 00:34:29,235 on April 8th, 15 days after Bernie's murder. 657 00:34:29,277 --> 00:34:31,571 - He brings the detectives to his house. 658 00:34:31,613 --> 00:34:34,616 He shows them where the event took place. 659 00:34:34,657 --> 00:34:36,659 There is still a little bit of blood there, 660 00:34:36,701 --> 00:34:38,453 even though he said he had cleaned it. 661 00:34:38,495 --> 00:34:41,414 It just came together. 662 00:34:41,456 --> 00:34:44,918 - When we, uh, did the follow-up investigation 663 00:34:44,959 --> 00:34:50,215 at Mister Ott's apartment, when w-with Luminol, 664 00:34:50,256 --> 00:34:53,593 we discovered a great amount of blood there. 665 00:34:56,137 --> 00:34:59,474 Our discovery is consistent 666 00:34:59,516 --> 00:35:02,352 with the explanation that the, 667 00:35:02,394 --> 00:35:05,563 uh, incident, the, uh, blunt trauma, 668 00:35:05,605 --> 00:35:08,024 was initially induced in the bedroom 669 00:35:08,066 --> 00:35:11,528 of Mister Ott's apartment, and adds credibility 670 00:35:11,569 --> 00:35:14,572 to the confession that was obtained. 671 00:35:17,992 --> 00:35:20,495 - NARRATOR: Detectives formally charge Tim Ott 672 00:35:20,537 --> 00:35:23,623 with first-degree murder. 673 00:35:23,665 --> 00:35:25,750 But before they go after Patty, 674 00:35:25,792 --> 00:35:29,421 they circle back to Bernie's family and uncover more evidence 675 00:35:29,462 --> 00:35:33,550 about the extent of her deceptions. 676 00:35:33,591 --> 00:35:35,301 - Patty was a manipulative con artist, 677 00:35:35,343 --> 00:35:40,432 her primary means of income was frivolous lawsuits that she won. 678 00:35:40,473 --> 00:35:42,392 - If you, you start to look at her background 679 00:35:42,434 --> 00:35:46,479 you go wow, you know, this was a, a culmination 680 00:35:46,521 --> 00:35:51,568 of a lotta years of her going around and scamming people, 681 00:35:51,609 --> 00:35:54,654 and getting what she wants. 682 00:35:54,696 --> 00:35:57,615 - She was using me in a lot of her scams and cons. 683 00:35:57,657 --> 00:35:59,617 I was the focus for her scams, 684 00:35:59,659 --> 00:36:02,912 because I was the easiest to manipulate. 685 00:36:02,954 --> 00:36:06,666 - One of the scams that Patricia did was, uh, 686 00:36:06,708 --> 00:36:10,128 she went and told everybody her son Nicholas was deaf. 687 00:36:10,170 --> 00:36:14,799 She tried to raise money, uh, for Nicholas and for the family. 688 00:36:14,841 --> 00:36:16,968 - We would go to library and she would check out books 689 00:36:17,010 --> 00:36:19,971 on American Sign Language and, you know, she would try 690 00:36:20,013 --> 00:36:23,725 to teach it to Nicholas and have him do to it back to her. 691 00:36:23,767 --> 00:36:27,687 - She used this as a way to scam churches out of money. 692 00:36:31,024 --> 00:36:34,486 - NARRATOR: On top of using her children for financial gain, 693 00:36:34,527 --> 00:36:37,030 Patty isolated them from the outside world 694 00:36:37,072 --> 00:36:39,949 as much as possible. 695 00:36:39,991 --> 00:36:43,495 - Neighbors were shocked to find out that Patty had children. 696 00:36:43,536 --> 00:36:46,623 They said they had never seen them before. 697 00:36:46,664 --> 00:36:48,583 - We never really left the house. 698 00:36:48,625 --> 00:36:50,502 Maybe we were allowed to go to the backyard, 699 00:36:50,543 --> 00:36:52,671 but we didn't, you know, play on the street. 700 00:36:52,712 --> 00:36:55,674 We didn't go outside really, people didn't really see us. 701 00:36:55,715 --> 00:36:57,509 - NARRATOR: According to Bernie's family, 702 00:36:57,550 --> 00:37:01,012 Patty even kept them from their own family. 703 00:37:01,054 --> 00:37:03,973 - I know that she was trying to cause a rift, 704 00:37:04,015 --> 00:37:08,645 not only just between him and his family, 705 00:37:08,687 --> 00:37:10,855 but between him and us. 706 00:37:10,897 --> 00:37:13,608 One of the stipulations working as a park ranger 707 00:37:13,650 --> 00:37:15,318 is that you're on site. 708 00:37:15,360 --> 00:37:18,988 And she would hardly ever let him see us. 709 00:37:19,030 --> 00:37:22,909 She was completely trying to isolate us three from everybody. 710 00:37:24,285 --> 00:37:28,248 - We were kids, we absolutely trusted Patty implicitly. 711 00:37:28,289 --> 00:37:30,750 We didn't really know any better. 712 00:37:32,877 --> 00:37:35,463 - It was clear that those children 713 00:37:35,505 --> 00:37:39,426 suffered years of abuse by Patty. 714 00:37:39,467 --> 00:37:42,387 - Her being so abusive to the children 715 00:37:42,429 --> 00:37:45,390 and involved in so many other scams, 716 00:37:45,432 --> 00:37:47,892 the police come up with she was this person 717 00:37:47,934 --> 00:37:50,854 that can manipulate someone to commit a murder. 718 00:37:53,314 --> 00:37:54,774 - NARRATOR: Coming up: 719 00:37:54,816 --> 00:37:59,946 A layered motive exposes he twisted mind of a criminal. 720 00:37:59,988 --> 00:38:03,033 - She had him take out a life insurance policy on himself. 721 00:38:03,074 --> 00:38:07,662 - She tells them that she has suffered abuse the entire time. 722 00:38:07,704 --> 00:38:10,498 - She knew how people were sympathetic to her, 723 00:38:10,540 --> 00:38:12,208 and she knew how to manipulate them. 724 00:38:29,184 --> 00:38:31,770 - NARRATOR: After learning more about Patty James' 725 00:38:31,811 --> 00:38:35,106 capacity for manipulation and violence, 726 00:38:35,148 --> 00:38:38,151 investigators are nearly certain she's responsible 727 00:38:38,193 --> 00:38:42,697 for the murder of her husband, Bernie James. 728 00:38:42,739 --> 00:38:44,407 - At this point, um, we're realizing 729 00:38:44,449 --> 00:38:45,992 that she was capable of doing that. 730 00:38:46,034 --> 00:38:48,119 They think she is. Now they're trying to figure out 731 00:38:48,161 --> 00:38:50,789 what her motive was to have him killed. 732 00:38:50,830 --> 00:38:53,625 - NARRATOR: Investigators believe Patty felt forced to act 733 00:38:53,667 --> 00:38:56,711 when Bernie decided to leave her. 734 00:38:56,753 --> 00:39:00,840 - In my opinion, she realized that, ah, 735 00:39:00,882 --> 00:39:05,512 her husband, Bernie, was going to divorce her 736 00:39:05,553 --> 00:39:09,516 and she couldn't handle it. 737 00:39:09,557 --> 00:39:11,768 - Patty couldn't stand rejection. 738 00:39:11,810 --> 00:39:13,311 And this would have been her third- 739 00:39:13,353 --> 00:39:15,063 If, if my father had successfully divorced her, 740 00:39:15,105 --> 00:39:17,190 it would have been her third divorce. 741 00:39:17,232 --> 00:39:20,026 - NARRATOR: Investigators contact Bernie's insurance agent 742 00:39:20,068 --> 00:39:23,196 and learn of another possible motive. 743 00:39:23,238 --> 00:39:25,281 - Before my father died, she had him take out 744 00:39:25,323 --> 00:39:27,659 a life insurance policy on himself 745 00:39:27,701 --> 00:39:29,327 and had all three of his children 746 00:39:29,369 --> 00:39:31,037 declared non-beneficiaries. 747 00:39:31,079 --> 00:39:33,873 So Patty was the only beneficiary to his policy. 748 00:39:37,293 --> 00:39:41,172 - With the physical evidence, Tim Ott's confession, 749 00:39:41,214 --> 00:39:45,093 the life insurance policies, and the history of abuse 750 00:39:45,135 --> 00:39:48,096 and manipulation, detectives now believe 751 00:39:48,138 --> 00:39:50,056 they have enough for an arrest warrant. 752 00:39:52,100 --> 00:39:57,480 - NARRATOR: On June 8, 1987, investigators make their move. 753 00:39:57,522 --> 00:39:59,399 Police were able to build their case 754 00:39:59,441 --> 00:40:02,569 and meet with the prosecutors that led to her arrest 755 00:40:02,610 --> 00:40:04,738 at the childrens' school. 756 00:40:04,779 --> 00:40:07,157 - The police go to the school. 757 00:40:07,198 --> 00:40:08,450 She drops off the kids. 758 00:40:08,491 --> 00:40:12,120 She sees police, and they effect the arrest on her 759 00:40:12,162 --> 00:40:14,330 for first-degree murder. 760 00:40:17,625 --> 00:40:19,419 - NARRATOR: Now in custody, Patty says 761 00:40:19,461 --> 00:40:22,964 she is finally ready to come clean. 762 00:40:23,006 --> 00:40:26,259 - She tells them that she has suffered abuse 763 00:40:26,301 --> 00:40:28,636 the entire time she's been married to Bernie, 764 00:40:28,678 --> 00:40:32,015 and she just couldn't take it anymore. 765 00:40:32,057 --> 00:40:33,391 - NARRATOR: But according to Patty, 766 00:40:33,433 --> 00:40:36,895 it wasn't really "her" who orchestrated the plot... 767 00:40:38,563 --> 00:40:41,858 - She literally drops her head down. 768 00:40:41,900 --> 00:40:45,779 It's quiet for a few seconds, she pops up and then she goes, 769 00:40:45,820 --> 00:40:48,156 ah, "I don't remember anything about this murder. 770 00:40:48,198 --> 00:40:51,201 I don't remember being a part of the murder. 771 00:40:51,242 --> 00:40:57,082 It must have been TJ, who is another personality in me." 772 00:40:58,667 --> 00:41:00,794 - NARRATOR: Investigators are not convinced, 773 00:41:00,835 --> 00:41:03,922 and she remains in custody to await trial. 774 00:41:10,136 --> 00:41:13,139 While Patty is ready to take her chances in court, 775 00:41:13,181 --> 00:41:16,768 her accomplice isn't willing to risk it. 776 00:41:16,810 --> 00:41:19,104 - So rather than take his chances with a jury, 777 00:41:19,145 --> 00:41:22,565 Tim decides to take a plea for second-degree murder 778 00:41:22,607 --> 00:41:25,860 and testify against Patty. 779 00:41:25,902 --> 00:41:28,738 - NARRATOR: On November 30th, 1987, 780 00:41:28,780 --> 00:41:30,865 Patty's trial kicks off. 781 00:41:32,951 --> 00:41:37,622 - The prosecutor painted Patty as being the manipulative one 782 00:41:37,664 --> 00:41:41,084 who set up the murder of her husband. 783 00:41:41,126 --> 00:41:45,213 The defense came back and said this was all Tim Ott's dealing. 784 00:41:45,255 --> 00:41:47,007 He was the one who did the murder, 785 00:41:47,048 --> 00:41:49,718 and Patty was the victim of the case. 786 00:41:54,014 --> 00:41:55,807 - NARRATOR: When both sides rest, 787 00:41:55,849 --> 00:42:00,020 it's hard to tell what the jury will believe. 788 00:42:00,061 --> 00:42:03,857 - There was, uh, one juror who stopped listening, 789 00:42:03,898 --> 00:42:06,026 stopped looking at the evidence, 790 00:42:06,067 --> 00:42:09,446 would not engage in discussions. 791 00:42:09,487 --> 00:42:11,656 When it went back to the jury, 792 00:42:11,698 --> 00:42:15,994 and he refused to 793 00:42:16,036 --> 00:42:17,746 say guilty or not guilty. 794 00:42:17,787 --> 00:42:21,374 He just refused to, uh, work, and that point 795 00:42:21,416 --> 00:42:24,919 the court had no choice but to enter a mistrial. 796 00:42:24,961 --> 00:42:26,796 - NARRATOR: But in Patty's second trial, 797 00:42:26,838 --> 00:42:29,966 she is quickly convicted of first-degree murder 798 00:42:30,008 --> 00:42:33,219 and sentenced to life in prison. 799 00:42:36,514 --> 00:42:38,016 - I think they did a great job 800 00:42:38,058 --> 00:42:39,768 with building the case against her 801 00:42:39,809 --> 00:42:43,438 and showing what a manipulative person she was. 802 00:42:43,480 --> 00:42:45,732 - If the word evil could be applied to a person, 803 00:42:45,774 --> 00:42:47,859 it would definitely be applied to Patty. 804 00:42:47,901 --> 00:42:53,323 She has no conscience, no compassion, no remorse. 805 00:42:53,365 --> 00:42:56,159 She truly doesn't care about anyone else but herself. 806 00:42:57,827 --> 00:43:02,207 - I don't view her as human, 807 00:43:02,248 --> 00:43:04,751 that's why I called her my evil step monster, 808 00:43:04,793 --> 00:43:07,671 it's because she is pure evil. 809 00:43:07,712 --> 00:43:09,589 - If I could talk to my father right now 810 00:43:09,631 --> 00:43:12,676 I would say, you know, "I wish you'd never married Patty. 811 00:43:12,717 --> 00:43:15,553 I wish you'd ne-never met her. 812 00:43:15,595 --> 00:43:18,515 I wish we'd been closer because I-I do miss you. 813 00:43:18,556 --> 00:43:20,058 I miss you tremendously." 814 00:43:24,312 --> 00:43:30,151 - *