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00:00:13,440 --> 00:00:17,200
[Dickens] The "What if?" that's a...
that's a question every day.
2
00:00:20,360 --> 00:00:23,000
What if I didn't go in there?
What if I didn't kill him?
3
00:00:23,080 --> 00:00:25,360
What if I never fired a shot?
4
00:00:27,320 --> 00:00:28,680
[gunshot]
5
00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:30,840
You beat yourself up
with these questions.
6
00:00:32,560 --> 00:00:38,320
That's pretty much all your life is
in here, is... self-reflection and, uh...
7
00:00:40,240 --> 00:00:42,360
thinking about the things that go on,
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00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:47,240
the things that didn't go on,
and the things that you wish could go on.
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00:01:11,760 --> 00:01:13,720
My name is Justin Wiley Dickens.
10
00:01:16,000 --> 00:01:19,080
I was convicted of capital murder
and a robbery/homicide.
11
00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:21,000
And I received the death penalty.
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[man 1]
And I walked up, I fired one shot.
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And as I got closer,
I fired one more shot.
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00:01:37,120 --> 00:01:40,720
[man 2] She was shot through the cheek
and it stopped in her jaw.
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00:01:41,960 --> 00:01:46,240
[man 3] I drove him around behind a desk
and I stabbed him approximately 25 times.
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[man 4] I couldn't believe it.
17
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I just thought I can't believe
I just killed somebody.
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[man 5]
I don't feel bad about it. [laughs] [man 6] I started stabbing him,
stabbing the guy on the couch.
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[Dickens] I was born in Amarillo, Texas,
July 1976.
20
00:03:06,720 --> 00:03:10,520
I was born two months premature
because my mom was using cocaine.
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00:03:13,880 --> 00:03:15,800
I mean, it was an off-and-on struggle,
22
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but my parents kind of held it together
until I was 13.
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Then they completely split up for good.
24
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And then, uh...
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you know, it was just rocky.
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I'd run the streets with my mom,
you know.
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She was...
She was just a homeless drug addict
28
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who, you know, would just commit
petty thefts at stores,
29
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and we'd do drugs together
and go to jail together
30
00:03:42,800 --> 00:03:47,360
and bond out and just keep repeating
and repeating and repeating.
31
00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:55,280
Dallas Moore was a local tattoo artist
32
00:03:55,360 --> 00:04:01,520
and he was a... real charming character,
fast-talker, slick,
33
00:04:01,600 --> 00:04:04,840
got everybody under his wing
and as close to him as he could.
34
00:04:07,920 --> 00:04:11,800
Being lost as a kid
and looking for a father figure,
35
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I was just drawn to him
and I was just kind of brainwashed by him.
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00:04:18,399 --> 00:04:20,759
Martha was Dallas Moore's fiancée.
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00:04:22,280 --> 00:04:25,360
If they didn't have
such a severe drug habit,
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00:04:25,440 --> 00:04:27,600
they would've been really cool friends.
39
00:04:46,640 --> 00:04:49,840
I met Dallas and Martha
when I was about 15 years old.
40
00:04:51,080 --> 00:04:53,480
After me and my friend stole
a bunch of weed,
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00:04:55,560 --> 00:04:58,600
I went to Dallas Moore's house
to see if he wanted to buy it.
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They was having a big cocaine party.
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00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:04,080
Everybody shooting the cocaine.
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00:05:07,320 --> 00:05:11,400
I told him I didn't want to try any
because my mom was a drug addict,
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00:05:11,480 --> 00:05:13,880
and I seen what needles do to people.
46
00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:19,520
But he said it was just a mental thing,
it wasn't a physical thing,
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00:05:20,640 --> 00:05:23,640
so he eventually got me
to snort some cocaine.
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00:05:25,680 --> 00:05:28,000
And about a day or two after that,
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00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:31,120
of, you know, around the clock
hanging out and drinking,
50
00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:36,280
he finally broke me down
to try shooting the cocaine.
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00:05:46,040 --> 00:05:49,080
And once I shot the cocaine,
we never snorted it again.
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00:05:52,560 --> 00:05:55,000
I was just kind of lost.
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00:06:03,880 --> 00:06:08,960
When I was 17, we was partying
for about a week straight.
54
00:06:10,040 --> 00:06:12,560
And Dallas passed out.
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He was asleep in the bed
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and Martha went into his pocket
and took an ounce of cocaine.
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00:06:22,880 --> 00:06:25,520
And she alone used a bunch of it.
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And before the sun came up,
she was in a panic.
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And asked me and my fall partner,
Craig Pennell, to drive her around
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00:06:36,920 --> 00:06:41,840
to try to sell some to get the money
to pay Dallas before he woke up.
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00:06:44,680 --> 00:06:47,400
When you're a drug addict,
alls you can think about is drugs.
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The repercussions of whatever it is
are out of sight.
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You don't think about that.
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We couldn't sell any of it.
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And all three of us ended up
doing the rest of the cocaine.
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00:07:01,240 --> 00:07:03,240
[bell ringing]
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00:07:03,960 --> 00:07:07,160
And on the last stop we made
before we dropped Martha off,
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00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:10,520
we heard Dallas Moore
was after us with a pistol.
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00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:27,200
When Dallas caught up with me,
it was about 2:00 in the morning.
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00:07:31,320 --> 00:07:33,640
I was asleep on Craig's couch.
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I woke up with a knife to my throat.
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A local drug addict named Eddie Ramos
was with him.
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And they were talking about
how they were gonna kill me.
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00:07:52,120 --> 00:07:55,640
Craig came in
and then Dallas started beating us up
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and slapping us around with the pistol.
76
00:08:00,280 --> 00:08:05,040
And then he told us to follow him
back over to his house.
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So, we went out there and, uh...
78
00:08:12,560 --> 00:08:14,640
he pretty much blamed it all on me.
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00:08:18,840 --> 00:08:23,120
He told me that I was to take Martha
to the Amarillo Blvd.
80
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and pimp her out while she turns tricks
to raise the money.
81
00:08:28,360 --> 00:08:29,760
But when I agreed to it...
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00:08:30,640 --> 00:08:33,280
he busted my nose
and almost knocked me out.
83
00:08:34,080 --> 00:08:36,680
Saying, "Oh, you would allow Martha
to go pimp herself?" And he told me
I was gonna get his money.
84
00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:45,680
And he pointed to a ski mask
that he had hanging on the wall.
85
00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:49,720
And when gets in a jam,
he handles his business with the ski mask,
86
00:08:50,280 --> 00:08:53,160
and he said, "I expect you
to do the same thing, too.
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I don't care what you do.
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You're just gonna get me my money."
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00:09:07,200 --> 00:09:09,800
Me and Craig took off in Craig's truck.
90
00:09:12,520 --> 00:09:16,680
The only place I knew where to get a gun
was my great-grandfather's house,
91
00:09:16,760 --> 00:09:17,960
way out in the country.
92
00:09:23,280 --> 00:09:27,040
So, we drive back into town, and I'm like,
"Pull over here, pull over here,"
93
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you know, just trying to find something
that we could do.
94
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And he's like, "No, I know a place
over by my grandparents' house."
95
00:09:34,560 --> 00:09:36,720
So we drive across Amarillo.
96
00:09:39,120 --> 00:09:43,640
We get to the Mockingbird
Pawn and Jewelry store.
97
00:09:54,800 --> 00:09:56,200
Looking back on it now,
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00:09:56,840 --> 00:09:59,160
there's no predicting
that was gonna happen,
99
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but the day felt wrong.
The day felt wrong.
100
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[gun clicks]
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The reason why I went through with it:
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because my fear of Dallas overrode
103
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my fear of the repercussions
of what the law would do.
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00:10:27,520 --> 00:10:30,280
I walked up to the door,
and the door had a buzzer lock on it.
105
00:10:30,680 --> 00:10:34,320
[buzzing]
106
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So, they seen me in there
and they buzzed me in.
107
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I said I was getting married
and I'd like to try on a ring.
108
00:10:47,200 --> 00:10:51,480
And, uh, they turned their back on me.
When they turned their back on me...
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00:10:54,000 --> 00:10:55,840
I pulled the gun out and cocked it.
110
00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:02,360
And I said, "Get down on the ground.
I ain't shitting you, I'll kill you."
111
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Mr. Jacobs laid where I couldn't see him.
112
00:11:08,680 --> 00:11:14,160
And Mr. Carter laid between
the two counters with his head facing me
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just, like, five feet away.
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I froze up.
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I mean, I was totally out of my element.
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I should've just said, "Put your hands up
and give me some money
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and let me out," but hindsight's 20/20.
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00:11:38,400 --> 00:11:41,760
Then out of nowhere, Mr. Carter came up
with a shoulder tackle...
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and picked me up off my feet.
120
00:11:46,760 --> 00:11:48,960
It was just a lightning-strike tackle.
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He never said nothing the whole time.
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-He slammed me into the wall.
-[thudding]
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And I just shrugged up and fired a shot...
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-[gunshot]
-...that hit him in the torso.
125
00:12:06,120 --> 00:12:10,720
Then I slid down the wall with my pistol
raised straight in the air like that.
126
00:12:11,560 --> 00:12:13,600
He grabbed the barrel of the gun
while he was leaning over me
127
00:12:13,680 --> 00:12:16,640
and he jerked the gun straight up,
and the bullet fired through his hand
128
00:12:16,720 --> 00:12:18,080
and hit him in the forehead.
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00:12:18,160 --> 00:12:19,160
[gunshot]
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00:12:23,720 --> 00:12:25,720
And I was like, "Oh, no."
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Mr. Jacobs, he ran out the side door.
132
00:12:40,040 --> 00:12:41,920
And I tried to get out
out the front door.
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So I shot the last two shots
into the lock...
134
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and I missed it.
135
00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:51,760
I started ramming it with my head,
kicking it...
136
00:12:52,440 --> 00:12:54,080
but I couldn't get out.
137
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So I ran out the back door.
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And I looked to the left,
and Craig was driving away without me.
139
00:13:03,680 --> 00:13:05,560
He looked right at me,
and we made eye contact,
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and he just kept on going.
141
00:13:06,760 --> 00:13:09,880
I thought, "Nah,"
you know, "Story of my life."
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So I took off running.
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I just thought...
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00:13:18,400 --> 00:13:20,200
I can't believe I just killed somebody.
145
00:13:23,800 --> 00:13:28,880
That thought was just on a loop
over and over and over on my mind.
146
00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:35,760
There wasn't no
"Am I gonna get away with this?"
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Nothing. I just... I was stunned.
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00:13:54,520 --> 00:13:56,160
[camera shutter clicking]
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[tape recorder clicks]
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[Campos] For the record, Justin,
would you identify yourself?
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00:14:03,720 --> 00:14:06,400
I'm Sergeant Campos.
This is Sergeant Montano.
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What's your name, full name?
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[Dickens] Justin Wiley Dickens.
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[Campos] Okay.
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00:14:11,200 --> 00:14:15,080
[Dickens] They said,
"Sir, we know what happened.
156
00:14:15,880 --> 00:14:17,880
Your fall partner,
Craig Pennell, is over here.
157
00:14:17,960 --> 00:14:19,480
He's done told us everything."
158
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I just hung my head
and started crying.
159
00:14:23,160 --> 00:14:25,200
I said, "I'm sorry.
I didn't mean to kill nobody.
160
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I didn't mean to kill nobody,"
and I left it at that.
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[Campos] Could you start
from the beginning, if it was planned?
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-Will you tell us?
-[Dickens] It wasn't planned.
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I didn't know there was a death penalty,
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but I knew I was... in deep trouble.
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[train bell ringing]
166
00:15:21,400 --> 00:15:22,960
[birds chirping]
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[Farren] The robbery and murder
at the Mockingbird Street Jewelry
168
00:15:27,360 --> 00:15:29,920
occurred March 12th, 1994.
169
00:15:31,160 --> 00:15:35,760
It was the first major case I tried
after becoming district attorney.
170
00:15:37,120 --> 00:15:41,040
Justin Wiley Dickens
was a volatile individual.
171
00:15:41,920 --> 00:15:45,400
I think he suffered
from sort of a Napoleonic complex.
172
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He realized he wasn't a large fellow,
173
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and he compensated for that
by strutting and trying to demonstrate
174
00:15:54,360 --> 00:15:57,160
that he was a big, bad, dangerous guy.
175
00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:03,560
As far as his... rationalization,
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00:16:03,640 --> 00:16:05,920
justification for committing the robbery,
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00:16:06,000 --> 00:16:09,600
being that he's afraid
of Dallas Moore,
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00:16:10,320 --> 00:16:15,720
I think is true of most falsehoods,
most lies--
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00:16:15,800 --> 00:16:19,360
you mix in some truth with the lie,
and it makes it more believable.
180
00:16:20,640 --> 00:16:27,040
I think it was more of a humiliation
than any serious beating he took.
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00:16:29,800 --> 00:16:31,920
I think he was beside himself
182
00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:36,520
when he was humiliated
in front of other people who knew him
183
00:16:36,600 --> 00:16:41,520
because, again, his driving desire
was to convince everybody that...
184
00:16:41,880 --> 00:16:45,560
"I may not be very big, physically,
but I'm a dangerous guy.
185
00:16:45,640 --> 00:16:47,240
You don't want to mess with me."
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00:16:51,880 --> 00:16:54,920
I believe, and I think
the evidence demonstrated,
187
00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:59,960
that's exactly what happened
in the Mockingbird Street Jewelry robbery.
188
00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:03,920
Francis Allen Carter
tried to approach him
189
00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:07,600
and convince him
to abandon this robbery attempt.
190
00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:11,760
"Put down the gun. Don't do this.
You're gonna ruin your life.
191
00:17:11,839 --> 00:17:14,999
Let me talk to you. Let's talk about this.
You don't want to do this."
192
00:17:16,960 --> 00:17:20,000
Dickens responded,
as he always did, violently,
193
00:17:20,240 --> 00:17:22,520
and shot and killed Francis Allen Carter.
194
00:17:22,599 --> 00:17:25,159
-[gunshot]
-[thuds]
195
00:17:25,960 --> 00:17:28,360
Part of Dickens' defense was that...
196
00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:34,080
Francis Allen Carter
provoked his use of the weapon.
197
00:17:35,280 --> 00:17:38,560
And that's one of the questions
the jury has to answer--
198
00:17:38,760 --> 00:17:42,840
whether or not the victim provoked
the acts of the defendant.
199
00:17:43,840 --> 00:17:45,880
If the answer to that is "yes,"
200
00:17:45,960 --> 00:17:50,440
then, by law, the death penalty's
not a possibility.
201
00:17:52,320 --> 00:17:56,880
There's no way that kind of struggle
was occurring while he was being shot.
202
00:17:58,920 --> 00:18:04,320
It would be impossible
for what he describes to have occurred
203
00:18:04,400 --> 00:18:06,440
and not have blood all over him.
204
00:18:09,000 --> 00:18:15,160
The forensic evidence is consistent
with him being a sufficient distance away
205
00:18:15,360 --> 00:18:18,480
from Francis Allen Carter
while those rounds are being fired.
206
00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:23,240
I don't think Jacobs saw a struggle.
207
00:18:24,680 --> 00:18:28,800
I think he just made the assumption
that that was going to happen.
208
00:18:30,280 --> 00:18:32,520
Once he came up off the floor,
209
00:18:32,600 --> 00:18:36,200
there was only one thing on his mind,
and that was fleeing out the door.
210
00:18:37,200 --> 00:18:42,320
I think that's what caused Dickens
to panic and start pulling the trigger,
211
00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:46,040
not a bull rush
from Francis Allen Carter.
212
00:18:50,480 --> 00:18:55,240
Justin Wiley Dickens deserved
the sentence he received from the jury.
213
00:18:55,320 --> 00:18:59,120
He deserved the death penalty
because of the kind of person he was
214
00:18:59,200 --> 00:19:02,840
and because of what he did,
but also because of the victim
215
00:19:03,440 --> 00:19:05,760
that he chose to take from all us.
216
00:19:06,920 --> 00:19:11,680
Francis Allen Carter, he was absolutely
one of the most exemplary human beings
217
00:19:11,760 --> 00:19:16,240
I have ever heard about,
and Dickens robbed all of us of that.
218
00:19:31,360 --> 00:19:32,840
I'm Barbalee Blair.
219
00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:38,600
I taught with Allen from 1978
until his death in 1994.
220
00:19:39,760 --> 00:19:41,280
And I'm Kim Leal,
221
00:19:41,360 --> 00:19:45,320
and I was in Mr. Carter's
junior English class.
222
00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:54,520
And I've since moved on to teach English
in the very same classroom
223
00:19:54,600 --> 00:19:57,680
that I took junior English
with Mr. Carter.
224
00:20:02,560 --> 00:20:05,920
[Blair] Allen was a complex,
225
00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:10,000
dynamic, interesting, conflicting,
226
00:20:10,080 --> 00:20:14,240
confusing man who loved kids.
227
00:20:15,080 --> 00:20:16,600
[Leal] He looks so young.
228
00:20:17,520 --> 00:20:19,200
-He was.
-He was.
229
00:20:19,280 --> 00:20:22,520
Well, technically, he was 50,
but he sure didn't act 50.
230
00:20:24,240 --> 00:20:26,120
[Blair] The kids he helped the most
231
00:20:26,200 --> 00:20:29,760
were the kids who would be those
who slipped between the cracks.
232
00:20:30,160 --> 00:20:32,120
There were no cracks for Allen.
233
00:20:32,440 --> 00:20:35,240
The ones who might not make it
234
00:20:35,320 --> 00:20:37,880
were going to make it
because of Allen Carter.
235
00:20:38,200 --> 00:20:41,120
[Leal] He recognized the underdog,
always.
236
00:20:41,560 --> 00:20:44,200
[Blair]
He simply would not let a child fail.
237
00:20:45,160 --> 00:20:47,440
[birds chirping]
238
00:20:47,520 --> 00:20:49,760
[Blair]
That night when we first heard it,
239
00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:53,520
nobody had a clue
that there had been a robbery
240
00:20:53,600 --> 00:20:55,840
or that he had been shot.
241
00:20:56,920 --> 00:20:58,800
We just knew he had died.
242
00:21:00,880 --> 00:21:04,840
But the next day at school,
details began to come out.
243
00:21:05,160 --> 00:21:09,480
And that's when I remember us all,
all the teachers in the teachers' lounge,
244
00:21:09,560 --> 00:21:12,680
talking about how would Allen
have reacted.
245
00:21:13,120 --> 00:21:16,040
What would Allen have done
in an armed robbery?
246
00:21:16,120 --> 00:21:18,320
What would you do?
What would I do?
247
00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:24,880
None of us could see Allen confronting
somebody with a gun physically.
248
00:21:25,240 --> 00:21:29,480
Strong, dynamic,
all those things are true,
249
00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:32,960
but I can't imagine Allen
rushing a gunman.
250
00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:35,880
Just not his character.
It's not his nature.
251
00:21:35,960 --> 00:21:37,800
It's not the way he would behave. But I can imagine him talking
252
00:21:40,080 --> 00:21:45,240
with every bit of force and vigor
and push that he could
253
00:21:45,600 --> 00:21:51,160
to try to get this kid, whoever he was,
to see what he was doing.
254
00:21:51,240 --> 00:21:54,280
That this is not acceptable,
this is not okay.
255
00:21:56,240 --> 00:22:02,080
And Allen would have expected
that the child would comply,
256
00:22:02,160 --> 00:22:04,160
understand, see that,
257
00:22:04,840 --> 00:22:07,320
but, of course,
that's not the way it happened.
258
00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:45,880
My name is Rus Bailey.
259
00:22:45,960 --> 00:22:49,360
I was the lead attorney
for the trial of Justin Wiley Dickens.
260
00:22:53,880 --> 00:22:56,480
Justin, to me, seemed to be
a fairly decent young man.
261
00:22:56,560 --> 00:22:59,880
I'm not gonna say he was wonderful based
upon what had happened at this point,
262
00:22:59,960 --> 00:23:02,400
but, you know, I liked him.
263
00:23:03,040 --> 00:23:04,960
-[waitress] How are you?
-[Bailey] Fine, thank you.
264
00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:07,120
-Good.
-Thank you very much.
265
00:23:08,840 --> 00:23:10,960
[Bailey] Any time you have
a capital murder trial,
266
00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:14,400
chances are, in all likelihood,
they're gonna ask for the death penalty.
267
00:23:14,880 --> 00:23:17,360
That's the only reason to file
for a capital murder charge.
268
00:23:17,920 --> 00:23:22,440
The first thing we did was plead guilty
to involuntary manslaughter,
269
00:23:22,520 --> 00:23:26,600
which is a lesser included offense
as part of the charges against Justin.
270
00:23:29,680 --> 00:23:35,760
Now, the issue here is whether or not
Justin really intended to kill Mr. Carter
271
00:23:35,840 --> 00:23:38,400
because he felt like it
or even because he wanted to.
272
00:23:39,280 --> 00:23:42,080
I mean, Mr. Farren read
the same reports I did.
273
00:23:42,640 --> 00:23:46,680
And realistically, the only way
this could have taken place is this way.
274
00:23:48,960 --> 00:23:51,080
When Justin pulled the gun,
275
00:23:51,760 --> 00:23:55,560
there was a counter between Justin
and the two individuals
276
00:23:55,640 --> 00:23:57,840
that were in that store
at that point in time.
277
00:24:00,000 --> 00:24:02,080
He did tell both parties to get down.
278
00:24:02,640 --> 00:24:08,320
And with that point, he realized
he was making a very foolish mistake.
279
00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:12,720
And I think as a result of him
turning his back on Mr. Carter,
280
00:24:12,800 --> 00:24:14,920
Mr. Carter came across that counter.
281
00:24:15,440 --> 00:24:20,120
And in the course of events was shot
when they were fighting for that gun.
282
00:24:24,400 --> 00:24:27,320
There was an eye-witness-- Mr. Jacobs.
283
00:24:27,560 --> 00:24:32,760
But he wouldn't sign his statement
unless he got approval from Mr. Farren.
284
00:24:33,960 --> 00:24:36,720
I'm not too sure why he needed
Mr. Farren's approval,
285
00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:41,080
because I knew if... I knew
if I gave a statement to somebody,
286
00:24:41,160 --> 00:24:43,720
I would live with that statement
because it's true.
287
00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:48,440
[Farren on recording]
The forensic evidence is consistent
288
00:24:48,520 --> 00:24:52,120
with him being a sufficient distance away
289
00:24:52,200 --> 00:24:54,720
from Francis Allen Carter
while those rounds are being fired.
290
00:24:55,840 --> 00:24:58,600
[Bailey] I just can't fathom
that they actually accepted that.
291
00:24:58,680 --> 00:25:00,640
I would have assumed
that the police department
292
00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:04,400
would have at least what they call
string or strung the room
293
00:25:04,760 --> 00:25:08,760
to determine where the bullets went
and where they came from.
294
00:25:08,920 --> 00:25:11,600
This would have proven
or shown, possibly,
295
00:25:11,680 --> 00:25:15,160
about the fight between
Justin Dickens and Mr. Carter.
296
00:25:15,880 --> 00:25:17,120
But they never strung it.
297
00:25:17,680 --> 00:25:19,320
They didn't think it was relevant.
298
00:25:19,400 --> 00:25:21,480
It could have made
a big difference for us. Then again, the police department
doesn't work for the defense,
299
00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:25,720
they work for the State of Texas.
300
00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:26,800
[chuckles]
301
00:25:30,520 --> 00:25:32,720
Justin, to me, seemed to be
a very young man
302
00:25:32,800 --> 00:25:34,800
that was just scared to death.
303
00:25:36,440 --> 00:25:41,120
What we were able to ascertain
is that Dallas Moore had threatened him
304
00:25:41,200 --> 00:25:44,040
to get him some money back
for something that he, Justin,
305
00:25:44,560 --> 00:25:47,520
and Mr. Moore's wife
had supposedly done.
306
00:25:50,120 --> 00:25:52,520
If Dallas Moore had taken the stand,
307
00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:55,920
then it may have come out
that there were a lot more things going on
308
00:25:56,000 --> 00:25:59,080
than the State was willing
to acknowledge to that jury.
309
00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:04,920
And if we could have got his wife there
separately from Dallas,
310
00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:09,800
his wife could have testified as to what
actually happened between him and Justin.
311
00:26:11,520 --> 00:26:13,000
But it was amazing.
312
00:26:13,080 --> 00:26:17,200
All of a sudden, Mr. Moore and a lot
of other witnesses we wanted were gone.
313
00:26:17,680 --> 00:26:19,320
Now, I don't know what happened,
314
00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:24,120
how it got there to that point, but our
investigator could not find him anywhere.
315
00:26:27,040 --> 00:26:29,680
And I'm not saying
the state did anything wrong.
316
00:26:29,760 --> 00:26:32,240
It's just the fact
Dallas was covering his own.
317
00:26:33,040 --> 00:26:35,040
Back side, so to speak. [chuckles]
318
00:26:35,120 --> 00:26:38,800
So, yeah, I can understand him
taking off based on that.
319
00:26:39,440 --> 00:26:41,160
But he sure would have helped us.
320
00:26:47,920 --> 00:26:49,920
[birds chirping]
321
00:26:56,120 --> 00:27:00,320
[Chante] I met Justin two years
before the incident in seventh grade.
322
00:27:01,160 --> 00:27:06,440
We were in a summer school class
together at Sam Houston Summer School.
323
00:27:07,320 --> 00:27:10,040
Just gonna feed him.
Bates! You want to eat, babe?
324
00:27:14,800 --> 00:27:17,000
No leftovers in this house.
325
00:27:20,800 --> 00:27:24,840
Justin, he was a little wild country boy
talking about hog hunting
326
00:27:24,920 --> 00:27:26,800
and, you know, bow and arrows.
327
00:27:27,240 --> 00:27:29,320
He was pretty wild for a kid.
328
00:27:30,920 --> 00:27:33,040
Okay, guys, come on.
329
00:27:34,640 --> 00:27:35,960
Share and be nice.
330
00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:39,480
My father knew his mother from drugs.
331
00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:41,440
Be nice.
332
00:27:42,280 --> 00:27:46,640
So I ended up running into Justin
at my dad's house.
333
00:27:47,520 --> 00:27:50,360
At that moment, I think I realized
that my friends were doing
334
00:27:50,440 --> 00:27:52,000
a little more than smoking a little weed
335
00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:54,160
and having a couple of shots
here and there at a party.
336
00:27:57,080 --> 00:28:01,160
My father, he's really charismatic.
337
00:28:01,240 --> 00:28:03,560
I mean, people are drawn to him.
338
00:28:06,720 --> 00:28:12,040
I would say that he's comparable
to a much more friendly Charles Manson.
339
00:28:12,760 --> 00:28:15,240
He, um... He just can draw the people in.
340
00:28:15,320 --> 00:28:21,160
He has a way of making people
do what he wants them to do.
341
00:28:25,520 --> 00:28:27,760
He was in and out of prison my whole life.
342
00:28:30,200 --> 00:28:35,360
Each time he got out of prison,
instead of getting better, he got worse.
343
00:28:38,040 --> 00:28:41,080
It just seemed like the further it went,
it was like a downward spiral,
344
00:28:41,160 --> 00:28:44,120
you know, more and more charges
until it led to this point,
345
00:28:44,200 --> 00:28:45,640
you know, 25 years later.
346
00:28:49,000 --> 00:28:51,320
The last eight months,
he's been a fugitive
347
00:28:52,520 --> 00:28:57,240
for actually tying up an 83-year-old woman
and hurting her in her home.
348
00:28:57,320 --> 00:28:58,520
A home invasion.
349
00:28:59,040 --> 00:29:00,480
[sniffles] Uh...
350
00:29:00,560 --> 00:29:04,520
something that you wouldn't think
that your father would do, but...
351
00:29:39,400 --> 00:29:41,440
[Moore] Well, my Dad wanted Fort Worth.
352
00:29:42,200 --> 00:29:46,560
My mom wouldn't let him name me
Fort Worth, so I ended up with Dallas.
353
00:29:49,120 --> 00:29:51,720
My name came up,
like, 58 times in this trial, so everybody's wanting to talk to me.
354
00:29:56,400 --> 00:29:58,400
I'm like the star of the show.
355
00:30:00,560 --> 00:30:02,800
I don't lie.
Most people will tell you I don't lie.
356
00:30:02,880 --> 00:30:04,200
I shoot straight from the hip.
357
00:30:07,720 --> 00:30:10,720
[Moore] My daughter introduced me
to Justin. Did she tell you that?
358
00:30:11,280 --> 00:30:12,800
Man, that little shit.
359
00:30:13,280 --> 00:30:16,400
He caused so much trauma in my life.
360
00:30:18,680 --> 00:30:20,160
My wife liked him.
361
00:30:21,520 --> 00:30:24,880
They stole over fucking an ounce from me.
362
00:30:26,280 --> 00:30:27,520
Did he tell you that?
363
00:30:30,160 --> 00:30:32,400
I was asleep.
Took it all from me.
364
00:30:35,560 --> 00:30:38,960
I put my gun to the kid's head
and I said, "We're going to Martha's
365
00:30:39,040 --> 00:30:41,960
and you guys are gonna apologize
for letting her leave my house,
366
00:30:42,040 --> 00:30:43,280
you know, and robbing me.
367
00:30:43,360 --> 00:30:45,120
You're supposed to have been
my friends.
368
00:30:46,840 --> 00:30:49,320
[Dickens on recording]
He pretty much blamed it all on me.
369
00:30:49,400 --> 00:30:52,040
He pointed to a ski mask
that he had hanging on the wall.
370
00:30:52,320 --> 00:30:55,880
And he said, "I don't care what you do.
You're just gonna get me my money."
371
00:30:56,360 --> 00:31:01,960
Whoo, that's a-- I put that on the Bible,
I swear to God.
372
00:31:02,080 --> 00:31:06,040
Man, that is a fictitious lie.
That's a fictitious lie.
373
00:31:07,080 --> 00:31:10,960
I never said boom, boom, boom,
you're gonna go and do this and do that,
374
00:31:11,040 --> 00:31:13,600
go get my money,
and sent him on a robbery.
375
00:31:13,680 --> 00:31:14,520
That is BS.
376
00:31:14,800 --> 00:31:18,360
I did not want no involvement
in his bullshit
377
00:31:18,440 --> 00:31:22,600
and had no idea that he would
fucking goddamn do that.
378
00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:24,720
I let him off.
379
00:31:27,280 --> 00:31:30,400
He didn't really rob me,
my wife robbed me.
380
00:31:31,760 --> 00:31:36,920
So I said, "I want you to take my wife
to the motel and watch her.
381
00:31:37,480 --> 00:31:40,080
Make sure no trick stays with her
more than 15 minutes.
382
00:31:40,160 --> 00:31:43,440
Let her earn my fucking money.
She's the one who took my shit.
383
00:31:44,160 --> 00:31:45,480
Will you do that for me?"
384
00:31:45,560 --> 00:31:48,160
He goes, "Yeah, I'll pimp that bitch."
385
00:31:49,400 --> 00:31:51,200
When he said that, I hit him.
386
00:31:52,080 --> 00:31:53,560
Look at his mugshots.
387
00:31:54,800 --> 00:31:56,920
When he got to,
I wouldn't let him get up.
388
00:31:57,160 --> 00:31:59,720
I kick-stomped his ass
straight out of my house
389
00:31:59,960 --> 00:32:02,360
and I told him,
"Don't you ever come back to my house.
390
00:32:02,440 --> 00:32:07,680
You can't pay me, you can't buy nothing,
you can't do nothing, you can't apologize.
391
00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:10,760
I don't want your piece-of-shit ass
in my house ever again."
392
00:32:11,720 --> 00:32:12,960
That's what I told him.
393
00:32:13,360 --> 00:32:16,200
I'm not gonna be a made out
as some Charles Manson.
394
00:32:16,480 --> 00:32:17,360
You know what I mean?
395
00:32:17,440 --> 00:32:21,560
I don't wanna be no involvement
of that man getting murdered
396
00:32:21,640 --> 00:32:24,520
because I didn't have
no involvement in it.
397
00:32:25,760 --> 00:32:27,040
He didn't owe me nothing.
398
00:32:27,120 --> 00:32:29,800
His debt was paid in full
when I punched him out.
399
00:32:32,520 --> 00:32:36,720
I think he should get a break,
but not a break at my expense to sit there
400
00:32:36,800 --> 00:32:39,720
and say, "I told him
and ordered him to go do that," dude.
401
00:32:39,920 --> 00:32:44,280
I would tell you
if I had said that, but, no, no.
402
00:32:45,280 --> 00:32:49,760
If he went to rob then, he went to rob
that to try to fucking impress my wife.
403
00:33:03,560 --> 00:33:05,720
[crickets chirping]
404
00:33:14,400 --> 00:33:18,200
Well, my name
is Martha Cummins-Bell now.
405
00:33:20,160 --> 00:33:23,760
I got clean from all drugs in '97.
406
00:33:26,200 --> 00:33:28,280
I'm a mom.
I have seven kids.
407
00:33:30,040 --> 00:33:34,840
-Four sandwiches and two salads.
-Okay, thank you.
408
00:33:34,920 --> 00:33:36,920
[Cummins-Bell] I work at an agency
409
00:33:37,000 --> 00:33:41,360
that specializes in treating people
with borderline personality disorder.
410
00:33:42,160 --> 00:33:46,000
Almost always suicidal or self-harming.
411
00:33:46,880 --> 00:33:49,720
So, I can relate to that.
412
00:33:51,080 --> 00:33:53,560
I cut ties with Dallas a long time ago.
413
00:33:55,160 --> 00:33:57,200
So I'm not afraid of him anymore.
414
00:34:11,920 --> 00:34:13,360
[Cummins-Bell] He's just nervous.
415
00:34:14,320 --> 00:34:15,480
[Cummins-Bell chuckles]
416
00:34:15,639 --> 00:34:17,559
[Chante] Oh, God! [laughs]
417
00:34:17,639 --> 00:34:20,039
[Cummins-Bell]
I remember when I met Justin.
418
00:34:25,320 --> 00:34:27,120
I lived in an apartment with Dallas.
419
00:34:27,360 --> 00:34:28,960
-This is cute.
-That one--
420
00:34:29,159 --> 00:34:30,599
[Chante] There's Justin.
421
00:34:30,760 --> 00:34:32,840
[Cummins-Bell] First of all,
I thought he was about 12.
422
00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:34,520
[Chante] There he is right there, Martha.
423
00:34:34,600 --> 00:34:38,840
[Cummins-Bell]
And he was, like, a little street kid.
424
00:34:38,920 --> 00:34:40,680
The little short one is Justin.
425
00:34:41,239 --> 00:34:43,559
There was a real innocence about Justin.
426
00:34:44,239 --> 00:34:45,919
[Chante] Oh, there's Dallas.
427
00:34:46,480 --> 00:34:48,080
[Cummins-Bell]
Dallas was ten years older than me
428
00:34:48,159 --> 00:34:50,559
and I met him
after he had done, I think...
429
00:34:51,480 --> 00:34:55,320
close to ten years
in a Missouri state penitentiary.
430
00:34:56,159 --> 00:35:00,479
I think we were
all kind of sucked into that excitement
431
00:35:00,920 --> 00:35:04,280
and, um... the drug use.
432
00:35:07,120 --> 00:35:10,360
And Dallas was older than all of us
and had already been to prison
433
00:35:10,440 --> 00:35:12,400
and was just so cool.
434
00:35:12,480 --> 00:35:15,400
-[Chante] Ben with a gun in Dad's mouth.
-[Cummins-Bell] Kenny!
435
00:35:15,480 --> 00:35:17,240
-[Cummins-Bell] Remember him?
-[kid] Is that real?
436
00:35:17,320 --> 00:35:18,800
[Chante] Yes, that's a real gun!
437
00:35:18,880 --> 00:35:21,520
-[kid] Does it have bullets in it?
-[Chante] I'm sure it doesn't. There were reasons to be afraid of Dallas.
438
00:35:31,200 --> 00:35:34,840
Dallas passed out,
and Martha went into his pocket
439
00:35:35,480 --> 00:35:37,000
and took an ounce of cocaine.
440
00:35:38,080 --> 00:35:44,720
I think I had some resentments about him
having the cocaine in his pocket.
441
00:35:46,000 --> 00:35:48,040
And, um...
442
00:35:50,080 --> 00:35:51,640
I wanted it in my pocket.
443
00:35:51,720 --> 00:35:54,400
So, one night,
444
00:35:54,480 --> 00:35:58,720
I gave him a lot of Valium...
445
00:36:00,120 --> 00:36:05,680
and put him to sleep
and took the cocaine out of his pocket.
446
00:36:07,560 --> 00:36:11,880
Craig and Justin and I
started doing the cocaine,
447
00:36:11,960 --> 00:36:16,360
and we got to a point in the bag
where there was no return.
448
00:36:17,160 --> 00:36:19,280
And I knew...
449
00:36:20,600 --> 00:36:22,960
I knew that we were all fucked, basically.
450
00:36:26,840 --> 00:36:31,440
I know that Dallas
expected to be reimbursed.
451
00:36:32,680 --> 00:36:33,760
And...
452
00:36:36,000 --> 00:36:38,080
that we were all pretty terrified.
453
00:36:40,160 --> 00:36:43,920
I don't know why
it all became Justin's responsibility.
454
00:36:46,280 --> 00:36:52,400
There was a ski mask nailed
onto the wall in our... in our trailer,
455
00:36:53,360 --> 00:37:00,000
and Dallas pointed at the ski mask
and said, "That's how I handle my debts."
456
00:37:05,200 --> 00:37:11,080
I think that Justin did
what he thought he had to do.
457
00:37:11,320 --> 00:37:13,640
And I don't think that he meant
to ever hurt anybody.
458
00:37:13,720 --> 00:37:15,920
I think he just meant to pay Dallas back.
459
00:37:17,760 --> 00:37:19,800
And I know a man lost his life.
460
00:37:20,760 --> 00:37:24,840
Right? I mean, that's the other side
of this, is that somebody died.
461
00:37:25,880 --> 00:37:28,520
[breathes heavily] But... [exhales]
462
00:37:28,600 --> 00:37:32,120
Um, it also took Justin's life.
463
00:37:36,800 --> 00:37:38,400
Justin pulled the trigger.
464
00:37:39,360 --> 00:37:40,800
Craig drove the car.
465
00:37:42,000 --> 00:37:43,280
I stole the dope.
466
00:37:45,040 --> 00:37:48,280
And if I had been a guy
and I hadn't have been married to Dallas,
467
00:37:48,360 --> 00:37:50,520
I probably would have been
in the car, too.
468
00:37:53,240 --> 00:37:58,160
I just don't know how someone can get put
on death row for something like this.
469
00:38:05,520 --> 00:38:07,640
[Farren]
Dickens' defense was that
470
00:38:07,720 --> 00:38:12,080
Francis Allen Carter provoked
his use of the weapon.
471
00:38:12,640 --> 00:38:15,080
And if the answer to that is yes,
472
00:38:15,160 --> 00:38:19,520
then, by law, the death penalty
is not a possibility.
473
00:38:20,600 --> 00:38:23,880
[Bailey] There was an eye-witness,
Mr. Jacobs,
474
00:38:23,960 --> 00:38:29,040
but he wouldn't sign his statement
unless he got approval from Mr. Farren.
475
00:39:00,000 --> 00:39:02,040
[Jacobs] Allen, of course,
was a teacher.
476
00:39:03,120 --> 00:39:05,800
And as a side venture
477
00:39:06,440 --> 00:39:10,560
he would buy and sell jewelry.
478
00:39:14,000 --> 00:39:15,800
Yeah, he was a good personal friend.
479
00:39:19,360 --> 00:39:21,280
Allen and I were visiting together...
480
00:39:23,600 --> 00:39:25,600
and a customer came to the front door.
481
00:39:25,880 --> 00:39:31,120
It was electronically protected
as far as in and out is concerned.
482
00:39:32,080 --> 00:39:35,040
So we buzzed him and let him visit around.
483
00:39:35,120 --> 00:39:39,200
When we were off doing our business, um...
484
00:39:40,640 --> 00:39:42,880
he just pulled a gun on us and said,
485
00:39:42,960 --> 00:39:44,200
"Okay, this is a robbery.
486
00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:46,880
Get down on the floor."
487
00:39:48,320 --> 00:39:50,560
And so, that's what we did.
488
00:39:51,600 --> 00:39:53,960
We laid down on the floor and, um...
489
00:39:56,000 --> 00:40:00,280
and he said, "Spread out,"
for whatever reason.
490
00:40:01,240 --> 00:40:04,320
At some point,
and I still don't know why,
491
00:40:04,400 --> 00:40:07,320
Allen decided it was time for him
to take action.
492
00:40:09,480 --> 00:40:12,920
And he came up off the floor
across the jewelry counter...
493
00:40:15,240 --> 00:40:16,480
and engaged the kid
494
00:40:18,000 --> 00:40:24,360
and was trying to take the gun from him
when it went off.
495
00:40:24,600 --> 00:40:25,800
[gunshot] That was the first shot.
496
00:40:29,280 --> 00:40:31,280
Then the second one
was when he was pushing--
497
00:40:31,360 --> 00:40:33,440
trying to push the gun away,
I think, and it came up
498
00:40:33,520 --> 00:40:36,320
through the webbing in his finger
and hit him in the head as well.
499
00:40:36,480 --> 00:40:37,760
[gunshot]
500
00:40:42,840 --> 00:40:46,960
The one that caught Allen the second time
was the one that I'm sure killed him.
501
00:40:49,720 --> 00:40:51,920
And that's when I went out
the back door.
502
00:40:55,920 --> 00:40:58,560
[Farren] I don't think
Jacobs saw a struggle.
503
00:40:59,120 --> 00:41:03,640
I think he just made the assumption
that that was going to happen.
504
00:41:04,320 --> 00:41:06,440
The forensic evidence is consistent
505
00:41:06,520 --> 00:41:09,800
with Dickens being
a sufficient distance away
506
00:41:10,320 --> 00:41:13,360
from Francis Allen Carter
while those rounds are being fired.
507
00:41:15,160 --> 00:41:17,560
Farren, he's good at his job. No problem about that part of it at all,
508
00:41:20,120 --> 00:41:24,120
but I don't understand him
trying to put words into the circumstances
509
00:41:24,200 --> 00:41:25,560
that I was seeing.
510
00:41:26,960 --> 00:41:29,800
When I told him that Allen
was trying to get the gun
511
00:41:30,600 --> 00:41:36,200
when the shots went off,
so how can you do that from afar off
512
00:41:36,280 --> 00:41:38,440
if you aren't close enough
to grab the gun?
513
00:41:53,440 --> 00:41:56,240
[chattering]
514
00:42:04,000 --> 00:42:05,920
[birds chirping]
515
00:42:07,240 --> 00:42:08,880
[Carter-Boyd] Grief never goes away.
516
00:42:10,080 --> 00:42:10,920
It changes.
517
00:42:12,800 --> 00:42:18,880
You feel sadness, you feel anger,
confusion, frustration.
518
00:42:20,360 --> 00:42:23,840
You feel all alone in the world,
but it never goes away.
519
00:42:25,080 --> 00:42:28,600
Your heart aches for that person
all the time.
520
00:42:31,520 --> 00:42:35,880
My name is Christi Carter,
and I am the daughter...
521
00:42:36,520 --> 00:42:38,880
the very proud daughter of Allen Carter.
522
00:42:42,000 --> 00:42:43,720
[train bell ringing]
523
00:42:46,080 --> 00:42:49,520
Daddy always came to Amarillo
on Saturdays to do his jewelry business.
524
00:42:52,760 --> 00:42:54,160
This particular Saturday,
525
00:42:54,240 --> 00:42:57,920
I just had a bad feeling,
and I didn't want him to come to Amarillo.
526
00:42:59,440 --> 00:43:01,680
And at 4:30 that afternoon,
he called me.
527
00:43:02,480 --> 00:43:04,080
I can still hear his voice.
528
00:43:05,560 --> 00:43:10,320
It was, you know, "I love you, baby girl.
I'll call you when I get home."
529
00:43:12,960 --> 00:43:14,000
And that was it.
530
00:43:20,080 --> 00:43:22,640
I was watching the five o'clock news
531
00:43:23,320 --> 00:43:25,640
when they had breaking news
532
00:43:26,240 --> 00:43:29,560
that there had been a shooting
at Mockingbird Pawn and Jewelry.
533
00:43:31,760 --> 00:43:33,240
And I knew immediately.
534
00:43:34,840 --> 00:43:37,360
I knew immediately that something
had happened to Daddy.
535
00:43:39,960 --> 00:43:44,920
So I just went to the hospital,
and he was still alive.
536
00:43:48,120 --> 00:43:51,080
And he had just passed away
when Mama got to Amarillo.
537
00:43:54,760 --> 00:43:55,880
But I had to tell her.
538
00:44:02,440 --> 00:44:04,920
The only reason that Daddy
would go for the gun
539
00:44:05,960 --> 00:44:12,640
is because he felt that no amount
of talking could persuade Dickens
540
00:44:12,720 --> 00:44:15,800
to not do this or put down the gun.
541
00:44:18,040 --> 00:44:19,440
But that was also Daddy.
542
00:44:22,880 --> 00:44:27,760
Daddy got the Soldier's Medal in Vietnam
for saving three other soldiers' life.
543
00:44:29,640 --> 00:44:31,440
That's right under the Navy Cross.
544
00:44:34,600 --> 00:44:35,760
That's what Daddy did.
545
00:44:36,680 --> 00:44:38,040
He tried to find a solution.
546
00:44:40,000 --> 00:44:42,680
He didn't know any different,
he didn't do any different.
547
00:44:44,160 --> 00:44:49,600
And so, to me, if he went for the gun,
that's exactly what he was doing.
548
00:44:51,440 --> 00:44:56,440
You know, it was a young man struggling
and he was going to help him.
549
00:44:59,920 --> 00:45:02,920
If I went to see Dickens, I think that...
550
00:45:03,680 --> 00:45:05,720
he really wouldn't care that I was there.
551
00:45:07,120 --> 00:45:12,200
But I just need him to see
that life did go on for us.
552
00:45:12,880 --> 00:45:16,680
And, yes, it's been hard,
and, yes, it's been painful.
553
00:45:18,000 --> 00:45:24,480
To be 20 years old and lose your father
and to see Mama alone...
554
00:45:25,200 --> 00:45:27,680
missing him and me missing him...
555
00:45:29,760 --> 00:45:31,880
but he didn't take it all away.
556
00:45:34,880 --> 00:45:38,600
And I need him to know
that I have forgiven him for what he did.
557
00:45:39,920 --> 00:45:41,360
That doesn't mean I like him.
558
00:45:42,520 --> 00:45:44,240
That doesn't mean I wanna be
his pen pal.
559
00:45:46,120 --> 00:45:48,240
But for me to go on, I had to forgive him.
560
00:45:48,960 --> 00:45:50,520
But I don't think he would care.
561
00:45:55,600 --> 00:46:00,600
The one thing that will always stick out
in my mind about Dickens
562
00:46:02,080 --> 00:46:04,840
is the very last question of the trial.
563
00:46:06,760 --> 00:46:08,600
And James asked him,
564
00:46:09,680 --> 00:46:15,160
"Now that you have met
Mr. Carter's wife and daughter
565
00:46:15,240 --> 00:46:17,440
and mother and brothers and sisters,
566
00:46:18,280 --> 00:46:20,200
how do you feel about what you did?"
567
00:46:21,400 --> 00:46:24,680
And Dickens looked at us and then looked
at James Farren, and said, "You know, Mr. Farren, I'm really,
really sorry this happened to me."
568
00:46:34,200 --> 00:46:36,960
[Dickens] I'm sorry.
I'm so sorry I said that.
569
00:46:37,880 --> 00:46:38,920
I'm sorry.
570
00:46:40,440 --> 00:46:41,320
I was...
571
00:46:43,440 --> 00:46:45,120
I was a jackass.
572
00:46:45,200 --> 00:46:46,280
I mean...
573
00:46:49,240 --> 00:46:53,920
what I said was probably
devastatingly cruel, but...
574
00:46:58,240 --> 00:47:00,160
I can't even make an excuse for that.
575
00:47:13,400 --> 00:47:16,400
[Moore on recording] He caused
so much trauma in my life.
576
00:47:17,200 --> 00:47:18,600
Man, that little shit.
577
00:47:19,440 --> 00:47:23,560
I never said boom, boom, boom,
you're gonna go do this and do that,
578
00:47:23,640 --> 00:47:25,800
go get my money,
and sent him on robbery.
579
00:47:26,720 --> 00:47:29,800
I wasn't gonna be made out
as some Charles Manson.
580
00:47:29,880 --> 00:47:31,000
You know what I mean?
581
00:47:31,480 --> 00:47:35,560
I don't wanna be no involvement
of that man getting murdered
582
00:47:35,640 --> 00:47:38,760
because I didn't have
no involvement in it.
583
00:47:40,720 --> 00:47:45,600
I really met the wrong person
in a very pivotal point in my...
584
00:47:46,840 --> 00:47:48,480
juvenile days, and, uh...
585
00:47:49,400 --> 00:47:53,200
[stutters]
It created disaster and tragedy.
586
00:47:54,960 --> 00:47:57,440
I was Dallas' little protégé.
587
00:47:57,520 --> 00:47:58,640
I idolized him.
588
00:47:59,920 --> 00:48:01,600
I didn't think he was dangerous like that.
589
00:48:01,680 --> 00:48:04,480
I thought he was a big kid
until the mask kinda came off and, you know, it was directed at me.
590
00:48:08,360 --> 00:48:09,880
[Cummins-Bell on recording]
I stole the dope.
591
00:48:10,920 --> 00:48:14,680
I don't know why it all became
Justin's responsibility.
592
00:48:16,480 --> 00:48:21,680
Dallas pointed at the ski mask and said,
"That's how I handle my debts."
593
00:48:22,920 --> 00:48:26,040
And if I had been a guy
and I hadn't been married to Dallas,
594
00:48:26,120 --> 00:48:28,400
I probably would have been
in the car, too.
595
00:48:32,120 --> 00:48:33,040
It's a small blessing.
596
00:48:33,120 --> 00:48:36,320
All I've ever asked for
is just to let it be heard, you know.
597
00:48:37,400 --> 00:48:40,480
I bear my own cross
and I live with what I done, and...
598
00:48:41,000 --> 00:48:42,400
you know, it ain't...
599
00:48:42,520 --> 00:48:45,120
it don't never change,
it don't never get no easier.
600
00:48:45,800 --> 00:48:49,400
That's all I ever wanted was somebody
to speak truthfully about it, you know.
601
00:49:08,960 --> 00:49:13,000
[Jacobs] He said, "Okay this a robbery.
Get down on the floor."
602
00:49:14,920 --> 00:49:17,360
At some point,
and I still don't know why,
603
00:49:18,040 --> 00:49:21,080
Allen decided it was time for him
to take action.
604
00:49:22,000 --> 00:49:26,640
Allen was trying to get the gun
when the shots went off.
605
00:49:27,360 --> 00:49:30,560
And it came up through the webbing
in his finger and hit him in the head.
606
00:49:37,000 --> 00:49:40,440
Um, I got chill bumps. I mean...
607
00:49:41,200 --> 00:49:44,720
I never thought anybody would admit
to anything like that.
608
00:49:45,720 --> 00:49:48,120
That I just didn't go in there
in cold blood
609
00:49:48,200 --> 00:49:51,200
and just for wanton reasons.
610
00:49:51,280 --> 00:49:55,200
I mean, I was... I was scared.
I was--
611
00:49:55,560 --> 00:49:57,640
I was in water
that I never swam before,
612
00:49:57,720 --> 00:50:00,520
and I didn't know--
I didn't know what I was doing.
613
00:50:00,600 --> 00:50:04,800
And I was in a situation.
And, uh...
614
00:50:06,160 --> 00:50:08,720
I don't really know what to say to that
because that's the last thing
615
00:50:08,800 --> 00:50:13,480
I really expected to hear
through this right here. Uh...
616
00:50:16,480 --> 00:50:20,120
I need him to know
that I have forgiven him for what he did.
617
00:50:21,400 --> 00:50:22,880
That doesn't mean I like him.
618
00:50:23,680 --> 00:50:25,840
That doesn't mean
I want to be his pen pal.
619
00:50:27,600 --> 00:50:29,720
But for me to go on,
I had to forgive him.
620
00:50:31,640 --> 00:50:35,040
[producer] Hearing that, do you have
any message for Christi Carter?
621
00:50:41,760 --> 00:50:43,400
Thank you.
I mean, thank you.
622
00:50:45,240 --> 00:50:47,440
I know I'm not worth nothing,
but thank you.
623
00:50:48,320 --> 00:50:49,640
Really, thank you.