1 00:00:08,241 --> 00:00:10,643 [soft piano music] 2 00:00:10,910 --> 00:00:12,746 * * 3 00:00:12,779 --> 00:00:15,115 - Laguna Beach is totally different 4 00:00:15,148 --> 00:00:18,418 from the rest of Orange County. 5 00:00:18,451 --> 00:00:20,220 You know, we usually think of Disneyland 6 00:00:20,253 --> 00:00:22,989 and "Real Housewives." 7 00:00:23,023 --> 00:00:26,626 Such a beautiful place. It's so charming. 8 00:00:26,659 --> 00:00:30,630 It has this history as an arts colony. 9 00:00:30,663 --> 00:00:34,434 - There was a very strong gay community at Laguna Beach. 10 00:00:34,467 --> 00:00:37,337 - I knew Damon was gay from very young. 11 00:00:37,370 --> 00:00:41,908 Acceptance was difficult for a few family members. 12 00:00:41,941 --> 00:00:43,576 Moving to Laguna Beach, 13 00:00:43,610 --> 00:00:45,912 he was accepted for who he was, for sure. 14 00:00:45,945 --> 00:00:47,547 * * 15 00:00:47,580 --> 00:00:49,282 - We had the entire world in front of us 16 00:00:49,315 --> 00:00:51,484 and the rest of our lives. 17 00:00:51,518 --> 00:00:54,154 narrator: Starting a new life out loud in Laguna Beach 18 00:00:54,187 --> 00:00:56,189 is a priceless opportunity. 19 00:00:56,222 --> 00:01:00,260 But for Damon Nicholson, it cost him everything. 20 00:01:00,293 --> 00:01:02,328 - It was shocking, of course. 21 00:01:02,362 --> 00:01:05,331 I mean, how does one react when they find out 22 00:01:05,365 --> 00:01:07,300 that their best friend had been murdered? 23 00:01:07,334 --> 00:01:09,736 [ominous music] 24 00:01:09,769 --> 00:01:11,237 - We knew his cell phone was taken, 25 00:01:11,271 --> 00:01:14,207 and we were hoping to find somebody that has it, 26 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:15,608 and that could be our suspect. 27 00:01:21,181 --> 00:01:23,416 - Blunt force trauma over the head. 28 00:01:23,450 --> 00:01:26,953 Why would anyone wanna take his life in such a violent way? 29 00:01:26,986 --> 00:01:28,488 narrator: To find justice 30 00:01:28,521 --> 00:01:30,323 for a beloved member of the community, 31 00:01:30,357 --> 00:01:33,727 detectives must get inside the mind of the killer. 32 00:01:33,760 --> 00:01:35,261 - Our heads, we're trying to think, 33 00:01:35,295 --> 00:01:37,163 well, what's the motive? Why would he wanna do this? 34 00:01:44,504 --> 00:01:47,574 - So I thought, OK, Damon knows a secret. 35 00:01:47,607 --> 00:01:49,876 You eliminate the person, you eliminate the secret. 36 00:01:49,909 --> 00:01:52,245 * * 37 00:01:56,016 --> 00:01:59,552 [dramatic music] 38 00:01:59,586 --> 00:02:06,493 * * 39 00:02:10,196 --> 00:02:13,133 [soft foreboding music] 40 00:02:13,166 --> 00:02:18,571 * * 41 00:02:39,092 --> 00:02:42,262 * * 42 00:02:42,295 --> 00:02:43,463 - I'm Tim Kleiser. 43 00:02:43,496 --> 00:02:45,598 In 2009, I worked for 44 00:02:45,632 --> 00:02:47,801 the Laguna Beach Police Department. 45 00:02:47,834 --> 00:02:51,004 On Friday, October 23, 2009, 46 00:02:51,104 --> 00:02:53,640 we got a 911 phone call 47 00:02:53,673 --> 00:02:56,810 to do a welfare check on a residence on Dolphin Way. 48 00:02:58,778 --> 00:03:00,847 Officers respond out there immediately 49 00:03:00,880 --> 00:03:03,616 to a small residence with a gate around it, 50 00:03:03,650 --> 00:03:07,387 and they speak with Lindsey, a coworker of the victim, 51 00:03:07,420 --> 00:03:09,589 get a statement from her and what she saw, 52 00:03:09,622 --> 00:03:11,624 and then the officers go inside. 53 00:03:13,093 --> 00:03:14,227 - My name is Jason Kravetz. 54 00:03:14,260 --> 00:03:18,465 I started my career with the Laguna Beach PD in 1989 55 00:03:18,498 --> 00:03:20,367 and spent my career there. 56 00:03:21,534 --> 00:03:24,371 The police officers started walking 57 00:03:24,404 --> 00:03:27,841 up a staircase to the sliding glass door, 58 00:03:27,874 --> 00:03:30,910 which is how you entered his home. 59 00:03:30,944 --> 00:03:32,579 - The residence is laid out, 60 00:03:32,612 --> 00:03:34,581 the couch is immediately off to the left 61 00:03:34,614 --> 00:03:36,616 a few feet inside the door. 62 00:03:36,649 --> 00:03:38,585 And at that point, they saw a male 63 00:03:38,618 --> 00:03:40,653 slouched over on the couch. 64 00:03:42,389 --> 00:03:44,290 - He was fully dressed, 65 00:03:44,324 --> 00:03:48,395 but covered up a little bit with some pillows. 66 00:03:48,428 --> 00:03:50,997 - The back of his head was covered in blood. 67 00:03:51,097 --> 00:03:53,099 That's not a normal sign you see from somebody 68 00:03:53,099 --> 00:03:54,501 that just passes away. 69 00:03:56,403 --> 00:03:58,304 So at that point, they notified 70 00:03:58,338 --> 00:04:00,106 Laguna Beach Homicide. 71 00:04:00,140 --> 00:04:02,509 narrator: A murder in this small beach community 72 00:04:02,542 --> 00:04:05,045 is shocking, but even more disturbing 73 00:04:05,045 --> 00:04:08,314 is the identity of the 41-year-old victim. 74 00:04:08,348 --> 00:04:12,652 - We went inside, and when I saw his face, 75 00:04:12,686 --> 00:04:16,122 I immediately knew it was Damon Nicholson. 76 00:04:16,156 --> 00:04:18,491 [dramatic music] 77 00:04:18,525 --> 00:04:20,760 Locally, everyone knew him. 78 00:04:20,794 --> 00:04:22,462 Even I did, and many other people 79 00:04:22,495 --> 00:04:24,431 in the police department knew him. 80 00:04:24,464 --> 00:04:25,732 - He worked at the Hotel Laguna. 81 00:04:25,765 --> 00:04:28,401 It's one of our oldest hotels. 82 00:04:28,435 --> 00:04:31,137 He worked there doing special events. 83 00:04:31,171 --> 00:04:32,505 - He would always wave at you 84 00:04:32,539 --> 00:04:34,140 when you're driving down the street. 85 00:04:34,174 --> 00:04:36,076 He would come into the police department sometimes 86 00:04:36,076 --> 00:04:37,444 and bring cookies. 87 00:04:37,477 --> 00:04:39,479 He put together our Christmas parties 88 00:04:39,512 --> 00:04:42,148 for us every year at the hotel. 89 00:04:42,182 --> 00:04:44,484 He would be out there dancing with everyone. 90 00:04:44,517 --> 00:04:47,721 You know, he was a character. 91 00:04:47,754 --> 00:04:50,423 The strangest thing about being a cop 92 00:04:50,457 --> 00:04:52,892 is you desensitize yourself to a lot of things. 93 00:04:52,926 --> 00:04:55,095 But when I saw him, it was like, ugh, 94 00:04:55,095 --> 00:04:58,398 the personal side came out. 95 00:04:58,431 --> 00:05:00,600 I just wanted to give him justice. 96 00:05:04,571 --> 00:05:06,172 - My name is Larry Bammer. 97 00:05:06,206 --> 00:05:07,540 I worked there at the police department 98 00:05:07,574 --> 00:05:09,642 for 21 years in Laguna Beach. 99 00:05:09,676 --> 00:05:13,179 The Crime Scene unit started dusting for fingerprints 100 00:05:13,213 --> 00:05:15,181 and bagging evidence, 101 00:05:15,215 --> 00:05:18,885 but the case was a challenge in that everyone knew him. 102 00:05:18,918 --> 00:05:20,887 Also, Damon had a lot of friends, 103 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:23,923 so there was inevitably gonna be a lot of fingerprints. 104 00:05:25,625 --> 00:05:28,061 And then, we went in. 105 00:05:28,061 --> 00:05:33,066 It appeared that the assault took place on the couch, 106 00:05:33,066 --> 00:05:35,568 because where Damon's head was resting, 107 00:05:35,602 --> 00:05:38,705 blood had soaked on the pillow cushions, 108 00:05:38,738 --> 00:05:42,075 but we didn't see blood anywhere else. 109 00:05:42,075 --> 00:05:44,077 We did not see bloody footprints, 110 00:05:44,077 --> 00:05:46,913 bloody fingerprints anywhere in the apartment. 111 00:05:46,946 --> 00:05:49,215 - They looked at rigor mortis to determine 112 00:05:49,249 --> 00:05:50,517 the cause of death to be right around 113 00:05:50,550 --> 00:05:53,119 between 1:00 and 3:00 AM. 114 00:05:53,153 --> 00:05:57,223 - Based on the damage done to his skull, 115 00:05:57,257 --> 00:06:00,827 it was evident that he wasn't murdered by a firearm, 116 00:06:00,860 --> 00:06:02,495 that it was something like a crowbar, 117 00:06:02,529 --> 00:06:04,898 a tire iron, a baseball bat. 118 00:06:06,499 --> 00:06:08,201 The crime scene investigators 119 00:06:08,234 --> 00:06:11,037 did evidence collection and DNA swabs. 120 00:06:12,706 --> 00:06:15,775 - They looked for a murder weapon. 121 00:06:15,809 --> 00:06:18,211 Nothing was found at all. 122 00:06:18,244 --> 00:06:23,483 - We walked over to the entrance of the kitchen area. 123 00:06:23,516 --> 00:06:24,918 - There's just a pile of trash, 124 00:06:24,951 --> 00:06:27,821 like somebody dumped it on the floor. 125 00:06:27,854 --> 00:06:30,790 - It was so bizarre to have this mound of trash 126 00:06:30,824 --> 00:06:35,095 in the middle of this kitchen floor. 127 00:06:35,962 --> 00:06:37,697 - And the trashcan sitting next to it, 128 00:06:37,731 --> 00:06:39,399 and there's no trash bag. 129 00:06:39,432 --> 00:06:42,268 That raised our suspicion that they probably took the bag 130 00:06:42,302 --> 00:06:45,605 and used the bag for the murder weapon. 131 00:06:45,638 --> 00:06:47,707 - Crime scene investigators 132 00:06:47,741 --> 00:06:50,810 swabbed the lid of the trash can 133 00:06:50,844 --> 00:06:54,914 to try to recover any type of forensic evidence 134 00:06:54,948 --> 00:06:56,416 for DNA testing. 135 00:06:56,449 --> 00:06:59,285 But in 2009, Laguna Beach PD 136 00:06:59,319 --> 00:07:02,822 did not have rapid DNA testing, 137 00:07:02,856 --> 00:07:05,658 so we really have to wait three weeks 138 00:07:05,692 --> 00:07:08,561 before getting any results. 139 00:07:08,595 --> 00:07:10,296 Then, we look to see if there's any 140 00:07:10,330 --> 00:07:13,433 other non-forensic evidence. 141 00:07:13,466 --> 00:07:15,301 That's when we started to realize, 142 00:07:15,335 --> 00:07:18,038 here's a guy that is a very social person. 143 00:07:18,038 --> 00:07:20,140 Obviously has a phone, a cell phone, 144 00:07:20,173 --> 00:07:21,941 and we can't find it anywhere. 145 00:07:23,343 --> 00:07:26,913 - We were also beginning to notice things were missing. 146 00:07:28,314 --> 00:07:30,950 - We found a receipt for a laptop, a MacBook, 147 00:07:31,051 --> 00:07:33,253 but we looked around for the computer, 148 00:07:33,286 --> 00:07:35,822 could not locate the computer at all. 149 00:07:35,855 --> 00:07:38,758 - There was dust around an area 150 00:07:38,792 --> 00:07:40,927 where something had obviously been sitting there, 151 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:42,962 like a computer. 152 00:07:43,063 --> 00:07:45,331 narrator: Could this have been a robbery gone wrong, 153 00:07:45,365 --> 00:07:47,500 or something more? 154 00:07:47,534 --> 00:07:51,137 Did the victim know his killer? 155 00:07:51,171 --> 00:07:53,673 - Blunt force trauma over the head 156 00:07:53,707 --> 00:07:57,077 is kind of a very violent, 157 00:07:57,077 --> 00:08:00,013 very passionate, 158 00:08:00,013 --> 00:08:02,849 very angry way to murder somebody. 159 00:08:02,882 --> 00:08:07,087 I felt like the suspect had to know Damon. 160 00:08:09,055 --> 00:08:10,924 narrator: Detectives canvass the neighborhood 161 00:08:11,024 --> 00:08:13,593 late into the night, but are unable to find 162 00:08:13,626 --> 00:08:16,096 any witnesses to the murder. 163 00:08:16,129 --> 00:08:18,331 Then, they perform the heartbreaking task 164 00:08:18,365 --> 00:08:22,035 of informing Damon's family about his death. 165 00:08:22,068 --> 00:08:24,037 [somber music] 166 00:08:24,037 --> 00:08:26,506 - My name is DeVonne Blauser, 167 00:08:26,539 --> 00:08:29,943 and my brother is Damon Nicholson. 168 00:08:30,043 --> 00:08:34,881 After hearing the news about Damon, it was surreal. 169 00:08:34,914 --> 00:08:37,217 It wasn't right. It wasn't fair. 170 00:08:37,250 --> 00:08:38,385 He didn't deserve this. 171 00:08:38,418 --> 00:08:40,754 He really didn't. 172 00:08:40,787 --> 00:08:43,089 He was a good person. 173 00:08:43,123 --> 00:08:45,658 [sniffles] 174 00:08:45,692 --> 00:08:48,061 * * 175 00:08:48,061 --> 00:08:50,663 We grew up in Tucson, Arizona. 176 00:08:50,697 --> 00:08:52,799 My mom and dad gave birth to 11 kids, 177 00:08:52,832 --> 00:08:54,300 and Damon was number six. 178 00:08:54,334 --> 00:08:56,736 I was number seven. 179 00:08:56,770 --> 00:09:00,006 So we're really close. We did everything together. 180 00:09:00,040 --> 00:09:01,274 Everything. 181 00:09:01,307 --> 00:09:02,876 He liked to be center of attention. 182 00:09:02,909 --> 00:09:05,078 He liked to make everybody laugh. 183 00:09:05,111 --> 00:09:07,147 And he did. 184 00:09:07,180 --> 00:09:10,316 I knew Damon was gay from very young. 185 00:09:10,350 --> 00:09:12,686 It didn't bother me. He was my brother. 186 00:09:12,719 --> 00:09:16,856 But I can't say that my parents ever really accepted it. 187 00:09:16,890 --> 00:09:20,060 I think it was tough on him. 188 00:09:20,093 --> 00:09:21,828 narrator: According to his sister, 189 00:09:21,861 --> 00:09:24,330 Damon's search for acceptance eventually led him 190 00:09:24,364 --> 00:09:28,935 to the sun-drenched paradise of Orange County. 191 00:09:29,035 --> 00:09:32,706 - Moving to Laguna Beach, he was accepted for who he was, 192 00:09:32,739 --> 00:09:35,608 for sure. 193 00:09:35,642 --> 00:09:38,311 - My name is Carla Bravo, 194 00:09:38,345 --> 00:09:42,048 and I was a very close friend with Damon Nicholson. 195 00:09:42,048 --> 00:09:45,552 There was a very strong gay community in Laguna Beach. 196 00:09:45,585 --> 00:09:48,655 It was a community that welcomed 197 00:09:48,688 --> 00:09:50,557 everyone without judgment. 198 00:09:50,590 --> 00:09:53,259 He loved Laguna and the people. 199 00:09:55,628 --> 00:10:01,401 I could not think of anyone that would want to hurt Damon. 200 00:10:02,035 --> 00:10:04,471 - He'd give you the shirt off his back. 201 00:10:04,504 --> 00:10:09,876 Why would anyone wanna take his life in such a violent way? 202 00:10:09,909 --> 00:10:11,845 narrator: Two days after the murder, 203 00:10:11,878 --> 00:10:14,014 detectives are still trying to find answers. 204 00:10:14,047 --> 00:10:16,316 That's when a call comes in that could give them 205 00:10:16,349 --> 00:10:18,752 the lead they've been searching for. 206 00:10:18,785 --> 00:10:20,487 - We knew his cell phone was taken, 207 00:10:20,520 --> 00:10:22,489 and you're hoping that, you know, 208 00:10:22,522 --> 00:10:24,824 you'll maybe find somebody that has it, 209 00:10:24,858 --> 00:10:26,926 and that could be our suspect. 210 00:10:26,960 --> 00:10:28,828 - The phone company got in touch with us. 211 00:10:28,862 --> 00:10:31,498 Detectives came racing in and said the phone's pinging. 212 00:10:31,531 --> 00:10:32,899 The phone's pinging. 213 00:10:32,932 --> 00:10:34,768 The phone company gave us the address 214 00:10:34,801 --> 00:10:39,372 of the Timbers Apartment Complex in Lake Forest. 215 00:10:39,406 --> 00:10:40,707 - Lake Forest is just immediately 216 00:10:40,740 --> 00:10:42,242 right outside of Laguna Beach. 217 00:10:43,943 --> 00:10:47,213 There is more violent crime there in the city. 218 00:10:47,247 --> 00:10:49,849 That could be a location for our suspect. 219 00:10:51,951 --> 00:10:53,420 narrator: Coming up... 220 00:10:53,453 --> 00:10:55,455 - His cell phone was showing he was there in Laguna 221 00:10:55,488 --> 00:10:56,956 the night of the murder. 222 00:10:56,990 --> 00:10:58,925 - Did he meet somebody online 223 00:10:58,958 --> 00:11:02,095 that came over there and committed this? 224 00:11:02,128 --> 00:11:05,665 - Maybe he's trying to keep his sexuality a secret. 225 00:11:06,299 --> 00:11:08,868 - So, at that point, you have to determine, 226 00:11:08,902 --> 00:11:10,136 did he do the murder, 227 00:11:10,170 --> 00:11:12,405 or did this other person do the murder? 228 00:11:12,439 --> 00:11:15,408 [dramatic music] 229 00:11:21,815 --> 00:11:24,250 [dramatic music] 230 00:11:24,517 --> 00:11:29,923 * * 231 00:11:29,956 --> 00:11:31,524 narrator: Two days after the murder 232 00:11:31,558 --> 00:11:33,893 of 41-year-old Damon Nicholson, 233 00:11:33,927 --> 00:11:36,363 investigators have tracked his cell phone 234 00:11:36,396 --> 00:11:39,199 to an apartment complex in Lake Forest. 235 00:11:41,134 --> 00:11:42,502 - We knew, at that point, 236 00:11:42,535 --> 00:11:45,538 whoever committed the murder had taken his phone 237 00:11:45,572 --> 00:11:47,841 and left the location. 238 00:11:47,874 --> 00:11:49,843 But when we arrived at the address, 239 00:11:49,876 --> 00:11:52,412 there was a big apartment complex. 240 00:11:52,445 --> 00:11:54,014 So it was like a needle in a haystack, really, 241 00:11:54,114 --> 00:11:56,950 for us to try and find his cell phone. 242 00:11:56,983 --> 00:12:01,054 - The cell phone was still in the same vicinity. 243 00:12:01,087 --> 00:12:05,558 We couldn't find exactly where it was. 244 00:12:05,592 --> 00:12:07,293 - Now, in the perfect world, 245 00:12:07,327 --> 00:12:10,063 the phone is being held by the murderer. 246 00:12:10,063 --> 00:12:13,066 But in reality, 99% of the time, 247 00:12:13,099 --> 00:12:15,568 they have been dumped somewhere. 248 00:12:15,602 --> 00:12:17,871 - Actually, you're hoping it was gonna be in the dumpster, 249 00:12:17,904 --> 00:12:20,073 because it's a lot easier to search 250 00:12:20,073 --> 00:12:22,575 than to try to identify which apartments it's in 251 00:12:22,609 --> 00:12:24,277 and get a search warrant. 252 00:12:24,310 --> 00:12:27,447 I remember, we were looking at each other like, 253 00:12:27,480 --> 00:12:31,351 OK, who's gonna dive into the trash can? 254 00:12:34,621 --> 00:12:36,790 - There's quite a few dumpsters we went into 255 00:12:36,823 --> 00:12:40,193 that day to try and find his cell phone. 256 00:12:40,226 --> 00:12:42,429 narrator: An army of men wearing suits 257 00:12:42,462 --> 00:12:45,865 digging through the trash is bound to draw attention, 258 00:12:45,899 --> 00:12:48,101 and it does. 259 00:12:48,134 --> 00:12:50,403 - All of a sudden, the custodian for the building 260 00:12:50,437 --> 00:12:52,772 came out and asked, who are you guys? 261 00:12:52,806 --> 00:12:54,541 What are you guys doing? 262 00:12:54,574 --> 00:12:57,277 - And we told him we were looking for a cell phone. 263 00:12:57,310 --> 00:12:58,611 And he says, oh, 264 00:12:58,645 --> 00:13:03,516 I found a cell phone in one of these dumpsters two days ago. 265 00:13:03,550 --> 00:13:07,053 So we walk with him over to his office 266 00:13:07,053 --> 00:13:09,356 and he hands us the cell phone. 267 00:13:09,389 --> 00:13:11,791 And we called Damon's number... 268 00:13:11,825 --> 00:13:14,594 [phone buzzes] 269 00:13:14,627 --> 00:13:17,263 And it rings. 270 00:13:17,297 --> 00:13:19,466 - So we began to question him. 271 00:13:19,499 --> 00:13:21,968 How did he find it? Where did he find it? 272 00:13:22,068 --> 00:13:23,403 - He's very cooperative. 273 00:13:23,436 --> 00:13:26,072 And so he takes it back over to this dumpster. 274 00:13:27,607 --> 00:13:30,143 And he says, I was digging through the trash. 275 00:13:30,176 --> 00:13:32,078 People throw out some good stuff. 276 00:13:32,078 --> 00:13:34,280 The story seemed genuine. 277 00:13:34,314 --> 00:13:37,183 - He also voluntarily gave us a DNA sample 278 00:13:37,217 --> 00:13:40,553 to try and rule him out as a suspect. 279 00:13:40,587 --> 00:13:44,090 - Police collect the DNA and the cell phone for processing 280 00:13:44,124 --> 00:13:47,227 and consider an urgent question. 281 00:13:47,260 --> 00:13:50,597 Did the killer randomly dump the phone at this location, 282 00:13:50,630 --> 00:13:52,599 or is it possible that he lives somewhere 283 00:13:52,632 --> 00:13:55,101 in the complex? 284 00:13:55,135 --> 00:13:57,270 - We did canvass the neighborhood, 285 00:13:57,303 --> 00:14:02,142 But we had no eyewitnesses, no one heard anything. 286 00:14:03,243 --> 00:14:05,178 - My name is Claudia Koerner. 287 00:14:05,211 --> 00:14:08,081 Back in 2009, I was the Laguna Beach reporter 288 00:14:08,114 --> 00:14:10,250 for the "Orange County Register." 289 00:14:10,283 --> 00:14:12,185 This was really shocking to hear 290 00:14:12,218 --> 00:14:14,621 that there had been this kind of violent death 291 00:14:14,654 --> 00:14:16,056 in Laguna Beach. 292 00:14:16,056 --> 00:14:17,857 It's just this really cute 293 00:14:17,891 --> 00:14:20,126 little residential neighborhood. 294 00:14:20,160 --> 00:14:21,828 It was just so hard to imagine something 295 00:14:21,861 --> 00:14:24,698 like that happening here. 296 00:14:24,731 --> 00:14:26,466 - It's all over the news, 297 00:14:26,499 --> 00:14:30,103 so we're getting lots of calls from people that knew Damon. 298 00:14:32,372 --> 00:14:35,175 - My name is Jason Wamhoff, and Damon Nicholson 299 00:14:35,208 --> 00:14:38,211 and I were friends for over 20 years. 300 00:14:38,244 --> 00:14:42,082 I was about 22 when I moved to Orange County, 301 00:14:42,115 --> 00:14:45,185 and that's when Damon and I met. 302 00:14:45,218 --> 00:14:48,455 I just remember we had fun. 303 00:14:48,488 --> 00:14:51,725 Laguna Beach was definitely an enclave 304 00:14:51,758 --> 00:14:55,161 for the gay community. 305 00:14:55,195 --> 00:14:58,565 We were young. Life wasn't serious. 306 00:14:58,598 --> 00:15:01,234 You know, we had the entire world in front of us 307 00:15:01,267 --> 00:15:04,871 and the rest of our lives. 308 00:15:09,476 --> 00:15:12,746 [somber music] 309 00:15:12,779 --> 00:15:17,317 - Jason Wamhoff was very helpful, 310 00:15:17,350 --> 00:15:21,187 because Jason knew all about his life 311 00:15:21,221 --> 00:15:24,591 and kind of who he dated, websites he would go on, 312 00:15:24,624 --> 00:15:29,763 names he would use, who he'd hang out with. 313 00:15:29,796 --> 00:15:34,234 - Damon didn't have any steady boyfriend. 314 00:15:34,267 --> 00:15:38,905 You know, he wasn't in a relationship. 315 00:15:38,938 --> 00:15:41,074 - He would chat with people online, 316 00:15:41,074 --> 00:15:44,110 different type of websites. 317 00:15:44,144 --> 00:15:47,781 Did he meet somebody online that came over there 318 00:15:47,814 --> 00:15:49,649 and committed this? 319 00:15:49,683 --> 00:15:51,584 narrator: It's what Jason says next 320 00:15:51,618 --> 00:15:54,721 that really grabs the detectives' attention. 321 00:15:54,754 --> 00:15:55,789 - During a conversation with him, 322 00:15:55,822 --> 00:15:58,525 he mentioned he had some concerns on Damon's safety 323 00:15:58,558 --> 00:16:03,063 with a gentleman that Damon used to see named Jesse. 324 00:16:04,497 --> 00:16:08,601 - He was an individual that had 325 00:16:08,635 --> 00:16:11,738 a bit of a sordid past. 326 00:16:11,771 --> 00:16:17,444 But Damon never would hold that against anyone, you know? 327 00:16:17,477 --> 00:16:21,381 Damon continued to have interactions with him. 328 00:16:21,414 --> 00:16:24,684 - Damon had dated him years ago. 329 00:16:24,718 --> 00:16:26,353 When they broke it off, 330 00:16:26,386 --> 00:16:29,723 the man got married to a woman 331 00:16:29,756 --> 00:16:33,059 and he had a child. 332 00:16:33,059 --> 00:16:37,664 Jason felt that Jesse was using Damon for money, 333 00:16:37,697 --> 00:16:42,302 and he said he may have a violent history. 334 00:16:42,335 --> 00:16:43,670 In our heads, we're trying to think, 335 00:16:43,703 --> 00:16:44,671 well, what's the motive? 336 00:16:44,704 --> 00:16:47,440 And so a couple of things I keyed in on, 337 00:16:47,474 --> 00:16:49,075 maybe he's come to Damon for money 338 00:16:49,075 --> 00:16:50,777 and Damon finally cut him off. 339 00:16:50,810 --> 00:16:54,714 That angered him, he kills him and steals things. 340 00:16:54,748 --> 00:16:56,816 Or maybe it was a crime of passion. 341 00:16:56,850 --> 00:16:59,719 Damon's body had been covered up a little bit, 342 00:16:59,753 --> 00:17:03,857 which usually tells us that the murderer knew the victim 343 00:17:03,890 --> 00:17:07,227 and doesn't wanna see what they did. 344 00:17:07,260 --> 00:17:09,529 Jesse's now married with a child, so I thought, 345 00:17:09,562 --> 00:17:13,466 OK, maybe Jesse would have had a fear that Damon was going 346 00:17:13,500 --> 00:17:18,304 to expose his personal life and who he was seeing in the past. 347 00:17:18,338 --> 00:17:22,809 - Maybe he's trying to keep his sexuality a secret. 348 00:17:22,842 --> 00:17:25,779 [dramatic music] 349 00:17:35,688 --> 00:17:38,323 [dramatic music] 350 00:17:38,590 --> 00:17:41,760 * * 351 00:17:41,794 --> 00:17:44,063 narrator: While investigating the vicious murder 352 00:17:44,063 --> 00:17:47,266 of Damon Nicholson, detectives in Laguna Beach 353 00:17:47,299 --> 00:17:49,435 begin to look closely at the relationship 354 00:17:49,468 --> 00:17:52,438 he had with an ex-lover. 355 00:17:54,773 --> 00:17:58,077 - Damon had met Jesse years, years before, 356 00:17:58,077 --> 00:18:00,779 and then, Jesse got married. 357 00:18:00,813 --> 00:18:03,515 Now, maybe he doesn't want his wife, you know, 358 00:18:03,549 --> 00:18:07,052 to know about him and Damon had had sexual intercourse. 359 00:18:07,086 --> 00:18:12,658 Maybe he now wanted to kill Damon because of the secret. 360 00:18:12,691 --> 00:18:16,228 And the next day, we went out to his house in Chino Hills. 361 00:18:19,665 --> 00:18:23,235 He shared with us how he had a longstanding friendship, 362 00:18:23,268 --> 00:18:27,539 and he had just recently seen him a week before. 363 00:18:27,573 --> 00:18:30,342 He seemed very forthcoming, very honest 364 00:18:30,376 --> 00:18:34,747 about his relationship that he had with Damon. 365 00:18:34,780 --> 00:18:37,716 - Not only does Jesse seem genuinely broken up 366 00:18:37,750 --> 00:18:41,520 about Damon's murder, he claims to have an alibi. 367 00:18:41,553 --> 00:18:43,689 - He said he was with his family that day. 368 00:18:43,722 --> 00:18:45,791 And when the family was interviewed, 369 00:18:45,824 --> 00:18:49,094 they corroborated that he had been with them. 370 00:18:49,128 --> 00:18:54,433 He even volunteered to give DNA tests to eliminate him. 371 00:18:55,234 --> 00:18:57,703 narrator: While detectives wait for the test results 372 00:18:57,736 --> 00:19:01,373 comparing DNA found on the trash can at the crime scene 373 00:19:01,407 --> 00:19:04,410 to DNA from Jesse and the apartment custodian, 374 00:19:04,443 --> 00:19:08,480 they continue looking for other leads. 375 00:19:08,514 --> 00:19:11,517 - It kind of felt like we were back at square one. 376 00:19:11,550 --> 00:19:14,653 We didn't have anything to go on other than just, 377 00:19:14,687 --> 00:19:19,391 well, let's interview everyone we possibly can find 378 00:19:19,425 --> 00:19:22,327 who has seen him in the last few days. 379 00:19:22,361 --> 00:19:24,596 * * 380 00:19:24,630 --> 00:19:25,764 - Damon was a really social guy, 381 00:19:25,798 --> 00:19:29,568 and he was just really well-known in Laguna Beach. 382 00:19:29,601 --> 00:19:31,770 There's this, like, real sense of community here. 383 00:19:31,804 --> 00:19:33,772 It looked like police were trying 384 00:19:33,806 --> 00:19:38,677 to investigate every lead, so it was a lot of information. 385 00:19:38,711 --> 00:19:40,612 - There are a lot of people that may know something 386 00:19:40,646 --> 00:19:43,382 that could be involved with this homicide. 387 00:19:43,415 --> 00:19:46,719 - Jason had told us that Damon would commonly 388 00:19:46,752 --> 00:19:49,388 use a website called Adam for Adam, 389 00:19:49,421 --> 00:19:51,557 where he would meet other guys. 390 00:19:51,590 --> 00:19:53,359 - We got a search warrant 391 00:19:53,392 --> 00:19:56,595 to see the inbound and outbound messages. 392 00:19:56,628 --> 00:19:58,931 - We start looking at the ones he was actually 393 00:19:58,964 --> 00:20:00,632 in the communications with. 394 00:20:00,666 --> 00:20:02,768 - OK, this person had talked to him about coming over. 395 00:20:02,801 --> 00:20:04,603 This person talked to him about coming over. 396 00:20:04,636 --> 00:20:06,939 So those, again, all potential suspects 397 00:20:06,972 --> 00:20:10,275 that we have to track down and interview 398 00:20:10,309 --> 00:20:13,846 and see if they have an alibi for that night. 399 00:20:13,879 --> 00:20:16,515 We also keep going back every day 400 00:20:16,548 --> 00:20:19,251 and interviewing people in the apartment complex 401 00:20:19,284 --> 00:20:23,022 where we recovered Damon's cell phone. 402 00:20:23,055 --> 00:20:26,492 Maybe someone had seen or heard something. 403 00:20:28,060 --> 00:20:29,995 - Three days after the murder, 404 00:20:30,029 --> 00:20:32,364 in the midst of their full-scale canvass, 405 00:20:32,398 --> 00:20:35,000 detectives make a key discovery. 406 00:20:35,034 --> 00:20:38,837 - We obtain a search warrant for Damon's cell phone records, 407 00:20:38,871 --> 00:20:41,407 and that's when we found out that somebody 408 00:20:41,440 --> 00:20:43,342 had called Damon's phone a few times 409 00:20:43,375 --> 00:20:46,945 on the night of the murder. 410 00:20:46,979 --> 00:20:48,547 - The Orange County coroner's Office 411 00:20:48,580 --> 00:20:50,182 had determined the time of death 412 00:20:50,215 --> 00:20:52,551 to be right around between 1:00 and 3:00 AM. 413 00:20:52,584 --> 00:20:55,921 - There were four calls from a man named Alex 414 00:20:55,954 --> 00:20:58,957 around the time that he was killed. 415 00:20:58,991 --> 00:21:01,160 - This could be the last person to speak to him 416 00:21:01,193 --> 00:21:02,394 before he was murdered. 417 00:21:02,428 --> 00:21:05,531 [line ringing] 418 00:21:07,566 --> 00:21:11,737 I reached out to him initially to interview him. 419 00:21:32,091 --> 00:21:35,661 - He was extremely reluctant to talk to me on the phone. 420 00:22:09,428 --> 00:22:10,963 - He was very nervous. 421 00:22:11,063 --> 00:22:13,565 His answers were awkward and evasive. 422 00:22:38,524 --> 00:22:40,559 - As far as his relationship with Damon, 423 00:22:40,592 --> 00:22:41,727 he would never confirm that he actually 424 00:22:41,760 --> 00:22:43,095 ever came over to his house. 425 00:22:43,128 --> 00:22:47,499 So we knew he was being dodgy and lying to us. 426 00:22:47,533 --> 00:22:49,468 And at that point, he said 427 00:22:49,501 --> 00:22:51,637 he didn't have time to talk to us. 428 00:22:51,670 --> 00:22:53,872 When you're the last person to talk to this person, 429 00:22:53,906 --> 00:22:57,309 maybe see him alive, just hours before 430 00:22:57,343 --> 00:22:59,311 the coroner said time of death, 431 00:22:59,345 --> 00:23:02,514 and you're unwilling to talk to me on the phone? 432 00:23:02,548 --> 00:23:06,051 That really has set up some red flags. 433 00:23:06,051 --> 00:23:09,588 When I hung up the phone, I thought, 434 00:23:09,621 --> 00:23:12,925 I got our suspect now. 435 00:23:12,958 --> 00:23:14,760 Alex had said he was going to school 436 00:23:14,793 --> 00:23:17,596 in Cal State Dominguez Hills down in San Diego, 437 00:23:17,629 --> 00:23:21,166 so I figured, well, we'll take the conversation to him. 438 00:23:21,200 --> 00:23:23,068 We went up to the campus, 439 00:23:23,068 --> 00:23:26,839 had the campus police pull him out of the class. 440 00:23:26,872 --> 00:23:28,674 Found a private room that we could interview him 441 00:23:28,707 --> 00:23:31,210 because he was just so cagey. 442 00:23:31,243 --> 00:23:36,515 At that point, I think he realized how serious it was. 443 00:23:48,995 --> 00:23:51,398 [dramatic music] 444 00:23:51,664 --> 00:23:55,201 * * 445 00:23:55,235 --> 00:23:56,903 narrator: Detectives in Laguna Beach 446 00:23:56,936 --> 00:23:59,906 are grilling an evasive suspect named Alex 447 00:23:59,939 --> 00:24:01,708 who may have been the last person 448 00:24:01,741 --> 00:24:04,044 to see Damon Nicholson alive. 449 00:24:06,946 --> 00:24:10,450 - He told them that he had met up with Damon 450 00:24:10,483 --> 00:24:12,752 on the evening of October 22, 451 00:24:12,786 --> 00:24:14,788 so just hours before Damon was killed. 452 00:24:17,123 --> 00:24:20,060 - He said that they hooked up and then he left. 453 00:24:22,128 --> 00:24:26,733 - So now, we wanted to nail down, like, hour by hour, 454 00:24:26,766 --> 00:24:30,070 where were you to prove or disprove 455 00:24:30,103 --> 00:24:34,741 whether he was the person that killed him. 456 00:24:34,774 --> 00:24:37,544 - He told us that after he left the house, 457 00:24:37,577 --> 00:24:39,946 he went to an In-N-Out outside of town. 458 00:24:39,979 --> 00:24:42,749 He used his credit card, and he gave us a receipt. 459 00:24:42,782 --> 00:24:44,784 - The coroner had determined time of death 460 00:24:44,818 --> 00:24:46,519 between 1:00 and 3:00 AM, 461 00:24:46,553 --> 00:24:48,588 so the credit card transaction at In-N-Out 462 00:24:48,621 --> 00:24:53,993 was a really strong alibi to him not being near Damon 463 00:24:54,094 --> 00:24:56,162 around the time he was murdered. 464 00:24:56,196 --> 00:24:58,565 So at that point, 465 00:24:58,598 --> 00:25:02,035 we put him to the side as being a suspect. 466 00:25:02,068 --> 00:25:08,842 * * 467 00:25:08,875 --> 00:25:10,310 narrator: Three weeks after the murder, 468 00:25:10,343 --> 00:25:12,645 heartbroken friends and family gather 469 00:25:12,679 --> 00:25:15,148 to remember Damon Nicholson. 470 00:25:15,181 --> 00:25:18,551 - Damon's memorial service was here in Laguna. 471 00:25:18,585 --> 00:25:22,622 I came with my mom and one of my kids. 472 00:25:22,655 --> 00:25:25,658 - The room was absolutely packed. 473 00:25:25,692 --> 00:25:28,828 There were over 300 people there. 474 00:25:28,862 --> 00:25:32,232 It was standing room only. 475 00:25:32,265 --> 00:25:35,635 - I just remember the emotion in there was palpable. 476 00:25:35,669 --> 00:25:39,239 Like, people were just grieving together. 477 00:25:39,272 --> 00:25:44,511 - The day of the memorial, I remember nothing. 478 00:25:44,544 --> 00:25:47,080 I don't even remember speaking. 479 00:25:47,080 --> 00:25:48,748 It was shocking, of course. 480 00:25:48,782 --> 00:25:50,750 I mean, how does one react 481 00:25:50,784 --> 00:25:54,087 when their best friend had been murdered? 482 00:25:54,087 --> 00:25:56,356 Just sad. 483 00:25:56,389 --> 00:25:59,592 Just so sad. 484 00:25:59,626 --> 00:26:01,695 [somber music] 485 00:26:01,728 --> 00:26:05,665 - Well, the family asked me to speak at his memorial. 486 00:26:05,699 --> 00:26:09,869 Although it was very hard, 487 00:26:09,903 --> 00:26:12,872 I felt like this was an opportunity for me 488 00:26:12,906 --> 00:26:17,177 to tell the world about the Damon I knew. 489 00:26:17,210 --> 00:26:20,880 * * 490 00:26:20,914 --> 00:26:24,084 I said he was never afraid to take chances. 491 00:26:24,117 --> 00:26:27,287 He had a thirst for knowledge, was never-ending. 492 00:26:27,320 --> 00:26:33,126 His humor, oh, his humor brightened so many of my days. 493 00:26:33,159 --> 00:26:36,162 He recently went to a taping of "Dancing With the Stars," 494 00:26:36,196 --> 00:26:39,132 and he had the audience and the hosts laughing. 495 00:26:39,165 --> 00:26:40,800 That was Damon. 496 00:26:40,834 --> 00:26:45,305 Expect the unexpected. 497 00:26:45,338 --> 00:26:49,843 - They had a big picture of him walking on the beach. 498 00:26:49,876 --> 00:26:51,578 It was overwhelming. 499 00:26:51,611 --> 00:26:55,782 It was really good, though, to see... 500 00:26:55,815 --> 00:26:59,586 how many people really loved him. 501 00:26:59,619 --> 00:27:02,255 narrator: While friends and family grieve the loss 502 00:27:02,288 --> 00:27:05,258 of their loved one, investigators get some news 503 00:27:05,291 --> 00:27:09,162 that could finally help them catch Damon's killer. 504 00:27:09,195 --> 00:27:12,232 - On November 17, which was a little bit longer 505 00:27:12,265 --> 00:27:14,267 than three weeks after the murder, 506 00:27:14,300 --> 00:27:17,704 the crime lab contacted us and told us that they had a match 507 00:27:17,737 --> 00:27:19,906 on the DNA that had been recovered 508 00:27:19,939 --> 00:27:21,941 from underneath the trashcan lid 509 00:27:22,042 --> 00:27:24,144 found at the murder scene. 510 00:27:24,177 --> 00:27:26,279 narrator: After waiting more than three weeks 511 00:27:26,312 --> 00:27:29,616 for the DNA analysis, the DNA doesn't match anyone 512 00:27:29,649 --> 00:27:31,284 on their list of suspects, 513 00:27:31,317 --> 00:27:35,789 including Jesse, Alex, or the apartment custodian. 514 00:27:35,822 --> 00:27:39,292 - All of them that voluntarily gave their DNA 515 00:27:39,325 --> 00:27:42,128 were all eliminated as suspects. 516 00:27:42,162 --> 00:27:44,931 narrator: But when the lab runs the DNA profile 517 00:27:44,964 --> 00:27:46,966 from the crime scene through CODIS, 518 00:27:47,067 --> 00:27:49,302 which is the FBI's nationwide database 519 00:27:49,336 --> 00:27:52,472 of convicted offenders, they get a hit. 520 00:27:52,505 --> 00:27:55,175 - The DNA came back to a name of Matthew Dragna. 521 00:27:55,208 --> 00:27:57,143 [tense music] 522 00:27:57,177 --> 00:28:01,648 - So it was like, well, who is this guy, Matthew Dragna? 523 00:28:01,681 --> 00:28:04,484 - The first thing we did was run a DMV check on him 524 00:28:04,517 --> 00:28:08,822 to see where he lived, and the mic drop moment came 525 00:28:08,855 --> 00:28:12,659 when we found his address. 526 00:28:12,692 --> 00:28:14,728 - He lives over at The Timbers. 527 00:28:14,761 --> 00:28:16,896 That's where Damon's cell phone was. 528 00:28:16,930 --> 00:28:19,899 [suspenseful music] 529 00:28:19,933 --> 00:28:23,436 * * 530 00:28:23,470 --> 00:28:26,339 - So we do a background on Matt Dragna. 531 00:28:26,373 --> 00:28:29,376 Matt's DNA was in the system already 532 00:28:29,409 --> 00:28:31,511 because at the young age of 19, 533 00:28:31,544 --> 00:28:36,049 he'd been arrested for a drug offense in Orange County. 534 00:28:36,049 --> 00:28:39,219 - Also, there was an assault charge on his record 535 00:28:39,252 --> 00:28:41,821 that, obviously, would demonstrate 536 00:28:41,855 --> 00:28:44,357 his propensity for violence. 537 00:28:44,391 --> 00:28:49,062 * * 538 00:28:49,062 --> 00:28:50,897 - So now, we obtained a search warrant 539 00:28:50,930 --> 00:28:53,166 and we went to his apartment. 540 00:28:53,199 --> 00:28:55,969 narrator: Dragna isn't home, but his mother is. 541 00:28:56,069 --> 00:28:57,937 She explains it's her apartment 542 00:28:57,971 --> 00:28:59,806 and Matt has been crashing there. 543 00:28:59,839 --> 00:29:03,343 Then she gives them what could be a key piece of evidence. 544 00:29:03,376 --> 00:29:05,879 - At one point, the mother mentioned 545 00:29:05,912 --> 00:29:07,480 he recently had come into money, 546 00:29:07,514 --> 00:29:11,051 and she didn't know where the money came from, 547 00:29:11,084 --> 00:29:15,288 and she handed us some software... 548 00:29:15,321 --> 00:29:19,059 and said, he gave this to me. 549 00:29:19,092 --> 00:29:21,027 It looked like expensive software 550 00:29:21,027 --> 00:29:22,729 that had been purchased. 551 00:29:22,762 --> 00:29:25,031 When she asked him about it, 552 00:29:25,031 --> 00:29:28,234 he looked at her and said, "You don't wanna know. 553 00:29:28,268 --> 00:29:30,937 I'm gonna end up paying for this." 554 00:29:32,772 --> 00:29:36,076 I think, in his own way, he was probably confessing to her 555 00:29:36,109 --> 00:29:39,546 that he had done something horrible. 556 00:29:39,579 --> 00:29:41,915 narrator: Matt's mother says she doesn't have a clue 557 00:29:41,948 --> 00:29:44,117 as to his whereabouts. 558 00:29:44,150 --> 00:29:46,553 - He would just come and go as he pleased. 559 00:29:46,586 --> 00:29:49,456 narrator: As investigators continue to track down Dragna, 560 00:29:49,489 --> 00:29:52,759 they conduct a forensic analysis on the software CD. 561 00:29:52,792 --> 00:29:55,061 - When we ran the registration number on it, 562 00:29:55,061 --> 00:29:58,431 it came back to a woman who was a friend of Damon, 563 00:29:58,465 --> 00:30:02,769 and she confirmed she had loaned it to Damon 564 00:30:02,802 --> 00:30:05,271 and he hadn't returned it yet. 565 00:30:05,305 --> 00:30:07,907 narrator: Then, 26 days after the murder, 566 00:30:07,941 --> 00:30:11,811 investigators get a solid lead on Dragna's whereabouts. 567 00:30:11,845 --> 00:30:15,415 - We found out that he was on probation. 568 00:30:15,448 --> 00:30:17,851 And we spoke to his probation officer. 569 00:30:17,884 --> 00:30:21,087 She had informed us that he was at a rehabilitation center 570 00:30:21,121 --> 00:30:24,057 in the city of Santa Ana. 571 00:30:24,090 --> 00:30:26,493 We go up to Santa Ana. 572 00:30:26,526 --> 00:30:30,196 - Authorities there, they brought Matt into the office. 573 00:30:30,230 --> 00:30:34,267 And so the detectives started to interview him. 574 00:30:51,918 --> 00:30:53,620 - That's like, OK, setting the tone 575 00:30:53,653 --> 00:30:55,055 for where this is gonna go. 576 00:30:55,088 --> 00:30:58,024 [dramatic music] 577 00:31:09,168 --> 00:31:11,603 [dramatic music] 578 00:31:11,870 --> 00:31:15,207 * * 579 00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:17,509 narrator: At a rehab facility in Orange County, 580 00:31:17,543 --> 00:31:20,379 investigators corner their prime suspect 581 00:31:20,412 --> 00:31:22,481 in Damon Nicholson's murder. 582 00:31:32,424 --> 00:31:34,460 narrator: Investigators now challenge Matt 583 00:31:34,493 --> 00:31:36,562 with their most damning evidence. 584 00:31:36,595 --> 00:31:39,531 - We had already thought that that trash had been dumped 585 00:31:39,565 --> 00:31:41,467 so the murder weapon could go in there, 586 00:31:41,500 --> 00:31:43,669 so we had that in the back of our minds. 587 00:31:43,702 --> 00:31:47,239 - So we confronted them with the DNA match. 588 00:32:03,956 --> 00:32:05,591 - So once police start asking him 589 00:32:05,624 --> 00:32:09,094 about why his DNA was found on Damon's trash can, 590 00:32:09,128 --> 00:32:10,729 he changed his story. 591 00:32:10,763 --> 00:32:13,465 - He admitted that he had been with him. 592 00:32:13,499 --> 00:32:17,169 Dragna said that he knew Damon through a friend, 593 00:32:17,202 --> 00:32:19,171 and he had one hook up with him 594 00:32:19,204 --> 00:32:21,740 the night before the murder. 595 00:32:21,774 --> 00:32:24,510 - He came up with the craziest story 596 00:32:24,543 --> 00:32:27,946 that he'd been there the night before, which was truthful, 597 00:32:27,980 --> 00:32:32,718 but that the victim had asked him to take the trash out. 598 00:32:32,751 --> 00:32:34,253 I've never been to someone's home 599 00:32:34,286 --> 00:32:36,088 for the first time when they randomly 600 00:32:36,121 --> 00:32:38,123 had me take their trash out. 601 00:32:38,157 --> 00:32:42,127 So his story just didn't make sense. 602 00:32:42,161 --> 00:32:43,996 - When pressed, eventually, 603 00:32:44,096 --> 00:32:47,533 he, I think, realizes that we know more than we're sharing. 604 00:32:47,566 --> 00:32:49,368 - I can tell it was becoming tense. 605 00:33:04,183 --> 00:33:06,285 - So at this point, we have probable cause 606 00:33:06,318 --> 00:33:09,121 to arrest this person. 607 00:33:09,154 --> 00:33:11,423 - We're not gonna let this murderer go. 608 00:33:11,457 --> 00:33:13,692 - I walk in to assist the other detectives 609 00:33:13,726 --> 00:33:16,228 that were in there and had placed him under custody 610 00:33:16,261 --> 00:33:18,697 for the murder of Damon Nicholson. 611 00:33:20,532 --> 00:33:23,235 We transported Dragna back to the city of Laguna Beach, 612 00:33:23,268 --> 00:33:25,704 to our police department. 613 00:33:25,738 --> 00:33:28,807 narrator: Back at the station, investigators don't let up. 614 00:33:28,841 --> 00:33:30,676 The grilling continues. 615 00:33:30,709 --> 00:33:34,646 Then, Dragna suddenly changes his tune. 616 00:33:34,680 --> 00:33:37,683 - He ends up telling us what happened. 617 00:33:39,251 --> 00:33:42,721 He has a friend named Jacob. 618 00:33:42,755 --> 00:33:44,623 Dragna had told Jacob that 619 00:33:44,656 --> 00:33:48,694 Damon had a lot of camera equipment in the house, 620 00:33:48,727 --> 00:33:51,463 and Jacob said, let's go rip him off. 621 00:33:53,465 --> 00:33:56,435 - He and his friend had decided to go over to Damon's house 622 00:33:56,468 --> 00:33:58,737 because they believed it would be easy to get in. 623 00:33:58,771 --> 00:34:01,840 They knew the door was open sometimes. 624 00:34:01,874 --> 00:34:04,843 And he said that the friend brought along a baseball bat, 625 00:34:04,877 --> 00:34:08,213 just in case anything would go down. 626 00:34:08,247 --> 00:34:10,416 - They went to the house, but he stayed in the car, 627 00:34:10,449 --> 00:34:13,052 and Jacob ran in, 628 00:34:13,052 --> 00:34:15,587 and he committed the murder with the baseball bat. 629 00:34:17,556 --> 00:34:20,225 Then, he came out covered in blood, 630 00:34:20,259 --> 00:34:24,229 and that they left and threw away the clothes somewhere. 631 00:34:24,263 --> 00:34:25,531 - So the question was asked of Matt, 632 00:34:25,564 --> 00:34:28,600 well, how come your DNA was located inside Damon's house? 633 00:34:28,634 --> 00:34:32,137 His story to us was that he walked inside to get 634 00:34:32,171 --> 00:34:35,841 the trash bag to put his friend's bloody clothing in. 635 00:34:37,576 --> 00:34:40,679 narrator: Matt has now placed himself inside the house 636 00:34:40,713 --> 00:34:43,749 on the night of the murder, but he continues to insist 637 00:34:43,782 --> 00:34:46,452 that he did not kill Damon Nicholson. 638 00:34:46,485 --> 00:34:48,620 - When Matthew talked about the murder, 639 00:34:48,654 --> 00:34:51,423 he made himself out to just be the accomplice 640 00:34:51,457 --> 00:34:54,993 and sort of Jacob was the murderer. 641 00:34:55,094 --> 00:34:59,765 - So, you know, at that point, you have to determine, 642 00:34:59,798 --> 00:35:00,632 did he do the murder, 643 00:35:00,666 --> 00:35:02,701 or did this other person do the murder? 644 00:35:02,735 --> 00:35:05,471 - We need to question Jacob on his involvement 645 00:35:05,504 --> 00:35:09,341 with the murder of Damon Nicholson. 646 00:35:09,375 --> 00:35:11,243 - And I believe it was Detective Bammer 647 00:35:11,276 --> 00:35:15,614 called Matthew's mother and asked her, 648 00:35:15,647 --> 00:35:17,116 he's talking about this guy, Jacob. 649 00:35:17,149 --> 00:35:18,617 Do you know who Jacob is? 650 00:35:18,650 --> 00:35:21,120 And the response was, yeah, Jacob Quintanilla. 651 00:35:21,153 --> 00:35:23,922 He's sitting right here. 652 00:35:23,956 --> 00:35:26,859 So a couple detectives race back out there. 653 00:35:28,727 --> 00:35:31,697 - When they arrive, Jacob is casually visiting 654 00:35:31,730 --> 00:35:33,799 with Dragna's mother and sister. 655 00:35:33,832 --> 00:35:36,902 - They learn Jacob Quintanilla was a neighbor who lived 656 00:35:36,935 --> 00:35:39,872 in the same apartment complex, and he had a car, 657 00:35:39,905 --> 00:35:43,242 and Dragna would ask him for rides sometimes. 658 00:35:44,510 --> 00:35:48,647 - And we found out Jacob hung around Dragna 659 00:35:48,681 --> 00:35:52,451 because he wanted to date Dragna's sister. 660 00:35:54,453 --> 00:35:58,424 - They begin to question Jacob on his involvement 661 00:35:58,457 --> 00:36:01,560 with the murder of Damon Nicholson. 662 00:36:01,593 --> 00:36:05,030 - Jacob didn't admit to being involved in this at all. 663 00:36:05,030 --> 00:36:06,899 They asked to search his apartment. 664 00:36:06,932 --> 00:36:09,268 He lived with his parents at the time. 665 00:36:09,301 --> 00:36:11,270 narrator: The search of the apartment doesn't turn up 666 00:36:11,303 --> 00:36:14,907 anything incriminating, so given the lack of evidence, 667 00:36:14,940 --> 00:36:17,843 he's free to go. 668 00:36:17,876 --> 00:36:20,646 - But based on what Matt is telling us about 669 00:36:20,679 --> 00:36:23,048 Jacob's involvement, we obtain a search warrant, 670 00:36:23,048 --> 00:36:26,618 and we got his cell phone records. 671 00:36:26,652 --> 00:36:28,520 It showed that the night of the murder, 672 00:36:28,554 --> 00:36:32,491 his cell phone was pinging in Laguna Beach. 673 00:36:32,524 --> 00:36:35,094 - It's significant to us because he told us 674 00:36:35,127 --> 00:36:37,863 that he'd never been to Laguna Beach that night. 675 00:36:37,896 --> 00:36:40,165 narrator: But detectives still don't have enough 676 00:36:40,199 --> 00:36:43,669 to tie Jacob directly to the murder scene. 677 00:36:43,702 --> 00:36:46,071 - That's when we got a phone call from 678 00:36:46,071 --> 00:36:49,074 the Orange County Crime Lab. 679 00:36:49,074 --> 00:36:51,977 There is a fingerprint match on a software CD 680 00:36:52,077 --> 00:36:53,979 that was taken from Damon's house 681 00:36:54,079 --> 00:36:56,148 on the night of the murder 682 00:36:56,181 --> 00:36:58,484 that we'd found when we searched Dragna's house. 683 00:36:58,517 --> 00:37:02,388 It had Jacob's fingerprint on it. 684 00:37:02,421 --> 00:37:04,757 - For investigators, that provides 685 00:37:04,790 --> 00:37:07,726 that last piece of evidence to back up Dragna's claim 686 00:37:07,760 --> 00:37:10,596 that Jacob Quintanilla was also there that night. 687 00:37:12,931 --> 00:37:15,034 narrator: Even though Jacob could claim he touched the CD 688 00:37:15,034 --> 00:37:17,036 while hanging out at Dragna's house 689 00:37:17,036 --> 00:37:20,039 and not at the murder scene, investigators hoped 690 00:37:20,072 --> 00:37:23,442 this might rattle him enough to make him confess. 691 00:37:29,782 --> 00:37:31,550 narrator: Investigators turn up the pressure 692 00:37:31,583 --> 00:37:33,652 on Jacob Quintanilla. 693 00:37:58,077 --> 00:38:01,046 [dramatic music] 694 00:38:10,824 --> 00:38:13,259 [dramatic music] 695 00:38:13,526 --> 00:38:17,630 * * 696 00:38:17,664 --> 00:38:19,632 narrator: After linking a second suspect 697 00:38:19,666 --> 00:38:22,035 to the slaying of Damon Nicholson, 698 00:38:22,035 --> 00:38:26,573 investigators begin tightening the screws. 699 00:38:26,606 --> 00:38:29,042 - We went to talk to Jacob at his house. 700 00:38:31,044 --> 00:38:33,880 Jacob was starting to be evasive. 701 00:38:33,913 --> 00:38:37,050 We told him his cell phone was showing he was there in Laguna 702 00:38:37,083 --> 00:38:39,252 the night of the murder, 703 00:38:39,285 --> 00:38:43,056 and the fingerprint of his on the software, 704 00:38:43,089 --> 00:38:46,459 and the fact that Matt was implicating him 705 00:38:46,493 --> 00:38:48,528 as the one that killed Damon. 706 00:38:50,530 --> 00:38:52,265 At that point during the interview, 707 00:38:52,298 --> 00:38:56,569 he confessed to our detectives on what occurred that night. 708 00:38:59,406 --> 00:39:01,908 [ominous music] 709 00:39:02,008 --> 00:39:04,778 - Quintanilla confirms that he and Dragna 710 00:39:04,811 --> 00:39:09,082 had gone over to Damon's house to try to rob the place. 711 00:39:10,417 --> 00:39:12,318 - Jacob really didn't ask a lot of questions 712 00:39:12,352 --> 00:39:15,655 about who this guy Damon was or how Matt knew him. 713 00:39:15,689 --> 00:39:18,091 So he drives them to town. 714 00:39:18,124 --> 00:39:22,629 - And they walk inside Damon's house. 715 00:39:22,662 --> 00:39:24,397 - He tells them that 716 00:39:24,431 --> 00:39:25,899 Dragna was the one holding the baseball bat, 717 00:39:25,932 --> 00:39:28,501 and that he started beating Damon 718 00:39:28,535 --> 00:39:30,403 almost right after they entered. 719 00:39:32,672 --> 00:39:36,042 - Jacob just sat there, frozen. 720 00:39:36,042 --> 00:39:39,446 Then Matt started ordering Jacob 721 00:39:39,479 --> 00:39:43,650 to gather stuff from the house that they could steal. 722 00:39:43,683 --> 00:39:45,785 - He said that they grab a computer, 723 00:39:45,819 --> 00:39:48,822 Damon's cell phone, some computer software, 724 00:39:48,855 --> 00:39:52,158 and they left the location. 725 00:39:52,192 --> 00:39:56,062 Jacob said that Matt ditched the cell phone in a dumpster 726 00:39:56,096 --> 00:39:59,332 with the murder weapon in a trash bag. 727 00:39:59,366 --> 00:40:02,135 And they went their separate locations that night. 728 00:40:04,671 --> 00:40:07,173 narrator: On December 4, 2009, 729 00:40:07,207 --> 00:40:09,909 nearly six weeks after Damon's murder, 730 00:40:09,943 --> 00:40:12,812 Jacob Quintanilla is also arrested 731 00:40:12,846 --> 00:40:16,182 and charged with the murder of Damon Nicholson. 732 00:40:16,216 --> 00:40:19,686 - I remember my mom calling and saying 733 00:40:19,719 --> 00:40:22,655 they found these two individuals, 734 00:40:22,689 --> 00:40:27,627 and they have been arrested and are in jail at the moment. 735 00:40:27,660 --> 00:40:29,362 Many thoughts go through your mind. 736 00:40:29,396 --> 00:40:32,432 Where do you go next? What happens next? 737 00:40:32,465 --> 00:40:33,700 - There were still so many questions 738 00:40:33,733 --> 00:40:35,168 about what had happened. 739 00:40:35,201 --> 00:40:37,504 - When we were looking at the two of them 740 00:40:37,537 --> 00:40:38,972 and their conflicting stories, 741 00:40:39,005 --> 00:40:40,774 the one thing that continued to stand out 742 00:40:40,807 --> 00:40:45,679 with Jacob's story was he had no prior interaction 743 00:40:45,712 --> 00:40:49,049 with Damon, where Dragna had been with him 744 00:40:49,082 --> 00:40:51,951 just two days before the murder. 745 00:40:51,985 --> 00:40:56,222 - Matt and another gentleman were over at Damon's house 746 00:40:56,256 --> 00:40:59,025 a few nights prior, so that gave us closure 747 00:40:59,059 --> 00:41:02,062 figuring out how Matt knew to go there 748 00:41:02,062 --> 00:41:06,232 and knew Damon's practices of leaving his house unlocked. 749 00:41:06,266 --> 00:41:09,369 * * 750 00:41:09,402 --> 00:41:11,905 narrator: Both suspects are prosecuted separately, 751 00:41:11,938 --> 00:41:13,973 beginning with Matt Dragna. 752 00:41:14,074 --> 00:41:16,076 - This case goes to trial in 2013, 753 00:41:16,076 --> 00:41:20,380 and Dragna is convicted in December 2013. 754 00:41:20,413 --> 00:41:22,882 Dragna is sentenced to life in prison 755 00:41:22,916 --> 00:41:25,251 without the possibility of parole. 756 00:41:25,285 --> 00:41:28,988 * * 757 00:41:29,089 --> 00:41:31,925 narrator: But prosecutors hit a snag. 758 00:41:31,958 --> 00:41:34,427 - Dragna appeals this conviction. 759 00:41:34,461 --> 00:41:38,131 - Dragna's case was overturned on a technicality. 760 00:41:38,164 --> 00:41:42,369 Eventually, he pled guilty to a lesser charge. 761 00:41:42,402 --> 00:41:45,672 - In October 2021, he pleads guilty 762 00:41:45,705 --> 00:41:48,274 to voluntary manslaughter, burglary, 763 00:41:48,308 --> 00:41:51,444 assault with a deadly weapon, and he also admits 764 00:41:51,478 --> 00:41:55,248 that he was the one who used the deadly weapon. 765 00:41:55,281 --> 00:41:58,818 - Matt accepted a 30-year sentence, 766 00:41:58,852 --> 00:42:01,087 with 12 years already served. 767 00:42:01,121 --> 00:42:04,190 So that means he's got another 18 years to serve 768 00:42:04,224 --> 00:42:06,426 before he gets out. 769 00:42:06,459 --> 00:42:08,795 narrator: Once Dragna accepts a plea deal, 770 00:42:08,828 --> 00:42:12,298 Jacob Quintanilla does the same. 771 00:42:12,332 --> 00:42:14,801 - Quintanilla agrees to plead guilty as well 772 00:42:14,834 --> 00:42:18,071 to voluntary manslaughter and burglary. 773 00:42:18,104 --> 00:42:21,941 He's sentenced to seven years in prison. 774 00:42:23,777 --> 00:42:26,079 [somber music] 775 00:42:26,112 --> 00:42:28,181 - Damon left his hometown and traveled to Orange County 776 00:42:28,214 --> 00:42:30,116 because it was a place where he could be free 777 00:42:30,150 --> 00:42:32,285 to be himself. 778 00:42:32,318 --> 00:42:37,557 Him exercising that freedom cost him his life. 779 00:42:37,590 --> 00:42:40,326 - I think it's like-- 780 00:42:40,360 --> 00:42:43,596 it's trite to say, at least there was justice, you know? 781 00:42:43,630 --> 00:42:45,899 I think, uh, 782 00:42:45,932 --> 00:42:48,902 his friends and family would, 783 00:42:48,935 --> 00:42:52,605 obviously rather have him back. 784 00:42:52,639 --> 00:42:56,109 - If Damon was here now, 785 00:42:56,142 --> 00:42:59,312 I'd tell him how much I miss him. 786 00:42:59,346 --> 00:43:04,651 I'd tell him how much he will always be in my heart. 787 00:43:04,684 --> 00:43:07,487 I love him. 788 00:43:07,520 --> 00:43:12,592 - I think the last memory or image I have of Damon 789 00:43:12,625 --> 00:43:15,562 is on the beach. 790 00:43:15,595 --> 00:43:18,898 He loved to sit out there and watch the dolphins. 791 00:43:18,932 --> 00:43:21,134 He loved the beach so much. 792 00:43:21,167 --> 00:43:27,140 * * 793 00:43:41,154 --> 00:43:44,224 [waves crash, seagulls chirp]