1 00:00:22,605 --> 00:00:25,316 -[sirens wailing faintly] -[helicopter blades whirring] 2 00:00:27,944 --> 00:00:28,987 [sirens intensify] 3 00:00:29,070 --> 00:00:31,197 [cryptic music playing] 4 00:00:32,574 --> 00:00:34,200 [man 1] March 4th, 1980. 5 00:00:34,284 --> 00:00:37,620 Um, I had just… was finishing a graveyard shift working patrol. 6 00:00:37,704 --> 00:00:39,789 My partner and I, we're about to get off, 7 00:00:39,873 --> 00:00:43,084 and we got a call of a possible body down at RAT Beach. 8 00:00:47,505 --> 00:00:51,134 It was a beach accessible through Malaga Cove. 9 00:00:51,634 --> 00:00:53,970 You get the call of a possible body on the beach, 10 00:00:54,054 --> 00:00:56,514 right away you start thinking, "We have a drunk." 11 00:00:56,598 --> 00:00:59,893 "Somebody that stumbled and fell. Might have an injured person." 12 00:00:59,976 --> 00:01:01,519 I wasn't prepared for what we found. 13 00:01:01,603 --> 00:01:03,229 [cryptic music playing] 14 00:01:03,313 --> 00:01:05,648 [Hernandez] This was an unsolved homicide case, 15 00:01:05,732 --> 00:01:07,275 a complete whodunit, 16 00:01:07,358 --> 00:01:10,445 complete mystery with zero witnesses. 17 00:01:10,528 --> 00:01:13,156 Thirty-three years later, I was assigned the case. 18 00:01:13,239 --> 00:01:16,409 [woman 1] You have to wonder what the person who did it has been up to 19 00:01:16,493 --> 00:01:18,078 for the last 33 years. 20 00:01:18,161 --> 00:01:19,412 [staticky burst] 21 00:01:19,496 --> 00:01:21,831 And you don't know what else they've gotten away with. 22 00:01:22,916 --> 00:01:24,667 [suspenseful music playing] 23 00:01:24,751 --> 00:01:27,587 [Tomlin] The LA County Sheriff's Department 24 00:01:27,670 --> 00:01:29,339 is the best of the best. 25 00:01:33,384 --> 00:01:36,554 [Jackson] Some of the highest-profile cases are tried in Los Angeles. 26 00:01:39,432 --> 00:01:42,602 [woman 2] You have to be dedicated 110%. 27 00:01:45,438 --> 00:01:48,358 [Lillienfeld] This is murder. There's no more serious crime. 28 00:01:50,443 --> 00:01:55,365 [man 2] It boils down to a passion and a sense of duty. 29 00:01:57,700 --> 00:01:59,994 Justice comes from finding the truth. 30 00:02:02,789 --> 00:02:04,791 [suspenseful music trailing off] 31 00:02:05,917 --> 00:02:07,919 [tense music pulsing] 32 00:02:08,795 --> 00:02:11,047 [Hernandez] In 2013, I went to my team lieutenant. 33 00:02:11,131 --> 00:02:13,758 I said, "I would like to catch some cases." 34 00:02:13,842 --> 00:02:16,845 So he had on his desk, sitting there, a case from 1980. 35 00:02:18,346 --> 00:02:21,558 I was hooked just reading through the reports on this case. 36 00:02:22,058 --> 00:02:24,769 Anytime a female's victimized, I think of my daughters. 37 00:02:26,521 --> 00:02:28,231 I start reading through the reports, 38 00:02:28,314 --> 00:02:31,943 thinking, "This is gonna take me to a lot of different places." 39 00:02:32,026 --> 00:02:35,822 'Cause I gotta find all these people in the original reports. 40 00:02:37,073 --> 00:02:41,411 And I find David Byington, the first responder. 41 00:02:42,579 --> 00:02:45,790 We talk on the phone. What a great memory he had of this case. 42 00:02:45,874 --> 00:02:47,959 He remembered this case because, 43 00:02:48,042 --> 00:02:51,212 back in 1980, he was a rookie on the department. 44 00:02:56,926 --> 00:02:57,927 [engine revving] 45 00:03:04,726 --> 00:03:06,227 [mysterious music playing] 46 00:03:07,604 --> 00:03:11,691 In 1980, I'm a police officer for the City of Palos Verdes Estates. 47 00:03:12,859 --> 00:03:16,571 Palos Verdes Estates is a little suburb south of Los Angeles. 48 00:03:16,654 --> 00:03:19,199 Beautiful cliffs, mansions. 49 00:03:19,282 --> 00:03:21,075 High-income folks live there, 50 00:03:21,159 --> 00:03:24,537 and most houses there go well into the multi-millions, 51 00:03:24,621 --> 00:03:26,080 even back in the '70s. 52 00:03:26,164 --> 00:03:28,666 As far as murders in Palos Verdes Estates, 53 00:03:28,750 --> 00:03:30,418 they were rare if ever. 54 00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:34,339 At the time, I was 21 years of age. 55 00:03:34,923 --> 00:03:39,302 I had been actually on my own for only a month or two in patrol. 56 00:03:40,053 --> 00:03:44,641 When I responded to the scene and realized that we actually had a potential homicide, 57 00:03:44,724 --> 00:03:45,975 I started shaking. 58 00:03:46,059 --> 00:03:48,061 [dark, foreboding music playing] 59 00:03:50,647 --> 00:03:55,735 There was a female found dead on the beach at Palos Verdes Estates on Malaga Cove, 60 00:03:55,818 --> 00:03:59,530 and she apparently had been sexually assaulted, 61 00:03:59,614 --> 00:04:01,699 and she had been beaten about the head. 62 00:04:03,409 --> 00:04:07,247 [woman] A surfer had found her purse, which had her identification in it. 63 00:04:07,330 --> 00:04:11,334 We were able to learn right away she was Teresa Broudreaux from Wilmington, 64 00:04:11,417 --> 00:04:12,877 just 12 miles away, 65 00:04:14,003 --> 00:04:15,755 and she was only 20 years old. 66 00:04:17,715 --> 00:04:22,512 We tried to check for signs of life, and I remember I had initially tried. 67 00:04:22,595 --> 00:04:24,722 The body was warm to the touch, 68 00:04:25,223 --> 00:04:27,850 but I could not tell if I was getting a pulse 69 00:04:27,934 --> 00:04:29,936 or if I was feeling my own pulse. 70 00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:32,438 I think part of that was nerves. 71 00:04:32,939 --> 00:04:35,525 I could see that the young lady was completely nude 72 00:04:35,608 --> 00:04:37,819 except for a pair of knee-high socks. 73 00:04:38,653 --> 00:04:43,408 She appeared to be posed in some position where her feet were facing the ocean. 74 00:04:44,492 --> 00:04:48,246 She had a large amount of blood covering her face. 75 00:04:48,329 --> 00:04:50,331 Her hair was matted down in the blood. 76 00:04:50,415 --> 00:04:53,584 It was difficult to see her face completely without moving the hair. 77 00:04:53,668 --> 00:04:56,838 She had what appeared to be a laceration on her forehead 78 00:04:56,921 --> 00:05:00,300 as well as some bruising and fresh injuries on her abdomen. 79 00:05:04,095 --> 00:05:06,431 Ultimately, the beach is a crime scene. 80 00:05:07,807 --> 00:05:10,685 The tide was coming in so quickly 81 00:05:10,768 --> 00:05:13,730 we had to pick her up physically and move her away. 82 00:05:14,230 --> 00:05:17,734 As we did this, my partner was trying to support her head. 83 00:05:18,985 --> 00:05:21,446 As we moved up the beach, my partner told me, 84 00:05:21,529 --> 00:05:24,449 "Oh no, my hand just disappeared in her head." 85 00:05:26,659 --> 00:05:29,078 She's got a large wound to the back of her head. 86 00:05:30,204 --> 00:05:32,248 We knew that this was not an accident. 87 00:05:35,084 --> 00:05:38,129 Ms. Broudreaux was my first homicide victim. 88 00:05:38,713 --> 00:05:41,716 It's the ultimate crime, the taking of another human life. 89 00:05:41,799 --> 00:05:43,885 The last thing you want to do is mess that up. 90 00:05:47,472 --> 00:05:50,767 The Palos Verdes Estates Police Department's a smaller agency. 91 00:05:51,267 --> 00:05:53,102 The sheer magnitude of this crime 92 00:05:53,186 --> 00:05:55,813 mandated that we would reach out to an agency 93 00:05:55,897 --> 00:05:58,316 that could adequately handle a murder investigation, 94 00:05:58,399 --> 00:06:01,694 and the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, they were known to be the best. 95 00:06:01,778 --> 00:06:03,738 [tense music pulsing] 96 00:06:03,821 --> 00:06:06,324 When the Los Angeles sheriff's homicide unit showed up, 97 00:06:06,407 --> 00:06:08,826 I was taking note of everything they did. 98 00:06:10,286 --> 00:06:12,288 [Ostrowski] Any prosecutor will tell you 99 00:06:12,372 --> 00:06:15,208 our job isn't just to convict people. 100 00:06:15,291 --> 00:06:19,545 It's also to make sure that the procedure that you go through 101 00:06:19,629 --> 00:06:22,757 to investigate a case is done correctly. 102 00:06:23,466 --> 00:06:25,718 You're left having to turn to… 103 00:06:26,636 --> 00:06:31,015 surveillance cameras, or witnesses, or scientific evidence. 104 00:06:31,099 --> 00:06:34,852 And in 1980, you didn't have anywhere near 105 00:06:34,936 --> 00:06:38,356 as much of… or as many of those things as you do now. 106 00:06:38,439 --> 00:06:40,441 [erratic, suspenseful music playing] 107 00:06:42,985 --> 00:06:45,905 [Byington] The victim had no clothing recovered anywhere in the scene. 108 00:06:45,988 --> 00:06:49,158 We found a bottle of alcohol and a couple glasses. 109 00:06:49,242 --> 00:06:51,702 One of 'em still had, it appeared, some alcohol in it, 110 00:06:51,786 --> 00:06:54,705 near where this purse had been apparently dumped. 111 00:06:55,665 --> 00:06:57,708 That would lead me to believe at that time 112 00:06:57,792 --> 00:07:00,086 that there was obviously someone else there 113 00:07:00,169 --> 00:07:03,297 that was drinking with the victim prior to the murder. 114 00:07:03,923 --> 00:07:06,300 We also saw there were tire tracks. 115 00:07:07,635 --> 00:07:11,973 [Hernandez] They believed that this was tire tracks from the suspect's vehicle. 116 00:07:12,056 --> 00:07:14,475 But the tire was somewhat balding. 117 00:07:14,559 --> 00:07:17,478 The tread depth was not deep enough. 118 00:07:17,562 --> 00:07:19,439 So they couldn't cast the tracks. 119 00:07:19,522 --> 00:07:21,524 [suspenseful music playing] 120 00:07:23,693 --> 00:07:26,529 [Byington] The LA County sheriff's homicide detectives 121 00:07:26,612 --> 00:07:29,866 immediately hit the ground running, trying to contact family members, 122 00:07:29,949 --> 00:07:31,451 people closest to your victim, 123 00:07:32,535 --> 00:07:36,080 and find out anything that could lead you to a potential suspect, 124 00:07:36,164 --> 00:07:38,666 that you could start following those leads. 125 00:07:38,749 --> 00:07:43,671 And they determined she was married to a gentleman named Ronnie Fematt. 126 00:07:45,506 --> 00:07:46,883 [music trails off] 127 00:07:46,966 --> 00:07:48,843 [subdued, pensive music playing] 128 00:07:48,926 --> 00:07:53,764 [man] When I met Teresa, she was maybe 18, 19. I was about 20. 129 00:07:54,348 --> 00:07:59,061 Me and my friend were on the east side of Wilmington, just hanging out, whatever. 130 00:07:59,687 --> 00:08:02,231 And one of the girls brought Teresa. 131 00:08:02,982 --> 00:08:05,318 And when I saw her, I just went, "Whoa." 132 00:08:06,152 --> 00:08:09,864 She was very independent, very strong-willed. 133 00:08:11,657 --> 00:08:13,743 I don't know what she saw in me. 134 00:08:16,078 --> 00:08:18,664 Me and my friends, we started doing drugs. 135 00:08:18,748 --> 00:08:20,750 You know, dabbling in it. 136 00:08:22,502 --> 00:08:27,215 But when me and Terri got together, she gave me an ultimatum. 137 00:08:27,715 --> 00:08:29,717 Said, "Hey, buddy, you gotta stop." 138 00:08:30,593 --> 00:08:32,094 I…It was a no-brainer. 139 00:08:33,387 --> 00:08:37,058 Two and a half years we're together, and then I thought, 140 00:08:37,141 --> 00:08:38,976 "This is the girl I want to marry." 141 00:08:39,602 --> 00:08:42,897 I wanted her. I wanted to have a family. I wanted to settle down. 142 00:08:42,980 --> 00:08:44,982 So I did. I married her. 143 00:08:45,066 --> 00:08:47,360 Then she got pregnant shortly after. 144 00:08:47,944 --> 00:08:49,695 They said, "It's gonna be a girl." 145 00:08:50,696 --> 00:08:51,948 So I was elated. 146 00:08:54,116 --> 00:08:59,747 The manner in which Teresa was killed was extremely upsetting. 147 00:08:59,830 --> 00:09:02,792 It was a violent death with her head bashed in, 148 00:09:02,875 --> 00:09:04,919 and likely sexually assaulted. 149 00:09:06,587 --> 00:09:10,174 And to then find out that she was several months pregnant, 150 00:09:10,258 --> 00:09:16,639 there was yet another life that was also derailed and ended, 151 00:09:16,722 --> 00:09:18,516 is incredibly sad. 152 00:09:19,809 --> 00:09:24,063 On top of that tragedy, she actually already was a mom. 153 00:09:24,146 --> 00:09:26,440 She had a four-year-old daughter named Linda. 154 00:09:26,524 --> 00:09:28,526 [cryptic music playing] 155 00:09:32,196 --> 00:09:37,910 [woman] March 4th, 1980 was one of the worst days of my life. 156 00:09:38,411 --> 00:09:42,748 [shakily] My grandmother told me my mother drowned at the beach. 157 00:09:46,127 --> 00:09:47,128 [shaky sobs] 158 00:09:49,255 --> 00:09:52,258 And that she was going to Heaven with the angels. 159 00:09:54,468 --> 00:09:56,596 [hoarsely] And she wasn't gonna come back. 160 00:10:00,016 --> 00:10:01,726 I became too much to handle. 161 00:10:03,978 --> 00:10:07,064 I didn't want to be with my… my aunt. 162 00:10:07,148 --> 00:10:10,693 I didn't want to be with my grandmother. I didn't wanna be with my dad. 163 00:10:10,776 --> 00:10:12,153 I just wanted my mom. 164 00:10:16,282 --> 00:10:19,118 And I couldn't understand why she couldn't come back. 165 00:10:19,702 --> 00:10:23,539 It felt like the only person that ever loved and protected me was gone. 166 00:10:25,666 --> 00:10:28,085 And now there was nobody left to love me. 167 00:10:30,046 --> 00:10:31,047 [sobs] 168 00:10:34,508 --> 00:10:36,427 [somber, emotional music playing] 169 00:10:36,927 --> 00:10:40,473 [Fematt] When I first met Linda, she was probably two years old. 170 00:10:40,556 --> 00:10:44,685 She was still baby talk, you know? She wasn't too vocal. 171 00:10:44,769 --> 00:10:48,064 Cute as a bug, you know? She really was. 172 00:10:48,856 --> 00:10:51,233 Being that she wasn't mine, it didn't bother me. 173 00:10:51,317 --> 00:10:52,693 Didn't bother me one bit. 174 00:10:53,736 --> 00:10:56,656 We used to play "cafe." She would take my order, 175 00:10:56,739 --> 00:10:58,991 then go to the kitchen, act like she made me food. 176 00:10:59,992 --> 00:11:01,369 She was a good kid. 177 00:11:02,536 --> 00:11:06,332 [Broudreaux] I just used to love it. I used to make the menu with Ronnie. 178 00:11:06,415 --> 00:11:08,084 Then I used to take it to my mom. 179 00:11:08,167 --> 00:11:10,378 She was like, "How many do you want, ma'am?" 180 00:11:10,461 --> 00:11:12,505 And I would be like, "Two, please." 181 00:11:12,588 --> 00:11:16,342 And she'll just be making my little grilled cheese by candlelight. 182 00:11:16,425 --> 00:11:20,096 I don't know why… I don't know why it was candlelight, but yeah. 183 00:11:20,179 --> 00:11:22,181 [emotional music continuing] 184 00:11:30,106 --> 00:11:32,441 [Byington] Ronnie married this woman, allegedly loved her, 185 00:11:32,525 --> 00:11:35,778 was raising her… her daughter as his own. 186 00:11:35,861 --> 00:11:38,447 But that doesn't exclude him from being a suspect. 187 00:11:39,907 --> 00:11:43,744 He could have snapped, had a bad moment, bad week. Who knows? 188 00:11:43,828 --> 00:11:45,621 Ronnie was one of the first people 189 00:11:45,705 --> 00:11:47,832 the sheriff's homicide detectives spoke to. 190 00:11:52,378 --> 00:11:55,381 [Fematt] The sheriffs, they interrogated me, 191 00:11:55,464 --> 00:11:56,882 and I answered everything. 192 00:11:58,175 --> 00:12:01,178 On March 3rd, I was attending Harbor College. 193 00:12:01,262 --> 00:12:04,598 Not taking anything special. I was doing art. I was good with art. 194 00:12:05,516 --> 00:12:07,226 I came home. I said to my wife, 195 00:12:07,309 --> 00:12:10,271 "Come on. Let's go to my friend George's house." 196 00:12:10,354 --> 00:12:13,149 We used to hang out in the garage, drink and smoke. 197 00:12:14,275 --> 00:12:15,276 We went. 198 00:12:16,110 --> 00:12:17,611 She didn't participate. 199 00:12:18,529 --> 00:12:19,655 She was pregnant. 200 00:12:19,739 --> 00:12:22,283 She didn't want to stand up all night in a garage. 201 00:12:22,366 --> 00:12:24,618 So I understand she wanted to go home. 202 00:12:27,413 --> 00:12:28,414 We went home. 203 00:12:28,497 --> 00:12:31,667 I told her, "I'mma go back." She goes, "I don't want you to go back." 204 00:12:31,751 --> 00:12:34,003 "You can't go back." I go, "I'mma go back." 205 00:12:34,086 --> 00:12:37,715 "No, you better not go." I go, "Terri, I'm going back." 206 00:12:38,758 --> 00:12:40,676 That's when I went out the door. 207 00:12:42,303 --> 00:12:44,388 I went this way toward my friend's house. 208 00:12:46,140 --> 00:12:49,935 I heard the door slam and I turned back. She was going toward the alley. 209 00:12:50,019 --> 00:12:53,481 We had a gate in the alley that would take you to the other street. 210 00:12:54,398 --> 00:12:56,692 That's where her sister lived, down the block. 211 00:12:56,776 --> 00:12:57,943 I go, "She's mad." 212 00:12:58,027 --> 00:13:02,031 "She'll go to her sister's, and complain, and talk shit about me." 213 00:13:02,114 --> 00:13:03,115 "She'll be okay." 214 00:13:05,034 --> 00:13:06,035 But then… 215 00:13:06,744 --> 00:13:08,120 I never seen her again. 216 00:13:08,704 --> 00:13:10,706 [suspenseful, inscrutable music playing] 217 00:13:13,709 --> 00:13:19,089 How many times does a wife disappear and the husband says, you know, 218 00:13:19,632 --> 00:13:22,510 "She left. I don't know what happened to her." 219 00:13:23,010 --> 00:13:25,763 And nine times out of ten, that's bullshit. 220 00:13:25,846 --> 00:13:27,306 It's gonna be the husband. 221 00:13:28,224 --> 00:13:29,809 [Fematt] They asked to take my shirt off. 222 00:13:29,892 --> 00:13:34,522 They're looking for scratches or defensive wounds, and I had nothing. 223 00:13:35,064 --> 00:13:37,817 They kept asking, "You didn't do it?" "No, I didn't do it." 224 00:13:38,484 --> 00:13:42,530 [Lewin] When they interviewed Ronnie, he was concerned, he was nervous. 225 00:13:43,030 --> 00:13:45,991 When your wife is found murdered… 226 00:13:47,868 --> 00:13:51,789 either you're gonna be devastated, in shock, et cetera, 227 00:13:52,790 --> 00:13:56,043 or terrified they're gonna figure out you're the one who did it. 228 00:13:58,504 --> 00:14:01,090 [Fematt] After I left the sheriff's, I went back to my house, 229 00:14:01,173 --> 00:14:03,509 and there's cop cars stationed around the block. 230 00:14:03,592 --> 00:14:05,052 They're looking at my house. 231 00:14:05,803 --> 00:14:11,475 Very quickly, he became concerned that he was the suspect, 232 00:14:11,559 --> 00:14:12,893 and he was. 233 00:14:13,853 --> 00:14:17,231 I called my uncle, Henry Salcido, criminal lawyer. 234 00:14:17,815 --> 00:14:21,193 And my uncle just told me, "Don't talk to 'em, avoid 'em." 235 00:14:22,194 --> 00:14:23,362 So that's what I did. 236 00:14:23,445 --> 00:14:25,447 [music trails off] 237 00:14:27,700 --> 00:14:29,702 [sorrowful piano music playing] 238 00:14:30,452 --> 00:14:33,747 [Broudreaux] My father was absent, so when my mom got married to Ronnie 239 00:14:33,831 --> 00:14:35,833 and I found out I was gonna have a sibling, 240 00:14:35,916 --> 00:14:39,295 I immediately thought we were gonna have a full and complete family now 241 00:14:39,378 --> 00:14:43,173 with Ronnie, the new baby, my mom, and I. 242 00:14:43,257 --> 00:14:45,217 So I was super excited. 243 00:14:45,968 --> 00:14:46,802 So excited. 244 00:14:47,970 --> 00:14:50,306 But when everything happened with my mother, 245 00:14:50,389 --> 00:14:51,765 I did not stay with Ronnie. 246 00:14:52,975 --> 00:14:55,769 My dad's family came and got me right away. 247 00:14:57,271 --> 00:15:00,274 I really missed her when they took her. It destroyed me. 248 00:15:00,858 --> 00:15:01,859 [music trails off] 249 00:15:03,444 --> 00:15:05,446 [tense, erratic music playing] 250 00:15:09,116 --> 00:15:13,329 [Ostrowski] During the autopsy, essentially, a rape kit was taken. 251 00:15:13,412 --> 00:15:18,250 But a rape kit back in 1980 is nothing like it is today. 252 00:15:18,751 --> 00:15:21,545 There were clippings taken from her fingernails, 253 00:15:21,629 --> 00:15:25,925 because it appeared that there was material underneath her fingernails, 254 00:15:26,008 --> 00:15:29,345 and they could potentially compare that to blood type. 255 00:15:31,055 --> 00:15:33,849 There was also swabs that were taken, 256 00:15:33,933 --> 00:15:38,228 which we're not testing for DNA, but could test for the presence of sperm. 257 00:15:40,856 --> 00:15:42,483 [Fematt] They brought her to the mortuary. 258 00:15:42,566 --> 00:15:48,364 I went back there and asked to see her, 'cause I had to make arrangements. 259 00:15:49,990 --> 00:15:52,826 They pulled back the thing. They only got the sheet halfway, 260 00:15:52,910 --> 00:15:55,162 and I already just… My knees buckled. 261 00:15:55,245 --> 00:15:57,247 I just couldn't believe what I saw. 262 00:15:59,500 --> 00:16:01,418 As far as her features, there was none. 263 00:16:01,502 --> 00:16:05,381 It was just total darkness, a big hole for a face. 264 00:16:05,464 --> 00:16:09,176 And right away, I told the people, "I want this casket closed." 265 00:16:09,259 --> 00:16:12,096 "And I want the baby swaddled and put in her arms, 266 00:16:12,596 --> 00:16:14,723 so they're together for eternity." 267 00:16:14,807 --> 00:16:16,809 [sorrowful music playing] 268 00:16:25,275 --> 00:16:30,489 The investigators spoke with a lot of friends, a lot of family, 269 00:16:30,572 --> 00:16:32,825 and that's really all they had to go on. 270 00:16:34,743 --> 00:16:38,747 They learned that the last person to see Teresa was her sister. 271 00:16:39,331 --> 00:16:41,834 She gets to her sister's house. 272 00:16:41,917 --> 00:16:46,547 Her sister wanted her to stay there, and she didn't. 273 00:16:48,215 --> 00:16:50,634 Teresa Broudreaux left her sister's house middle of the night 274 00:16:50,718 --> 00:16:52,386 and started walking down the street. 275 00:16:53,012 --> 00:16:58,183 There was a cousin who remembers that, that day of, before she was found dead, 276 00:16:58,267 --> 00:17:00,060 she wanted to go to the beach. 277 00:17:00,144 --> 00:17:02,146 [delicate, unsettling music playing] 278 00:17:05,482 --> 00:17:08,027 [Ostrowski] Neither Teresa nor Ronnie had a car. 279 00:17:08,819 --> 00:17:10,571 It wouldn't be unreasonable 280 00:17:10,654 --> 00:17:13,532 that she would hitchhike to go get to the beach. 281 00:17:16,160 --> 00:17:19,204 They were really at the mercy of anybody seeing anything, 282 00:17:19,288 --> 00:17:22,958 and it happened at night, and she was discovered early morning, 283 00:17:23,042 --> 00:17:25,711 and so there were no witnesses that ever came forward. 284 00:17:27,046 --> 00:17:30,507 There wasn't a whole lot of investigative tools 285 00:17:30,591 --> 00:17:34,136 that could be used to figure out who her killer was. 286 00:17:35,679 --> 00:17:38,724 [Byington] They were looking at Ronnie, Teresa Broudreaux's husband, 287 00:17:38,807 --> 00:17:40,392 as a potential suspect. 288 00:17:41,685 --> 00:17:44,021 After a thorough investigation, they were able to determine 289 00:17:44,104 --> 00:17:45,689 that Ronnie had an alibi. 290 00:17:46,565 --> 00:17:49,860 Ronnie had been in a friend's garage with several eyewitnesses 291 00:17:49,943 --> 00:17:52,279 on the night his wife had been murdered. 292 00:17:52,362 --> 00:17:56,700 And that basically cleared him from the murder of his wife. 293 00:17:57,284 --> 00:18:01,246 And even though the police investigators might exclude Ronnie, 294 00:18:01,830 --> 00:18:04,583 you can't unring that bell with family members and loved ones, 295 00:18:04,666 --> 00:18:07,628 that thought and belief that he was responsible 296 00:18:07,711 --> 00:18:11,256 for their daughter, their mother, their sister's death. 297 00:18:14,384 --> 00:18:18,472 When I was about eight or nine years old, 298 00:18:19,098 --> 00:18:24,770 my cousin and I were going through her mother's boxes, her drawers, 299 00:18:24,853 --> 00:18:27,064 and we found the autopsy of my mother. 300 00:18:30,818 --> 00:18:33,362 And I'm like, "What? They said she drowned!" 301 00:18:33,445 --> 00:18:38,575 And I'm still, you know, in that mode where they said she drowned. 302 00:18:38,659 --> 00:18:40,369 I'm like, "All this happened to her?" 303 00:18:42,496 --> 00:18:48,210 Everyone in her family was saying Ronnie's the one that killed my mother. 304 00:18:48,293 --> 00:18:52,631 I believed it right away because they used to fight a lot, 305 00:18:53,340 --> 00:18:55,676 and I was there to see all of that. 306 00:18:55,759 --> 00:18:58,679 I was right there watching every single day. 307 00:19:00,973 --> 00:19:04,101 [Fematt] They made their choice that I wasn't a suspect, sheriffs did. 308 00:19:04,685 --> 00:19:08,147 But they had nobody else, so everybody thought I did it. 309 00:19:10,232 --> 00:19:12,359 Couldn't explain how many times I got shot at 310 00:19:13,068 --> 00:19:14,653 'cause people thought I did it. 311 00:19:15,154 --> 00:19:17,865 Whether it be her family or friends, I don't know. 312 00:19:17,948 --> 00:19:20,576 Nobody ever shot at me before until after her death. 313 00:19:21,577 --> 00:19:24,079 I was so traumatized, I didn't want to live. 314 00:19:26,874 --> 00:19:29,751 [Lewin] If your wife disappears in the middle of an argument, 315 00:19:30,335 --> 00:19:34,631 and we don't have any evidence 316 00:19:35,883 --> 00:19:37,926 pointing to somebody else who did it, 317 00:19:38,010 --> 00:19:43,223 and what you have is an alibi by people that you are close to, 318 00:19:43,724 --> 00:19:47,186 either that's a legitimate alibi or it's not, 319 00:19:48,228 --> 00:19:50,731 but you have no other suspects. 320 00:19:50,814 --> 00:19:52,649 We didn't have an eyewitness. 321 00:19:52,733 --> 00:19:57,196 We didn't really have any… any evidence at the time that could be used. 322 00:19:57,279 --> 00:19:59,865 There wasn't anything else they could do. 323 00:19:59,948 --> 00:20:03,869 Ultimately, the Teresa Broudreaux murder was never solved. 324 00:20:03,952 --> 00:20:08,498 It was put on the back bench as a cold case for decades. 325 00:20:18,300 --> 00:20:21,303 [Broudreaux] When I was little, I used to cry for my mom. 326 00:20:21,386 --> 00:20:23,513 And I'd ask questions over the years. 327 00:20:23,597 --> 00:20:27,559 There was so many questions I had that no one was willing to answer. 328 00:20:27,643 --> 00:20:29,686 No one wanted to talk about her. 329 00:20:29,770 --> 00:20:32,272 No one wanted to talk about what happened. 330 00:20:32,773 --> 00:20:33,774 [sniffles] 331 00:20:34,483 --> 00:20:35,943 No one told me anything. 332 00:20:36,652 --> 00:20:40,405 They would tell me to be quiet. "She's not gonna come back." 333 00:20:42,074 --> 00:20:44,660 I kinda got used to not having any parents. 334 00:20:46,161 --> 00:20:48,997 The void from my mother has never been filled. 335 00:20:49,081 --> 00:20:51,041 I don't think it'll ever be filled. 336 00:20:52,501 --> 00:20:54,962 [Fematt] I went through years of people pointing, 337 00:20:55,045 --> 00:20:57,381 and avoiding me, or talking behind my back. 338 00:20:57,464 --> 00:20:58,674 I didn't deal with it. 339 00:20:59,591 --> 00:21:02,135 I didn't think about my daughter. I didn't think about Terri. 340 00:21:02,219 --> 00:21:03,887 I'd work just to get high, 341 00:21:03,971 --> 00:21:06,014 so I didn't have to deal with all the pressure 342 00:21:06,098 --> 00:21:10,519 of people walking around town going, "Hey, that's him. He killed his wife." 343 00:21:12,104 --> 00:21:13,313 [Broudreaux] As I got older, 344 00:21:13,397 --> 00:21:15,983 I used to see him sometimes walking around. 345 00:21:17,442 --> 00:21:21,029 I did not want to talk to Ronnie. I didn't know what to feel, you know? 346 00:21:22,155 --> 00:21:24,324 I was like, "Did he really…" 347 00:21:24,408 --> 00:21:25,951 "Could he have really…" 348 00:21:26,451 --> 00:21:29,913 I started questioning people, 'cause they were the ones telling me. 349 00:21:30,789 --> 00:21:34,584 I seen them fighting a lot, but could he really kill her? 350 00:21:41,258 --> 00:21:42,259 [engine revving] 351 00:21:47,931 --> 00:21:49,933 [suspenseful music playing] 352 00:21:55,188 --> 00:21:58,400 When I got the case, the cultural background, 353 00:21:58,483 --> 00:22:00,319 there was a connection there. 354 00:22:03,155 --> 00:22:06,158 In the '80s, culture in Wilmington was very much the same 355 00:22:06,241 --> 00:22:08,327 as culture in East LA, the area I grew up in. 356 00:22:09,453 --> 00:22:11,872 It was predominately Hispanic, 357 00:22:11,955 --> 00:22:16,460 lowrider culture, gangs, crime. 358 00:22:16,543 --> 00:22:18,962 Seeing sometimes how my parents were afraid… 359 00:22:19,046 --> 00:22:20,589 They were afraid to call the police. 360 00:22:22,382 --> 00:22:25,177 1980, I'm 13 years old. I'm in the eighth grade. 361 00:22:25,677 --> 00:22:28,096 If you would've told me I was gonna get involved 362 00:22:28,180 --> 00:22:31,183 in a homicide investigation that happened in Palos Verdes Estates, 363 00:22:31,266 --> 00:22:35,604 which was a world away from East LA, I would've told you you were nuts. 364 00:22:38,899 --> 00:22:42,069 I never was a kid who said, "I want to be a cop." 365 00:22:43,945 --> 00:22:46,031 That was the last thing I thought I'd be. 366 00:22:46,907 --> 00:22:51,328 The passion really came once I started the job 367 00:22:51,411 --> 00:22:56,124 and started to notice the difference that you could make. 368 00:22:58,085 --> 00:23:01,296 Ralph's was more of a subdued, subtle kind of approach. 369 00:23:02,255 --> 00:23:05,425 He challenged himself and made a name for himself. 370 00:23:06,218 --> 00:23:09,763 Ralph never wanted to promote. He wanted to be a damn good detective. 371 00:23:12,474 --> 00:23:16,228 [Hernandez] People always ask me, "What is this job like, working homicide?" 372 00:23:17,145 --> 00:23:19,231 It's like juggling balls in the ocean. 373 00:23:19,314 --> 00:23:22,150 You don't want to drown, but you don't want to drop the ball. 374 00:23:24,027 --> 00:23:25,904 [Labbe] When you look at a cold case, 375 00:23:25,987 --> 00:23:31,535 there are so many different things that you have to… to overcome. 376 00:23:31,618 --> 00:23:35,539 Investigations change after ten, 15, 20 years. 377 00:23:35,622 --> 00:23:39,418 Different techniques evolve. Different thought processes evolve. 378 00:23:42,504 --> 00:23:45,590 [Hernandez] Ultimately, you have to do a little gumshoe detective work, right? 379 00:23:45,674 --> 00:23:48,301 You gotta go and find people, find witnesses. 380 00:23:49,094 --> 00:23:52,848 But technology is a tremendous, tremendous asset for us now 381 00:23:52,931 --> 00:23:54,474 on these unsolved cases. 382 00:23:54,975 --> 00:24:00,439 In this case, in 1980, that was years before DNA. 383 00:24:01,565 --> 00:24:05,360 There's different investigative avenues that can be explored. 384 00:24:05,861 --> 00:24:08,780 Now we can go back, and we can take that evidence, 385 00:24:08,864 --> 00:24:11,199 and we can develop DNA profiles. 386 00:24:13,076 --> 00:24:17,706 There were several items of evidence that had been kept from the scene. 387 00:24:19,166 --> 00:24:21,168 We knew that there were enough there 388 00:24:21,251 --> 00:24:24,337 that there were things we could potentially test. 389 00:24:25,630 --> 00:24:29,217 The sheriff's department had a criminalist who was excellent. 390 00:24:29,718 --> 00:24:32,596 As the criminalist is working on this evidence 391 00:24:32,679 --> 00:24:36,099 and trying to determine if there's enough genetic material, 392 00:24:36,183 --> 00:24:39,936 what we're realizing is she has very little to work with. 393 00:24:41,021 --> 00:24:45,650 The fingernails turned out not to be as helpful as we were hoping they'd be. 394 00:24:45,734 --> 00:24:48,737 The other evidence at the scene also was not as helpful. 395 00:24:48,820 --> 00:24:52,365 There were no prints or DNA on the bottle of alcohol. 396 00:24:52,449 --> 00:24:55,076 Only Teresa's fingerprint was on the cup. 397 00:24:55,160 --> 00:24:59,915 And contrary to what you see on CSI, the TV shows, you know, 398 00:24:59,998 --> 00:25:03,835 unfortunately, people don't sprinkle their DNA everywhere 399 00:25:03,919 --> 00:25:05,837 at whatever crime scene they go to. 400 00:25:05,921 --> 00:25:07,255 So we had to pivot. 401 00:25:07,339 --> 00:25:10,759 We had to think of a different way to try to identify her killer. 402 00:25:10,842 --> 00:25:13,094 That's when we turn to the coroner's evidence. 403 00:25:17,682 --> 00:25:23,021 The coroner's office was able to obtain the DNA found on the victim. 404 00:25:24,189 --> 00:25:28,026 The criminalist took the pubic hair combings 405 00:25:28,109 --> 00:25:30,320 and basically washed them. 406 00:25:30,904 --> 00:25:35,408 And from that washing, she's able to put it into a centrifuge 407 00:25:35,492 --> 00:25:39,996 that spins and essentially churns out a pellet. 408 00:25:40,497 --> 00:25:44,918 And from that pellet, she's able to look at it microscopically 409 00:25:45,001 --> 00:25:48,588 and determine if there's any genetic material in the pellet, 410 00:25:48,672 --> 00:25:51,508 and she found one sperm head. 411 00:25:52,425 --> 00:25:56,429 And so that's what she was able to end up testing for DNA. 412 00:25:57,472 --> 00:26:01,184 The goal there is that they would be able to develop an actual DNA profile. 413 00:26:01,268 --> 00:26:04,104 'Cause sometimes you can have bodily fluid, 414 00:26:04,187 --> 00:26:07,524 but that doesn't mean you have enough to come up with a complete DNA profile. 415 00:26:07,607 --> 00:26:10,485 Sometimes you have a partial profile. Sometimes you get nothing. 416 00:26:10,569 --> 00:26:14,614 If there's not sufficient evidence there, it's a dead end. 417 00:26:24,874 --> 00:26:28,920 [Fematt] Detective Ralph Hernandez got my case and gave me a call. 418 00:26:31,006 --> 00:26:33,842 I felt at ease that he understood me. 419 00:26:34,342 --> 00:26:37,679 He knew my style of life, what I've been through. 420 00:26:37,762 --> 00:26:40,390 You know, the addiction, the gangs, the everything. 421 00:26:40,473 --> 00:26:43,977 'Cause being from East LA, you're familiar with that stuff. 422 00:26:44,060 --> 00:26:47,772 Being a cop, you're more familiar. You probably see it more than I see it. 423 00:26:49,024 --> 00:26:51,568 He treated me just like he would anybody. 424 00:26:52,152 --> 00:26:55,030 Wasn't 'cause I was Chicano. He treated me 'cause I was human. 425 00:26:56,573 --> 00:27:00,785 So I talked to him, and I let him know I have some more information. 426 00:27:04,998 --> 00:27:06,458 [Hernandez] Ronnie tells us the story 427 00:27:06,541 --> 00:27:10,211 about how this female acquaintance from the neighborhood 428 00:27:10,295 --> 00:27:13,632 approached him one evening and said, "Hey, I feel bad." 429 00:27:13,715 --> 00:27:16,551 "I held on to this for a few years. I want you to know." 430 00:27:18,261 --> 00:27:20,972 [Fematt] In the late '90s, I was still spiraling out of control, 431 00:27:21,931 --> 00:27:23,141 and I was in a bar. 432 00:27:23,933 --> 00:27:27,896 One of my friends walked in who I hadn't seen in quite a while. 433 00:27:28,521 --> 00:27:29,856 She came up to me. 434 00:27:29,939 --> 00:27:32,942 "Ronnie, I know who killed your wife." 435 00:27:33,443 --> 00:27:35,945 [suspenseful music swells, trails off] 436 00:27:39,157 --> 00:27:40,909 [Labbe] People's lives continue on, 437 00:27:40,992 --> 00:27:43,203 and they remember vivid details 438 00:27:43,286 --> 00:27:46,790 of what traumatically happened to them in the past. 439 00:27:46,873 --> 00:27:48,667 They realize, "You know what?" 440 00:27:48,750 --> 00:27:51,544 "This has caught up to me. I need to tell somebody." 441 00:27:51,628 --> 00:27:53,630 [cryptic music playing] 442 00:27:53,713 --> 00:27:57,884 When I met Detective Ralph Hernandez, I had been sober a while. 443 00:27:59,094 --> 00:28:02,263 For so long I've been feeling so bad about this. 444 00:28:02,347 --> 00:28:05,392 I thought it was time I could handle some answers. 445 00:28:06,267 --> 00:28:08,812 She was my homeboy's old lady. 446 00:28:08,895 --> 00:28:11,064 She'd been gone so long I wondered what happened to her. 447 00:28:11,147 --> 00:28:13,358 I didn't know because I didn't keep tabs on her. 448 00:28:13,441 --> 00:28:16,945 We started talking, she started crying, she goes, "I know who killed her." 449 00:28:18,196 --> 00:28:23,076 And then I was just like, "What do you mean?" 450 00:28:24,077 --> 00:28:29,499 She said, "I was abducted by two guys and sexually tortured." 451 00:28:31,292 --> 00:28:36,047 These guys picked her up. They told her, "Put some of this on your tongue." 452 00:28:36,131 --> 00:28:40,468 She said immediately when she put that liquid on her tongue, she went numb. 453 00:28:41,678 --> 00:28:44,848 She said she could hear and see, but couldn't move. 454 00:28:44,931 --> 00:28:46,307 She's, like, paralyzed. 455 00:28:47,308 --> 00:28:49,227 They tortured her, sexually abused her, 456 00:28:50,019 --> 00:28:52,939 and then she told me that she heard 'em say, 457 00:28:53,606 --> 00:28:55,900 "What are we gonna do with her body?" 458 00:28:56,693 --> 00:28:58,653 "We'll take her where we dumped Terri." 459 00:29:03,241 --> 00:29:06,244 But she jumped out the window of the car while it was moving, 460 00:29:07,203 --> 00:29:10,290 and a passerby stopped and helped, and they took off. 461 00:29:12,375 --> 00:29:14,711 The person she mentioned, I knew him. 462 00:29:15,378 --> 00:29:16,463 Knew him well. 463 00:29:17,297 --> 00:29:20,508 With some of his characteristics, it fit. 464 00:29:20,592 --> 00:29:22,635 [suspenseful music pulsing] 465 00:29:24,012 --> 00:29:25,847 [Hernandez] It's secondhand information, right? 466 00:29:25,930 --> 00:29:28,224 This girl's told Ronnie. Ronnie's telling us. 467 00:29:28,308 --> 00:29:30,727 We need to find this girl. 468 00:29:31,311 --> 00:29:34,564 I had some addresses that were listed in the original reports 469 00:29:34,647 --> 00:29:36,816 of people who lived in the neighborhood. 470 00:29:36,900 --> 00:29:39,194 So I knocked on a few doors. 471 00:29:40,111 --> 00:29:42,655 I find out that she's living out of state. 472 00:29:43,865 --> 00:29:46,951 I come up with a phone number and we start talking. 473 00:29:47,035 --> 00:29:49,245 And she was very, uh, very cooperative, 474 00:29:49,329 --> 00:29:50,747 and willing to meet with us, 475 00:29:50,830 --> 00:29:51,831 which is huge. 476 00:29:56,461 --> 00:29:59,255 We fly out to her. 477 00:30:01,049 --> 00:30:03,802 [Fematt] Ralph actually went to Texas to go talk to her. 478 00:30:03,885 --> 00:30:06,805 That right there at that moment let me know, 479 00:30:06,888 --> 00:30:08,765 "This guy's gonna do whatever it takes." 480 00:30:08,848 --> 00:30:11,392 And I felt really good about this. 481 00:30:11,476 --> 00:30:17,148 I definitely felt that, after 33 years, I finally had somebody in my corner. 482 00:30:19,984 --> 00:30:23,738 [Hernandez] We had just flown in, and I get a phone call from the crime lab. 483 00:30:24,239 --> 00:30:25,615 The crime lab's telling me, 484 00:30:25,698 --> 00:30:29,911 "We got a hit in CODIS for your evidence for DNA from your scene." 485 00:30:31,788 --> 00:30:33,081 That was incredible. 486 00:30:33,915 --> 00:30:36,209 But it was a little confusing 487 00:30:36,709 --> 00:30:39,546 because it wasn't the person that we thought 488 00:30:40,046 --> 00:30:41,923 that we were being steered toward 489 00:30:42,006 --> 00:30:45,009 from the information we were going to get from our informant. 490 00:30:45,760 --> 00:30:47,971 It was a completely different person. 491 00:30:50,098 --> 00:30:52,934 [Ostrowski] Thanks to the criminalist, we now had a name. 492 00:30:53,434 --> 00:30:56,312 It came back as a match to a man named Robert Yniguez. 493 00:30:58,481 --> 00:31:00,775 Who was Robert Yniguez? Where'd he come from? 494 00:31:00,859 --> 00:31:04,612 What did he do? Where was he? Where was he 34 years ago? 495 00:31:05,655 --> 00:31:07,156 [siren wailing in distance] 496 00:31:09,617 --> 00:31:11,619 [inscrutable music playing] 497 00:31:12,662 --> 00:31:15,164 [Hernandez] Robert Yniguez was nowhere in the file. 498 00:31:15,248 --> 00:31:17,709 He was nobody who had been interviewed. 499 00:31:17,792 --> 00:31:20,211 He was no one whose name had even been mentioned. 500 00:31:20,295 --> 00:31:23,298 There were a ton of names in those original reports. 501 00:31:23,381 --> 00:31:24,841 His was not one of them. 502 00:31:25,425 --> 00:31:27,886 But it was very exciting. 503 00:31:27,969 --> 00:31:30,221 [suspenseful music pulsing] 504 00:31:30,305 --> 00:31:34,100 So we get back from our out-of-state trip and interview with the informant, 505 00:31:34,183 --> 00:31:36,936 which turned out to be a dead end. 506 00:31:37,020 --> 00:31:39,272 We quickly begin to conduct 507 00:31:39,355 --> 00:31:41,691 a background investigation on Robert Yniguez, 508 00:31:41,774 --> 00:31:45,403 and I also pulled crime reports from his previous arrests. 509 00:31:45,486 --> 00:31:49,824 And in 1981, Robert Yniguez was arrested for rape. 510 00:31:52,785 --> 00:31:57,248 The victim in that case had been a hitchhiker that he picked up, 511 00:31:57,332 --> 00:31:59,626 and he proceeded to rape her. 512 00:31:59,709 --> 00:32:01,628 That victim reports it. 513 00:32:02,211 --> 00:32:04,297 He gets arrested immediately after that rape. 514 00:32:05,048 --> 00:32:06,466 [Hernandez] He was charged in court. 515 00:32:06,549 --> 00:32:08,593 He was held to answer on preliminary hearing. 516 00:32:08,676 --> 00:32:10,803 The victim actually came to testify. 517 00:32:10,887 --> 00:32:13,097 And some time before the trial, 518 00:32:13,598 --> 00:32:16,267 it became difficult to find the victim, 519 00:32:16,351 --> 00:32:19,228 and the case was dismissed, and he was let go. 520 00:32:20,605 --> 00:32:22,899 Then fast-forward to 1982. 521 00:32:24,233 --> 00:32:26,569 He was arrested for another rape 522 00:32:26,653 --> 00:32:29,530 in which he was actually convicted, and he went to prison. 523 00:32:29,614 --> 00:32:34,494 And that conviction is what actually brought his DNA into the CODIS database. 524 00:32:35,370 --> 00:32:40,291 [Ostrowski] Because the CODIS hit is only an investigative tool and lead, 525 00:32:40,375 --> 00:32:44,170 we're ethically required to get what's called a "confirmatory sample." 526 00:32:45,213 --> 00:32:49,384 We needed to try to get a DNA sample from him in order to confirm 527 00:32:49,467 --> 00:32:52,971 and run it against the evidence found from the coroner's kit. 528 00:32:53,054 --> 00:32:56,516 So our next step had to be locating Mr. Yniguez. 529 00:32:58,434 --> 00:33:03,231 [Fematt] Detective Ralph Hernandez asked if I knew who this Robert Yniguez guy was. 530 00:33:04,232 --> 00:33:07,276 And I said no, but I was very hopeful. 531 00:33:08,069 --> 00:33:10,238 The DNA always catches the bad guy. 532 00:33:10,321 --> 00:33:12,281 And now there was DNA. 533 00:33:12,865 --> 00:33:15,159 Now they just had to find the guy. 534 00:33:15,243 --> 00:33:18,454 Sex offenders are required to register on their birthday. 535 00:33:18,538 --> 00:33:22,125 With Mr. Yniguez, his birthday was about four months away 536 00:33:22,208 --> 00:33:26,004 from when Detective Hernandez learned he was a potential suspect. 537 00:33:27,088 --> 00:33:30,591 So the easiest place to find Mr. Yniguez 538 00:33:30,675 --> 00:33:33,428 was going to be when he went to register. 539 00:33:42,228 --> 00:33:46,733 Yniguez is at Harbor Station getting ready to register as a sex offender. 540 00:33:48,109 --> 00:33:51,988 At that point, I want to find out more about him. 541 00:33:52,071 --> 00:33:53,948 We wanted to confirm where he lived, 542 00:33:54,032 --> 00:33:56,909 where he'd been, who his family was, who his friends were, 543 00:33:56,993 --> 00:34:00,079 because maybe there is some connection to Teresa. 544 00:34:00,705 --> 00:34:04,250 Also, I want to obtain a sample of his DNA. 545 00:34:05,084 --> 00:34:08,046 And so I told him who we were, where we were from, 546 00:34:08,129 --> 00:34:10,423 and he was willing to talk to us. 547 00:34:10,506 --> 00:34:13,634 -You went to prison in '80 or was it-- -I think it was '80. 548 00:34:14,343 --> 00:34:16,345 [Hernandez] Before prison, where were you living? 549 00:34:20,308 --> 00:34:21,142 Hmm. 550 00:34:22,935 --> 00:34:26,522 I believe I was living in Wilmington at my… 551 00:34:27,899 --> 00:34:30,526 my stepmom's house with my dad. 552 00:34:30,610 --> 00:34:33,613 I didn't know too many people from Wilmington. 553 00:34:33,696 --> 00:34:34,697 I mean… 554 00:34:34,781 --> 00:34:37,116 I would cruise around there, but… 555 00:34:37,200 --> 00:34:39,577 I didn't really know anybody over there. 556 00:34:39,660 --> 00:34:43,831 I actually didn't really have a big game plan. 557 00:34:43,915 --> 00:34:48,628 My first thought was just, "Be yourself. Talk to him, put him at ease." 558 00:34:48,711 --> 00:34:52,799 And it just kind of evolved from there. 559 00:34:53,382 --> 00:34:55,927 -Did you ever go partying at the beach? -No. 560 00:34:56,010 --> 00:34:58,513 -Never used to go out there? -No. 561 00:34:58,596 --> 00:35:02,225 And you've never been to Malaga Cove, Palos Verdes Estates? 562 00:35:03,518 --> 00:35:04,352 Mm-mm. 563 00:35:05,436 --> 00:35:09,899 Ralph's approach was to be very… 564 00:35:10,900 --> 00:35:12,610 non-confrontational. 565 00:35:12,693 --> 00:35:17,031 So he tries to get Yniguez to be comfortable, 566 00:35:17,532 --> 00:35:22,036 and then he tries to go through the information that he has 567 00:35:22,120 --> 00:35:27,166 and to see if he can lock him in to a certain story. 568 00:35:27,250 --> 00:35:29,585 Tell me about that case when you got arrested. 569 00:35:31,129 --> 00:35:32,547 Took her to Redondo. 570 00:35:33,381 --> 00:35:35,716 -And, you know, we had sex. -Mm-hmm. 571 00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:38,094 Yeah, she refused, but then… 572 00:35:38,594 --> 00:35:41,139 after that she gave in, and… 573 00:35:41,806 --> 00:35:43,891 -And they charged you with rape. -Yeah. 574 00:35:43,975 --> 00:35:46,102 [Hernandez] You got off because she didn't show up. 575 00:35:46,185 --> 00:35:47,395 -Mm-hmm. -Okay. 576 00:35:47,979 --> 00:35:49,856 Does Teresa ring a bell to you? 577 00:35:51,566 --> 00:35:54,360 -No. -No? Nothing at all? 578 00:35:54,944 --> 00:35:56,988 [Hernandez] I could see it in his chest. 579 00:35:57,572 --> 00:36:00,449 Kind of the heavy breathing people describe. 580 00:36:00,533 --> 00:36:02,702 They see people pounding their heart rate, 581 00:36:02,785 --> 00:36:04,996 or their heart's beating through their shirt. 582 00:36:05,580 --> 00:36:10,084 You could see the deep breaths, and he was obviously nervous. 583 00:36:11,252 --> 00:36:13,880 Let me show you some pictures. 584 00:36:13,963 --> 00:36:14,964 [Yniguez] Okay. 585 00:36:18,718 --> 00:36:21,888 Do you know that girl right there or remember her at all? 586 00:36:21,971 --> 00:36:23,139 -No. -No? 587 00:36:23,222 --> 00:36:24,223 Mm-mm. 588 00:36:24,724 --> 00:36:28,436 This lady was found dead on the beach. 589 00:36:28,519 --> 00:36:31,564 You sure she's nobody that looks familiar to you? 590 00:36:31,647 --> 00:36:33,357 Teresa Broudreaux. 591 00:36:34,025 --> 00:36:36,944 -No. -And this is 1980, March of 1980. 592 00:36:38,112 --> 00:36:39,113 No, not at all. 593 00:36:39,697 --> 00:36:44,160 The denials were so important because we had such powerful DNA evidence. 594 00:36:44,243 --> 00:36:46,037 If he came to us and said, 595 00:36:46,120 --> 00:36:49,290 "I… I dated Teresa behind her husband's back," 596 00:36:49,373 --> 00:36:51,292 "I had sex with her that night," 597 00:36:52,043 --> 00:36:54,128 it would have complicated our case. 598 00:36:54,212 --> 00:36:55,463 No. Mm-mm. 599 00:36:55,546 --> 00:36:56,797 -No? -Mm-mm. 600 00:36:56,881 --> 00:37:00,468 That's why the denial was so much more powerful. 601 00:37:01,177 --> 00:37:07,683 [Hernandez] Would there be any reason for your DNA to be at the scene? 602 00:37:11,771 --> 00:37:12,897 Not that… 603 00:37:12,980 --> 00:37:14,607 No, there shouldn't be. 604 00:37:14,690 --> 00:37:15,900 -Shouldn't be? -Yeah. 605 00:37:16,400 --> 00:37:17,401 We're here. 606 00:37:17,902 --> 00:37:19,320 We know you can help us. 607 00:37:20,112 --> 00:37:23,282 Because your DNA was at the scene. 608 00:37:24,283 --> 00:37:26,202 I don't know… I can't see how. 609 00:37:26,285 --> 00:37:28,371 I don't even know that girl. 610 00:37:28,829 --> 00:37:30,915 [Hernandez] If you want good rapport with your suspect, 611 00:37:30,998 --> 00:37:32,333 you gotta give 'em something. 612 00:37:32,416 --> 00:37:35,711 I had information for him, and he needed to know that information, 613 00:37:35,795 --> 00:37:39,799 and it might stimulate something for him to say something 614 00:37:39,882 --> 00:37:42,093 to help us get to the truth, right? 615 00:37:42,176 --> 00:37:44,887 Because what if he had a plausible explanation? 616 00:37:44,971 --> 00:37:46,931 What if he didn't do it, right? 617 00:37:47,014 --> 00:37:50,810 So, 100%, you're not gonna have any issues with your DNA there? 618 00:37:52,061 --> 00:37:53,646 -No. -And so then… 619 00:37:53,729 --> 00:37:57,149 you'd be willing to give us a sample of your oral swabs? 620 00:37:57,233 --> 00:37:58,234 Okay. 621 00:37:58,317 --> 00:37:59,986 And so I appreciate that. 622 00:38:01,946 --> 00:38:04,240 I came away from that interview with Yniguez 623 00:38:04,323 --> 00:38:06,659 firmly believing that we had our guy, 624 00:38:08,119 --> 00:38:11,122 but it was more important to build a case and to know for sure, 625 00:38:11,205 --> 00:38:14,208 "Okay, this is our guy," and then go out and arrest him. 626 00:38:15,710 --> 00:38:18,963 [Ostrowski] Getting a buccal swab of DNA from Mr. Yniguez 627 00:38:19,046 --> 00:38:22,800 allowed the sheriff's department to do confirmatory testing. 628 00:38:26,345 --> 00:38:28,014 He was in fact a match, 629 00:38:28,097 --> 00:38:30,808 and the match was proven through a statistic, 630 00:38:30,891 --> 00:38:34,895 which was one in 82.5 trillion, 631 00:38:34,979 --> 00:38:38,733 and there's only seven billion people on the planet. 632 00:38:38,816 --> 00:38:44,322 So to be one in 80-something trillion 633 00:38:44,405 --> 00:38:46,615 is quite a significant match. 634 00:38:49,952 --> 00:38:54,415 In this case, it's very clear that he's your killer. 635 00:38:54,915 --> 00:38:56,459 So now it's a question of, 636 00:38:56,542 --> 00:38:59,420 "What can you do to make the case even better?" 637 00:39:00,796 --> 00:39:04,050 [Hernandez] The rape case in 1981 was extremely important 638 00:39:04,133 --> 00:39:07,428 because Yniguez came upon a female 639 00:39:07,511 --> 00:39:12,141 who was in Wilmington at the bus stop and offered her a ride. 640 00:39:12,224 --> 00:39:15,770 We had the fact that Teresa was last seen in Wilmington, 641 00:39:15,853 --> 00:39:19,023 and there are potential similarities in the MO, 642 00:39:19,106 --> 00:39:21,901 and, luckily, I was able to locate and interview 643 00:39:21,984 --> 00:39:23,778 the victim from the 1981 rape. 644 00:39:25,696 --> 00:39:29,033 [woman] When I met the guy, I wasn't hitchhiking. I was just walking. 645 00:39:29,116 --> 00:39:32,328 He pulled up in his car and asked me if I wanted a ride, and I said yeah. 646 00:39:33,037 --> 00:39:34,372 The circumstances she's telling us 647 00:39:34,455 --> 00:39:38,084 is similar to what we believe happened to Teresa. 648 00:39:38,167 --> 00:39:42,797 [Lewin] How sure are you that this man forced you… raped you? 649 00:39:42,880 --> 00:39:44,131 100%. 650 00:39:44,632 --> 00:39:47,551 I stopped resisting because he started threatening to kill me. 651 00:39:48,803 --> 00:39:51,180 [dark, ominous music playing] 652 00:39:51,263 --> 00:39:53,766 [Hernandez] She was threatened. She gave in. 653 00:39:55,351 --> 00:39:57,186 Teresa was beaten and killed. 654 00:40:00,523 --> 00:40:02,441 I believe Teresa fought back, 655 00:40:02,942 --> 00:40:05,569 and Yniguez followed through with his threat. 656 00:40:06,404 --> 00:40:08,989 So that was extremely powerful, 657 00:40:09,073 --> 00:40:14,703 and just tied our case that much more together. 658 00:40:15,371 --> 00:40:16,372 [music trails off] 659 00:40:18,040 --> 00:40:21,085 [Lewin] Whenever I am looking at a cold case, 660 00:40:21,710 --> 00:40:26,340 I always want to sit down with the suspect if I can. 661 00:40:26,424 --> 00:40:28,342 [somber, inquisitive music playing] 662 00:40:28,426 --> 00:40:31,595 I want to myself evaluate them. 663 00:40:31,679 --> 00:40:34,390 I want to see how they respond to my questioning. 664 00:40:34,473 --> 00:40:38,185 I want to see if they're gonna end up making things worse. 665 00:40:38,269 --> 00:40:41,939 What are they going to admit to? Where are my issues gonna be? 666 00:40:42,022 --> 00:40:46,152 It's the only chance that I will ever have to have a conversation with them. 667 00:40:46,235 --> 00:40:49,822 Once the case is filed, I can't talk to them. 668 00:40:51,532 --> 00:40:56,579 Robert Yniguez told Ralph Hernandez that he had never met the victim, 669 00:40:56,662 --> 00:40:58,122 he never had sex with her, 670 00:40:58,205 --> 00:41:02,751 that he'd never been to Palos Verdes Estates, 671 00:41:02,835 --> 00:41:04,336 and Malaga Cove, and that beach. 672 00:41:04,420 --> 00:41:08,174 The more adamant he was gonna be in denying it, 673 00:41:08,257 --> 00:41:11,844 the better it was gonna be for the case going forward, 674 00:41:11,927 --> 00:41:14,763 because I could prove that that just wasn't true. 675 00:41:14,847 --> 00:41:19,393 John wanted to come with me to interview Robert Yniguez again. 676 00:41:20,311 --> 00:41:22,438 So we both went and talked to him. 677 00:41:26,775 --> 00:41:30,112 [Hernandez] Hi, I wanted to talk… I need to talk to Robert, please. 678 00:41:30,696 --> 00:41:32,323 -[woman] Who are you? -My name's Ralph. 679 00:41:32,406 --> 00:41:33,491 He knows who I am. 680 00:41:33,991 --> 00:41:34,992 And this is John. 681 00:41:35,659 --> 00:41:37,578 That second interview was not ideal. 682 00:41:37,661 --> 00:41:40,998 Part of it was his wife and his daughter were there. 683 00:41:41,081 --> 00:41:42,208 His family's there. 684 00:41:42,708 --> 00:41:43,709 [Yniguez] Come on in. 685 00:41:45,336 --> 00:41:46,670 [Hernandez] Thank you. 686 00:41:46,754 --> 00:41:48,839 [woman] You guys look like you're gonna arrest him. 687 00:41:48,923 --> 00:41:50,883 -[Hernandez] God, no. We're gonna… -Okay. 688 00:41:50,966 --> 00:41:54,887 No, we're gonna leave here. I just was hoping for ten minutes. 689 00:41:54,970 --> 00:41:57,806 And maybe just a little bit of privacy if that's okay with you. 690 00:41:57,890 --> 00:42:00,518 [woman] Why? He ain't got nothing to hide from me. 691 00:42:00,601 --> 00:42:02,811 -[Yniguez] I don't have nothing to hide. -Nothing. 692 00:42:02,895 --> 00:42:05,147 [woman] We tell each other everything. 693 00:42:05,231 --> 00:42:10,277 [Lewin] We wanted to give him the respect of being able to talk to him 694 00:42:10,361 --> 00:42:12,988 without other people here if that's what he wanted. 695 00:42:13,072 --> 00:42:15,574 -But if this is how-- -No, she can be here. 696 00:42:15,658 --> 00:42:21,372 It was highly unlikely that he would have told his wife, 697 00:42:22,248 --> 00:42:26,794 who was not with him at the time of the murder, 698 00:42:26,877 --> 00:42:30,506 "By the way, you realize I raped and murdered people 699 00:42:30,589 --> 00:42:32,216 prior to our relationship." 700 00:42:33,050 --> 00:42:35,469 So we wanted to do it in private, 701 00:42:35,553 --> 00:42:39,515 and no matter how much we suggested it, 702 00:42:39,598 --> 00:42:43,143 his position was, "No, we have no secrets," et cetera. 703 00:42:43,227 --> 00:42:45,271 So we had to do the interview in front of her. 704 00:42:45,354 --> 00:42:47,606 -[Lewin] Hear me out. -I had nothing to do with that case. 705 00:42:47,690 --> 00:42:49,066 Robert, just hear me out. 706 00:42:49,149 --> 00:42:53,779 He doesn't want to admit all of this in front of them, 707 00:42:53,862 --> 00:42:58,409 and when John began to press him in a bit more detail about the incident, 708 00:42:58,492 --> 00:43:00,119 he starts to deny. 709 00:43:00,202 --> 00:43:01,954 He became very defensive. 710 00:43:02,037 --> 00:43:04,873 And I'm gonna stay with that story. I do not know her. 711 00:43:04,957 --> 00:43:07,001 I've never seen her. I never met her. 712 00:43:07,084 --> 00:43:10,838 John did, in the interview, accuse Yniguez of committing the murder. 713 00:43:10,921 --> 00:43:13,799 -[Lewin] You said you never met this girl. -No! 714 00:43:13,882 --> 00:43:15,968 So what do you think of yours… 715 00:43:16,719 --> 00:43:19,054 What kind of DNA do you think we found? 716 00:43:22,891 --> 00:43:24,643 Probably my sperm. 717 00:43:25,144 --> 00:43:28,814 [Lewin] Yeah. So can you tell me how that could possibly be, Robert? 718 00:43:29,607 --> 00:43:32,901 It shouldn't be, because I don't even know her. 719 00:43:32,985 --> 00:43:34,612 I never met her. I never seen her. 720 00:43:34,695 --> 00:43:36,572 -[Lewin] Robert-- -I had nothing to do with that. 721 00:43:37,156 --> 00:43:41,619 [Lewin] We've got your semen on the pubic hair of this dead woman. 722 00:43:41,702 --> 00:43:46,290 This dead woman was picked up near the same place 723 00:43:46,373 --> 00:43:50,419 where, within a year of that time, you picked up Lori [bleep]. 724 00:43:52,212 --> 00:43:55,215 This woman had her head bashed. 725 00:43:55,716 --> 00:43:58,677 Pressing him just led to more denials, 726 00:43:59,303 --> 00:44:03,098 but John got him to admit he wouldn't believe his own denials. 727 00:44:03,182 --> 00:44:04,850 So it kind of came back full circle. 728 00:44:40,302 --> 00:44:44,890 [Lewin] He had a look on his face of resignation 729 00:44:45,474 --> 00:44:48,686 that he knew where it was going. 730 00:44:49,269 --> 00:44:52,731 I'll be goddamned if I'm gonna go back to prison for something I didn't do. 731 00:44:52,815 --> 00:44:54,441 [Lewin] Okay, so, listen. 732 00:44:54,525 --> 00:44:55,526 Your DNA-- 733 00:44:55,609 --> 00:44:59,363 I know what you're saying. My DNA is on her, but I don't know how. 734 00:44:59,446 --> 00:45:01,448 Are we done? This is starting to piss me off. 735 00:45:01,532 --> 00:45:03,992 [woman] Yeah, I'm gonna get a lawyer. We're gonna get a lawyer. 736 00:45:04,076 --> 00:45:06,537 -[Lewin] Wait. Listen. -Are we finished? 737 00:45:06,620 --> 00:45:09,248 -We're finished. We're done. -[Lewin] Robert-- No, listen to me. 738 00:45:09,331 --> 00:45:10,666 There's nothing more to say. 739 00:45:10,749 --> 00:45:13,335 [Lewin] If you tell me that you want us to leave, we'll leave. 740 00:45:13,419 --> 00:45:14,253 -[woman] Yeah. -Yeah. 741 00:45:14,336 --> 00:45:15,754 [Lewin] Ma'am, I'm talking to him. 742 00:45:15,838 --> 00:45:17,506 -I want you to leave. -[Lewin] Okay. 743 00:45:18,298 --> 00:45:20,259 All right. That's your option. 744 00:45:21,510 --> 00:45:23,971 [Hernandez] We were confident at that point that we had enough. 745 00:45:24,054 --> 00:45:27,099 We had the DNA. We had Yniguez's denials. 746 00:45:27,182 --> 00:45:30,185 We have some of his admissions. We got him. 747 00:45:35,399 --> 00:45:37,401 [intense, suspenseful music playing] 748 00:45:41,780 --> 00:45:44,575 [Hernandez] September of 2017, we finally make our move. 749 00:45:45,743 --> 00:45:49,663 We have a surveillance team follow Yniguez away from his home. 750 00:45:49,747 --> 00:45:51,081 [siren squawking] 751 00:45:51,165 --> 00:45:53,250 We get a black-and-white to make a stop. 752 00:45:54,168 --> 00:45:57,129 And they place him under arrest for murder. 753 00:45:58,130 --> 00:46:00,758 He didn't say much, but it didn't matter at that point. 754 00:46:00,841 --> 00:46:04,344 We had quite a bit of evidence and quite a bit of information to present. 755 00:46:06,972 --> 00:46:10,392 I still remember walking out and calling Ronnie. 756 00:46:12,102 --> 00:46:14,855 [Fematt] The phone rings. It says, "Detective Ralph." 757 00:46:15,773 --> 00:46:16,774 I go, "Oh, shit." 758 00:46:17,399 --> 00:46:18,609 "It's too early." 759 00:46:19,902 --> 00:46:23,197 I get nervous, and my… my feet start tapping. 760 00:46:23,906 --> 00:46:24,907 I answered. 761 00:46:26,325 --> 00:46:28,619 He goes, "Ronnie." I go, "Ralph, what's up?" 762 00:46:28,702 --> 00:46:31,747 He goes, "Are you sitting down?" And right then, my heart went boom. 763 00:46:31,830 --> 00:46:33,582 I tell him, "We got him." 764 00:46:34,291 --> 00:46:35,709 "We're charging him." 765 00:46:35,793 --> 00:46:37,795 [somber, emotional music playing] 766 00:46:39,254 --> 00:46:40,380 I just cried. 767 00:46:40,464 --> 00:46:43,467 I sat in my car and cried and cried, 45 minutes. 768 00:46:44,802 --> 00:46:47,012 [Hernandez] It was a very emotional phone call for us. 769 00:46:49,807 --> 00:46:52,226 [Broudreaux] I get a phone call saying, 770 00:46:52,309 --> 00:46:54,853 "In one hour, we're gonna do a press conference." 771 00:46:54,937 --> 00:46:57,773 "They found the person that killed your mother." 772 00:46:58,524 --> 00:47:01,151 And I just started crying. I couldn't believe it. 773 00:47:01,235 --> 00:47:03,445 They were like, "We need you in downtown LA now." 774 00:47:05,864 --> 00:47:07,366 I couldn't make it there. 775 00:47:08,575 --> 00:47:12,704 But my stepdad was there, of course. He was there for everything. 776 00:47:16,250 --> 00:47:18,752 [Hernandez] The press conference really was for Ronnie 777 00:47:19,294 --> 00:47:21,880 to be able to tell the story to the press 778 00:47:21,964 --> 00:47:24,091 and let them know what he had been through. 779 00:47:24,174 --> 00:47:25,175 Detective. 780 00:47:25,676 --> 00:47:26,885 Thank you. 781 00:47:28,428 --> 00:47:31,390 The day of the press conference, you can see me in the back. 782 00:47:31,473 --> 00:47:33,058 I'm sort of edgy. 783 00:47:33,141 --> 00:47:36,770 I was sweating, and I was starting to look like Rudy Giuliani up there. 784 00:47:37,479 --> 00:47:40,899 At this point, we wanted to introduce Ronnie Fematt, 785 00:47:41,400 --> 00:47:45,070 who was married at that time to Teresa Broudreaux. 786 00:47:45,988 --> 00:47:47,364 -Ronnie. -Thank you. 787 00:47:51,201 --> 00:47:52,202 Hello. 788 00:47:53,370 --> 00:47:56,832 It's been 37 years… longer than 37 years, 789 00:47:56,915 --> 00:47:59,877 and I've been waiting a long time for this day. 790 00:48:00,794 --> 00:48:04,214 I want to thank my family for always believing in me, 791 00:48:04,798 --> 00:48:07,676 always being by my side, and I want to thank these people here. 792 00:48:08,552 --> 00:48:11,221 'Cause without them, I wouldn't be here today. 793 00:48:11,889 --> 00:48:14,224 It's been a long time for what I've been through. 794 00:48:14,933 --> 00:48:18,812 And the noncertainty of not knowing why or how, you know? 795 00:48:19,771 --> 00:48:20,772 And, uh… 796 00:48:22,149 --> 00:48:23,817 I'm just glad this day came. 797 00:48:24,693 --> 00:48:25,903 Thank you very much. 798 00:48:26,486 --> 00:48:28,822 Now everybody knows it wasn't me. 799 00:48:29,573 --> 00:48:31,033 They took the burden off me. 800 00:48:32,618 --> 00:48:34,494 Now people knew the truth. 801 00:48:37,581 --> 00:48:42,044 It was important for me for Ronnie to have that. 802 00:48:45,589 --> 00:48:48,759 Once they told me it wasn't him, this other guy did it, 803 00:48:48,842 --> 00:48:50,218 I was like, "Oh, my goodness." 804 00:48:53,096 --> 00:48:56,058 We did try to build a relationship. 805 00:48:57,142 --> 00:48:57,976 But… 806 00:48:59,061 --> 00:49:01,146 Yeah, things don't always work out. 807 00:49:02,439 --> 00:49:04,441 [somber, pensive music playing] 808 00:49:06,526 --> 00:49:08,779 [tense music pulsing] 809 00:49:10,238 --> 00:49:12,658 [Ostrowski] On October 2nd, 2017, 810 00:49:12,741 --> 00:49:16,495 I filed the complaint against Robert Yniguez. 811 00:49:16,995 --> 00:49:21,667 The first count was murder, and the second count was rape. 812 00:49:22,876 --> 00:49:26,505 Based on the circumstances, the law, and evidence at the time, 813 00:49:26,588 --> 00:49:30,133 we weren't able to file a charge for the baby. 814 00:49:32,552 --> 00:49:36,431 Before we could pick a jury and try the case, 815 00:49:36,515 --> 00:49:38,976 the defendant, through his attorney, 816 00:49:39,059 --> 00:49:41,770 indicated that he wanted to enter a plea agreement. 817 00:49:41,853 --> 00:49:45,148 He was willing to plead to second-degree murder, 818 00:49:45,232 --> 00:49:48,235 which carries a sentence of 15 to life, 819 00:49:48,318 --> 00:49:51,446 and admit that he had in fact killed Teresa. 820 00:49:53,031 --> 00:49:57,786 [Lewin] My feeling is that he probably did not want his wife 821 00:49:57,869 --> 00:50:03,000 and his stepdaughter to hear all of the details of the crime. 822 00:50:03,083 --> 00:50:08,547 So, if you're in his position, and you're gonna get convicted either way, 823 00:50:09,047 --> 00:50:11,633 then you maybe choose an option 824 00:50:11,717 --> 00:50:17,472 where you can maintain your innocence in your private conversations with them. 825 00:50:20,726 --> 00:50:23,270 Yniguez was sentenced in October of 2019. 826 00:50:24,604 --> 00:50:27,024 [Fematt] You're talking 37-and-a-half years, 827 00:50:27,899 --> 00:50:29,985 40 to the day he got convicted. 828 00:50:30,902 --> 00:50:34,156 And I live with torment every day. 829 00:50:37,325 --> 00:50:39,828 [Ostrowski] Had the defendant been convicted at trial, 830 00:50:39,911 --> 00:50:44,374 there would have been a mandatory sentence of life without parole as the minimum. 831 00:50:44,875 --> 00:50:49,296 With a plea and pleading to 15 to life, 832 00:50:49,379 --> 00:50:51,298 he will be eligible for parole. 833 00:50:52,007 --> 00:50:55,135 But because you never know what's gonna happen with a jury, 834 00:50:55,218 --> 00:50:56,470 it's a risk. 835 00:50:59,056 --> 00:51:01,933 [Fematt] I figure at his age, 15 to life… 836 00:51:03,018 --> 00:51:04,311 he ain't getting out. 837 00:51:04,394 --> 00:51:05,896 Now I get to sleep at night 838 00:51:05,979 --> 00:51:08,648 knowing he's not gonna be around to hurt anybody else. 839 00:51:09,149 --> 00:51:12,736 I was very relieved when it was all over with. 840 00:51:12,819 --> 00:51:14,738 It was very overwhelming for me. 841 00:51:14,821 --> 00:51:17,407 Now I can, um, start healing. 842 00:51:18,700 --> 00:51:20,452 [tide rolling in] 843 00:51:27,000 --> 00:51:31,004 [Fematt] I made arrangements to have a flower shop close by Malaga Cove 844 00:51:31,088 --> 00:51:33,590 to make her a real nice wreath in a cross. 845 00:51:33,673 --> 00:51:35,675 [gentle, mournful music playing] 846 00:51:36,843 --> 00:51:39,679 I picked it up. Everybody, we caravaned all the way over there. 847 00:51:41,431 --> 00:51:43,934 [Hernandez] We're with the family. They're putting up this wreath, 848 00:51:44,017 --> 00:51:45,894 and on the banner, it says, "It's over." 849 00:51:48,313 --> 00:51:49,731 It was a weird feeling to be there. 850 00:51:50,982 --> 00:51:55,529 I'd been there a couple of times, but now we had Yniguez convicted. 851 00:51:55,612 --> 00:51:57,030 We had answers. 852 00:51:57,114 --> 00:51:59,116 [somber, sweeping music playing] 853 00:52:02,160 --> 00:52:05,372 Ralph Hernandez, he did me right. 854 00:52:05,455 --> 00:52:06,540 He did me justice. 855 00:52:06,623 --> 00:52:10,377 He gave me everything I needed to put this behind me. 856 00:52:11,002 --> 00:52:13,255 I can't thank him enough for the hard work he did. 857 00:52:15,048 --> 00:52:18,885 He's a Chicano done good. I go, "That's you, Ralph." 858 00:52:18,969 --> 00:52:20,554 "You should be proud of yourself." 859 00:52:23,014 --> 00:52:24,266 [Hernandez] I'm very proud. 860 00:52:24,975 --> 00:52:28,186 It felt great to be able to get answers for the family. 861 00:52:29,062 --> 00:52:31,565 It was, um, very satisfying, 862 00:52:31,648 --> 00:52:33,483 'cause you realize the fruit of your hard labor, 863 00:52:33,567 --> 00:52:35,360 all those hours, all those years… 864 00:52:36,987 --> 00:52:38,530 You made a difference. 865 00:52:45,495 --> 00:52:46,580 [music trailing off] 866 00:52:46,663 --> 00:52:47,497 [engine revving] 867 00:52:50,167 --> 00:52:52,169 [cryptic music playing] 868 00:52:53,295 --> 00:52:56,006 [Hernandez] All missing person cases come through Homicide. 869 00:52:56,840 --> 00:52:59,426 If you're missing, the big question is… 870 00:53:00,218 --> 00:53:01,219 "Why?" 871 00:53:01,303 --> 00:53:04,931 [reporter] Father of three, the 6'6"-tall Smith has disappeared. 872 00:53:06,057 --> 00:53:08,602 [Hernandez] Gavin Smith was a Fox executive. 873 00:53:08,685 --> 00:53:09,978 He was larger-than-life. 874 00:53:10,937 --> 00:53:13,773 It was highly irregular that somebody like him 875 00:53:13,857 --> 00:53:15,942 would just vanish into thin air. 876 00:53:16,526 --> 00:53:19,654 -There's some weird stuff going on here. -[woman] He was in turmoil. 877 00:53:19,738 --> 00:53:22,616 Gavin had a pretty torrid affair. 878 00:53:22,699 --> 00:53:26,411 It's a mystery, but somebody out there knows something. 879 00:53:30,332 --> 00:53:32,334 [dramatic outro music pulsing]