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00:00In 2018, Snapped Killer Couples featured the harrowing story of Cody Martinez and Jeremy
00:06Brooks, whose multi-state crime spree resulted in a trail of death and destruction.
00:13The victims met their demise with a kind of frightening similarity.
00:18He wants to know when he says that struggle is like a crime of passion.
00:22He likes to sit and scare and look on people's face.
00:25He tells them.
00:25I think if she'd never met Jeremy, she never would have committed a crime.
00:31Currently 18 years into her sentence, Cody Martinez speaks out for the first time about the downfall
00:39of her relationship with Jeremy and the impact the case has had on her life.
00:44I loved him, but I also was terrified of him.
00:48And I was basically just trying to survive moment by moment.
00:52I was a victim as well.
00:53I don't hate him.
00:56I wish he wouldn't have done what he did, but I don't hate him.
01:02However, confronting her past proves to be more difficult than Cody anticipated.
01:09Has Jeremy ever tried to contact you or communicate with you in any way?
01:13I don't think that that's important.
01:16I think I just want to stop.
01:19But after the cameras turn off, Cody has a change of heart and comes clean.
01:26What made you decide to do a follow-up interview?
01:29Um, I felt kind of unsettled about not being able to address certain things.
01:35Sort of like facing the demons kind of thing.
01:37My name is Cody Danos Martinez, and I chose to do this interview because there are many sides to a story and different ways for a story to be told.
02:07This is my story.
02:08This is what happened.
02:10It wasn't my choice to say, oh, I'm going to go out and hurt these people or kill these people.
02:16But I didn't leave.
02:18I'm not the bad guy.
02:20I'm not trying to, like, make him out to be the bad guy either.
02:22But whatever that accountability means, I don't know, but I have to own it.
02:28I think she was definitely a victim.
02:31I would say a victim of circumstance.
02:33I think if she had never met Jeremy, she never, ever would have committed a crime.
02:37It's interesting with Ms. Martinez being so forthcoming with the investigators and through the investigation that she still does not have a lot of remorse for her actions.
02:47She isn't taking responsibility for her part and her role in these crimes.
02:52June 2nd, 2007, Slidell, Louisiana.
03:00It's just before 7 a.m. when a hotel security guard notices a broken windowpane outside one of the rooms.
03:10He went to the room to check and just to look at the damage himself and actually observed a victim lying on the bed.
03:19And you can see a large puddle of blood was right next to his head.
03:23The blood was just everywhere.
03:25There was blood all over the wall.
03:27There was a large puddle of blood on the floor.
03:29The security guard immediately calls 911.
03:33When police officers arrive moments later, they determine the victim is still alive.
03:40I couldn't tell if it was a gunshot wound or if it was just him just beat.
03:44At that point, it was just so much blood I could not tell.
03:47He didn't move, but I could hear that he was breathing very shallow.
03:51At that point, I picked up my radio, called our dispatcher, and advised him that we do have a victim on the bed
03:56and that we need emergency units here immediately.
04:01Authorities find his wallet and identify him as 50-year-old Joe Welch.
04:07Once he's rushed to the hospital, detectives begin processing the scene inside the hotel room.
04:15There was a lamp that was broke.
04:16It looks like he was hit with.
04:18There was a nightstand that was broke.
04:19It looked like he was hit with it.
04:21Several beer bottles were broke.
04:23They had blood on them as well.
04:25You can just tell this gentleman was hit with quite a few different things.
04:29We knew immediately it was violent.
04:32Somebody had to be very angry to cause this amount.
04:36Is it a robbery motive?
04:38Is it a domestic?
04:39All of that's running through your head because this is not human nature.
04:43Human nature, somebody doesn't beat somebody this bad unless there's some underlying issues.
04:48We spoke to the security guard that was working that night.
04:52He said he remembered seeing a male and a female in that room.
04:56We were able to establish that a female had rented the room.
05:01We found it was a Cody Martinez that was from Cutoff, Louisiana.
05:07When detectives contact her mother, Brenda, on June 5th,
05:11she says Cody had left Cutoff three weeks earlier with her boyfriend, Jeremy Brooks.
05:18They ended up leaving and Cody said, we'll be back.
05:22But they never came back.
05:27Raised in the small bayou town of Cutoff, Louisiana,
05:32Cody Martinez's life had always been wrought by instability.
05:38My mom and dad split up when I was, like, really young, like two.
05:42My mom, she's an offshore boat captain for a long time.
05:47And then my dad, he was a truck driver.
05:49So me and my sister spent a lot of time with different family members
05:52on my mom's side and my dad's side.
05:56I would say that that's not an easy thing to do, looking back on it.
06:00But back then, that was normal for me.
06:03After dropping out of high school,
06:05Cody set her sights on building her own family.
06:08I always wanted to be a mom.
06:12And then one day I met this guy.
06:15I was 18.
06:16He was 32.
06:17I thought he was a really great guy.
06:20We decided to get married.
06:22We were going to move away, you know,
06:24two hours away from where I was from,
06:26which was not the bayou anymore.
06:29But that didn't last.
06:30We got divorced, I think, four years later.
06:36Following her divorce, Cody struggled with stability.
06:40That's when she met 24-year-old Jeremy Brooks
06:44at a nightclub in November 2004.
06:46When I met Jeremy,
06:50I was probably just stumbling through life at that moment.
06:57I was just kind of falling back and forth on, like,
07:03who I am, what am I doing?
07:05Um, I was just lost.
07:14Like Cody Martinez,
07:16Jeremy dropped out of high school at 16.
07:20After leaving his parents' home,
07:22he found his life's passion.
07:25Jeremy spent time toning, working out,
07:28and putting effort into building a body.
07:31He had bulk in a build significantly above most people.
07:36You're talking an individual approaching 250 pounds.
07:40Jeremy had a pretty successful career in boxing.
07:44I think it was that career that...
07:46and that success that he saw in that career
07:48that eventually led him to Cody.
07:51Cody met this guy who was a big, strong boxer
07:53and looked all tough,
07:54and I think he just kind of swooned her off her feet.
07:58He put me first.
08:00In my mind, I knew where I stood with him.
08:04Like, I mattered to him.
08:06With other people, I didn't always know that for sure.
08:09We were using drugs.
08:11We were having fun.
08:12We were partying, whatever.
08:13We had a really good time.
08:15Being with Jeremy was being...
08:18free.
08:19And a freedom I had never felt before.
08:22I think if she wasn't addicted to drugs,
08:24I don't think she would have, um,
08:25probably wouldn't have fallen for Jeremy in the first place.
08:28By May of 2007, Cody decided she was ready
08:33to leave her small-town life behind.
08:37Cody and Jeremy were looking to find money,
08:42their vehicles, ways to kind of continue on with...
08:45on their journey, but at the same time,
08:47fuel that drug habit that they had developed.
08:49But while the couple tears across state lines,
08:55detectives in Louisiana are trying to track Cody down
08:59in connection with the brutal attack on Joe Welch.
09:03We found out that she had a boyfriend
09:06that she was traveling with.
09:08Her boyfriend was Jeremy Brooks,
09:10and he was kind of a big fella.
09:12At some point, was a fighter.
09:14We kind of felt that, okay,
09:16he's definitely involved some way or another.
09:21While an APB goes out for Cody and Jeremy,
09:24detectives get a call from the local hospital
09:27that Joe Welch is in stable condition.
09:30Despite severe lacerations and facial fractures,
09:34he's able to talk.
09:36First thing that they wanted to know from Mr. Welch
09:38was what happened.
09:40Why did this happen?
09:41And who did it?
09:43He had said that he was walking down the street
09:46and he was approached by a large white male
09:48and asked if he wanted to go party.
09:50He said they had some beer in there.
09:51He says, well, would you like to meet
09:53a young, beautiful woman?
09:55Mr. Welch said, I'd love to.
09:57He said, well, come back to my room
09:59and we'll drink a few beers
10:00and I'll introduce you to him.
10:02When he entered the room,
10:04he saw a white female laying on the bed,
10:07a little provocative.
10:09Shortly after being in the room,
10:10he realized that something doesn't feel right
10:13that I need to leave.
10:15He described that as soon as he got up to leave,
10:18he was hit with a beer bottle.
10:22Joe Welch was bludgeoned,
10:24beaten with beer bottles
10:26and also some of the objects in the room,
10:29nightstands, lamps, and so forth.
10:33Joe tells detectives
10:34that before he passed out,
10:36he remembers the man and woman
10:38going through his pockets
10:39and taking $20.
10:43The first picture we had of the suspects
10:45was Cody Martinez.
10:47We showed Mr. Welch
10:49and immediately upon him looking at the photo,
10:51he said, this is the female that was in the room.
10:53And we asked him, are you sure, positive?
10:56He said, 100%.
10:57Shortly after we showed him Jeremy Brooks' photo,
11:01immediately I said, 100% sure,
11:02this was the gentleman that was in the room
11:04that struck him.
11:06At that point, there was a fugitive warrant
11:08for both Brooks and Martinez.
11:11I wish he wouldn't have done what he did.
11:15And I wanted to leave,
11:18but I didn't know how to.
11:20I was afraid to.
11:22I was really terrified.
11:26Coming up, investigators catch up to Cody Martinez.
11:31He told me that he was going to kill me.
11:33He was going to torture me, kill me slowly.
11:38Jeremy is a very dangerous man,
11:41and what's going to happen
11:44when they get him cornered.
11:58Authorities in Slidell, Louisiana,
12:01are investigating the brutal beating of Joe Welch,
12:04who has identified his assailants
12:06as 28-year-old Cody Martinez
12:09and 26-year-old Jeremy Brooks.
12:12Mr. Brooks had lured Mr. Welch up to their room,
12:17at which point Mr. Brooks proceeded to beat him
12:20for money or whatever it was that they can get.
12:23And went too far, I guess, left him for dead.
12:27That was probably the reason they left Louisiana
12:29and proceeded across the country.
12:31We were on the run from the end of May to August.
12:34I don't know how he survived.
12:38When I think back on it now,
12:41and I try to, like,
12:43put the pieces together,
12:45I don't know how to.
12:49I don't know what was going on.
12:52She was just kind of along for the ride
12:54because she was doing drugs
12:55and having addiction
12:56and being with a guy that wasn't good for her,
12:58and it just blew up into a terrible incident.
13:04On August 13, 2007,
13:0710 weeks after the manhunt for Cody and Jeremy began,
13:11detectives in Slidell finally catch a break.
13:15Jeremy Brooks has been connected
13:17to the brutal murder of a 58-year-old woman
13:20in her Montrose, Minnesota home.
13:23Ruth Overson died of ligature strangulation
13:27and asphyxiation,
13:28has multiple blunt force trauma inflicted to her head,
13:32and it's determined pretty quickly
13:35that her Jeep Liberty has gone.
13:38A few days later,
13:40Ms. Overson's Jeep is located in Fargo, North Dakota,
13:44and so is treated very gingerly
13:47by the FBI and police
13:49who do a complete forensic workup of it.
13:53There's a thumbprint located
13:54which is matched to Jeremy Brooks,
13:58and ultimately, Jeremy Brooks' DNA
14:00was under the fingernails of Ruth Overson.
14:05Based on the location
14:07of Ruth Overson's stolen vehicle,
14:10authorities put out a bolo
14:11for both Jeremy and Cody in North Dakota.
14:15Just one day later,
14:17they receive pivotal news.
14:19Cody Martinez was in custody in North Dakota.
14:23She was picked up
14:24by the McHenry County Sheriff's Department
14:26and then transported to the jail
14:29at the law enforcement center in Rugby.
14:31According to the sheriff,
14:33a local woman named Rosie Kybell
14:36had contacted them earlier that day
14:38after Cody showed up at her house
14:40identifying herself as Kelly.
14:44Rosie answered the door,
14:45and there was a young woman at the door
14:48who said she was very hungry.
14:50She needs help.
14:51She's a transient.
14:53She fed her and took care of her,
14:56cleaned her up.
14:57She made a phone call to the sheriff's office
15:00who in turn came and picked up Martinez
15:02and took her to a shelter.
15:05Two hours after the young woman had left,
15:08Rosie heard another knock at her door
15:10from a large man claiming to be looking for his girlfriend.
15:15He asked if she was there at Rosie's house.
15:19And she said no, that the, you know,
15:21that the sheriff's office had picked her up
15:22and had taken her somewhere.
15:24He said, okay, thank you,
15:25and turned her on the left.
15:27For some reason, it didn't feel right to Rosie.
15:30Rosie's on the computer,
15:32and she was looking at this wanted site.
15:34She said, well, that's the nice young lady
15:35that was here.
15:37Rosie realized they were wanted
15:39for murder in Minnesota.
15:43Rosie then contacted the sheriff
15:45to relay the information.
15:47While one team of deputies went in search of Jeremy,
15:51a second quickly caught up with Cody.
15:55After she was taken to town
15:57where she was dropped off
15:58at a local homeless shelter,
16:00Ms. Martinez left the homeless shelter
16:01and went to a bar.
16:03She had went home with one of the patrons
16:05from the bar that she went into.
16:07That lady took her out to her house
16:08where she showered,
16:09and she gave her some different clothes to put on.
16:12So actually, when Cody was picked up,
16:13she didn't look bad at all.
16:15She had had time to refresh.
16:17After Martinez had been arrested,
16:19we continued two roving patrols
16:21in that area where we felt Brooks was still hiding.
16:24But Brooks was still at large.
16:29You seem somewhat relieved after your arrest,
16:32yet also scared about what might happen next.
16:36Mm-hmm.
16:37I was terrified of him.
16:40I was very confused.
16:43Like, I didn't know who this person was anymore.
16:47Still, when investigators attempt to question Cody
16:51about Jeremy's whereabouts,
16:53Cody claims ignorance.
16:54Where is he right now?
16:57I have no idea of that.
17:00Despite authorities' best efforts,
17:03Cody refuses to cooperate.
17:05I've been through so much
17:07in the past three months.
17:10I've been abused.
17:11I'm just...
17:12I don't know.
17:13I don't know nothing.
17:15Whenever you're arrested,
17:17a lot of times people will say,
17:19don't talk to the cops.
17:20Talk to a lawyer.
17:22You know, hold on for your lawyer.
17:23So, like, I had that mindset.
17:27But I also knew that I didn't want him
17:29to be out on the streets
17:31hurting other people.
17:33A lot of people call it snitching,
17:35but for me, my truth is
17:38I didn't want him to hurt other people.
17:42Faced with multiple felony charges,
17:45Cody strikes a deal with authorities.
17:48She wanted to get a much lighter sentence
17:51if she told them the whole story,
17:53everything, leaving nothing out.
17:56They did extend to Cody
17:58an opportunity to begin talking to them
18:01and not use the statement against Cody.
18:05The next day,
18:06when authorities question Cody a second time,
18:10she begins to open up
18:11about meeting Joe Welch.
18:13But she claims she had no idea
18:16Jeremy was going to hurt Joe.
18:19I was definitely afraid when that happened
18:21because, like, the whole atmosphere just changed.
18:25It was like seeing a completely different person.
18:28When she saw him hurt somebody,
18:30it was scary.
18:31If he did this to a man,
18:32what can he do to me?
18:34And so what are you going to do?
18:35Say, I'm going to leave you now?
18:36We just did this crime.
18:37I'm going to leave?
18:38He wouldn't let her leave.
18:39He told me that he was going to kill me.
18:41He was going to torture me,
18:44kill me slowly.
18:46I was scared to leave.
18:47I was scared not to leave.
18:49I loved him.
18:51But I also was terrified of him.
18:54After taking Joe Welch's money,
18:56Cody says they hopped in her car
18:58and hit the road
18:59until they ran out of gas in Tennessee.
19:03At that point,
19:04we would travel through the railroad tracks.
19:07I was basically just trying to survive
19:09moment by moment.
19:12They traveled north to Kentucky,
19:15landing in Louisville area.
19:18It was there that Cody says
19:20Jeremy committed two more murders.
19:25Imagine the surprise
19:26that came to the law enforcement guys
19:30in North Dakota.
19:31They now had serial killers.
19:45In August 2007,
19:48Cody Martinez has just confessed
19:50that her boyfriend, Jeremy Brooks,
19:53killed two men in Kentucky.
19:55When Cody and Jeremy
19:57made their way to Louisville,
19:59they were looking for a food meal.
20:02They ended up at a local soup kitchen.
20:05According to Cody,
20:06a few weeks earlier,
20:08she and Jeremy had met
20:0950-year-old Robert Elliott.
20:12He kind of befriended the couple.
20:15Mr. Elliott even invited them
20:17to live with him
20:18for a short period of time.
20:20We stayed at his house for a while,
20:22and he was nice to us.
20:25Robert also helped Jeremy
20:27land a temporary job.
20:30But Cody claims that Jeremy's behavior
20:32was growing increasingly erratic.
20:35Whenever we was in Robert's house,
20:40Jeremy had tied me up
20:42and beat me.
20:44He had never really hit me like that before.
20:48That was the first time.
20:52And so, you know,
20:54your abusers always say
20:56that it's never going to happen again,
20:57or, you know, they're really sorry,
20:59or, you know, they'll be better.
21:02And then he was like,
21:27well, y'all have to leave.
21:29And then I was like,
21:30what the hell?
21:31But at that point,
21:33I was just, like, really confused,
21:34and then stuff started happening.
21:36Like, Jeremy just kind of snapped.
21:39That's when Jeremy became enraged
21:42and began attacking Mr. Elliott.
21:47And what were the,
21:48what type of injuries?
21:51Strangled.
21:56Do you remember what room
21:57he should have been in the apartment?
21:59In this closet.
22:04Cody says that she and Jeremy
22:06stayed in Robert's apartment
22:08for three more days
22:10before the odor of decomposition
22:12forced them to flee.
22:14Jeremy was just a different person.
22:25He just changed
22:26into something I don't know how to describe.
22:29They ended up on the other side of town,
22:38on the other side of Louisville.
22:40They ran across a gentleman
22:41who had parked his vehicle.
22:43They seemed to have identified him
22:45as a target,
22:45someone that they could potentially get,
22:47both a vehicle
22:47and some quick cash,
22:50some easy money,
22:50if he had anything on him.
22:52They were able to lure him
22:55and eventually he was beaten as well
22:59and was just, you know,
23:02left there in the woods.
23:05Just in the woods?
23:06Maybe still there?
23:07Possibly?
23:08You, you had the guy's credit cards.
23:11What you, you, he had them,
23:12but what, what name was on there?
23:14Kind of, give me a guesstimate.
23:16Patrick O'Day.
23:20Authorities excuse themselves
23:22to contact police in Louisville, Kentucky,
23:25who confirm they're investigating
23:27the unsolved murders
23:29of Robert Elliott and Patrick O'Day.
23:322007, I was a detective
23:34with the Louisville Metro Police Department
23:36assigned to the homicide unit.
23:39It was in early August of 2007.
23:41We were notified about the decedent
23:44being located inside of his apartment.
23:46The neighbors became concerned
23:48when the smell and the fly population
23:50had grown
23:51and they had not seen Mr. Elliott
23:52for some time.
23:54Entry was gained into the apartment
23:56by a police department.
23:57They found Mr. Elliott bundled in sheets,
24:00clothing, and other things in a closet.
24:04Mr. Elliott sustained
24:05some severe blunt force trauma
24:07and I believe strangulation
24:10of a ligature similar to a belt or strap.
24:14As for Patrick O'Day,
24:17detectives in Louisville relay
24:18that he had also been found
24:21beaten to death.
24:22The homicide unit got involved
24:24in the case when Mr. O'Day
24:27was discovered missing.
24:28He failed to report to work.
24:30His credit card had been used
24:31apparently fictitiously.
24:34It was shortly after that
24:35we discovered Mr. O'Day
24:37deceased in an area
24:39off a river road in a park.
24:40When detectives return
24:44to the interrogation room,
24:46Cody continues to profess
24:47that she's an unwitting accomplice.
24:50I knew that he was crazy
24:52and I knew that he did some things.
24:55He loves strangling people, right?
24:57Yeah.
24:58He wants to know when he said
24:59that when strangling is like
25:01a crime of passion.
25:03Like he's into it,
25:04it kind of gives him that brush.
25:06He likes to see the scare
25:07and look on people's face.
25:09He told them.
25:11So now from Louisville, Kentucky,
25:13what was your travels next?
25:15After they killed Mr. O'Day
25:19in Louisville,
25:20they stole his vehicle
25:21and then they proceeded
25:22north through Illinois
25:24and eventually into
25:25the Minneapolis area
25:26where they ran out of gas
25:27and they proceeded
25:27to hop on a train
25:29that headed west
25:29out of the Twin Cities area
25:31and they landed
25:32in rural Wright County
25:33near the community
25:34of Montrose.
25:36Despite her claims
25:37that she was terrified
25:38of Jeremy,
25:40Cody admits she had agreed
25:41to help him confront
25:43their fourth victim.
25:44She indicated
25:46to the investigators
25:47that she knocked
25:49on Ms. Wilbertson's door
25:50indicating that she was
25:52in need of help.
25:53At some point,
25:54Jeremy forced his way in
25:55so she was there
25:57as a willing participant
25:58and a lure of a sort.
26:02If I could take it back,
26:03I would.
26:04If I could trade places
26:05to give people back,
26:07their loved one,
26:08I would do that as well.
26:14following her arrest
26:25in Drake, North Dakota,
26:27investigators are questioning
26:29Cody Martinez
26:30about the fourth victim
26:32in her and her boyfriend,
26:34Jeremy Brooks,
26:35deadly crime spree.
26:36They were again
26:39looking for money.
26:41They were looking
26:42for a vehicle.
26:43They were in kind
26:44of the countryside
26:44between Buffalo
26:46and Montrose
26:47and that's when they
26:48ran across
26:49Mrs. Overson's home.
26:50When they approached
26:51the residence,
26:52Cody was the one
26:53that did the initial talking
26:55and kind of that initial
26:56interaction
26:57with Mrs. Overson
26:59and then when they determined
27:01that she was alone
27:02at the residence,
27:03that's when Mr. Brooks
27:06stepped in.
27:08She was assaulted,
27:10wrapped and put in a closet
27:11similar to Mr. Elliot
27:12and they fled
27:14with her credit cards
27:16as well as,
27:17I believe, clothing.
27:19We was in Mrs. Overson's
27:21barn for a while,
27:23for some hours
27:24and I was laying down
27:26because we were like
27:27exhausted
27:27but I felt like maybe
27:29if I didn't wake up
27:30or if I just kept
27:30my eyes closed
27:31that it would just
27:33go away.
27:35Cody claims
27:36she and Jeremy
27:37drove Ruth Overson's
27:39car north
27:39until it ran low
27:41on fuel.
27:42That's when the couple
27:43ditched the vehicle
27:44and began traveling
27:45through North Dakota
27:46by foot
27:47until they ultimately
27:49landed at Rosie
27:50Kybell's farmhouse.
27:53Jeremy wants me
27:54to go to
27:55Miss Rosie's house
27:56and I'm like,
27:57this is just insane.
27:58This is not,
27:59I can't keep allowing
28:00this to happen.
28:01Not that I had control
28:02over it before
28:03but I felt like
28:06I was maybe gaining
28:07some type of
28:08mental strength
28:11or emotional strength
28:13because I was like,
28:14this can't keep
28:15happening to people.
28:18So when Cody
28:19went to Rosie's door,
28:22you know,
28:22the plan was for Jeremy
28:24as soon as she gave him
28:26the signal,
28:27that was his cue
28:28to come on.
28:30Jeremy never showed up
28:31and that left Cody
28:33to wonder
28:33what's going on.
28:36I went to go run
28:38out there and find him
28:39but I didn't see him.
28:43I didn't know how to
28:45be without him.
28:47I didn't know how to
28:48function from moment
28:50to moment.
28:51So I just stayed
28:52and just started to let
28:53things happen
28:54the way that they did.
28:56Miss Kybell invited her in,
28:59fed her,
28:59and then phoned
29:01the sheriff's office
29:02in an attempt to get Cody
29:03a ride back into town
29:05to a homeless shelter.
29:06When the cop showed up,
29:09I told him a fake name
29:10and he was trying
29:12to help me out
29:13because I told him
29:13I was running away
29:14from my abusive boyfriend.
29:17Ended up going to sit
29:18in a bar and lounge
29:20or something
29:21and I just stayed there
29:22for a while.
29:24This lady ended up
29:25taking me in her home,
29:27very nice to me,
29:28and they came to arrest me
29:30about 8.30 that night
29:31from the lady's house.
29:33I was really terrified.
29:36I was still in a lot of fear,
29:38but also some relief
29:39just because I was away
29:43from him
29:43and that was a relief.
29:47End of a long three months,
29:50isn't it?
29:51Two and a half months.
29:54I wanted to get caught,
29:56to tell you the truth.
29:58There's some stuff
29:59you left out,
30:00but for the most part
30:01what came out of your mouth,
30:02and most of this stuff
30:04is pretty good.
30:06And we have a guy out there
30:08who isn't going to stop
30:09and he is going to get caught.
30:13I'll be honest with you,
30:14I need your help.
30:16We don't know where he's at.
30:18All I'm asking you
30:19is take us to where
30:20you guys were staying
30:21so we have a place to start.
30:23Nothing more, nothing less.
30:26I can do that.
30:27I think I can remember.
30:28The area that he was in,
30:32there are a lot of people
30:33that own 160 acres.
30:35I mean, it's vast, you know.
30:37It was like looking
30:38for a needle in a haystack.
30:39That's when Cody tells authorities
30:41that Jeremy had once come up
30:43with an escape plan
30:45should they ever need
30:46to evade police.
30:48Brooks' MO was to burn something
30:49and then move on,
30:50according to Martinez.
30:52The purpose was to get
30:53a distraction to escape.
30:54Investigators relay Cody's claims
30:59to the search team.
31:01Just hours later,
31:02they spot multiple fires
31:04on a nearby farm.
31:07Authorities immediately
31:08surround the area,
31:10determined to capture Jeremy.
31:12Jeremy is a former
31:14professional boxer.
31:16He's huge.
31:17He kills people
31:18with his bare hands.
31:20He is a very dangerous man.
31:22What's going to happen
31:23when they get him cornered?
31:25Now the chase is on.
31:42In the early morning hours
31:44of August 16, 2007,
31:47authorities in North Dakota
31:49believe they are closing in
31:51on Jeremy Brooks
31:52due to an eruption of fires
31:54on a nearby farm.
31:56We set up another perimeter
31:58and we sent in the team
31:59to start searching.
32:00And then we just waited
32:01and Border Patrol
32:02and a couple of our agents
32:03spotted the guy
32:04walking in the field.
32:06He surrendered peacefully.
32:07He was cold and hungry.
32:09He was pretty happy
32:10to see a warm blanket.
32:11Remember we talked about
32:19that barn burning down?
32:20There's a couple more
32:21last night.
32:21Man, that's gotta be late.
32:23See, he must not be gone.
32:25So, well, the cop.
32:30What?
32:32It's not at six.
32:34What?
32:35Mm-hmm.
32:36Yeah!
32:36Yeah!
32:41I was really shocked
33:01when the officers told me
33:02that they found him
33:03because in my mind
33:06he was unstoppable.
33:07While Cody remains in custody,
33:14investigators attempt
33:15to question Jeremy.
33:17Do you know why you're here?
33:19No, I don't know why I'm here.
33:20To once for your arrest.
33:22Okay.
33:22Attempted murder?
33:23Mm-hmm.
33:24And murder.
33:25Okay.
33:26Do you have any idea
33:26where those might be from?
33:27No.
33:29I black out sometimes.
33:31I have a mental problem.
33:33It's well documented.
33:35There was an insanity
33:36attempt
33:37where he didn't remember,
33:39he didn't know,
33:40he didn't realize
33:41what had happened.
33:42So there wasn't
33:43much information
33:43that was gained
33:44from Jeremy's interviews.
33:52Authorities make the decision
33:54to extradite Jeremy and Cody
33:56to Minnesota
33:57and begin sifting
33:58through the evidence
33:59from their multi-state
34:01crime spree.
34:03Jeremy and Cody
34:05were using
34:05their victims' money,
34:09credit cards,
34:10things of that nature,
34:11and they were being
34:12caught on video footage.
34:14When Jeremy Brooks
34:15was working
34:17for that company
34:18that one of the victims
34:19in Kentucky,
34:20Robert Elliott,
34:21had set up with him,
34:22he had put his thumbprint
34:23on a check.
34:24He had also put his thumbprint
34:26in the Minnesota victim's car,
34:28and so police
34:29were able to match
34:30those two thumbprints.
34:35With Cody's assistance,
34:37authorities begin
34:38building a case
34:39against Jeremy Brooks
34:41for the attempted murder
34:42of Joe Welch
34:44and the murders
34:45of Robert Elliott,
34:46Patrick O'Day,
34:47and Ruth Overson.
34:49Jeremy Brooks
34:50was clearly eligible
34:52for the death penalty
34:53and was facing
34:55a lethal injection
34:56in Kentucky.
34:58When Jeremy Brooks
34:59found out the death penalty
35:00was on the table,
35:01he didn't want
35:02any part of that,
35:03so he pled guilty
35:04to the murders
35:05in Louisville.
35:09As part of his agreement,
35:11Jeremy also pleads guilty
35:13to Ruth Overson's murder
35:15in Minnesota
35:15and the attempted murder
35:17of Joe Welch
35:18in Louisiana.
35:19It was the swift justice
35:22of putting him in prison
35:23for the rest of his life
35:24with no possibility
35:26of parole
35:27on all those cases.
35:29Many things
35:30were taken into account
35:31in coming up
35:33with a plea agreement
35:34for Ms. Martinez,
35:35and no small part
35:37was her immediate cooperation
35:39with law enforcement,
35:40both in apprehending
35:41Jeremy Brooks
35:42and in describing
35:43the events
35:45that allows us
35:46on some level
35:46to piece together
35:47how these people's
35:49final moments
35:50were spent.
35:55Ultimately,
35:57prosecutors decide
35:58to charge Cody
35:59with aiding and abetting.
36:01Cody Martinez
36:02was charged
36:03with the equivalent
36:04in Minnesota
36:05being an accomplice
36:06to the murder
36:07committed by Jeremy Brooks
36:09on Ms. Overson,
36:10and she was charged
36:11that way here in Kentucky
36:13for the murder
36:14of Robert Elliott
36:15and Patrick O'Day.
36:16I ended up taking
36:18the 30 years
36:20due 20
36:21for Kentucky
36:22and Minnesota.
36:23They ran their time concurrent.
36:26I felt like my sentence
36:27was too long,
36:30but also I can have
36:33some sympathy
36:34for the victim's families.
36:36They don't know me,
36:37my story,
36:38the whole situation,
36:39that obviously
36:42they would want me
36:43to never get out.
36:45And I would say to that
36:46that I understand that.
36:52Now 18 years
36:53into her sentence
36:54in the Minnesota
36:55Department of Corrections,
36:57Cody is eligible
36:58for release
36:59in 2027,
37:00but she's never faced
37:02charges
37:03in Louisiana.
37:04If you're comfortable,
37:06is there anything
37:07you'd like to share
37:08about what happened
37:09in Louisiana?
37:11I don't want to talk
37:11about Louisiana.
37:14Has he ever tried
37:15to contact you
37:15or communicate with you
37:17in any way, Jeremy?
37:19Um, I don't think
37:21that that's important.
37:24I think I just want
37:26to stop.
37:27Sure.
37:27For 18 years,
37:43Cody Martinez
37:44has been serving time
37:46behind bars
37:47in Minnesota
37:47for her role
37:49in the crime spree
37:50that claimed
37:50the lives
37:51of three people.
37:53But she has struggled
37:54to open up
37:55about her true feelings
37:57for Jeremy Brooks
37:58until now.
38:02An inmate
38:03at the Minnesota
38:03Department of Corrections
38:05Chackopee
38:05Correctional Facility
38:06to accept this
38:08free call,
38:08press zero.
38:10Hello?
38:10Hey, Cody.
38:12Hi.
38:13What made you decide
38:14to do a follow-up
38:15after our initial interview?
38:19Um, I felt kind of
38:21unsettled about,
38:22um, not being able
38:24to address certain things
38:26and not being able
38:27to open up.
38:28You know,
38:29I just wanted
38:30to get clarity
38:31if Jeremy has ever
38:33tried to reach out
38:34to you or contact you
38:35and how do you feel
38:37about him now?
38:43So, 13 years into it,
38:45I write him a letter
38:46and I'm like,
38:48sort of like facing
38:49the demon kind of thing.
38:50But that's where
38:51my mindset was.
38:52I was trying to face him
38:55and face the fact that,
38:57you know,
38:58my life's better,
38:59he never controlled me.
39:00You know,
39:01like, kind of like
39:01taking my power back,
39:03basically.
39:07Shortly after,
39:09Cody claims she received
39:10a letter from Jeremy.
39:12unexpectedly, like,
39:14he wrote me back
39:15and he apologized.
39:17He realized, like,
39:19what he did to me,
39:20how he destroyed my spirit,
39:22how I was a good person
39:23and how I loved him
39:24was something that,
39:27you know,
39:27he never experienced before.
39:29And, like,
39:29I was someone important.
39:31But he knows
39:32he messed up.
39:34And that meant,
39:35like,
39:35that healed parts of me
39:37that no one ever
39:39could heal.
39:41it had to be through him
39:43because, like,
39:44I was so in love with him,
39:46you know,
39:46like,
39:46he was just someone
39:47that I loved
39:50through and through.
39:56Not all things
39:57are bad about him,
39:58you know,
39:58he had some good qualities.
40:01One of the things
40:01that I admired
40:02was the fact
40:03that he could
40:04take accountability
40:05for how he
40:07messed up,
40:09like how he
40:09messed up
40:10people's lives,
40:11how he messed up
40:12my life,
40:13and that's something
40:14that he was able
40:15to acknowledge.
40:17And that's pretty big
40:18in my book.
40:21If you can say that
40:22out loud
40:23to the person
40:25or in a letter
40:27that's very personal,
40:29I have a lot
40:30of respect for that.
40:31It appears
40:34that Ms. Martinez
40:35is still protecting Jeremy.
40:36He's not a bad guy,
40:37I'm not a bad guy.
40:38I get the occasion
40:39that she's not as remorseful
40:40as she might have
40:41played out to be.
40:42I truly believe
40:44that Cody
40:44is remorseful.
40:46I met Cody
40:47while working
40:48at the correctional facility
40:51in Shakopee.
40:52She was an inmate there
40:54and I was a GED teacher there
40:57and she has stacked
40:59on so many degrees
41:01and certificates
41:01along the way.
41:03She got her GED
41:04while incarcerated,
41:06she received
41:06a four-year degree
41:07and that wasn't enough
41:09for her.
41:10So when she had
41:10the opportunity
41:11to do the paralegal program,
41:13she jumped on that
41:14immediately.
41:15And so she's just
41:15looking for any opportunity
41:17to better herself
41:18while incarcerated
41:19and upon release.
41:24When I am released,
41:27I hope to return
41:29to my family.
41:32I don't have any kids
41:33so I hope to be able
41:35to just take care
41:36of my parents,
41:37my mom specifically
41:39in her older years.
41:42So that is my purpose.
41:44That's how I feel
41:45is to take care of her
41:47and then after that,
41:49I don't know.
41:51I also know
41:51that I have to be careful
41:52about what I choose to do,
41:55how I choose
41:56to live my life
41:57and I don't think
41:58that that's going
41:58to be easy.
42:22as I do.
42:26I don't know.
42:29I don't know.
42:29I like that
42:32because I'm trying to make
42:34a cool little thing
42:36and I just don't so
42:36it'll be easy.
42:37It's not hard.
42:38I don't know.
42:38There, there's that
42:39I don't know
42:41as I try
42:42how I make
42:42a musical
42:43and I don't like
42:45music
42:45and music
42:47and music
42:48and music
42:49and music
42:50and music
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