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True Crime Story It Couldnt Happen Here S02E04 Prichard Alabama
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00:00There could have been over 100, 200 people there when the shooting started.
00:05Everybody got the hell out of Dodge.
00:08I'm quite sure it was several eyewitnesses.
00:11Nobody went to the police.
00:14Why did you do this to my granddaddy? Why?
00:17Do you feel like Bella's gender identity had something to do with her being shot that night?
00:23Yes.
00:24It's a lot of questions, and I have no answers.
00:44We are driving into Pritchard, Alabama, which is in Mobile County.
00:51And because we are on the water here, there's such a rich food culture.
00:57It's, from what I understand, a fun place to hang out.
01:04We like to get together and have barbecues.
01:07So if you say you're having something in Pritchard, the whole Pritchard coming.
01:10I've been in business for 48 years, and I enjoy the people.
01:15I enjoy my customers, and it's just like family here.
01:20Pritchard has a really important history, not only in this community, but in our national
01:25history as well.
01:27The very last slave ship from West Africa, the Clotilda, landed here.
01:34And after the Civil War, the families that came over on that ship settled this area, and
01:39they called it Africatown, and there's still a really proud heritage.
01:46I can directly trace my roots back to Africatown.
01:50I'm a direct descendant of Olua Lay and Maggie Lewis, who are aboard the Clotilda.
01:56With about eight of those enslaved Africans, say we'll make our own Africatown.
02:01So that's the heritage that I hold in me.
02:06So parts of Africatown were incorporated into this town of Pritchard.
02:12And they had a booming economy here.
02:15There was shipping, there was a very profitable paper mill.
02:19And then when industry left the area, it really fell into economic despair.
02:26Everyone be scared to come to Pritchard, but it's not really a bad community.
02:31When people hear that you live in the city of Pritchard, or you're from that area, they
02:34kind of shy away from you because of the crime that's in the area.
02:39It's more to Pritchard than what people say it is.
02:44We came down to Pritchard because of the series of articles that Insider put out that
02:49investigated homicides of transgender individuals in the United States.
02:54And the numbers in this article are incredibly alarming because out of the 175 cases they
03:01looked into, over a third are unsolved.
03:05One of the cases that stood out in this series took place here in Pritchard, Alabama.
03:09And it is the case of a 19-year-old, gender-nonconforming teenager who was gunned down and murdered at
03:17a party right before Christmas in 2020.
03:21I was particularly drawn to how tragic of a story this was.
03:27There was very little information out there.
03:30And what really got to me was the fact that she died in a crowded party surrounded by witnesses,
03:36and yet the case remained unsolved.
03:40The victim was known as Jaheim and used he, him pronouns with their family.
03:46But within the circle of friends, was known as Bella and used she, her pronouns.
03:53Unfortunately, this is a very young victim whose life was cut short, and it is not up to us
03:59to decide their identity.
04:01And we understand that language is really important, especially language surrounding such a sensitive
04:06subject.
04:06So we discussed this case with the advocacy organization GLAAD.
04:10What you'll see in this episode is different names, different pronouns, depending on who we're
04:16speaking to.
04:17And that was something that our victim accepted, like so many other families.
04:22This family is left here with no justice and a lot of questions.
04:30On December 13th at about 5.30 in the morning, I got a call from our dispatch advising that
04:36we had one down, and we had two more that were shot at a hit house on Rosedale Avenue, so
04:44I responded.
04:45My name's Sergeant Bart Andrews.
04:48I'm the sergeant in charge at the Pritchard Police Department Major Crimes Unit.
04:53It was a very popular hit house.
04:55A hit house.
04:56It's an illegal nightclub.
04:58It looks like just some old shack in the back of somebody's yard, but when you open it up, it's
05:04as elaborate as any bar you've ever seen.
05:07I knew exactly what we were going into.
05:10Around midnight or one, I'd probably say there could have been over 100, 200 people there.
05:15When I first walked in, it was a chaotic scene.
05:19You could tell that everybody got, you know, the hell out of Dodge before the police showed up.
05:26Patrolman said we had three victims total.
05:28The female at the hospital that was shot in the left thigh and at the scene transported
05:33by EMS was a male that was shot also in the lower back.
05:38Both subjects that were shot did not suffer life-threatening injuries.
05:42The third victim we had, you could see her laying there.
05:46She was dressed in a rainbow-colored one-piece jumper.
05:50She had suffered several gunshot wounds, but by the time EMS got there, she was already gone.
05:59From the hit house to the left in the parking lot was this gold car, and that's where we
06:06found the majority of our shell casings that were related to the homicide, and they all
06:11would belong to an AK-47 or that caliber of rifle.
06:15My name is Paul Birch, and I was elected sheriff last year.
06:20Prior to taking office, I served as the captain over criminal investigations.
06:24For the Mobile County Sheriff's Office, we activated our crime scene unit who responded, as they
06:30do, to any homicide in Pritchard.
06:33You have a deceased victim inside three bullet holes in the body.
06:38The deceased victim was struck shooting outside in.
06:42If you've got a lot of people inside of this hit house, with the casings being that far away,
06:47it can cause you to wonder, was that the intended victim?
06:52When you're talking about Pritchard, everybody knows everybody.
06:57And officers that knew her told me that she was a transgender female.
07:03She still went by her male name, Jaheim Pugh, but also identified as Bella.
07:11My baby's been different his whole life.
07:14He wasn't a kid that wanted a lot.
07:16He was a child that wanted to do a lot.
07:19My name is Tiffany Pugh.
07:21I'm Jaheim's mom.
07:22I'm from Pritchard, Alabama.
07:25Jaheim felt very comfortable in Pritchard.
07:27He knew Pritchard, and everybody around there knew him.
07:31He had everybody in this neighborhood buying him food and cooking food for him.
07:35He was loved, and he was very flamboyant.
07:40I want to be me, mama.
07:41I just want to be me, mama.
07:43And I'm like, okay, you know, how you argue with that, you know?
07:47When life gives you limits, make limits.
07:52The night Jaheim died, Jaheim was wearing a rainbow outfit.
07:57He got his brother to take the picture for him, while he went out.
08:01And I heard him and his brother in the kitchen,
08:04get it low, no, get my shoes, no, you didn't get my shoes on this one, go back.
08:08It took them about ten minutes to get that picture right.
08:11He was bothering me, mama, how I look.
08:14I was like, mama, I like it, okay.
08:16And I couldn't tell him he was cute because, oh my goodness,
08:19you give him one compliment, you got to give him like ten more.
08:23He kept on, mama, do I look pretty.
08:25Mama, do I look pretty.
08:25Yes, baby, you look pretty.
08:27That's all you had to say from the get-go.
08:29And I, bye.
08:31He left out the door and that was the last time I saw my son.
08:36That night I heard, I heard the gunshot because it was like right around the corner.
08:41Two houses over.
08:43In the neighborhood, I think everybody got a gun.
08:46It's almost shooting my gun tonight.
08:48And it's like that almost every night, almost every night.
08:53So he don't panic me or nothing too tough.
08:59I was walking into the gas station, which is a block and a half from the hit house.
09:04I heard about four or five shots.
09:09So I'm in the store, dude, like, yeah, man, who got shot?
09:12He's like, man, a six in the onesie.
09:14I was like, damn.
09:18I found out it was my son.
09:19I was like, I couldn't react.
09:21I couldn't, I, oh, I was known.
09:24I was thinking about who killed my son.
09:35I cannot imagine losing a child.
09:38It is every mother's worst nightmare.
09:41We're headed right now to meet with Tiffany, the victim's mother, because I want to learn
09:46from her what their life was like here and what the circumstances were leading up to
09:53the murder.
09:54Hi, Tiffany.
09:56I'm Hillary.
09:57Nice to meet you.
09:58Hi, I'm so happy to meet you.
10:00Same here.
10:01Thank you for being interested in my case.
10:04Tell me about Jaheim.
10:06I had Jaheim at 20.
10:08Yeah.
10:08Here are a couple of pictures that I have.
10:10Oh, yeah.
10:11Oh, my God, so cute.
10:14I know, and he knew it.
10:15He was my Dennis the Menace, is what I tell people.
10:18Was Jaheim mischievous?
10:19Yes, he was.
10:21He would do all type of things, like, oh, my goodness.
10:24Now you've got this very bubbly young kid, but then the middle school years kick in, and
10:30that's always a change.
10:31It really was.
10:33I remember Jaheim when he came out.
10:35He was 12, and he jumped in the car and said, Mom, I'm gay, just like that.
10:41And I was like, huh?
10:43I'm gay.
10:44And I was like, when?
10:46And where?
10:46How?
10:47What?
10:47The first week he told me, I cried.
10:50You know, I figured it was my parents and something I didn't do.
10:55It was a process.
10:56You know, we went to therapy so I could know how to approach the situation.
11:00Well, that's a big step to go to therapy.
11:02What led up to that?
11:03Because I made it about me, I had to step aside and put me aside and figure out what was
11:09best
11:09for him.
11:12Being gay was not accepted.
11:15It wasn't.
11:16It wasn't.
11:17And, like, I felt like it was dangerous.
11:21I was nervous that something was going to happen.
11:25I just didn't know when.
11:26But he wasn't scared, though.
11:29He was going through something big.
11:32I didn't know how much my son was going through in his head and at school.
11:37What was going on at school?
11:38The football team tried to jump on Jaheim in high school just because he was gay.
11:44And then, like, somebody hit him in the back of the head with a chocolate milk.
11:49You know, and so now he's in the cafeteria throwing plates everywhere.
11:53Like, who did it?
11:55Who did it?
11:55I said, Jaheim, you want to get a GED and just go on and go to college?
12:00You don't have to deal with this.
12:01I'm not missing prom.
12:03I'm not.
12:03And he felt like I kept trying to take stuff away from him that he rightfully should be
12:08doing.
12:08Why can't I stay at school and go to prom like everybody else?
12:12Yes.
12:14But never said, that's it, I'm done, I quit.
12:17He didn't want to quit.
12:18He wanted to be himself no matter what.
12:22He told me.
12:23Mama.
12:24Mama, I was thinking about wearing a wig and putting on some dresses and girl clothes.
12:31I said, if you can't be you around me, who else can you be you around?
12:33Yeah, that must have been really exhilarating for Jaheim to actually get to experiment and
12:39not worry that you would judge.
12:41I said, you can, you can be you.
12:43You know, and he was like, okay, and after that, he did.
12:50This is the night he died.
12:52Is this typically how Jaheim would dress?
12:55Going out.
12:56Going out, yeah.
12:57The last couple of months, every time he went out, he was dressed as a female.
13:00Mm-hmm.
13:01And did you notice a difference in your childhood?
13:03Seemed it happier.
13:05Yeah.
13:06He was just like, I'm gone, I'm going to take my pretty self out.
13:10That's the last thing my son told me.
13:12Yeah.
13:13So, Jaheim goes out, you wake up the next day, and...
13:17I wake up, I get a call at 7.15 a.m. on December the 13th from his grandma.
13:23I said, the police just left my house, saying Jaheim got shot and was killed.
13:28That's not a phone call that any mother can get?
13:31That's a phone call.
13:32You see it on a movie, and you don't think you'll get it.
13:36What did you do?
13:39I went to the head house.
13:42And we get out, and we start asking questions, you know, what happened to him.
13:46And they was like, oh, I heard, oh, they said a shooting happened to some gay dude.
13:49And, you know, everybody was still in the same store, some gay dude, some gay dude.
13:54Like, his life didn't count because he was a gay dude.
13:56Jaheim Pugh mattered.
13:58Like, he wasn't just a gay dude.
14:00Pritchard police said earlier this week there was, quote,
14:02no clear motive and have not gotten back to us with an update on whether they will be investigating this
14:08as a hate crime.
14:10Do you feel that Jaheim leaving the house and dressing like this had something to do with being assaulted that
14:19night?
14:19Yes, I do.
14:22I honestly feel like this is a hate crime.
14:25He was on Facebook lying, laying on the floor, dying.
14:29A road there.
14:32And you could tell it was Jaheim Howe.
14:34I couldn't see Jaheim's face, but he had the rainbow outfit.
14:38There's over 40-some people in that house, and no one helped my son.
14:42They had a whole bunch of little comments.
14:44Somebody said if he wasn't dressed in girl clothes, he'll still be alive.
14:56The middle of the first day, we're trying to find additional witnesses.
15:02But there's a big culture of silence in the city of Pritchard.
15:05Our level of cooperation is sometimes near to none,
15:08because nobody wants to be known as a snitch on the street.
15:14I got hundreds of calls of what happened that night,
15:18or what they thought happened, or what they heard happened.
15:21They just came to me with the information.
15:24Nobody went to Pritchard Police with it.
15:27Even if it was eyewitnesses, which I'm quite sure it was several,
15:31nobody mentioned nothing, you know, just all street talk.
15:37I'm Ja'Koya Dowdell.
15:40Me and Bella actually were sisters.
15:44We was actually together earlier that day.
15:48She was telling me about a party in the hit house,
15:52but I just know it was some type of ghetto festivities,
15:55and I just didn't want to go.
15:57We always run as a pack.
15:59We go everywhere together.
16:01Bella, but she was like, it's all right, you know.
16:04My friend coming to get me.
16:06I didn't ask her who the friend was.
16:08I was the one supposed to go get Bella
16:11from the hit house around 345.
16:14She was texting, calling, and that's not like Bella.
16:18She was in a rush to get from the hit house.
16:23But then the calls stopped, the texting stopped.
16:26I tried to text, and she's not texting back.
16:31I went to that street, but it was, I'm going to say,
16:33at least 75 cars at that party.
16:37The streets are thin and narrow.
16:39Like, you could barely drive down the street.
16:42I didn't see her, you know, didn't hear her.
16:45I'm like, okay, I'm not going in that house.
16:48I just didn't feel comfortable.
16:50I didn't want to go.
16:51I waited about 10 minutes, still didn't see her.
16:55So I said, I'm not about to sit out here.
16:57I'm going to go.
16:58So that's when I went home.
17:07Right now, we are going to meet
17:09with a couple of Bella's friends.
17:11These are young women who are members
17:13of the black trans community in Mobile County.
17:17They refer to her as their sister,
17:19and I'm hoping they can provide some insight
17:22as to what Bella's life was like
17:25in that time leading up to her murder.
17:28Thank you so much for meeting with us.
17:31You're welcome.
17:32I would love to learn about Bella from you guys
17:35because, you know, identity is such a big part
17:38of learning about this story.
17:52Do you believe that Bella's gender identity
17:56and sexuality had something to do
17:59with her being shot that night?
18:01Because to society, people are going to look at you.
18:04You're going to have some people, you know, uplift you,
18:07and some people prey on your downfall.
18:09So that's what I wanted Bella to know.
18:11Being young, trans, that's complicated and very hard.
18:16From the outside looking in, honestly,
18:19we make ourselves look unapproachable.
18:21Like, don't, because I don't want to conversate.
18:25Some people consider us as we just sex,
18:28just prostitutes.
18:30Do you feel that all the time?
18:31Is there ever a moment where you guys get to just relax?
18:35No.
18:36Honestly.
18:37So, like, we are being watched at all times,
18:40and you just never know,
18:41you never let your guard down anywhere you go,
18:44even at church.
18:45Really?
18:46Yeah, so you can't trust nobody.
18:50There are just some people
18:51that target LGBTQ people,
18:55just like how the Klan would target,
18:57you know, African Americans for violence.
19:01In this particular incident,
19:03one of the eyewitnesses stated that
19:05Jaheim was in a car with another male
19:08performing oral sex,
19:09and another male disturbed them
19:12during the process
19:13and made the statement,
19:16that's a whole dude sucking your...
19:18and then other vulgar terms,
19:20definitely remarks about what was going on.
19:25She stopped doing what she was doing
19:27and went inside the hit house,
19:29and that's where she spoke with her friend.
19:32Shortly after that,
19:34while they were standing in the doorway,
19:36that's when the shooting started.
19:39Were you guys surprised
19:40that Bella wanted to go to the hit house?
19:42Is that something that was out of character?
19:43Yeah.
19:44It was time.
19:45And so why were you guys concerned
19:47about the hit house?
19:48Because it was located in Pritchard.
19:51It's like a lot of
19:52straight men.
19:54Like, we don't know if we go.
19:55We know for sure we didn't come out.
19:58You were nervous.
19:59Why do you think Bella wanted to go
20:01to this hit house?
20:02I think it had something to do with
20:04the guy she was talking to.
20:06Yes.
20:08The guy Bella was dating
20:11or talking to
20:11was a down-low man,
20:14a DL man.
20:15It means you're not comfortable
20:17being seen
20:18with that trans
20:20or that gay boy.
20:23There's an intense culture
20:25of shame,
20:26of fear,
20:27that those in your community
20:29will learn that you're with someone
20:31who is trans.
20:32My colleagues and I,
20:35we really wanted to
20:36explore and better understand
20:39the impact of the increase
20:41in anti-trans bias
20:43and so forth
20:44have had on homicides.
20:49Some of the findings
20:50showed that oftentimes
20:52the perpetrators of these crimes
20:54were actually people
20:55that knew the victim.
20:57Oftentimes young men
20:58in their teens or early 20s
21:01who lived in a culture
21:02of intense transphobia.
21:06had Bella talked to you
21:08at all about this guy
21:09she was talking to?
21:10None of us knew about him.
21:11We just knew
21:12he was treating her good.
21:14Like, Bella was posting
21:15stuff on Snapchat,
21:16like Victoria's Secret
21:19and stuff like that.
21:21So she went to the hit house
21:22with this mysterious suitor
21:24that was buying her,
21:26you know, nice gifts.
21:28But people will sell you dreams
21:30and tell you what you want to hear
21:32and get you in a world of trouble.
21:34Yes.
21:37One of the eyewitnesses stated
21:39that Jaheim was shot first
21:42and as Jaheim fell to the ground,
21:45the female victim
21:45ran out of the hit house.
21:47The witness saw an individual
21:49standing on top
21:50of the gold Buick
21:51and he was holding
21:52the AK-47 shooting
21:54in the house.
21:55The witness knew
21:57the male offender
21:57because he was actually
21:59hitting on her earlier
22:00and she identified him
22:01as James James.
22:03Pritchard Police
22:04seeking this man,
22:05James Lee James Jr.,
22:07for questioning.
22:08They say he is a person
22:10of interest in the case.
22:20We determined
22:21during the interrogation
22:22that he was the one
22:24that was ridiculing
22:25his friend
22:26for getting oral sex
22:28from Jaheim.
22:29And after speaking with him,
22:31our detectives believed
22:32that we had enough evidence
22:33for a murder warrant
22:34and he was arrested
22:36for murder at that time.
22:38It wasn't me.
22:40I know that much.
22:41They know who it is.
22:42And whoever did,
22:43you need to come
22:43and fess up to it.
22:44All you motherfuckers
22:45talking about,
22:46I did it.
22:46You know I ain't do it.
22:49Y'all need to come down here
22:50and fess up to this, man.
22:52He was very vocal.
22:53A lot of people don't talk
22:54when they're doing perp walks,
22:55but he was very adamant
22:56that he was not the person
22:58that did the murder.
23:00He said he didn't do it.
23:02No murderers go to jail
23:03and say they did what they did.
23:05And I was relieved.
23:07They had got a murderer
23:08off the streets.
23:11But then a lot of people
23:12would inbox me on Facebook.
23:14People were calling me.
23:16A lot of people was like,
23:17man, they got locked up.
23:18Did not kill Jaheim.
23:30I want to go back
23:31and talk with Tiffany today
23:32to get a clear understanding
23:34of what she was dealing with
23:36in trying to get answers,
23:37in hearing the rumor mill
23:39in this small town
23:40in the hours and days
23:43and weeks and months
23:44after her child's murder.
23:47Now, when James Lee James
23:49was arrested,
23:50they give you a narrative
23:52of what happened that day.
23:53They feel confident with it.
23:56How do you feel?
23:57When I left the police department,
23:59I had all my answers,
24:00everything that I needed.
24:02And then soon as
24:04they locked James James up,
24:0630 different people texted me.
24:07You got the wrong guy.
24:08You got the wrong guy.
24:09You got the wrong guy.
24:10Really?
24:11But they wouldn't say
24:12who was the right guy.
24:13You get what I'm saying?
24:14So, as soon as I hear this,
24:17I called Marquise Parson
24:18for police.
24:19He was the lead
24:20on the case at the time.
24:22He said he had an eyewitness
24:24that saw James shoot Jaheim.
24:26So, they tell you
24:27they have this suspect.
24:28They're like,
24:29ma'am, we have this under control.
24:31Yeah, that's exactly
24:32what he said.
24:32He was like,
24:33this is an open and shit case.
24:34This is what he told me.
24:35Keep quiet because
24:36you don't want the man
24:37that killed your son
24:38to go out
24:39because if you,
24:40the mother, doubt it,
24:41this case is just ruined.
24:42They didn't take me seriously.
24:44Yeah.
24:46When it hit the streets,
24:47the streets knew more
24:49than the detectives.
24:50It was so many stories out.
24:53You didn't know, like,
24:54whose story to, like,
24:56pick from.
24:58Somebody know what went on
25:00more than somebody.
25:01Like, it was so many
25:02eyes and ears out there.
25:06Out the blue,
25:07somebody texted me
25:08and said,
25:10the man that be at the door
25:12of this hit house,
25:13somebody paid him
25:15to let them in
25:16with the gun.
25:17Okay.
25:18So, I said to Detective
25:18Parson,
25:19can you find out
25:20who this security guard is
25:21and question him?
25:22Yeah.
25:23And he told me
25:24he would reach out,
25:25he would find out
25:26stuff about him
25:27and then he did.
25:28But then,
25:29he told me,
25:30I don't see how this
25:31is going to help
25:32Jaheim's case.
25:33Uh-huh.
25:33About two weeks later,
25:35this video was sent to me
25:37by 10 different people
25:38and I sent it
25:39to Detective Parson
25:40basically in this video.
25:42The security guard
25:43girlfriend went live
25:44saying that
25:45her boyfriend
25:46had something to do
25:47with Jaheim's murder.
25:50Police,
25:51LPL,
25:52all that.
25:53Yes,
25:54y'all need to go get him
25:56at the end of the day,
25:58questioning him
25:58about the shooting
25:59out there in Pritchard
26:00at the hit house.
26:02That butt sucked this
26:03and he got mad about it.
26:05She said,
26:05you need to check on him
26:06because he has something
26:06to do with it.
26:07And she's specific
26:08about the case.
26:10Real specific.
26:10She said,
26:11the security guard
26:12had some involvements
26:13in his murder
26:14and I just want to know,
26:15like,
26:15who else involved,
26:17you know?
26:18But the detective said
26:20he had no reason
26:21to go pick her up.
26:22She could only come in
26:23for questioning.
26:24I mean,
26:25that's the most polite
26:26police department
26:27I've ever heard of.
26:28People get dragged in
26:29for questioning
26:29all the time.
26:30I thought so too,
26:31but this is what
26:32I've been told.
26:33And so you see,
26:34I have all these leads
26:36and they go nowhere.
26:38I gave you this information.
26:40You know,
26:40I'm bringing you a bone
26:41to do detective work
26:42and you're just
26:43leaving it there.
26:43You didn't take it anywhere.
26:45Every couple of weeks
26:47I text.
26:47This is February the 16th.
26:49Good morning.
26:50Is there any new information?
26:52I didn't get any response.
26:54And I pushed the issue
26:55of the hit house.
26:56I said,
26:56they selling alcohol.
26:57Jaheim was only 19.
26:59Yeah.
26:59But then what does he
27:00go on to say here?
27:02Everyone who goes there,
27:04including your son,
27:05went by choice.
27:06So you blaming a victim
27:08for dying?
27:10Ma'am,
27:10no matter how much you ask
27:11or say the same things,
27:13that place has been open
27:14before I worked here
27:15and will be open after.
27:16Oh my goodness.
27:18So basically you telling me
27:19this illegal place,
27:20it's okay.
27:21It's not a priority.
27:22It's not a priority.
27:24And so at that point,
27:25do you think that
27:26your son's case
27:27is a priority to them
27:28if the hit house isn't?
27:29No.
27:31Trans people of color
27:32are particularly vulnerable
27:34and the criminal legal system
27:37has really failed these people.
27:40We found stark failures
27:42from the beginning
27:43to the end of investigations.
27:46Police officers not doing
27:48basic, basic police work
27:50like interviewing witnesses,
27:52having known people
27:53who were at that party
27:54where the crime occurred
27:56and a lack of accountability,
27:58a lack of proper policing,
28:00a lot of bias
28:00throughout the criminal justice system,
28:03which then leads to cases
28:05not being solved
28:06or not being properly investigated.
28:14So you're getting
28:15all of these leads
28:16from the outside,
28:17you're pressing law enforcement,
28:19and you're not getting updates?
28:22For what?
28:22Like days, weeks?
28:24For months.
28:26Really?
28:27I ran into a detective
28:28from Mobile.
28:29Okay.
28:30And he was just like,
28:31Pritchard has a lot
28:32of unsolved murders.
28:33You need to reach out
28:34to the DA of Mobile.
28:36So you had a different detective
28:37say, go over that detective's head?
28:40Yes, yes.
28:40He was just like,
28:42don't stop.
28:42He was like,
28:43you all your son ass.
28:45You know?
28:46If you're not gonna fight
28:47for him, who else is?
28:48I requested a meeting
28:49with Ashley Rich.
28:50And who is she?
28:51She's the DA from Mobile.
28:53And so when I went
28:54to the DA's office,
28:55she was like,
28:56I want to be the first
28:57to tell you,
28:58we're gonna let
28:59James James out.
29:01And I said,
29:02what?
29:03He is not the shooter.
29:05She let me know
29:06that James James' bullets
29:07to his gun
29:08didn't match the ones
29:10that was in Jaheim.
29:11And so now,
29:12seven months later,
29:14I'm back in square one.
29:15Square one.
29:16Who killed my son and why?
29:23Jaheim Pugh,
29:23her murder
29:24was treated no different
29:26than any other murder
29:27in Pritchard.
29:27It was a priority
29:28to solve it,
29:29but we wanted to solve it
29:31in due time
29:32and how our investigation
29:33led us to get
29:35a good arrest.
29:36James James
29:37was freed
29:38late summer,
29:40but we had
29:41other witnesses
29:42that had
29:43identified Jarvis Anderson
29:45as the one
29:46that was shooting
29:47a small caliber pistol.
29:50We were told
29:51that Jarvis
29:52is the person
29:52that was in the car
29:53getting oral sex
29:54from Jaheim.
29:56That's when he became
29:57our prime suspect
29:58and we started
29:59actively looking for him.
30:01They are trying
30:01to find this man,
30:03Jarvis Anderson.
30:04Police want to question
30:06him in the murder
30:06of a gender non-conforming
30:08teenager.
30:09In my opinion,
30:10after looking at the facts,
30:12this happened simply
30:13because this subject
30:15was embarrassed
30:17that they were caught
30:17getting oral sex
30:18from a transgender female.
30:21A lot of young men,
30:23particularly in the South,
30:26really do live
30:28in this culture
30:29of toxic masculinity.
30:31In some cases,
30:33people are willing
30:33to commit violent crimes
30:35rather than reveal
30:36that they were
30:37in a relationship
30:37with somebody
30:38who was transgender
30:39or gender non-conforming.
30:44Pritchard showed me
30:45the phone workers.
30:47Jaheim and Jarvis
30:48had been texting
30:48for over two months.
30:51So I guess Jarvis
30:53had to keep
30:53on a persona.
30:55You're a big man
30:56in the community.
30:56You can't be gay.
30:58They can't look at you
30:59as being gay,
31:00so now you've got
31:00to be mad enough
31:01to kill him.
31:02Now, if you have
31:03any information
31:03on where Jarvis Anderson
31:05is, you are urged
31:06to contact Pritchard Police.
31:09But so they make
31:10this press release
31:11in July
31:13asking for Jarvis Anderson
31:15to come in
31:16as a person of interest.
31:17How long
31:18does this manhunt
31:20go on?
31:21It was science
31:22of him everywhere,
31:24but they told me
31:25they couldn't find it.
31:27And so people
31:28started texting me
31:29his whereabouts.
31:30And just as soon
31:32as they sent it to me,
31:33I would send it
31:34to Pritchard.
31:34I called Pritchard
31:36I know over 15 times
31:37of sightings.
31:39One person sat there
31:4045 minutes
31:41waiting on Pritchard
31:42to come get him,
31:43and Pritchard never came.
31:44I gave him to you
31:45on a plate,
31:46and you never went
31:47and got there.
31:47You never went
31:48and got there.
31:51There was a delay
31:52because this person
31:53is armed and dangerous,
31:55and he moved
31:56around a lot.
31:57We would be on him
31:58in Mobile,
31:59and then next thing
32:01you know,
32:01by the time we got there,
32:02he wouldn't be there.
32:03But that all ended
32:05in October.
32:09We responded
32:10to a homicide
32:11at St. Stephen's Road.
32:13When we arrived on scene,
32:14I observed a male victim
32:16dead from a gunshot wound
32:18to the head.
32:19And when I looked at him,
32:21I knew the victim
32:21was Jarvis Anderson.
32:25We had really good
32:26surveillance.
32:27footage from outside
32:28the store.
32:30When I observed the video,
32:32you could see the subject
32:33approach him
32:34and fire several shots
32:35into his skull.
32:37Our detectives came up
32:39with a suspect,
32:40Mario Osborne,
32:41and then at that time,
32:43he was arrested.
32:44We heard several
32:45possible reasons
32:47why Mario
32:48could have killed Jarvis.
32:50As of now,
32:51the suspect
32:52has invoked his right
32:54to attorney
32:54whenever we've
32:55interviewed him.
33:00Did you talk to Parsons
33:02after Jarvis Anderson
33:03was killed?
33:04Yes.
33:04And what did he tell you
33:05about his theory
33:08of the case
33:08at that point?
33:10He told me
33:11that Jarvis
33:12killed my son
33:13and that was it.
33:15But the case
33:16is not closed.
33:17If he killed my son,
33:19put it in paperwork.
33:20They're saying Jarvis
33:21killed my son,
33:23and that's what they're saying.
33:24Close the case.
33:29In the fall of 2022,
33:32I flew out
33:33to Pritchard, Alabama.
33:35I submitted record requests
33:37to the Pritchard
33:39Police Department,
33:40and I got a lot
33:42of unreturned phone calls
33:44and emails
33:44that were not responded to.
33:46And two years after
33:49her child was killed,
33:51Tiffany would still go
33:53to the police department,
33:54you know,
33:55dozens of times
33:57and sit there
33:58and they would ignore her.
34:06It's clear that Tiffany
34:08experienced a lot
34:10of difficulty
34:11getting any information
34:13from the point people
34:14that she had
34:14within Pritchard PD.
34:16And you can feel
34:18her frustration.
34:19You know,
34:20she feels like
34:21once Jarvis Anderson
34:23was murdered,
34:24they just dropped
34:26the case.
34:26And so when we reached
34:28out to law enforcement,
34:29a detective
34:30within the Pritchard PD
34:31got back to us,
34:33Sergeant Bart Andrews,
34:35and he agreed
34:36to sit down with us.
34:38He's a person
34:39who hopefully
34:39can provide us
34:40with some of the answers
34:42that Tiffany's really
34:43been struggling to get.
34:46Hi.
34:48Nice to meet you.
34:48Hey, I'm Hillary.
34:49Sergeant Andrews.
34:50It's so nice to meet you.
34:51Nice to meet you.
34:53In terms of
34:54the investigation,
34:55you know,
34:56we've heard from the family
34:57that they've had trouble
34:58getting answers.
34:59So it's great
35:00to have you sit with us.
35:02You have Bella
35:02who has been murdered.
35:05There's a suspect,
35:06James James,
35:08who then is no longer
35:09a suspect.
35:10There's a new suspect,
35:11Jarvis Anderson,
35:12but then that person
35:13who's been murdered.
35:14What's the course
35:15of action here?
35:17Right now,
35:18we haven't gotten
35:20any new information
35:21that has changed
35:22what we believe
35:23is the truth,
35:24that Jarvis Anderson
35:26was the one
35:27that killed Bella.
35:28So in your estimation,
35:30you know,
35:30this case,
35:31it's in purgatory
35:32right now
35:33because with a dead suspect,
35:35there's no way
35:36to take them to trial.
35:37But would you consider
35:39this case solved?
35:40In my opinion,
35:42it is solved.
35:43Uh-huh.
35:44But on the books,
35:46it's not closed
35:47by the district attorney.
35:48My chief of police
35:49hasn't closed it.
35:51The mayor of Pritchard
35:52hasn't closed it out.
35:53Those are the only ones
35:54that really have
35:54the authority to say,
35:55this is closed.
35:59If law enforcement
36:01is as confident
36:03as this particular
36:04detective is,
36:05you would think
36:06that they'd announce
36:07that to the public
36:08and the fact
36:10that they don't
36:11raises some questions
36:12about why not.
36:19as part of this reporting,
36:22I interviewed
36:23Keith Blackwood,
36:24who at the time
36:25was the assistant
36:26district attorney.
36:28He told me that
36:30he was interested
36:31in taking a second look,
36:33but I reached out
36:34to the district attorney's office
36:36in early 2023.
36:38at that point,
36:39Keith Blackwood
36:40was in the DA's chair.
36:44I was told via email
36:46that someone had been
36:47assigned to the case,
36:49but it's unclear
36:50what steps,
36:52if any,
36:52have been actually taken.
36:55The primary responsibility
36:57for this case
36:58would fall on Pritchard PD.
37:01The level of trust
37:04in the city of Pritchard
37:06for law enforcement
37:07is really low.
37:09There are a lot
37:10of unsolved cases
37:11in Pritchard,
37:12and I assure you
37:13their clearance rate
37:13is not anything
37:15to be proud of.
37:17Pritchard police
37:18could close the case
37:19on their own,
37:20but that's not
37:21a common practice
37:22in a homicide.
37:23So in this particular
37:24case,
37:25there would be discussions
37:26by Pritchard police
37:27and the DA's office
37:29if they're going
37:30to definitively say,
37:31you know,
37:32this is the person
37:32who we believe
37:33to be responsible,
37:34this is why,
37:35and, you know,
37:36therefore we're going
37:36to close the case.
37:38I can't speak of
37:39how Pritchard's
37:40going to handle it,
37:41but that's the way
37:42I would do it.
37:43I'm a parent myself.
37:45If something happened
37:45to one of my kids,
37:46I would want to know
37:47the truth.
37:48Like, this is stupid
37:49what happened to her.
37:51Yeah, and she was
37:5119 years old.
37:5219 had just started
37:53her life.
37:55Do you consider
37:56this a hate crime?
37:57She was killed
37:58because she was
37:59a transgender female.
38:01But what hinders
38:02me officially saying
38:03this is a hate crime
38:04is I have to go
38:06by what I'm allowed
38:06to do by the state
38:07of Alabama.
38:08And we have hate crimes
38:10in Alabama,
38:11but we do not have
38:12any hate crimes
38:13for the LGBT community.
38:15Because they're not
38:16a protected class
38:17in this state?
38:18Yet.
38:18We have active legislators
38:20that are part of the LGBT
38:21community personally
38:23that are trying
38:24to get this passed.
38:26But then this is still
38:27Alabama.
38:30There is no rule book
38:32to understanding
38:34people's differences,
38:36but we should be more
38:37educated about the
38:39differences.
38:40In the state of Alabama,
38:42we kind of like to
38:43let things stay the way
38:44they are.
38:45When crimes like this
38:47happen, we don't have
38:49anyone to speak out
38:50for those people
38:51who are transgender.
38:53They don't have
38:54a big representation.
38:58What does justice
39:00for Jaheim look like
39:02to you at this point?
39:04I just want his story
39:06told, and I don't want
39:07nobody to go through
39:07what I've been through.
39:09What's Jaheim's legacy
39:11in this community?
39:13He was happy.
39:15He brought fun
39:18to your life.
39:19He brought excitement
39:20to your life.
39:21Of all people,
39:22I knew Jaheim was
39:23most definitely
39:24not perfect,
39:25but he was loved.
39:27He was loved,
39:27and he mattered.
39:32Bella's legacy
39:33was advocating
39:35to be herself,
39:37you know,
39:38live in her truth.
39:39She just used to live.
39:41Like, YOLO.
39:43That was a mindset.
39:45Like, you only live once.
39:47He came at peace.
39:48He was at peace,
39:49just happy.
39:49And he was content,
39:51and he knew what
39:52he was going to do.
39:53He was going to do it.
39:54And like, that was that,
39:55and that's awesome.
39:57For the people
39:58that are out,
39:59I commend you.
40:00You are braver
40:00than I think I would be.
40:03Just keep being
40:04the good person you are,
40:05and don't let people
40:06judge you
40:06and make you feel
40:07less than.
40:08And that's what
40:09I took from him.
40:17I think closure
40:18means a lot of
40:20different things
40:20to different people.
40:23Tiffany wants
40:23acknowledgement
40:24from law enforcement
40:25and from the community
40:26that what happened
40:27to her child
40:28was a hate crime,
40:29and that her child
40:30deserved to be protected
40:32from situations like this.
40:34Jaheim Pugh mattered.
40:36Like, that is the hashtag
40:37that Tiffany uses.
40:38That is the rallying cry.
40:41All of the trans victims,
40:43especially trans victims
40:44of color,
40:45who are murdered
40:46and whose cases
40:47are not prioritized,
40:48they matter.
41:11of the trans victims
41:11for their human droid
41:11owners Pigotape's
41:12leaflets,
41:12or other
41:12and us
41:15i
41:56It was possible that whoever killed Bobby Sue Hill had also killed other women as well.
42:01On the next episode of It Couldn't Happen Here.
42:04To have a Texas Ranger show up seems like something out of a TV show.
42:08They hone in on him as a suspect.
42:10There's no way.
42:12He decides to have him hypnotized.
42:14Is that standard procedure?
42:16The man who is never going to confess suddenly starts talking.
42:20It couldn't happen here.
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