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Friends Like These: The Murder of Skylar Neese - Season 1 - Episode 03: The Truth
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00:10It was a few days after the new year on January 3rd, I get a call from Ronnie saying Rachel
00:18wants
00:19to talk to you. So we go interview Rachel at her attorney's office.
00:30Rachel is already in the room and I've never seen Rachel before like this where she is like
00:40sobbing you know she's just like has these like mascara is running. I remember her saying
00:48I'm gonna throw up and she had like a little wastebasket there. I could see her turning white.
00:55She was white as a ghost. And I said were you with Skylar when she died? She's looking down
01:05and she goes yes. I said thank you. Thank you for telling us that. Did Skylar overdose? And she goes
01:14no.
01:17Did Skylar choke on her vomit? No.
01:24Did boys kill Skylar? She goes no. We're just really sitting there in silence like just taking this all in.
01:35Rachel paused. You could tell she was just trying to amp herself up to tell us what happened.
01:43She looks down. She breathes in. She leans back and goes, we stabbed her.
02:05Her jaws just fell to the table.
02:09I cannot believe that she told us this. I just can't believe this.
02:14We're just so, so much in shock. It wasn't an overdose. It wasn't the Conoways. It was her best friends.
02:27So we kind of take a moment and we're like, okay, you have to tell us everything that happened.
02:36And then why? Rachel said Sheila just was getting sick of her and Sheila had the idea and says, you
02:44know, we should kill her.
02:52When I talk about how upset I am, Sheila keeps saying it's not a big deal.
02:57Of course it's not a big deal to her.
03:00Everything makes me cry lately. I am so sick of it.
03:06Who the fuck does that?
03:08We're not five.
03:11I knew there was a reason I hated you so much.
03:22I was driving back to Morgantown.
03:25My partner, Ronnie Gaskins, called me and was like, Morgan, Rachel and Sheila are the ones that killed Skylar.
03:33Get up here right now.
03:36I did not once think that Rachel and Sheila were the ones that killed Skylar.
03:47And I get there.
03:49Rob and Ronnie said she's willing to go take us to the spot where it happened.
03:56Are you ready to go?
04:05On that night of the murder, Rachel told us they had gathered Clorox wipes, a change of clothes, plastic bags.
04:18Rachel got the shovel from her dad's garage.
04:22Sheila brought the knives.
04:25It was agreed upon that Sheila would pick up Skylar.
04:42They had her believe we were going to drive around and smoke some pot.
04:48And they drive her to this remote area in Pennsylvania.
05:01So we're driving for several hours.
05:04She was acting, you know, like she normally would.
05:08I'll turn here, go this way, I drive up here.
05:14It took us a couple of times to drive around because it had changed in summer.
05:27And Rachel said they got to like a little pull-off spot.
05:37They got out of the car.
05:41Skylar walks ahead of them towards like this ravine area.
05:50And they count one, two, three, and they jump her from behind.
06:03And they plunged two knives in her back and in her neck.
06:10She did try to get up, but they tackled her again and, you know, it was two on one.
06:19I did ask Rachel, what was Skylar saying, this whole, she said, why, I said, why?
06:36Now we're in this very secluded, remote location, and Rachel's like kind of excited and says, okay, wait, wait, wait,
06:45wait.
06:48And we stop, and, you know, it takes a moment, and she points, and I remember her pointing, saying, and
06:56this is what she said, she goes, it's over there.
07:01Not even she, and it's certainly not Skylar, but it's it.
07:12They tried burying her, but for some reason the ground was too tough for them to do it, so they
07:18drag her and then conceal her with the natural debris along the ravine area.
07:24They changed clothes, put everything in a bag.
07:28They drove around a bit afterwards and eventually went home.
07:33The next day is when Skylar's dad called Sheila saying, hey, have you seen Skylar?
07:39You know, that was the beginning of the first lie.
07:49I met with the FBI evidence response team leader.
07:52She kind of did like a survey of the scene, and she just told me the snow was too high
07:58in order to conduct a search.
08:00And I even thought like, let's get heat lamps.
08:03Let's melt the snow.
08:04I'll get a shovel.
08:05I'll do whatever I need to do.
08:06I've been looking for her for six months.
08:09But the ERT team leader said, the weather is supposed to break.
08:13Let's come back out later.
08:16All the snow will be gone.
08:18It won't be a waste of time, but we just can't be walking around here hoping to get lucky.
08:23We need to preserve what we have.
08:33Sheila was still out there, and she didn't know that Rachel was now cooperating with us.
08:39There was a real sense of danger.
08:43The decision is made to see if we can get some incriminating information from Sheila.
08:49So I said, are you willing to have a recorded conversation with Sheila about this?
08:56And she says, yeah.
09:04Yeah.
09:11What happens to me?
09:12No matter what I'm doing, I can't get up.
09:18Here we go.
09:18Here we go.
09:19January 3rd.
09:19Time right now, 2031.
09:23What's your name?
09:25Rachel.
09:25Rachel.
09:26We have your permission.
09:27Okay.
09:32We have one more help?
09:33Yep.
09:38Hey.
09:40What are you doing?
09:44Would you be allowed to come over?
09:46Just to, like, to talk to me?
09:49See, well, like, it's necessary.
09:51Like, it's serious.
09:56We'll talk when you get here.
09:58Okay.
10:01Okay, life.
10:03We talked to Rachel and said,
10:04listen, you have to be as natural as you can be.
10:06Just have a conversation with her as you normally would
10:09and just see what Sheila says.
10:17How's it going?
10:18Okay.
10:21Um...
10:22Um...
10:23If they don't tell you, change your story.
10:26The FBI don't believe us at all.
10:28Like, they don't believe us at all.
10:30They don't.
10:32Okay.
10:33Okay, listen to me.
10:35I'm thinking this over.
10:37I don't know what they said to you,
10:39like, but they can't prove what you said wrong.
10:47They want to get out of us.
10:48Then we know she's dead.
10:50But we don't know she's dead.
10:55It's gonna be okay.
10:57I know.
10:57We've made it six months.
10:59We can do it.
11:02Sheila said, hey, you didn't change the story, did you?
11:05You know, to me, that's very telling.
11:07We were thinking, well, that's really good for our case, right?
11:10But beyond that, there really wasn't anything overly incriminating
11:15from that conversation.
11:17So bringing her to jail at that particular time
11:20was just not in our realm of possibility.
11:22Let's take a picture.
11:24We have to take...
11:25Oh, God.
11:26Every day.
11:41I remember Ronnie and I sitting right there saying,
11:44okay, Rachel, you did a really good job for us today.
11:47Thank you for doing that.
11:48And I remember her going,
11:49clapping her little hands like this and looking down,
11:51like, almost like a little girl
11:54that is, like, really appreciative
11:55of this accolade that you're giving it.
11:58I'm looking at her, again, always reminded,
12:01this is a kid.
12:03This is a kid that just stabbed their friend.
12:09She wasn't charged at that moment
12:11because we didn't have a body.
12:14We needed to get as much evidence as we possibly could
12:16to corroborate her confession
12:18and also to link Sheila to the murder.
12:21And until then, Rachel was free to go home.
12:35Rachel messaged me to come stay the night at her house.
12:38And we had a plan to just hang out
12:41and smoke pot in the basement.
12:47Sleepovers with Rachel were some of my favorite days.
12:50You know, you're in high school,
12:51so you talk a lot of drama
12:52between whatever's going on in life.
12:56Musicals is all we would watch, like, on TV,
12:58because we, you know, love to sing
13:00and we love to sing together.
13:02We would sneak, you know, just a bottle of liquor,
13:05you know, drink a little bit,
13:08smoke a little bit,
13:09but mainly just talk and talk and talk
13:12and giggle and laugh and giggle and laugh.
13:14Our bellies would hurt,
13:15just belly laughing and giggling together.
13:21We were chatting about life and she sat down very seriously
13:25and said, hey, I have to tell you something.
13:29You know, I look at her seriously
13:30and she just blurted out that, that, she said,
13:34I'm sorry, Sheila did murder Skylar.
13:39But I had nothing to do with it.
13:45I could not believe it.
13:48I asked her, did you know anything?
13:51She said she knew nothing about it.
13:56So I believed that, because I loved her so much.
14:02And she said, you can't tell anybody.
14:15I couldn't sleep that night because I was just thinking about it.
14:18I was like, that's really what happened.
14:20And I felt like I was the only one who knew.
14:25I couldn't say anything to anybody.
14:27So I was just like confused.
14:35The record will reflect the presence of the state of West Virginia
14:38by Marsha Ashdown, prosecuting attorney.
14:42In Montague County, we prosecute all the major crimes.
14:46I was in the office and got a call from the U.S. Attorney
14:50that Rachel Shove had confessed to the murder.
14:52What she had to say in her confession
14:55was far beyond what anybody in that room expected.
15:02We began to put together a trial.
15:07We have to ask the jury to believe Rachel Shove that Sheila was there.
15:12And if that becomes unbelievable,
15:16then Sheila Eddy really walks free.
15:19There really did need to be some evidence aside from Rachel's confession
15:25that linked Sheila to the case.
15:31The FBI seized Sheila's car.
15:34The evidence response team conducted a thorough search of the vehicle.
15:41There was blood found in Sheila's car that was recovered and needed testing.
15:48The blood samples were sent off for DNA testing.
15:52And we were super hopeful that we were going to get a match.
15:58There would have been no explaining away Skyler's blood
16:02in the back of Sheila Eddy's trunk.
16:17I was in school, I think it was like last period.
16:22And I had heard someone say, they found a body, they found a body.
16:26And I'm like, what's going on?
16:31I heard the rumors that they had found a body.
16:35I turned the radio station on and the announcement came that it was her.
16:44Remains found in Wayne Township, Pennsylvania, are those of 16-year-old Skyler Niece.
16:50Federal officials announced on Wednesday.
16:53Whenever she was missing, it was, we have hope.
16:56You know, she can come back.
17:00That hope was all gone.
17:11They made an announcement on the intercom at school.
17:16We have therapists here to talk to anyone that needs to talk to someone.
17:21I didn't really want to talk to anyone.
17:24And then we had like a moment of silence for her.
17:28That was tough.
17:38Now we have an answer.
17:40And now it was more of a, we need to find out what happened.
17:47Someone killed her.
17:49Because Skyler won't have committed suicide.
17:52That's not Skyler.
17:54Someone hurt her.
18:01Skyler and her new bloomers.
18:07You like your, do you like your new bloomers, Skyler?
18:14They fit you quite well, don't they?
18:19Do you like your new bloomers, Skyler?
18:25They fit you quite well, don't they?
18:30They fit you quite well.
18:30Our world just collapsed.
18:38We knew she wasn't coming home.
18:47We've been holding out so much hope
18:50And thinking in the back of our head
18:53We didn't care what the reason was
18:54When she walked in that door
18:56We'd both grab her and hug her
18:58Like we'd never hugged her
19:03And she's not gonna ever walk through that door again
19:39We'll be right back
19:45Even with a confession
19:46There is still a ton of work to do
19:49With that confession
19:50You have to prove that what they're saying is true
19:53Since they had lied so much
19:55Who's to say they're not lying again
19:58Analyzing all of the data
20:00And all of the evidence
20:01Is what you have to do to make a case
20:04So that just takes more time
20:09Sheila oblivious to Rachel confessing
20:13Just going about her life
20:15As if nothing ever happened
20:17Nothing changed
20:23Rachel and Sheila
20:24Had both left school
20:26And they started homeschooling
20:30So I never really saw them
20:32But they would post everything about themselves
20:36Sheila was hanging out with friends
20:38Going to parties
20:39Getting her hair done
20:41Rachel looked very chill
20:43She seemed totally fine
20:45She seemed happy
20:46I hear you like to gamble
20:48Let's take the road
20:49Let's travel
20:50Sheila and I texted a good bit
20:52You know
20:52We were just a regular conversation
20:57And all that like little flirty stuff
21:03Sheila was one of the people
21:04I remember
21:05Staying in contact with the most
21:08For the bulk of our conversation
21:09It was probably
21:11Venting to each other
21:12About the ridiculous rumors
21:22The liaison for the FBI
21:24Told us she wanted to talk to us
21:26We let them in
21:28And she said sit down
21:30It was almost an unsettling quiet
21:35We were told that Sheila and Rachel
21:37Stabbed Skyler to death
21:41Stabbed 50 sometimes
21:47After Skyler went missing
21:49They both said that they would do anything
21:52To get Skyler back
21:56Just about every night
21:57Sheila would say
21:58I love you guys
22:00I'd reply
22:01We love you too
22:04In our hearts
22:05We're thinking
22:06That poor kid
22:07You know
22:08She's going to what we are
22:10I felt such betrayal
22:12That it was unreal
22:15I'm thinking to myself
22:16I'm going to kill them
22:20Then I thought
22:21Don't get ahead of yourselves
22:22Just slow down
22:25We suspected
22:26They both had
22:27Knew something about it
22:29But we never would have dreamed
22:31That they actually murdered her
22:34I never thought
22:37In my deepest
22:39Darkest dreams
22:41That the two people
22:43That she was best friends with
22:45Could be related to this
22:50They were just hiding it
22:54For a long time
22:57And that just made it worse
22:58I couldn't wrap my head around it
23:03We were going through
23:05Emotional hell
23:08And then
23:09They told us
23:10Sheila
23:11Eddie's
23:12Is going to be arrested
23:14For first degree murder
23:23Eventually Skyler's remains
23:24Were scientifically identified
23:26The FBI were able to
23:28Conclusively and scientifically
23:29Say that that DNA
23:30In Sheila's car
23:31The scholars
23:34Now we could substantiate
23:36Rachel's confession
23:37Once we got that confirmation
23:38I mean that was it
23:41So after months
23:42And months of investigating this
23:44After all the rumors
23:46The lies
23:48Watching Mary and Dave
23:49Go through their torment
23:51We now could arrest
23:53Both girls for the murder
23:54Of Skyler and East
23:59Ronnie Gaskins
24:00Called and said
24:01Hey we've got Sheila
24:02Do you want to go with us
24:04To take her to jail
24:07When Sheila was in the back
24:09Of the car
24:09On her way to jail
24:12She asked
24:13What about my hair appointment
24:16I'm getting my hair done
24:17For prom
24:18I'll make that appointment right
24:20And I kind of looked at her
24:23Baffled and said
24:24No
24:24You're going to jail
24:28You're not going
24:29To any school dance
24:31Ever again
24:33Sheila cried a little bit
24:35And asked for her mom
24:50The news broke
24:51In the middle of a school day
24:53And it came out
24:55In the intercom
24:56There's been some
24:57Disturbing news today
24:58That may affect students
25:00Please reach out to a teacher
25:01If you would like
25:02To speak to someone
25:04And so when I heard that
25:05And I looked down at my phone
25:07Shocking news comes out
25:08Of Morgantown today
25:09Two teenage girls
25:11Had been charged
25:12In the murder
25:12Of Skyler Niece
25:13A young girl
25:14Who went missing
25:15Last summer
25:19So I found out on the news
25:20That these are the people
25:21That killed her
25:24So there was a big headline
25:25That it was
25:25Rachel and Sheila
25:27Killed Skyler Niece
25:29Big headline
25:30And I just
25:32Put my head down
25:33On my desk
25:35I was in shock
25:36Didn't believe it
25:38At first
25:39And then I went to my mom
25:41And I cried
25:4616 year old Rachel
25:47Shove had been charged
25:49With first degree murder
25:50But after leading authorities
25:51To Skyler's body
25:52In the woods
25:53She entered a guilty plea
25:55To second degree murder
25:56As part of a plea deal
25:57While one best friend
25:59Admitted to murder
26:00The other
26:0117 year old Sheila Eddy
26:02Comforted the family
26:03She even tweeted
26:05Rest easy Skyler
26:07You'll always be my best friend
26:09I miss you more
26:10Than you could ever know
26:18All this confusion
26:19About how could you do this
26:23To someone who's your best friend
26:27I don't know the whole story
26:28It's always the ones
26:29You least expect
26:30But how could you kill
26:31Your best friend
26:32What the fuck
26:33I don't get it
26:34Fucking psychos
26:35I felt betrayed
26:37And upset
26:38And didn't know
26:39What to do
26:42When the person
26:44You're talking to
26:46Is arrested for murder
26:48It just scrambles your brain
26:50You don't know
26:51You don't know what to think
26:52You don't know what to believe
27:06Rachel and Sheila
27:07Both had hearings
27:08To transfer them
27:09To adult status
27:10Because they were juveniles
27:12Rachel's was not covered
27:13By the media
27:13Since she had confessed
27:17But Sheila had to present herself
27:20To the courts
27:22Court room was completely packed
27:24I sat in the very, very back
27:27When I saw Sheila in court
27:29There was just
27:30A smirk on her face
27:36Sheila was brought in
27:37And led over to the right side of us
27:40And I looked over at her one time
27:42And she was going
27:46Sheila, Eddie laughed at me
27:47In the courtroom
27:48And smiled at me
27:52My brother and I
27:53Were in court security
27:55He was Judge Clark's bailiff
27:58And I was in charge
28:00Of the court security
28:02I said, Dave
28:03I said, I know you want to
28:05Get at her
28:05But you can't
28:08If we have to take you
28:09Out of the courtroom
28:09You're not going to
28:10Be allowed back in
28:11He said, Dave
28:13She's trying to get a reaction
28:14Don't give her one
28:16You don't want Judge
28:17Claude just mad at you
28:19Just stay seated
28:20And keep her mouth shut
28:21And don't look at her
28:25I said, Gary
28:26You know how hard this is
28:27Gary's my buddy
28:28He has been for years
28:29And he had tears in his eyes
28:31He's like, I hate her too
28:34Everybody does
28:36And I wanted to choke
28:38That little witch
28:44Sheila, Eddie faces charges
28:47Of first degree murder
28:48Kidnapping
28:49And two counts
28:50Of conspiracy
28:51You've got two friends
28:53Accused of stabbing
28:55Literally taking her
28:56Out somewhere
28:57Picking her up in the car
28:58Taking her out somewhere
28:59Going and stabbing
29:01Two girls charged
29:02In niece's murder
29:03Planned everything out
29:06There has to be more
29:07To the story
29:07Absolutely
29:09People were trying to
29:11Then speculate
29:12Why did they do it
29:14It was like a wildfire
29:16Like what possesses you
29:17To kill your best friend
29:18There's got to be
29:19Something else going on
29:20Skyler's last tweet
29:21Indicates that she was
29:22Obviously mad at
29:23So sorry for the niece family
29:25Friends that compete
29:26For BFF spots
29:28And jealousy is rampant
29:30So premeditated
29:30They were a catalyst
29:32For each other
29:34How do you stab
29:35Your best friend to death
29:36And be able to go on
29:37For months hiding
29:39My theory was that
29:41Sheila was the one
29:42Behind everything
29:43It was usually Sheila
29:45Calling the shots
29:48I fully believe that
29:51Rachel was just there
29:53I mean she's not
29:54Innocent by any means
29:55She definitely participated
29:56But I would say
29:58That Sheila was probably
30:00The ringleader of that
30:02I don't buy into that at all
30:04I mean Sheila
30:06Was convincing
30:08But there's a difference
30:10Between being convincing
30:11And convincing somebody
30:12To murder
30:22Holy hell
30:23My life has gone to hell
30:25This place is so scary
30:27And weird for me
30:29I miss McDonald's
30:31I miss mom
30:32I miss weed
30:33I miss home
30:35This is pathetic
30:38I look so terrible
30:40Life sucks
30:43Sheila was not interviewed
30:44After she was arrested
30:46They had enough evidence
30:47They didn't need her statement
30:49It would have been nice
30:50If she had said why
30:52But they didn't need her why
30:54They knew the how
30:57Because Rachel confessed
30:59We only have Rachel's perspective
31:02And the reason that she provided
31:05Rachel said that
31:07Skylar got in the way
31:08Of the relationship with Sheila
31:11And it was Sheila's idea
31:13Was the driving force
31:14To do it
31:16And Rachel went along with her
31:21Rachel told a shit ton of lies
31:24The bitch knows she's a liar
31:27But anyways
31:28I'm sorry for all I've put you through
31:31If I could take it back
31:33I would
31:44The sentencing hearing for Rachel Shove
31:47Is taking place this morning
31:49In Montagueya County Circuit Court
31:57We were just waiting for Rachel
31:59To walk through the door
32:01And here comes this
32:04Redheaded teenager
32:10Mary had reached out to me
32:12My mom on Facebook
32:13And asked us if we could go
32:18So my mom pulled me out of school early
32:20And we went over
32:24She was nervous
32:25She was very nervous
32:28Rachel's family was there for the plea
32:31Dave's in the middle section
32:32Of the courtroom
32:35It's just so tense
32:36Yeah
32:37We are here this morning
32:39In the case of
32:40State of West Virginia
32:41Versus Rachel Shove's defendant
32:42And Ms. Shove
32:43I would advise you
32:44At this time
32:45Of your right to allocution
32:47Simply stated
32:48That it is your right
32:49To make any statement
32:50That you may wish
32:50The court to consider
32:51Before it passes
32:52Sentence in this matter
32:57She did choose
32:58To stand up
32:59And address Dave and I
33:00I am so sorry
33:03I don't know if there's
33:04A proper way
33:05To make this apology
33:07Because there are not even words
33:08To describe the guilt
33:09And remorse
33:10That I feel each day
33:11For what I've done
33:14The person that did that
33:15Was not the real me
33:16Not the person I am
33:18Not what I'm made of
33:19And not what I believe in
33:21She did this long speech
33:23About how sorry she was
33:25And she was in tears
33:27You know
33:28During her whole speech
33:30I became scared
33:31And caught up
33:32In something that I
33:32Did not want to do
33:33I hurt the niece family
33:34And those who love Skylar
33:36I hurt my parents
33:37And shamed my family
33:39And I hurt my lord
33:40And savior Jesus Christ
33:41May God bring eternal peace
33:43To Skylar
33:43And the entire niece family
33:45Again I'm so sorry
33:46And I pray each day
33:47For everyone involved
33:48And I pray each day
33:49For forgiveness
33:54The whole sob story
33:56Of how I can never
33:57Take it back
33:58And I'm like
34:00No
34:00Like you've done it
34:02Nothing you say
34:03Makes a difference
34:04Just shut up
34:05You're making it harder
34:06On everybody else around you
34:08I felt like
34:09She kind of rehearsed
34:11Her apology
34:12And if you're apologizing
34:14To someone
34:15It's coming from the heart
34:16Not something you rehearsed
34:26Prosecutor gets up
34:27And tells what the evidence
34:30In the case is
34:31That was the first time
34:32Yeah
34:34A lot of people heard
34:35The details of
34:38How vicious it was
34:39Yeah
34:40Skylar's murder
34:40This is what
34:43Rachel Schoff
34:44Finally told police
34:45On January 3rd, 2013
34:48She said
34:49We stabbed her
34:50Referring to herself
34:53And Sheila Eddy
34:54Stabbing Skylar Nieves
34:57They killed Skylar
34:59Because the girls
35:01Always fought
35:02With Skylar
35:04And she was
35:05Quote
35:06In the way
35:07Of the friendship
35:08Between Rachel
35:09And Sheila
35:11That is like
35:12The most
35:14Absurd
35:15Like
35:15And ridiculous
35:16Thing I've ever heard
35:17And it doesn't
35:18Make sense
35:19To say that
35:20You just don't
35:21Want to be friends
35:22With somebody anymore
35:22And that's
35:23The reason that
35:24You stabbed them
35:27On July 5th, 2012
35:30Sheila and Rachel
35:31Agreed that
35:32It's today
35:34Today was when
35:36They should commit
35:36The murder
35:38Before Rachel
35:40Left for
35:41Church summer camp
35:47When they arrived
35:49At that location
35:50At the agreed upon
35:52Countdown
35:54Rachel Schoff
35:55And Sheila Eddy
35:57Attacked Skylar Nieves
35:59And stabbed her
36:00To death
36:16I don't know
36:17How you have
36:18A senseless crime
36:19Of lifelong
36:20You know
36:21Best friends
36:22Murdering each other
36:25None of it
36:26Makes any sense
36:27To me
36:29It must be
36:30Unbearable
36:31For Dave
36:31And Mary
36:32Nieves
36:32To contemplate
36:33The fact
36:33That Skylar's
36:34Friends
36:35Hated her
36:35So much
36:37That they
36:37Took her
36:38In the dark
36:38Of night
36:39And stabbed
36:39Her to death
36:40Even as she
36:41Struggled for life
36:44All I can see
36:47And feel
36:53Is them
36:57Murdering her
36:58And stabbing her
37:02Over and over again
37:06We're asked to believe
37:08That Rachel Schoff
37:09Finally became
37:10Overwhelmed
37:11With guilt
37:12And remorse
37:13And freely
37:14Confessed her crime
37:16That Rachel Schoff
37:18Is a sort of hero
37:19In that regard
37:22Not really
37:23Your Honor
37:24In exchange
37:26For her statement
37:27On January 3rd
37:282013
37:29Rachel Schoff
37:31Extracted a benefit
37:33In the form
37:34Of a lesser plea
37:37Surely
37:38For this
37:38Oh so adult
37:39Crime
37:40Of cold blooded
37:41Planned
37:42Premeditated murder
37:43There is no
37:44Proper sentence
37:45Other than
37:46An adult sentence
37:49Marcia and Perry
37:50Joe
37:50Tell the judge
37:51How heinous
37:53It was
37:53They just wanted
37:55To make sure
37:55That they got
37:56What they deserved
37:59Rachel Schoff
38:00Would you please
38:00Stand
38:06Is the court's
38:07Intention
38:08To sentence
38:09The defendant
38:10As an adult
38:12Rachel Schoff
38:13For your conviction
38:14Of the offense
38:16Of murder
38:16In the second degree
38:17It is the sentence
38:18Of the court
38:19That you'd be
38:19Imprisoned
38:20In the West Virginia
38:21State Penitentiary
38:22For a period
38:22Of 30 years
38:38To manage
38:40You almost just killed us
38:42You fucking psychopath
39:00I realized that I was gay as an early teenager.
39:05When I met Sheila and Skylar in high school,
39:09the relationship between Sheila and I
39:11was immediately very unhealthy
39:16and intense and obsessive.
39:22And there was just this overwhelming infatuation.
39:26It felt like life or death to me.
39:30Holy fucking shit!
39:32Ah!
39:36Girly friend, oh my God.
39:39Love you. Miss you.
39:41Love you. Miss you. Love you. Miss you. Love you. Miss you.
39:44Love you with all my heart.
39:46Miss you so much.
39:48Your best friend. Girly friend. I don't know.
39:52Love you.
39:57Rachel was obsessed with Sheila.
39:59It was like a different level of something else.
40:02Like it was more than friendship.
40:04One of the rumors of why they did it was that they were in a secret relationship and Skylar was
40:11gonna tell somebody.
40:12There was some lesbian triangle going on.
40:16Sheila and Rachel were afraid Skylar was gonna tell people about their secret, including the sex.
40:22Sheila and Rachel ended up doing all girls can do with each other.
40:26The lesbian shit got old a long time ago.
40:31I tell the whole school all the shit I have on everyone, which is a lot.
40:42There was a lot of jealousies and conflict from Skylar throughout the relationship.
40:49Just a lot of animosity and threats to expose our relationship that scared me.
40:58I didn't know how the reaction would be from my family or church, things like that.
41:06And my 16-year-old teenage monstrous mind, it just felt like nothing could come between us, you know?
41:20For the longest time, I thought that Sheila was the one behind everything, but looking back at it now, I'm
41:28pretty sure that it was Rachel because of her not wanting her family to know she was gay.
41:36She said they did it because they were afraid that Skylar would tell about their lesbian relationship, but Skylar knew
41:48about their lesbian relationship for over a year and never said a word.
41:54So why, why would they think that, and even if they did think that, why would they kill her for
42:02something like that?
42:08Rachel came out saying that, you know, she was a lesbian and that that was part of the reason why
42:13she did the whole murder in the first place, but I gotta say that's bullshit.
42:18It's just you trying to get out of jail, is what I personally believe.
42:23Rachel's motive makes sense for Rachel, but it doesn't make sense for Sheila.
42:30Rachel coming out, that would probably crush Rachel's life as far as her family goes, but Sheila, I just don't
42:37see that.
42:41Sheila Eddy will appear today in Montaguey County Circuit Court to enter her much anticipated plea.
42:49The question now is going to be, does she plead guilty? Does she go to trial and have her friend
42:53testify against her?
42:55We heard Sheila was going to plead. Bad anticipation of the unknown. Do we have a trial? Do we not
43:02have a trial?
43:04Hopefully, Sheila will plead out and spare Denise's pain. I doubt it though.
43:09I think she'll do anything and everything to save her own skin at any cost.
43:15I hope she is locked away for life.
43:19A friend told me that it was a plea hearing happening that day, and so we left school.
43:25I did not go to Rachel's hearing. I could not physically do it. I just couldn't go.
43:31But Sheila, I wanted to watch her go down.
43:39If she pleads not guilty, the case will go to trial. If she enters a guilty plea, she'll be sentenced
43:46immediately.
43:49Sheila looked completely opposite of what she did normally. She's in a jumpsuit, kind of a rundown.
43:56The difference is night and day from Sheila's typical self to that version of her.
44:04We had to keep an eye on Dave.
44:09You know, you could see the anguish in their faces.
44:16If you would just please identify yourself for the record, then you may speak.
44:20My name is David Neese. My name is Skylar's father.
44:24I'm here today with my wife, Mary.
44:26I speak to you on behalf of my daughter, because she can't be here.
44:31Since that day, my wife's life has drastically altered.
44:39We are no longer a family.
44:42The person sitting before you, Skylar's so-called friend, took her away from us without any remorse or feelings.
44:50You can look into the eyes of those who are responsible, but you can never hear what they heard as
44:55they were taking her life.
44:58You can see the faces of the killer, but you can't see Skylar's face.
45:02You can never understand the fear that she must have had as they took a knife and enter her life.
45:10You cannot imagine the pain that Skylar must have felt and the pain that Mary and I now feel.
45:21It was so sad.
45:24And then you have this girl sitting there that took their daughter's life and just there was no emotion.
45:34Your Honor, at a trial, the state's evidence would prove that Skylar's disappearance and death were the result of a
45:45conspiracy between Sheila Eddy and Rachel Schoeff to rid themselves of their friend Skylar by killing her.
45:56But the two defendants were questioned by police repeatedly over a period of five and six months following Skylar's disappearance.
46:07Let's not forget that they lied repeatedly and that they were communicating with each other to keep their lies straight,
46:13to keep them consistent with each other.
46:17All I was just waiting for was to hear Sheila actually admit it.
46:29Sheila Eddy, how do you plead to the offense of murder in the first degree of the felony charged in
46:34count three of the indictment in this case?
46:37Guilty.
46:38The record will reflect that the defendant has entered a plea of guilty to the offense of murder in the
46:43first degree.
46:44You may be seated.
46:46She pled guilty.
46:48She pled guilty.
46:48But you're still trying to find the slithers of, does that really make sense?
46:54Can you see any advantage to your client if this case proceeded to trial?
46:59No.
46:59I have examined the law to attempt to find a reasonable defense in law for my client.
47:08I have found none.
47:11Her attorney expressed that in their view the state's case was so strong that they really couldn't put on a
47:22believable defense.
47:24We expected today to be a pretrial hearing, but in a surprise move, Sheila Eddy did plead to first degree
47:30murder of Schuyler Neese.
47:33Ms. Eddy, do you have anything that you wish to say at this time?
47:38I can't think of it.
47:41On behalf of my client, she asked that she be permitted to remain silent.
47:49Sheila didn't talk.
47:50It was just shocking to see the no remorse with her, especially not even crying.
47:56She's just dead-faced in the courtroom.
47:59I saw it then.
48:01There was nothing there.
48:02That girl has no soul.
48:07Ms. Eddy, would you please stand?
48:12Sheila Eddy, for your conviction of the offense of murder in the first degree, upon your plea of guilty,
48:19it is the sentence of the court that you've imprisoned in the West Virginia State Penitentiary for the rest of
48:24your natural life.
48:27That sentence is technically with mercy, which makes you eligible for parole after you have served 15 years.
48:37All rise.
48:39Court's in recess.
48:41Yes.
48:43When the hearing was over, I went over to get her, to take her out, and the attorney asked,
48:52Is it okay if Sheila says goodbye to her parents in the jury room?
48:57And I looked at him and I said,
49:03Skylar didn't get to tell her parents goodbye.
49:05No.
49:09They didn't deserve it.
49:15They took that away from Dave and Mary.
49:21Sheila Eddy's silence leaves more questions than answers.
49:25And now people are left to decide for themselves why two teenagers perpetrated such a horrific crime.
49:38It's just hard to come to grips with the facts of the case.
49:42It was gruesomely horrific.
49:47But if you think about it in the context of teenagers in general, just seeing how vulnerable they are.
49:54The brains aren't fully formed and they just can't properly deal with adversity and process information.
50:02As a teenager, everything's kind of magnified.
50:05Love feels stronger.
50:06Hate feels stronger.
50:08Anxiety feels stronger.
50:09Every emotion is so intense.
50:14Part of the issue too is just more of like the cumulative effect.
50:18You know, it's not just like one thing.
50:21You have peer pressure.
50:23You have social media and that's completely bombarding them from all different platforms.
50:28And then you couple that with the obsessive nature of that relationship between Sheila and Rachel.
50:36All it would have taken for that plan to fall apart is if one of them withdrew, backed out, said
50:42this isn't a good idea.
50:43And that never happened.
50:45The dynamic between Sheila and Rachel, they feed off of each other.
50:50It's definitely the perfect storm when these personalities meet.
50:56They were very passionate about what they did.
51:00They were very passionate about what they did.
51:00It took years of friendship and anger and love and whatever else to do that.
51:08That's crazy.
51:10You don't like someone, you just stop being friends.
51:13You don't kill someone.
51:18I'd say there's probably something bigger that's still not been said.
51:22Some kind of deeper, darker secret.
51:25But no matter what the reason is, it still wouldn't explain, let alone excuse, murdering my friend Skylar.
51:40Me and Sheila are best friends.
51:44We'll always be best friends.
51:49I love hanging out with Rachel.
51:53Sheila and I are closer to her than we've ever been with anyone.
51:58Other than each other.
52:09Let me see your old woman.
52:12She had a good sense of humor and she used to do an old lady impression for us.
52:19So how old are you again?
52:21100.
52:22100.
52:23And when she would start doing the impression, Dave would join in as an old man.
52:30And do his impression, they would do it together.
52:33It was, it was hilarious.
52:34Walked down the hallway holding each other up.
52:36It was so cute.
52:40Back up to the Christmas tree.
53:02Back up to the Christmas tree.
53:08It was very, like, weird because you wanted to be, like, happy, like, celebrating.
53:15But Skylar wasn't there.
53:20From ten years ago to now, it's shaped dozens of lives and it still does.
53:26I've had trust issues.
53:29Trusting people.
53:30Like, they were her best friends and they killed her.
53:34How are you supposed to trust someone if that's her best friend?
53:40When I was a kid, I had to murder a friend.
53:43It's like, I don't, how do you know what anybody's going to do?
53:49It hurts when a trust is broken to that level.
53:57The friendship that I had with Skylar, I knew early on it was a lifelong friendship.
54:03Even the fact that she's not here, a lot of the choices I make in life are reflective of the
54:10friendship I had with Skylar and the friendship I still have with her.
54:17I loved her then, love her now.
54:24I would have loved to see what she would have done.
54:27She would have been a lawyer.
54:29Skylar, when it kicked butt in court.
54:33She would have done really good in this world.
54:39Sometimes I go to her site and I feel pretty close to her.
54:43I ended up taking her my graduation cap and I pinned it on the tree.
54:49It was just a beautiful way to remember her.
54:52We'll go on.
54:55We'll go on.
54:58We'll go on.
54:58Try to be strong.
55:01We'll keep you in this song.
55:06I'll be fine.
55:07I'll be fine.
55:11Bye.
55:15Bye.
55:16Bye.
55:20Bye.
55:21Bye.
55:27Bye.
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