Dateline NBC - Season 35 - Episode 10: On the Shores of Lake Tahoe Eng Sub - video Dailymotion

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Dateline NBC - Season 35 - Episode 10: On the Shores of Lake Tahoe

Transcript

00:00:02Tonight on DateLive.

00:00:04She was this tall, beautiful blonde.

00:00:07They were always joyful together as a couple.

00:00:11They were worth quite a bit of money.

00:00:13A multi-million dollar fortune that they made.

00:00:17The news is on and I heard murder in Lake Tahoe.

00:00:21There was blood on all the mirrors, on all the vanities, on the bathtub.

00:00:25This was a very personal, targeted attack.

00:00:27It wasn't shocking to me that they had a list of enemies.

00:00:31She was in 22 lawsuits.

00:00:34Good lord.

00:00:35Who would gain from this?

00:00:37Well, clearly the two daughters.

00:00:39Samantha was a big part of their life.

00:00:41We always joke around that we're like a fripple.

00:00:44Reading all about it, I was like, whoa.

00:00:47It was middle of summer and I watched a male run up the street wearing full sweats with a hood

00:00:53on.

00:00:54And he was hiding in the house for about three hours.

00:00:59I see these people who look like they have it all.

00:01:02But you never know what your fate is going to be.

00:01:05A charismatic couple living a life of luxury.

00:01:08Turns out they were also rich in enemies.

00:01:11I'm Lester Holt and this is DateLive.

00:01:22Here's Keith Morrison with Deadly Swagger.

00:01:32Lake Tahoe.

00:01:35It's one of those bucket list destinations for people around the world.

00:01:41A setting so sublime.

00:01:43Mark Twain wrote,

00:01:45To breathe the same air as the angels, you must go to Tahoe.

00:01:49He knew whereof he wrote,

00:01:52If any place can be equated with heaven on earth, then surely it is Tahoe.

00:01:56Snow-capped mountains above, crystal clear waters below.

00:02:00It is where people go to find peace.

00:02:03The lucky ones call this home.

00:02:06Never want to leave.

00:02:11Though, once upon a time.

00:02:13He was waiting inside that house.

00:02:16In the very heart of this paradise.

00:02:19Then multiple gunshots fired.

00:02:25The question of leaving wasn't a choice.

00:02:36It was June the 5th, 2021.

00:02:40The 911 call was recorded at 9.26 p.m.

00:02:44911 was the address of the emergency.

00:02:48Hello, 911.

00:02:52All the dispatchers could hear was moaning in the background or they could hear someone gasping for air.

00:02:59But there was no words.

00:03:01What was that?

00:03:02Who was that?

00:03:04The 911 operator just couldn't tell.

00:03:07But it didn't sound good.

00:03:09So they dispatched the fire department.

00:03:11Gary Nelson was a captain and paramedic.

00:03:13All we know is there's a possible medical or some type of situation happening, but we don't know what it

00:03:19is.

00:03:20We pull in front of the house.

00:03:21You see behind me with lights on.

00:03:23Here.

00:03:24The home of a retired couple named Gary Spore and Wendy Wood.

00:03:30The front door was unlocked.

00:03:32The first responders walked upstairs to the living area.

00:03:36The dogs are moving back and forth.

00:03:38They're just wound up.

00:03:39So we yell, fire department.

00:03:40We get no response.

00:03:41And there's a gentleman laying on the couch.

00:03:44It looked like he was sleeping.

00:03:45His arms were crossed.

00:03:46His legs were crossed.

00:03:47His feet were up on the table or ottoman.

00:03:50And the TV was on, like he was watching the news.

00:03:53And we come over behind him, not to startle him.

00:03:56And then we're like, tap him on the shoulder and go, sir.

00:03:58And yell it loudly.

00:03:59Fire department, sir.

00:04:01No response.

00:04:02And that time we look over and my partner looks at him and goes, I don't think he's breathing.

00:04:06At that point, we check a pulse.

00:04:08We don't get a pulse.

00:04:09We look across at another section of the couch and we notice there's blood.

00:04:15And there on the floor, behind the couch, shell casings and...

00:04:21We notice a blood trail leading around the back of the couch.

00:04:24And the dogs that were very agitated, they kept coming between us and back into a master bedroom.

00:04:29They would go back and forth and back and forth.

00:04:31So we're like, okay, this doesn't seem right.

00:04:32We work into the master bedroom.

00:04:34In the master bedroom, we turn on the lights in there.

00:04:38Nothing obvious.

00:04:39So we go around the corner and we turn on the light in the master bathroom.

00:04:42And that's where we find a female patient.

00:04:46It was Wendy, Gary's wife, covered in blood.

00:04:50As were the mirrors, the vanity, the bathtub.

00:04:54An iPhone speckled in blood was by the sink.

00:04:57Wendy had held on to it long enough to call 911.

00:05:00She was alive.

00:05:02But barely.

00:05:04She would only give one-word answers.

00:05:06She would say yes, no.

00:05:08And she was, I believe, the paramedic, when he asked her name,

00:05:11she was able to give her name, and that was it.

00:05:13He was asking, were you assaulted?

00:05:15Were you shot?

00:05:16You know, does she have, you know, obviously bleeding from the head,

00:05:19obviously bleeding from the arms?

00:05:21They called in a helicopter.

00:05:23Flew her to a trauma center in Reno, 50 miles away.

00:05:27Did all they could to keep her breathing.

00:05:29And, still middle of the night,

00:05:32Placer County Detective Daniel Meyer got the call.

00:05:35It was going to be his day off.

00:05:38Not anymore.

00:05:40What's it like for you and for the family when, I mean,

00:05:43presumably you make plans for when you're off.

00:05:46And, sorry, I have to wait, I got to go.

00:05:50It's really hard.

00:05:52My kids are older, a little bit older now.

00:05:54They're teenagers, so now they understand it.

00:05:56My wife's really good with it.

00:05:58She knows the, kind of, when it happens,

00:06:00it's something we have to go do.

00:06:02With a thing like that, all days off and all bets are off, right?

00:06:06All days off, all sleep is off,

00:06:09and we go pretty much all in on it until we're finished.

00:06:13Investigators at the scene filled him in when he arrived.

00:06:16We had a male that had been shot in the head,

00:06:19and we had another victim, the wife,

00:06:23the female that was found also shot.

00:06:25We still didn't know the status,

00:06:26if she was going to make it through the surgery

00:06:30or if we were going to have a double homicide at the time.

00:06:34And then Detective Meyer tried to work out

00:06:36what must have happened.

00:06:38It appeared that after her husband was shot

00:06:41and killed where he was sleeping,

00:06:43that she was most likely woken up during the shots

00:06:46and had put her arms up in a kind of a defensive kind of posture,

00:06:52and then tried to get herself into safety.

00:06:55No surprise, a search of the house and property turned up no suspect.

00:07:02Long gone, of course, but whoever it was

00:07:05clearly had one purpose in mind.

00:07:07There was no sign of forced entry.

00:07:10There was no sign that a fight or anything ended sued.

00:07:12It looked eerily normal, minus, obviously,

00:07:17the personal destruction to Gary and Wendy.

00:07:21Now, who in this paradise on earth

00:07:23would want to do a thing like that?

00:07:27You knew the whole damn crime,

00:07:28and yet you knew nothing.

00:07:30Exactly.

00:07:31We had absolutely no idea who this individual could be.

00:07:36So she must have had a reputation around town.

00:07:39And not a very good one.

00:07:41We're like a fripple because he always complains

00:07:44that he has two wives.

00:07:46I've got to be challenging because we don't have much time,

00:07:48I have to tell you.

00:08:03The fear spread at the speed of news,

00:08:07neighbor to neighbor,

00:08:08around the wealth-encrusted shores of Lake Tahoe.

00:08:12Murder, execution style.

00:08:16That Wendy survived, the neighbors heard,

00:08:18was something of a miracle.

00:08:20Though, as the doctors told investigators,

00:08:23continued survival was no sure thing.

00:08:26Did you think maybe she can tell us what happened?

00:08:29We were praying she would.

00:08:30We had all of the nurses waiting to give us a phone call

00:08:34the moment she woke up.

00:08:35And we were praying, but not hopeful.

00:08:38We knew the severity of her injuries,

00:08:40the likelihood that she would be able to,

00:08:43was probably not very high.

00:08:46Everything about this seemed against the odds,

00:08:49starting with the location of the shooting,

00:08:51a multimillion-dollar lakefront home

00:08:54in one of the safest neighborhoods in Lake Tahoe.

00:08:57Michelle Bandour covered the case for KCRA,

00:09:00the local NBC affiliate.

00:09:02You don't hear about murder at Lake Tahoe.

00:09:04You know, you maybe hear of someone

00:09:06falling to their death while hiking,

00:09:09you know, or a boating accident,

00:09:10but a crime where someone kills another person,

00:09:15it's just unheard of in Tahoe.

00:09:17I was standing in my kitchen making dinner

00:09:19and the news is on.

00:09:20Detectives identifying the victim.

00:09:22And then the next word they said was Gary Spore.

00:09:25Stopped me dead in my tracks.

00:09:26I just couldn't believe it.

00:09:28Just shock is all I can remember of just,

00:09:30what, you know?

00:09:31These people meant a lot to me.

00:09:33Judy Muir and Lisa Fernandez once worked for Gary and Wendy.

00:09:38They were with them almost a decade, years and years ago.

00:09:41Gary and Wendy were my favorite owners of that place ever.

00:09:44The place was the copy house at Print Shop in Sacramento.

00:09:49Gary and Wendy bought it in the 1990s.

00:09:52And Gary and Wendy were more than just bosses.

00:09:57They were better.

00:09:58Wendy was such a presence.

00:10:00She made such an impression on me as a female.

00:10:03She was Wendy Wood.

00:10:04She was not Wendy Spore.

00:10:06And at that time in the 90s,

00:10:08that made an impression on me of like,

00:10:09wow, she's so independent.

00:10:11There's attitude for you.

00:10:13And she was this tall, beautiful, blonde,

00:10:16and she was so confident.

00:10:18And Gary, absolutely dashing.

00:10:21Hi, hon.

00:10:22He drove a cool little Porsche,

00:10:24which again, in my 20s, I thought that was so neat.

00:10:27He was very friendly.

00:10:28He was a very good looking man.

00:10:30Yes, he was.

00:10:34Here they were, brimming with charisma, and yet...

00:10:38I never felt like she looked down on us

00:10:41or treated us like the hill.

00:10:43I always felt like they just treated us

00:10:45like we were part of their family.

00:10:47Gave them presents, perfumes, steak dinners,

00:10:51free weekends at their ski house.

00:10:54They would do things like that for all of us.

00:10:56For all of us.

00:10:57They were so generous.

00:10:58With their employees, and especially their daughters,

00:11:02Erin and Adrienne.

00:11:04Are you having fun yet, Gary?

00:11:05There was horse lessons

00:11:07and the different things the girls like to do.

00:11:10But Gary and Wendy could afford to be generous

00:11:12because they were rich.

00:11:14As John Ward, who acted as their local attorney

00:11:18a few times, knew well.

00:11:20Wendy and Gary had real estate holdings in California

00:11:24and I believe in Washington.

00:11:26By 2021, their time was their own

00:11:29and they loved skiing and boating

00:11:31and spending time with grandchildren.

00:11:34In fact, the very day Gary was shot,

00:11:36they had gone boating with the grandkids

00:11:37and their daughter Erin.

00:11:39She lived in nearby Reno with her husband,

00:11:42a former Major League Baseball player.

00:11:44Erin was an equestrian

00:11:46and had a stable in the Reno area.

00:11:50Younger daughter Adrienne and her boyfriend

00:11:52lived about three hours away from Tahoe.

00:11:54Life had been good to Gary and Wendy,

00:11:57but picture perfect?

00:11:59Maybe not.

00:12:01The family didn't always get along.

00:12:04There was tension between the sisters

00:12:05and Wendy, with her strong personality,

00:12:09often fought with her daughters.

00:12:12Around the lake, Wendy also butted heads with neighbors,

00:12:15so much so that local prosecutor Christopher Catran

00:12:18was already familiar with Wendy.

00:12:20She was either named as the plaintiff

00:12:23or the defendant in 22 lawsuits.

00:12:27Good Lord!

00:12:28So she must have had a reputation around town.

00:12:31And not a very good one.

00:12:33Gary often backed up his wife in these disputes.

00:12:37Had the couple's neighborhood battles

00:12:39made them a target?

00:12:41Or their money?

00:12:43Or was there something in their past?

00:12:46Because this certainly wasn't some random violent thief,

00:12:50as Detective Meyer could plainly tell.

00:12:52One of the first things that they say is,

00:12:55was it a burglary?

00:12:56Did somebody, you know,

00:12:57go in to steal something

00:12:58and encounter the owners

00:13:00and shoot them and then flee?

00:13:02That was our first,

00:13:04one of at least my first thoughts,

00:13:05that there was no signs of any burglary.

00:13:08The normal things that we'll see in burglaries,

00:13:11with the drawers being pulled

00:13:12or things being disheveled inside of bedrooms,

00:13:17none of that was present during this.

00:13:19And the fact nothing was taken,

00:13:21nothing of any significance

00:13:22you could figure out anyway.

00:13:23Nothing was...

00:13:24Or the first responders could.

00:13:25There was even a very high-priced tennis bracelet

00:13:29that was not taken,

00:13:30that was left, right, where Wendy was shot.

00:13:34Burglary wasn't the motive.

00:13:36They'd piss somebody off and that was that.

00:13:38They got killed.

00:13:39It was a very, very personal

00:13:43and very intentional act.

00:13:45Detective Meyer was about to get some help

00:13:47with his investigation.

00:13:49There were security cameras

00:13:51inside and outside of the house.

00:13:53And when he rolled that tape...

00:13:55I knew that at that point,

00:13:57that was going to be our shooter.

00:14:13What a difference a bit of tech can make.

00:14:16Those little front-door cameras,

00:14:18common as clover now,

00:14:20like a gift for a detective in need of a break.

00:14:24You must have thought,

00:14:26hey, this will get our guy.

00:14:28Pure excitement.

00:14:30Especially when they spotted one

00:14:31with the perfect angle.

00:14:33Kind of up above the garage,

00:14:35pointing towards their vehicles

00:14:37and their, kind of their driveway area.

00:14:40So if the shooter came in that way,

00:14:43they might be able to see him or her.

00:14:46They started watching the video from that morning

00:14:49and nothing happened.

00:14:51For hours.

00:14:53Things picked up when daughter Erin arrived

00:14:55with her two boys at 2.24 p.m.

00:14:58That's Wendy in the driveway as Erin backed in.

00:15:01A bit later, Gary pulled in.

00:15:03Looked like an Audi.

00:15:05Blue.

00:15:06There was a pause for almost an hour

00:15:08and then Gary headed out,

00:15:10followed by the rest of the family,

00:15:12down to the lake, by the look of it.

00:15:15But then,

00:15:17then something very peculiar

00:15:19showed up on that surveillance tape.

00:15:21It was middle of summer,

00:15:23so it was obviously warm up there,

00:15:26even for Tahoe.

00:15:27And I watched a male run up the street

00:15:30wearing full sweats with a hood on,

00:15:34a mask on, and a backpack.

00:15:36I would think you'd think,

00:15:37looking at that video,

00:15:38uh-oh, there's our shooter.

00:15:40I was very hopeful.

00:15:42Yeah.

00:15:42That it was.

00:15:44Especially when the masked man

00:15:45turned into the driveway.

00:15:47I knew that at that point,

00:15:48that was going to be our shooter.

00:15:50Did you happen to think at that moment,

00:15:53all right,

00:15:53this is not going to be so hard after all?

00:15:57I did for a little bit

00:15:59until you saw how close he got

00:16:02and then saw we couldn't see his face.

00:16:04He covered every aspect of his skin,

00:16:07of his face.

00:16:08But surely there were more cameras

00:16:11around the neighborhood.

00:16:12They went hunting.

00:16:13We were out here canvassing

00:16:15the full area for several days.

00:16:18We were looking up and down the road

00:16:20from the Spores residence

00:16:22all the way up to the,

00:16:25what we call the Y,

00:16:26up here up in Tahoe City.

00:16:28Did it show you anything more

00:16:30about where the shooter came from

00:16:32or where he went after?

00:16:33It did.

00:16:35Thankfully, we were able to find

00:16:36several cameras along the pathway.

00:16:39It was enough to start piecing together

00:16:42some kind of timeline anyway.

00:16:43Which the detectives laid out

00:16:45for the prosecutor,

00:16:46Christopher Katrine.

00:16:47The first sighting of the apparent shooter

00:16:50was at 5.02 p.m.,

00:16:52almost a half a mile

00:16:53from Gary and Wendy's house,

00:16:55walking along the main road towards them.

00:16:58By then, Gary, Wendy, Aaron,

00:17:00and the kids were out on the boat.

00:17:03Last person left the house at 3.56 p.m.

00:17:07They walk out the driveway

00:17:08and down the street.

00:17:10And you can see out on the lake.

00:17:12We're fairly close to the lake here.

00:17:13Then, 5.06 p.m.,

00:17:16a neighbor's security camera

00:17:17recorded the probable shooter

00:17:19walking along the lake.

00:17:21On the other side of the roadway,

00:17:23there's a bike path,

00:17:23which is used for bikes and pedestrians

00:17:25and things like that.

00:17:26So he's approaching.

00:17:28Minutes later,

00:17:29the masked man jogged into the view

00:17:31of the outside camera.

00:17:33He comes up this hill.

00:17:35You can see the driveway right here.

00:17:37And, like he knew just where to go,

00:17:40he turned towards the house.

00:17:43And then,

00:17:45no mistaking what that was,

00:17:47the sound of the garage door opening.

00:17:51After which, a pause.

00:17:54And then, around 30 minutes later,

00:17:56the family returned.

00:17:59And at 7.45 p.m.,

00:18:02Aaron left the house with the kids

00:18:05and drove away.

00:18:07An hour and six minutes later,

00:18:09at 8.51 p.m.

00:18:14No mistaking that sound, either.

00:18:18Gunshots.

00:18:19Five of them.

00:18:21Silence.

00:18:22Five minutes passed.

00:18:24And out he came,

00:18:25same way he went in.

00:18:27Through the garage and away.

00:18:30At 9.02, another glimpse,

00:18:32faintly,

00:18:33in the gathering dark.

00:18:36It's like you're seeing the whole play

00:18:38from these security cameras.

00:18:40Fortunately,

00:18:41we were able to watch

00:18:41the entire thing,

00:18:43knowing that he was inside the house

00:18:45while the whole family was in there

00:18:47and they had no idea.

00:18:50Well,

00:18:51and this guy hid in the house

00:18:53for three or four hours

00:18:55while the family was out on the lake

00:18:57and he waited all that time.

00:18:59He waited almost a time enough

00:19:01to let them kind of get comfortable.

00:19:03Were you able to find a place

00:19:05inside the house

00:19:05where the shooter hid

00:19:06for a period of time?

00:19:08We found a place

00:19:08where we believe

00:19:09that he was hiding.

00:19:11They had a very large closet

00:19:14on the bottom floor

00:19:16and in the back of it,

00:19:17almost a little hidden room

00:19:18that was off there

00:19:21that somebody could stand up,

00:19:23move around in,

00:19:24lay down.

00:19:24I mean,

00:19:26you knew a whole lot.

00:19:27You knew the whole damn crime

00:19:29and yet you knew nothing.

00:19:31Exactly.

00:19:31Strange.

00:19:32We saw everything,

00:19:34we heard everything,

00:19:35but yet we had absolutely no idea

00:19:38who this individual could be.

00:19:40Who was this masked intruder?

00:19:43Was he a hired gun?

00:19:45An enemy from around the lake?

00:19:47Or was the shooter's motive

00:19:48one of the oldest of them all?

00:19:50They're worth a lot of money.

00:19:51And as the old adage goes,

00:19:54follow the money, right?

00:20:08Days passed

00:20:09and the masked shooter

00:20:11who took Gary's life

00:20:12with a single bullet

00:20:13and left Wendy for dead

00:20:14was still out there

00:20:15somewhere.

00:20:17Desperate for leads,

00:20:18the Placer County Sheriff's Office

00:20:20posted a video of the gunman

00:20:21on social media.

00:20:22Placer County Sheriff's Detectives

00:20:24releasing this video

00:20:26from home surveillance cameras.

00:20:27What made you decide

00:20:29to appeal to the public for help?

00:20:30Because we needed all the help

00:20:32at that point we could get.

00:20:34Tips came in,

00:20:35flooded the phone lines.

00:20:37Reporter Michelle Bandour.

00:20:39They continued to ask for help,

00:20:41even asking people in the area

00:20:43within so many mile radius

00:20:45of checking their security video.

00:20:47Do you see a figure like this?

00:20:49Or what do you see on June 5th

00:20:51between these hours?

00:20:53Did it help much?

00:20:54Unfortunately, it didn't.

00:20:55Might scare the hell

00:20:56out of them, though.

00:20:57I mean, this is an affluent community

00:20:59and they hear that some guy

00:21:01was sneaking into houses

00:21:02and shooting people

00:21:03and, I mean,

00:21:04that's pretty scary stuff.

00:21:05The community was terrified,

00:21:06but the way that it was done,

00:21:08it let us feel a little safer

00:21:11to let the Tahoe community know

00:21:13we don't believe

00:21:14that somebody's out there.

00:21:16We really felt that this was

00:21:17a very personal, targeted attack.

00:21:19And as the old adage goes,

00:21:21follow the money, right?

00:21:23Yeah, sure.

00:21:24Who would gain from this?

00:21:26Well, clearly the two daughters.

00:21:30Adrian and Aaron were the beneficiaries

00:21:32of their parents' estate

00:21:33worth $25 million.

00:21:36They would split the inheritance equally.

00:21:39Both agreed to talk to detectives.

00:21:42How were they taking it?

00:21:43They were very, very stoic,

00:21:45very composed.

00:21:46They were obviously upset,

00:21:49like any child's going to be,

00:21:50but they were very much into

00:21:53trying to figure out

00:21:54what had happened.

00:21:55You showed them the video,

00:21:56I'm assuming, right?

00:21:57Absolutely.

00:21:58Could they identify him at all?

00:21:59Neither of them

00:22:00were able to identify him.

00:22:02Of course, they had to check

00:22:03the daughter's alibis anyway,

00:22:05even though they were sure

00:22:06the shooter was a man.

00:22:08When you talked to Aaron,

00:22:09what could she tell you?

00:22:11She was unaware

00:22:11of what could have happened,

00:22:12and she was there with the kids

00:22:14and in genuine shock

00:22:16that that person could have been

00:22:18inside the house with her

00:22:20while her kids and her were present.

00:22:21She was very, very upset at that time.

00:22:24Remember, the shooter came in

00:22:27at 5 o'clock while she, Aaron,

00:22:30and the boys are on the boat

00:22:31with mom and dad.

00:22:32The driveway security camera

00:22:34also showed her leaving her parents home

00:22:37before the shots were fired.

00:22:39So she clearly has a good alibi.

00:22:43And what about her husband?

00:22:46Aaron told detectives he was out of town

00:22:48when the shooting occurred.

00:22:50Dan Serafini was his name,

00:22:52ex-Major League baseball player,

00:22:54Minnesota Twins, Cincinnati Reds,

00:22:56Pittsburgh Pirates, etc., etc.

00:22:59He was an ex-bar owner, too,

00:23:01and now a miner.

00:23:03I believe he was a heavy equipment operator

00:23:05in a mine about three and a half hours

00:23:10east of the Reno-Sparks area.

00:23:14They went to see him,

00:23:15and he had alibis, too.

00:23:18Day before the shooting,

00:23:19he said he attended a training class

00:23:20at the gold mine where he worked,

00:23:22then met up with co-workers.

00:23:24He was going to have a couple drinks

00:23:26with some friends that night from work.

00:23:29He spent the next day in Crescent Valley, Nevada,

00:23:32where he had a trailer he used

00:23:34when working away from his family.

00:23:36Never left.

00:23:37Phone records showed him in Crescent Valley

00:23:39when Gary and Wendy were shot,

00:23:41just as Dan told them he was.

00:23:43So his alibi looked pretty good.

00:23:45His alibi was looking really good.

00:23:47Did Adrienne have an alibi?

00:23:48She did.

00:23:50She was at work,

00:23:51and we were able to verify

00:23:53that she was working

00:23:54during the time of the murder.

00:23:56But detectives did wonder

00:23:57about Adrienne's boyfriend,

00:23:59a guy named Taylor Hatton.

00:24:01Didn't he have a record, that guy?

00:24:03He did.

00:24:04Taylor was a convicted felon,

00:24:06confessed to robbing a bank,

00:24:08then ultimately pleaded guilty

00:24:10to a weapons charge.

00:24:11He was one of the first individuals

00:24:13that detectives were very interested in.

00:24:17During the commission of that armed robbery,

00:24:20Taylor was covered from head to toe,

00:24:23wore a ski mask, sunglasses,

00:24:25and had a backpack on a hot summer day,

00:24:29just like the guy who shot Gary and Wendy.

00:24:34Again, maybe solving this murder

00:24:36wouldn't be so hard after all.

00:24:39Was that Taylor on the surveillance video?

00:24:42We did look into him extensively,

00:24:45and we were able to determine

00:24:47he was actually in Petaluma, California,

00:24:50during the time of the homicide.

00:24:51He was working out there as a contractor,

00:24:53constantly working on his cell phones,

00:24:55and he's significantly smaller

00:24:58than the shooter was.

00:25:00It couldn't have been him.

00:25:03So, there were other possibilities, remember?

00:25:07Angry neighbors, potential enemies.

00:25:11And just about then,

00:25:13less than two weeks after the shooting,

00:25:15Wendy woke up and started talking.

00:25:19It was a genuine excitement

00:25:22throughout the entire unit

00:25:23that we might finally have

00:25:25that huge break we're looking for.

00:25:42Around Lake Tahoe,

00:25:43lots of people knew Wendy Wood,

00:25:45and perhaps for all the wrong reasons.

00:25:49After the murder,

00:25:51there were a number of people

00:25:53who said that the suspect list

00:25:56was going to be at least four or five pages.

00:25:58Family attorney John Ward

00:26:00figured Wendy was the killer's target.

00:26:03I think my knee-jerk reaction was

00:26:05that Wendy had pissed off somebody.

00:26:09So, how would she have done that?

00:26:12There were two ways to do things.

00:26:15Wendy's way and Wendy's way.

00:26:18Yeah.

00:26:19She had a mind and will of her own.

00:26:22And that she did.

00:26:24Less than two weeks after she was left for dead,

00:26:26the detectives got a call.

00:26:28She was awake and talking.

00:26:31It was a genuine excitement

00:26:33throughout the entire unit

00:26:35that we might finally have

00:26:37that huge break we're looking for.

00:26:39Yeah.

00:26:40But?

00:26:41She was struggling

00:26:42coming in and out of consciousness.

00:26:44She made a quick statement of

00:26:47it was Rick, the water guy,

00:26:50and she passed back out again.

00:26:52The nurses had told us

00:26:53that she had said it was Rick.

00:26:55Well, that was something

00:26:57because Rick, the water guy,

00:27:00was certainly a person of interest.

00:27:01Wendy and Rick had had

00:27:04a lot of eavesman issues

00:27:06because Rick would access his water,

00:27:08access from her property.

00:27:10Rick owned a water well

00:27:11that sat on Wendy and Gary's property,

00:27:13and Wendy had issues with that.

00:27:16Things escalated.

00:27:18And then Gary sent Rick an email

00:27:20to let him know that Wendy

00:27:21had a permit to use a gun

00:27:22and would if needed.

00:27:24So, did Rick use a gun on them?

00:27:28We were able to look at him

00:27:30and compare him to the camera,

00:27:31and we knew at that point

00:27:33he was definitely not our shooter.

00:27:35And then, weeks later,

00:27:38more good news.

00:27:39Wendy has made a surprisingly

00:27:42miraculous recovery.

00:27:44Amazing.

00:27:45The detectives hear that she's made

00:27:47this miraculous recovery,

00:27:48and of course now they want

00:27:50to get a statement from her.

00:27:51Of course, yeah.

00:27:52So...

00:27:52Eyewitness to the murder

00:27:53comes back from the dead

00:27:54to tell the story.

00:27:56Can't have it any better

00:27:58than that, I would think.

00:28:00Wendy struggled,

00:28:01but remembered that she and Gary

00:28:03had gone to the lake

00:28:04with Aaron and their grandkids.

00:28:06And at the end of the boating trip,

00:28:08she recalled covering up the boat.

00:28:10That's the last thing she remembers

00:28:12of that day was putting the tarp on.

00:28:15And then the next thing she remembers

00:28:17is waking up in the hospital.

00:28:20Ward sat in on this.

00:28:21Did they ask her

00:28:22who she thought it might have been?

00:28:24They did,

00:28:24and she was quite certain

00:28:26that it involved the incident

00:28:27with the paddleboard.

00:28:29Different guy now.

00:28:30Dave the fisherman.

00:28:32So one day she was out paddleboarding,

00:28:34and there was a gentleman

00:28:36who was a caretaker

00:28:37of one of the lakefront properties,

00:28:39and he was an avid fisherman.

00:28:41So one day he had his minnow trap out.

00:28:46As Dave watched from shore,

00:28:48he saw Wendy yanking his traps

00:28:50out of the water.

00:28:51So while she's on her paddleboard,

00:28:53she starts hauling them up.

00:28:55Now why would she do that?

00:28:58Keith, I have no idea.

00:29:00And Dave?

00:29:01He apparently got in a boat,

00:29:02went out to go talk to her,

00:29:04stop her from doing it,

00:29:05and while he was out there,

00:29:07she hit him in the head

00:29:09with the oar or the paddle,

00:29:11and it kind of went south from there.

00:29:14Dave suffered puncture wounds

00:29:16and abrasions to his head.

00:29:18The cops were called,

00:29:19and Wendy was charged.

00:29:21Katran prosecuted Wendy

00:29:23for assault with a deadly weapon.

00:29:25She pleaded no contest,

00:29:26got probation,

00:29:27and was ordered to stay away

00:29:28from the fisherman and his property.

00:29:30That was 2018,

00:29:32three years before the shooting.

00:29:33Was Dave getting his revenge?

00:29:36I mean, it seemed like

00:29:37that might have legs.

00:29:39That had legs for a little while.

00:29:41We looked into him.

00:29:43We were able to go through

00:29:45all the cell phone data,

00:29:47including the GPS locations,

00:29:50and found out he wasn't present,

00:29:53he wasn't there.

00:29:54His digital alibi, so to speak,

00:29:57was very good.

00:29:58So maybe Wendy wasn't the target after all,

00:30:02but Gary, well,

00:30:05lovely house along the lake,

00:30:07looks very genteel and sweet,

00:30:09and there's the grandparents

00:30:10taking the grandkids out on the boat.

00:30:12It looks so idyllic.

00:30:14But when you dig a little bit,

00:30:17what did you find out about Gary's past?

00:30:19I found out a little bit.

00:30:21He did have a past with narcotics.

00:30:25I believe it was a federal case

00:30:27that was brought against him,

00:30:29and that he had kind of worked

00:30:30with the federal government

00:30:32to kind of right the wrong

00:30:35that he had done, so to speak,

00:30:36of the crimes that he had been caught for.

00:30:39Long ago, mind you,

00:30:40and no records to be found,

00:30:42but some things aren't forgotten.

00:30:44Well, that opens up all kinds

00:30:46of possibilities, though, doesn't it?

00:30:47It opened an amazing amount

00:30:50of possibilities.

00:30:50It kind of gave me and my partners

00:30:53a giant moment of pause.

00:30:55Yeah.

00:30:56This could span...

00:30:58Oh, Lord, yeah.

00:31:00For, I mean,

00:31:01we could be down into anywhere.

00:31:03We have no idea

00:31:04how far this rabbit hole could go.

00:31:07Meanwhile, they were confirming alibis,

00:31:09like where Dan Serafini,

00:31:11Wendy and Gary's son-in-law,

00:31:13said he was night before the murder.

00:31:16Detectives learned that

00:31:17after drinks with his co-workers,

00:31:18Dan left to relax

00:31:19in a hotel in Elko, Nevada.

00:31:22When they drove out there,

00:31:24the desk clerk said

00:31:24he was there all right.

00:31:26Security cameras proved it.

00:31:28But then, bit odd,

00:31:30a woman checked out for Dan

00:31:32and checked herself in

00:31:34to the same room.

00:31:35Her name was Samantha Scott.

00:31:38Interesting because

00:31:39Dan's phone record

00:31:41showed he had received a call

00:31:42the morning of the murder

00:31:44from the same woman.

00:31:46They do their cop stuff,

00:31:48you know,

00:31:49they get her driver's license,

00:31:50they get a picture,

00:31:51you know,

00:31:51and they find an address for her.

00:31:53Samantha lived in Reno, Nevada

00:31:55in an apartment complex

00:31:57about 45 miles north of Tahoe City.

00:31:59A detective drove out there

00:32:01and when he pulled up,

00:32:02he saw something

00:32:03that caught his attention.

00:32:05There's an Audi

00:32:07sitting in the parking lot.

00:32:09Mm-hmm.

00:32:10And he thinks he's seen

00:32:12in the car before

00:32:13and then it dawns on him

00:32:14that the Audi

00:32:15was Gary's.

00:32:17Oh, boy.

00:32:17The victim of the murder.

00:32:20Who was Samantha Scott?

00:32:23Why did she have Gary's car?

00:32:39You've heard it here before.

00:32:41Sometimes luck is the best detective.

00:32:44While checking Dan's alibi,

00:32:47detectives came across

00:32:48a woman named Samantha Scott

00:32:50who checked into Dan's room

00:32:52and just weeks after Gary's murder

00:32:54was driving the dead man's car.

00:32:57It was very, very weird

00:32:59that presumably the girls

00:33:02or somebody within the family structure

00:33:04had given the okay

00:33:06to give her that vehicle,

00:33:08either permanent

00:33:09or a temporary use of the vehicle.

00:33:11I mean, it could happen,

00:33:12just a little unusual.

00:33:14Absolutely.

00:33:15It was enough to make us

00:33:17start asking more questions,

00:33:19to start looking a little bit more.

00:33:22And that is exactly what they did.

00:33:25Hello.

00:33:25Hi.

00:33:26Placer County.

00:33:26Hi.

00:33:27Hi, how are you?

00:33:27Samantha?

00:33:28Yeah.

00:33:29Detectives showed up

00:33:30at Samantha's apartment

00:33:31in Reno, Nevada,

00:33:32about an hour away

00:33:33from Lake Tahoe.

00:33:34You obviously know

00:33:35why we're here to speak to you.

00:33:37Um, I mean,

00:33:38I'm assuming...

00:33:39Are you assuming?

00:33:40Yes.

00:33:41Sure.

00:33:41What do you think?

00:33:43Um, I mean,

00:33:44it probably has something

00:33:45to do with, uh,

00:33:46my friend Aaron's apartment.

00:33:48Yeah.

00:33:51And what...

00:33:52What can you tell me?

00:33:55About that?

00:33:56Um, I'm not really sure

00:33:58why I would be involved in it.

00:34:02Involved in it?

00:34:04What was Samantha referring to,

00:34:06exactly?

00:34:07So I'm not too sure

00:34:09what to tell you.

00:34:10Okay.

00:34:11I'm more than happy

00:34:12to try and answer your question.

00:34:13Okay.

00:34:14Samantha said she met Aaron

00:34:16about five years earlier

00:34:17when she was looking

00:34:18for a trainer

00:34:19who specialized

00:34:20in equestrian triathlons.

00:34:22She's the only one

00:34:23in town that does it.

00:34:25Outside, Ryan,

00:34:26bring her around.

00:34:26Aaron became her trainer.

00:34:28And she would let Samantha

00:34:29board her horse

00:34:30in exchange for some work.

00:34:32Good.

00:34:34What can you tell me

00:34:35about Aaron's husband, Danny?

00:34:38Um,

00:34:40it's Aaron's husband.

00:34:42I've known her

00:34:43for about five years.

00:34:44Okay.

00:34:45Um,

00:34:46and I mean,

00:34:46therefore I've known him

00:34:48for about five years as well.

00:34:49Okay.

00:34:50Then,

00:34:51without being asked,

00:34:52she launched into her

00:34:54and his whereabouts

00:34:56on Friday,

00:34:57June 4th,

00:34:58the night before the shooting.

00:35:00I went with him

00:35:01to Elgo,

00:35:01uh,

00:35:02I think that Friday.

00:35:04Um,

00:35:05and that's kind of

00:35:06the first time

00:35:07we've ever hung out.

00:35:09Why?

00:35:10Because,

00:35:10she said,

00:35:11Dan needed help

00:35:12with a surprise

00:35:13purchase for Aaron.

00:35:15We went to look

00:35:16for a truck

00:35:17for Aaron,

00:35:18uh,

00:35:18a new Ford.

00:35:20And I had just,

00:35:21uh,

00:35:22broken up with someone,

00:35:23so he's like,

00:35:24hey,

00:35:24come,

00:35:24we're having a party.

00:35:25And I was like,

00:35:25okay,

00:35:26cool.

00:35:26And then,

00:35:27we didn't look

00:35:28for a truck,

00:35:29though.

00:35:30What did you,

00:35:31what did you end up doing?

00:35:32Uh,

00:35:32well,

00:35:33I just spent

00:35:33the night up there.

00:35:34After a night out

00:35:36in Elgo,

00:35:37she said,

00:35:37she and Dan

00:35:38went back

00:35:38to the suite

00:35:39he had booked,

00:35:40and she slept

00:35:41in the bedroom.

00:35:42He slept

00:35:43in the living room,

00:35:44so she said.

00:35:45So no sexual relations

00:35:46or anything like that?

00:35:47No.

00:35:48No,

00:35:48uh,

00:35:49no.

00:35:50Not at all.

00:35:52Ever?

00:35:53Ever.

00:35:54And when she woke up

00:35:55in the morning,

00:35:56Dan was gone.

00:35:58Did he tell you that

00:35:59the night before

00:35:59he was going to be

00:36:00leaving early?

00:36:00No.

00:36:01She assumed

00:36:02Dan had left

00:36:03for work,

00:36:03she said,

00:36:04and so she decided

00:36:05she would extend

00:36:06her stay

00:36:06for a little R&R.

00:36:08I was getting ready

00:36:09to go,

00:36:10and then

00:36:11kind of wanted

00:36:12to stay

00:36:13because I've just

00:36:14never been

00:36:15in a suite before.

00:36:18She said

00:36:18she checked out

00:36:19the following day,

00:36:20and on her drive

00:36:21home,

00:36:22a friend called

00:36:22to let her know

00:36:23what had happened

00:36:24to Erin's parents.

00:36:25And so,

00:36:26Samantha said

00:36:27she reached out

00:36:27to Erin

00:36:28and offered to help

00:36:29any way she could.

00:36:31She's upset.

00:36:33But, I mean,

00:36:35I've known her

00:36:35long enough,

00:36:36like how she

00:36:36handles things, too.

00:36:38How does she

00:36:38handle things?

00:36:40She's pretty structured

00:36:41when it comes

00:36:42to things.

00:36:43Right now,

00:36:45she seems

00:36:45pretty adamant

00:36:47about getting

00:36:48her house prepared

00:36:49so her mom

00:36:49can live there, too,

00:36:51when she's released.

00:36:53And all of that story,

00:36:55all of it,

00:36:56could have been

00:36:57quite true.

00:36:58Except,

00:36:58we could see

00:37:00there was a crack

00:37:01in the armor

00:37:01of fear.

00:37:03Really?

00:37:03She was nervous

00:37:04at points

00:37:06when there

00:37:07shouldn't have

00:37:08been nervousness.

00:37:09If she was

00:37:09an innocent person

00:37:10or didn't know

00:37:11anything.

00:37:12Correct.

00:37:13If there was

00:37:13nothing that

00:37:14she didn't know,

00:37:15I mean,

00:37:15we understand

00:37:16and expect

00:37:17a certain degree

00:37:18of nervousness,

00:37:19but when the fear

00:37:20continues

00:37:21and the oddities

00:37:23continue,

00:37:24that kind of

00:37:25puts some

00:37:25of the alarms

00:37:26up that something

00:37:27was wrong.

00:37:28I'm not

00:37:29super involved

00:37:30with anything

00:37:32but the horses.

00:37:36Can I ask

00:37:37why I'm involved

00:37:39besides me

00:37:41having been

00:37:41in Elko?

00:37:43Well,

00:37:44we're...

00:37:45Seems like

00:37:45Dan's

00:37:46interest.

00:37:48It's an investigation

00:37:50and so

00:37:51we have to

00:37:53make contact

00:37:54with folks

00:37:55that we

00:37:56come across

00:37:57in the investigation.

00:37:59We're just

00:37:59trying to get

00:38:00the facts.

00:38:01That's it.

00:38:02Obviously,

00:38:03it's a death

00:38:04investigation.

00:38:05You also have

00:38:06his car here.

00:38:09So,

00:38:10I mean,

00:38:10can you understand

00:38:11why we're

00:38:11here talking

00:38:12to you

00:38:12and that's

00:38:14based on that?

00:38:15Yeah.

00:38:15No,

00:38:16I do understand.

00:38:18Simple explanation,

00:38:19said Samantha.

00:38:20Erin let her

00:38:21borrow the Audi

00:38:22because Samantha's

00:38:23sisters were in town

00:38:24and they were

00:38:25using her Subaru.

00:38:26In fact,

00:38:27she had taken

00:38:27the day off

00:38:28to meet up

00:38:29with her sisters

00:38:30who were at a hotel

00:38:31in Lake Tahoe.

00:38:32All perfectly innocent.

00:38:34The detectives

00:38:35wrapped up

00:38:36the conversation.

00:38:37Have a good day.

00:38:38Thanks,

00:38:38Samantha.

00:38:39Hi.

00:38:39And drove to the hotel

00:38:40in Lake Tahoe.

00:38:42They watched

00:38:43and waited.

00:38:44And there was

00:38:46Samantha,

00:38:47not with her sisters,

00:38:48but with Aaron

00:38:50and Dan.

00:38:51It started to raise

00:38:52a lot of questions

00:38:53of how deeply

00:38:55are they all connected

00:38:56and who's connected

00:38:57to who

00:38:57and what are they

00:38:59doing up here.

00:39:01Someone held

00:39:02the answers

00:39:02to those questions.

00:39:04Tell me about

00:39:04your relationship

00:39:05with Samantha.

00:39:21I idolized her.

00:39:22I thought she was

00:39:23the coolest person.

00:39:24Sarah Ross

00:39:25was barely a teenager

00:39:26when she met

00:39:27Aaron Spore.

00:39:28I was like,

00:39:29whoa,

00:39:29I was a bit starstruck.

00:39:30Aaron had built

00:39:31her career

00:39:32on riding

00:39:33feral horses

00:39:34and had become

00:39:35a bit of a celebrity

00:39:36in the event

00:39:36riding community.

00:39:38She was really,

00:39:39really brave.

00:39:40I think that was

00:39:40her biggest quality

00:39:41and it didn't really

00:39:42dawn on her

00:39:43to be afraid.

00:39:44In her mind,

00:39:44she could outmuscle it.

00:39:46She could make it

00:39:46do what she wanted to do.

00:39:48Sarah lived across

00:39:49from Aaron and Dan's

00:39:50barn in Rideau, Nevada

00:39:52when she joined

00:39:53Aaron's training program.

00:39:55She was almost more

00:39:56of a big sister

00:39:58type coach.

00:39:59So she was funny,

00:40:00she wanted to engage,

00:40:02but she also

00:40:03was pretty firm

00:40:04when she had to be.

00:40:06To help with the cost

00:40:07of the sport,

00:40:08Sarah often worked

00:40:09at Aaron's barn

00:40:10and it's how she met

00:40:11Samantha Scott.

00:40:13So I'd go schmobbing

00:40:14on the hay cart

00:40:15and we'd load bales

00:40:17and we'd just chit-chat

00:40:17and that kind of

00:40:19was our bonding.

00:40:20Sarah also saw

00:40:21the bond that developed

00:40:23between Samantha

00:40:24and Aaron.

00:40:25It started just like

00:40:26a client,

00:40:26like anything,

00:40:27and then over time

00:40:28when that's kind of

00:40:30your circle,

00:40:30then you all kind of

00:40:31become friends

00:40:32and so they were

00:40:32quite close friends.

00:40:34Dan was part

00:40:35of that circle too.

00:40:37He'd come to the horse

00:40:37shows when he could,

00:40:39he'd be out there

00:40:40fixing fences,

00:40:41he really cared

00:40:42about the horses

00:40:42themselves.

00:40:43Together,

00:40:44Dan and Aaron

00:40:44were a good time.

00:40:46Everybody gravitated

00:40:47towards them.

00:40:48They were just fun

00:40:50to be around

00:40:50and they had

00:40:51these massive

00:40:52personalities.

00:40:55Was that what was

00:40:56going on when

00:40:57Detective saw Samantha

00:40:58with Aaron and Dan

00:40:59at that hotel

00:41:00in Lake Tahoe?

00:41:01Friends just

00:41:02hanging out

00:41:03a little less

00:41:05than a month

00:41:05after the shooting?

00:41:07Detectives watched

00:41:08from a distance,

00:41:09saw them walking

00:41:10around the property.

00:41:12It started to raise

00:41:13a lot of questions

00:41:14of how deeply

00:41:15are they all connected

00:41:16and who's connected

00:41:17to who

00:41:18and what are they

00:41:19doing up here?

00:41:20So they asked Dan

00:41:22to come in

00:41:22for another round

00:41:23of questions.

00:41:24This time he brought

00:41:25his attorney.

00:41:27Detective Meyer

00:41:27confronted Dan

00:41:28about being with

00:41:29Samantha the night

00:41:30before the murder.

00:41:31We went to the Red Lion

00:41:32and you were there

00:41:33with Sam.

00:41:34I know, I was.

00:41:35But you didn't tell us

00:41:36that that night.

00:41:36You said you're off

00:41:37with co-workers,

00:41:37you were doing your thing.

00:41:38But that's not a lie,

00:41:39that's my personal life.

00:41:40He was indignant,

00:41:44didn't feel like

00:41:45it was a big issue,

00:41:46kind of like it was

00:41:47my business,

00:41:47you don't need

00:41:48to know about it.

00:41:49Okay, I'm not saying

00:41:49it's a lie,

00:41:51but it's when you

00:41:53kind of sell it one way

00:41:54and then we find

00:41:56out it's another.

00:41:56And like I told you

00:41:57that day,

00:41:58I am not the marriage police.

00:41:59You couldn't ask me

00:42:00any questions at all

00:42:02and I would have

00:42:03told you more

00:42:03if you asked more.

00:42:05But my personal life

00:42:06is my personal life.

00:42:09Just so I know,

00:42:09are you and Sam

00:42:10in a relationship?

00:42:11Absolutely not.

00:42:12Was that an affair

00:42:14that was up that night?

00:42:15What was it

00:42:16that was up there?

00:42:17Sam and I are not

00:42:18having an affair at all.

00:42:19Okay.

00:42:20Just like Samantha said,

00:42:22they were going to buy

00:42:23a truck for Aaron

00:42:24and that was it.

00:42:26And the day of the shooting,

00:42:27he insisted,

00:42:28he was long gone,

00:42:29miles and miles away

00:42:31in his trailer

00:42:31in Crescent Valley.

00:42:33I laid in bed,

00:42:35passed out pretty much

00:42:36the whole,

00:42:37the whole life.

00:42:38Okay.

00:42:39What did you see?

00:42:40And I'll tell you

00:42:40even what I took.

00:42:41I took two Vicodin,

00:42:43a shot at NyQuil Z

00:42:44and two Tylenol PMs

00:42:47and then laid them,

00:42:48benched out on my bed.

00:42:50And of course,

00:42:51that phone of his

00:42:51backed him up,

00:42:52put him a four and a half

00:42:54hour drive away

00:42:54from where his in-laws

00:42:55were murdered.

00:42:56So that was that.

00:42:59They let him leave.

00:43:01And months went by

00:43:04until in the fall of 2021,

00:43:08Samantha's phone records

00:43:09came back and our phones

00:43:13can reveal a thing or two,

00:43:14which is why detectives

00:43:16invited Samantha

00:43:17for another talk.

00:43:19I'm happy to answer

00:43:20your questions.

00:43:21There's a lot of details

00:43:21that we would like to know,

00:43:23things that only the people

00:43:25in that inner circle will know.

00:43:27Like, for example,

00:43:28her actual relationship

00:43:30with Dan.

00:43:31I'm very close with Aaron

00:43:33and I'm very close with Dan.

00:43:38We didn't,

00:43:40well, there's a recent

00:43:41flirtation going on.

00:43:43I'm sure you will see

00:43:44my phone.

00:43:45With Dan?

00:43:46Mm-hmm.

00:43:46Okay, not Aaron?

00:43:47No, not with Aaron.

00:43:49And we always joke around

00:43:51that we're like a throuple

00:43:52because he always complains

00:43:54that he has two wives.

00:43:55By now, detectives

00:43:57had told Samantha

00:43:58they had her phone records.

00:44:00And maybe that's why

00:44:01her story about the day

00:44:02of the murder

00:44:03was about to change.

00:44:05I left the Red Lion.

00:44:07I went to Crescent Valley.

00:44:09Well, well.

00:44:10She didn't spend the day

00:44:11at the hotel after all.

00:44:13And what did you do there?

00:44:15In Crescent Valley.

00:44:16I was just there momentarily

00:44:18and then I left

00:44:19and went to Tahoe.

00:44:20Okay, and you were

00:44:21by yourself?

00:44:22No, I went with Dan.

00:44:24Dan, you went with you

00:44:25to Tahoe.

00:44:27There it was.

00:44:29She confirmed

00:44:30what her phone record showed,

00:44:32that her cell phone

00:44:33traveled from Dan's trailer

00:44:34to Lake Tahoe

00:44:35and Dan was with her.

00:44:37Okay, so you guys

00:44:38drove together?

00:44:39Correct.

00:44:40Was he ever

00:44:40out of your sight?

00:44:41Yes.

00:44:43Samantha said

00:44:44she dropped off Dan

00:44:45in the afternoon

00:44:46near the shops

00:44:47in Tahoe City,

00:44:48about four miles

00:44:49away from Gary

00:44:50and Wendy's house.

00:44:51And she waited for hours

00:44:53until Dan returned.

00:44:55He just said to wait

00:44:57and pick up his package

00:44:58and he said, okay?

00:44:59She believed,

00:45:00she said,

00:45:00that he was there

00:45:01to pick up cocaine.

00:45:03So the digital evidence

00:45:05doesn't support

00:45:06what you're saying,

00:45:06unfortunately.

00:45:07Her phone put her

00:45:09much closer

00:45:09to the crime scene.

00:45:11Did you see him

00:45:11with a gun?

00:45:12I did not.

00:45:13Samantha said

00:45:14she didn't believe

00:45:14Dan had anything

00:45:15to do with the shooting.

00:45:17To which the detective replied,

00:45:20I don't buy that story

00:45:21whatsoever.

00:45:21You are in a lot of trouble.

00:45:23This does not make sense.

00:45:25And something else

00:45:26that didn't make sense?

00:45:27Did he tell you

00:45:28to turn your phone off?

00:45:29No.

00:45:30Yes.

00:45:31He did tell me

00:45:32to turn my phone off.

00:45:32Okay.

00:45:33Okay.

00:45:33Samantha.

00:45:34I'm sorry.

00:45:35I know it's fine.

00:45:36We're not judging you.

00:45:37This is scary,

00:45:38but you have to be honest.

00:45:40Samantha said

00:45:40Dan told her

00:45:41to turn off her phone

00:45:42hours before

00:45:43they made it into Tahoe

00:45:45and she did

00:45:46or thought she did.

00:45:49She made the mistake

00:45:50of presumably

00:45:52just killing off

00:45:53the screen on the phone

00:45:54and did not turn off

00:45:56the power off

00:45:57the entire phone

00:45:58and it left

00:46:00a digital breadcrumb trail

00:46:02from beginning to end.

00:46:05Detective Meyer

00:46:06and his team

00:46:07watched the interview

00:46:08on FaceTime

00:46:09while they stood by

00:46:10with a search warrant

00:46:11near Dan's trailer

00:46:12in Crescent Valley.

00:46:13We were hopefully

00:46:15going to switch

00:46:15from just doing

00:46:16a search warrant

00:46:17out there

00:46:18to maybe we're going

00:46:20to be able

00:46:21to make the arrest.

00:46:21But Samantha

00:46:22didn't give up

00:46:23anything more.

00:46:24How did that

00:46:25change your

00:46:27thinking about the case?

00:46:28We knew at that point

00:46:30we were on the right track

00:46:31that we had him.

00:46:32We knew that

00:46:33she had just put him there.

00:46:35She had just put Danny there.

00:46:36But now we had

00:46:37the finish line in sight.

00:46:38We were ready

00:46:38to finish it.

00:46:39That finish line

00:46:40was further

00:46:42than it seemed.

00:46:57Well, investigators

00:46:58worked on building

00:46:59a stronger case

00:47:00against Dan and Samantha.

00:47:02Wendy was trying

00:47:03to rebuild her life.

00:47:04She had survived

00:47:05multiple gunshots

00:47:07to the head

00:47:07and now she was

00:47:08doing all she could

00:47:09to regain her strength

00:47:11and her memory.

00:47:12Did it seem to you

00:47:13as if she would

00:47:14make a full recovery

00:47:15physically and mentally?

00:47:17I was very hopeful.

00:47:19It had that feeling

00:47:20that she was getting

00:47:22better by the day.

00:47:23Wendy's rehabilitation

00:47:24was long and strenuous.

00:47:27It was a miracle, Wendy.

00:47:28Her daughter, Adrienne,

00:47:29released video

00:47:30of her progress.

00:47:31Reporter Michelle Bendur.

00:47:33Video of her

00:47:34riding a bike,

00:47:35learning how to walk again,

00:47:37learning how to speak again.

00:47:38Like she had this fight

00:47:40to live.

00:47:41Amazing she survived it,

00:47:43really.

00:47:43Amazing.

00:47:44And she kept up

00:47:45with the investigation.

00:47:46I spoke to her

00:47:47almost every day.

00:47:49Oh, really?

00:47:49Okay.

00:47:50Me and Wendy,

00:47:51we developed

00:47:52kind of a friendship.

00:47:53Wendy told

00:47:54Detective Meyer

00:47:55quite a bit

00:47:56about Adrienne's sister,

00:47:57Erin,

00:47:58and brother-in-law,

00:47:59Dan,

00:48:00and their financial issues.

00:48:02They were taking more

00:48:03from Gary and Wendy

00:48:04than Adrienne ever had.

00:48:06During a recorded

00:48:07phone call

00:48:08with detectives,

00:48:09Wendy described

00:48:10her frustration.

00:48:12They were very

00:48:13needy for money

00:48:14and all the time.

00:48:16There was always

00:48:17something,

00:48:18and then,

00:48:18you know,

00:48:19we would

00:48:20help them out.

00:48:22In fact,

00:48:23on the day

00:48:23of the shooting,

00:48:24Gary and Wendy

00:48:25forked over

00:48:25a rather hefty sum.

00:48:27I believe it was

00:48:27a $90,000 check

00:48:29that Erin was given

00:48:30prior to leaving

00:48:31the residence.

00:48:32So,

00:48:33the money was

00:48:34absolutely flowing in.

00:48:36Detectives learned

00:48:36that sometimes

00:48:37the money was

00:48:38a gift

00:48:38and other times

00:48:40a loan.

00:48:41Either way,

00:48:42it was a lifeline

00:48:43for the couple.

00:48:44At one point,

00:48:45Danny had one

00:48:46failed business venture,

00:48:47a bar in the

00:48:49Reno Sparks area

00:48:50that fell through.

00:48:52By the time

00:48:53of the shooting,

00:48:54Dan and Erin

00:48:54owed hundreds

00:48:55of thousands

00:48:56of dollars

00:48:56to her parents.

00:48:57There had been

00:48:58intense fights

00:48:59and sometimes

00:49:01estrangement.

00:49:02Her mother

00:49:02cut her off

00:49:03so many times

00:49:04throughout her life.

00:49:05You know,

00:49:05would cut her off

00:49:06and then bring her

00:49:06back in.

00:49:07Did those heated

00:49:08arguments lead

00:49:09to murder?

00:49:10Wendy started

00:49:11to believe

00:49:12they did.

00:49:13She began

00:49:14to remember

00:49:15things, right?

00:49:15Gradually?

00:49:16She was trying to.

00:49:18Like maybe

00:49:18she saw

00:49:20Danny.

00:49:21Yes.

00:49:22This is Wendy

00:49:23almost a year

00:49:25after the shooting

00:49:25on the phone

00:49:26with the detective.

00:49:28I had the memory

00:49:29come back.

00:49:30I felt that

00:49:31someone was

00:49:31in the house

00:49:32and I looked

00:49:34up and saw

00:49:34Danny

00:49:35with a hoodie

00:49:35on.

00:49:36How clear

00:49:37do you remember

00:49:38it?

00:49:38Very clear.

00:49:40I remember

00:49:40him walking

00:49:41over and

00:49:43seeing him

00:49:44shooting Gary

00:49:45and then pointing

00:49:46the gun at me.

00:49:47It sounded

00:49:48credible,

00:49:49but given

00:49:50her brain injury,

00:49:51were her statements

00:49:52actual memories?

00:49:54Or a mixture

00:49:55of things

00:49:56she had heard

00:49:56from friends

00:49:57and family?

00:49:58Wendy herself

00:49:59wasn't sure.

00:50:00But she was

00:50:01suspicious enough

00:50:02of Dan

00:50:02and her daughter

00:50:03that she revised

00:50:05her will

00:50:05and disinherited

00:50:07Aaron.

00:50:07The more lucid

00:50:08she had become,

00:50:09the more involved

00:50:10she had become,

00:50:11the more engaging,

00:50:12also the more

00:50:13frustrated she had

00:50:13become.

00:50:14Equally frustrated

00:50:15was her daughter,

00:50:16Adrienne,

00:50:17who'd also become

00:50:18suspicious of Dan

00:50:19and her sister.

00:50:21Sergeant Tyler

00:50:21Near, a new

00:50:22supervisor of

00:50:23investigations assigned

00:50:24to work with

00:50:25Detective Meyer,

00:50:26spoke with her.

00:50:27She wanted

00:50:28something done

00:50:29and she wanted

00:50:30justice for her

00:50:31parents.

00:50:32And life was

00:50:33not easy.

00:50:35Wendy had

00:50:36improved physically,

00:50:37but mentally

00:50:39she was struggling.

00:50:41And nearly

00:50:42two years

00:50:42after the shooting,

00:50:44Detective Meyer

00:50:44received a call

00:50:45from Adrienne.

00:50:47She said,

00:50:49my mom

00:50:50killed herself

00:50:51and I blame

00:50:52you for it.

00:50:54To be accused

00:50:55of being responsible.

00:50:57She's dead,

00:50:58she killed herself,

00:50:59it's your fault.

00:50:59It was my fault

00:51:00because we didn't

00:51:02solve the crime

00:51:03and she felt

00:51:03that it was never

00:51:04going to be done.

00:51:06What was that like

00:51:07physically, emotionally

00:51:08to get that call?

00:51:10It hurt.

00:51:14It made me angry.

00:51:16I was sad

00:51:17because I'd gotten

00:51:18to know Wendy

00:51:19and to know

00:51:20that she had taken

00:51:21in her life

00:51:21in her life.

00:51:22That hurt.

00:51:23It threw it

00:51:23pretty hard, huh?

00:51:25It hit,

00:51:28yeah,

00:51:29it hit really hard.

00:51:31A few months later

00:51:32on the second

00:51:32anniversary

00:51:33of Gary's murder,

00:51:35Adrienne filed

00:51:35a wrongful death

00:51:36lawsuit alleging

00:51:37what she had come

00:51:38to believe,

00:51:39that both Dan

00:51:40and Aaron

00:51:41were responsible

00:51:42for the shooting.

00:51:44Placer County

00:51:45District Attorney

00:51:45Morgan Geyer.

00:51:47Did you believe

00:51:48that Aaron

00:51:48was involved

00:51:49in this

00:51:49in a substantial way?

00:51:51I do.

00:51:52What things stand

00:51:53out for you?

00:51:54Well, the most obvious

00:51:55being the timing

00:51:56of the murder

00:51:57of Gary Spore

00:52:00and the shooting

00:52:00of Wendy Wood.

00:52:01Aaron was there

00:52:02that day.

00:52:03Aaron went out

00:52:04on the boat

00:52:05with her children

00:52:06and her parents.

00:52:07Almost a two-hour window,

00:52:09the shooter used

00:52:09to slip into Gary

00:52:10and Wendy's home

00:52:11and wait.

00:52:13Aaron responded

00:52:14with her own lawsuit,

00:52:16denying any involvement

00:52:17with the attack

00:52:18against her parents.

00:52:19She alleged

00:52:20that was a lie

00:52:22Adrienne used

00:52:23to turn Wendy

00:52:24against her.

00:52:25Aaron is accusing

00:52:26Adrienne of cutting

00:52:27them out of the will

00:52:29and of taking advantage

00:52:30of her mother.

00:52:30The allegation

00:52:31was essentially

00:52:32that she had manipulated

00:52:33her mother

00:52:33into disinheriting

00:52:34and she filed a lawsuit

00:52:36to get to the bottom of it.

00:52:38How did all this

00:52:39complicate your investigation?

00:52:40For me,

00:52:41I treated it a lot

00:52:42as kind of noise,

00:52:42but I wasn't allowing

00:52:44it really to influence

00:52:46the investigation

00:52:47or influence

00:52:47any direction.

00:52:49By then,

00:52:50they'd found

00:52:50a key piece of evidence.

00:52:52It was video

00:52:53of Samantha

00:52:54on the day

00:52:55of the shooting,

00:52:55walking to her

00:52:57parked Subaru

00:52:57at 8 p.m.,

00:52:59a mile and a half

00:53:00from Gary and Wendy's home.

00:53:02She waited there

00:53:03until dark.

00:53:04And then,

00:53:0424 minutes after

00:53:06the shooter left

00:53:06the crime scene,

00:53:07headed in her direction,

00:53:09We could see

00:53:10the dome light

00:53:11turn on

00:53:12and presumably

00:53:13that's when

00:53:14he had gotten

00:53:15in the vehicle

00:53:16and they drove away.

00:53:18The last piece

00:53:19of the timeline puzzle.

00:53:22But before detectives

00:53:24could make an arrest,

00:53:25there was still

00:53:25something they needed

00:53:26to do.

00:53:27Really closing

00:53:28those doors

00:53:28on other people

00:53:30that could have been

00:53:30suspects or named

00:53:31as potential suspects

00:53:32to really paint

00:53:33the picture

00:53:34beyond a reasonable doubt

00:53:35that it couldn't be

00:53:36anybody else

00:53:37responsible for this.

00:53:38Seven months

00:53:39after Wendy's death,

00:53:40they believed

00:53:41they had done

00:53:42just that.

00:53:42Today we arrested

00:53:4339-year-old

00:53:44Danny Serafini

00:53:45and 33-year-old

00:53:46Samantha Scott.

00:53:47The case was

00:53:48finally ready

00:53:49to prosecute.

00:53:52Detectives called

00:53:53Adrian to share

00:53:54the news.

00:53:55And we called her

00:53:57and told her,

00:53:57It's done.

00:53:58We got him.

00:53:59And she just screamed.

00:54:01She screamed

00:54:02in excitement

00:54:03and told her boyfriend

00:54:05that was with her,

00:54:06that it was done,

00:54:07that they finally

00:54:08got him.

00:54:09Why did you never

00:54:10arrest Aaron

00:54:11or charge her?

00:54:13There was no evidence

00:54:14that pointed at Aaron

00:54:16or showed Aaron

00:54:17had any culpability.

00:54:19After the arraignments,

00:54:20Adrian talked to reporters

00:54:21about her brother-in-law.

00:54:23I think he is violent.

00:54:26And I think he is greedy.

00:54:28And I am just so thankful

00:54:31that Placer County

00:54:32has taken him

00:54:33into custody

00:54:33because that's

00:54:34where he should be.

00:54:35The former Major League

00:54:37Baseball player

00:54:38was about to face

00:54:39a jury

00:54:39and an unexpected

00:54:41star witness

00:54:42would take center stage.

00:54:59Dan Serafini and Samantha Scott

00:55:02were in jail,

00:55:02accused of murder

00:55:04and attempted murder.

00:55:05By January 2025,

00:55:07they'd been there 15 months.

00:55:09And Samantha?

00:55:10She'd had a change of heart

00:55:12and sat down with investigators

00:55:14to tell them everything.

00:55:17What did she say

00:55:18that was different

00:55:18than what she'd said before?

00:55:19Most importantly,

00:55:21she told us

00:55:22what instructions

00:55:23she had received from him

00:55:24to keep her phone off,

00:55:25to keep her mouth shut.

00:55:27And she indicated

00:55:27that he had a gun with him

00:55:29and had even test-fired

00:55:30that gun and silencer

00:55:31on their drive

00:55:32from Nevada

00:55:33to Lake Tahoe.

00:55:35And then,

00:55:36after Dan shot

00:55:37Gary and Wendy,

00:55:38said Samantha,

00:55:39as they were driving

00:55:40back to Dan's trailer,

00:55:42she saw him

00:55:43throw the gun,

00:55:44the silencer,

00:55:45the backpack,

00:55:45and some shoes

00:55:46out of the car.

00:55:48By the time investigators

00:55:50looked for that evidence,

00:55:51it was gone,

00:55:52but Samantha's sworn statement

00:55:54would be enough.

00:55:56We were already preparing

00:55:57to try him

00:55:58without that testimony

00:55:59because the evidence

00:56:00showed that he did it.

00:56:01But this provided corroboration

00:56:05to a lot of other

00:56:05pieces of evidence.

00:56:07Samantha agreed

00:56:08to plead guilty

00:56:09to being an accessory

00:56:10after the fact

00:56:11and she got to go home.

00:56:13Well, with a new accessory

00:56:14of her own,

00:56:15an ankle monitor.

00:56:17Four months later,

00:56:19May 2025,

00:56:21Dan Serafini went on trial

00:56:22and prosecutor Rick Miller

00:56:24opened with something

00:56:25Dan told his brother.

00:56:27I'll pay $20,000

00:56:28to have them killed.

00:56:30That is how

00:56:31the trial started.

00:56:32Well, he certainly

00:56:33didn't bury the headline,

00:56:34did he?

00:56:36No, he did not.

00:56:37He got everyone's attention.

00:56:39The prosecutor said

00:56:40Dan's hatred

00:56:41toward his in-laws

00:56:42started years earlier.

00:56:44There were these

00:56:44very contentious emails

00:56:46that the jury heard.

00:56:48One exchange

00:56:49was from 2016

00:56:50when they were arguing

00:56:51over a multi-million dollar ranch

00:56:53they'd helped purchase

00:56:54for Aaron and Dan.

00:56:56The prosecutor quoted

00:56:57from Dan's email

00:56:58to Wendy.

00:56:59Take the f***ing house.

00:57:01But if Gary ever says

00:57:02f*** you to me again,

00:57:04I will knock him

00:57:04the f*** out.

00:57:05Three months

00:57:06before the shooting,

00:57:07there were more.

00:57:08This one,

00:57:09after a disagreement

00:57:10over the couple's kids,

00:57:12Wendy wrote to Aaron,

00:57:13Danny's disdain for us

00:57:15is right to the surface,

00:57:16so he enjoyed berating us.

00:57:18They fought a lot.

00:57:20They fought a lot.

00:57:21They did.

00:57:22A lot of fighting.

00:57:23This was way more

00:57:25than just keyboard warriors.

00:57:28Dan said he wanted them killed

00:57:29and then set out

00:57:30to do that very thing,

00:57:32said the prosecutor.

00:57:33He would have stood

00:57:34to inherit

00:57:34quite a bit of money

00:57:36with his wife,

00:57:37but he didn't want to wait.

00:57:39He wanted it now

00:57:40and he didn't want

00:57:41any strings attached.

00:57:42And it all came to a head

00:57:44on June 5th, 2021,

00:57:46the day Wendy and Gary

00:57:47went boating

00:57:48with Aaron and her boys.

00:57:49The prosecutor showed

00:57:51that video of a figure

00:57:52walking toward the house

00:57:54and told the jurors

00:57:55to focus on the person's gait.

00:57:57What was it about the walk?

00:57:59Well, it was described

00:58:00as a sort of swagger

00:58:01with maybe a little bit

00:58:03of a limp.

00:58:03Sure.

00:58:05And then they had

00:58:06another video

00:58:06of Dan Serafini

00:58:08in the lobby

00:58:09of the Red Lion

00:58:10in Elko, Nevada

00:58:11the day before the shootings.

00:58:13Was the walk the same?

00:58:15Well, you'd have to look

00:58:16for yourself,

00:58:17but the prosecution

00:58:18said the walk

00:58:18was the same.

00:58:19Had to be Dan,

00:58:21the prosecutor said,

00:58:22because anybody else

00:58:23would have seen

00:58:24the SUV in the driveway

00:58:25and would have thought

00:58:26somebody was home.

00:58:28No one was home,

00:58:29of course.

00:58:30So Dan entered

00:58:31the garage code

00:58:32and walked right in.

00:58:34Then,

00:58:35just over an hour

00:58:36after Aaron drove off

00:58:37with the kids,

00:58:38the jurors heard

00:58:39the five gunshots.

00:58:44Before leaving,

00:58:45Dan put a bag

00:58:46of dog food out

00:58:47because he thought

00:58:47the bodies

00:58:48wouldn't be discovered

00:58:49for days,

00:58:49said the prosecutor.

00:58:51It was all carefully planned,

00:58:53he told the jury.

00:58:54Dan purposely left

00:58:55his phone

00:58:56in his trailer

00:58:57300 plus miles away

00:58:59so there wouldn't

00:59:00be a digital trail.

00:59:01His phone has a really good

00:59:03rock-solid alibi.

00:59:06That phone never moved.

00:59:07Zero steps,

00:59:10zero outgoing communication,

00:59:12everything goes to voicemail.

00:59:14Then the prosecutor

00:59:15called his star witness,

00:59:17Samantha Scott.

00:59:19She described what she saw

00:59:20on that drive

00:59:21to Lake Tahoe,

00:59:22the gun,

00:59:23the silencer,

00:59:24the backpack,

00:59:25and something Dan

00:59:26later revealed

00:59:28about that day.

00:59:29He allegedly confessed

00:59:31to Samantha

00:59:32that he shot Wendy.

00:59:34She also told the jury

00:59:35that Dan threatened

00:59:36to shoot her family

00:59:37if she said anything

00:59:39to anyone.

00:59:40By the fall of 2021,

00:59:43months after the murder,

00:59:44Samantha said,

00:59:46they were having an affair

00:59:47that continued

00:59:48even after they were

00:59:50both arrested.

00:59:51He told her

00:59:52he was in love with her

00:59:53while they were in jail

00:59:54and sent her

00:59:55what they call

00:59:56kites in jail.

00:59:57This is a slang term

00:59:59for sending messages

01:00:00between inmates.

01:00:02And that,

01:00:03said the prosecutor,

01:00:04was part of the plan.

01:00:06He knows she's loyal.

01:00:09He knows she's in love

01:00:11with him.

01:00:12Everything he's,

01:00:14that she has done

01:00:15indicates that.

01:00:18And yeah,

01:00:19even as I'm talking

01:00:20right now,

01:00:21the flame on that candle

01:00:23has not even begun

01:00:25to flicker.

01:00:25She still admitted

01:00:27she was feeling guilty

01:00:28for testifying

01:00:29because she was still

01:00:30had feelings for him.

01:00:32Then the prosecutor

01:00:33called Aaron

01:00:33and asked her

01:00:35about Dan's relationship

01:00:36with Samantha.

01:00:37Aaron said she knew

01:00:38of the sexual relationship.

01:00:40That didn't make her upset,

01:00:42but she was more upset

01:00:43that there were emotional

01:00:44feelings that she was

01:00:45finding out about.

01:00:46That's what upset her.

01:00:48She had once

01:00:49considered Samantha

01:00:50a friend,

01:00:51but now,

01:00:52she said,

01:00:52she no longer

01:00:53trusted her.

01:00:54And unlike Samantha,

01:00:56Aaron had not

01:00:57turned on Dan.

01:00:59She testified

01:01:00for the prosecution

01:01:00and defended Dan.

01:01:02Correct.

01:01:02She defended her husband

01:01:03at the trial,

01:01:05saying,

01:01:06there's no way

01:01:08that was her husband

01:01:10in that video.

01:01:11Samantha and Aaron

01:01:12on the stand,

01:01:13the two of them.

01:01:13I'm interested in knowing

01:01:15from your observation

01:01:16of them,

01:01:17how they came across.

01:01:18They painted

01:01:18two separate pictures.

01:01:20Samantha had accepted defeat,

01:01:22both legally

01:01:23and existentially,

01:01:24and understood

01:01:25that her job now

01:01:27was to connect the dots.

01:01:28Aaron was still

01:01:29in defense mode.

01:01:31She was still actively

01:01:32trying to thwart the truth,

01:01:34so you couldn't have

01:01:35two different perspectives

01:01:37in one courtroom.

01:01:39Or maybe three perspectives?

01:01:42Dan's defense attorney

01:01:43was about to paint

01:01:45an entirely different picture.

01:01:46And Dan Serafini

01:01:48wasn't in it.

01:01:50The person in the video

01:01:52is built differently

01:01:53than Danny

01:01:54because the person

01:01:55in that video

01:01:56is not Danny Serafini.

01:02:11The state had called

01:02:13Dan Serafini a killer.

01:02:15That,

01:02:16his attorney

01:02:17David Ratman said,

01:02:18was flat-out wrong.

01:02:21Danny Serafini

01:02:22did not shoot

01:02:23Gary Spore.

01:02:25Danny Serafini

01:02:26did not shoot

01:02:27Wendy Wood.

01:02:28That masked man

01:02:29in the video?

01:02:30That wasn't him,

01:02:32said the defense.

01:02:33The statue is different,

01:02:34and the person

01:02:36in the video

01:02:37is built differently

01:02:38than Danny

01:02:39because the person

01:02:40in that video

01:02:41is not Danny Serafini.

01:02:43The height was wrong.

01:02:44The weight was wrong.

01:02:46The walk was wrong.

01:02:47Not the same at all.

01:02:49And anyway,

01:02:49remember those phone records?

01:02:51He was many miles away

01:02:52in Nevada

01:02:52when that masked man

01:02:54shot Gary and Wendy.

01:02:55The defense suggested

01:02:56he could have been

01:02:57binge-watching

01:02:58something

01:02:59on his phone,

01:03:00shopping,

01:03:01sitting in his trailer

01:03:02in Crescent Valley.

01:03:02And remember,

01:03:04counsel,

01:03:04the defense attorney,

01:03:05there was no physical evidence,

01:03:07not a scrap,

01:03:08tying Dan

01:03:08to the Tahoe house

01:03:09on the day

01:03:10of the shooting.

01:03:11Besides,

01:03:12his wife Erin testified

01:03:13that Dan had no

01:03:14financial motive

01:03:16to kill her parents.

01:03:17These people

01:03:17were quite generous

01:03:18with Danny Serafini

01:03:20and his wife,

01:03:22their daughter,

01:03:23Erin.

01:03:24And if Dan killed them,

01:03:26he'd get nothing,

01:03:27not a cent.

01:03:29The evidence

01:03:30will also show

01:03:30that Danny Serafini

01:03:34was not a beneficiary

01:03:36of their will.

01:03:38He was not someone

01:03:40that was going

01:03:40to inherit.

01:03:41As for Samantha's testimony,

01:03:44she lied,

01:03:45said the defense,

01:03:46to save herself.

01:03:48That story

01:03:49is fantastic.

01:03:51That story

01:03:52is a story.

01:03:54It is

01:03:55a really

01:03:56great leap

01:03:57of faith

01:03:58here

01:04:00that the prosecution

01:04:01is asking you

01:04:03to believe.

01:04:05It's like,

01:04:06why would you kill

01:04:07the golden goose?

01:04:09Before jurors

01:04:10got the case,

01:04:11prosecutor Rick Miller

01:04:12left them

01:04:13with this message.

01:04:14You know why

01:04:14he did it.

01:04:16You know how

01:04:16he did it.

01:04:18You know his motive.

01:04:19You know his opportunity.

01:04:21You know his ability.

01:04:23There's a murderer

01:04:24in this room.

01:04:26He's sitting

01:04:26right there.

01:04:29And then

01:04:30they were sent away

01:04:31to deliberate.

01:04:33I've never

01:04:34experienced

01:04:35or been through

01:04:35anything like this

01:04:36before.

01:04:37Karen Schroeder,

01:04:38the jury foreperson,

01:04:39and two other jurors,

01:04:41Allie McKibben

01:04:42and Gracie Buttrick,

01:04:43took page after page

01:04:44of notes

01:04:45as they listened

01:04:46to the testimony

01:04:47and watched Ann.

01:04:49I spent the majority

01:04:50of the trial

01:04:52just watching him

01:04:53to try to see

01:04:54how he reacted

01:04:56to each and every witness

01:04:57and the evidence

01:04:59and just try to get

01:04:59a read on him

01:05:00but he seemed

01:05:01very stoic

01:05:02and disconnected.

01:05:03They paid attention

01:05:04to every word

01:05:05from Samantha Scott.

01:05:06Her recollection

01:05:07on the stand

01:05:08and compare that

01:05:10to what she had

01:05:10already told

01:05:11law enforcement.

01:05:12Really trying

01:05:13to pick through

01:05:14is she telling

01:05:15the truth?

01:05:17What is she lying about?

01:05:19And found

01:05:20Ann's wife Erin

01:05:21to be,

01:05:23well...

01:05:23For lack of a

01:05:24better word,

01:05:25frustrating.

01:05:25It was clear

01:05:27the second she

01:05:28got on that

01:05:29witness stand

01:05:30that her loyalties

01:05:32lied with her husband

01:05:33and you had to think

01:05:34he's up there

01:05:36accused of murdering

01:05:38your parents.

01:05:40That first day

01:05:41the jurors

01:05:42talked.

01:05:43No verdict.

01:05:44We didn't

01:05:45take a vote

01:05:46until

01:05:46the end

01:05:48of our second

01:05:49full day

01:05:49of deliberations.

01:05:51The vote

01:05:51was not

01:05:52unanimous.

01:05:53Were you surprised?

01:05:54They kept going on.

01:05:56I really thought

01:05:57it was going to be

01:05:57a very quick verdict

01:05:58and had to keep

01:05:59reminding myself

01:06:00the amount of evidence

01:06:01that they had to go

01:06:02through and the

01:06:02complexity of the case.

01:06:04So it kind of gave me

01:06:05that moment of peace

01:06:06to know it's

01:06:06we're going to get there

01:06:07it's just going to

01:06:08take a little while

01:06:08to get to where

01:06:09we need to.

01:06:10You hope?

01:06:11I hoped.

01:06:12The jurors took

01:06:13a closer look

01:06:14at the surveillance

01:06:14videos from

01:06:15the Red Lion

01:06:16and the Tahoe House

01:06:18and they took

01:06:19screenshots.

01:06:20There was

01:06:20parts where you

01:06:21could zoom in

01:06:22and so then we did

01:06:23side by side

01:06:24and looked

01:06:24could it be

01:06:25the same person?

01:06:26They looked at the

01:06:27shoes, the pants,

01:06:28the walk.

01:06:30We were like

01:06:31investigators.

01:06:32And finally

01:06:33on day four

01:06:35I understand the jury

01:06:36has reached a verdict.

01:06:37and years of grief

01:06:39and anger

01:06:40and tension

01:06:41gathered in the

01:06:42courtroom

01:06:42that moment.

01:06:44We the jury

01:06:45in the above

01:06:45entitled action

01:06:46find the defendant

01:06:47Daniel Joseph

01:06:48Serafini

01:06:49guilty.

01:06:50Guilty

01:06:51of first degree murder

01:06:52and attempted murder.

01:06:54The jurors

01:06:56were certain

01:06:56the figure in the video

01:06:58could only have been

01:06:59Dan Serafini.

01:07:01I felt

01:07:02100%

01:07:04that's him.

01:07:05No one was able

01:07:05to convince me

01:07:06it wasn't

01:07:07and nothing

01:07:09in the evidence

01:07:10could tell me

01:07:10that it wasn't.

01:07:11Today

01:07:12I wore my mom's

01:07:13engagement ring

01:07:14and my dad's ashes

01:07:17are around my neck

01:07:19and I knew

01:07:19that they were here

01:07:20with us today.

01:07:21Outside the courtroom

01:07:22Adrian Spohr

01:07:24was grateful.

01:07:25The Placer County

01:07:26District Attorney's

01:07:28Office

01:07:28and Sheriff's Office

01:07:29never gave up

01:07:31and today

01:07:32finally justice

01:07:33was served.

01:07:36Oh my gosh

01:07:37excitement

01:07:40tears

01:07:41of full

01:07:43kind of like

01:07:46four years

01:07:47just finally ended.

01:07:49Have you ever

01:07:49been this deeply

01:07:50emotionally connected

01:07:51with a case before?

01:07:53No.

01:07:54I've never had

01:07:55any case

01:07:56that

01:07:57just

01:07:58exhausted us

01:08:00mentally

01:08:00and emotionally

01:08:01to this degree

01:08:02and it was

01:08:04when it was done

01:08:05that relief

01:08:05was pretty awesome.

01:08:08Except

01:08:08it wasn't done.

01:08:11It wasn't.

01:08:12Because

01:08:13Dan Serafini

01:08:15simply refused

01:08:16to accept it

01:08:17and he found

01:08:18a new attorney

01:08:19who revealed

01:08:20a new piece

01:08:22of evidence.

01:08:22Danny

01:08:23it's Wendy

01:08:24I didn't get

01:08:25to tell you

01:08:26that I've

01:08:27been doing

01:08:28this electric

01:08:28therapy

01:08:29and I have

01:08:31a vision

01:08:31of the shooter.

01:08:32The DA said

01:08:33where'd you get that?

01:08:34Watch out.

01:08:50You know

01:08:51how it is

01:08:51the jury

01:08:52pronounces

01:08:53guilty

01:08:53and it's done

01:08:55cooked

01:08:56finished

01:08:57We begin

01:08:58with breaking news

01:08:59a jury

01:09:00has found

01:09:00former MLB

01:09:01pitcher

01:09:02Dan Serafini

01:09:02guilty of

01:09:03except this time

01:09:04it wasn't.

01:09:06Dan Serafini

01:09:07one time

01:09:08Major League

01:09:08Baseball pitcher

01:09:09now convicted

01:09:10murderer

01:09:11simply refused

01:09:12to accept

01:09:13the verdict.

01:09:14What the hell

01:09:15happened?

01:09:16I think

01:09:16what happened

01:09:17unfortunately

01:09:19for everyone

01:09:20is that

01:09:21due process

01:09:21never happened.

01:09:23Or you could say

01:09:24this guy

01:09:25is what happened.

01:09:26Dan swapped

01:09:27out his old lawyers

01:09:28for Barry Zimmerman

01:09:30and Zimmerman

01:09:32had a whole new

01:09:32play in mind.

01:09:34throw out

01:09:35his conviction

01:09:35and get

01:09:36Dan

01:09:37a new

01:09:37trial.

01:09:38Why?

01:09:40Two reasons

01:09:41he said.

01:09:42Reason one

01:09:43jury misconduct.

01:09:45What did the jury

01:09:46do that was so

01:09:47terrible?

01:09:47they decided

01:09:49they decided

01:09:49on their own

01:09:50dime

01:09:51to go through

01:09:52the video

01:09:53of the

01:09:54surveillance

01:09:55at the house

01:09:56and the video

01:09:57at the Red Lion

01:09:58and make

01:09:59screenshots

01:10:01and then compare

01:10:02screenshots

01:10:03to screenshots

01:10:04to see if

01:10:05they could match

01:10:06who they knew

01:10:07to be

01:10:07Danny Serafini

01:10:08at the Red Lion

01:10:09with the

01:10:10perpetrator.

01:10:11That

01:10:12Zimmerman said

01:10:13was outside

01:10:14the scope

01:10:14of the jury's

01:10:15role.

01:10:15I was shocked.

01:10:17I thought

01:10:17this is

01:10:18absolutely

01:10:19misconduct.

01:10:21And reason two?

01:10:22Zimmerman argued

01:10:23that Dan's

01:10:24trial attorneys

01:10:25had failed him

01:10:26given him

01:10:26a poor defense.

01:10:27For example

01:10:28Dan was pushing

01:10:29to go to trial

01:10:30but Zimmerman said

01:10:31his lawyers

01:10:32should have taken

01:10:32a pause

01:10:33and regrouped

01:10:34especially after

01:10:35learning that

01:10:36Samantha Scott

01:10:37had flipped.

01:10:38The responsible

01:10:39thing for

01:10:39his trial lawyers

01:10:41to have done

01:10:41at that moment

01:10:42was to say

01:10:44break's on

01:10:45we're not ready

01:10:46the cards

01:10:47have changed

01:10:48the table

01:10:49is now different

01:10:50we have

01:10:50Samantha Scott

01:10:51to deal with.

01:10:52Was Samantha Scott

01:10:53the key to it all?

01:10:54Yes

01:10:55absolutely.

01:10:56Zimmerman claimed

01:10:58Samantha was more

01:10:59involved than she

01:10:59let on.

01:11:00I don't view her

01:11:02as being some

01:11:03naive person

01:11:04who just

01:11:05happened to

01:11:05say I'll do

01:11:06whatever Danny

01:11:07Serafini tells me

01:11:08to do and I won't

01:11:09ask any questions.

01:11:10I don't buy that

01:11:11for a second.

01:11:12Also said Zimmerman

01:11:13Dan's attorneys

01:11:15should have let

01:11:16him testify.

01:11:17He's not a fool.

01:11:18He knew he had

01:11:19to testify

01:11:20especially when

01:11:22Samantha was going

01:11:24to testify against

01:11:25him.

01:11:25Come on he's

01:11:26his own agent

01:11:27he could testify

01:11:28if he really

01:11:28wanted to couldn't

01:11:29he?

01:11:29He could but

01:11:30when the pressure's

01:11:31on let me just

01:11:32kind of put you

01:11:32into this.

01:11:33You're facing life

01:11:34without the

01:11:35possibility of parole.

01:11:36You have two

01:11:37lawyers you've

01:11:37paid $400,000

01:11:38to.

01:11:39They're both

01:11:40telling you

01:11:40you can't

01:11:41testify it's

01:11:42a mistake

01:11:43you're going

01:11:43to lose.

01:11:44And Zimmerman

01:11:45argued the

01:11:45defense didn't

01:11:46call a single

01:11:47witness but

01:11:48should have

01:11:48called a

01:11:49neighbor who

01:11:50told investigators

01:11:51she saw Dan

01:11:52in Crescent

01:11:53Valley the day

01:11:53of the murder

01:11:54and a secret

01:11:55lover who told

01:11:56detectives she

01:11:58spent the day

01:11:58with Dan.

01:11:59I was with

01:12:00them all day

01:12:00Saturday and

01:12:02then went to

01:12:02work.

01:12:03Okay what did

01:12:04you guys do

01:12:04on Saturday?

01:12:06Um drank

01:12:08a bunch

01:12:08of disgusting

01:12:09wine.

01:12:11So Zimmerman

01:12:13got a hearing

01:12:14and they all

01:12:15assembled in

01:12:15the courtroom

01:12:16and Dan

01:12:17Serafini

01:12:17shuffled in

01:12:18his garish

01:12:19jail jumpsuit

01:12:20punctuation

01:12:21for a very

01:12:22unusual proceeding.

01:12:24For several

01:12:24days he

01:12:25testified about

01:12:26Samantha Scott

01:12:27and his

01:12:27complaints about

01:12:28his attorneys

01:12:28and with Dan

01:12:30on the stand

01:12:31Zimmerman revealed

01:12:32evidence the

01:12:33jury never

01:12:34heard.

01:12:35Danny it's

01:12:36Wendy I

01:12:37didn't get to

01:12:38tell you that

01:12:38I've been

01:12:39doing this

01:12:40electric therapy

01:12:41that allows me

01:12:42to recall

01:12:44visions and

01:12:44I have a

01:12:46vision of the

01:12:46shooter and

01:12:47it's not you.

01:12:48This was

01:12:49Wendy saying

01:12:50Dan was

01:12:51not the

01:12:52killer.

01:12:52That was

01:12:53powerful stuff.

01:12:54The DA

01:12:55said where'd

01:12:55you get that?

01:12:56Dramatic

01:12:56or

01:12:58maybe not.

01:13:00During his

01:13:00cross-examination

01:13:01the prosecutor

01:13:02played that

01:13:03other Wendy

01:13:04tape.

01:13:05Someone was

01:13:06in the house

01:13:07and I looked

01:13:09up and saw

01:13:09Danny with

01:13:10a hoodie on.

01:13:11He was able

01:13:12to show that

01:13:13Wendy knew

01:13:13exactly what

01:13:15Danny had

01:13:16done and at

01:13:17some points

01:13:17were keeping

01:13:18them close

01:13:18and making

01:13:19them believe

01:13:19that she

01:13:20didn't think

01:13:21that so that

01:13:22she could

01:13:22remain safe.

01:13:23She still

01:13:23remained fearful

01:13:24for her life

01:13:25up until the

01:13:26end.

01:13:27As for

01:13:27Dan's

01:13:28alibi

01:13:28witnesses

01:13:28the prosecutor

01:13:30said his

01:13:30neighbor had

01:13:31the date

01:13:31wrong and

01:13:33Dan told

01:13:33his lover

01:13:34to lie.

01:13:35The alibi

01:13:36witnesses would

01:13:36have ultimately

01:13:37provided more

01:13:38incriminating evidence

01:13:39against Mr.

01:13:40Serafini and

01:13:40arguably would

01:13:41have sped up

01:13:42that guilty

01:13:42verdict that he

01:13:43so justly

01:13:43deserved.

01:13:44So his

01:13:44original defense

01:13:45attorneys were

01:13:46right in

01:13:46withholding

01:13:47those people.

01:13:48They were

01:13:48absolutely right

01:13:49in withholding

01:13:50any evidence

01:13:50of the alibi.

01:13:51The prosecution

01:13:52argued Dan

01:13:53was simply

01:13:53having buyers

01:13:54of wars.

01:13:55And the jury

01:13:56did nothing

01:13:56wrong.

01:13:58Dan watched

01:13:58it all unfold.

01:14:00One more shot

01:14:01at another chance.

01:14:03And he had a lot

01:14:04to say about it.

01:14:05I think you need

01:14:06to stop

01:14:06with those questions

01:14:07because you keep

01:14:08implicating me

01:14:09and it's not me.

01:14:24from pitcher's mound

01:14:25to jail cell

01:14:26Dan Serafini's fall

01:14:28was as steep

01:14:29as they come.

01:14:30I thought about

01:14:30this case a lot.

01:14:31I wondered how

01:14:32somebody with all

01:14:33the talent

01:14:34and the advantages

01:14:35that you've got

01:14:35in life

01:14:35has wound up here.

01:14:37I'd love to

01:14:38understand it.

01:14:38Do you understand

01:14:39it?

01:14:40No, I don't

01:14:41understand it at all.

01:14:42I believed

01:14:43in the justice system

01:14:44and the justice system

01:14:45failed.

01:14:46Well, the justice system

01:14:47would say it didn't

01:14:48fail at all,

01:14:49that it was a good

01:14:49circumstantial case

01:14:50and when they laid

01:14:51it out, there was

01:14:51a lot of circumstantial

01:14:53stuff there.

01:14:54Some prosecutors

01:14:55say that's the best

01:14:56kind of case.

01:14:58Circumstantial case

01:14:58and I believe

01:14:59the circumstantial

01:15:00stuff that they had

01:15:01was just making

01:15:01up a story.

01:15:02They had no proof,

01:15:03no anything.

01:15:04This, Dan decided,

01:15:06it would be his

01:15:07only network interview.

01:15:08There was a time limit

01:15:10and jail rules

01:15:11required this

01:15:12somewhat awkward

01:15:13arrangement

01:15:13through a thick

01:15:14layer of glass.

01:15:15Dan told us

01:15:16he's behind bars

01:15:17because his trial

01:15:18attorneys did not

01:15:19mount a strong

01:15:20defense and

01:15:21the jury...

01:15:23They just didn't

01:15:23like me.

01:15:24They didn't like

01:15:24my lifestyle.

01:15:25They didn't like

01:15:27the way I acted

01:15:29in court,

01:15:29which I didn't

01:15:30act anyways.

01:15:31I sat there

01:15:32like I was supposed

01:15:32to because my

01:15:33lawyers told me to.

01:15:34Don't react.

01:15:35Don't respond.

01:15:37Sit there like

01:15:38nothing's bothering

01:15:38you.

01:15:39And I did.

01:15:40And I got crucified

01:15:41for it.

01:15:42And then there was

01:15:43the woman who

01:15:44turned against him.

01:15:45Tell me about

01:15:46your relationship

01:15:47with Samantha.

01:15:48Samantha was a

01:15:49very close

01:15:50family friend.

01:15:52We ended up

01:15:53kind of falling

01:15:54into a fling

01:15:55with each other.

01:15:56My wife and I

01:15:57live a certain

01:15:58lifestyle to where

01:16:00we do our own

01:16:01things when we're

01:16:02apart.

01:16:02Our rule was

01:16:04not to bring

01:16:05any drama

01:16:06home.

01:16:06I left town

01:16:08a lot for work.

01:16:09I was allowed

01:16:10to do what I

01:16:10wanted to do.

01:16:12I screwed up

01:16:13and made a

01:16:14horrible decision

01:16:15by being with

01:16:16Sam because

01:16:18I broke the

01:16:18rules and brought

01:16:19the drama home.

01:16:20She was too

01:16:20close to home

01:16:21to have that

01:16:22kind of relationship.

01:16:23She told detectives

01:16:25that you would

01:16:27shoot her family

01:16:28if she spoke

01:16:29up.

01:16:30Of course not.

01:16:32I would not do

01:16:33that.

01:16:33Sam was a big

01:16:34part of my life.

01:16:36Sam was never

01:16:36in danger.

01:16:37It all makes for

01:16:38a really good story.

01:16:40Dan's story

01:16:41was this.

01:16:43He partied

01:16:44with Samantha

01:16:44the night before

01:16:45the murder

01:16:46and then went

01:16:47back to his

01:16:47trailer the next

01:16:48morning.

01:16:49And Samantha

01:16:50came over

01:16:50later that day

01:16:51to pick up

01:16:51$25,000

01:16:53as arranged

01:16:54for what he

01:16:55called an

01:16:56investment.

01:16:57Samantha left

01:16:58with the money

01:16:59but he didn't

01:17:00go with her

01:17:00and he didn't

01:17:01shoot anybody.

01:17:02Why would

01:17:03Samantha say

01:17:04you did it?

01:17:05You committed

01:17:06the murder?

01:17:07Well because

01:17:08they scared her

01:17:09with 120 years

01:17:10in prison.

01:17:11I think anybody

01:17:11in this room

01:17:12would do the

01:17:12same thing.

01:17:13So you say

01:17:13she's lying down?

01:17:15You're saying

01:17:16that the authorities

01:17:17encouraged her

01:17:18to lie

01:17:19to get a case

01:17:20against you

01:17:21because they

01:17:21didn't know

01:17:21who else to

01:17:22charge?

01:17:22I mean who

01:17:22else would it

01:17:23be?

01:17:24I have no idea

01:17:25but that's not

01:17:25my job.

01:17:26My job isn't

01:17:27to prove who

01:17:28did it.

01:17:28My job was

01:17:29to prove that

01:17:30I didn't do it

01:17:31and there's

01:17:31nothing there

01:17:32to prove that

01:17:32I did it.

01:17:33The state

01:17:33argued it was

01:17:34Dan who was

01:17:35lying.

01:17:36The prosecutors

01:17:36would say you

01:17:37knew the way

01:17:38into the garage

01:17:38and you did.

01:17:40I mean you'd

01:17:40been there before.

01:17:41You knew the

01:17:42way into the

01:17:42house.

01:17:43You knew where

01:17:43you could hide

01:17:44while they were

01:17:44out doing whatever

01:17:45they were doing

01:17:45before they came

01:17:46back and it was

01:17:47time to act.

01:17:48You knew a lot

01:17:49of these things

01:17:49that nobody

01:17:50else would know.

01:17:51What do you say

01:17:51to those allegations?

01:17:53I'd say again

01:17:54that they're just

01:17:55guessing.

01:17:56I mean how hard

01:17:57is it to walk

01:17:57through a garage

01:17:58door?

01:17:59I mean they're

01:18:00saying that I knew

01:18:00how to get into

01:18:01the house.

01:18:01Of course everybody

01:18:02knows how to get

01:18:03into a house.

01:18:04No one can even

01:18:05prove that the

01:18:05garage door was

01:18:06open or closed.

01:18:08Understand?

01:18:09And then there

01:18:10was the man in

01:18:11that surveillance

01:18:11video.

01:18:12They can't say

01:18:13it's me.

01:18:14There's no way

01:18:14they can say

01:18:15it's me.

01:18:15They can't prove

01:18:16it's you but

01:18:16they've got this

01:18:17guy who looks

01:18:17kind of like you

01:18:18with your sort

01:18:19of walk walking

01:18:20on a surveillance

01:18:20camera and then

01:18:21they've got

01:18:21somebody who

01:18:22knows how to

01:18:23get into the

01:18:25I've got to be

01:18:26challenging because

01:18:27we don't have

01:18:27much time.

01:18:28I have to tell

01:18:28you.

01:18:29I think you need

01:18:30to stop with

01:18:30those questions.

01:18:31Why?

01:18:32Because you keep

01:18:33implicating me and

01:18:34it's not me.

01:18:35As for telling

01:18:36his brother he'd pay

01:18:37someone 20 grand

01:18:38to kill his

01:18:38in-laws?

01:18:40That brother

01:18:40testified, said

01:18:42Dan made the

01:18:43offer in jest.

01:18:44Not with me that.

01:18:46My brother was

01:18:47throwing daggers

01:18:48at me because

01:18:49it's him and I

01:18:49have a falling out

01:18:50after my mom

01:18:51passed away.

01:18:52I never mentioned

01:18:52that once to him.

01:18:54And that's on my

01:18:54kids, that's on my

01:18:55wife.

01:18:56And speaking of

01:18:57Erin, Dan said

01:18:58any suggestion that

01:18:59she was involved

01:19:00in some plot to

01:19:01have her parents

01:19:02killed was

01:19:03ridiculous.

01:19:04Erin didn't

01:19:05hate her parents.

01:19:06Erin didn't want

01:19:07her parents dead.

01:19:08I didn't want

01:19:08her parents dead.

01:19:09None of us did.

01:19:11And I think for

01:19:12people to believe

01:19:12that, that's the

01:19:13kind of society

01:19:14we're in.

01:19:15People want to

01:19:16think that I was

01:19:16broke.

01:19:17People wanted to

01:19:18think that I was

01:19:18a washed up

01:19:19baseball player

01:19:19that didn't have

01:19:20any money.

01:19:21I didn't need

01:19:22anybody's money.

01:19:23I paid my own

01:19:24bills.

01:19:24I did my own

01:19:25things.

01:19:26And I'm proud

01:19:27of the person

01:19:28that I am and

01:19:29that I became.

01:19:30I didn't have a

01:19:31superstar baseball

01:19:32career.

01:19:33I've been very

01:19:34successful and I'm

01:19:36proud of that and

01:19:36I won't hide from

01:19:37that.

01:19:38That was it.

01:19:40Our allotted time

01:19:41was up and Dan

01:19:42Serafini went back

01:19:43to his cell where

01:19:44he will remain in

01:19:45one cell or another

01:19:46for the rest of his

01:19:48life because the

01:19:50judge denied his

01:19:52motion for a new

01:19:53trial.

01:19:54At his sentencing,

01:19:56Adrian called Dan

01:19:57evil and a monster.

01:19:59For 10 years, Dan

01:20:01Serafini and Aaron

01:20:02Spohr treated my

01:20:04parents like a

01:20:04bottomless ATM.

01:20:06Between loans and

01:20:07gifts, my parents

01:20:09provided them with

01:20:10well over $2 million.

01:20:12But it was never

01:20:13enough.

01:20:15At one point, Dan's

01:20:17attorney asked,

01:20:18why kill the golden

01:20:19goose?

01:20:20And the answer was

01:20:21simple.

01:20:22They got tired of

01:20:23asking.

01:20:24Detective Meyer was

01:20:25in the courtroom

01:20:26watching Adrian

01:20:27deliver the words

01:20:28she had waited so

01:20:29long to say.

01:20:30Adrian gave you a

01:20:31hug of the

01:20:32sentencing, didn't

01:20:33she?

01:20:33She did.

01:20:40Sorry.

01:20:42That's okay.

01:20:42She did with,

01:20:44she actually did

01:20:44with me and my

01:20:47wife and kids were

01:20:48there and she ran

01:20:50over to them and

01:20:51gave them the,

01:20:52gave them a hug as

01:20:53well.

01:20:54She got to meet

01:20:55my family that

01:20:57sacrificed all their

01:20:58time while I tried

01:20:59to bring conclusion

01:21:00for her family.

01:21:01So it was kind of

01:21:02almost like we came

01:21:03full circle.

01:21:04Sure.

01:21:05And maybe that went

01:21:07some way toward

01:21:08repairing the terrible

01:21:09pain you felt about

01:21:11what she said.

01:21:12It absolutely did.

01:21:14One person not in

01:21:16attendance, Aaron

01:21:18Spohr, she filed for

01:21:20divorce, though she

01:21:21still stands by Dan.

01:21:23Dan's attorney read a

01:21:24statement Aaron wrote

01:21:26on Dan's behalf.

01:21:27He may be imperfect,

01:21:29but he is one of the

01:21:30most caring and

01:21:31generous people I have

01:21:33ever met in this

01:21:34world.

01:21:34The civil suits between

01:21:36Aaron and her sister

01:21:37have been privately

01:21:38resolved.

01:21:39Adrian's lawsuit

01:21:40against Dan is

01:21:41ongoing.

01:21:43As for Samantha

01:21:44Scott.

01:21:45I am deeply sorry

01:21:46to the families

01:21:47affected by this case

01:21:48and to the

01:21:49investigators who

01:21:50are trying to find

01:21:51she was sentenced to

01:21:53two years probation

01:21:54for aiding Dan.

01:21:58And 6,000 feet up in

01:22:00the Sierra Mountains,

01:22:01Lake Tahoe glimmers

01:22:02as it always has,

01:22:04deep and clear,

01:22:06and unmoved by the

01:22:08dramas that grip mere

01:22:09humans around its

01:22:11sylvan shores.

01:22:16And that's all for this

01:22:18edition of Dateline.

01:22:19Don't forget to check

01:22:20out our Talking Dateline

01:22:21podcast, which will go

01:22:23behind the scenes of

01:22:24tonight's episode,

01:22:26available Wednesday in

01:22:27the Dateline feed,

01:22:28wherever you get your

01:22:29podcasts.

01:22:30We'll see you again next

01:22:31Friday at 9, 8 central.

01:22:34I'm Lester Holt.

01:22:35For all of us at NBC

01:22:37News, good night.

Dateline NBC - Season 35 - Episode 10: On the Shores of Lake Tahoe Eng Sub

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