- 2 minutes ago
Murder on Trial - Season 1 Episode 8
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:07It's a murder mystery in Marion County.
00:10I'm really worried because my other half usually never disappears like this.
00:16Sheriff's office.
00:17There was two bedrooms there.
00:20Sheriff's office.
00:25The victim, Tim Smith, a prominent business executive.
00:29Did he have a secret life?
00:31He was left there naked, exposed.
00:34Inside, a sex studio.
00:37There was a swing, like a sex swing, with different items that could be used that were hanging on the
00:43wall.
00:44This was a residence that they used solely for the purpose of meeting up with other people and engaging in
00:49sexual activity.
00:50They're all on his either Adam for Adam account or his grinder, growler, stuff like that is what he uses.
00:57I think it's highly likely that one of these individuals killed Tim Smith.
01:05Detectives search for a motive.
01:07Hatred, greed, jealousy.
01:09The videos would tell the story.
01:36Mary County Public Safety.
01:37This is Nathan.
01:38Is this call an emergency?
01:39Um, no and yes, um...
01:42What's your name, sir?
01:43I'm sorry.
01:43My name is Herbert A. Swilley.
01:47Herbert Swilley was calling for a second day, trying to locate his husband, Tim Smith.
01:52I'm calling back based on yesterday, because I called and y'all did a wellness check for me.
01:58Okay.
01:59Um, on Timothy Floyd Smith.
02:02Okay.
02:03An officer had gone to the apartment the day before where Smith was thought to be, but no one answered
02:08the door.
02:09Sheriff's office.
02:11We can't force entry into this place.
02:13We don't have any reason to.
02:15Why don't you get a key and then, um, go in and check or we can come back.
02:48And, um...
02:56We called in because my other half haven't seen since late Thursday night when we went to bed.
03:04We didn't show up for work yesterday.
03:06They've called, they've texted.
03:09Everybody's called and texted.
03:10We don't actually live here.
03:11This is his secondary apartment that he uses for his massage studio and other stuff.
03:17But his jeep's been here.
03:18The girl's now saying for almost two to three days.
03:21It hasn't moved.
03:23And we can't get a hold of him.
03:24We've called.
03:25Y'all have called.
03:26Y'all did a wellness check yesterday.
03:28They can't, couldn't go in because I don't have a key.
03:30So, they told me to get a hold of the landlord.
03:32He actually has a key.
03:34But they told us not to go in.
03:37I'm not legally on the lease or anything.
03:39That's right.
03:40What's his name?
03:41Timothy Clarkson.
03:44But it's not like him because normally...
03:47He's the executive director at the Brookdale-Chamberl-Prank Castle.
03:50So, he's very responsible about it.
03:52You know, that's his job.
03:54He does everything.
03:56Yeah.
04:03He doesn't start medics this way.
04:16Sheriff's office.
04:26Sheriff's office.
04:42Sheriff's office.
04:55Sheriff's office.
05:17There was two bedrooms there.
05:19The bedroom on the right was where Tim was laying.
05:23He was laying deceased on the floor.
05:29My name is Daniel Pender.
05:30I'm a sergeant at the Marion County Sheriff's office.
05:33At the time this incident occurred, I was a detective assigned to the major crimes robbery homicide unit.
05:40I could see that he was partially clothed.
05:43I noticed immediately that there was a ligature mark that was around his neck.
05:47But there was no ligature in the room.
06:04The victim had been killed in a pretty brutal, nasty way.
06:12My name is Detective Carla Santana Palau, and I was one of the assisting detectives in this case.
06:17It was an all-hands-on bet.
06:19He was left there naked, exposed.
06:23You know, he had been strangled, and someone...
06:27It appeared as if someone had kicked him repeatedly in his groin area.
06:35Yeah.
06:36Go ahead.
06:37Go ahead.
06:39Signal 7.
06:40Signal 7 is police radio code for body found or fatality.
06:4710-4, Signal 7.
07:10He's a cooperative spouse that's just telling me any information that I'm asking of him.
07:17When's the last time you saw him?
07:19I went to bed on Thursday night, and I go to bed about 9.30.
07:24He finishes doing his medication.
07:27I would say about 11.00 I heard him get up.
07:33But that's not uncommon.
07:36Tim Smith, an executive at an assisted living facility, was beloved in the community.
07:41When I got the call that he was gone, and I just fell to my knees and screamed.
07:51My name is Candy Baker, and I was friends with Tim Smith.
07:56This is a man who volunteered his time, his heart, his soul to make people better, to heal.
08:05There wasn't a person he wouldn't help.
08:09Tim and Herb had been married for more than eight years, after Herb left his wife for Tim.
08:16They were committed to each other, because they'd been together for a long time.
08:20But they were okay with engaging in sexual acts with other people, some that they knew and some that they
08:26didn't know.
08:27They just seemed like such level-headed people, you know, to take such a big risk.
08:31You don't know who you're going to get, who's going to walk through that door.
08:35Smilly's daughter, Jordan, lived with the couple at their nearby home, and told detectives she thought she might have heard
08:41a noise, or Tim leaving that night.
08:45Is that normal or abnormal for Tim to leave?
08:48Um, I don't, like, it's not normal for him to leave that late in the night, and, like, especially not,
08:53like, come back.
08:54But there have been, like, times over the weeks and stuff, um, I guess ever since, like, they got this
08:59apartment,
09:00he would, like, sometimes call him home, like, at five or something, and just, like, leave for, like, 30 minutes
09:04or an hour, and come back randomly.
09:06And he would never say anything. Like, he was very secretive about everything.
09:14What we learned about this particular residence was that this wasn't the main residence for the victim or his spouse.
09:20This was a residence that they used solely for the purpose of meeting up with other people and engaging in
09:25sexual activity.
09:27So, um, this was like a playhouse for them.
09:30This is just his massage office, his, our playroom and stuff like that, because that's what this was set up
09:36for.
09:36So that way we could host parties occasionally, because we have a 20-year-old daughter, and he didn't want
09:42to do it at home.
09:43There was a swing, like a, like a sex swing, um, with different items that could be used that were
09:49hanging on the wall.
09:50I, I had never seen a, um, apartment or a location like this before.
09:56Do you know of anyone else that came over here that...
09:59I don't know who they are when he brings anybody over or anything like that.
10:03They're all on his, um, either Adam for Adam account or his Grindr, Growler, stuff like that is what he
10:08uses.
10:10He paints a picture and tells me a story of how Tim would meet up with other people
10:15and starts making indications that Tim might have met with someone
10:19and that something happened between him and some unknown person.
10:24I'll give you any information I can, everything I can and everything.
10:28So we just got to wait for detectives and stuff to get here and try to piece everything together
10:32so we can find out what's, what's going on exactly.
10:35If you know more, you'll know more.
10:36Yeah.
10:38Here's what it is.
10:40He never specifically ever said to me,
10:43Detective, what does it look like in there?
10:45He never said anything along those lines to ask what occurred to his husband that was in the floor in
10:51there.
10:51And Detective Pinder could not help but wonder why.
11:02Make some noise for the incredibly talented Miss Twyla Holiday.
11:07Pinder?
11:10Tim Smith and Herbert Swilley were regulars at drag queen shows across Florida,
11:15especially when Michael Orsini was performing as Twyla Holiday.
11:19I love the feathers, the sequins, the rhinestones, the furs.
11:25Hello, my name is Michael Orsini.
11:27I go by the professional name of Twyla Holiday.
11:31When it came to Tim, he was, he was definitely the life of the party.
11:34So if ever gave him the chance to get up, to move, to dance, to show off,
11:40he definitely took that opportunity.
11:41Tim performed under the name of Miss Augusta Wynn when he was in drag.
11:46His purple hair was signature.
11:48She was a hoot and a holler for sure.
11:50So Orsini says he was surprised when, after Tim's murder,
11:55Herb called him to get rid of Tim's drag costumes and complained about the detectives handling the case.
12:02He painted them in such a negative light.
12:06He said they were completely homophobic in the slurs they were talking negatively about him and his husband.
12:12They weren't giving them the attention that they needed to help find the murder because they were gay.
12:17And Swilly was telling other friends of the couple that Tim had been the victim of a gay hate crime.
12:22It made Tim look like this, you know, outlandish, horrible sex fiend.
12:30And that was not what they had.
12:33They had a swingers relationship, a swingers lifestyle, where they did things together.
12:40There was never a mention of doing single things, doing private things.
12:45And when Candy visited Swilly and his daughter Jordan, she saw bare floors where there had been rugs and became
12:53concerned they were throwing away all of Tim's photos and possessions.
12:58He said that, um, he was having the house that he always wanted as soon as he was done getting
13:06all this out.
13:08And I'm, I'm just in shock and inside I'm screaming, stop touching his stuff.
13:15I knew that there was something wrong.
13:17There was something very wrong.
13:21And the next day, Swilly called Candy when he and his daughter were at an AutoZone store.
13:28I said, what are you doing at AutoZone?
13:30It's almost like 8.30, 9 o'clock at night.
13:34He said, I'm getting cleaners.
13:36I'm going to clean the Jeep.
13:38And I said, no, don't clean the Jeep.
13:40What are you cleaning the Jeep for?
13:42He said, Candy, your fingerprints are in it.
13:44I don't want you to be a suspect.
13:46I said, I'm not going to be a suspect.
13:48I didn't hurt anyone.
13:50He said, I don't want anybody involved in this.
13:53I'm going to clean the Jeep.
13:55Detectives had asked Swilly to bring in the Jeep the next day.
13:58And I called the police.
14:01And I end up at the police station the next morning.
14:06Candy Baker was extremely important in coming forward.
14:09And I walk in and I immediately noticed that the coffee table and the area rug is gone.
14:16So I said, where are the rugs and tables?
14:19And he said, oh, I got rid of that.
14:21I never wanted this house like that.
14:23Now we can have the house.
14:24They said that a couple of times.
14:26They can have the house the way they wanted it.
14:28And during those verbal conversations, was he like crying or not coherent?
14:33No, he wasn't crying.
14:34But Herbie is not an emotional person.
14:36He's a narcissistic, old school cowboy wannabe, tough guy.
14:46He's not very touchy-feely.
14:49They're complete opposite.
14:50And Candy said that Tim was growing tired of his husband, Herbie.
14:55He said that he was just really sick of taking care of Herbie.
15:00He's been taking care of Herbie for over 10 years.
15:02Herbie doesn't pay any bills.
15:05It was the first person that had come forward to say, look, there's some problems in this marriage, in this
15:10relationship.
15:10And that Herbie was cheating on him, and that he's seen Herbie's phone with conversations with some young guy.
15:22Divorce was coming up.
15:23Tim was leaving.
15:25He's going to get a new job somewhere else.
15:26He's going to walk away.
15:28Herbert's not going to have any money.
15:30He's going to be left out now.
15:32And the detectives were alarmed to hear that Swilly was going to clean Tim's Jeep.
15:38Okay.
15:39And he knew that law enforcement wanted to meet with him about the Jeep.
15:42He was supposed to bring it in, and he goes to AutoZone to go and...
15:45To clean the Jeep.
15:46To clean out the Jeep.
15:47To detail the Jeep.
15:49To remove fingerprints or anything that law enforcement would find.
15:51Mm-hmm.
15:52Okay.
15:54With growing suspicions about Herbert Swilly, detectives got a search warrant for his home.
16:00Okay, so what are you looking for today?
16:02Now, this is, I'm going to read the section right above it.
16:05It's going to be a ring cameras.
16:06Swilly told them the ring camera was not working well.
16:10So the camera on the side, up on the 20-foot pole, that doesn't work half the time.
16:15It's off now.
16:16Yeah.
16:17It's literally dead again.
16:18Camera or is that the one?
16:19It's a camera, and it's supposed to be a front light, and it doesn't work.
16:22And Swilly himself climbed up to take the camera down, which, as Swilly predicted, was blank during the key hours
16:30early Friday morning that Tim supposedly left the house.
16:34And his explanations are that the Internet's down, that there's always been problems with this ring camera.
16:43Only at nighttime, he's trying to explain these things that, to me, seem unusual.
16:49I'm starting to become very concerned that Herb has some kind of involvement in this.
16:54But after this night, Swilly and his daughter would refuse to answer any more questions.
16:59There's something going on with Herb in that house, and I need to look into it more.
17:37On the same day, he was named a person of interest, Swilly posted this tribute to Tim Smith, wishing his
17:44late husband a happy anniversary, saying,
17:51A lot of people suspected that he was the killer, and I vowed that this man would never be free
18:01again.
18:02But detectives were also tracking down men who had had encounters with Tim at the apartment.
18:08We were able to find DNA evidence and fingerprints inside of this apartment on different items that were located in
18:16there.
18:17There were people we needed to talk to.
18:19They were individuals that we had met with, we had interviewed.
18:26Hi, is this Mr. Lloyd Kelly?
18:29Yes, it is.
18:30Hi, Mr. Kelly.
18:31My name is Detective Santana.
18:32Do you know, like, do you know a Tim Smith or a Herbert Swilly?
18:37That kind of sounds familiar, but I can't say that I actually know any of them.
18:41Okay, um, well, the thing, the DNA was, like, on an item in the house.
18:47So this happened in March of 2023.
18:50March of 2023?
18:51Yeah, I would have been in jail.
18:53We were able to determine that these individuals were not involved.
18:57They were ruled out.
18:59And the investigation went on for months more.
19:02Still no arrests.
19:04And it was a long time to get to that day.
19:07I was posting on Facebook.
19:09I was posting several times a week.
19:13Please come forward.
19:14I don't care how small it is.
19:16We had a lot of people call the sheriff's office.
19:20We received lots of tips.
19:22Kevin Branch was Swilly's sponsor at Alcoholics Anonymous, who he met through Tim.
19:27There's, like, three or four of us that have been sharing with each other.
19:31Something doesn't sound right.
19:33Something doesn't seem right.
19:35We're grieving for the loss of our friend Tim.
19:37Describe to me Herbert's behavior and knowing him for all these years.
19:41Describe that to me.
19:42On the good, he would rescue an animal like an injured kitten.
19:48But there's an anger side.
19:52I've seen it boil up.
19:53Okay.
19:55And when you say there's an angry side, you've seen him boil up before.
19:58How does he act when he gets angry?
20:00He turns really red.
20:01Okay.
20:02Very red.
20:03I'm learning that Herbert is an angry person that he potentially is capable of committing murder,
20:10based off of what these different people are telling me.
20:12And Branch wondered why Swilly had called him out of the blue after the murder
20:16to talk about the problems with his ring doorbell camera.
20:20Did he ever mention, as long as you've known him, in three years,
20:23that there's any problems with the ring doorbell?
20:24Never.
20:25Okay.
20:25In the three years you've known him?
20:26I've never even had a conversation about the ring.
20:28I didn't say, did you have a ring doorbell?
20:29Yeah.
20:30I never even asked.
20:30But all of a sudden he volunteers this?
20:32Yes, he volunteers it.
20:33Okay.
20:33He's just oozing out.
20:33And he was already coming up with a scenario.
20:37It could be some bisexual married guy or something, but there was nothing specific.
20:43This is the other thing.
20:44We all talk out of our ass sometimes.
20:46Like if somebody does this to my family, I'm going to do this kind of thing.
20:50And he was always that kind of guy.
20:52You know, I'll kill him, that kind of thing.
20:53But however, I've heard none of that defensive protectiveness over my spouse.
21:00Like I want to find out who did this.
21:02There's been none of that.
21:03So he hasn't been making statements like, I'm going to go out and get justice for what
21:06happened to him.
21:07I want to find out who the hell killed my whatever.
21:10He hasn't said that to you at all.
21:12Looking at the investigation, hate crime never came up in anything we saw.
21:17There was nothing that was matching up with what I saw there at the scene.
21:21And the toxicology report on Tim Smith showed he had been drugged and would not have been
21:26able to have sex with anyone.
21:28From the level of the diphenhydramine in his blood, he would have been very sleepy.
21:33This isn't what somebody would take that has allergies or somebody that wants to go to sleep.
21:38This was about 30 times that.
21:41This is consistent with him being drugged by Herbert and then murdered.
21:47So my investigation now is putting together all of the video evidence.
21:53We're able to make a timeline.
21:56Starting with video from a surveillance camera at a house just down the road.
22:01This is able to show us that Herbert's truck is leaving the house in those early morning hours.
22:08The same early morning hours where the video was missing on the ring camera.
22:11The white truck heads toward the apartment at about 1.59 a.m.
22:16The video was very good.
22:18It matched the movement from Tim's phone GPS.
22:21And the detectives came to believe that was when Swilly transported Tim's body to the apartment.
22:27It would suggest that Tim was murdered in the house.
22:32Then he was brought to the apartment in the truck.
22:35And then about 20 minutes later, the white truck is seen heading back from the apartment to the residence.
22:42And then eventually we're able to see the white jeep, Tim's white jeep, driving all the way from the primary
22:49residence up to the apartment.
22:51But the jeep never comes back.
22:54An hour later, a cat activates a camera motion sensor at the apartment.
22:58And the white jeep is seen already parked there.
23:01Police believe it gave Swilly time to stage the murder scene inside.
23:06He wants to make it look like the victim, Tim Smith, had him met up with an anonymous person for
23:12a sexual meeting.
23:14And then finally, a gas station surveillance camera picks up a man walking on foot from the direction of the
23:21apartment towards the residence.
23:23Police believe that was Swilly.
23:25He's now left the jeep there with Tim, and he's walking back to the house.
23:31He has no other way to get back.
23:32Everything's coming together.
23:38A grand jury returned an indictment of first-degree murder against Herbert Swilly.
23:43So we were waiting for him to leave for work that morning.
23:47We approached that residence, and we placed him under arrest.
23:56Do you want to back your phone?
23:57Yeah.
23:58You are under arrest for a first-degree homicide.
24:00You're going to do things, right?
24:02He didn't try to fight, that he didn't try to argue that he's not, that he didn't do this.
24:08He just said okay and was placed under arrest.
24:12This was just a culmination of everything.
24:14When everything came together, all the time stamps, all the information from the phone, and everything that we knew from
24:21the community regarding their relationship.
24:27And looking at all the evidence in the case, I know that for a fact that we got the right
24:31guy on this.
24:32But he was carrying on his daughter to give him an alibi.
24:44A man accused of drugging and strangling his husband is scheduled to face a judge in Marion County.
24:50He looked completely different than the person I saw before.
24:56He looked like a shadow of himself.
24:58I would, you know, sit right there in the front row in Tim's seat and sit for Tim and let
25:06him know that we know and you're going to hear the truth, no more lies.
25:13Good afternoon, members of the jury.
25:17Money and control.
25:19Those are the two things that the defendant, Herbert Swilley, stood to lose as his marriage to Tim Smith fell
25:28apart and Tim planned to leave him.
25:31But instead of letting Tim go, the defendant savagely murdered him.
25:38What was the easiest and quietest way to do that?
25:45It would be to drug Tim.
25:49That way Tim couldn't fight back.
25:52Now the next part of the defendant's plan, he already had it ready.
25:59I'm going to say that Tim left in the middle of the night to meet somebody for sex at the
26:04apartment and that person's who killed him.
26:09And then prosecutor Amy Burke dropped a bombshell that Swilley's daughter, Jordan, had apparently turned on her father and would
26:17testify what she had heard that fateful night.
26:20Ultimately, Jordan will end up to be one of the many mistakes that the defendant made.
26:28And he asked Jordan,
26:30Did you hear anything last night?
26:34And Jordan said,
26:36I thought I heard a door or something.
26:39And he said,
26:41You didn't hear anything.
26:43That's all you need to remember.
26:47We will prove to you beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant wanted Tim dead.
26:54He carefully planned out his murder.
26:57And he executed that plan with deadly precision.
27:02And the defendant is guilty.
27:05First of all.
27:08Thank you very much, ma'am.
27:11Mr. Klein, are you ready to proceed?
27:13Yes, sir.
27:15Go ahead, sir.
27:17Thank the court, opposing counsel.
27:20Swilley's defense would focus on Tim Smith's sex life.
27:24They both wrestled with the disease of alcoholism.
27:30And Tim Smith was also a member of Overeaters Anonymous.
27:39Tim was able to gain the tools to overcome those urges, those addictions.
27:54The thing that replaced those things, at least for Tim Smith, according to the evidence that will be presented at
28:03the trial, is beating people for sex at that apartment.
28:13So, law enforcement did thoroughly process the crime scene.
28:23And lo and behold, on physical evidence, a bottle of personal lubricant and a sex toy.
28:40There were items of fingerprints and DNA that were of value.
28:48And they matched in databases to known offenders.
28:56My theory was that one of these individuals or another unknown male killed Tim Smith, left his body in the
29:07apartment, and is still at large.
29:12Ladies and gentlemen, upon presentation of all of the evidence in this case, you will note that there exists reasonable
29:24doubt in this case, and that my client is and remains not guilty.
30:03And what was his demeanor when he would talk about Tim or their relationship?
30:06Horrible.
30:07Screaming, arms flailing, red in the face.
30:10I'm going to get back at him.
30:11He's an effing...
30:14And what sort of things was he saying about the relationship?
30:18He was talking about his...
30:22What he's put into the relationship, and Tim can't take it from him.
30:27He's going to have to fight.
30:28It's his sweat equity, he would call it.
30:33I overhear his voice, and I could tell he was emotional and getting angry.
30:37And he was venting about Tim possibly moving to Ormond Beach or to land or something, taking a job somewhere.
30:46And did the defendant say anything about insurance money?
30:49That's what they were going to do next.
30:51My money, to get my money.
30:53He needed to find the insurance papers.
30:56Swilly was the beneficiary of Tim Smith's $330,000 life insurance policy.
31:02If you put everything together, it appeared that Herb was very angry at Tim.
31:09The timing was very fortuitous for the state, unfortuitous for Herb.
31:17And now the trial would turn on the dramatic testimony of Swilly's daughter, Jordan.
31:22Have a seat.
31:32Good morning.
31:34Good morning.
31:35Can you please state your name for the record?
31:38Lord James Kelly.
31:39Kelly, who appeared on a Zoom hookup from Virginia, was one of the men whose DNA was found in Tim's
31:45apartment.
31:46The prosecution called him to deal with the defense claim he might be the killer.
31:53Do you recognize this person?
31:56I do not.
31:57Is it possible you had a sexual encounter with this person?
32:00I would probably, I would have remembered.
32:02At that time, were you having sex with people just one time and then never again?
32:08Yes.
32:08Did you meet with Tim Smith on Thursday, March 23rd of 2023?
32:16I, I think I would remember.
32:18You don't remember meeting with him?
32:21Not at all.
32:23Did you kill the person that you saw in the last picture, Tim Smith?
32:28Absolutely not.
32:29I don't have any other questions, Ron.
32:32And the defense did not challenge Kelly's statements.
32:35I thought he was very forthcoming.
32:37I never suspected that he could be the killer.
32:40The state calls Jordan Swilly.
32:46Is the defendant, Herbert Swilly, your biological father?
32:49Yes.
32:52And you knew Tim Smith?
32:54Yeah.
32:54How did you know Tim?
32:55Um, he was my stepdad.
32:57Were you and Tim close?
32:59Yeah.
33:02Was he like a second father to you?
33:05Yes.
33:06And how were they getting along when Tim died?
33:09Um, just like, not very well.
33:12Like, they were bickering a lot.
33:14Now, I want to talk about Thursday, March 23rd of 2023.
33:18And that's the Thursday before Tim's body was found.
33:20Now, did you hear anything suspicious after you went to bed?
33:23Um, I believe I heard some noise.
33:25The next morning, that Friday, did your dad ask you if you heard anything that night?
33:30Um, yes.
33:32Okay.
33:32What did your dad say to you when you told him that you heard a noise the night before?
33:36Um, to say that I was sleeping.
33:39And I haven't heard anything.
33:41All right.
33:41Did you also say that's all you need to remember?
33:43Yes.
33:44Okay.
33:44So, we said you were sleeping, that's all you need to remember?
33:47Yes.
33:47All right.
33:47Were you upset after that happened?
33:51Um, yes.
33:52Now, after Tim died, did your dad ever tell you that he needed more money or the life insurance
33:59from Tim?
34:00Um, yes.
34:01Okay.
34:01How many times did he say that?
34:03Um, I feel like quite a few.
34:05Did your dad ever ask you to lie for him about anything?
34:07Um, yes.
34:08When did he ask you to lie for him?
34:10Um, when he told me to say that he had been home all night?
34:15Was that Friday morning after?
34:17I believe so, yes.
34:18When Tim was missing?
34:20He said you to say that he was home all night?
34:23Yes.
34:24I don't have any other questions, Judge.
34:28I would take her testimony with a grain of salt.
34:31So, yeah, I tried to attack her credibility as best I could.
34:37Good afternoon, ma'am.
34:39You had mentioned that quite a few times after Tim Smith's death that your dad had mentioned
34:50he needed the money or the life insurance.
34:52Did I hear that right?
34:53Yes.
34:53Were you aware that you're the second beneficiary on that life insurance policy?
35:01Um, I'm not 100%.
35:03I was never informed if I was or not.
35:06So, as we're here today, more than two years after Tim Smith's death,
35:15you don't know that you're the second beneficiary on this life insurance policy?
35:21No.
35:22Detectives felt Swilley's lawyer was trying to suggest that Jordan could have had her own financial motive to kill Tim.
35:29I thought that was very extreme.
35:31There was nothing in this case that would indicate that Jordan Swilley would want to murder her stepfather.
35:37But the defense lawyer's theory was that Jordan wanted her father convicted so she could keep all of his money.
35:45He told you to sell what you could.
35:49Yes.
35:50Right?
35:52To help pay not only your expenses, but his expenses.
35:58Yes.
35:59Including his attorney.
36:01Yes.
36:03Did you pay his attorney anything?
36:06No.
36:06So now the time had come for Herb Swilley to decide whether he would testify.
36:17Mr. Swilley, I just want to confer with you briefly, I take it you've made a decision to not testify?
36:24Yes, sir.
36:26Did you discuss that decision with your attorneys?
36:28Yes, I did.
36:29And you're comfortable with the decision you made?
36:32Yes, sir.
36:32Okay.
36:38This is a case about death by a thousand cuts.
36:43And what that means is that there isn't one big piece of evidence or one big witness.
36:51But the accumulation of many seemingly small pieces of evidence, when put together, become devastating.
37:05Now remember that the defendant told everyone he was home all night sleeping.
37:16And then the prosecutor showed the jury some of Tim's prized possessions and photos that Swilley was going to throw
37:23away.
37:24And this is Tim's journal, where he's written things about himself.
37:31These are pictures of a happy time with Tim.
37:35If he cared about Tim and hadn't murdered Tim, he would keep this forever.
37:41This is a big thing he got rid of five days after.
37:45This case has clearly been proven to you beyond every reasonable doubt.
37:50We would ask that you find the defendant over Swilley guilty of first-degree murder.
37:56Thank you very much.
37:59Mr. Plonnie, you ready to begin?
38:02Ready, Judge.
38:03Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.
38:05Swilley's defense lawyer began by attacking the value of the video surveillance on which the prosecution had relied so much.
38:13We don't know who was driving those vehicles.
38:15We see something walking by the Marathon gas station.
38:22We don't know who that person is.
38:26I wanted to leave the jury with the issues of reasonable doubt.
38:31My theory was that Detective Pender was too quick to hone in on Herb.
38:37Herb totally oblivious to the fact that there was another person living in that home who was an adult
38:52who he needed to be investigating.
38:56And that person is Jordan Swilley.
39:01Who else would have had access to those vehicles other than my client?
39:07That really blew my mind, you know, and it just goes to show you that he's a selfish person,
39:11that he will take down whoever he needs to take down to save himself, even his own daughter.
39:17So, in addition to the monies she's acquired as her dad's power of attorney,
39:27she stands to gain even more if her father is convicted of murder.
39:45$333,000.
39:50Ladies and gentlemen, that is a motive to lie.
39:57I ask that you return the only true and just verdict in this cause,
40:02and that is a verdict of not guilty.
40:08Top story.
40:09Jury deliberations are underway in the case you've been following all week.
40:13Herbert Swilley is on trial for killing his husband.
40:17The jury was out for some four hours.
40:21Ladies and gentlemen, it's my understanding you've reached a verdict. Is that correct?
40:24Yes.
40:24Why don't I have the clerk published a verdict?
40:29Verdict.
40:30We, the jury, point as follows as to count one of the charge.
40:39The defendant is guilty of first-degree murder as charged in indictment. So, say we all do in this 19th
40:46day of September, 2035.
40:50I think he just sat there in disbelief, like dumbfounded, sort of. But if he's honest with himself, he had
40:59to see it coming.
41:05I'm here to speak on Tim's behalf, because he can no longer speak for himself.
41:12Tim's cousin Valerie addressed the court.
41:15I told him that his bravery and courage to live an open and honest life had led to me finally
41:25being able to do the same.
41:27And I love him, and I love him so near me.
41:31We will, we will miss him every day until we see him again.
41:39I love you, Tim.
41:42Thank you very much, ma'am.
41:46Tim was an amazing, smart, loving person, and I'm so honored to have spent those four years with Tim.
41:58Mr. Klein, do you think you want to present for sentencing?
42:00Your Honor, I have advised my client of his right to speak. He has advised he does not wish to
42:10stay in or speak to the court. So, we do not have anything to present from it.
42:16Is that correct, Mrs. Willey? You don't want to make any sore statement?
42:18Yes.
42:19All right, I will not hold that against you in any way.
42:22However, much of this, the sentence here is required by statute.
42:26In this case, you're going to be adjudicated guilty of murder in the first degree and sentenced to life imprisonment.
42:34And in Florida, there is no parole.
42:37It was, um, it was just the sound that came out of me.
42:42A relief.
42:45Just justice.
42:47This is about a narcissist that killed for money.
42:51This is about hate.
42:53He truly hated Tim.
42:55He was jealous of Tim.
42:57He was jealous of how much people loved Tim.
43:00So many people in this community have lost.
43:04There's just never going to be another Tim.
43:07There's just never going to be another Tim.
Comments