to all your devices in the home —even when everyone is online. hello, i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." of what they did to her and, hear details of how it was carried out. it is tough to think anyone can do that to anyone.

to see pictures of your -- her into your the details carried out. it is devastating. shauna tiaffay, loving mom by day and las vegas cocktail waitress by night. >> i was at one of the bars and i saw her walk and every single head turned. >> reporter: it was after the shift they found the victim of a ruthless attack. >> your heart drops to your stomach. >> reporter: the suspect, how about the casino worker or hustler? >> we did not know if it was a cycle watching us work at the palms. >> shauna was thinking i have to get out of the situation. >> reporter: from out of the blue, i tip. it would reveal a diabolical plot. >> just could not understand how this was reality. >> reporter: was the killer too

clever to be caught? >> extremely smart. smarter than we are. welcome to deadline. shauna tiaffay hit the jackpot in las vegas. handsome husband, adorable daughter and good job . but there is a dark side to sin city and sadly the beautiful cocktail waitress became its victim. in cases like this one the husband is often the suspect but the crime scene was telling investigator something else. they got a hot tip but like so many things in vegas, nothing was as it was seemed. here is keith morris and on under a full moon >> reporter: finished, tired and wrung out but walked away from the incessant chirping machinery and the bleary eyes

of the gamers on holiday. they called out for her again and again. outside of the night a full moon bathing the great houses that delight in send in the unaccustomed shade. it was december 29, 2012 and at 3:00 in the morning the back room of the palms casino, the cocktail waitress shauna tiaffay inserted her timecard and set out to break the little rule. shauna parked her car in the back lot, a practice discourage because surveillance cameras are unable to track her all the way to her car, but still it is easier this way and quicker. after all, would a stalker really be waiting for her here under a full moon? >> it was absolutely horrible and we felt so helpless. >> it is everywoman's worst

nightmare. >> we did not know if any of us were next. >> reporter: it never occurred to shauna to become a cocktail waitress moving to las vegas in the 1990s but she wanted to be closer to family meaning big sister, paula. >> she thought there's no way i can be a cocktail waitress because i don't even during. >> reporter: in the casino town the cocktail waitress could make good money. at 46 now she was a veteran. >> she would laugh at herself and say i still don't know what is in these cocktails. i order them, they give them to me and i take them to the people . >> reporter: she was good at it and everybody could see that. >> all of the customers loved shauna so much. she was a sweet person and beautiful. >> reporter: she may close friends. it was her work-family really, including kelly and stephanie. >> i was at one of the bars and i saw her walk by and every single head turned at that bar watching her walk by. i remember thinking why don't i look like her. because the men and women just

loved her. >> reporter: no one loved her quite the way that he did. it was the handsome boy scout of a firefighter named george tiaffay. george was the genuine article, the all american good guide. he had overcome early obstacles to become a top-notch student in high school. he was a star athlete. this is his sister, maria mcgrew. >> valedictorian and on the football team. >> you would think he would be a jerk . just a job, mean- spirited, stereo typical. >> reporter: he was quite the contrary said maria. >> he was always the calming force among family and friends, the gentle speaker. he had an outlook in life that i want to go out and make the world a better place. george did and earned a prestigious appointment to west pointe and became a combat engineer, serving in panama. his childhood friend aaron went

down for a visit. >> the stories he told me about missions he accomplished, building schools, roadways, bridges at an impact on his life . he finally felt i am getting to do something. george left the military at the rank of captain and to corporate engineering job, but soon realized that life in the office building was not for him . he wanted to work for real people which is why george put aside his fancy degree. he went to vegas to train as a firefighter emt. >> focusing on himself was not how he wanted to live his life. he wanted to serve. that was the favorite word of this, to serve. so so while shauna serve drinks at the palms george served as a firefighter and found time to do what he could to volunteer with the down on the luck souls on the fringes of the glamour here. in 2004 that had a baby.

>> she loved it. her daughter was the most important thing to her in this world. everything she did revolved around her daughter. >> dancing to every body's favorite. two years later a marriage in hawaii. >> mom and dad just got married. what do you say? >> reporter: just the three of them. back in vegas it was a busy albeit complicated life. george had 24 hour shifts and shauna had nighttime at the casino. december 29, 2012 at three a clock in the morning she walked to the empty lot to the car. she started the car and pointed away from the strip and under the full moon headed home with no idea what was waiting for her. it was 9:00 a.m. when george arrived with her daughter. she spent the night at grandmothers and he at the firehouse at work. why was the garage door open and what was

that inside? georgia grown accustomed to trauma and death, but this? >> i think i need report a break-in and a murder. >> reporter: it was a chilling discovery. shauna tiaffay found beaten to death in her home and some of her personal items found outside of the house. what might be revealed? coming up. >> what crosses your mind when you realize someone walking away from the scene discarding things, a stranger or predator? >> absently or predator or sexual predator. when dateline continues. ngh that can last for weeks. ahhh, there's nothing like a day out with friends. that's nice, but shingles doesn't care! 99% of adults 50 years or older already have the virus that causes shingles inside them, and it can reactivate at any time. a perfect day for a family outing! guess what? shingles doesn't care. but shingrix protects.

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keith morrison (voiceover): part of what made it so incomprehensible was where it happened. shauna tiaffay lived in a good, safe neighborhood, a part a town where vegas does not party. part of what made it so incomprehensible was where it happened. shauna tiaffay lived in a good, safe neighborhood. the part of town where vegas does not party and the part of town of those that worked at the casinos raised their families and lived ordinary quiet lives. this is where they found her, george and their eight-year-old daughter, inside of their own house but not so safe after all . >> i think i need to report a break in and a murder. >> reporter: george would have known even if he had not been an emt that she had been dead for hours. >> what is going on there? >> my wife is on the floor,

bloody, stiff and not moving. >> we got a call in the morning. >> reporter: detective dan long in homicide for a long time and god knows that vegas is kept him busy, he and his partner, teri miller. it was obvious sean had been attacked probably when she walked into the house be with something hard. >> there was things done with the body that made us think there was possible sexual assault of some type and there was posing of the body. >> some kind of predator at work in a predator that escaped with a good hunk of cash from the looks of it. her purse was missing. >> cash with casino tips. they get chips as a tip and can make $300-$500 in a night. they make a lot of money,

especially if they are good. we sent detectives over to the palms and they said that shauna was one of the best employees they had. >> something happened after she left so what? >> shauna is very beautiful and did someone see her at work, and followed her home? >> reporter: of course as the husband george would have to be considered a possible suspect too. detectives pulled him aside and interviewed him right on the spot. >> george, you understand your statement is being recorded and that we want to talk with you about what happened this morning. >> yes, sir. >> reporter: george said when he saw the garage open he had their daughter hang back while he went inside. >> i saw her laying there frozen. in my job, i know what that means. >> are you a paramedic? >> i am an emt firefighter. >> reporter: the daughter,

thank god, did not see anything, said george. he rushed her out on the street >> i did not know if anybody was in there so i want to get out of there with my daughter. >> reporter: he had taken her to shauna because it was sean's turn. >> we were separated but talking about moving back in together because we were getting along again. >> reporter: data complicated arrangement with shauna working 7:00 to 3:00 and george as a firefighter worked long shifts but got a lot of days off. their daughter was shuttled back and forth between them and when they were both at work the girls spent the night with george's mother. >> what shift did you work? >> the 24 hours shift. >> reporter: he was at work when shauna was killed and they did checking to make sure. >> if it left for any run or left for any reason. >> reporter: he was on everyone and did not leave work at all so it was not the husband this

time. >> he had nothing to do with the attack on shauna. >> reporter: george did offer a possible lead. >> the garage door is open which is unusual. we were worried because my wife's house got broken into a week or two ago. >> reporter: the thief in the earlier burglary it appeared used the bathroom to take a shower and left with several pairs of shauna's panties and some jewelry. he left behind a pair of boxer shorts, size small. act in shauna immediately suspected neighborhood teenagers, said george. >> she discussed it with several people that included george and decided that it might be she left something unlocked, and it could be maybe some kids that live in the neighborhood. >> reporter: so is that who killed her? looking around the crime scene detectives realize that the

killer or killers had been into the booze and taken not only her purse but like in the earlier burglary, her underwear. they said about checking out every one of the neighborhood boys. they had solid alibis, all of them. >> they were not involved in the break-in or in her death. now things get even more scary. we don't know what we have. >> reporter: after that word got out it could quickly spread the terror around, like it already had among shauna's coworkers. >> we did not all if there was a psycho watching us girls work at the palms or if any of us were next. >> reporter: they got a boost the second day went on a walking path near shauna's, someone found the items from her pursed. the id, makeup and personal things .

>> reporter: what goes through your mind when you realize someone walking way discarding things? >> a stalker or sexual predator. >> reporter: that got the rest of homicide involved. days off are canceled and everybody looking everywhere. >> there was considerable pressure. pressure from the media and from our administration. everybody wants this thing solved and put away quickly. >> reporter: and then quite suddenly a break. the texture on the crime stoppers line with a story to tell. >> he had information that he thought was connected to our murder. >> reporter: the wild goose chase maybe or maybe not. coming up, the tipster mentioned a detail about the crime. the one that gets everyone's attention. >> no one knew that but the two of us. >> when dateline continues.

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good job, good singing. at the surface cellular level. keith morrison (voiceover): it's a terrible thing, to bury a young mother in the prime of her life, >> good job. good singing. >> reporter: it is a terrible thing to bury a young mother in the prime of her life and especially in the shadow of murder. big sister, paula, felt frozen and that a terrible dream refused to end. it did not make sense ever since her mother had called about the news about shauna. >> reporter: what is it like, a situation like that?

>> i don't know that you can describe it with your heart dropping to your stomach. >> reporter: family friends began to moore and how much they cared about her and the funeral was standing room only. >> it was a beautiful tribute to shauna. george had a big sister, maria. >> i can see that george was heartfelt and did what he could to express himself. it was a terrible time. it was all about showing that shauna was loved and cared for. >> reporter: meanwhile las vegas homicide detectives worked diligently to identify and track down whoever killed her. >> we have a predator? did she come home while they were burglarizing the house? is there an enemy she made that we need to find? >> reporter: and then they got lucky. a man that called himself big will pennix call the crime

stoppers hotline and had a story to tell. >> he spent time in prison and worked as a maintenance man, the found satisfaction in helping others coming out of prison, to help them to find the right path. >> reporter: one such man he said was a homeless handyman that lived out in the desert and went by the name greyhound. >> he did a lot of drugs and drink a lot of alcohol. he was volatile. >> reporter: according to big will the greyhound told a lot of tall tales but he called the police this time because greyhound bragged about killing someone. it was a woman and he said he used a hammer to do it. >> we had just come from autopsy that morning. the marks that were seen on the body of shauna, we thought it was possibly a hammer. no one knew that but the two of us. >> reporter: and then this guy brings it up.

>> exactly. >> reporter: the homeless, drug addicted ex-con with the volatile temper certainly seem to fit the profile of the potential predator that detectives were looking for. >> he told us that greyhound walks everywhere and lives out in the desert. to be will wanted to help -- big will wanted to help so they went to some of the places where greyhound like to hang out. they found him in the parking lot of the gas station and the detective approached him. he was sweet as pie and said it would be perfectly willing to go to the station and to have a chat. his real name was noel stevens. >> he said he knew shauna and did yard work and handiwork for george and knew everyone in the neighborhood. >> someone that shauna knew. >> reporter: someone that george the do-gooder tried to help and not out of character for george.

but he was adamant he had nothing to do with the murder of shauna. he agreed to show detectives's campsite in the desert. >> reporter: what did you find? >> swimsuit bottoms that in our search of shauna's house it appeared to match the top i had seen in her bedroom . so so greyhound was the burglar poking round shauna's personal things. in fact her friends recalled that shauna had grown uncomfortable with this particular charity case that had been doing work around the house. >> she did not want him around the house anymore and said you better get out of this house or i'm calling the police on you. >> reporter: was he the killer? out at the campsite detectives did not find any evidence linking him to the murder so they kept looking. >> one other thing that dateline -- big will told us is that he had campsite number

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i am just a late. from d.c. to boston people were second with 4.8 magnitude earthquake felt across the east coast it is recorded west of newark, new jersey just before 10:30 a.m. the aftershock rattled the northeast at 60 m reaching magnitude 3.8. the third victim was recover from the water surrounding the francis scott key bridge on friday. that construction worker is one of six believed to be dead after the bridge collapsed last week. now back to dateline.

it is not on any sightseeing itinerary but this too is las vegas. the rugged desert terrain is the kind of refuge or hiding place for the desperate and troubled. >> believe it or not that entire area as homeless people up there. this is were greyhound took them. this is where he lived, he said. but out there somewhere they were convinced there must be a second campsite with possible evidence about the killing of shauna tiaffay. detective miller went up with the police air unit to have a look around >> the two pilots decided they word -- would fly the whole area for us and actually located the second campsite. >> we entered and found a citation in the name of noel stevens so we were at the right place.

they spread out and kept looking, and pretty soon one called out. >> 175 feet from the tent he found a bush and he saw a pair of rolled up denim jeans that appeared to him to have blood on them. we put those in for immediate dna testing. >> reporter: how did that come back? >> it was shauna tiaffay blood and the pants were worn by noel stevens. >> reporter: that is kind of the story. it is the proof that the homeless handyman that george and shauna tried to help is a murderer. could the story be that simple really? listen to sean's sister, paula, and things start to sound a bit more complex >> i think that he always love himself more than he loved anyone else, it was all about him and what he wanted. >> reporter: that was george she was talking about, the selfless firefighter that had another side, said paula. >> the verbal abuse, the

intimidation and control. george was always a controlling guy. >> push it this way. >> reporter: according to polit georgia become more controlling and especially about shauna's spending habits and only got worse when shauna told george the marriage was over. >> he said if you don't come back to me and if we can't short this out -- sort this out you will lose custody of your daughter. he used their daughter as a way to manipulate shauna time and time again shauna had been letting her workmates read the text messages that george sent as things got worse in the marriage. >> one text would be nice, short and sweet like i love you and i been thinking about you all day, that we need to work things out. we would be working and she

would not be able to text him back right away. 10 minutes later he's blowing up her phone, cussing her out and calling her names. to her supporters, dave remembered the funeral different than george did. >> he had no emotion at all. he did a eulogy talking about how much that shauna like to spend money. that there was one time she was at the gas station and at sedately -- accidentally left the pump in the car at the eulogy. >> reporter: paula watched her daughter at the cemetery and fumed. >> they had not even lowered her in the ground yet and said come on, took her hand and said it's time to go. i watched him walk off with my little niece that was eight years old that had just lost her mom. i watched him walk off with her and i said this is exactly what he wanted. he wanted all of the control over my niece

>> reporter: paula told the police her suspicions even before they began chasing down leads on greyhound. even though they had their killer, the idea that george was involved somehow was already in the back of their minds. on the other hand, george's family was just as eager to assure the place that the attack on george's character from the side of shauna were complete nonsense >> i never saw shauna act afraid of my brother. she had an equal footing in the way that they interacted with one another. so that is why i still can't believe the insinuation, the allegations that he was abusive or even controlling. >> reporter: his friend aaron could not have agreed more. >> no matter where he finds himself, what challenging situation he finds himself in, he is always been consistently kind. consistently caring. to which george was the real one ? the detective decided to pay george a visit at his house.

they did not tell him what they heard about him, the good or the bad. >> mr.ãcan i call you george? thank you. >> reporter: george said he knew greyhound but never heard him called noel stevens before. >> you knew him as something else question mark george told detectives how he and shauna befriended this neil smith trying to help him get back on his feet. >> me and my wife looked at him like our little charity case that was a nice guy. >> reporter: by now detectives knew that greyhound was an addict and a big drinker so they asked george. >> was he a drug user? >> no. >> alcohol? >> he would drink alcohol but not a lot, a beer or two. >> reporter: that raised his interest. in the interview with detectives greyhound said that

he and george were great friends, worked out together and drank together a lot. but then listened of this. while george kept talking, the man that he said a neil became noel. >> he said can no help us out with this and i said knowles seem to be good at everything i was not good at. >> reporter: remember george said he never heard the name noel stevens before and knew greyhound only as neil smith so was that an honest slip or was george hiding something. >> is it possible he was confused about the name or that greyhound used several different names? >> when you get nervous your burt backãrevert back to what ever is natural. he reverted back to normal. he just got done telling us he had known the man for years as neil, and then noel helped me move which is a tale. >> reporter: why would george admit to knowing greyhound and then lie about the name? detectives less -- left george

at home and made a plan to hopefully shake out the truth. >> we decided to amp up the pressure. coming up next, bold calculation by detectives is about to trigger a stunning reaction >> he goes straight off the road plowing into the cement barrier. the officer following him said that he just committed suicide. when dateline continues. co. now!!!! i'm on it. i'm, on it. already sold to carvana. go to carvana and track your car's value today. icy hot. ice works fast. ♪♪ heat makes it last. feel the power of contrast therapy. ♪♪ so you can rise from pain. icy hot.

[theme music] so you can rise from pain. keith morrison: it's an old police tactic to stimulate, maybe upset the suspect you haven't quite cornered, hoping for an overreaction. sometimes it works. sometimes not. so even though they didn't have a solid case yet,

it is an old to stimulate or maybe upset the suspect not quite cornered, hoping for an overreaction. sometimes it works but sometimes not. even though they did not have a solid case yet, detectives let the word slip they intended to arrest george, charging him with murder, hoping he would do something rash and maybe incriminate himself. >> he was told by his former attorney would be arrested. at the same time police officers were showing up on my mother's doorstep. >> reporter: george scott interest truck, raced over to his mother's house and dropped off his daughter and roared off again. the police were watching him >> he was driving extremely fast forcing vehicles out of the way off the road before plowing straight into a cement barrier. the officer following him said he just committed suicide. >> reporter: what did you think when you got that report and heard about that? >> i think it was a very good indication to us we were

definitely on the right track. >> reporter: if suicide was the attempt at detectives assumed, he did not work. the injuries were not that severe but it looked to detectives like guilty george would rather kill himself than facing murder charges. as george late in the hospital bed recovering, noel stevens can best he killed shauna and said that his good pal george asked him to do it. >> we went to see him at the hospital. we went in and told him he was under arrest. >> reporter: did he say anything ? >> he asked to speak with his attorney. >> i just knew that george had something to do with it. to george and noel will to on murder, conspiracy and burglary charges. >> george is the one that wanted shauna dead. george is the controlling man that needed that control over shauna. he had a tool at his disposal worshiped him and loved him. that would do what needed to be done.

>> reporter: noel stevens pleading guilty and spent the next three years cooperating with the investigation. george, who pleaded not guilty, set up a ministry in the clark county detention center. he looked his family including sister maria square in the eyes and swore that he did not do this. >> the age-old conclusion that the husband always does it? >> he was the statistical number one suspect from day one for sure. >> reporter: why would they believe an addict, a known liar over george. for detectives believing the guilty conscience led to the suicide attempt? >> he is been on suicide prevention squads and on the emt and quite knowledgeable about what it takes to yourself in a vehicle. so driving that large vehicle

into the rail with your seat belt on is not how an expert tries to commit suicide. he did something stupid but did not try to kill himself. to the fellow firefighters came to his defense too. the fellow west point graduates and childhood friends. >> i truly believe he is innocent. he gives too much of himself which is one reason he finds himself in the situation he is in. >> reporter: are you surprised that the amount of support that george scott? >> no. george makes lifelong connections. that is part of his generosity. >> reporter: so on the steering hot summer day in late august 2015 those lifelong connections set on one side of the las vegas courtroom. >> george was adamant that it go to trial. he would not accept any plea deals or anything. >> reporter: on the other side is a sea of hot pink. >> there was just an outpouring every day of a lot of people showing up wearing pink. >> reporter: why that? >> pink was her favorite color. not pale pink but hot pink.

>> i wanted the jury to see she was not just a vegas cocktail waitress. that she was a good person, beautiful person and a good human being. to prosecutors told the jury that while noel "greyhound" stevens was the accused killer of shauna tiaffay but never would have done it if george had not put him up to it. >> he had the goal of i need to kill my wife and had to keep pushing noel to do it. >> she encouraged her sister to move out. >> i told her based on the things that she was telling me had been going on for quite a while, that i believe she should separate herself from george, and moved to a different home. >> reporter: she did and george increased his contact with noel. his phone calls to stevens in

the month before the murder proved conspiracy said prosecutors. they showed the jury george's phone records. >> if you look at how much he called noel, 87 phone calls. >> reporter: 304 phone call today. >> yes, and his mother about once a day. truck and then they said look at this with joel and -- noel and george shopping together. they bought hammers. >> he had two other perfectly good hammers in the garage. >> reporter: what else could this have been they asked other than a murder case? one final thing is that greyhound told the cops he got into the place with the key that george had given him. here is george at the hardware store buying a key just like the key that nolan hughes. only one possible conclusion said prosecutors. >> noel stevens used a hammer. the person that used noel

stevens is george tiaffay . >> it's a good story and it's really interesting, but it is not evidence. to this is the defense attorney, robert langford. >> this is absolute reasonable doubt as to the involvement in the case bite george tiaffay. >> reporter: savannas videos for example that the prosecution found so damming, none of the hammers bought were the actual murder weapon. most of what they bought together was simple and innocent camping gear. george helping a man in need, as usual. >> he thought he was helping out noel stevens to live out where noel wanted to live, which was outside of town. >> reporter: as for the 87 phone calls that the prosecution said that george and raytown conspired to kill shauna, there was nothing sinister said the defense. just a man trying to contact

his charity case handyman. >> i live out in that area. cell service is notoriously bad and on top of have you ever tried to call a handyman in this town? it's ridiculously difficult to get a hold of those kind of workers to come to do the work. >> reporter: in fact said the defense, the only thing the state had tying george to the murder was the word of noel stevens. >> without the noel stevens statement to the police, george is an innocent man. >> reporter: now that the jury believes events, but even big will said in court that the man was a habitual liar. >> honestly add a scale of 1 to 10, i would put him at a scale of 1.5. >> 10 being very honest and -- >> 1.5 meeting not honest at all, that is correct. >> reporter: george's attorney itching to cross-examine the

habitual lighter. but it presented the prosecutors with the dilemma. the man at the center of the case against george might just destroy it. >> he could be a real problem. there was substantial amount of discussion between he and i over whether or not we would call him or not. >> reporter: it implied that you disagreed? >> we disagreed. coming up. a risky decisions looks like it might just backfire. >> did you hear voices? >> yes. >> you remember saying to that person that they sounded like monsters? >> yes. >> not only voices but hallucinations too. >> what kind of hallucinations? >> i see shauna. when dateline continues. at. (announcer) you can quit. for free help, call 1-800-quit-now.

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welcome back. noel stevens murdered shauna tiaffay. he confessed to it. but he also claimed he was told to do r huwelcome back. noel stevens murdered shauna tiaffay. he confessed to it but also claimed he was told to do it by her husband, george. prosecutors and had a tough decision to make and the case hinged on the outcome. here is keep more sun with the conclusion of under a full moon. >> reporter: prosecutors had a big problem. they knew it. the problem had a name. noel stevens. greyhound.

>> noel is a very important piece of information but also the biggest risk. >> reporter: the credibility sweepstakes, way down here and the defendant way up there. so they argue. these two prosecutors and she said to put him on the stand. >> my thought was you don't understand who george is and how sinister this was until you meet noel and say this is the person that he gave access to. >> reporter: he said don't take the chance. >> they could say this crazy, psychotic homeless man did it on his own. >> reporter: who prevailed? she did. >> they called noel stevens. up went greyhound to the witness stand and offered his grisly story. >> i hit her in the head. >> when you hit her in the head, what happened? >> she hits the floor and i jumped on top of her. >> what do you do? >> i keep on hitting her.

>> how long did you hit her for? >> until she doesn't move anymore. >> reporter: because he said someone told him to. >> who told you to kill shauna? >> george. >> reporter: but was it true? now the defense got to ask greyhound about, for starters, his addictions. >> wild turkey 101. >> yes. rotgut or whatever i can get my hands on. >> you drink it every day? >> every day. >> one or two. >> i drink until i don't have any more, no more money. i drink. >> reporter: he smokes weed he admitted and did speed but it got worse. >> do you hear voices? >> yes. >> do you remember saying to that person that they sounded like monsters? >> yes. >> reporter: hallucinations too. >> what kind of hallucinations? >> i see shauna sometimes.

>> do you see other people? >> sometimes. >> i think everybody agreed that noel stevens was crazy as a nuthouse rat. >> reporter: how could you believe a man is crazy is that? >> your outside of reality at that point. >> reporter: so a man that hears voices got the attention of the jury. one juror submitted a question read by the judge. >> did the voices you said you would hear from time to time ever tell you to kill shauna? >> no. >> reporter: there was the choice for the jury. george used noel as a murder weapon or the drunk that heard voices killed shauna and blamed an innocent man? the lawyers, friends and family of both sides can only sit and wait. >> it was nerve-racking. >> reporter: they waited for three days. the prosecutors that were once confident now worried. >> it was a hung jury

situation. by day 3 you think is there a hold up. >> reporter: finally, air was >> guilty of first-degree murder . >> reporter: guilty. george tiaffay, is faced almost terrain absorbs the verdict . >> it was just this big weight taken off of my shoulders. i felt this entire time that shauna has not had a voice in this. i been so worried about representing her right, and saying the right things, and making sure that i portray her as a wonderful person that she was. >> reporter: george and noel were sentenced to life. george has no chance of parole. >> it was so much relief. >> closure. >> reporter: george began serving his life sentence. and then in july 2017 he filed a handwritten petition asking to be released from prison.

it included an explosive admission. he told the court, my wife whom i truly loved her dearly is dead, brutally murdered. it is my fault. after denying it for six years george finally confessed, but he did not take full responsibility for what happened. instead he explained that prescription drugs caused him to hallucinate that god was directing him to perpetrate a crime to protect his child. to protect her from what exactly he did not say. he made his attorney and not bring up the drug hallucinations at trial. george's family felt blindsided said sister maria and now feels he is where he belongs, behind bars.

the petition of george was denied. the young girl at the heart of the tragedy? >> i really feel that my niece is the true victim in all of this. it is so tragic. i just don't have words for what she is going to have to come to terms with, to understand as she gets older. it is really tough. >> reporter: paula plans to make sure that the daughter of shauna tiaffay never forgets . >> we talk about her mom, how much she loved her and what we think her mom would want for her now. that is all for this edition of dateline. i am craig melvin. thank you for watching. watchin hello and welcome to morning joe weekend. it's 6:00 this saturday morning. we have a lot to get to. take a look at some of the big conversations we have had this past week. >>