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tv   Dateline  MSNBC  May 26, 2024 11:00pm-12:00am PDT

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positive person that she is. she's got a real lust for life. she is an honest and truthful person. she's someone that you want on your team. she's fun to be around, she's adventurous and happy. that kind of oozes out of her and you get really caught up in the sarm moment. that's all for this edition of dateline. i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. i am craig melvin and this is dateline. >> the smell of the blood is still there. you are lucky if you forget. i would rather have forgotten everything. >> 911. what is your emergency? >> my wife and son had been
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shot. >> nicole had been shot in the head. >> murder-suicide. >> do you think taylor shot himself? >> i waited and waited and waited for someone to be arrested. >> you have three tapes. >> i can do that. >> i thought, they're going to come kill us. >> to threaten the lady? you know. >> they said i was so young i could never remember anything. something like that doesn't go away. i saw what i saw. the attraction was instant. >> hello and welcome to dateline. when jason and nicole first met, the attraction was
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instant. soon the bachelor and single mother two would and their family grew. then, gunfire tore their home into a bloody crime scene. the killer's identity would take years to uncover and ripped this once loving family hard -- apart. >> here is andrea canning with house of horrors. >> the white dove, a symbol of peace and love. one woman was so moved by the grace and beauty she turned her passion into a business, releasing them at weddings and funerals. nichole payne brought joy and comfort to countless families. >> when i see pictures and hear stories of my mom, she's just this wonderful person. this huge smile all the time. great personality. >> on a december morning in
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2007, her doves made their most poignant flight of all. at her own funeral. now, 14 years later, two of her children, jack sing and remington are telling their story publicly for the first time. >> i want to put my two cents then and all stories have two sites. >> able to another was somebody who saw everything that happened. i saw it happen. i want people to know what happened. >> it happened here, the family home. left abandoned, it would take almost a decade to resolve the horrible decade that happened inside these walls. a place where blind family loyalty would cause more heartache. a christmas tree was left standing. as a reminder of the shattered lives of all those who lived here.
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the two story house was supposed to be her dream home. the place where she and her husband jason would raise their blended family. that all changed on december 11, 2007. their son jackson was, six at the time. >> i remember waking up for school like a regular day. my father put me in the truck and we left for school. he dropped me off. >> remington who was two at the time was also when the truck. normally her 16-year-old half- brother taylor would be too. he stayed home from school that day. after jason returned with his daughter, he said he found a house of horrors. >> 911. what your emergency? >> my wife and my son are both shot. i need help. >> hold on. stay on the line with me a minute. >> the lieutenant of the wood county sheriff's office rushed to the call. >> i arrive and pull up in the
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driveway and i see jason. he is holding his daughter. >> remington was in jason's arms is first responders entered the home. you get in a what's the first thing you see? >> the christmas tree. and the tv on, on cartoons. >> layout was an emt with the east texas medical center. >> they let me know to go into the bedroom right past the tv. >> you russian there. what do you see when you get inside the bedroom? >> at first i thought there was a woman sleeping in bed. i look around and i notice that there has been a shooting. you just saw the scene and knew it was bad. >> the woman was nichole. leon noticed her body felt warm but knew she could not save her. 35 years old, nichole payne was dead. >> this wasn't the only
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shooting in this house. >> no. there was another shooting in the other part of the house. there's an opening into the garage. >> the garage was converted into a bedroom. >> i see a young man laying on his bed and he is blue. as cold as his body was, i knew there was no helping him either. >> nichole's son taylor was dead too. lieutenant tucker who went back to the crime scene with this had two bodies to contend with. >> nichole was shot in the back of the head. it appeared taylor had been shot in the face. >> there was no evidence of forced entry. no signs of a struggle indicating a home invasion. lieutenant tucker did see the possible murder weapon and taylor's room. >> there was a rifle there between his legs. he was on his own bed.
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>> aside, the detective could see jason looked understandably distraught. >> he was, i would say, maybe in his own. that's the way i describe it. it's possible he was in shock. >> soon, everyone would be in shock when one of the top investigators said he knew who was behind the killings at the payne house. >> coming up. life and what seemed so full of promise for the young couple. >> they were happy. they did everything together. >> was he head over heels for nichole? >> oh, yes. i was worried because it was so fast. >> but they were in love? >> he was crazy about nicole. >> children left to mourn. >> because i was so young when everything happen, i never went through the process of oh, i lost my mom and brother. it did not click until i was a
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andrea canning: the house tucked away in the woods of quitman, texas, nichole's dream home, was now a crime scene. and investigators wanted to know more about the family who lived here. the house tucked away in rn the woods of quitman, texas, nichole's dream home was a crime scene. investigators wanted to know more about the family who lived here.
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they learned nichole had been married before. taylor was her son from her first marriage, and she had another son daniel, a boy he nichole adopted out of foster care. you have bounced from home to home and here comes nichole who wants to claim u.s. her own. >> it was overwhelming. for the longest time i didn't think it was happening. >> nichole was 28 and asked a 31-year-old from louisiana for directions. soon after that chance encounter, jason and nichole became smitten. was he head over heels for nichole? >> oh, yes. i was worried about it only because it was so fast. >> but they were in love? >> they were very much in love. he was crazy about nichole. >> they had a whirlwind relationship and after a few weeks they were married by local justice of the peace and daniel was there. >> okay, we are a family.
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let's do this. it was nice. mom, dad, and you are our son. all right. >> it's the first time in your life you had the complete, solid family. >> yes. yes. >> nichole's mom said they tied the knot she and her husband knew they were dating. >> she brought him home to meet us. came in a dark kitchen and said mom, dad, meet my husband. >> oh, my gosh, what did you think? >> well, it was total shock. >> they went on to have jackson and then remington. making them a blended family. there was one more person, jason's mom. they had a tight relationship so they moved in, at least temporarily. >> i got along great with nichole. when i moved in, we clicked. >> when they first married,
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they struggle to make ends meet. after jason received a $900,000 settlement from a serious car accident, things turned around. after lawyer's fees they bought a car and coat and the house. how did life seem at the new house? >> a lot better. she wanted this type of house and she looked for it and she found. she said, this is it and he made it happen. they were happy. they did almost everything together. it was a typical marriage. >> now, everyone was trying to make sense of what happened that awful december morning. jackson remembers being at school in kindergarten. >> i was taken out of class which was weird at the time. especially, when i saw the man picking me up. it was not my father. had never been picked up by anyone other than my dad. >> it was an officer. they soon learned the devastating news about their mom and half-brother. >> because i was so young when
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everything happened, never went through the process of oh, i lost my mom and brother. it did not click until i was a lot older. a couple years ago was when i finally knew what that meant. >> for nichole's mom the news was too much to bear. when you hear nichole lynn taylor, your daughter and grandson -- >> it is your worst fear. worst fear come true. i told myself right now, right at this moment, i have to choose life. i have to make a decision and i did. i chose to live. >> funerals were held for nichole and then taylor. at the close of each service, her white doves were released into the sky. daniel who by then was living on his own says when he returned home, he found his father an emotional rack. >> we both walked outside and
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we both started crying. he didn't cry at his own dad's funeral buddy fell to his knees and cried. he is a grown man and it's the first time i had ever seen him cry. >> daniel struggled himself. he cherished his mother and taylor. the two boys shared a bedroom for nine years. tell us about taylor. what was he like? >> he was a cool kid. he was a little eccentric but overall he was a nice guy. >> you said eccentric. why would you describe them that way? >> i don't know. people who meet him at say he was slightly weird. >> he and taylor played video games together and there was something is a bonded over. jason taught the boys had to fire a gun. you became experience with guns? >> yes. experienced enough where they would trust us. if we walked out, to shoot it,
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we had access. >> that includes access to the gun found near taylor's body. the lieutenant wanted to know more about it and the rest of the crime scene. he called an experience crime scene investigator from a larger sheriff's office. >> he was probably the most knowledgeable guy in the area that i know of, anyway. >> after evaluating the scene and later doing testing, martin thought it was clear what happened inside the house. >> he was 100% sure it was a murder-suicide. he said at that moment he believed taylor had shot his mother and then shot himself. >> was a possible? taylor, the shy kid who like to play video games killed his own mother and then himself? it seemed like case close but lieutenant tucker was not so sure. >> the lieutenant is not ready
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to let the case go, but the payne children are trying to move on. coming up. >> when i see him i feel safe and everything was okay. clearly, everything was not okay. my mother was gone. >> he was my favorite person in the world. >> jason payne gets defensive. >> i resent that you ask me questions like i am sitting here and had something to do -- i'm sitting here trying to be as helpful as i can. can. glucos. no fingersticks needed. all with the world's smallest and thinnest sensor. manage your diabetes with more confidence and lower your a1c. try it for free at freestylelibre.us to 50 years with my best friend. [sfx: gasp] [sfx: spilling sound] nooo...
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andrea canning: the same day nichole and taylor were killed, police asked jason to come down to the station. he was the one who found the bodies, taylor were killed, police asked jason to come down to the station. he is the one who found the bodies and lieutenant tucker had questions. >> jason, my name is miles tucker. texas department of public safety. >> jason told investigators what happened back at his house. he said his wife was sick in bed so i got remington and jackson dressed. taylor, he said, was throwing a temper tantrum over not having his own cell phone. >> he was kind of ranting and
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said he wasn't going to school. >> why didn't he want to go to school? >> i think he was mad over the cell phone. >> jason said his stepson refused to leave the house, so i backed the younger kids and drove to school. when he returned, he said he made the awful discovery. >> i mean, you going in, seeing what you saw. what do you think happened? >> i don't know. >> did you go up and touch your wife? >> no. >> what about taylor? >> no. >> why not? >> lieutenant asked about jason's relationship with taylor. >> he was the average teenager. i would guess, maybe, introverted or closed. >> what about taylor rancher wife? >> just, normal.
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i mean teenage temperament. cell phone, computer. you know. driving. >> nothing jason said about taylor explain the outburst of violence that morning. the obvious, painful question had to be asked. >> when you saw that this morning, do you think taylor shot himself? >> i don't know. >> if that's what happened. that's going to mean there's a possibility that he also shot your wife. i don't know an easy way to say that. jason, help us understand what might've led up to it. give us some reasoning behind it. >> i don't know. nothing out of the ordinary. i don't know. >> nothing out of the ordinary? >> nothing. nothing.
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nothing. i don't know what happened. >> something was not adding up for lieutenant tucker. when he made his way into nichole's room, he noted, like the emts, that nichole's body felt warm. >> she obviously had not been there for long. when we made our way into taylor's room, taylor was the opposite. he was cold to the touch. >> the way it looked to the lieutenant, taylor died earlier than nichole did. if he was right, taylor could not have killed his mother. then there was the mysterious piece of evidence found inside the house on the day of the killings. >> one of the investigators located a rag with blood on it. inside jason's truck. it was bright red so that signal to the investigators that it was fresh blood.
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>> in the interview room, investigators pressed jason about his relationship with nichole. >> you win why foreclose? >> we were close. >> do you consider her your best friend? >> yeah. >> what was it about? >> nothing. nothing. i mean, little stuff. >> after talking for about 90 minutes, jason said he was tired and wanted to go home. that's when the lieutenant straight up asked him. >> did you have anything to do with this? did you have anything to do with killing your wife? >> you got to be out of your mind to think that i would have anything to do with this. and i resent that you asked these questions, like i am sitting here, i am sitting here trying to be as helpful as i can. >> jason was free to leave. his two children, jackson and
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remington, so young at the time leaned on their grandparents, nichols mom and dad and jason's mom say for emotional support and i look to their dad for security and love. >> when i see him, i feel safe like everything was okay. clearly everything was not okay. my mother was gone. >> i was so attached to him. he was my favorite person in the world. >> the investigation drake done and as weeks turned into months, lieutenant tucker patiently waited for test results from the crime scene evidence. in the meantime, secrets about this one's happy family were about to come to light. >> coming up. >> his bank account had gone down to virtually nothing. >> money troubles. marriage troubles. >> she was not happy the last couple of years. there were signs that something was not right. >> what were the signs? >> he was controlling and it
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at least 18 are dead after severe storms swept the southern and midwestern u.s. over the holiday weekend. the system which produce flooding and tornadoes left over 350,000 without power. 35 people were killed following an idf air strike that hit civilian tents and rafah sunday, according to the gaza health ministry. the strike was meant to target hamas leaders and the incident is under review. i'm craig melvin. jason payne told police he found his wife nichole and stepson taylor shot dead. welcome back to dateline. i am orcraig melvin. jason payne told police he found his wife nichole and stepson taylor shot dead. what tasha one investigator
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believed it was murder-suicide but lieutenant tucker thought they were both murdered. jason's story but that morning left him with nagging questions. dna test results were about to provide detectives with at least one answer. back to andrea canning with house of horrors. >> as the investigation continued, new and significant facts started to emerge. for one, while things look picture-perfect from the si, nichole's mom privately knew her daughter had a troubled marriage. >> she wasn't happy the last couple of years. there were signs that something was not right. >> what were the signs? >> he was controlling. he was very controlling and it seemed to get worse and worse as time went on. >> nine months after the deaths, the lab results came back from the rake found in jason's truck. the blood on the cloth was nichole's.
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that and how one bloody was cold while one was warm close the deal for lieutenant tucker. he was convinced that jason was the real killer, and stage the scene to look like a murder- suicide. >> we decided we had enough to write a warrant for jason and to arrest him. >> unaware of the warrant, jason was driving to a local park with his mom for a family outing. police were waiting. >> they got me out of the car and made me lay down. >> how shocking was that? and you're at the park and your son gets arrested for double murder. >> and we are both laying on the ground. that was bad. i cried. there i cried all the way home. >> it was another loss for jackson and remington. >> when he was first arrested, i was in shock. there was nothing in my mind
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that would make me think it was him. >> daniel believed it was impossible that the man who embraced him as the stone could've been involved with the murders. >> i was like, no way. jason was emotionally distraught from all of this. i think it bothered him or that everybody started to think he would even do it. >> j simply did not guilty to charges of capitol murder. this case went to trial in january 2010. a little over two years after that december morning. >> jason payne committed this murder beyond a reasonable doubt. >> he say texas assistant attorney general. he knows the facts of the case. he said besides taylor's body cold to the touch, first responders said they smelled gunpowder when they arrived in nichole's bedroom. >> based on the odor of a recently fired firearm in nichole's room and the emt evaluation, it's apparent that
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taylor was killed first at some time, significantly before nichole was killed. >> the question remains, why? >> there were several possible motives. the defendant was running out of cash. his bank account at gone down to virtually nothing. >> prosecutors say they were broken jason may have been after nichole's $100,000 life insurance policy. jurors were prone -- shown statements and it appeared they had burned through the money. within nine months, one of their accounts went from over $300,000 to a negative balance. not only that, a key witness, nichole sister-in-law sarah hawthorne told the jury nichole was threatening to leave jason. did she confide in you she wanted to? >> yes. she said he wanted to burn the house down with her and it because she wanted to leave.
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>> prosecutors believed their real ace in the hole was the rag. first responders testified how the blood appeared fresh, playing jason had just used it in the crime. jason's defense attorney said the state had a big problem with the case. >> there is no physical evidence on jason are around jason. the implication would be if he did it, he did it in a way to eliminate blood on him and any blood on his clothes. any gunshot residue on him. >> the deputies and emts say they smelled gunpowder in nichole's room. if taylor shot nichole, wouldn't there have been the smell in his room too since he would've had to die after her? >> not necessarily because the environment was different. nichole was killed inside the house . insulated room. he was shot in the garage with one wall that was a metal door.
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you could see outside in parts of it. >> as for the rag? park stole the tree was not fresh blood and there was a simple explanation as to what was in jason's truck. two months before her death, nichole got a fishing hook stuck in her neck and park such a use the rag to stop her bleeding. did you feel that was a plausible reason for why the blood was on the rag? >> yes. it was consistent with her having held the rake against a bleeding, small bleeding wound. there is no explanation how that would've gotten on that rag from this crime scene. >> after a six day trial, the case went to the jury. a little over four hours later there was a verdict, guilty. nichole's mom thought justice was served and was relieved her grandson's name was finally cleared. >> it was heartbreaking to
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think that not only did a monster take taylor's life at 16 years old but he also was trying to take his reputation and brand him as a murderer. >> the ever devoted mother of jason was defiant. you are standing in the courtroom and you hear guilty. how are you feeling? >> feeling horrible. i was making eye contact with jason because he was in shock. i said we will fight this. >> in january 2010, jason payne was sentenced to life without the chance for parole. that wasn't nearly the end of this case. over the next six years, there would be a number of head turning surprises. just how far would a mother's love go? >> coming up. jason payne has a mission for mom. >> i want you to tear those up.
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>> you don't want them anymore? >> pulled the insides out. >> i can do that. that. ok... but i was waking up so tired. then i tried new zzzquil sleep nasal strips. their four—point lift design opens my nose for maximum air flow. so, i breathe better. and we both sleep better. and stay married.
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andrea canning: remington and jackson had lost so much, first their mother and brother and then their father, who was sentenced to life in prison. remington and jackson had lost so much. first her mother and brother and then their father who was sentenced to life in prison. their grandparents were now
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raising them. >> our papa is no longer with us but both were so amazing. grandmother is still so amazing. i joke with her sometimes singing that but i really mean it. she is the world to me. >> for six years, their father had been telling anyone who would listen had nothing to do with the murders of his wife and stepson. his mother never wavered in her belief he was innocent. is it a dark cloud hanging over your head knowing your son is behind bars? >> it's in my mind every day. i do find during the day but at night i wish i knew -- >> in 2013 came the news jason's mother had been praying for. an appeals court ruled some
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testimony was hearsay including with the sister-in-law said about jason wanting to burn the house down with nichole inside, and that prejudiced the jury. in 2016, jason faced his second jury. are you trying to get everything you can for the second trial? >> yes, we want evidence. evidence tells you the truth. >> thomas would prosecute this time and while most of the trial would be similar to the first, he said he had powerful new evidence. recordings of person phone calls between jason and his mom. and one call, jason asked faye about videotapes stored at her house. >> you had three tapes. two had nothing to do with anything. there was one that was me and nichole. >> jason didn't say what was on the videotapes, jurors heard him instructing his mom to destroy them. >> i want you to just tear those up. >> you don't want them anymore? okay. >> bowl the insides out then throw them away or burn them or
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something. >> do you know what was on them? >> no. i never heard them. >> but these are important tapes. he wanted you to burn those tapes. >> i don't remember him saying that. i don't remember burning anything. i never found the tape jason was talking about. >> prosecutors were not able to find the tapes either but they said did not matter. they wanted to leave jurors with the impression jason was trying to destroy evidence. >> whatever was on those tapes was something the defendant did not want anyone to know about. >> there was something else introduced at the trial. a new witness. remember leah? the emt? she did not testify at the first trial but at this one she gave key testimony about the body temperatures and something else. the look on jason's face when deputies found the bloody
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reagan his truck. >> it was the way he was acting, my heart stopped, and i thought, he had something to do with this. >> you just had a feeling? >> i did. i am not an officer. i am not a police officer. it was reading a person and the way he reacted. he was white. >> the prosecution made a compelling case once again. the defense said it too had significant new evidence. >> i had a lot stronger case the second time. i told the jury the case was about the science. the science would show our client was innocent. >> the rifle that was allegedly used in the killings had never been tested for dna. this time, it was. the results showed davidson's dna was not on the rifle. only taylor's was. >> that proves this is a murder-
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suicide. >> he pointed out the prosecution was relying on opinions and not science when it came to how cold or warm the bodies were. did any of the deputies take the temperature of the bodies? >> no. >> should those up and done? >> if they were going to rely on that as evidence for convicting someone of capitol murder, they should have done it. >> the defense called their most important witness to testify. the crime scene investigator from the neighboring sheriff's office, martin. what was his conclusion? >> murder-suicide. >> did he have any doubt? >> absolutely not. he is an employee -- >> smith county sheriff's department. >> but he testified for you. that's got to be extremely rare i would imagine. >> he's never done it as far as i understand in any other case
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but this one. >> the second jury was about to get the case, and afterward, a surprising new arrest. >> coming up. >> he's coming up. >> i thought they are going to kill us. >> jason payne has a crazy new plan only a mother could love. >> this mother and son relationship is bizarre. >> yes, it is. >> she will do whatever jason asks her to do. o do. or an unbearable itch. this painful blistering rash could also disrupt your work and time with family. shingles could also lead to long—term, debilitating nerve pain that can last for months or even years. if you're over 50, the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you. (♪♪) and as you age, your risk of developing shingles increases. (♪♪) don't wait. ask your doctor or pharmacist about shingles today. head & shoulders bare clinically proven dandruff
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welcome back. after serving six years behind bars for the murders of his wife nichole and stepson taylor, after serving six years behind bars for the murders of his wife nichole and stepson taylor, jason payne hoped a new trial would set him free. a verdict was coming but this story is far from over. police were about to uncover a diabolical scheme that threatened to put our lives in danger. here is andrea canning with the conclusion of house of horrors. >> quitman, texas, jason payne's second trial went to the jury, and the result was the same. guilty again. daniel believed his father was innocent. what would you say to the people who truly believe jason payne is a killer? >> it is wrong.
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it is not the truth at all. >> in a split within the family, jackson came to a different, painful, and stark conclusion. >> i was relieved when he was convicted a second time. brought weight off my chest when i realized my father would not be on the loose. >> remington said even though she was two years old, she has vivid impressions from the day her mother and brother were murdered. she did not want to go into details how she still feels traumatized. >> they said i was so young but i couldn't remember anything. all i can think is something like that does not go away. the smell of the blood is one thing is still there. i think you are lucky if you forget everything. i would rather have forgotten everything. >> in march 2016, jason payne
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was sentenced to life in prison without chance of parole. this is where the stories typically end. not this one. remembered nichole had a $100,000 life insurance policy? jason never cashed it and because who did? you said he never made claims on the life insurance money? >> he never did. >> where did that money go? >> i was the second beneficiary on the policy. that's when it came to me. >> all $100,000 went to faye. she gave some of the money to daniel. remington and jackson got nothing, but there was more. you also got the house? >> yes. >> that is right. after jason's conviction, the house where the rent $200,000 went to his mother. after a few years, she couldn't pay the taxes and lost it. it sat abandoned for years.
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do you see a future with a third trial for jason? >> yeah. >> evidently, this mother was willing to do almost anything to get that third trial. that's because, after his second conviction, jason and faye were caught in a devious scheme. this mother and son relationship is bizarre. >> yes, it is. >> in 2016, kyle was an investigator with the wood county sheriff's department. he said jason started sending his mother cryptic letters that contain messages about a secret plan. >> in those letters, jason describes what he is wanting. he is doing it in code. >> he believed the letter served as instructions and this is what jason wanted. get one of the witnesses to recant her testimony so jason could get a third trial. faye is her puppet -- his puppet.
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according to henson, jason told his mom to recruit a relative to help with the plan. faye called her niece and asked her to go for a drive. >> he's coming up with the only way he can get out. >> the niece secretly pushed record on her phone. >> i have to ask you. jason had to ask me and i feel i have to do everything that jason has said. >> i understand. >> she asked her niece if she could find a man, a hired gun who would coerce the witness who testified against jason to change her story, and that was to threaten the witness's child. >> you would do something to the child. you could be scaring this person. >> threaten the lady. you need to do this or your child -- >> yeah. something like that. >> faye put pressure on ernie saying if she didn't help
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them, jason would end his life. >> honestly, if he kills himself, everybody will think he is guilty. >> he doesn't care. >> the car ride ended and so did the conversation. the niece called the police and told them everything. who was that witness? someone you will recognize. leah, the emt. she was blindsided when police called with the chilling news. she and her son whose face we blurred were the intended targets. >> that was the most shocking and hardest day in my life. i fell to my knees. i cried. i locked the door. i called my husband. i panicked. i thought, they are going to come kill us. >> investigator henson said he does not believe faye never hired anyone but in 2016, she was arrested for solicitation
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of tampering with a witness in a capitol felony. why do you think jason had faye zero in on the emt in particular? >> leah did not testify in the first trial. she only testified in the second trial, jason felt her testimony was key to the jury in the trial. >> remington and jackson who had endured a lifetime of tragedy now had to watch their beloved grandmother being hauled in front of a judge. >> i feel she does have good in her. i hated to see her in the courtroom in handcuffs. your grandmother in shackles. it's kind of hard. >> i did not know what to think. you are sitting there and she is in handcuffs and she would smile at us. i did not know how to take that. >> faye pleaded guilty and sentenced to 10 years of
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probation but has since passed away. jason has no chance of patrol. leah remains fearful to this day. she's worried jason will work as prisoner connections to find someone to harm her family. what would you say to faye and jason now? >> what you both have done has affected my life a lot. i am not going to let you win. you will not win. i will come out on top. >> is for remington, when we last checked, she was about to chat -- start college. jackson was saving to buy a home and looking to get licensed in physical therapy. they had not spoken to their father since his arrest but they did have a request for him. released their mother's ashes to them so they could have some closure. >> we know she's gone but without having the ashes, it's like she's further away. >> there is one thing jackson
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and remington were determined to change. breaking the cycle of pain and heartache that is filled their young lives. >> i imagined when i was little, this perfect family, and so now the idea that one day i will be able to make the family for myself and for jackson, and to have this happy family, like i am so excited for that. >> that is all for this edition of dateline. i am craig melvin. thank you for watching. antone black: i can't sleep to this day. >> i am craig melvin and this is dateline. >> i can't sleep to this day. i seen him begging for his life. he was george floyd before george floyd.

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