this hour, a beautiful daughter. an angry father. >> you tell me in your own words why you did that to her. >> a deadly clash. >> you just told me that everything ha happened to them was okay. you are a sick individual. >> i want to see my caught. was it an honor killing here in america? >> this is a case about a man who committed these horrific crimes all in the name of his sense of honor. >> what would the jury decide? >> our system was being tested on whether multiculturalism

would win or whether equal treatment before the law would win. >> do you think the jury got it wrong? >> fox news reporting. a question of honor are from new york here is bill hemmer. >> bill: honor. in america the word suggests a personal code of fair play, honesty, respect for others but honor can mean something slightly different, too. in some cultures honor can be more about a family's reputation and sometimes if that family honor is tarnished by, say, a daughter refusing an arranged marriage or dressing immodestly the consequences for her can be dire. an honor killing is when a husband, father or brother actually murders a wife, daughter or sister over such imagined family shame. years ago, the united nations found that honor killings were all too common in islamic lands. are they now happening here and is america prepared to confront

that possibility? >> the story of a girl from peoria, arizona, whose life was snuffed out by her own father may make wonder. >> anybody who is in prison for killing a child or a love one, were all those honor killings? i don't think so. >> it is an old cliche that homicide detectives use but our victims can't talk. that is my job. to tell the story of what happened to nora malecky. >> the story of what happened to nora begins as a modern american immigrant tale. she was born in 1989 in southern iraq. her parents were shiite muslims, a denomination violently oppressed by sunni muslim saddam hussein's regime. in 1991, though, they found a way out. like hundreds of other iraqi

shi'ites her father surrendered to the invading american army during desert storm and asked for asylum. it was granted in 1994 to he, his wife, daughter and son. the family first settled in dearborn, michigan. falah got the a job as a truck driver. in 2002 they moved to phoenix. she struggled to balance her parent's old world ways with her desire to be a typical high school teenager. >> i know she didn't get along with her family but she would always be like they are not bad people. >> sandra became friends with her junior year. >> a bit conservative with the clothes. she didn't want to wear that much clothes but she was like it is in my culture not to show as much skin as you would. >> she wrote about that in an entry in her high school

yearbook. >> she said my parents are very religious but only about some things. middle eastern have some rules to live by and we can't do some things. i have american ways but i still follow some of the traditional rules. >> how would you say that most arab girls mark the transition from a life in the middle east to a life in the united states? >> the parents especially are used to having complete control over their children for a lot longer time than we understand this in america and there was a clash. >> the immigrant tale is similar. in 1967 his parents left syria for ohio where jasseo was born. they settled in wisconsin where he attended medical school on a navy scholarship. after 9/11 he founded the american islamic forum for democracy and is now perhaps the most forceful muslim critic of radical islam in the united

states. now, living outside phoenix, arizona, he has followed the case from the w beginning. >> she was dating and decided she wanted to make her own choices so was starting to act outside that box of iraqi cultural constriction that her family wanted her to be in. >> in the middle of her senior year she suddenly disappeared from school. sandra was shocked when she discovered why? >> someone came up to me and was like you won't believe this, nora was just sent to iraq to get married. >> a marriage arranged by her parents and people in iraq. she told friends when she return. >> i was like are you technically married and she was like no, not really i never agreed to any of it. they had the ceremony without me. >> what happened in iraq is still a mystery. what is clear is that was the first step on the path to

tragedy. a police officer arrived at this local park after receiving a call about an accident. >> when i arrived on scene i did see a vehicle. >> steadman says she found fala next to his damaged car and that he claimed his daughter had stolen and crashed it after they argued about her marriage in iraq. he had a photograph of her posing would two men. he was upset because she was already married to a gentleman in iraq. >> she took the statement and went back to the police station. later that day she appeared. >> she told me that her father paid a good amount of money to her cousin's family to have them marry and that he was angry with her because she would not be falling -- following through those plans. >> that was a big warning sign says dr. josser. >> if the father thought his daughter was married. >> she was committing adultery.

>> and that would be dison. according to police reports, her mother kicked her out of the house and filed an order of protection against her. she claimed she yelled and hit her. so she moved in with family friend and began dating her son marwan. they were also iraqi refugees. in fact, the two families first met back in dearborn, michigan. amal moved to arizona. when the al-malecki's followed they moved in with her for awhile. investigators learned in recent years falla and saham had a falling out with h her because she thought she was too linent with her kids. july 20, 2009. a 911 call is placed from the house. peoria police officer responds.

>> mr. al-malecki was in the front yard with his wife demanding to see his daughter. he began to tell us that his family law was higher than our state law. >> his family law higher than state law. bauer was stunned by that. as a well as by what al-malecki would say next. >> he would be willing to spend the rest of his life in prison rather than have his daughter disgrace him. >> he is telling the police officer that my law is above this country's law. that interaction is a huge part of the evidence that this was an honor killing. >> fox news reporting. a question of honor continues after the break.

>> bill: in recent years fox news has reported on a number of apparent honor attacks here in america by muslim men on women in their families. what the killers seem to want was control. ultimate control. that is why the victims of these honor crimes are not just the women killed but all the other wives, daughters and sisters who fear what will happen if they do not submit. was nora one of them. >> october 20, 2009. norr and family friend visit the dee is in peoria arizona.

the department of economic security. the welfare office. she was helping amal with her benefits and texting a friend why she waited. suddenly at 1:18 p.m. she sent this message. >> dude, so scary. i'm with my aunt at welfare place and guess who walks in? my dad. i'm so shaky. >> she gets pinged back. >> did he see you? >> she responds i don't think so. his fat [ bleep ] is right by the door so i can't even leave. i'm laughing like a crazy person. i hate when this happens to me. i knew i should haven't woke up. >> her friend then answers. oh, dear, that is awkward. what happening with your parent misway? i thought they were on good terms. >> according to police, falla was unemployed and also seeking

benefits. he left the welfare office first. they finished just before 2:00 p.m. amal would later testify that she locked her key in the car and while her son drove over with the spare they walked over for a cold drink. they never made it. >> 911 emergency. >> i'm standing at 8990 west peoria avenue at the des office in the parking lot. i just had two people run over by an suv. >> peoria police officers arrived at the grizzly scene. >> the young female. her head was here and she was having a hard time breathing and blood was coming out of her mouth. >> that was norr. >> the second victim was right about here. she was screaming and crying. i asked her if she knew who had done this and she said malecka.

>> fallaal-malecka. malali.d.ed nora's father. the violent crimes unit arrived at the scene. >> it was thought it could have been an accident but quickly we learned it was an intentional act. >> remember, they had walked out of the welfare office and were headed to a restaurant across the parking lot. detective bowie says as they reached the landscape divider his jeep hit the two women, jumped the curve, drove down the sidewalk and out of the lot. while the crime scene was being processed bowie paid a visit to the home. >> the door was answered by the oldest son. he said he received a phone call from his father. when i asked him what he and his father discussed. he wasn't able to recall. >> her mother was at work in california. according to police, her job

was teaching u.s. troops about arab culture before the deployment to the middle east. detective bill lang reached her by phone and recorded the conversation. it has never been broadcast before and it is chilling. >> hi, this is detective bill lang of the peoria police department. i'm calling in reference to your husband. have you heard from him lately?

>> the lieutenant overseeing the case was so concerned for noor's safety in the hospital he called this man. >> he said something about an honor killing, he wanted to know what is an honor killing. >> muhammad sits on the muslim police advisory board of arizona.

>> he said there is in iraqi immigrant trying to kill his daughter. they were afraid that somebody else, his son or a rea relative will go and finish the job yes. >> was at the time the chairman for the arizona chapter of care, the counsel on american islamic relations. i interviewed him long distance. >> the police were that interested there could be further harm brought to her. >> correct. i met the family. i tried to convince the mother that it is best interest for the father to surrender. >> we received absolutely no assistance, cooperation, help in any way from any of the family members in this investigation while noor lies unconscious near death in a hospital bed they didn't want to do anything to help her out. >> this is cbs five news. >> four days after the hit-and-run, his sister clinging to life, ali gave an

interview to the local news and seemed to defend what his daughter did to noor. >> for the past the two years she has been going out of her way and being disrespectful. different cultures, different values. one thing to one culture is not going to make sense to another culture. >> he is saying you can live in all outward appearances as an american but something deep inside is to profoundly different that we would regard it as legitimate to kill a girl who dishonors our culture. >> mark stein is an author and syndicated columnist based in new hampshire. he writes in a no holds barred fashion. he says honor killings in america are a kine of sign of both. >> this isn't just one isolated crime. this is something that is now happening with distressing frequency in the heart of the western world. >> it has migrated into germany

and scandinavia and the united kingdom and canada and to the united states, too. >> meanwhile, the search for faleh al--malecki took an international turn. >> two calls were made in the united kingdom. >> next, police catch up with faleh and put him through a grueling interrogation. did he confess to an honor killing? that's coming up.

>> bill: as part of this report we tried to interview noor al-maleki's family. her mother, brother, cousin, any one who could tell us what she was like. the things that made her happy. her life's aspirations.

no one would talk to us. investigators tell us one way honor violence differs from other kinds of domestic violence is that the family often sides with the attacker, not his victim. in peoria, arizona, police claim that is what happened as they tried to capture faleh al-maleki who fled to europe by way of mexico. >> he spent two to three days in nogales and took a bus to hhermosillo and from mexico city flew to london. >> when they ran his passport they found an american warrant for h his arrest. within days he was flying back to the u.s. accompanied by federal marshalls. he landed in atlanta. peoria arizona police detectives were there waiting.

they interrogated him in this room at the airport. >> state your name, sir. >> okay. >> this case wasn't a who done it. my biggest interest was to find out why it happened. >> and to try to get al-maleki to confess to purposely running down noor and amal. >> i think you are a man that is trying to do the right thing by your family and by your kids and everything else, okay. i understand that. and what happens more often is that good people like yourself get into a situation and for a split second in their lives they make a very bad decision and i know this was not an accident. >> i lost control. >> i will not believe that you suddenly lose control of your car, no. you pointed your jeep at both of them and you struck them. >> i lost control and i don't

try to kill my caught. when we first started talking to him he said it was an accident. we didn't believe it at all. >> he played good cop to bowie's bad. >> were you trying to scare them >> bill: then boughey raised the question of honor. >> i think that noor has brought tremendous disonner in your eyes to the family. this is a way to restore some of that honor maybe. is that what this was.

conceded that maybe i tried to scare her and then conceded that he did mean to hit h them. we moved from an accident to something that he intended to do. >> bill: the interrogation which would later play a big role in al-maleki's trial lasted for two hours. after it was over, al-maleki waived extradition and was put on a plane to phoenix. meanwhile, sahel al-maleki was allowed to visit her daughter noor with hospital security present. on november 2, 2009 doctors pronounced noor clinically brain dead. with her mother's consent noor was pulled off life support. while in this arizona jail faleh al-maleki made a series

of phone calls to his wife. husband and wife were told their conversations were being recorded. even still, those tapes reenforced investigators' belief that they were dealing with an honor killing. neither the mother nor the father thinks they did anything wrong to al-maleki. >> they think noor al-maleki is better off in paradise dispatched there by her father than living as an american woman.

they also talked about faleh's legal defense. they are assimilated enough to understand this is a legalistic society and it is all about the loopholes. ever

at one point al-maleki who came to the u.s. after seeking asylum spoke as though he was america's political prisoner. >> do you think t was an honor killing? >> i don't think so because -- >> muhammad al-sharkoh way you remember is the former arizona care chairman who met with faleh al-maleki's wife and son right after he ran his daughter down. >> i think he wanted to scare her because he was angry.

it as moment of rage. >> he does con cede that honor killings do occur in tribal cultures throughout the islamic world but denies they are a big problem here in america. >> these are very isolated incident that it happen now and then it is like every other crime. >> how does he explain all that talk about honor in those jailhouse phone calls between mr. and mrs. al-maleki? >> i think they thought if they go with honor killing that might get out of jail like they do back home. >> so they thought the courts with be easier on them because of a culture from another part of the world? >> yes. we have seen some of the places that they will be more lenient if it is an honor killing or something like that. >> but that is quite stunning in itself to think that somebody in america could think that they could get a lighter sentence because they labeled it an honor killing?

>> people do stupid things every day. >> but what would a jury thing? a question of honor continues after the break.

>> bill: was the death of noor al-maleki a murder dictated by the demands for honor by her iraqi immigrant father? or was this all just an accident? an arizona jury would be asked to decide by a prosecutor intent on sending is message far beyond that courtroom. >> what could a rue man being -- how could a human being kill their own daughter over honor? >> laura record has prosecuted her share of murder cases but this one was different. >> from the beginning you labeled this an honor killing. >> the defendant labeled it an honor killing if you look at his jail calls, if you look at what his son said.

>> bill: and record intended to make the jury confront that issue. in her mind, record would succeed only if the jury returned a verdict of first-degree murder. that meant the killing was premeditated by a man driven by a sense of shame and dishonor. even if the jury convicted al-maleki on the less serious charge of second-degree murder or even manslaughter it would be a devastating loss for record and a victory for al-maleki and his public defenders. >> ladies and gentlemen, one of the founding fathers of this country thomas jefferson has been quoted as saying nobody can acquire honor by doing what is wrong. >> bill: january 24, 2011. prosecutor record made her opening argument to the jury as al-maleki, the accused listened to an arabic translation.

>> this is a case about a man, the defendant who committed these horrific and oh so wrong crimes all in the name of his sense of honor. >> bill: by presenting the case as an honor killing record arguably made the job easier for the defense team. >> ladies and gentlemen, this is the father of noor. >> if they could convince even one member of the jury to reject that motive, al-maleki would almost certainly be acquitted of first-degree murder and avoid a life sentence. >> it is common for iraqi men to no longer be called by their first name when they have a job but to take the name of their child. >> with al-maleki sobbing in the background she told the jury that what happened was an accident. >> he hits the curves and goes up on the median and runs over

a tree. he looks out, noor. noor my baby is lying there. >> two vastly different accounts of what happened. who would the jury believe. the prosecution's first witness was charles cooper who worked at the welfare office and said he saw al-maleki rundown noor and amal and then run off. cooper was questioned by stephanie low, record's caisson tell. coal. >> can you tell us what you saw then? >> two females exited the building and then the screech of the tire and sounds of cracking and breaking and then the lady hits the ground. >> a bystander tearily recounted how she rushed to noor's aid after she was hit. >> i pushed the hair out of her face and i held her hand.

>> the defense then challenged the witnesses recollection on cross-examination. >> i asked you a question about the vehicle being angled or not angled. do you recall me asking about that? >> not directingly, no. >> their objective, to dispel any inference that al-maleki was lying in wait for his daughter and amal. >> i must have misspoke. >> one eyewitness the defense did not question, amal who survived the crash. the judge would not let her show her face as she testified through a translator that al-maleki did not lose control but steered his jeep right at his caught. did you see him turn the wheel toward noor? >> yes, yes. >> why did he do it? >> record played for the jury the entire two hour interrogation of al-maleki at the atlanta airport. it included this stunning

exchange that record believes shows this was an honor killing. >> i know i got a reaction when i told you people are helping you. i think there are people i in your family and probably your that think what happened to noor is okay.

>> what does he mean by that? >> he is talking about his daughter. >> the fire was a metaphor. >> yes, about his own caught. noor is not the fear. he is the fire. he is the one in trouble. >> assistant public defender would tell the jury record got it exactly wrong. >> his family is helping him. >> on cross, he also went after the detective who interrogated their client. >> during the course of the two hour interview he told you 15 times that it was an accident. >> if you counted them, i will take that as how many times. >> that he lost control 11 times. >> okay. >> he maintains it is an accident, correct? >> yes, and no. >> then the defense went right at the heart of the

prosecution's theory that this was a premeditated honor killing. he accused boughey of making up that whole idea. >> you gave him this it was honor because you knew something about his culture, right? >> yes. >> bill: and then the prosecution countered with the two police officers who responded to the prior incidents involving noor and her father. >> he told me that he would rather spend the rest of h his life in jail than have his daughter continue to disgrace his family and he believes that his family law was higher than our law. >> bill: finally, detective boughey returned to the stand to read the translation of the jailhouse phone calls al-maleki had made to his wife. using al-maleki's own words against him. >> no one hits his daughter but honor is dear. >> when you hear a piece of evidence like that, is there any doubt in your mind that you

have this defendant nailed? >> no doubt. this was clearly a premeditated murder. >> bill: now, it was the defense's turn. >> is this an honor killing? i'm not so sure. >> bill: and what happened next would stun many in the courtroom. fox news reporting a question of honor continues after the break.

>> bill: faleh al-maleki sat silent as the prosecution pressed its case that he murdered his daughter out of a twisted sense of honor. after the state rested, judge roland asked if al-maleki would take the stand in his own defense. >> is your client going to testify, counsel? >> mr. al-maleki has chosen not to testify today. >> without calling a single witness, the defense rested. >> counsel, are you prepared to give closing argument? >> in closing arguments the prosecution pounded away at the premeditated honor killing theme insisting it was the jury's duty to return a verdict of first-degree murder not second-degree or are even murder. >> the evidence proves way beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant intended, wanted, and desired to erase noor from

his life on this earth and all in the name of honor. >> when you made your closing arguments did you think i have got this case sewn up. >> i never had that level of confidence but i thought we had some jurors in our pocket. >> al-maleki's lawyer argued this was not a premeditated honor killing and at most his client was guilty of manslaughter because he simply intended to drive close enough to his daughter noor to spit on her. >> she is not scared of him harming her. she thinks he is going to do something else. spit, embarrass. call her a name. >> deliberations began. day one. no verdict. day two. they are still deliberating. day three. nothing. what were you thinking then? >> by that point, i was afraid

that they were going to come back manslaughter. i was that concerned. >> bill: on the fourth day of deliberations, the jury reached a verdict. >> we the jury duly he impanelled and sworn in the aboven titled action on our oath do find the defendant as to count one, first-degree murder a domestic violence offense as to victim noor falaeh al-maleki not guilty we the jury do find the defendant as to count one, second-degree murder guilty. >> in other words, the jury did not agree that this was a premeditated murder. it was not an honor killing. a defeat for the prosecution. >> for the injuries suffered by family friend amal, the jury found al-maleki guilty of aggravated assault. he was also found guilty of two counts of leaving the scene of a serious accident. record believed she had failed

noor. >> i truly felt i had failed her at that point. >> you did? >> i did. i did. >> bill: do you think the jury got it wrong? >> yes. i do. and i'm not going to say i respect their opinion, respect their verdict. >> bill: what did you vote initially? >> i initially voted first-degree murder. >> you thought this was premeditated. >> yes. >> jeff was the jury foreman. >> how many of the others in the jury room agreed with you? >> i think it was about 6-6 on murder one versus couldn't agree with murder one. >> why did you flip? >> in order to get a verdict out. we went to stepdown so see if we could come to a resolution on another charge. >> did the issue of honor killing come up in your

deliberations. >> we talked about it a little bit. the jury spool was split about whether he was angry with his daughter and saw her and in his anger killed her or if it was for on. if your view did honor have anything to do with it? >> i'm not sure. >> our system was being tested on whether multiculturalism would win or weather justice and equal treatment before the law would win. >> then the system you believe clearly failed? >> yeah. >> bill: this jury had mercy on him. mercy on him.ust mercedes sort of having mercy on another culture and that is going to erode our society at the end. >> bill: but this case was not over yet. faleh would finally address the court and the judge would address the question of honor. mine was earned over the south pacific in 1943. vietnam, 1967. i got mine in iraq, 2003. u.s.a.a. autonsurance

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>> bill: the news is full of stories of people who killed their wives or children. scott peterson. susan smith. ing andrea yates just to it name a few. was the murder of noor al-maleki any different? the judge has precisely that question on his mind as noor's father begged him for mercy. i wish i was dead and not her. >> to say this is an honor killing is deeply, deeply, deeply wrong. it has is nothing to do with honor. this has to do with one man driven out of hatred to kill

his own daughter because it suited his purpose. >> what do you say so the phone calls from jail where he said honor is precious? nothing is better than honor? >> i think it sensationalizes what is nothing more than a parent killing a child. i'm not saying that because he was from iraq that he may not have had some belief that it was an honor killing but i think in the final analysis what it does is gives him vindication to call it an honor killing and it dishonors the victim. >> the judge sentenced 50-year-old al-maleki 34 and a half years in prison for his crimes, killing noor, injuring amal and receiving the scene of a serious accident. >> because my wrath will be nothing compared to the wrath of god if you don't have for forgiveness.

>> but others asking tough questions about radical islam thinks the judge's reasoning begs this question? >> why he is unwilling to confront what it is that has actually happened? >> the judge -- a judge in an honor killing in pakistan would simply say, oh, yeah, your daughter was getting a little out of hand so you killed her, okay, case dismissed, boom, next. we are not yet at that stage in the united states. but in a sense he is doing exactly what that pakistani judge is doing. he is dishonoring the memory of that murder victim. >> but mark, he is going away for a long time. >> but we are sending a consistent message here that that is not in the interest of america as a whole and it is certainly not in the interest of young women like noor al-maleki. >> that is the message that we are sending. you know. >> bill: prosecutor records still insist noor al-maleki was the victim of an honor killing but the fact she was not able to convince a jury of that has

not stopped her. just the opposite. she has been invited across the country to talk about a practice she fears is taking hold in america what brings you to new york city? seven weeks after the sentencing we caught up with her in new york where she was addressing a conference by the growing number of honor killings by muslim men here in america and the west. >> i remember when we spoke in phoenix. you said at the time that you believed you had failed. >> yes. >> do you still feel that way? >> i do. i do. i feel like we failed noor by not getting the first-degree murder conviction. >> why does she move you so much? >> because she was abandoned and she had so much potential. and to see her whole family turn against her for this is ridiculous notion of honor. >> how often do you think about noor? >> every day.

>> bill: that is our program. i'm bill hemmer. thanks for watching fox news captioned by closed captioning services, inc. @