whatever the reason is. yeah. you give the option afterwards after you do the compliment. >> so we got 20s left. what do you got? >> i don't think you should ever answer. yes. >> no. what should you answer? what should you answer? >> just say no. you look great. >> you look fantastic. all right, so keeping it simple. no. no complications here. >> no, you look fantastic. but you should wear this. i like that dress, i think maybe on you. >> all right. so. all right. that'll do it for, like it or not. thank i'm anna garcia right now on true crime news. a shocking new twist in the sidney powell case. her conviction overturned after brutally murdering her own mother. >> no, no. stop, stop. >> her family ecstatic about the decision. but what happens next? plus, a stunning texas realtor with two young children goes missing just hours before a devastating hurricane hits. >> i begin to get worried after

she didn't start replying back to my text messages. >> but krystal mcdowell didn't get swept up in the deadly storm. cops say she was the victim of something much more sinister. >> something's not right. >> thanks for joining us.egin wf events in a story that we first brought you in september. sidney powell was a straight-a student with a bright future in front of her. or so it seemed. until one tragic day when sidney brutally killed her own mother. she was convicted. but now there's a huge update in the case. >> akron police. >> it's the ohio murder case that shocked akron, and one of the most watched stories on true crime news ever. >> female. here, she's got minor cuts to her hands. i don't know if she's, like, hyperventilating. >> now, a stunning development as an appellate judge has overturned the conviction of sidney powell, the young woman convicted of beating and stabbing her own mother 30

times. the aftermath of the murder dramatically caught on police body cam in front of her own father's eyes. >> daddy wyatte. what the hell? >> so, daddy. >> so. >> sidney was maintaining a web of lies to keep her parents from discovering she was failing her college classes. at the very moment her mother spoke by phone with university officials, hearing the truth about her daughter, sidney savagely attacked her with a cast iron skillet and a knife. >> she was hit multiple times in the head. this is one of the worst cases i've ever seen as far as trauma to a victim. >> 50 year old brenda was left gravely injured on the floor as an hysterical sidney lies to police that someone had broken into their house. >> no, no, there's so much blood. no! please, mom. man. take her out. >> then sidney goes catatonic.

>> sidney. sidney. sidney. >> later, the akron police department. sidney's dad, steve, learns his wife of nearly 25 years did not survive the brutal attack. >> really bad news. your wife passed away. >> everyone who knew sidney claimed the horrific act of violence was completely out of character, that she and her mom were very close. >> they really were almost like best friends, so they shared a lot together. >> sidney was like brenda's mini me, and brenda was sidney's best friend. and on tuesday, march 3rd, 2020, sidney killed her best friend, her mother. >> why was the central question in sidney's murder trial? her defense attorney, don malarchuk, arguing sidney wasn't in her right mind at the time of the murder and was temporarily insane. >> the brutality of this incident screams out insanity.

>> but experts for the prosecution claim the 19 year old knew right from wrong. the jury had three options guilty, not guilty or not guilty by reason of insanity. in the end, a jury convicted sidney of murder. >> we, the jury in this case, do hereby find the defendant, sidney powell, guilty of the offense of murder as charged in count one. >> but even sidney's family never wanted to see her. tried for murder, arguing she needed psychiatric help, not prison. >> if brenda could communicate her wishes, she would want to do what's best for sidney, what's best for me, what's best for her son, whatever that might be. and i believe brenda would want to get sidney the most help at the at the best place she can. >> initially, the powell family lost that fight, but after the verdict, the defense team appealed her conviction. they claim the trial court wrongly prevented the defense team from presenting witnesses that could have rebutted expert testimony from prosecutors, all casting

doubt on powell's insanity claims. the appeals judge agreed. now, even though sidney remains behind bars, she may get a second chance. although prosecutors are already challenging the new decision, taking it to the ohio supreme court. so what happens next in this case? will sidney powell be retried again? joining me now with his take is former prosecutor and host of the true crime news sidebar podcast, josh ritter. welcome back josh always good to see you. >> oh it's good to see you. thank you for having me. >> okay, josh. so why did this get overturned? it has to do with with the defense's ability to bring in experts to refute the prosecution on the issue of mental competency. correct? >> correct. the defense did call experts. there were experts that the jury heard from. from the defense regarding her mental state. but the prosecution called experts to attack those points, and the defense was denied the opportunity to then

respond to that. and that's what the court felt was wrong. this wasn't about the facts of the case. this really wasn't about the testimony. it was just about giving the defense that further opportunity to respond, which the court of appeals felt that they were entitled to in this case. >> does this not fall into the double jeopardy part of the law? meaning if she gets tried again for the same crimes, that this would be possibly double jeopardy? >> no, because essentially what the appellate court did is it found that that first trial, it's almost like a legal fiction that it didn't happen. saying overturning that conviction means we go back to square one. she was never essentially put in jeopardy the first time. so therefore double jeopardy doesn't apply. >> the defense's claim that sidney was never in her right mind when she killed her mother, which was brutal. but then she went ahead and she tried to cover up her crime when police arrived. that sounds to me like someone who's clearheaded. >> that's an excellent point. and that's something that the

prosecution is certainly going to highlight for the jurors, because when we're dealing with sanity defenses, really it's about whether or not somebody appreciates the consequences of their actions. well, one way to demonstrate that somebody does appreciate that what they have done is wrong is by them trying to cover it up afterwards. so she may have been suffering from some sort of mental breakdown, certainly some sort of mental crisis to commit this kind of savage violence against her own mother. but she also understood that what she did was wrong because she tried to hide it. and that's what the prosecution is going to highlight. it convinced one jury. and so i imagine they're just going to have to mount up and try to convince another jury. again. >> this is complex because the family here has been standing up for sidney. they have lost the mother, the matriarch of this family, but her father and the remaining relatives have been supportive of her. so what does a prosecutor do with this? >> you know, you see this in

cases where family members kill other family members. it tears families apart. and you have some that support the defendant, some that support the victim. as a prosecutor, i think that you have to be guided by doing what's right by the people. in other words, enforcing the law, regardless of how emotions and how family members may be pulling you in opposite directions, doing what you feel is the right thing. and they feel, and i think i agree with them, that under the circumstances of this case, that this is a righteous murder case that they should be pursuing. >> when we look at the case of sidney powell here, the violence with which she struck her mother with that cast iron skillet, the way she tried to cover up the crime, what's your take on how the overturning of this conviction will be received by the public? more support or more scrutiny for sidney? >> i think it's clear that she snapped. the attack is so brutal and so violent. but really, from

a legal perspective, somebody can snap and still be legally sane. the question becomes, when she snapped, did she just simply not even appreciate what she was doing was wrong, morally or legally? the violence, as you highlighted, was shocking. in this case, she stabbed her 30 times. this was just what we might even describe as an overkill type of murder, and all in response to something to do with her own failings in school and her mother finding out about all of that. i don't think this is a case that's going to garner a lot of sympathy with juries. and so i think that's why we're seeing the defense turn towards this idea of some sort of mental break mental crisis that she was having, because i don't really know what alternative they're left with. but to argue that, and that's going to come down to a battle of experts. >> so what moves does the prosecution have now? >> well, if they don't do anything, she walks. so i don't think that's a one of the options they're actually going

to pursue. they could just decide to retry her. they could say that, listen, this was not a problem with the facts of our case. it wasn't a problem with proof. it wasn't a problem with evidence. it was just a problem with the way that the case was handled. but many times, plea negotiations will open back up and you may see the prosecution making an offer to her defense team. that is something that she feels like she could live with having already seen, by the way, that a jury has convicted her, she might be more inclined to accept a plea offer if it means something short of what she's already been sentenced to. but at the end of the day, if they can't work out some sort of plea negotiation, i think you'll probably see this trial get set again in the near future. >> josh, always appreciated. thank you. >> always a pleasure. thank you. >> when we come back, a mom vanishes as a massive hurricane makes landfall. >> something's not right. >> but she wasn't lost in the storm. someone made her disappear.

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>> on the next true crime news, a businesswoman vanishes. now what her father is t

when a massive hurricane hit texas, it killed dozens of people. but just hours before it barreled into town, a beautiful 37 year old mom vanished into the hot, humid air. was krystal mcdowell trying to outrun the storm, or did someone want her gone? >> i guess we met when we were

about 17. her spirit was just radiant and it affected people. >> she's unlike anyone i've ever met. >> krystal mcdowell's life was just starting to turn around. the divorced realtor was finally finding success in the houston area, and had recently fallen head over heels in love with a jeweler named paul hargrave. >> we met in my store. she came in to have a ring remade. it was her grandmother's ring. >> from there, paul says their relationship heated up quicker than summer in texas. >> we tentatively talked about a few things, but again, this relationship was was fairly new. we were talking about possibly her moving in. she didn't want to be by herself. >> there was one reason her ex-husband and father of her two children, steven mcdowell krystal, had only temporarily moved back in with him while her new townhouse was undergoing renovations. >> but she was a little worried. he had gotten a little possessive, maybe because he

probably thought maybe there is hope for reconciliation. and so when the new boyfriend came into the picture, then that hope was gone. >> and there was even more disappointment. krystal had planned a cruise with her kids and her uncle. at first she invited her ex, steven, but then disinvited him and bought paul a ticket instead. >> i knew that they were having some some difficulties getting along, and i think she was ready to get out of the house. >> then harvey hit the night before the storm was predicted to make landfall. krystal stayed at paul's in the morning. his surveillance cameras captures krystal leaving and getting into her black mercedes, heading to her ex-husband's house to pick up her kids before the weather got too bad. >> she left here around seven in the morning. she probably arrived at steven's house 20 30 minutes later. >> at 7:27 a.m. krystal text

paul, have an amazing day and you are so sweet. he texts back, i love you and i'll always support you. no reply. >> i begin to get worried after she didn't start replying back to my text messages. krystal was known to reply back very quickly. >> by that evening, the category four hurricane has hit houston with a vengeance, but still no word from krystal paul texts. i'm so worried about you. i hope you're okay. >> i told my husband. i said, i'm really. something's not right. >> desperate to find krystal, her best friend, bronze braves the storm, driving west with a bad feeling, one soon shared by chambers county sheriff brian hawthorne. >> well, we pretty well knew it had nothing to do with the hurricane because the missing person complaint had come in prior to the storm. >> as the storm rages, the investigation begins. >> one of the first things that we look at is social media. so we immediately pinged her

telephone and we started doing other things, such as getting search warrants on her phone records. we could not find her ipad, we couldn't find her telephone. so we were operating off of her phone records. >> one phone number pops up a lot. krystal's new boyfriend, paul hargrave. up next, police have questions, but someone isn't telling the truth. >> he did fail the polygraph. he wasn't forthcoming on all those questions that we had in the initial interviews with him >> and police make two big discoveries. >> attention medicare beneficiaries. if you have or are eligible for medicaid, please listen closely. you may be eligible for medicare advantage plan from wellcare with a $0 or low monthly plan premium call. now we can answer your questions and help you enroll over the phone. wellcare provides access to essential benefits that go beyond original medicare, such as dental, vision, hearing, and $0 or low

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closed captioning and other considerations for true crime news provided by. >> we're in a limestone cave letting extreme residue build up to put finish jet-dry to the test. dishwashers are designed to use jet drive to defend

against tough residues for a practically spotless shine. >> the power of mandolese is now available in a spray. this innovative low ph formula stops odor before it starts anywhere on your body with long lasting cologne quality scents. men are loving this deodorant. it's the touchless way to apply whole body deodorant anywhere. >> for the best deals, go to shop mando. com. >> watch this. in just ten minutes, your under eye bags and wrinkles will visibly disappear with plexaderm. and better yet, the results last up to te hours. try it for only $14.95 at plexaderm trial.com. >> we're back with the disappearance of krystal mcdowell, who went missing as a devastating hurricane barreled through texas. investigators have been called in on a missing person as hurricane harvey comes crashing to shore in houston. the first person they want to interview about krystal mcdowell's whereabouts is her boyfriend, paul hargrave.

>> i immediately went to the police department and gave them a statement. dna, cell phone records, camera footage so that either they could a rule me out or b focus on someone else. >> he was cooperative and fairly forthcoming. we had problems getting some evidentiary items from him, such as video. he claimed he had video, so obviously that became a red flag to us. >> and paul takes a polygraph test, but it doesn't go so well. >> they didn't tell me the result, but there was a lot of yelling and screaming. >> when steven undergoes the test. he tells detectives that krystal never showed up at his house that morning, though she told paul that's where she was heading. >> he did fail the polygraph. he wasn't forthcoming on all those questions that we had in the initial interviews with him. >> for days, krystal's friends and family searched the area. then investigators make a pair of shocking discoveries, the first in the flooded parking lot

of a cheap motel. >> see this black car right here? this mercedes? two people got out of it, and it doesn't belong to them. >> this home video shot from the motel balcony shows bystanders watching two people as they rummage through a black mercedes. it's krystal mcdowell's mercedes, and the keys are still inside. >> she or someone had placed the car there, and the way the car was parked, it appeared to us it was more staged. we didn't think for a moment that krystal had parked it. >> but the most shocking discovery comes a couple of weeks later. >> i got a call from the texas ranger that saturday afternoon. saying that they had found her. >> krystal's decomposing body dumped in a wooded area predicted to be covered by millions of gallons of water from the hurricane. unbelievably, police only found her with the help of steven

mcdowell, krystal's ex-husband. >> he actually, you know, drove us to the body. >> sheriff's say it took several interviews, but steven mcdowell finally tearfully confessed, admitting to strangling krystal during an argument. one report saying with her children in the next room. >> i think they know daddy hurt mommy and mommy's not coming back. >> mcdowell was charged with first degree felony murder while he was convicted and sentenced to 50 years in prison. it was little solace for krystal's family and friends. >> i was devastated, i was doesn't feel like reality. it doesn't feel like she's she's actually gone. and so it's been difficult to come to that realization. i have no words for steven. >> is knowing that i'm not going to get a text again. i'm not going to get a call again. we're not going to do birthday parties for our children again. i won't get over. i mean, this will be a long time before i'll get over losing her.

>> if you or anyone you know is experiencing domestic violence, call the national domestic violence hotline at 800 799 safe. that's 807 997233 o text start to 88788. we'll be right back. >> today we are talking about medicare part c, commonly called medicare advantage. if you're losing benefits for any reason or new to medicare, you can call now because you may be eligible for plans in your zip code with additional benefits or cost savings you may not be receiving now, or that may have previously not been available to you. different part c plans are available in different parts of the country, so don't wait. call the number on your screen now. you should call now even if you've called before. we will check to see if there is a part c plan available in your area, with additional benefits and potential cost savings. call to speak with a licensed insurance agent and find out if you are eligible for a special

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>> on the next true crime news, the successful young businesswoman doesn't show up for work. but when her abandoned car is found, it's the mysterious person getting out that has everyone on edge. >> there are so many scenarios that run through your head. >> was she abducted by a stranger? >> i can't help but wonder. was it someone stalking her. >> or misled by a person she trusted? >> i will find you. >> what her father is telling me now, after years of searching for answers, is there any ray of hope here on the next true crime news? become a true crime news insider. the personal alarm fits easily into your hand. the push of a button or pull of a pin

bellbird emits a deafening 130 decibel alarm. visit true crime news.com/safety deals to get these products. now. for the latest breaking crime news, go to true crime news.com. watch more exclusive content on our youtube channel, listen to our podcast and follow us at my true crime news. that's it for today's true crime news. i'm na garcia. see you next time, (dramatic music) - [nancy] a beloved work colleague is discovered dead. - lindsey's death really rocked the sheriff's department. - lindsay would come in and, in a couple o' minutes had you smiling. - she had really turned a corner in her life. - [nancy] the motive appeared personal. (dramatic music) - you start realizing this is not a standard i'm trying to come in and steal your tv. (dramatic music) - what did the digital evidence tell investigators? - we know the night before she had gone to do her workout at the dojo's.