i know i'll see her again. and that gives me hope. i'm craig melvin. >> i'm natalie morales. >> and this is "dateline." she was home with the kids. her husband out with friends when it happened. >> he said something about his kids tell evening him there was a robber. >> all they told us was there was an intruder. >> their home, so deep in the woods, now shrouded in a mystery even deeper. >> this is a real who done it? >> very much so. >> police had suspects. >> i remember kelley not wanting to be home alone. >> they also had a problem. >> why would this guy go up and

kill this woman? >> her family had questions of their own. >> something is not right here. something is wrong. >> and then someone remembered a phone call and a fib. >> i pulled up my phone and i'm like, that's strange. >> a killer living two lives. >> everything you thought you knew was all a lie. ♪ hello and welcome to "dateline." kelley and tom clayton's seemingly happy life together came to an abrupt end when she was found brutally murdered. investigators set out to uncover the truth, finding stories of betrayal and a witness who may have seen everything. the clayton's daughter, charlie. but in this case, not everything was as it seemed. here with "the house in the woods" is andrea canning.

>> he wasn't exactly sure where the house was or what had happened there, but he knew it was bad. >> yeah, these ones are not fun to do. >> finally, he found it, down a secluded driveway, a man on the front lawn waving him in. >> what's going on. >> i'm the neighbor. >> inside, the deputy could see signs of a struggle, blood on the floor. >> got blood on the wall, blood on the steps. >> a broken wall. he searched the house. >> hey, kids' room, this one's clear. i'm going to check this last room. here. >> the trail led to this, to someone in a little room just

beyond the stairs, beyond all hope now. >> oh, my gosh. >> yeah. >> the house in the woods was home to tom and kelley clayton and their two adorable children. he had been a local star of sorts, a hockey player, and kelley was a hometown girl raised in the finger lakes region of new york state. >> when you grow up here, it actually took for me to move away and go to college before i came back and appreciated how pretty it is. >> andrea spurlock is kelley's best friend. they grew up near elmira, new york. she said it was as if the land bred a little sweetness into kelley, maybe tartness as all. >> how did you see kelley. >> she was goofy, happy, always trying to have fun. she loved to laugh. she was sarcastic. witty. she always made things fun. >> funny and beautiful. they couldn't cope a girl like that in a small town for he ever. after college kelley broke some news to her big sister kim. >> she was very enticed by

bright lights out west. >> absolutely. she's like, i'm moving to vegas. >> what did you think when you heard that? >> i was sad. i was sad but i was like, oh, my god, go, you're so brave, do it off. >> did you see her off? >> absolutely. i remember she had parked at her mom's house. i remember running down the street. >> did you have any parting words or advice for her? >> i have a photo. it was such a sad photo, the saddest day of my home. >> kelley came home often to visit, including christmas of 2003. by then elmira had a new attraction, a minor league hockey team. >> my mom, my sister and i were at an elmira jackals hockey team. this player is checked into the boards and we were like, he's cute. >> kelley's mom, liz. >> we enjoyed watching him. he was fun, he really was. >> he was tom clayton. he served as the jackal's instigator. when they locked eyes, it was game over. >> she met him that weekend. >> she met the bad boy. he was fun, he really was. >> he was tom clayton. he served as the jackal's instigator. when they locked eyes, it was game over.

>> she met him that weekend. >> she met the bad boy. >> yes, she did. >> was it instant for them? >> yes, it was. >> they were with married about two years later, and a few after that came the kids. >> hi! >> a girl and a boy. tom traded in his hockey skates for work boots to run a home restoration business. now andrea had her best friend back home plus tom. >> what did you love about him? >> he was very generous. he would shower her with things. we had a mutual friend who he and his wife passed away in a car accident, and tom immediately called me and was like, we've got to do this, let's do this fundraiser. we did. and he was like a brother. >> almost ten years into the marriage, kelley still gushed about her tom. >> she was just talking about he's the greatest guy, i mean i hit the jackpot with him. >> did that make you happy hearing that?

>> yeah, it really did. it was like, there's really somebody out there like that. >> greg and linda miller got to know them over the years. they affectionately called the former skater, hockey puck. but there was one thing the millers didn't envy about the claytons. where they lived. >> because it is in the middle of nowhere. we both said we could never live out in the woods like that. being out in the woods is scary enough, you know what i mean? >> no one remembers kelley feeling uncomfortable, even at night, even alone, except for one evening in late

september 2015. andrea was chatting on the phone with kelley. she wasn't her usual happy self. >> she was like, all right, i'm tired, good night. all right, leave me alone pretty much. >> why was it odd she might want to go to bed early one night? >> i think she was really stressed out, but she didn't -- she was a night owl. you know, she stayed up. her kids stay up late, you know. it wasn't normal. >> neither, of course, was what followed. >> sir, you need to calm down so i can help you, okay. >> yes. >> what's your name? >> my name's tom. >> tom clayton was on the phone to 911, something about his wife. she wasn't breathing. >> how long has she been down? >> i don't know, i don't know. i just got home. >> the clayton home, tucked down a pocket of a long dark road. it would never be home again. >> coming up, what had happened to kelley? police discovered the disturbing scene inside the family home. >> i said, where's your wife and he pointed to the kitchen area and that's when i walked around. oh, oh, okay. >> when with "dateline" continues. with the right plants for your region. so, you stay a step ahead of spring all season long.

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simple, easy, awesome. car accidents, drug overdoses, those are the kinds of emergency calls deputy dean swann of the steuben county sheriff's office respond to. the one he and his partner got after midnight on september 29, 2015, that was a first. >> how long has she been down. >> i don't know, i don't know. i just got home. >> we received a dispatch from our 911 center, unknown possible medical situation.

i responded. to be honest with you, in route i felt there was something wrong here. >> why? >> just cop intuition i guess is what it was. >> maybe this isn't medical? >> yeah, there was something more to it. it just seemed that way. >> his instinct proved right. still, he didn't expect what came next inside the home of tom and kelley clayton. this is footage from the body camera swann was wearing that night. he arrived to find a man outside coming towards him. it was a neighbor. >> how you doing? >> i'm okay. >> what's going on? >> i'm just -- i'm the neighbor. he just came and got me out of bed. >> okay. >> he's right in the house. >> what happened? >> his wife -- his wife's in there. >> i went in and located mr. clayton and he was kind of down on his knees, kind of bobbing up and down, visibly upset.

and in the hallway, between the hallway and the transition area between the hallway and the dining room. >> anybody else in the house, tom, just you? >> i got the kids at the neighbor's house. >> i said, where's your wife, and he pointed to the kitchen area. that is when i walked around and i located the victim on the kitchen floor. >> oh. oh, okay. >> it was tom's wife, kelley. right away the deputy knew she

had been murdered. >> what did you see? >> the victim. there was blood, blood spatter on walls, ceiling, the victim had blood pooling around her head. >> tom, where were you when this all went down? >> playing poker with my buddies. >> tom said he had just come home from a poker game to find kelley dead on the floor and his seven-year-old daughter charlie saying something about a break-in. >> i came home and my daughter said there was a robber in the house and she saw them. >> okay. come on out here, man. come on out here. i want you to have a seat. you don't need to see that, all right. >> his kids were home? >> kids were home when this occurred. >> where were they? >> when i got on scene he had taken them to the neighbor so i never saw the kids. >> what did you think of the person capable of doing this to her mother with the children home. >> there's no way to describe a person like that. they're not a person.

i knew just from my experience, training that, okay, this started up here and worked its way down there. >> and she was fighting? >> she was fighting. yes, she was fighting. >> next, they searched the basement and the rest of the house. >> i don't see any blood down here at all. okay. nothing there. >> were you able to clear the house? did you find a robber? >> no. >> did you find an intruder or evidence of an intruder. >> we cleared the house and we found no -- nobody in the house. >> and no sign of forced entry. but when they went into the garage they realized how the killer might have gotten in and out.

>> the side door to the garage was open with the inner door open that goes into a laundry room. that door from the laundry room into the kitchen was also open. >> by then, more officers had arrived. and tom clayton, outside by a police car, was still a mess. >> come on over here, sit down. >> i just -- i'm shaking. >> well, that's what i'm saying though. you want to sit down somewhere. sit down. okay. >> i keep doing, i keep sitting down, getting up. >> he calmed down, sit down, relax. we tell him, hey, we need you to stick around because we have to talk to you, try to find out what happened here. >> but to find out what happened, they would have to go to another house where one of the county's top lawmen was about to perform one of the most difficult interviews of his career. >> it took me personally a long time to work through in my own mind and it stayed with me quite a while. >> coming up, a child witness. >> observed mommy fighting with what she termed as the robber. >> and a chilling suspicion. >> i just remember corey walking up and down the road the whole time. something's not right, something's not right. >> when "dateline" continues. with this one little

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kelley's sister kim raced to the scene. she had gotten the call, kelley had been hurt, badly. >> so it is pitch black and all you see are new york state trooper cars, sheriff cars,

police cars, i see ambulance, all of these lights. >> oh, god. where's my sister. >> i first run to the ambulance because i think they're going to be working on my sister. i'm like, where's my sister? where is she? >> police explained the awful truth, kelley was dead. >> we were screaming, wailing. i mean i was throwing up on the side of the road. >> you can't believe she's dead. i mean it is like it is inconceivable that she could be dead. >> they wouldn't let you see kelley either, right? >> no. they just kept saying, kim, you don't want to see her. >> was your first instinct that

maybe there is some kind of a home invasion? >> yes, it was. >> some stranger? >> yes, it was. >> kelley's best friend got a call from kim's husband corey. >> and my dad drove me there, and by the time i got there everyone was there. i just remember corey clinching, keep clinching his fists and walking up and down the road the whole time. something's not right. something is not right. something doesn't add up. and we were all just so confused. they wouldn't tell us anything. >> none of you knew nothing? >> nothing. >> could one of you stay with him. >> they told them that the children were safe at a neighbor's house. they didn't mention what charlie had been through. >> she saw everything and she saw it happen. >> steuben county sheriff jim allard interviewed the seven-year-old that night. he was astonished by her poise and bravery as she gave the details of what had happened. >> her story begins she was in her room playing on her tablet, and she said she heard mommy yelling, run, charlie, run, repeatedly, screaming it, run, charlie, run. and mommy got to her door and

got the door closed, and then she heard more commotion. she opened, went into the hallway and followed the commotion, down the hallway, down the steps, into the kitchen, and observed mommy fighting with what she termed as the robber. she got up and pantomimed for me of a person standing over another person with an object in their hand, striking that person that was on the ground, and she described the object as a cylinder, that the robber, as she kept calling him, used. >> she went on to give the sheriff a detailed description of the so-called robber's appearance. >> she described the person to me as a male wearing jeans and a dark shirt and a mask. i initially asked her, you keep saying it is a man. how do you know it is a man? and she told me, because of his eyes. >> i said, well, what about his eyes let you know it is a man? she said, his eyes are just like daddy's. so then i stood up and i said, how tall was the guy? was he taller than me or shorter than me?

she said, he was the same height as daddy. i said, okay. i said, how much does he weigh? was he heavier than me? was he thinner than me? the same as daddy. and the mask he had on is just like daddy's mask that he wears hunting. >> after the robber left charlie said she rushed to hug her mother and then knew there was one more thing to do. she had to go upstairs and take care of her three-year-old brother. to the sheriff the seven year old's story was both chilling and heartbreaking. >> it was a memory i'll have with me the rest of my life. it is one of those that takes a little part of you with them. here's a little girl who does remind me very much of my own daughter and she's working

through, i just watched mommy brutally attacked, it could be daddy, where am i? where does this leave me? >> but could it be true? did he she really just see her father kill her mother? this had been a very bloody murder and deputy dean swann had looked tom clayton over carefully. >> did tom have any blood on him? >> i did not see any on him, no. i actually checked him for any injuries or any blood on him and he had nothing. >> tom had told the deputy he had only just come in the door to find his wife dead. he had been gone all night at his friend's house, the millers, playing poker. so that's where investigators went. >> i heard the banging on the door and ringing of the doorbell, and i woke him up. i'm like, somebody is banging at the door. >> what time is this? >> this is like 6:00 in the morning. >> that's pretty early to get a knock at the door. >> right. nothing good happens from answering the door at 6:00 in the morning.

>> when greg realized it was the police at his door, his first thought was that his daughters had been in a car accident. >> the investigator told me, no, nothing is wrong with your daughters. did a guy named hockey puck as you know him or tom play poker here last night? >> hockey puck is tom's nickname? >> correct. and i said, yes, he did. he says, well, when he went home he found his wife murdered last night. >> wow. >> and instantly it was like we're looking at each other, and it was like, uh, we're in a state of shock. i said, obviously you probably want to come in. >> greg gave the officers the details of the previous night. tom had been in his basement playing poker until around midnight. >> and normally what time did the game wrap up? >> usually the games would go at 1:30 but we quit at 12:00 and by the time everybody got out of there it was about 12:10. >> it sounded like tom was telling investigators the truth about where he had been, at poker night. they later determined the murder happened before the game wrapped up. >> this is a real who-done-it? >> yeah, very much so. >> come on over here, tom.

you're not in trouble. i'm going to have you have a seat so we can talk to you. >> so despite what the little girl thought she saw, the investigation was far from over. authorities were asking who on earth would want kelley clayton dead. >> investigators dig into kelley and tom's past and their marriage may not have been as happy as many thought. coming up. >> i remember kelley not wanting to be home alone if he was there. >> a suspect who is no surprise to some and a second suspect who is. >> it doesn't feel like a slam dunk here. >> no, it does not. >> when "dateline" continues. ♪ born to be wild ♪ moves like these need pampers cruisers 360 fit with an ultra-stretchy waistband and a 360 fit that adapts to every wild move plus up to 12 hours of protection

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i'm dara brown . seven-year-old charlie clayton revealed what she saw the night of her mother's murder. she said kelley clayton's attacker had the same eyes as her father and the mask resembled one he wore while hunting. but tom clayton had an alibi backed up by friends. so if tom didn't attack kelley, who did? here again is andrea canning with "the house in the woods." >> investigators were trying to figure out what had happened in the murder of kelley clayton. they were looking to the family for leads. >> they were like, listen, do you guys know of anyone that possibly could have done this? >> kelley's niece molly had an idea. >> i looked at my mom and i was like, yeah. >> molly, only 16 at the time, told police she spent the summer working for her uncle at his restoration business, servpro,

and there she met one of his employees, a man named michael beard. tom told her to keep her distance. >> he never really wanted me around michael beard. he didn't want me like working with him. >> michael beard was no stranger to the family. >> he actually had done work at my sister's home. my sister would give his daughter charlie's hand-me-downs, clothes, toys. my sister would make lunch for him when he was there working at her home. >> while kelley was kind to beard, she told her sister she didn't always feel comfortable around him. >> i remember kelley not wanting to be home alone if he was there. you know, he was civil, he was nice, but i don't think she wanted to be left home alone. >> now molly told investigators that her uncle tom had recently fired beard. >> michael beard was fired september 17th, and then kelley

was murdered like the night of the 28th, 29th, so it wasn't long at all. >> was it possible that beard was angry about losing his job and that kelley's murder was some kind of revenge? molly went through her cellphone and her facebook contacts and gave investigators beard's address. >> i gave that to them and they were just like, okay, thank you. >> the steuben county sheriff's office needed all hands on deck and called in the new york state police for the assistance. >> i was contacted by investigators the day of the homicide. >> investigator matt lambert was assigned to run down the michael beard lead. >> what did you know about michael beard's background? >> he actually was a pretty well-respected employee until september 17th when tom had fired him. >> why did tom fire him? >> stealing from jobs and drinking, i think, on the job, and he fired him on the 17th because there were maybe some complaints from other employees

at servpro. >> so there were issues there? >> right. >> but beard was polite and cooperative when the investigator knocked on his door. >> we said, hey, can you take a ride with us up to the barracks. he said yeah, let me let my wife knew. >> he already knew what it was about? >> we told him we wanted to talk about the homicide of kelley clayton. >> the investigator asked beard where he was the night of kelley's murder. he said he was home except for a beer run. >> he actually kind of alibied himself at that point saying he was at the store the night before and it was the same clerk working, that she could prove he was in the store the night before. >> did he express he knew anything about kelley's murder? >> no, he didn't say he knew anything with the murder. >> is he telling you anything about tom clayton? >> no, just that he had worked for him. >> and beard denied any hard feelings towards his former boss. said he and tom were still friends. in fact, he told the investigator it was tom's partner who fired him, not tom, and tom was even trying to help beard find another job. >> are you getting any bad feeling from him? are you suspicious of him? >> not at all. >> so you're thinking this is

going to be somebody we're going to cross off the list? >> yes, i didn't expect to see him again. >> to the investigator and those close to kelley, michael beard didn't seem like a good suspect at all. >> did you think it is possible, he was a disgruntled employee, he was taking revenge? >> i didn't. because if you're disgruntled, why wouldn't you kill the person that you're disgruntled against. i mean, i'm angry at you so i'm going to go kill your wife? >> as a matter of procedure, the investigator asked beard for a dna swab and permission to look through his cellphone. >> he was very forthcoming, very willing, no problems, just very cooperative. >> while the state investigator was checking out the not-so-promising michael beard tip, sheriff's investigators had tom at the station. detective donnie lewis said they still had questions. >> for the most part it looks pretty good for tom. >> correct.

>> this alibi is pretty strong? >> absolutely. the witnesses that see him at the poker game, we know where he was all night. >> that's not the end of the story though? >> that is not the end of the story. >> not the end of the story because there was something investigators just couldn't get around, the daughter's story, her description of the killer. it was powerful evidence they couldn't ignore, and so just hours after the murder -- >> the defendant was remanded to steuben county jail without bail. >> they arrested kelley's husband tom clayton and charged him with murder. >> how can you arrest him? what are you arresting him based on? >> there's a lot of suspicion. basically we have to have probable cause to make an arrest. >> what was the probable cause? >> the biggest thing, the oldest child made comments that it looked like daddy, had daddy's eyes. >> as of the end of the day -- >> reporter: tanner covered the story for nbc affiliate webn tv. >> i don't know how they charged him honestly. i don't know how they charged

him so quickly. >> he said the arrest had everyone in the newsroom scratching their heads. >> thomas had a great alibi, he was at a poker game 15 minutes away. even hours after they arrested him i don't know what grounds they had as far as actual evidence connecting him to the death. >> if tom was the killer, there had to be a hole in the rock-solid alibi, or maybe the authorities thinking the husband always does it had acted too fast. >> it doesn't feel like a slam dunk around arresting this man. >> no, it does not. >> coming up -- the mystery of the missing phone call. >> i pulled out my phone and i'm like, see if there was a number there and there was nothing. and so i'm like, that's strange. >> when "dateline" continues. i had a heart problem. i was told to begin my aspirin regimen,

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♪ steuben county sheriff's investigators had made a quick arrest in kelley clayton's murder, her husband tom. to many, including kelley's best friend andrea, it didn't make sense. >> i loved him. she loved him. he was a part of our family. we were a part of theirs. >> the millers were also confused. they knew tom couldn't have killed kelley because he was at their house when she was

murdered. >> was this a normal night, just like any other monday? >> absolutely just like any other monday, yes. >> but now the millers wondered had they missed something. they started thinking like detectives. >> i'm like going over everything in my head. i'm like, what the heck, why, you know, all of this stuff, who could it be, what's going on. >> then linda miller remembered. tom at the poker game asking a favor. >> i was doing dishes and he came into the kitchen and said, hey, can i borrow your phone for a second. he says, i left mine out in my car, i have to call work. i said oh, okay, sure, it is on charge. just a second. he followed me in the bedroom. i unplugged it and handed it to him and he said thanks. seemed like a couple of minutes he was back and said thank you and put it on the table. >> it wasn't odd at the time, but now the phone call around

11:00 p.m. seemed important. whom had tom called? >> i pulled up my phone and i'm like, see if there was a number there, and there was nothing. >> so there should be a number if he called somebody on the phone. >> right. and so i'm like, that's strange. i said, greg, can you look at my phone. >> and i says, there's -- there's nothing. >> is part of you thinking, oh, maybe he just decided not to make the call? >> no, because i heard him talking. you could hear like the mumbling, just a voice speaking of sorts, but nothing intellingible. >> as the millers struggled to make sense of that they called the other men who had been at their house that night. the poker players recalled the same detail. tom's phone was always with him. >> he had his phone at the poker table? >> that's what poker players are saying, yes. it was there, yes. yes. >> so he has his phone at the poker table, but he's telling you he left his phone in the car? >> uh-huh. that's what he told me.

>> more than a little suspicious, the millers kept digging. they went online to check linda's phone records and there it was, the number tom dialed about an hour before the murder, a number they didn't recognize. investigator donnie lewis took it from there. >> so what i did was i got the number and put it into actually facebook on my phone, and as soon as i put that number in the profile that pops up is michael beard. >> michael beard, the ex employee who had been some cooperative with investigators. suddenly he didn't seem so innocent. now police had to reconsider their theory of the crime. maybe it wasn't tom who had beaten kelley to death. maybe their daughter's description of the killer was wrong. maybe it was michael beard she saw. >> this phone call, this is like the key? >> that's the first real connection we had that put beard anything to do with the murder. that kind of just alerted us right off the bat as we need to go talk to michael beard again. >> he denied any type of involvement. he even denied receiving the phone call. they never talked. >> did that seem odd? >> it did can seem odd. he denied having any type of conversation. he said he didn't even remember receiving it and he wouldn't

have answered a call that wasn't -- that he didn't know the number. >> and when investigators looked at beard's phone, there was no sign of a call from linda miller's cell. >> it had been erased. he explained it away that he the night before had to recycle his minutes on his phone. it was a little suspicious to me. >> did you start to come down really hard on him, like we're not buying your story? >> it wasn't hard. it was more like i was trying to say, let the truth out because he was having physical, like his stomach was rolling. i was saying, mike, let the truth come out, let it come out, it wants to come out, let the truth come out, it is not adding

up, you got to stop. hear your body right now, your body is telling you that you're not telling the truth, just get it out. >> while investigator lambert was speaking with beard, he was interrupted by a colleague who had been grilling beard's wife. she mentioned a dramatic piece of information, something about a big payment beard was expecting to get from tom, $10,000. the investigators confronted beard. >> at that point he was just defeated. i had looked at him and said $10,000, is that why you killed kelley, and he looked at me and said, yes. >> this was your big moment. >> that was -- that was the win. >> michael beard was arrested for murder, and tom, already in custody, was now accused of orchestrating the crime. but tom's newly-hired defense attorney wasn't having it. >> he wants to be reunited with his children. he, frankly, is grieving the loss of his wife. >> investigators had quickly arrested tom based largely on a child's description, which turned out to be wrong. now his attorney said they seized on a confession that was anything but true. who would be believed? >> this is every innocent person's nightmare.

>> coming up -- a secret revealed as tom clayton's story starts to unravel. >> he told me that he was sleeping with other women. >> was that enough of a motive for a jury to convict tom of murder when "dateline" continues. dbears. the red one is more gooder to me cos it tastes like berries. they're really squishy. and then i'm gonna fly it in to my mouth. ♪ kids and grown ups love it ♪o ♪ the happy world of haribo ♪ you wouldn't accept from any one else. so why accept it from your allergy pills? most pills don't finish the job because they don't relieve nasal congestion. flonase allergy relief is different. flonase relieves sneezing, itchy, watery eyes and a runny nose, plus nasal congestion, which pills don't. flonase helps block 6 key inflammatory substances. most pills only block one. and 6 is greater than 1. start your day with flonase for more complete allergy relief. flonase. this changes everything.

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each lasting 4 hours or more. botox® injections take about 15 minutes in your doctor's office and are covered by most insurance. effects of botox® may spread hours to weeks after injection causing serious symptoms. alert your doctor right away, as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing, eye problems, or muscle weakness can be signs of a life- threatening condition. side effects may include allergic reactions, neck and injection site pain, fatigue, and headache. don't receive botox® if there's a skin infection. tell your doctor your medical history, muscle or nerve conditions, and medications, including botulinum toxins, as these may increase the risk of serious side effects. having headaches and migraines more than half the month? it could be chronic migraine. text track to 50334 for our migraine tracker, then talk to your doctor. tom clayton stood accused of hiring a hitman to kill his

wife, and kelley's family and friends who'd once loved tom like a son and brother were trying to process the idea that he might be a killer. >> the betrayal and the confusion, you don't know what to think. the fear. just because nothing is making sense and you try to make sense of something that's not logical. >> this has been such a betrayal of someone that's been in our lives for a number of years. >> reporter: were you trying to give him the benefit of the doubt at all? >> i want to say there was no looking back. you know, i believe he was involved. >> reporter: if kelley's sister had any doubt about tom's guilt, it was erased when she saw him in court for the first time. >> i was there at his bail hearing. he had a bulletproof vest on, shackles. no emotion. he doesn't look. he doesn't cry. and he gets out on $250,000 cash bail. >> reporter: that's pretty low. >> and he's been out ever since.

>> reporter: and he seemed determined to profess his innocence to anyone who'd listen. >> he said, i'd like to tell you my side of the story. i said, i really don't want to hear it. i don't want to get any more involved. and he's like partially crying and he's saying, you know i wouldn't do that. >> reporter: months went by as the state prepared the case against each man. michael beard was the first to go to trial. in court he recanted his confession and changed his account of the murder. but prosecutor weeden whetmore said evidence put beard at the crime scene. >> his dna was found where she had fled after being struck in the head with the murder weapon. >> reporter: it took jurors only seven hours to convict him. >> jury finds michael beard guilty of what the prosecution is calling a murder for hire scheme. >> reporter: if beard's case had been a slam dunk for

investigators, tom clayton's would be anything but. the prosecutor knew he couldn't use beard to testify against tom. >> even if he came forward and said i want to testify now, he had lied so many times. he had lied at his own trial . >> beard had changed his story so much at his own trial that he wouldn't have been a credible witness. >> reporter: tom and his lawyer pounced on that, telling reporters that beard acted on his own. >> this is purely mr. beard's doing. what we do know is that mr. clayton had nothing to do with the death of his wife. >> reporter: and tom's lawyer didn't stop at michael beard. he went after the investigators. he said they had tunnel vision when it came to his client. >> he said you'll hear it, you'll hear it in the bodycam video. >> you got a suspect? >> the husband.

>> reporter: the lawyer believed everything that followed in the investigation had been poisoned. >> he was simply just being wrongfully accused and police just rushed to judgment. and that therefore led to an incomplete investigation. >> reporter: and in fact, investigators never found evidence that tom paid beard for a hit. as far as tom clayton, there was no conversation overheard, there was no money exchanging hands. you couldn't even use the confession from michael beard. so there were a lot of things you didn't have. >> right. but if you look at thomas clayton's conduct, he never mentioned michael beard. everybody says michael beard should be an immediate suspect. he never mentioned michael beard to the police. to me there's a reason for that. >> reporter: as they prepared for trial, investigators kept digging. they discovered a flurry of calls and texts in the weeks leading up to the crime. >> clayton was contacting beard saying we have to meet, he was getting him a bicycle. so he was having these clandestine meetings. >> reporter: investigators also pulled surveillance footage from outside tom's business. they believed this was video proof of a conspiracy. that's beard, they say, in a red truck that tom loaned him just

hours before the murder. and that's tom following in his green servepro truck. >> we also know that during that time period beard turned his phone off, turned it on, turned it off again. >> reporter: why do you think he did that? >> the inference that would be drawn from that is these guys are not that naive, they know that there's a possibility of being tracked with their phones. >> reporter: then after the murder the video shows what looks like beard returning to tom's business to drop off the truck. there are its headlights entering the lot. and investigators believe that's beard getting on the bike tom gave him, pedaling away under the cover of darkness. >> the trial for thomas clayton is now set to begin. >> reporter: the courtroom was packed as tom's trial began. >> i'd never been in such a tense, anxious atmosphere. the courtroom was typically tense throughout the entire trial, but as far as anxiety was concerned, i had never been in a room that was filled with so much anxiety.

>> reporter: the only one who didn't seem tense to the reporter was the defendant himself. he saw tom clayton smiling and kidding around with family members. his lawyer, though, was on the attack. he told the jury how investigators had immediately labeled tom a killer on the night of the murder. >> i think he attacked her. >> reporter: and the defense said investigators refused to change their minds, even after it was clear michael beard was the one who beat kelley to death. >> the defense had basically alluded to the fact that there is a psychosis in michael beard and that he out of just hate and revenge against thomas and his other bosses went to the house that night with the intent of stealing and taking money and killed kelley in the process. >> reporter: the prosecution said that was nonsense. michael beard had no reason to murder kelley unless he was sent there by the defendant, tom clayton.

the state called linda miller to testify. she recounted how tom borrowed her phone and then deleted the number he'd dialed, never dreaming she'd do her own detective work. you really connected the dots to get police to this moment. >> yeah. >> she did good. >> if you can call it good. >> reporter: finally, the prosecutor said he knew why tom wanted his wife dead. he called kelley's niece, molly, to the stand. >> he just told me a lot of stuff about their relationship. >> reporter: molly told the jury about the summer she worked for her uncle tom. she said he talked a lot about his marriage. >> that he wasn't in love with her anymore. that kelley was very lazy. and he told me about him trying to like sleep with other women and that he was sleeping with other women. and he told me that he also was getting close to divorce, he just wanted to be done.

>> reporter: the prosecutor told the jury this was tom's motive. he wanted to get rid of his wife but keep everything else. >> i think he was concerned that his wife, if they went through a divorce, that she probably would get everything and this was an opportunity just to start anew. >> reporter: the millers listened and wondered how they could be so wrong about their old friend tom clayton. >> we didn't obviously know until the trial of the affairs and stuff. >> reporter: you really didn't know tom at all. >> correct. correct. >> that's the scary part. >> reporter: after seven weeks the case went to the jury. kelley's sister and the prosecutor braced themselves. >> now we wait. >> reporter: but not for long. it took jurors just six hours to make their decision. as they filed back into the courtroom, the reporter noticed

a change in tom clayton. >> that was really the first time that i saw in his face that you got the sense that this guy finally knew that oh, god, i could go to prison for life. depending on what they're about to say. >> reporter: and then they said it. guilty of first-degree murder. outside the courthouse, there were tears. lots of them. >> thank you. i think -- i believe justice was done here today. i do. >> reporter: tom clayton was sentenced to life without parole. michael beard has already begun serving a life sentence. it seems so many in town want to honor kelley. even tom's old hockey team. the elmira jackals held a tribute for her and victims of domestic violence. kelley's children dropped the ceremonial first puck to start the game. >> i'm telling you, kelley is with me. and i have a very strong faith. i hear her days saying get up,

let's go, we have got to do this. and i do. i have her beautiful babies and my own. and you have to keep on keeping on. >> that's all for now. i'm lester holt. thanks for joining us.