jesus rode an ass into jerusalem. keep yours at home. truer words. happy easter, everyone. it's still easter with everything else. stay inside. that does it for us tonight. we will see you again on monday. >> you know when they tell you everything passes before your eyes, think about everything that happened in your life, think am i ready to die? >> he was a hollywood stunt man but that was no hollywood stunt. >> this was a hit. >> shot four times and left dying on the floor. >> somebody definitely wanted him dead. >> but who and why? you'll meet lots of possible suspects. >> oh, my gosh. >> including his ex-wife, an actress once married to movie mobster joe pesci. but she had a strong alpibi, an

that's only the start of the twists in this hollywood mystery. >> this is stranger than fiction, nobody would write a script like this. >> most stunning of all, what didn't happen. >> my mom said to me, don't you [ bleep ] die. hit harder than bullets. my mom never swore. ♪ hello, welcome to "dateline," garrett warren was a hollywood stunt man who made his living pulling off death defying acts. one night he opened the door for a stranger and found himself in the middle of a terrifying scene that was all too real. garrett was looking down the barrel of a gun. moments later, four shots rang out, and soon investigators would be embroiled in a whodunnit with more twists than a feature film.

here's josh mankiewicz with "the plot thickens." >> ready, action. >> action. >> action. >> it ranks second only to money as the single most important word in hollywood. and here in l.a., where life and art are often the same thing, there's a real life drama that rivals any action movie with a plot that includes all the elements of classic film noir. a mystery featuring an assassin, a femme fatale, a hollywood star and a stunt man who takes the fall. as for the money, we'll get to that. let's start with the biggest name on the marquee, joe pesci,

famous for roles as cold-blooded killer. this features claudia haro, a model who appeared with pesci in "casino." supporting staff includes her brother manny haro, who did time and harbors a secret in his past. and claudia's second husband, garrett warren, hollywood stunt man, very familiar with danger. fade in, early evening in the quiet town of west lake village, california, outside of l.a. stunt man garrett warren heard a knock on his door and a voice on the other side asking about his silver volvo in the driveway.

garrett answers, then our first plot twist, three shots into his body. one more into garrett's right eye, the daredevil's luck had run out. >> i called and his mother answered the phone, screaming, crying, just distraught, wally, you're not going to believe what happened. what? garrett's been shot. >> wally crowder was a fellow stunt man and garrett's good friend. >> garrett was one of those men that you can count on. you hear in life you're lucky if you have five friends or can count a friend on one hand, garrett was that friend to me. >> wally's been in the business more than 30 years. >> garrett warren was probably the finest fight man you can ask for. i had hired him on several shows, got to know him, watched

his expertise, phenomenal athlete/stunt man. >> you've probably seen garrett warren's work, you just didn't know it. his stunt work was featured in "charlie's angels" and "double-team" with jane claude van dam van damme. >> i want the best at what they do. >> but towards end of 1997 the focus shifted when garrett warren met claudia haro. >> beautiful woman, just wanted garrett to be happy, he had found somebody it seemed like he genuinely loved and wanted to start a life with. >> there was something special about her, i think people that got to know her, just a beautiful soul. >> claudia's good friend julie araskog remembers when claudia

and garrett first got together. says to you, i met this guy. >> and she was very excited. i was big fan of garrett's, he was sweet and funny and she just seemed so happy with him. i should say joe and i both were supportive. >> referring to claudia's ex-husband, a character actor who became a star playing mafia tough guys joe pesci. didn't end badly? >> not at all. they're like family, very, very close. >> claudia stayed close to joe pesci even after she started dating garrett who came from a different part of the movie business. garrett loved action and adventure but when he met claudia, he was ready to settle down. >> we felt this would be the gal that garrett would end up with, no more dating, running around, end up with claudia. >> garrett and claudia were

married less than a year after they met. >> in the beginning think it was a very good relationship. >> oh, my gosh. >> they soon had a beautiful daughter, kyla, they enjoyed being parents. >> i love you guys. >> love you too. >> but happy scenes like this one did not last. claudia and garrett couldn't make it work. >> it was a series of events. just wasn't the right marriage. >> once the relationship started going south, it went fast. less than two years after their wedding, claudia and garrett split up for good. >> divorce is never easy, but in the long run it was two parents trying to figure out a way to live and both see their children. >> garrett went back to his old life as a stunt man, back to the set and the world of make believe, so then how did his life go from playing dead to bleeding out on the floor of his

home, shot four times at close range? >> somebody definitely wanted him hurt or dead at that time. >> but who? detective mark gayman of the l.a. county sheriffs department said investigators looked at every angle. remembering how the gunman at first asked about brand new v volvo, wondered if it would be road rage, tangled with on the freeways. >> guessing he doesn't always drive the speed limit or use his blinker to change lanes. >> could be possible. >> or could be personal. >> ex-business partner or somebody he was dating that was jealous, ex-husband or ex-boyfriend. an array of possibles of who could have done this. >> possibilities that led from the bloody crime scene to bright

lights of the movie business to the parts of l.a. that tourists never see. >> who did want garrett warren dead? seemed to be an entire cast of suspects. . coming up, getting ready to say goodbye to a friend. >> i'm going to lose my friend, he's not going to make it. >> when "dateline" continues. just like your fingertips, your lips have a unique print and unique needs your lips are like no others, and need a lip routine that's just right for you chapstick has you covered chapstick. put your lips first. with this one little nexgard chew comes power, confidence, reassurance you're doing what's right, to protect your dog from fleas and ticks for a full month. this one little nexgard chew is the #1 vet recommended protection. and it's the only chew, fda approved to prevent infections that cause lyme disease. plus, it's safe for puppies.

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northridge hospital, daytime. wally crowder rushed to bedside of his buddy garrett warren, stunt man shot with real life bullets. >> ran into garrett's mom and realized i'm going to lose my friend, he's not going to make it. >> garrett was in critical condition. >> all these things run through your head, the time you spent together, things that maybe you should have said that you didn't. it was rough. >> shot three times in the body and once through the eye, all at close range, hard to imagine anyone surviving it. ready for our second twist? it's one that neither garrett's family nor the gunman saw coming. this is garrett warren today. >> thank god i'm still here. i mean i was very fortunate,

lucky, blessed. >> to the surprise of the doctors treating him, garrett warren pulled through. and he lived to tell the story of the night he was almost murdered. a flashback as vivid now as it was then. here's bullet one. >> to be honest with you, when a bullet hits you, you don't really know that it hit you. not like you see in the movies. as i slipped to the side, hit center mass, by chest, passed the heart and stuck in the rib cage right here, still there. >> then bullet two. >> so i looked down and back up, here came another one, i slipped my head to the side, when that happened, hit me in the neck and went straight out my back. >> bullet number three. >> then i realized this is for real, went to close the door and he shot center mass, hit me in the hip, straight out my back,

past the hip, hurt, hit the bone. >> if that sounds gruesome, hang on for what's next. >> fell back to the ground, and he put the gun to my head. first thing i did when i saw him squeeze the trigger i flinched like this, like a fighter would. went through eye, came out my ear, stuck in the wall behind my head. >> pretty good reflexes. >> but if it was "the matrix," wasn't good. like keanu go back and bullet still hitting him. as much as i moved, still got hit. >> somehow the bullet that went through garrett's head misseds brain. >> when they tell you your life passes before your eyes, it doesn't, you run through it, think of everything that happened in your life and wonder did i do anything wrong, not make up for it? am i ready to die? >> at the time of the shooting

garrett's mother was at his home helping with baby kyla, ran to see what was happening and gunman took two shots at her but he missed. then out of bullets he fled. >> i looked at her, i said i love you mom, see you on the other side. my mom said to me don't you [ bleep ] die. i was shocked. hit me harder than the bullets, my mom never swore, she shook me, said don't you [ bleep ] die, you've been a fighter all your life, fight one more time for me. i looked at her, said all right, you got it, not going to go, i'll stay. >> as garrett ran through his life, he looked back on his failed marriage to claudia haro. >> it was true love, things that poetry was written about, movies were made of. >> hi daddy, what's up? >> that brief marriage produced their daughter kyla, even though

the marriage didn't last, the bond both parents felt with kyla surely did. >> my daughter's being born was the most amazing part of my life and probably one of the greatest things i can leave as my legacy i guess. >> when the marriage broke up, there was a nasty fight over who would get custody of kyla. in midst of it, claudia made perhaps the worst accusation you could make, claimed garrett had sexually molested their daughter. after thorough investigation, court ruled there was no evidence of abuse but it was shortly after that that gunman showed up at the home. naturally the detectives brought in claudia for questions. >> just another road we went down in the investigation. could it be an ex? >> claudia was cooperative, didn't appear to have ties to the shooting, had a strong

alibi, expressed concern for garrett. investigators were satisfied she wasn't involved. they kept talking to garrett who got a glimpse of the man who shot him. >> difficult to decipher ethnicity looking through peep hole in my door. >> not someone you knew? >> no. >> sheriffs department tried to piece together theories. i'm guessing you asked garrett if he was carrying on with someone. >> looked at his life, lifestyle, business. >> high energy lifestyle from the gym he owned to the film circles he ran in, garrett warren had no shortage of adventures. but investigators received a tip suggesting that garrett also had enemies. >> sheriffs station received an anonymous letter advising that there were people involved at the gym that garrett was having

relationship with, people that might be of interest to detectives. >> detectives checked out every name that came up, followed up every lead, hit a dead end every turn. depressing? >> very depressing, sometimes you just need one break, phone call, somebody giving up information, another road to go down, adventure to try. >> it took almost two years before that break arrived. that's when police in another county, searching a car for drugs, instead found a note and a photo that would make clear just what kind of danger garrett warren was facing. >> coming up, was garrett warren's would-be killer about to try for take two? >> i'm scared to death someone's going to come back and finish it. >> when "dateline" continues. these folks don't have time to go to the post office

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close up, garrett warren, the stunt man was gunned down in his own home but lived to tell the tale. he knew his would-be killer was still on the loose and garrett was looking over his shoulder. >> i have a bulletproof vest on, invested money in security around the house, scared to death someone was going to come

back and finish it. >> expecting an arrest? >> no, chalk up to experience, move on with your life, that's it. >> you did move on. >> i did. >> a year after his shooting, garrett still faced multiple surgeries and painful rehab. he was back at work as a personal trainer at the gym he owned, where he met issa. >> she was also a client of mine that i was personal trainer to. when first training said i really like you, would like to date you, and i said i don't date clients. >> issa quit the gym. >> came back, said i'm not injure client anymore, let's date. >> met two years after the shooting. maybe the happiness from second wife made it easier to get along with his first, claudia. anger that had marked the

divorce faded. >> back to schedule again, shared custody, on speaking terms and actually friendly. >> about 18 months after garrett was shot that detectives got that lucky break. in an unrelated case san be bernadino police served a search warrant on a man looking for drugs but found something unless under the spare tire in his trunk, photograph of garrett warren with a circle drawn on it and garrett's home address which very few people knew. so detectives showed garrett a six pack, a photo lineup that includes one of miguel kouros. >> i said by all means, that's the guy i recognize. >> the guy that shot you, no doubt in your mind? >> no doubt in my mind. >> in 2003, detectives arrested

kouros for attempted murder. he was neither a gangbanger or hired gun. he owned a pizza parlor. mark gayman. >> seemed like he was middle class, nice guy everybody in the community loved. >> yet garrett was identifying him as the shooter. >> yes. >> other than garrett's i.d., there was nothing to suggest they had ever met. never done a business deal before? >> no. >> connected to the gym? >> no. >> driving a car near garrett that night? >> none whatsoever. >> what their connection was, why mr. kouros would kill him, not clear. >> there was no direct connection whatsoever. >> and as detectives soon learned, proving attempted murder charge against miguel kouros would not be easy.

multiple witnesses say they saw and spoke to him at his pizza parlor on the night of the shooting. these witnesses weren't beholden to him, they were customers. >> yes, they were, frequent customers of the establishment. and he had the receipts. pretty good alibis. >> at the preliminary hearing, evidence pointed both ways. witnesses put him away from the scene of the crime but why did he have garrett's picture hidden in his car? how and why would garrett finger kouros as the shooter? hoon chun was the deputy strict attorney brought in from major crimes unit. he knew he had more work to do. you got a guy stopped for drug charges, a map hidden in his car of someone who was nearly a murder victim and a photograph of that guy. >> right.

>> and guy picks him out. >> right, so you think what's the question. >> aren't there people on death row for more than that? >> sometimes there is more that meets the eye, the case here. >> investigators discover another picture of garrett warren, him and the man he accused of shooting him. >> coming up. >> stranger than fiction, nobody would write a script like this. >> when "dateline" continues. no wonder you rub your eyes hundreds of times a day. but now, relief is just one drop away. introducing pataday® full prescription strength pataday works right in your eyes. right on the cells that make them itch. fast. just one drop, once a day means relief that lasts all day. so turn your day, into a pataday. now get pataday without a prescription. everywhere. and it's negatively impacting your enamel. eating and drinking healthy things that are acidic thinning and yellowing can happen as a result of that.

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hello, dara brouwn, here's what happening. irs has issued the first economic impact checks. agency said quote, we'll continue issuing them fast as we can. new york governor andrew cuomo announced decline in hospitalizations. first negative number for icu

admissions thursday since the start of the crisis. now back to "dateline." welcome back to dateline, i'm craig melbon. police are just arrested suspected drug dealer miguel quiroz. serving a warrant, found garrett's picture and address in the trunk and garrett i.d.'d him as the shooter. it just wasn't adding up. garrett warren wasn't out of danger yet. josh mankiewicz with "the plot thickens." >> fade in, los angeles county, california. garrett warren was gunned down, shot four times in his own home but somehow survived. it hit his character, really, a

hollywood stunt man, martial artist and former fighter. not only did he survive but able to identify his shooter, man caught with what looked like a hit note in his car. >> and they tell you his name is migu miguel quiroz, mean anything to you? >> not at the time, at all. >> sounded like strong case but more prosecutor hoon chun investigated, weaker it seemed to become. >> done a lot of work, mostly proved your defendant's alibi. >> and really proved that he didn't do this. >> multiple witnesses put miguel quiroz 80 miles from garrett's home on the night of the shooting. then like a scene from columbo tlt, the latest twist that the prosecutors saw in a court hearing.

>> noticing something, first of all, quiroz was left-handed. shooter was described as right-handed. >> what left-handed person would try to commit murder with gun in his right hand. >> out of a movie. a script writer might do something like that but in real life didn't make any sense. >> then prosecutor chun saw this photo taken at a barbecue. >> garrett warren facing miguel quiroz, kneeling down, children in front of them. can tell from the scar on garrett warren's face underneath the left ear this is post shooting. can tell from the ages of the children and lakers championship t-shirt that mr. quiroz is wearing this is shortly after the shooting. >> the two men were guests at the same party after the shooting but before garrett made

his eyewitness i.d. of quiroz. >> you think this is where garrett knew miguel quiroz from, why he identified him as shooter because he remembered him from this party. >> right, classic transference. >> to the prosecutor and to garrett the photo explained the i.d. >> for some reason when i saw him in the photo lineup it clicked, that must be him, i recognize him. obviously it wasn't him. >> so garrett was wrong in picking quiroz as the man that shot him. that left prosecutors with two questions, who did shoot garrett and since he had the photo and address in his trunk, could quiroz still possibly be involved? hoon chun began to rethink the case. >> they let us talk to him, and detectives and i kept coming back to the hit note, where it's

found. he doesn't know garrett warren, their interaction was very brief at the barbecue. >> detectives kept after quiroz, they know whoever ordered the hit really wanted garrett warren dead. one more twist, postmark on the note is from after the shooting, not so much a hit note as note explaining to someone how to go back and finish the job. >> it's a rehit, if you want to call it that. >> that started to unravel the mystery. >> that's what broke the case open, kwiquite frankly the lifee we had on that case. >> the one piece of evidence that finally cracked miguel quiroz. >> he admits he was one of the middle men. >> he wasn't the shooter, he was in on the plot and he was caught by his own carelessness.

>> he explained that that hit note had been sent directly to him, that he had put it under the spare tire in the trunk of his car and literally he said he had forgotten about it. >> so the reason you ended up finding that hit note under the spare tire in trunk of mr. quiroz's car is he put it there for safekeeping and forgotten it? >> one of those stranger than fiction things. nobody would write a script like this, any self-respecting producer would have the look you're having, that's ridiculous. but people forget things. >> disorganized crime. >> yeah. >> luckily for processors, miguel quiroz had not sworn a blood oath not to rat on his friends. quite the opposite, he rolled over like lassie and cut a deal. agreed to wear a wire and collect evident on his

coconspirators. as sthey say around here, the plot thickened. coming up, the world's worst hit man. >> i'm not a good shot. >> we'll finish it off. >> when "dateline" continues. olay regenerist microsculpting cream makes my skin feel so hydrated. i can face anything with my olay. and my latest beauty secret... for bright, smooth skin... olay regenerist cream cleanser. i wanted more from my copd medicine that's why i've got the power of 1, 2, 3 medicines with trelegy. the only fda-approved once-daily 3-in-1 copd treatment. ♪ trelegy ♪ the power of 1,2,3 ♪ trelegy ♪ 1,2,3 ♪ trelegy man: with trelegy and the power of 1, 2, 3, i'm breathing better. trelegy works three ways to open airways, keep them open and reduce inflammation, for 24 hours of better breathing. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler

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nighttime, a police informant wears a wire as he talks to i partner in crime. >> i ain't got to worry about you, you ain't got to worry about me. >> yeah. >> informant, miguel quiroz, pizza parlor owner turned part-time drug dealer, man found with hit note had his car targeting garrett warren. now he was collaborating with investigators. already knew quiroz wasn't the shooter. man who actually pulled the trigger was old friend of his, jorge hernandez, heard here. >> you don't say nothing, i don't say nothing. >> as part of his deal with prosecutors, quiroz wore a body wire and approached hernandez at party. said hired to kill garrett warren. on the tape hernandez makes it clear he didn't waste any money on transportation.

>> used my own car. >> hernandez can be heard saying he's sorry he didn't manage to kill garrett warren. >> i apologize to you, i'm not a good shot. >> and hernandez made clear he was ready to try again. >> just get the guns and whatever and we'll finish it off if that's what you need. >> speaking to prosecutor hoon chun, quiroz explained his involvement, he had been paid to hire hernandez as a hit man. and he explained where the trail led. >> mr. quiroz told you that he didn't do it but was in on the plan. >> right. >> and that he did it at behest of his friend manuel haro. >> miguel quiroz's friend, and if name sounds familiar, it should, manny's sister claudia is garrett warren's ex-wife.

prosecutor chun says that explains mr. haro's involvement. >> doing it for his sister, claudia. >> who was married to garrett. >> going through contentious divorce, on scale of 1 to 10, this was 11. about custody of the daughter. >> exactly. and she had antipathy expressed to garrett warren. >> she said you're going to bleed. generally it's a sign there are bad times to come. >> you're right. >> prosecutors believe they were beginning to understand the outlines of the plot to kill garrett warren. infuriated by custody battle they believed claudia haro had set it all in motion but proving it wouldn't be easy. look at how claudia might have persuaded her brother to get involved in murder.

arrested them and charged them with attempted murder and conspiracy. when they questioned manny, learned about a secret of his that might explain why manny would want garrett warren dead. >> didn't talk about me getting molested until i was at least 22 probably. >> manny told investigators he had been molested as a child and remember manny's sister claudia during her divorce from garrett warren claimed that garrett had molested her daughter. those allegations were thoroughly invested and a judge said they were unfounded, but now investigators had to consider another plot twist because of something else manny said. not only had he been molested but only other person in the world who knew about that secret was his sister, claudia. >> being i've been through certain things in my childhood, as far as molestation, and my sister was the only one that i

confided in, and told her about the molestation thing that happened to me when i was younger. >> had claudia manipulated manny by telling him only part of the story? >> did she let you know that the judge, someone independent in her custody case had found the allegations she was making against garrett or false. did she tell you that? >> i never asked and she never told me. i think she knew how to hit the nerve that he was molesting her. >> manny said his sister's exact language was that she wanted garrett taken out. >> i'm almost positive she didn't use the word "murder" or "kill" but telling me want to take him out, that slang, means killed. >> manny haro, small-time

criminal, pointing finger of guilt at his sister, actress and mother, married to hollywood stardom, never had a problem with the law. hard to believe except maybe for the intended victim of the murder plot who believed claudia was behind it from the getgo. >> i knew there was only one person who wanted this done to me. >> he felt that way even as the investigation pointed every other direction. until finally five years after the shooting, detectives arrested claudia haro. >> i did think to myself, thank god, finally i don't feel crazy anymore. >> but he was in for another shot. prosecutors did not feel the case was strong enough because manny haro had not agreed to testify against claudia and the d.a.'s office declined to file charges. i'm thinking you probably hated that. >> yes, but that's not the worst

of it. i was proud to call garrett and say i arrested claudia haro for hiring a hit man to kill you. >> got to call him back and say -- >> you're not going to believe it, i've got to let her go. >> 48 hours after detectives arrested claudia, she was back on the street, completely free once again. >> but i guaranteed him i would not stop. >> what would it take to write a new ending to this story? with a new role for the beauty that investigators believed was their femme fatale? or would claudia haro escape prosecution by denying she was involved? >> lying isn't just saying the words, when words don't make sense, you're going to have a problem. >> lying is tougher than people think it is. >> a lot harder. coming up, claudia haro tells her story. >> it's your day in the

limelight. >> do you know who shot garrett warren? >> no. >> do you know why he was shot? >> no, i don't know. >> when "dateline" continues. on, because your derriere deserves expert care. preparation h. get comfortable with it. but when allergies attack,f any the excitement fades. allegra helps you say yes with the fastest non-drowsy allergy relief and turning a half hearted yes, into an all in yes. allegra. live your life, not your allergies. who've got their eczema under control.rs, with less eczema, you can show more skin. so roll up those sleeves. and help heal your skin from within with dupixent. dupixent is the first treatment of its kind that continuously treats moderate-to-severe eczema, or atopic dermatitis, even between flare ups. dupixent is a biologic, and not a cream or steroid.

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close up, claudia haro, she once played a showgirl in a gangster movie, once was moved to a legendary movie gangster,

now she was accused of hiring a hit man in real life. sheriffs detectives arrested her but prosecutor hoon chun did not file charges and claudia was turned loose. chun felt he needed stronger evidence. >> i did not think there was a fileable case at that point. >> but claudia's brother manny changed that, took a plea deal from prosecutors and finally agreed to testify against his sister. >> at some point did someone approach you about doing something, killing somebody? >> my sister claudia approached me. >> that made the difference. detectives rearrested claudia haro, this time the prosecutor charged her with two counts of attempted murder and one of conspiracy to commit murder. claudia denied everything. >> do you know who shot garrett warren? >> i don't know. >> do you know why he was shot? >> no, i don't know.

>> but while there was evidence enough to charge claudia, was there enough to convict her? you got mr. quiroz's admission and mr. haro and hernandez on tape but you don't have anything proving that claudia haro set this in motion. >> we have the motive, contentious divorce proceedings, we have the timing of this. what happens is judge finds child abuse allegations to be false april 12th i believe of 2000, hit occurs about a month after that. >> all of that is circumstantial. >> i agree. >> son there was more. prosecutors said the handwriting on the hit note matched claudia haro's. and when compared samples of claudia's letters to garrett with hit note, noticed the misspelling of this word, the location of garrett warren's

home. in the hit note and in claudia's letters, it's misspelled the exact same way. claudia insisted she had never given any notes or maps to miguel quiroz. >> no, i think i would know. >> if we had someone's address written in your handwriting? >> i'm not, not from me, i don't know. >> claimed to know very little about what her brother might be up to. >> why would your brother who has never even met garrett want him killed? >> i don't know. that's not -- >> why would he tell us that you're the one that asked him to be killed and helped arrange it? >> i don't know. >> did you ever give your brother a large amount of money? >> no. >> any amount whatsoever?

>> never had a large amount of money. >> as we said, every hollywood story eventually comes back to money. if claudia haro paid someone $10,000 to ice garrett warren, where did she get the cash? detectives took a good look at her other ex-husband, tough guy actor joe pesci. remember that shot of miguel quiroz and garrett warren along with their kids? that was taken at hollywood home of joe pesci. >> we interviewed joe pesci, wanted to ask if he gave her large amount of money, he denied it. no evidence that he had any involvement. >> claudia haro wanted to do interview with us, not able to speak with her in jail. we spoke with her attorney thomas mesereau, best known for successfully defending michael

jackson. >> picture drawn is vengeful woman stop at nothing to keep her daughter from her ex-husband. >> whoever gave you that information doesn't know claudia haro. >> says if guilty of anything, it's h having a career criminals as a brother. >> i believe he was angry about being molested as child, desperate to keep his street credibility, and when he got caught, blamed his sister to keep it off himself. >> and hit notes allegedly written by claudia? >> i'm convinced these are forgeries. never wrote any hit note to anyone, nobody talked to her about whacking someone, shooting someone. >> thomas mesereau was ready with those arguments and more. remember the movie "my cousin vinny," joe pesci played a lawyer that got his client

acquitted of murder charges? this movie didn't end that way. on the eve of trial claudia haro decided not to fight the charges. she pleaded no contest to two counts of attempted murder. she received a sentence of 12 years and 4 months. claudia's friend julie. >> the deal she was offered, be out in eight years and gets to see her daughter grow up. >> and that's why she took it. >> and at her sentencing, joe pesci showed up to support his ex-wife. >> as for the others, quiroz and haro took plea deals, quiroz got suspended sentence for cooperation, haro to life in prison with possibility of parole, released in 2017. hired gunman hernandez was tried and convicted for murder and conspiracy, 77 years to life.

claudia haro served just more than nine years before being granted parole in august 2019. if claudia did mastermind this attempted murder, she ended up getting a very good deal. >> claudia's brother manny, who set it up and actual shooter, pretty much maxed out on their sentences. >> amount of time you spend behind bars is nothing to what i believe will be eternity afterwards. we all pay, no matter what. >> you seem remarkably free of anger. >> i am. everybody should be in this world. she made mistakes, i've made mistakes, no one's perfect. >> surprised? you shouldn't be. trifecta of love, money and murder isn't new to hollywood, neither are stories about beautiful women who turn out to be as tough as a $5 steak and the men who somehow find it in

themselves to forgive them. >> that's all for this edition of "dateline," i'm craig melvin, thank you for watching. i'm craig melvin. >> and i'm natalie morales. >> and this is "dateline." >> horrible, knowing the person you love is dead and you're being looked at for it. >> imagine you're shaken in the dead of night. >> my ears were ringing, i thought i was dreaming. >> in bed next to you, your husband murdered. >> hard to get that one out of your head, isn't it? >> yeah. >> and here's the twist, you're the suspect. >> worst feeling to hear you're being blamed for your husb