working as nurse by now, finally have achieved her lifelong ambition to care for people and make them well. >> she pops in my head, and i just think, oh, sad, because she would've been one heck of a nurse. >> that's all for this edition of dateline. i am natalie morales, thank you for watching. for watching i'm craig melvin. >> and i'm natalie morales. >> and this is dateline! >> during the middle of the night, i heard this noise. it sounded like someone was in the house. i opened up her door, and, i'm hearing things. >> your instincts were right. that something happened in the middle of the night. >> you think your child is safe in your home sleeping.

>> she was just 16. emma the honor student cheerleader, volunteer. she can get along with anybody. always so kind hearted and sweet she wanted to be a nurse and she had a plan. >> she went to sleep one sunday night, and never woke up >> i saw a 16 year old female in her bed. there was a bullet hole in the wall. >> she was shot she had been shot from outside of the residents. >> was emma a target that weekend she had seen a mysterious figure dressed in black. >> she's unfair, she isn't panic. >> she was shaking. >> now, to brave friends set out on a mission. could they help catch her killer? >> you're trying to bring down a murder suspect. >> everybody take their hands out of the vehicle now! it all became a lot more real. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

>> hello and welcome to dateline! amara walker was a spirited teenager with a knack for storing up fun. pretty and smart, she had a whole life ahead of her but after her death, detectives faced a tough investigation. whoever had shot her had been brazen, and they had a bold plan to catch the killer. here's andrea canning with noises in the nights! >> when the autumn chill saves into the community just north of knoxville, tennessee. hundreds of high school students are drawn to the blaze of friday nights. to cheer on their hometown heroes for but cats. she was the friday night light who probably shone brightest of them all. amara walker, a cheerleader since her freshman here. >> she wasn't really a

cheerleader, some would go through the motions but she would put her own sparkle on it. and what she would do. >> fellow cheerleaders kelsey and lauren said she could be sassy to. >> she said, i am kind of a big deal. >> and i'm taking it she said it with a hint of sarcasm >> yes. >> people who didn't know her, there like she is a super pretty cheerleader! but then they would meet her and see that she is the night a person. >> -- they were sometimes school friends. >> once you made her, it's like she was a down to earth person and really sweet. >> she had a smile that would light up the room. a big beautiful smile. emma's parents say that infectious smile was the hallmark of her pace full personality >> she like to play

jokes on me. grabbing my iphone. taking selfies of herself. i had no idea. >> emma volunteered at an animal shelter. at school, she was an honorable student with a clear career goal. >> she wanted to be a nurse, and when we would talk about the different professions, and we get to the ones about babies. and she said that's what i want to do. >> it is no surprise that emma got noticed by boys at school. and there was one boy that she definitely noticed back. >> that's really all she talked about at first, it was just that she was super cute. >> he was riley. two years older than emma. popular to. the standout wide receiver on the bobcats football team. >> did you think he was going to make it to the nfl? >> if there was anyone going to do it. it was him. >> heads grade school friend says it wasn't just a high school job. he was also in the church, and

love star wars movies. >> -- . >> of easily. >> and then a little later in high school, he got a little bit more into football. but he kept with his roots. >> it was really funny, and i think that's why i am a foul for him in the first place. because they were both super goofy she had a big crash on him! >> she dead! >> there was just one problem. riley already had a girlfriend. but he said he broke up with her to date emma. >> and things got serious pretty quickly between the two of them. >> yeah. >> but as the months went by, it was clear that riley the school football player was also a player. it turns out his acts was not really an x after all. >> he had promised his ex girlfriend that he would take heard a prom that year, and take emma the senior year. >> and she was okay with us >> she wasn't okay but she let it happen. >> she couldn't let go? >> now. >> that must be hard for a

parent when you see a guy who has two girls on the go? >> yeah. >> that's not good. >> now, but she had a mind of her own and did not want us to voice our opinions about it. >> and mazda termination to be with riley caused a lot of tension between her and her parents. >> how does it work when you're trying to be that parents, and your daughter has that strong personality? >> it's difficult. >> very difficult! >> she was just very stubborn and thought her way was the right way. she wanted to learn for herself. >> riley and emma dated on and off for two years. when riley graduated and went off to college just half an hour away, they tried to keep the relationship going. but just before thanksgiving in riley's freshman year. she said she saw snapchat's with riley with other girls on campus. she said she broke up with him for good. emma's parents say the tension at home evaporated. >> it must have felt so good to be a happy family again!

>> it did. the household was different. >> the household was not calm for very long. on november 20th, 2016. a sunday. am i went for i scream with her dad. and plan to get up early for school the next morning. >> i told her i love you, i'm going to bed. and during the middle of the night, i heard this loud noise. >> what kind of noise was it? >> it sounded like someone was in the house, and open the door in slammed it. and then i heard it again. >> mark jumped out of bed to check on emma and her brother. >> i opened up the door to her bread room, and i stared at her for probably 15 to 20 seconds. and she was just lying asleep in her bed. and, i shut the door. and went to my son's bedroom and he was in the bed asleep. so i thought, i'm hearing things! so when i checked the doors

around the house, and went back to bed. >> in the morning, emma's mom jill woke up early. >> i want to wake up and i couldn't wake her up. >> what's going through your mind in that moment? >> i had no idea. and i couldn't recall a lot of it. i just know i check for a pulse. >> and there was no pulse? >> no pulse. so, you know. >> emma's younger brother also rushed in. >> for evan to, i bet that's something that you -- wish >> i wish he had never had to experience it. it's like a nightmare. >> jail called 9-1-1. >> i just tried to wake up my daughter for school, and here she has no pulse! >> you say that she is not responsive? >> yeah. >> what had happened to emma walker? >> coming up! >> the investigation begins! >> i saw a 16 year female

laying and blared with a small amount of blood on her pillow. >> people thought she overdosed on something. >> but they thought she had ingested poison or whatever. >> this is a mystery right now? >> it's all a mystery. >> when dateline continues! line continues but there's no saving that casserole!" [ both laugh ] i just love that word "bundle." it's so fun. two things coming together like a force of nature, like it was really meant to be, y'know? yes, yes, i do. and i'm so glad you wanna save money. rodney, set up a bundle for jon hamm. mm! of course! jon, is it still cool if i catch a ride home with you? i never said it was. but technically you didn't say it wasn't. it's not. yet. did i tell you i bought our car from carvana? it's not. yeah, ma. it was so easy! i found the perfect car, under budget too! and i get seven days to love it or my money back... i love it! i thought online meant no one to help me, but susan from carvana had all the answers.

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when you help heal your skin from within, you can change how your skin looks and feels. and that's the kind of change you notice. talk to your eczema specialist about dupixent, a breakthrough eczema treatment. monday november 21st, 2016 was supposed to be a regular school morning. instead, first responders were arriving at the walker family home. and worrying that something

terrible that had happened to anna was tearing her down. friends calling friends. >> she was just balling, and i was like you have to calm down and breathe and tell me what's going on. she said emma was, that i was like what are you talking about? because it didn't register in my mind. >> it did not seem real at first to nathan either. >> i was like, yeah that's my best friend but she did not pass away. it hit me i started falling. >> amazon ex-boyfriend riley was at his home when his phone was flooded with calls and texts. he wrote on social media. >> how much he misses her and loves her. >> she's at a better place now. tell got about our bible verse. >> did the hearts go out to riley? that he's lost. >> a lot of people had commented i'm so sorry. prayers for you. >> still, no one knew yet how emma had died. >> what are some of the rumors

now floating around on social media about what happened to emma? >> people thought she might have overdosed on something. some kind of brain bleed. >> the biggest thing the most was people who didn't know her and were like, she killed herself. >> was there any part of you that was confused and thinking maybe it was possible? >> no. no part of being thought that someone would never take her life. >> this is a mystery right now as to what happened. emma is there, and you know that she hasn't survived whatever has happened. but you don't know what! >> it's all a mystery. >> investigators arrived with just sketchy details from first responders. >> they thought originally it was a suicide, she had ingested something poison or whatever. >> major mike mcclain was put to investigate the case with allen marin.

>> -- with a small amount of blood on her pillow. something would confuse that waited getting sick or a culture of -- . >> but when the detective looked closer, he's found something unusual. >> first responders did not immediately see the home in the wall. >> there was a hole in the wall next to her bed. a bullet hole. and only a little blood was visible on the pillow. when investigators inspected her head, they saw a small entry wound. >> so she's been shot? >> yes ma'am. >> shot in her own bed! >> the bullet struck her just left and above the ear. basically a fatal wound. >> she had to have been shot through the wall? >> yes it's kind of obvious. someone had shot from outside of the residents into the residence. striking her in the head. >> this is not the kind of neighborhood that has drive-by shootings. right? >> yes ma'am correct.

it's a fairly low crime rate area. >> as the detectives process what was now a crime scene, they had more clues as to what might have happened. >> we got side the residents, and that's where we determined that there was a second shot that had been fired through the end wall of the house. >> so, bullet holes into separate walls. and there, in the walkers yard? >> we found a shell casing. i spent casing that had been fired. and then, as we work around the residents, we found a spent casing and a live round. >> when emma's parents learned what had happened. they were barely able to take it in. >> they had told us that she had been shot. >> it's unthinkable! >> emma's father mark recalled with horror those noses during the night. >> knowing that those noises during the night were gunshots, and they sounded nothing like

gunshots. >> but your instincts were right that something happened in the middle of the night? >> and you think your child safe in your home. sleeping. >> but who would want to kill this sweet, popular girl? whose goal in life was to care for newborn babies? it turned out the last few days of her life had been anything but normal. and might be the key to unraveling the mystery. coming up! >> she sees a person dressed all in black. >> a mysterious figure at emma's door. >> then this person comes to the front door, and starts trying to get into the house. turning the doorknob, beating on the door. she is in fear and panic. >> i would have to say i will be absolutely terrified! >> yeah. >> when dateline continues! continues

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her own bed. at 16 years old, she had her whole life ahead of her. >> we know all the great things she would've done, problems, graduations. things that we never get to see. already >> getting married, having heads. >> as emma's family began to imagine life without her, police were focused on finding her killer. they were talking to her family and friends about the days right before the shooting. >> a lot of activity in a

period of two days. that is unexplained. >> it was the weekend before thanksgiving. friday night, hammer and her group were celebrating at a friends house. her friend zach was at a party when emma received a text message from an unknown number. the message said something about riley, he had been taken. >> the text messages said riley. >> someone has rally? >> yeah. someone kidnapped him. >> reilly kidnapped? the strange messages kept coming then her phone rang. riley was on the line. >> he was screaming in the back, help me help me emma i need your help you can hear him on? the call calling for help? yes. >> and there was riley. >> he had his hands on his head, he was confused. i could see her yelling at him she was really angry. >> emma was confused with riley. she and her friends thought it was some kind of prank.

>> it sounds very farfetched for him to be kidnapped. we didn't think twice about it. >> but if the kidnapping was a joke. what happened the next morning was no laughing matter. emma's friends told police that saturday she drove herself home from her friends house. >> as she's pulling into the subdivision, approaching her residence. she sees a person dressed all in black. and as she gets closer, he puts his head up and sunglasses on. emma was texting her friends of play by play. >> she gets to the residents, then this person comes to the front door and starts trying to get into the house. turning the doorknob, beating on the door. she is in fear, panic. so she reaches out to the one person that she thinks can help her. which was riley >> emma had just broken up with riley, and was angry at him for what she thought was a strange kidnapping stung the night

before. still, she texted him this i need you, but i hate you right now. she faced called him and asked him to come over. >> why do you think she reached out to him given the fact that they had just broken up? >> i think he was security to her. and he was a protector from other things. >> reilly searched the house and neighborhood but saw no signs of anyone. neither call the police. but now, detectives were investigating the murder. they discovered surveillance footage from the neighbor's house. and there he was. >> so this was the mysterious man in black. >> at that point it is. >> were you able to see a vase? >> now. >> a possible intruder? a in tempted kidnapping? what was going on? police need to talk to reilly right away. they asked him for details about the kidnapping, and he insisted that it really happened. >> it was traumatizing, i

didn't know what to make of it. i went up to my stepdads house, and i pulled out of it and this then pulled over across from the semi circle and these two girls were walking across the street the next thing i know, one of them grabs my bag. the other ones around the corner and they just like, puts their hands over my face and just took me to their van or whatever. well why would someone do that to you? i generally have no idea. they did ask me, they were like, what's -- >> she thought it was a joke. she thought i was playing a prank on her. >> am i didn't buy the story. but she was genuinely terrified when she called him the next day about the man in black. >> and that's when she facetimed me. and she was crying and freaking

out. >> that's the only person that reilly could think of who would want to harm emma. >> the only thing that i thought of was, whoever the person was at her. that saturday morning. that's the first thing i thought. >> riley told police, even though he and emma had broken up, he still cared for her. in fact, they spoke on the phone friday night in the hours before she was shot. >> i just told her how much i loved her, and, sorry that she had didn't wanted what we had anymore. she said she didn't care about the relationship and the more. she said she did care about me and she loved me but she didn't want the relationship. >> riley was on campus about 25 miles away, crying about the breakup. >> i just sat there looking at pictures of us. >> he woke up to people texting and calling with their condolences. >> so i was like, what are you talking about they said do you not hear what happened.

i was like when you're talking about. >> riley had now lost the love of his life are good. but this pair of seasoned investigators had their radar up. >> you just start seeing more of his personality. you see that he had to have her. >> coming up a closer look at that mysterious man in black ... >> she had actually seen the man in black. she recognized him by his bill, his gate, the way he walked and carry himself who once he? when dateline continuesonce he? when dateline continuesonce he? when dateline continue jaycee tried gain flings for the first time the other day and forgot where she was. you can always spot a first time gain flings user. ♪ got my hair got my head ♪

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months to 17 years. children under five are the only age group not currently receiving the vaccine. now back to the line! back to the line welcome back to dateline. i'm natalie morales! who shot emma walker the day before she died, a menacing man dressed in black showed up at her house. during a panicked call, she called her ex boyfriend riley. then the man was gone. now detectives were about to discover something really did not tell them. and it would sense the investigation into overdrive once again, here is andrea canning with noises in the night. >> amara walker had been murdered. and all over twitter, riley was the grieving ex. >> would he change the bio two? >> living every day through amara walker, rest easy my

angel i love you so much. >> and now, emma was looking back on her romance with riley. and they remembered a high school boyfriend who was jealous, possessive and even obsessed. >> he started to get very controlling of her. where she was, what she did, if she wanted to hang out with her friends. he was like you're not going. >> he didn't want her to hang out with people. it was just him and her. >> and if emma went somewhere without him? he would text her 42 100 times. just blowing her phone up. and saying, emma talk to me! text me back. call me. >> emma's parents thought the relationship was toxic. they had seen their daughter change. >> this new personality with riley in the picture was not that you recognized. >> now, not with emma. her fun loving self was no

longer. she was very close, sophomore in her room. more angry at us. >> was it kind of like her spark had been extinguished? yes. >> her parents said riley seemed intent on driving a wedge between emma and her family. >> he would tell her that she did not really have parents, barely a brother. and i think that you really just wanted her to think that she was all he had. >> this is a nightmare situation for our parents? >> yes. >> they had always been involved parents. monitoring the social media and cell phones. they even had a tracker on her car. so when things got bad with riley, they tried to limit her contact with him. but he always seemed to find a way around the rules. >> he would show up to our church, because they could not tell her to leave. or a basketball game. because it was a public event going on. and they couldn't tell him he shouldn't be there. >> and when emma finally broke up with him a few weeks before

she died, even the close friends said it seemed like he was unraveling. >> were you worried about him? >> very. >> i think this is when we started to see if he wanted to do something, he could. >> he seemed a little unstable to you? >> yeah. >> and now that emma was that. her friends weren't buying his sad messages on social media. >> what do you think when you're reading his posts? >> he is trying to cover up for himself. >> do you think he did it? or something else? >> i thought he had something to do with it. >> police were thinking the same thing as they listen to stories about emma and riley. >> based on my experiences as a deputy, it was an abusive relationship. not physically, but most of us psychological or emotional abuse. >> police were skeptical of everything that reilly said. they did not believe that the kidnapping story. and when they talk to one of emma's friends in the

neighborhood. they were even more suspicious. the friend was certain that riley was the mysterious man and black >> she had actually seen the man in black, and believed it to really riley. she recognized him by his bill, his gates, the way he walked, the way he carries himself. >> the police were closely watching riley. they noted how he referred to emma in the strangest way. >> the girl, she texted me. >> which girl? >> the one that passed away. >> okay. what's her name? emma. >> this is someone that he has professed his love to. gone on social media and spoke out about how she is his everything. and all that. but yet, when he goes to talk to me in the interview, he refers to her as the girl! >> how did you get from their back? >> as the interview progressed. police tried to nail down hirable's the night she was shot. he tried to stick to the same

story, he was at his college in tennessee. over half an hour away. crying in his car about the breakup. >> i remember getting back in my jerome at 4:30. it was really late. >> as police questioned riley. >> is there anybody else in your car? >> they became more and more skeptical that he was in on it. >> am i a suspect in her death? >> can i say? we're based on my experience. it wasn't over the top lie. it was phony. >> i would hurt myself before i would hurt her. >> did you shoot into emma's house? >> no sir. >> despite his denial, riley was now the prime suspect. but they had to let him go. they did not have enough evidence. and there was a missing piece to the puzzle. where was the gun that killed emma? it would take two young men on a change russ mission to find it! >> riley gall is about to become the target of a secret

operation. coming up! >> instead, we set up a listening device in the car. >> and the police could hear it but you couldn't hear them? >> yes. >> could these two friends find the missing gun and the killer? >> this potentially could be very dangerous. >> absolutely. you have two boys in the car with a guy, believed to already have killed somebody with a murder weapon. a dangerous thing. >> when dateline continues! ne continues i don't get it. yeah. maybe this will help. so now we're in the present. and now... we're in the future. the all-electric chevy bolt euv with available super cruise™ for hands-free driving. - dad. - yeah? do fish get thirsty? eh. find new answers. find new roads. chevrolet. ♪ got my hair got my head ♪ introducing new one a day multi+. a complete multivitamin plus an extra boost of support

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killed, riley's grandfather called police about a handgun he owned. >> he filed the report that he has the gun stolen. >> the missing gun was a problem for riley to. he lived with his grandpa, and the gun was the same caliber as the one used to kill emma. police didn't think that was a coincidence. did he express that he knew where the gun was, or did he completely deny? >> he completely denied everything relevant to the gun. >> and after his denials to police, reilly reached out to his close friends, alex and noah. since his breakup with emma, riley had been leaning on them for support. but did he say about how he felt about it? >> he was torn up, throughout this whole time, i tried to spend as much time with him as i could and just be there for him, anything he needed. >> reilly confided in alex and no again. he said he would never hurt

emma, had nothing to do with the shooting. but he did have his grandpa's gun. >> they're gonna find a way to put this on me if they find the gun. it's like, can you help me get rid of this. >> the boys were willing to comfort riley, but not get rid of evidence in a murder investigation. instead, they called lieutenant merit. it's amazing that they called. >> absolutely. >> i mean, this is a big piece of the puzzle. >> absolutely. it could have -- they could've lived their lives, minded their business. >> riley told his friends he planned to go to the bluffs, high above the tennessee river and toss the gun into the water. police hatched a plan. a bold and risky sting operation. have alex and no will go with reilly, and the moment they see the gun, signal detectives, who would swoop in and make an arrest. this potentially could be very dangerous? >> absolutely. you're gonna have two boys in a car with a guy that's believed to have already killed one person with a murder weapon,

this is a huge dangerous thing. >> dangerous? for sure! and then detectives made an even more complicated, they decided to secretly record the whole thing. >> they set up a listening device in the car itself, my car, it had a little thing inside my jacket which sucked because i couldn't take off my jacket the whole time. >> for and he had the video as well. >> police could hear you, and you couldn't hear? them >> yes. >> everything came together with lightning speed. just hours after calling police, 18 year old alex and noah were wired up and ready to meet riley. what did your parents think about this? very vulnerable in this position. >> my parents had just moved to north carolina, i was living in tennessee on my own. i didn't have time to tell -- >> you did not tell your parents? >> i didn't. >> the plan hinged on the boys texting a secret word to

detectives the moment they see the gun. without tipping off riley, the pressure was intense. >> this is insane. >> riley came over to noah's house, the mission was underway. >> i know that you really loved and cared about me a lot. >> we spent two years together. >> police were nearby listening in, as instructed, the boys tried to be natural. >> i'm sorry about emma, dog. >> i really -- i want to be so upset, but i can't, because i'm worried about being arrested and being put away for murder. never in my life would i kill someone that i loved that much. >> love you, bro. it's sucks you gotta deal with all this, man. >> riley clearly had no clue about the sting, he had faith in his friends. >> i'm trusting you guys, like, with my life, because i mean, this is 70 years in jail if i could committed for something i didn't do. >> why can't you just give them the gun?

>> just -- it just needs to be gone. for whatever reason. >> you guys don't have to come with me if you don't want to. >> i mean, i got your back, man. >> if it's in the tennessee river, they will never find it. >> the boys headed out. first stop, riley's stepfather's house, where he had hit in the gun. he came out holding a plastic garbage bag. detectives were still tracking the boys closely, or trying to. >> it was a crazy part here, we have detectives watching them as they leave from the stepdads and at some point, we lose them. i mean, we lose sight of the vehicle, we have lost the wire. >> is that a heart beating moment? >> yes. obviously we want to track them realtime, we want to keep up with them. >> police did find them again, in time to see the boys make an odd detour, on the way to the river, they stop for some drive-through fast food. >> yes, i need occasion chicken with two sides of hush puppies,

with chili and cheese on it, and a large dr pepper. >> have you tried the cookout bro? >> no. >> oh my god, tried. >> you're in the middle of this critical undercover operation, and you've decided to go for some chili cheese fries? >> yes. >> why? >> it was almost the whole time we were saying goodbye to one of our best friends. it was almost like comforting to have it be like it was before. >> they got to the bluffs around 11:00, and pulled into an apartment complex parking lot. alex knew the security code for the gate. he used to make deliveries there. and then, the big moment, the hidden camera didn't catch it, but alex and noah will never forget it. riley pulled the gun out of the bag. >> oh, my god. >> noah texted the detectives, they were supposed to pounce. but 30 seconds past, than a

minute, no police, alex saw their suvs outside the gate. what was the delay? two minutes, still no police. the tension was unbearable. then, alex did something audacious. he took the gun out of riley's hands. >> this is a real gun. >> alex, why did you take the gun from riley? that was kind of a bold move. >> yes, it really was. >> i was watching from the backseat and sing what. >> it was an instinctual thing, and riley grabbed it back out of my hands. that was scary. >> and that was when police got through the gate and made their move. >> what's the? >> everybody put their hands out of the vehicle, now. >> riley was cuffed and taken away, the gun was still in the car. >> just pull that back enough, and let's -- just to see this year a lumber. >> the mission was a success. alex and noah were safe.

riley was charged with the murder of ahmaud walker and taken to jail. it was the end of a long, crazy day. a popular football hero was behind bars. how did it all come to this? >> he was controlling and obsessive. but you would've never thought a murderer. >> and in the case already full of surprises, the biggest one was still to come. >> coming up -- a sudden change in riley story, and it is a stunner. >> as crazy as it is, and as bizarre as it is, he was hoping that he could come to her rescue. >> what riley is saying is i'm not a cold blooded killer. >> with the jury believe? it >> in the count one, charging the defendant with first degree murder, did the jury reach a verdict? >> when dateline continues. line continues to severe eczema or atopic dermatitis under control? hide my skin? not me.

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passed since emma walker, was shot and killed through the wall of her bedroom. emma's ex riley killed -- pleaded not guilty. knocks attorney the prepared for a high profile trial. >> why do you think this case has captured so much attention? >> people can relate to being a teenage couple in love. people can relate to break ups.

and i think that one that really scared people in our community was that emma was asleep in her own home, in her own bed. >> was it stressful as the trial approached? >> yes. >> very. >> just the worries of what the turnout would be. >> prosecutors kevin allen and molly martin would have to prove to a jury, that it was riley who pulled the trigger. >> what was your strategy going into this trial? >> i think the main thing that we need to focus on at the beginning, was putting him there that night. and so, i think the cell phone records and the gps locations were very important up until that moment. >> they placed him around emma's house? >> he placed himself there. and the cell phone records placed him backwards. >> so he clearly told a lie about where he was when emma was shot? >> yes. >> the picture that we painted of riley, was a deceiver. someone who was phony.

who couldn't get the truth out of him if you tried. but >> on the first day of trial, riley's defense attorney up ended the states case with an unexpected omission. riley was there. did fire the gun. but it was not murder. >> and that was a fairly stunning claim! >> from the gallery. veteran reporter jamie, saw draws drop. >> what he said was that reilly never intended to kill her. and in fact, assumed that he would not kill her if he shot through a wall. >> we'll ask you to find mr. call guilty of reckless homicide. >> not reckless murder? >> that's right a few years. >> that would be a huge difference! >> all the states preparation went out the window. >> the case went from whodunnit to a state of mind offense. >> they said that riley was not

a crazy killer, just crazy in love with emma. with a bizarre plan to win her back. >> when he fired that shot in the backyard, as crazy as it is, and it's bizarre as it is, they hope that he could come to her rescue. >> the defense told the jury that reilly only meant to scare them all with the gunshots. then if she needed comfort, he would swoop in and be her night and shining armor. the attorney argued that they had no idea the ballots was passed through the house. >> some of us do not know, or some of us may very well know, that you shoot through the wall. some of us may not. and i submit to you, riley, did not. >> that offense denied that riley was the man in black. but admitted that the kidnapping story was a ruse. a stunt to get emma's attention. ryan's attorney says it showed

how desperate he was to be with her. >> what riley is trying to do is get an opportunity to see emma. that's what he's trying to do. >> and that would later become a theme of his defense. that rather than killing emma, what he intended to do was play the rescuer. >> it almost does sound like he's just trying to scare her. when you first hear it. >> i would think the same thing, then i went out to the scene, looked at the house. looked at where he would be standing. and it is five feet away from the house. the measurements were. it's me, putting a gun right at you, and pulling the trigger. it was that close. >> so close, prosecutors say, it was obvious that riley was shooting to kill. >> shoot up into the air, shooting through the window. anywhere. but where you shot. >> the state agreed with the defense on one point. riley was desperate to be with emma. but that desperation had become

dangerous. prosecutors argued, of course he was the man in black. after that, and the kidnapping some failed, they said reilly gave up on winning her back. instead, they sneaked into emma's backyard. stood outside the window. and fired into the wall. knowing exactly where she slept on the other side. >> i think this is a case about revenge. i think that he sought to get back at her for the hurt that he perceived, that she was purposely putting on him. by breaking up with him. >> and after he killed her, the prosecutor say that he went to great lengths to cover his tracks. >> and he is going to throw the gun off -- the >> yes. >> they show the jury the video of that undercover sting. and how reilly tried to manipulate his closest friends into covering up his crime. >> i'm trusting you guys, with my life. >> his plan was to get away with this. his plan was never to be caught. >> which theory with the jury

believe? and whack-less act, or premeditated murder? they went off to deliberate and came back for hours later. >> in one count, charging the defendant with first degree murder did you reach a verdict? >> yes we did. >> what is the? verdict >> guilty. >> you heard guilty? what's that moment like? >> relieved. >> it's a sense of relief. >> riley was sentenced to a life in prison. he'll be in his 70s by the time he is eligible for parole. he has fired a appeal. >> we're proud of all the investigators and all the work, but we're almost more proud of noah and alex. >> are they heroes in this? >> i think they really are. >> lieutenant merit, the workers, they call you the heroes. what do you say about that? >> did what i had to do. >> it took a lot of guts to do what you did. >> appreciate that. >> as for emma, who used to joke that she was kind of a big deal. she's actually become one.

with tributes to her all over town. there is a scholarship in her name at central high. and the dog park dedicated to the young animal lover. >> it's just a good, fun, happy place to try their remember her. and other people to remember her. >> and here at the east tennessee children's hospital. and nicu exam room has been named in her memory. and they believe the best way to honor her daughter, is to remember what happens. detective marin says it's important to understand when teenage drama turns into dangerous behavior. i >> think that we need to educate our young people about relationships, and what unhealthy relationship is. and what is psychological abuse. or most of yours. >> and we hope what someone gets out of the story is awareness. >> am i may be gone, but for those who loved her. the young girl, still sparkles.

>> because she would want to be out there. and she would want us to be laughing and having fun. and not saying that you can cry all day you. still have to live life. >> that's all for this edition of dateline. i am natalie morales. thank you for watching! ngyou for watchi >> i'm craig melvin. >> i'm natalie morales. >> this is "dateline. " i knew she would never leave her kids in the middle of a hurricane so i always knew it wasn't going to be good. >> crystal was gone, and there were lots of reasons to worry. >> she had numerous lovers, membmen and women. >> you had the husband and boyfriend failing polys. >> on the same day. >> the ansr ul