i'm craig melvin, and i'm natalie morales. >> and this is dateline. >> someone just sucks the life out of you and tells you that dream life isn't going to happen. that wedding you're planning, you don't get to have it. evil exists. evil dwells in people. >> it was a night like this, just before halloween. a killing that still haunts. >> i found him just lying there, and couldn't feel a pulse. >> the young dad engaged to be

married, dead on the ground. >> they determined that it was a murder. >> and here's what made this mystery so chilling. the possible suspects were all in costume. >> the cowboy and the penguin, everybody is dressed as somebody else. how are you going to be able to identify people? >> cowboy? penguin? costumed killer? sounds like something ripped from the pages of stephen king. but in this case, the horror was real. >> we had this piece of a costume, we didn't know what it was. >> a halloween crime that will send shivers down your spine. >> i was terrified. something had happened. i didn't know what. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> hello. welcome to dateline. just days before halloween, joel lovelien and his fiancee, heather eastling, headed to a local bar with costume-clad

party-goers. the night took a horrific turn when joel stepped outside and walked into a troubling mystery. in a case filled with unknowns, one thing was certain. a man was dead. police rounded up several potential suspects, but could they unmask the true killer? here's josh mankiewicz with under a halloween moon. >> it's the one time when everyone pretends to be someone else, win being two faced is part of the deal. >> there's a feeling that maybe the rules don't apply. and that during those moonlit hours, we all have license to eat, drink and be scary. >> halloween has morphed from our national salute to sugar, into a coast to coast alcohol fueled party. nowhere is that more true than in north dakota. but in october

2007, several lives would collide under that halloween moon. at least one person may have used a costume to try to hide his true identity, a murderer. that weekend before halloween here in grand forks, heather eastling and her boyfriend joel lovelien, were putting on costumes getting ready to go out. >> it was a nice night with friends. >> he dressed up as a hockey fan wearing his favorite green jersey. >> i dressed in a mechanic's outfit. a friend of mine texted me and said meet us at the broken drum. >> the broken drum. half casino, half bar. heather and joel had a lot to celebrate. she had just moved here from texas after dating long distance. it was nearly love at first sight. >> how long did you go out with joel before you realized this is the guy? >> a week. >> that's it?

>> yeah. he was taken aback when i told him, i'm going to marry you. that's what's going to happen here. he wasn't really ready for me to say something like that to him, but i was ready to say something like that. that's how sure i was. >> but joel, the divorced guy who loved golf, fishing and his friends, would soon be ready for marriage too. just ten months after they met, this smart hospital computer it tech proposed to this 31-year-old elementary school teacher. >> he proposed on a dance floor in front of about 200 texas dance hall two-steppers. >> they were to be married the following year. but that evening, inside the broken drum, they were completely unprepared for the most frightening night of their lives. it all started when a bus packed with party-goers arrived at the bar. heather watched as they started piling into the broken drum. the partiers were mostly

well-oiled 20-somethings on an all-night pub crawl, and they'd been fueled by an estimated 325 jell-o shots that were on board that bus. heather and joel were suddenly in the midst of people in halloween costumes. as this security video shows, there was a clown with a bright rainbow-colored head of hair. there was also a cowboy, a hunter, a lion, a gangster and a woman who went as paris hilton. joel, in his green hockey jersey was enjoying a rare cigar and playing blackjack next to a man dressed as a penguin. how was the night going? >> it was fine. at one point he had to take a call. but it was too live inside, so he had gone outside to take the call. >> well joel was outside on the phone, the party bus was getting ready to go on to the next bar. but suddenly someone from that bus needed help. >> joel had come back in the front door and said somebody

got left by the bus. i'm going to check on him. he kissed me and went outside. >> within a few minutes, someone else would come running into the broken drum, yelling to call 911. >> 911 emergency. >> we've got an emergency at the broken drum. >> the 911 call wasn't for the person joel went to help. it was for joel. >> i went through the back door and around the cars, found him, on the [inaudible] joel was laying there with blood all over the cement near his head. >> could you tell what had happened to him? >> no. no. >> heather says when she got outside, she didn't see the party bus or any of the people in costumes. but joel, the good samaritan who had gone to help a stranger, had himself been the victim of a savage beating. >> i remember hearing the ambulances coming and the cops coming. their sirens.

>> joel lovelien was rushed to an e. r. in the same hospital where he worked as a computer tech. >> then the doctors came in and told me they did everything they could. but that joel was gone. >> 800 miles away in montana, joel's mom and stepfather received the most terrible news parents can hear. >> you raised your children and the things you do to protect them, and somebody in one minute takes his life, like you've stolen my child. >> joel, just 38, left behind not only his family and fiancee, but a daughter, alexa, from his first marriage. >> you hear there's an accident. you think that it's something that can be fixed. so, i went to a hospital thinking he's hurt, not dead. >> later, joel's step dad

learned more about the horrible details. >> the grand forks police department called us. they determined that it was a murder. >> who would want to hurt him? >> i don't know. i don't know anybody who had that much hate in their heart to commit a crime like that. >> so, this is just, what, bad luck? being in the parking lot at the wrong time? >> yeah. >> trying to help the wrong person? >> yeah. evil exists. evil dwells in people and it comes out and things like this happen. >> what evil had killed joel lovelien? for grand forks police, the answer lay somewhere on a long list of potential suspects. and maybe one of them had left a calling card. something found at the scene. a bloody piece of a halloween costume. police thought it might be the key to unmasking a killer. coming up

-- a case playing out like a deadly real-life game of clue. the roundup of those possible suspects begins. the penguin, the cowboy and the clown. when "dateline" continues. pic® tri-zone. in my ozempic® tri-zone, i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. announcer: ozempic® provides powerful a1c reduction. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults also with known heart disease. and you may lose weight. adults lost up to 14 pounds. ozempic® isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. don't share needles or pens, or reuse needles. don't take ozempic® if you or your family ever had medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it.

stop ozempic® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction. serious side effects may include pancreatitis. gallbladder problems may occur. tell your provider about vision problems or changes. taking ozempic® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. join the millions already taking ozempic®. ask your health care provider about the ozempic® tri-zone. announcer: you may pay as little as $25 for a 3-month prescription. i'll remember that chapter of my life forever. we laughed, we cried, we protected that progressive home & auto bundle day and night. we were all of us dazzling... like knights sworn to protect our kingdom. we knew it wouldn't last forever, but... that's what made it special -- you know we'll be back tomorrow, right? yeah, but it'll never be today again. -[ groaning ] -just get on the bus, flo!

♪ it's the most wonderful time of the year ♪ claritin provides non-drowsy symptom reliefay again. from over 200 indoor and outdoor allergens, day after day. feel the clarity and make today the most wonderful time of the year. live claritin clear. among my patients, i often see them have teeth sensitivity as well as gum issues. does it worry me? absolutely. sensodyne sensitivity & gum gives us the dual action effect that really takes care of both our teeth sensitivity as well as our gum issues. there's no question it's something that i would recommend. we're carvana there's no question it's something the company who invented car vending machines and buying a car 100 percent online now we've created a brand new way for you to sell your car whether it's a year old, or a few years old we want to buy your car so go to carvana enter your license plate answer a few questions and our techno wizardry calculates your car's value and gives you a real offer in seconds when you're ready we'll come to you pay you on the spot and pick up your car that's it so ditch the old way of selling your car and say hello to the new way at carvana >> a night of halloween

drinking in grand forks, north

dakota, had ended with joel lovelien's death. police tried to figure out who had used their fists to beat joel outside the broken drum bar in a fight that apparently no one witnessed. and joel's fiancee heather was trying just as hard to understand what had happened to the man she loved. inconceivable that he picked a fight with somebody else? >> of course, totally inconceivable. he's not a fighter. >> what would he do if somebody would want to fight with him? >> he would back away and use logic. he didn't feed into anger, like some men would. >> joel was so badly beaten that the coroner could feel and hear the broken bones in his face when she touched it. the cause of death? joel choked on his own blood. it was now up to police to find the killer or killers of joel lovelien in grand forks. a city that averages about one murder a year. the chief of police is

john packett. >> this is probably one of the more challenging cases that we've ever had because of alcohol involved. large crowds. people in costume. >> the night of joel's murder, police interviewed about 80 people still left at the broken drum, and here's what they heard. the party bus went downtown after it left the broken drum and police heard descriptions of some costumed people last seen near joel or that bus. a clown, a cowboy, a penguin, a gangster and a construction worker. and while searching for people in costumes sounds almost comical. it helped police identify some persons of interest. if cops could locate them before they took off the costumes. got to find the penguin and the joker, got to find them pretty quick. >> pretty quick. >> there's an interesting piece of evidence left behind at the

murder scene. they thought it was a bird's foot from someone's costume and it had blood on it. grand forks police sergeant at the time, bill mackey. >> could be the penguin. >> at that point, we didn't know how the foot played into it or not. >> was it webbed? >> i don't recall if it was webbed or not. >> but the thinking was, this came from, if not the actual person who had done the beating, at least somebody there during the fight? >> yeah. absolutely. that was the thinking. >> police swarmed downtown grand forks and at another bar, they found one of the costumed characters they were looking for. >> that same night we found the clown. >> and the clown was crying? >> yes, he was. >> what was he crying about? >> that made us wonder, why is this guy crying? >> the tears of a clown. it made police suspicious. one officer reported the clown's hands were shaking. from the cold or from something else?

>> october 28th, 2007. >> by the time the clown was brought to the police station, he had dried his tears. but he was not cooperative. >> what's the big deal? there was a fight. >> listen to me, someone is dead. i heard there's a fight. the clown said he had nothing to do with any murder and was crying because of a domestic argument. >> that night he explained to us he had a bad argument with his girlfriend. that's not clear and convincing to us. >> police say the clown asked for a lawyer. >> not a lot -- i want an attorney now. >> but police just let him go. you got the clown who is crying, who is belligerent and asks for a lawyer. one of the things that could say to me is, maybe i saw something terrible happen, like i saw someone get beaten

to death. that didn't strike you as anything other than this guy was upset and probably drunk. >> yes. it's a challenge. one has to determine whether the tears are of remorse, whether they're tears of fear or whether they had onions for lunch. >> that same night, police found the cowboy. but the cowboy gave police a fake name, a fake birth date and became physically aggressive. misplaced him in handcuffs even though he wasn't arrested. and what did the cowboy say? >> the cowboy is very difficult to deal with. he wants really nothing to do with us. doesn't want to cooperate with us. >> there is no record of his interview. but an investigators say the cowboy asked an interesting question. if the victim was wearing a green shirt with the initials und on it. who was wearing a university of north dakota

sweatshirt that night? >> joel lovelien the victim. >> suggesting the cowboy saw that fight? >> at least at face value >> police also let the cowboy go. soon after, they got the break they needed. the owner of that bird's foot would come forward. police believed it would lead them straight to the murderer. >> coming up -- >> the new witness offers to help the police. how much help would he be? >> more than he realized. when "dateline" continues. it's dr. scholl's time. our insoles are designed with unique massaging gel waves, for all-day comfort and energy. find your relief in store or online. kids, one year they want all dinosaurs stuff the next, camels. - llamas. - llamas. so save money shopping back to school on amazon.

you sure that's not a camel? yeah. whatever you say. [sfx: stomach gurgling] it's nothing... sounds like something. ♪ when you have nausea, heartburn, indigestion, ♪ ♪ upset stomach, diarrhea. ♪ pepto bismol coats and soothes for fast relief... when you need it most. for people living with h-i-v, keep being you. and ask your doctor about biktarvy. biktarvy is a complete, one-pill, once-a-day treatment used for h-i-v in certain adults. it's not a cure, but with one small pill, biktarvy fights h-i-v to help you get to and stay undetectable. that's when the amount of virus is so low it cannot be measured by a lab test. research shows people who take h-i-v treatment every day and get to and stay undetectable can no longer transmit h-i-v through sex. serious side effects can occur, including kidney problems and kidney failure. rare, life-threatening side effects include a buildup of lactic acid and liver problems. do not take biktarvy if you take dofetilide or rifampin.

tell your doctor about all the medicines and supplements you take, if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you have kidney or liver problems, including hepatitis. if you have hepatitis b, do not stop taking biktarvy without talking to your doctor. common side effects were diarrhea, nausea, and headache. if you're living with hiv, keep loving who you are. and ask your doctor if biktarvy is right for you. (dad) we have to tell everyone that we just if switched to verizon's new keep loving who you are. welcome unlimited plan, for just $30. (daughter) i've already told everyone! (cool guy) $30...that's awesome. (mom) it's their best unlimited price ever. (woman) for $30 a line, i'm switching now. (vo) the network you want. the price you love. only from verizon. millions have made the switch from the big three to xfinity mobile. that means millions are saving hundreds a year on their wireless bill. and all of those millions are on the nation's most reliable 5g network and most recommended wireless carrier. that's a whole lot of happy campers out there. and it's never too late to join them. get $450 off any new purchase of an eligible samsung device with xfinity mobile. >> in those first hours and

or add a line to your plan today at xfinitymobile.com

days after the murder of joel lovelien, grand forks police had been rounding up the unusual suspects. >> we're looking for a subject that was dressed as a penguin. someone dressed as the joker from batman. someone wearing just a yellow-colored sweatshirt with a hood. >> those investigators, including veteran detective mike sholes, were scratching their heads over what appeared to be a bloody claw from a bird costume that was found near joel lovelien's body. so, you're looking for somebody in what? 90% of a bird costume. >> we didn't know what it was. all we knew is we had this

piece of a costume. >> detectives invited the guys on the party bus to come back to police headquarters the following day and this time saying a different tune. one that seemed to get them all off the hook. they told cops they didn't see the murder but told of a fight outside the broken drum earlier that evening between one of their pals dressed as a hunter and a guy in an odd costume with a yellow sweatshirt who had also been on the bus. because of that fight, they told the guy in the yellow outfit he couldn't get back on the bus, and then, they drove downtown to another bar. the now sober and cooperative cowboy told detectives that he last saw joel lovelien alive and well. >> the guy in the und sweatshirt was talking to the guy in the yellow sweatshirt. >> the unhappy harlequin explained that his clown tears

were about a flashback were triggered about when he heard about joel lovelien's death. >> i got jumped not too long ago and i thought about it. that could have been me, you know. >> the guy wearing that yellow costume was waking up. his name was travis stay. a 23-year-old nursing student at the university of north dakota. and today he was nursing the mother of all hangovers, because he had had so much to drink at the bars the previous night, that he slept away most of the next day. when he awoke, one of his friends shared some worrisome news. >> one of my roommates had seen that they were looking for a guy in a yellow sweatshirt. so i went down to the police station. >> bring your attorney with you? >> no. i had nothing to hide. >> so, two days after joel lovelien's death, travis sat down across from grand forks detectives. >> i've seen on the internet

that you guys were interested in speaking to for a man a yellow hooded sweatshirt. >> when he described his lion costume, detective's antenna went up. he realized it wasn't a bloody bird foot next to his body. a lion's paw and travis confirmed it. >> i had a yellow hooded sweatshirt on. i had some paws. >> the cops became even more suspicious when they noticed the injury to travis'face and asked how he got them. travis explained he had been punched out by the hunter in the parking lot of the broken drum. >> can i see your hands? >> detective sholes noticed some scrapes on travis'hands. >> what's the cuts here from? >> where is your costume now? >> my costume, we threw it away. >> why did you throw it away? >> i was looking at him, i saw what appeared to be a blood drop on his shoe. >> sholes pounced on that new lead. >> would we be able to take

your shoes? >> take them? >> travis gave the cops everything they asked for. including a dna sample and permission to search his apartment where his lion costume was still in the trash. >> i gave them everything. >> without them needing to get a search warrant. >> i knew i didn't have anything to do with it. >> but investigators were suspicious. in part, because travis said he couldn't remember anything from the time he was punched until the time he got into a cab more than an hour later. and on the cops'timeline, that was the time when joel lovelien was killed. >> said you were going to check -- that was the last time you seen him. found in the parking lot. >> you guys think this is me? >> we don't know. we want to eliminate you. that's why we appreciate you coming in. >> what kind of murderer not

only keeps the bloody clothing that they were wearing during the murder but actually wears some of it into the police interivew? >> one that's probably not too smart, and there's plenty of them. >> the cops let travis go home, but they weren't buying his story. he was now a definite person of interest. two days later, they had more questions for him. this time around the questions were more pointed about just what happened while travis was in a blackout. >> where were you? it's very important that you remember this, travis. >> i do not know what you're talking about now. >> i can almost guarantee you, come on, you don't remember? really? >> i think they probably thought that i was conveniently

drunk. >> well, it is convenient. and then you walk out of the police station. >> yep. >> and you think what? that's the end of it? >> i knew things at that point had taken a swing in the wrong direction and we were going to look into getting an attorney. >> travis stay was about to find out he'd need a lawyer sooner than he thought. >> coming up -- police make an arrest and the case moves into court. two distraught families, two sides of a murder case. >> he's just lying there and i was screaming his name at him. >> when "dateline" continues. from over 200 indoor and outdoor allergens, day after day. feel the clarity and make today the most wonderful time of the year. live claritin clear. kids, one year they want all dinosaurs stuff the next, camels. - llamas. - llamas. so save money shopping back to school on amazon. you sure that's not a camel? yeah. whatever you say.

shingles. some describe it as an intense burning sensation or an unbearable itch. this painful, blistering rash can disrupt your life for weeks. it could make your workday feel impossible. the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you. if you're 50 years or older, ask your doctor or pharmacist about shingles. ♪ ♪ this is the moment. for a treatment for moderate-to-severe eczema. cibinqo — fda approved. 100% steroid free. not an injection, cibinqo is a once-daily pill for adults who didn't respond to previous treatments. and cibinqo helps provide clearer skin and less itch. cibinqo can lower your ability to fight infections, including tb. before and during treatment,

your doctor should check for infections and do blood tests. tell your doctor if you've had hepatitis b or c, have flu-like symptoms, or are prone to infections. do not take with medicines that prevent blood clots. serious, sometimes fatal infections, lymphoma, lung, skin and other cancers, serious heart-related events, and blood clots can happen. people 50 and older with heart disease risk factors have an increased risk of serious heart-related events or death with jak inhibitors. this is the moment. but we've only just begun. speak with your doctor about cibinqo today. an innovation from pfizer.

large out-of-state corporations have set speak with your doctor about cibinqo today. their sights on california. they've written prop 27, to allow online sports betting. they tell us it will fund programs for the homeless. but read prop 27's fine print. 90% of profits go to out-of-state corporations, leaving almost nothing for the homeless. no real jobs are created here. but the promise between our state and our sovereign tribes would be broken forever. these out-of-state corporations don't care about california. but we do. >> welcome back to dateline. stand with us.

i'm natalie morales. >> travis stay voluntarily went to speak to police and then found himself in the middle of a murder investigation. turns out travis was the man in the yellow costume police were looking for. but he told them he blacked out from drinking. investigators doubted him and were about to get new evidence that they thought would bring details of that hazy night into focus. here again is josh mankiewicz with "under a halloween moon." >> in the month after her fian fiance's murder, heather eastling's pain was beyond words. >> like someone just sucks the life out of you and tells you your life isn't what you wanted it to be. your dream life isn't going to happen. >> grand forks detectives had been working around the clock to solve this rare murder case.

and then those dna tests of travis'lion costume came back. some of that blood on travis was his own. but some of it belonged to joel lovelien. and with that, police had everything they needed. and then one morning -- >> there was a knock on the door and there was the detective sholes and detective simon came in and said that there was bad news and that joel's blood was on me. and they were arresting me for his murder. >> a nervous travis was arraigned from jail via closed-circuit tv. his anguish and misery is evident in his call home. >> hello. >> hi, travis, it's going to be okay. it's going to be okay. >> i don't know. >> i know this is difficult for you, travis.

>> it would get even tougher. a little more than a year after his arrest, travis found himself on trial for murder facing the rest of his life behind bars. prosecutor nancy laid out the state's case. >> joel lovelien -- a 30-year-old trolled man. >> for a jury would decide travis'fate. >> travis brutally beat joel lovelien while he was down on the ground and did not seek help for him afterwards. left the scene, allowing mr. lovelien to choke to death on his own blood. >> jurors heard joel's fiance heather as she relived that awful night. >> he was just lying there and i was screaming his name at him. he didn't say anything, he didn't do anything. >> he was the last person that we believe was seen with mr. lovelien. >> grand forks detectives felt they had given their

prosecutors an open and shut case with overwhelming physical evidence. >> when we looked at travis'clothes, it was covered in blood and most importantly, none of the other costumes matched the paw that was left behind at the crime scene. >> we tested four different areas of travis stay's sweatshirt. three out of the four samples tested positive for joel lovelien's blood. >> and prosecutors argued, they could prove travis was there with joel lovelien prior to the murder. their eyewitnesses, the guys who had been so sloshed and uncooperative the night of the murder. the hunter, the gangster and the cowboy from the party bus. bryce larson, the cowboy, took the stand and told a story both his friends would echo. >> mr. larson, did you ever witness the murder of joel lovelien? >> no. >> did you ever see him assaulted in the broken drum parking lot? >> no. >> when you left that parking lot where was he? >> talking to the guy in the

yellow. >> and that guy who had been wearing the cheesy, yellow line costume? he was sitting at the defense table. >> prosecutors laid out their timeline using security video from the broken drum. there's travis in his lion costume, which by this point in a little more than a yellow hoodie. moments later, he's gone outside. >> joel lovelien, wearing his green hockey jersey, can be seen heading out a little later. never to return. the tape, prosecutors said, proved travis was in the parking lot when joel was killed. and according to the state's witnesses from the bus, it was impossible for any of the other party-goers to have attacked joel because their party bus was gone by the time of the murder. >> the bus was not at the broken drum when joel lovelien was murdered. >> the prosecution argued that joel's last words to his fiancee heather supported that

timeline. >> he made comments to his girlfriend, some guy missed his bus. i was out there helping him and then he went back out. >> the guy who missed the bus, they told the jury, was the defendant. >> that is a -- >> the state used travis'own words against him. they played every frame of those police interviews in which travis claimed not to remember the most critical part of that alcohol-sodden night. >> you don't remember between the time you got hit until the time you got into the cab -- >> jurors heard testimony that later that night, travis was in another fight. >> after mr. lovelien was killed, travis stay left the broken drum on foot, walked to a location in the alleyway where he confronted another individual. >> travis threw a punch at that man and missed. he then got into a cab and went home. if prosecutors were to be believed, the defendant was a halloween nightmare come to life. just

add alcohol and nurse travis turns into a drunk and dangerous mr. hyde. that theory helped them explain to jurors how the slightly built travis was able to take down and kill the much larger joel with his bare hands. police also say the fact that joel had had a few drinks made it easier for travis. >> he was drunk, and so the fact that the little guy comes at him unsuspecting, and he's and stable on his feet, because he's intoxicated, too, makes perfect sense that he could drop him. >> aspiration -- >> eight days into the trial, the prosecution called its final witness, a blood spatter analyst. >> this is a possible position -- >> who used photos to demonstrate that joel's blood on travis'clothing was consistent with travis standing over joel while beating him. >> travis was either standing

right next to joel lovelien or straddling joel lovelien, as he was punching him in his face. >> the prosecution's evidence was stacking up against travis stay. no question he had been in a fight with the hunter before joel was killed. no question he had taken a swing at someone else afterwards. and now he'd have to explain why there were traces of joel's blood on his costume, which travis was either unable or unwilling to do because of his suspiciously convenient amnesia. >> coming up -- could someone else be behind this? >> you think there are other people who are covering up their own involvement in this? >> i do. >> when "dateline" continues. ixe moderate-to-severe eczema, or atopic dermatitis under control? hide my skin? not me. because dupixent targets a root cause of eczema, it helps heal your skin from within,

keeping you one step ahead of it. hide my skin? not me. and for kids ages 6 months and up that means clearer skin, and noticeably less itch. with dupixent, you can change how their skin looks and feels. and that's the kind of change you notice. hide my skin? not me. serious allergic reactions can occur that can be severe. tell your doctor about new or worsening eye problems such as eye pain or vision changes, including blurred vision, joint aches and pain, or a parasitic infection. don't change or stop asthma medicines without talking to your doctor. when you help heal your skin from within, you can show more with less eczema. talk to your child's eczema specialist about dupixent, a breakthrough eczema treatment. my mental health was much better. my mind was in a good place. but my body was telling a different story. i felt all people saw were my uncontrolled movements. some mental health meds can cause tardive dyskinesia,

or td, and it's unlikely to improve without treatment. ingrezza is a prescription medicine to treat adults with td movements in the face and body. it's the only treatment for td that's one pill, once-daily, with or without food. ingrezza 80 mg is proven to reduce td movements in 7 out of 10 people. people taking ingrezza can stay on their current dose of most mental health meds. don't take ingrezza if you're allergic to any of its ingredients. ingrezza may cause serious side effects including sleepiness. don't drive, operate heavy machinery, or do other dangerous activities until you know how ingrezza affects you. other serious side effects include potential heart rhythm problems and abnormal movements. it's nice people focus more on me. ask your doctor about ingrezza, #1 prescribed for td. learn how you could pay as little as zero dollars at ingrezza.com. ladies, six minutes please... this is my life. it's not always “picture perfect.” plus i'm dealing with bleeding from uterine fibroids. enter myfembree, a once-daily pill for women

with heavy menstrual bleeding due to uterine fibroids. with myfembree, heavy bleeding went down by 84%. serious risks include heart attack, stroke, and blood clots. don't take myfembree if you've had any of these, or have uncontrolled high blood pressure, are over 35 and smoke, could be pregnant, or have or had osteoporosis, liver disease, undiagnosed vaginal bleeding, certain cancers, or an allergic reaction to it. don't use longer than 2 years as bone loss may occur. pregnancy loss can occur, and changes in periods may make it hard to know if you're pregnant. if you think you are, stop taking it right away. other risks are depression, suicidal thoughts or actions, abnormal liver tests, high blood pressure, and passing of the fibroid. less bleeding, same life? i'll take it. ask your doctor about myfembree. my life, myfembree. i gotta say moving in together has been awesome. ask your doctor about myfembree. no regrets. for you and emily. these are... amazing.

thank you wayfair. how's the puppy? puppy's perfect. yeah great decision! ♪ wayfair you've got just what i need ♪ >> all the evidence will show -- >> travis stay's defense team faced a difficult task. prosecutors had portrayed their client as a two-faced killer, who changed personalities after he had a few drinks in him and who, in a blind rage, had mercilessly beaten joel lovelien to death. >> travis stay is not guilty. >> in the defense's opening statement, attorney peter wohl told jurors this was simply impossible. >> the beaten, drunken, small,

stumbling travis stay was not capable of inflicting the multiple brutal injuries. >> wohl along with joe friedberg defended travis. their argument to the jury, travis stay was too slight and drunk to kill joel lovelien. joel, they argued, was killed by the same party-goers he was trying to protect travis from. first, travis'legal team had to address the image prosecutors had crafted. was he in fact, a cold-blooded killer prone to alcoholic rages? the prosecutor's theory, which was also the police theory was that travis became a different person when he was drinking. >> they made that up out of air. if they had a witness that said that was travis'history, if they could provide anecdotal evidence that that happened twice before, a hundred times

before, once before. we never saw it, we never heard it. >> and they never had a witness that said that? >> no. they had nobody that even sniffed at that. they just made it up because it was clear to the jury that this was a nice young man. >> he's sitting unprotected in front of cops for hours answering questions and willingly baring his soul to them. >> where were you? it's very important that you try to remember this, travis. >> i do not remember talking to that man. >> you don't know? >> i don't know. >> he was credible. he leaned across in the second interview and said you think it was me. >> we have to be as honest as we can about it.

>> next, the defense tried to convince jurors just how improbable it was that the 5'7" travis could have hurt the 6'3" joel at all, let alone when he was drunk. >> when we read the autopsy and it gave the inches and pounds of the deceased, he outweighed him by 75 to 80 pounds, he was 7 or 8 inches bigger. then it began to take on kind of a different color. >> so, the defense offered some suspects of its own. the first people rounded up the night of the murder. that posse of costumed guys on the bus. >> mob mentality are a recipe for tragedy. >> you think there are a lot of people covering up their own involvement? >> i do. >> what do you think happened that night? >> i think the cowboy, the gangster and the construction worker came back outside and confronted joel and i, you know? they didn't get back on the bus and leave us standing in the parking lot. i think that they

beat us both up. >> the defense team tried to prove that. they conducted a withering cross-examination of the man who was wearing the cowboy costume that night. the cowboy admitted he had lied to police the night of the murder, about not witnessing the fight between travis and the man in the hunter's costume. the defense wanted to know what else he might be lying about. >> what is it that we can look for that will help us determine when you're telling the truth? >> i don't know. >> well, if you don't know, who does? >> i don't know. >> the lawyer's strategy was to hammer away at the party-goers'shifting stories. under cross-examination, that crying clown who cops found weeping and said things had gotten out of hand that night, now said he didn't remember crying or being upset.

>> were you shaken up? do you remember that? >> i don't remember that. >> and as for the blood the detective sholes noticed on travis'shoes during the initial interrogation? dna proved it was travis', not joel's. the defense introduced testimony suggesting travis might have gotten joel's blood on himself when he was trying to help joel, not hurt him. >> it's somewhat evident on the photos. >> an e. r. doctor who examined travis and concluded that travis'hands would have been far more battered and scuffed if he'd used them to beat joel. >> do you find the injuries to mr. stay's hands consistent or inconsistent with having delivered the blows that did that damage? >> inconsistent. >> prosecutors had argued that the party bus, along with all those theoretical suspects in it, was long gone at the time

of joel's murder. but the defense countered that the broken drum security tape proved just the opposite. on that same tape was something important that prosecutors apparently missed. the clown. everyone agrees the clown was on the bus when it left. but here he is. still in the bar. after joel leaves. which means, as long as the clown was in the bar, the bus was still in the parking lot. you can see joel leave the bar? >> absolutely. >> and you can see the clown leave the bar. >> no doubt. >> 3 1/2 minutes later? >> right. >> plenty of time for the people in that crowd to have confronted and attacked joel. >> and we know the cowboy, the gangster, the construction worker had gone out and the bus was still there. >> in court, the lead detective was forced to concede the police timeline was flawed. >> we know that they have 3 1/2

minutes to do that, have this face-off and be back on the bus, right? >> right. >> 3 1/2 minutes. plenty of time for plenty of people other than travis stay to murder joel. travis never took the stand, leaving open the question of his amnesia during the most important moment of his young life. anybody ever tell you you're personality change when you're drunk? >> certainly nothing violent. >> anybody ever tell your personality change when your

trunk? >> most of my friends would describe me as happy go lucky drunk. >> or a heartless murderer. >> seven men and five women would soon decide. >> coming up -- both sides, confident of the cases jurors would have a surprise for one of them. >> when dateline continues. es it goes deep into the surface of the tooth to actively repair it. i personally use pronamel repair every single day, morning and night.

-well, i'm not 100% sold yet. -okay, have you considered -- it's fine, flo. she's not interested. i get it. not everyone wants to save money. -what's she doing? -i don't know. renters and homeowners can bundle and save. for what? a trip to bora bora? bora boring. okay, you know what? i'm in. she's all yours. want some tacos? -eh, i'm not really in the mood. -yeah, you're right. so messy, all the napkins, those different toppings. -actually, i'm in. -yeah, you are. girls trip. so messy, all the napkins, those different toppings. ♪ it's the most wonderful time of the year ♪ get fast relief of your worst allergy symptoms. including nasal congestion. with powerful claritin-d. so you can breathe better. feel the clarity and make today the most wonderful time of the year. claritin - d. ♪ got my hair got my head ♪ introducing new one a day multi+. a complete multivitamin plus an extra boost of support for your immunity, brain,

and hair, skin & nails. new one a day multi+. ♪ but i like it, i love it, ♪ ♪ i want some more of it ♪ ♪ i try so hard, i can't rise above it ♪ ♪ i don't know what it is 'bout that little ♪ get a dozen shrimp for only one dollar with any steak entrée. now that's eatin' good in the neighborhood. so we need something super distinctive... dad's work, meet daughter's playtime. thankfully, meta portal auto pans and zooms to keep you in frame. and the meeting on track. meta portal. the smart video calling device that makes work from home work for you. wanna help kids get their homework done? the smart video calling device well, an internet connection's a good start. but kids also need computers. and sometimes the hardest thing about homework is finding a place to do it. so why not hook community centers up with wifi?

for kids like us, and all the amazing things we're gonna learn. through projectup, comcast is committing $1 billion so millions more students can continue to get the tools they need to build a future of unlimited possibilities. >> travis stay was looking at a

real life halloween nightmare. more than 60 years in jail if he was convicted of murdering joel lovelien. after a 9 day trial, jurors began deliberating. you nervous? >> i am nervous but confident. >> joel's fiancee was confident. >> it just seemed like we have the right guy. done. >> the jurors we spoke with said prosecutors presented the case as if it were open and shut. >> i would not say their style was arrogant at all. they were confident and they felt they had enough evidence.

>> the jurors began examining the evidence and the testimony. one key piece of evidence, the timeline, in which the time had gone by the time joel was killed. >> the bus was there longer than the prosecution was saying. >> jurors were also troubled by the clown. remember he was found crying. >> that seemed out of character for a young guy on a halloween night. >> they were concerned about what the clown told police that evening. >> it was important that he would say things got out of hand. >> and they questioned why only travis stay's lion costume was tested for blood. >> why didn't they check anyone else, anything else besides this lion? >> it took the jury five hours to reach a verdict. >> we, the jury, do find the defendant not guilty.

>> my attorney said a quick verdict is a good verdict in this case. it was vindication. >> travis, what are you going to do with your life now? any reaction to the verdict? >> then the verdict comes in. >> devasting. not guilty. >> i didn't understand that. i still don't understand that. i don't know everything. i do know that joel's blood was found on one person. >> you don't think justice was done here? >> the fact that he is acquitted by jury, doesn't mean he is acquitted by me. there is was not one stitch of physical evidence to suggest that anybody else was involved, other than speculation. >> grand forks police consider it was closed. and the evidence destroyed. dateline contacted

the cowboy, gangster and construction worker who were all on that bus. all declined on-camera interview, but told us on the phone, as they maintained from day one, they had nothing to do with joel's murder, and feel they have been unfairly accused by the defense. >> people talk and when you are accused of something like this, i am sure it has a negative impact on your rep taking. >> since the trial, even joel's parents have been divided. joel's mom believes he is most likely guilty, but joel's step dad thinks travis didn't do it. travis was so drunk, he couldn't hit the ground with his hat. how does he beat up a fellow that is 6'3", 6'4" when he can hardly stand up himself. >> do you think there are people who know more than they are saying? >> yes, somebody knows something. >> joel's daughter alexa is

left with memories of his dad. >> he was like my best friend. >> what do you remember of him? >> he laughed a lot. he liked to make other people laugh. >> travis stay never became a nurse. after his experience that night, he enrolled in law school and became a practicing attorney. he wanted to publicly apologize. >> i am sorry of being part of the equation that night. i drank too much. it was irresponsible, it was reckless. it was short-sighted and regrettable. but i didn't kill joel. >> the idea behind this night at the end of october, is that all that fear, danger and horror are supposed to be imaginary. manufactured for the child living in every one of us. but of course, there is evil out there, no matter what

the calendar says, softly, sometimes the horror of halloween is the real thing. >> that is all for this edition of "dateline." i'm natalie morales. thank you for watching. >> i'm craig melvin, and i'm natalie morales. >> and this is dateline. >> i got a call from allision and she told me he was missing. >> they asked would anyone want to hurt him? i knew that my dad had been on match. com. >> this is not going to end well. this is a crime scene. >> miles off nothing up here, it's an easy place for a man to go missing. >> i said, what do you mean they can't find my brother? >> he was the school superintendent, not the type to play hooky. >> he really loved teaching and working with kids.