police at four 408711234. investigators are offering a 50,000 dollar reward for information that leads to an arrest and conviction. >> that's all for this edition of dateline. i'm andrea canning, thank you for watching. for watching how could this happen? a very healthy 31 year old just winds of dead? >> a young father's death, so sudden, so strange. >> we wanted answers. >> the word poison just kept coming up. >> it was antifreeze poisoning. >> he can't smell it, you can't see it. >> someone wanted him dead. someone who was hiding something. >> the details of the case are very salacious. there are six. there is the allegation of the

poisoning. >> cleaned out the bank account. >> are you trying to accuse me of something? have >> a brother determined to find a killer. >> how dare anybody do that to my little brother? >> it wasn't supposed to happen like this. >> a toxic mystery and an emotional trial. >> is the jury being out long a bad thing or a good thing? >> it was a mystery from day one. from that time, right around the end of the hockey season. it made sense of what was happening to matthew podolak, met the hockey amateur, met the hunter, the fish are, the athlete. it would make sense from the very first day that matthew podolak woke up with the pain in his back. and after what happened in the

hospital a couple of months later, nothing made sense after that. [noise] the, god knows there were accusations. well yes, plenty of those. and a brother, mark, from whom the stories, the mystery became a kind of obsession. >> it's had quite an effect on me over the past seven years. >> the story of what happened to matt podolak, was one of those of, well, you beat the judge. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> let's begin in the spring of 2006. matt was 31 years old. maybe more than ever, he was loving the intense male roughness of amateur hockey. he was number 10. and he was good at it. he even managed to keep all his teeth. . >> he started to take it off when he was in high school. and that was really one of his loves >> mark podolak was just a little older. a little more academically

accomplished than his kid brother baby. but mark loved him. loved him for what he was. >> he was a good kid. i, mean he didn't give into any trouble. to be honest with you, my dad is a cop. so, he started to put the fear of god with me and my brother when we started growing up. >> matt told his mom, patricia, he was going to join the police force when he came home from brooklyn after extending the navy. >> brooklyn ohio, by the way, is one of the towns around the edge of cleveland. >> matt you always wanted to be a police officer. since he was little. >> his dad, land, was a 39-year-old veteran of the brooklyn pd. >> there was a point in time where it looked like we may even work together. >> but life is full of disappointments. matt did not get the call. and so, instead, he went to work for us uncle who is phoenix industrial power coated engine parts for ford, another company. >> what did you think of that job of his over at the factory? >> my uncle on the shop. so he liked it. and he kind of moved up through the ranks.

the thing that excited him about it was that he was going to take over. my uncle was kind of grooming him to become the boss. i remember him, in many cases, telling me about how he was looking forward to that. >> but what matt wanted, perhaps most of all, was a family. and so, when he met holly, holly mcfeeture -- >> madly fell in love. he fell in love 100 and 10%. and he really loved holly. >> there were some people who planned out their lives very carefully. those people may have taken issue with matt and holly, whose daughter samantha was born, give or take, nine months after they met. the marriage part became later they decided. >> he loved being a dad. he loved that little girl. >> and loved holly. halle loved him. holly told her sister, chrissy, the story of how they mention they got engaged. it was during a romantic weekend in niagara falls, just before samantha was born. holly was preparing a bubble bath. >> and she couldn't here

because the faucets running. and here's matt, down on his knee, like -- hello! and then she realized, oh my god, you're proposing. >> that is a kind of romantic little setup. >> i thought so. the bubbles. i thought that was pretty romantic. >> after samantha came along, matt and holly, now engaged, went to vegas to witness a friend's wedding. linda curry co-. did you also make a force wedding? >> yes, actually. yes holly and matt said we should do a double wedding. >> but holley knew that her family would not be happy with that so i think that that's what made them not get married. >> didn't get married. but something happened in vegas. nine months after that, josh was born. >> from what holly has told me, josh was planned in vegas. >> ready or not, matt was not the father of samantha.

and the baby boy he nicknamed, little man. and holly's daughter from a previous relationship. big changes. in a very short time. and, by the end of the hockey season, a lot of things started going wrong. josh was still very new then. and was stress. and with that young family to support -- he began gambling on the internet. he complained of feeling depressed. so depressed is doctor prescribed anti depressants. and that's about when it started, the pain that is, spasms of back pain. he ignored it. -- it will go away on its own. but it just got worse. after weeks of, this holley insisted he go see a doctor. >> he had been complaining of pain and she finally said that you need to go. obviously, something is not right. so, she basically, you know had to drag him there. >> kidney stones was the diagnosis. the doctor gave matt pills to

help to solve it. four days later, it took a turn for the worse. way worse. holly called her father, mets father a 9-1-1. >> i got a call from holly saying that there's something wrong with matt. so i talked to, matt and he said that i do not feel, good i fell off the couch and i'm really dizzy. so i said, get in the ambulance. >> holly's father -- arrived and followed him to the hospital, where things went bad fast. >> it was nerve-racking because all we kept hearing about was, okay they're trying to dial in on his kidney issue. well, then that medication was making his heart go so than they try to address the heart. and they kept seesawing back and forth. >> and nobody seem to know really what it was causing? >> no. >> matt faded in and out of consciousness. doctors told holly and family members, go home, get some rest. and then another few hours later, they called everybody back to the hospital, right away they said. one look at the icu and big

brother mark felt his world come apart. >> when i saw him in the hospital, it's something i could of never forget. it seemed like he was in the calm, i knew that if you made it through, he wouldn't be the same. >> and everyone felt a particular kind of helplessness. knowing something was killing him. but not knowing how could they what it was. >> coming up -- i got a calling and they say you better get here because he's gone into full arrest. >> how could this happen? all of a sudden, a very healthy 31 year old, young man just winds up dead? >> a family, simple question, which would take seven years to answer. >> how can you go into the hospital for kidney stones and then die hours later? when dateline continues. dateline continues. 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.

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july 31st 2006. there in the icu, this mysterious element attacked met -- overwhelmed his defenses completely. >> i got a call, and they said you better get here because he's gone into full arrest and we've revived him already, once. so, when i got there it was just one downhill. >> as fiancée, holly mcfeeture, but the doctors to keep trying. >> and holly said, don't stop, don't stop! dancing, matt, don't leave me. >> it was no use. >> and, once the doctor or nurse stepped away, holly just launched on math and just wouldn't like they actually had to pull her off of his body >> he was just 31 years old and now his children were fatherless. and holly, a single mother of three at the funeral, said her sister, she did not take it well. holly was sitting in her car

for about 20 minutes bawling her eyes out before she even went in i don't even know how i would be able to do that myself go in and see him lying there in the casket. if that was my fiancée, i probably wouldn't be able to go into that room. because, i would want to scream, cry and ask for him to just be back. >> matt and holly son, josh, was just six months old. and he cried, a lot. so, said chrissy, holly repeatedly had to leave the reception line to care for her colicky baby >> she was in the basement with josh because she was nursing. she had to still take care of her kids and show them that she had to be strong. >> holly's friend, rebecca baker, did what she could to help. especially with that little boy, so young. >> this poor baby, he would've never known his father. how could this happen? all of a sudden, a very healthy 31 year old, young man just

winds up that. it's kind of strange. >> kind of strange? it certainly was. matt's brother mark couldn't stop thinking about how strange it was. >> he had kidney stones. how could you go into the hospital for kidney stones and then die eight hours later? >> exactly what the corner was wondering when he had a look at some of the damage to matt's organs, as if he had been exposed to some toxic chemicals in his environment. matt had worked for four years that is uncles finest industrial supervised assembly line involved in painting and powder coating. any toxic chemicals there? >> the corner called hawley to ask said her friend linda curry co-the corner told are that a lot of the chemical compounds were similar to what the chemical compound was that they had found in >> right after that, holly called matt's uncle, the man who, on the factory seeing the act my brother needed to call the coroner so that he can explain what

matthew was exposed to. >> but soon after the corner talk to matsuko, after he got a proper list of the chemicals, he pretty much ruled out any industrial caused >> all of those chemicals were safe to work with. they were osha proved and they had masks to wear. >> so, if not that, what? >> perhaps a cause all to -- but a depressed young man overwhelmed with his sudden responsibility and the pain of his kidney stones decided to end it all >> it was a corners investigator who brought up the subject of matt's mother >>, and she was questioning me would matthew had committed suicide? >> never, said his mother. never! but it was his family had to admit, a not unreasonable question given mass distress -- depression and all. even though mark believed his brother had that under control. >> he went to a doctor to get

some help with that. the doctor gave him some antidepressants. >> did that help? >> i thought it did. he seemed to be better. >> but then, matt had a new family now. you know this math was spending most of his time with holly in the kids and her parents. they, said so maybe mark didn't know. did >> you go to his home, his parents house very often? >> i don't recall him talking about that much. >> his connection didn't seem to be that close. >> it didn't seem to be >> and mark didn't know, not then anyway, that he actually asked affront to remove his hunting guns from his house as if he was afraid, perhaps, he might harm himself. >> was he really thinking about killing himself? >> from what i heard, yes. i heard that he was having thoughts, he had told holly, i think, he had actually told my dad just as she insisted to see the doctor for kidney stones,

it was holly, said the sister who insisted that he get help for us depression >> she had sent him to the doctor and got him on medication for that as well. >> what happened to matt podolak. who knew? apparently not the corner. who had still not issued any official report. and, then finally, three months after matt's death, mark got a call from his mother >> come to a family meeting, she told him. she refused to tell them what would be said there. because, i knew that he would be very, very upset the news was too bizarre, too shocking to share over the phone >> coming up -- >> the whole family was there, and i kind of lost it the >> coroner's report makes it clear, matt's death wasn't just strange. it was also highly suspicious >> we were all thinking it was kidney failure, we were not expecting that. >> it was my mission to find an answer for this. >> when dateline continues.

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them. big brother mark and the kid he looked out for, his little brother matt and now, matt was dead and nothing made sense to mark podolak. >> there's no way that a guy is going to go into the hospital with kidney stones and you're

going to die because of kidney stones >> three months after his death, matt podolak's family gathered for a meeting. matt family arranged. it before, that they told mark that they've been discussing a wrongful death suit against the hospital where matt died >> my mom called me over and she said, we're going to talk with a lawyer, tonight we're gonna find out the next steps of what's going to happen. >> but matt's father wasn't exactly -- with her son, that was not what was going to happen >> so, when i got to her house, the whole family was there and i was like, where is the lawyer? and she's like, he's not here. >> no lawyer. something far more disturbing. the autopsy report matt's mother did not want her surviving son hearing about this over the phone, afraid of how he'd react >> and i felt like it was almost like an intervention it was weird it was so surreal so, she sent me down in the whole family was there as a supporting. and they said, we got the corners report back. and it was antifreeze poisoning.

and i kind of lost it. >> antifreeze poisoning? that just -- >> yeah. >> the correct phrase for this at the corners report was talking tucked occasion by ethylene glycol. . ethylene glycol, being the active intoxicating ingredient in antifreeze. >> so, i was saying, what is that? ethylene glycol is antifreeze for chronic? >> so, it means it happened over a period of time. so once that kind of said in, i was shocked. i was speechless. >> and that's when something profound happened to mark podolak. maybe not at that moment but the decision snapped into place. >> from that moment on, when we found out, it was my mission to find -- to find an answer for. this >> a mission complicated by the fact that there was one very big question the corner couldn't answer. was matt death the result of some terrible mistake? or suicide? or was it murder? nobody knew. and so, the corner labeled the manner of death, undetermined.

across town, mets fiancée holly was figuring out the news to. holly sister, chrissy -- >> what did she say? >> what can you say, what do you mean, there's antifreeze in the system. we were all thinking it was kidney failure. we were not expecting that. >> wasn't really possible that matt somehow ingested small amounts of antifreeze for a period of weeks, six -- if not longer? >> that was the implication of the phase, chronic ethylene glycol poisoning. mark had already made up his mind that his brother did not commit suicide. and certainly, not gradual suicide. but what did he have to go on? so far, only a growing suspicion and rage which he made perfectly clear to the police. >> i finally got a of the detective on the case and he did some initial stuff. but it wasn't the follow-through that i had hoped. maybe that was just because i was just grieving and i was so upset. >> but when something like that happens, you want the whole

world to stand up and pay attention and do something. >> when something like that happens, i want every member of the police department to be on it and over there and searching the house and everything. and i understand that it's not realistic but i wanted somebody to find out what the hell happened. >> and it seemed like nobody -- >> know, it didn't seem that way. and time started to go on. and i became extremely frustrated. >> matt's father, lynn, a former cop himself could see the problem. the case fall was stuck. >> it came a catch 22 situation. the coroner said he couldn't labeled it as a homicide without more evidence from the police. well, at the very same time. >> cleveland homicide was saying that they can't investigated as a homicide until the corner rolls it a homicide. >> and so, it remains, month after month, year into year -- . and still the manner of death was listed as undetermined. just like mark, matt father,

lynn, made something of a pest of himself. >> i would call the detective that was assigned to the case and say, whatever you got in the standard answer to me was, i don't have anything. what do you got? i was like, well, this is your job not my job, you know. >> not like the way that met beyoncé hawley was thinking. >> she was upset, you know, that there was -- >> nobody's doing anything. >> yes, yeah, none of our family was interviewed. >> it was like they were letting it go. >> exactly. >> but holly had three children to race, alone. police versus corner politics was not exactly uppermost in her mind. to make ends meet, she took on two, sometimes three jobs at the same time. and through herself into coaching her children's little league baseball team. meanwhile, mark kept hounding investigators but getting nowhere. >> made me feel like there was nothing -- >> it made me feel like my brother's case was on the desk

of somebody who could care less and was counting down the days to his retirement. >> but the mark was getting nowhere, holly was hearing things not from the police. remember the plant where matt supervised other workers? what was really going on around the powder coating machines? >> coming up -- >> holly and her sister had their own theory about how matt died. >> there were some people at his job that may have not liked him. he was supposed to get a promotion. and i think that there were some people that -- >> that didn't think he deserved it? >> didn't think he deserved it. >> where they right? >> he wasn't this guy that was going around picking fights with people. he was loved by his coworkers. >> when dateline continues. when dateline continues collagen! olay body wash hydrates for healthier-looking skin in just 14 days, from dry and dull to firm and radiant. with olay body,

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new album. so for both -- is scheduled for february 12th and -- in arizona. on monday evening, nasa will slam its -- into a harmless asteroid 18 miles away, 14 miles per hour it's the first of its kind mission to determine if nasa could deflect an asteroid should one end up on a collision course with earth. now, back to dateline. now, back to dateline. polley holly mcfeeture was up against -- three, kids to still in diapers. she lost the father of her children, the police couldn't seem to figure out what happened to her. didn't seem to even be trying. a little bit of cash left over in mats checking account was soon gone. eventually, mets work base life insurance paid out 10,000. but that was way off yet and i wouldn't be very much. so, in the meantime, she did what she had to do. she took on several jobs at a time. even be beset for neighbors.

when she had a spare hour two. >> the children needed food, they still needed a roof over their heads. and that's exactly what she was doing. she was paying their bills and making sure that the kids were taking care of. >> the thing is, holly mcfeeture loved kids. not just her own -- well, matt's passion was playing hockey, hollies was coaching little league baseball. she threw herself into it after matt's death. baseball is how rebecca vega mitali. >> our kids were in little league together at that time. >> that was the spring of 2006 before matt died. their oldest girls were school classmates and sports teammates. and holly -- >> she was a friendly in the way that it was intoxicating. so i guess it wasn't intoxicating friendliness. >> you just wanted to be around. are >> you did, you did. you wanted to be around her. >> being around holly was how rebecca met matt, actually.

and then one day, matt tagged along with holly to one of the kids to ball game. he was already sick by that time. though, nobody knew yet how sick. he was sitting under this tree, all alone, said rebecca. watching the game. >> you could tell he didn't feel well. you could tell that he was in pain. he shifted in the chair quite often. >> and, four days later, matt was dead. after the funeral, rebecca had tried to comfort holly and help with the kids. >> if she needed help with the children, if the children needed something, yes. it was just the kind of help her. >> when the coroner's report came out and shocked everyone, holly told, rebecca, of course, right away >> what did you think when you heard that he died of antifreeze poisoning? >> kind of put the mystery of how this healthy 31 year old actually passed, suddenly. you know, he was poisoned >> but who would want to poison

matt podolak. just a regular guy no enemies no known enemies, anyway holley told rebecca the police didn't seem to be doing anything to find out but that she had some leads of her own >> and she suspected somebody at work. >> she suspected somebody at work. >> that eventually, she told rebecca, the police did to. >> she thought that somebody poisoned him at work or poison just kept coming up. >> sister chrissy heard the rumors to. why would they do such a thing? >> there were some people at his job that may have not liked him. it was his uncles company. , and people i think we're a little jealous. he was supposed to get a promotion. and i think there were some people that -- >> didn't think he deserved it? >> didn't think he deserved. it >> increasingly, all the and members of the family became convinced that somebody at work found a way to put antifreeze into mats drink or something.

and if that phrase in the corners report was true, chronic ethylene glycol intoxication that somebody would've done it several times. >> but, the one person who wasn't buying that theory was matt's brother, mark. >> he didn't have any enemies. >> matt had worked his way up from the production line to supervisor at the plant said mark. and he was well liked by the people and phoenix industrial. >> he wasn't this guy that was going around picking fights with people. he was loved by his coworkers. >> by then, solving the case of his brother's murder had become mark's obsession. he collected stories from mats factories coworkers, from the streets, from friends. he fumed won the official investigation seemed to go nowhere. and then, after three frustrating years, one small change that made a huge difference. a new supervisor in the cleveland homicide division took over matt's case. his name, detective sergeant mike queen. >> so, at the time, you took it

over -- >> i took it over. >> three years? >> pushing through years. and i reviewed the file. >> with fresh guys, queen went over the case. reinterview people who knew both met and holly. and suddenly -- >> i felt a completely different sense of what was happening. >> now, said mark, what he called was questions of suggestion, he felt like somebody was listening. especially when he told him what he was hearing on the streets. >> i was trying, hey, maybe this is something that caught up. maybe you should look into this. >> you heard about things? >> absolutely. it was a really close knit town. so, people talk. there's chatter out there. >> strange how that chatter seem to focus on one particular person. >> coming up -- a possible motive for murder. >> she wanted the atm machine and used his car the day after the death. she wrote checks writing his name on the check. cleaned up the bank account, left one penny in it. >> what did that say to you?

>> obviously, a huge red flag. >> in my mind, there was nobody else, there was no other way that could've happened. how dare anybody do that to my little brother. >> when dateline continues. when dateline continues ef 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. three years after matt podolak (geri) i have copd. because i smoked. so i have to pace myself. my tip is, if you're having people over for thanksgiving, start cooking in october. (announcer) you can quit. call 1-800-quit now for help getting free medication.

died of antifreeze poisoning. two families had sharply different theories about the cause. matt's fiancée, holly, her

whole family infect suspected somebody at work headed out for him. but mark and his family, well, they were looking closer to home. how close? let's put it this way. the two sides of the family weren't talking anymore. and already existing miss truss ramped up in the hospital years before when matt was in the icu. that's when matt's brother, mark, began to wonder if hawley was in some way responsible for matt mysterious illness. >> my mom and i had a specific conversation, i remember. it just thinking that she could've done this to him. and we were kind of like, i don't know, maybe. but at the time, we didn't know why he passed. >> and then, there was the funeral. halle's family said she was very upset, cried in the car before going in but when sergeant going red the old case fall. he found a curious statement from holly's friend rebecca vega. what sort of grief was this?

>> she was back and forth talking to different individuals, almost like a flirtatious, that intoxicating friendliness that she had. as if her fiancée wasn't even lying there in front of everyone. >> talking to just everybody or was she concentrating on men or women? >> mostly men. >> flirtatious sly? >> for -- flirtatious. >> that's how she was, said matt's family, how she always was. at first, friendly, magnetic even. but, didn't stay that way for a long. later, matt told them, holly became controlling, demanding. >> did you ever complain about his relationship? >> of course he did. yeah. he did. he said she's nagging, him she's yelling at me, she's calling at me, she's doing all this stuff. there was some incidents that happened, sometimes where they had to have belief show. up >> math protect a big brother called it down right nasty, the way she treated.

i'm said so too. >> we said, it's not worth the hard to keep going through this. he was afraid that he wouldn't see his kids if they were part. and i had discussions with my mom and my dad on many occasions about how, hey, he's worried about this. let's get him out of the situation so he could kind of move on. and he could still be a father. >> and now, he was dead. and his family was raw with suspicion. when they want to collect some of matt's personal effects like's computer, they told sergeant quaint, hotly told him, she no longer hallett. the hard drive was being fixed. which sounded fishy to the detective. >> was this in the -- in the effort to destroy evidence? >> that's what most people do when they get rid of a computer. they may have been connected to the crime. they're gonna get rid of it. >> not evidence, really, but suggestive like one, according to them, holly said right after matt died, he wanted to be cremated. an idea matt family quickly

shot down. still, why would she have said that? and then, they said, when they asked her for her clothes another effects, she told them that she'd already gotten rid of them. it was as if she wanted to race matt from her life. >> was there anything left of this guy at all in her house? >> not that i'm aware of. not too much. >> then, there was the business about the money. the big deal that, said detective queen. >> she went to the atm machine and used discard the day after his death, two days later, she wrote checks writing his name on the checks. cleaned up the bank account, left one penny in it. >> wow! what did that say to you? >> obviously, a huge red flag. >> it was a measure of the suspicion of broken trust that matt mother in charge of his estate reported halle to the police. holly was arrested and charged with theft and two counts of forgery. she agreed to make restitution and was put on probation for a year in return, prosecutors drop the charges. >> what happened to her? what was the sentence?

>> she was given a first time offenders program, so she didn't do any jail time. >> then, there was the life insurance. it wasn't much, including matt 401(k) amounted to just $15,000. but here's what made matt's brother mark suspicious. >> my brother was talking about a couple of days before removing her from the life insurance policy, removing her from, as a beneficiary of the policy in the 401 k. and that's how serious it was getting. >> and so, when holly actually got 10,000 with that insurance, it seemed to mark to confirm what he had been thinking since the beginning. she must have killed him. >> in my mind, there was nobody else. there was no other way that it could've happened. and none. >> so, the first reaction is shock. what's the second reaction? >> anger. and then sadness. how dare anybody do that to my little brother. how dare they? >> but really, 10,000 in left insurance, a motive for murdering the father of your children?

>> what did you think when you heard that. i mean, that seems a fair -- fairly serious allegation. >> oh, yes, absolutely. i thought that it was ridiculous, it's that somebody would actually think that i mean, seriously. that's silly. >> you laugh. >> why would somebody kill somebody over a life insurance policy? >> well, they do it all the time. >> well, i know my sister didn't. because holly is a very strong woman. and if, you know, she was not happy with him, she would've left. >> yes, holly and her family heard all the whispers. they knew all about the podolak suspicion. which they said were absolutely baseless. that business about stealing money from the bank account, for example -- >> did she understand she was breaking the law when she did it? >> no. absolutely not. she was thinking that she had to take care of her children and his. what else would she -- was she supposed to do? >> as for getting rid of his stuff, erasing him from her

life. >> that is not true. at all. as a matter of fact, she still has a lot of mats shirts that she actually wears. >> but, quietly, four years after matt's death, sergeant coin collected the stories he heard. but there was one story he had entered. nobody had. holly's story. >> coming up -- >> holly, we're investigating the death of matthew podolak. >> holly is invited downtown for a little chat with detectives. >> have you ever told anyone that you put something in matthew strings? >> no. >> did you give matthew any type of poison? >> no. >> when dateline continues. when dateline continues the other day...and forgot where she was. you can always spot a first timer. gain flings with oxi boost and febreze. she was supposed to be the one.

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death by antifreeze poisoning, the -- and pointing at her. matt's fiancée and the mother of his children, holly mcfeeture. >> holly mcfeeture was a suspect from day one. prosecutors were appointed. brian make done in and -- they were frustrated >> but we were missing missing pieces, missing critical links on the case. evidence already collected was madly inconclusive. for example, detectives recovered two bottles of antifreeze in the garage were halle and matt lived. but it turned out somebody else had been living in the house for more than a year by the time they found. it whose antifreeze was it? nobody knew. but still, was there a way that we could go ahead and link it up? >> nope. tests confirmed that the garage antifreeze did not match the antifreeze that killed matt. but, remember holly's friend, rebecca vega? detective quinn found her name in the old file. calder up and discovered that

after matt died she spent practically every day with holly. and here's where detective queens eyes really opened wide. rebecca told them that one day, she was at halle's house when she noticed some odd-looking dogs of chemical in all -- hollies kitchen. >> she had said that it was antifreeze and that it was to winterize mats boat. >> did you ask why they were there? >> yeah, i did. >> i mean, they were fixing the boats. >> but, yeah the it was in the kitchen on the boats outside. so you, know why would the antifreeze be in the kitchen? >> and then she said at the time rebecca was complaining about her husband. >> and holly said, i can get rid of him. >> i can get rid of him? >> i could get rid of him. and i kind of thought, that was a kind of joke about. it i kind of laughed. and what she actually backed up that statement with well you can work and you could just move into your house.

>> weird as she looked back on that. so, when she heard about the corners report and the podolak's family suspicion, she contacted the family -- >> i thought to myself, i'd expose my family to murder. >> she seemed to me like she believed that holly poisoned matthew. >> was she a little freaked out by this? >> she stated that she was afraid of halle. >> so, queen kept an eagle eye on holly mcfeeture. and one day, he heard about holly and the karaoke bar. >> holly and her sister were singing a song by the dixie chicks. it's a song about an abused woman in a relationship with the man who, to get back at the man, ends up poisoning his food. and they were up there singing the song and laughing about it. this was after matthew's death. i thought it was really cold

blooded when i heard about it. >> matt was 2010, four years after matt's death. the same year sergeant queen received a big gift. maybe was the fact prosecutors were appointed. maybe it was sergeant quaint investigation. maybe it was the karaoke. whatever was, that's when the coroner changed his ruling on matt manner of death from undetermined to homicide. and with that little bureaucratic struggle appearance, everything changed. >> you see that little thing? >> for, one for the very first time, holly was invited to the police station to give a formal statement. >> holly, we're investigating the death of matthew podolak. the coroner's office has ruled it a homicide. >> chewing gum, looking casual. holly came in without a lawyer and was read her miranda rights. >> are you willing to talk with officers without consulting a lawyer or any -- having a lawyer present with

you? >> yeah. that's fine. i don't have anything to hide. i didn't do anything, so -- >> so, what would she say about her relationship with matt? >> did you and matthew ever have any fights? physically? >> yeah, a couple. >> did you call the police? >> i know on one time i called the cops. >> holly said it happened when she had a mill friend over at her house. >> it was because he assumed something was going on when that was in the case. i had a friend over, we were talking and the moment he came home, he didn't like, it he got jealous. she told him, if they really wanted to solve the mystery, they should ask questions at matt's factory. >> so, did matthew ever have any type of enemies? >> at work, from what he would come home and tell me, there was a lot of people there that he didn't get along with. he was considered one of the supervisors. and he would tell me different

stories on how so and so would get into a fight. >> and, remember the 10,000 life insurance bending about as a possible motive for murder? halle said she didn't know it was life insurance until after matt was dead. >> as far as i, knew the only thing he had at work was the 401k plan. i didn't find out that he had life insurance until at the funeral home when his uncle told us. >> the obituary was -- >> it ended up being made. and we found that out at the funeral. >> but, how about that night in the karaoke bar? >> earl's gotta die. do you know that some? >> yeah. >>relationship with the female poisons the man and he dies. >> it's a song. yes, it's a karaoke song. >> well!

>> over and over, the detectives challenged holly with the accusing question. >> did you give matthew any type of poison? >> no. >> did you give matthew any type of antifreeze? >> no. >> isn't it a fact that you poisoned matthew? >> no, it's not a fact. because i didn't do. it i did not do that. >> and have you ever told anyone that you put something in matthews drinks? >> no. i never put anything in matthews drinks. so i would never said. it >> all the protested. none of this made sense, she said. this is the father of my children. my fiancée. the person i was going to spend the rest of my life with. i'm not going to hurt him in any way possible. i mean, dreams, our goals, everything -- my whole life has completely been changed upside down. and i know nothing. and his family just despises me

and does nothing but speak evil. >> and with that, detectives thanked her for coming in and sent her on her way with the warning that most likely she'd be indicted. >> you don't shop for arrangement interview. >> that was late september, 2010. but holly wasn't indicted. not that year, not the next year either. but, something strange happened in 2011. holly answered her phone and found herself talking to a guy she dated briefly after matt died. >> do you remember what you told me about the tracks? >> do you hear the trap snapping shut? >> coming up -- >> he claimed to have heard holly mcfeeture confessed by saying she put something in his drinks. >> police and prosecutors think that they did -- with a new witness. >> what was so compelling about his testimony was that he was the only person to have that

knowledge. >> but, is he enough to take this case to court? >> the details of the case are very salacious. their sex, there is the allegation of poisoning. it's very interesting but that doesn't make it necessarily a dead bang winner for trial. when dateline continues. dateline continues. some describe it as pulsing electric shocks or sharp, stabbing pains. ♪♪ this painful, blistering rash can disrupt your life for weeks. a pain so intense, you could miss out on family time. 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. (christine) my son really had to be head of the household because i became a dependent. my tip is every time i want to smoke a cigarette, i would think of my children.

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years long, matt podolak's death was still non solved mystery. and -- all that time, mark podolak had rejected his own life to prove the holy was the killer. >> i knew that my relationship with my friends suffered, ultimately it led to me being divorced. it was destructive on a lot of levels. because we focus so much on a certain goal, asserted mission.

>> and you're so -- >> and i'm angry. >> even angrier, now if that was possible. because there had been a change. the case was reclassified as a homicide. but holly was living her life, free. no charges filed. >> and i became extremely frustrated. i'm not going to lie. >> so frustrated, he sent a message to dateline on facebook asking us to look into his brother's death. holly and her family, meanwhile, we're waiting to see if the hammer would fall. >> i can't tell you how many times she's cried knowing that people are saying, you know, that she's a murder and that this loving mom and softball coach can kill a man that she loved. >> but day-by-day, sergeant mike queen was closing in on holly. just one more big thing, one solid piece of evidence, all he needed. and, maybe he and the prosecutors decided, maybe a

joe bird could provided. >> holly briefly dated a man named jameson kennedy, a year or so after matt died. and, according to kennedy, during a wine and sex driven evening, holly made some kind of confession. >> this, thought the prosecutors, was gold >> what did he claim he heard? >> he heard to have heard holly makes feature confess by saying she put something in his drinks. >> then, prosecutor brian mick dunn -- >> and that she wanted to stop but then his kidneys had failed. and that was compelling evidence. >> but, all with something. mr. kennedy was not exactly the local church pastor, his rap sheet was longer than -- >> in fact, when he came up with a little offering about holly, he was in county jail. under rest for beating up some cops. so, a snitch. >> as a prosecutors, we don't

like informants. but what was so compelling about his testimony was that he was the only person to have that knowledge. >> how would he have that knowledge in the first -- >> how would hear that? >> he heard that from her lips to his ears. >> but, how could they possibly prove it? >> one possible way, sneaking. but it might work. they set up a phone call canadian prison called halle and they turned on a tape recorder >> hello? >> holly. >> yeah. >> do you know who this is? >> yeah, hi jameson. >> sometimes things like this work. sometimes they don't. it's just how it is with the investigation of this story. suffice to say that the call wasn't everything that they wanted to be so heard they were, at a kind of crossroads. should they go forward or finally drop it? the evidence, the story of a deal house niche with multiple felony convictions, never an

easy. so an ex friends who is talk of antifreeze in the house offers to get rid of her husband, might be real or imagined. a financial motive that, at most, might have amounted to paltry 15 grand. and a bit of dixie chicks karaoke, the performance of which they may have been monstrous cruel or perfectly in assistant. still, who could've done? in >> the details of the case are very salacious. then prosecutor alison fois -- >> their sex, there's the allegation of poisoning, it's very interesting and it certainly enough to keep anyone's attention but, that doesn't make it necessarily a strong case or a dead bang winner for trial. >> and so, the prosecutors consulted mark in the family they were all committed now. all emotionally attached. but the family should decide. >> he, said this is where we are, he ladle out. and he said we can take a shot

and see where this goes. and -- >> you might lose >> we might lose. and we all agreed that we wanted to go with it. we've suffered long enough. >> case number 564 to 65, holly mcfeeture. >> so, in 2012, six years after matt podolak's's death, holly was indicted for aggravated murder and contaminating substance for human consumption. from her mugshot, it did not look like she was too worried about the outcome of the case. but this was serious maximum sentence. life without parole. her attorney, brett jordan applied for bill. >> she was scared, she missed her kids, i would say probably in some state of shock at that point. >> the judge took a look at the circumstantial case against her and granted the bill request. half 1 million bond with an ankle bracelet. but, felt the case was not the strongest. there was publicity. antifreeze poisoning?

holly was suddenly famous but not in a good way. >> the old brooklyn little league, told the ones beloved coach that she wasn't welcomed anymore. and holly mcfeeture prepared to defend her life in court. >> coming up -- >> his body was shutting down his organs were systematically shut down >> ice tea spiked with antifreeze? the prosecution's theory of how holly poisoned math. you can't smell it and you can't see it in the tea. he would have no way to know that it's coming. it's so secretively done. >> when dateline continues. when dateline continues you look fantastic. it's jon. hamm, from the blind date we went on years ago. ah, the struggling actor who didn't believe he could save with snapshot based on how and how much he drives.

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pestering the investigators, seven years of brooding seven

years after the sudden agonizing death of his kid brother matt marc podolak marched with satisfaction as holly mcfeeture walked into the courtroom i finally felt like we were going to make this happen. >> please rise! >> again, the case against holly was possibly a leech no guarantees here but, mark knew it. >> i was extremely nervous. oh my gosh! being in that courtroom >> and you don't know how it's going to turn out >> you have no idea how it's going to turn out. >> truth was, the prosecution didn't have much to work with. without any hard evidence to pin on holly, their case boiled down to a process of elimination. someone did this to mad. who else could've been? other than his fiancée. >> in this case, telling a story would be crucial because there wasn't a whole lot else to do, right? >> absolutely. >> prosecutor brian -- began his story with the scene inside the hospital room the night matt died. >> his body was shutting down.

his organs were systematically shut down. >> and then, matt's father, -- , describe the horror of watching his son final agony. so much pain, he couldn't talk. except first children. >> he would say where's little man. and where samantha. >> a picture was passed around the courtroom, matt dead, lying on the autopsy table. mark began to cry. across the courtroom, so the tally. >> and then, corner dan colleague told the -- what he found during the autopsy. discoveries had became the core of the case against holly. >> the cause of death was chronic intoxication by ethylene glycol >> poison with antifreeze, very, very slowly. he explained he had found crystals in matt's heart and brain. having inched their way through

the body, the kidney, the hard in the brain. >> how much time would it take for the crystals to deposit themselves into the blood vessels of the heart? >> it takes weeks, at least. >> the fact that the crystals were forming in his heart and actually traveled to his brain indicated long term exposure and not a one-dose kill. >> and matt's friends and were colleagues testified. they had seen his body disintegrate before their eyes, starting weeks, if not months before his dad. >> he began sweating profusely and he complained of back pain. >> he was sitting beside me and practically was hunched over to where his chest was on his knees. >> who could've made that happened and how? investigators remember, they had found antifreeze in halle and matt's garage. immediately, a year after holly moved out. prosecutors knew that they could not link these bottles to the crime. but even so, detective queen to

the mouth of the evidence back for the jury to see. left them on the witness stand as prop. a little courtroom theater. >> a bottle of scent turn antifreeze equivalence. >> take a look at those bottles, the prosecution seemed to be saying. and, common sense will tell you it wasn't suicide. nobody would down antifreeze on purpose, said the prosecutor. let alone, bit by bit. as indicated in the corners report. >> there was no suicide note. he didn't go ahead and give away his possessions. suicide did not make sense. >> now, there was one person prosecutor argued that only one had the means in the motive to poison matt, his fiancée, holly mcfeeture. a parade of witnesses testified about math and all these rocky relationship the bitter words, fierce arguments that they could end up but over here. >> when we would be fishing, that phone would be ringing every five minutes. she'd be screaming so loud he'd be holding the phone away from

this ear. >> i told him that he needed to protect himself and i told him that he should remove his shotgun from his house. >> and, far from being shattered by matt's death, as the family claimed, prosecution witnesses described a holly seemed almost giddy after matt died. >> what did you observe that -- >> well, almost a party atmosphere. as if nothing had happened. >> and then, the prosecution called halle's old friend, rebecca vega. if anybody had a ringside seat to holly's life after matt, it was rebecca. >> how is it to actually be in the courtroom, seeing her there, answering those questions? >> couldn't even look at her. >> rebecca told the jury, holly didn't wait long after matt's death to remove any trace of him from the house.

>> it seemed as if everything, like, the being of matt had been taken out of the home. >> but it was what hawley had and cleaned up that made the biggest impression on rebecca. those bottles of chemicals on the kitchen floor >> what was hollies response when you asked her about those items? >> one of the items was brought up us antifreeze for matt spoke to winterize his boat. >> but, who winterize is their boat in the summer? remember, matt died in july, said the prosecutors, so rebecca's story was evidence that hawley had access to antifreeze around the time of matt's death >> she was able to put antifreeze in the kitchen of holly make features after the death of matt podolak. >> now they needed to convince the jury that holly actually fed the antifreeze to man. that would take a little doing. first, several of matt corca's testified that holly, sometimes dropped off math lunch at the

factory. >> hollywood big needed every once in a while firm. >> how many occasions do you recall that happening? >> half a dozen. >> and, holly always make sure to include matt's favorite drink, he said. half a gallon of more of respray ice tea antifreeze is sweet, otherwise tasteless. could halle of spiked the tee? >> you can't smell it and you can't see it from the tee. he would have no way to know that it's coming. >> but, why in heaven's name which he do such a thing? what was her motive? well, as the prosecution saw it, at least, all those arguments met and holly were having represented that throws of the relationship. a relationship she wanted to leave and he did not. stubbornly. because he didn't want to lose custody of those kids. >> so, it's your claim that he was sticking like glue. and to get rid of them, she had to poison him. >> that is how she saw the way out. >> a way out.

sweeten suggested the prosecution with -- and 401(k). he was worth $15,000 tour, if he died. >> that was clearly not a motive, really. i mean it's chump change, basically, right? >> $15,000 for some person might be worth 150,000 for another. >> interesting theory. trick question, persuade the jury that the hardworking committed young mother, the woman who was always volunteering to help others, who coached table teams could, at the same, time be a devious cold blooded murder. yes, absolutely typical said the prosecution. star witness. still to come, the man who knew all about the violence and secrets and kissing in telling. >> coming up -- >> holly melt stunning court. what happened? >> when dateline continues. hen dateline continues not me.

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thousands of take into the streets across russia to protest putin's draft. more than 800 were arrested across 500 cities, alone, according to monitors. the country's, man now trying to dodge potential draft borders. and, at 7:14 pm, eastern tonight, nasa will slim its dark zero spacecraft into a harmless asteroid, millions of miles away, at 14 miles per hour. it's the first of the kind of mission to determine if nasa can deflect asteroids ending up on a collision course with earth. now, back to dateline way up on the 22nd floor of the criminal court building here in downtown cleveland, holly mcfeeture sat through a hailstorm of -- practically, a monster if you believe some of the witnesses. and, for the most, part she listened politely, turned occasionally to smile at her sister or share a word of encouragement. but then, then the announcement was made. >> your honor, at this time we

have jameson -- >> and from those words, jamison kennedy, hawley went into a kind of shock. and, then as quickly, even before kennedy walked into the courtroom came tears. something in her seem to crumble. the tears became racking sobs, as if she, in full blown terror panic, simply could not go on. all this happened as the attorneys were at the bench, conferring with judge bryant before kennedy's testimony began. holly left her seat. rushed to her sister chrissy in the gallery and broke down. and it all happened in front of the jury. >> mark podolak was not moved. in fact, he was disgusted. >> where was that emotion during the funeral? where was that emotion when your lover was dying in the hospital?

yet, a guy that you hadn't seen in years stepped into the courtroom, you have an emotional breakdown? that's courtroom drama, in my opinion. >> was she afraid of the man? was he afraid of what he had to say? the whole business was highly unusual. holly, visibly shaking, was allowed to leave the courtroom while kennedy testified. >> how do you know holly mcfeeture? >> i originally matter at the board that she worked, out the dirty. dog >> jameson kennedy wasn't ex-con, holly dated the year so after matt's death. the snitch who -- historian from the jail cell. was it was to call him a prosecution witness? the man had eight felony convictions under his belt. and he was serving ten years from beating up cops. and yet, here he was, central witness against holly. >> he's an alcoholic. he's a drug addict. and he wants something from you guys. so he'll say whatever you asked to say, right? >> the thing about this witness, about jameson kennedy is that

he didn't want anything in exchange for what he was going to come into court and say. he knew that he was going to be in prison for quite awhile and that nothing he could say in court could ever change that. >> and, kennedy story, if the jury chose to believe it was a potential game-changer. it was september 26, 2008, two years after matt died. kennedy was on probation, he told the jury one holly stopped by the law office where a kindly defense attorney had given him a job in a place to sleep. they shared a bottle of wine. the eight some takeout. >> we both were kind of a little bit, you know, tipsy. after drinking, we ended up having sex. and after the six is when things got really emotional. she had started crying. >> what did she say? >> she made some remarks that she just wanted it to all go away. she wanted to move out of cleveland. she was regretful for what had

taken place. >> regret? about what? kennedy told the jury that he pushed colleague to tell him more. >> but she just told me, at that time, that she was sorry for what she had done. >> what had she done? >> on her words was that she had put something in his drink. >> what has she put inside of his drink? >> she did not tell me. >> did she say what happened after putting something inside of the drink? >> that he had gotten sick and passed away. >> it was quite simply, stunning. but! big but. was it true? could the jury really take the word of this is a time convicted felon? >> yes, said the prosecution. because of this. >> if you tell anyone about what holly mcfeeture told you

about putting something in this drink -- >> yes. >> who did you tell? >> my attorney. >> well, not exactly that said the attorney in question, who testified that kennedy asked him in a cryptic sort of weigh what he should do if he knew about a murder. he didn't name halle or any particular murder. >> i do not first of the court, did you provide him with any advice? >> i told him that if he had any information of that nature that he had to inform whoever about this supposed situation. >> but kennedy did not tell authorities anything. then, not until he was sitting into a jail cell under arrest for assaulting those cops. did he hope police will go easy on him if you told him something they wanted to hear? sergeant queen told the jury, he believed kennedy story because kennedy offered details only someone close to the crime

would know. >> there was no mention in the media, anyway. where did it come from? >> the fact that this is the one witness we can bring forward to the jury to say that i heard holly mick feature confessed to putting something that you put in peoples during, it's so important that i think, in our minds, it could not have not gone to the jury. >> thank you so much for your time. >> and with that the prosecution completed its case of circumstantial evidence. but, there was a giant void in the room, a big empty hole with the hard evidence usually goes. but, what the defense make of that? >> coming up -- >> the defense strikes back. >> you have no idea how that man died, do you? >> i didn't have to see physical proof. >> i asked a question. you have no idea whatsoever how that man died, do you? >> not to my knowledge. >> it was all speculation. it was all just finger-pointing

without any basis. >> when dateline continues. hen dateline continues and the winner is... bounty. one and done. bounty. the quicker picker upper.

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mcfeeture's family sat in a courtroom -- drip by drip, and by on feeding her fiancée the poison and watching him die. monstrous. evil. and, said her family, completely untrue. just nasty gossip. gussied up as evidence. >> it was just a bunch of people talking bad about my sister. >> such a one-sided burner at the stake type of scenario. >> defense attorney, brett georgian and billy summers agreed. >> it was all speculation. it was all just finger-pointing without any basis. >> and now, they knew they'd

have to persuade the jury to buy something they personally believed in their gut. that holly mcfeeture was wrongly accused. >> i don't think i ever believed the innocence in a client more than i believed holly mcfeeture. >> the defense began by putting some negative cards on the table, that is the fighting. holly and matt had been fighting a lot. but that was hardly a surprise, said the -- >> two babies, one with colicky and matt was out fishing all the time. >> you cannot say that just because somebody is arguing, every, day that that is a sign of hatred and i'm going to kill that person. >> and that story that went around about hollies behavior mats funeral, an informed judgments made from afar. said the defense. that summit became this big myth that holley did not care. >> oh,. i can tell you right now that she didn't care. >> really, you go crawling to remind a new good tell us what she was thinking. >> no. you could read it on her face.

>> read it on her face? >> you don't have to be crying your eyes out at a funeral to not be grieving. >> no, the defense argued all the testimony aligning all these behavior was really a product of the six plus years of rumor and innuendo. which, at courtesy of the authorities to matt's family hard into what sounded like truth even if it wasn't. >> if you listen to all the witnesses. anybody that was holly's friend, they all turned away once they talk to the detective. >> that was certainly the case, said the defense. when holly's friend rip vic a big cut off contact with holly about a year after matt died. >> who's the accused of murder in this room? >> holly. is >> yeah, and you, know you can't look at her anymore. >> no. >> after, then after she heard from the police said the defense, did she begin saying what she said at the trial. >> but you have not a high do how -- >> i didn't have to see physical proof in order to -- >> i asked a question.

you have no idea whatsoever how that man died, do you? >> not to my knowledge, no. >> did the memory of all those happy days that rebecca spent with ali suddenly sprout the duct suspicion once the police were spurred in rebecca's ear. like the bit about the antifreeze in the kitchen. >> holly has children. and she is very careful. and i know that she would not leave chemicals like that just flying around the house. -- it was just a smokescreen. the hard evidence, the prosecution did not have. like, anything, connecting holley to the murder weapon. but which of course would mean the antifreeze. remember those two bottles of antifreeze investigators found in halle and matt's house after she moved out? >> this is a blow bottle of peak antifreeze and cool in. >> the prosecution showed them off like a crown jewel.

all the while knowing that they had no known connections to anything or anyone did the fence was on that like a terrier on the bone. no fingerprints on the bottle, no indication it was even the same kind that killed max. no indication that it was in her house when she actually lives there. >> those two bottles of antifreeze are not linked to -- >> know. and those two bottles of antifreeze or not linked to holly at all. >> no. >> what was the point of that? >> exactly. there wasn't any. with the employing a connection? >> they were grasping! >> another very weakness of defense said was the prosecutions worry that holly discuss the antifreeze in math beloved raspberry ice tea. zero forensic support for that, said the defense >> and do you know how the ice tea got into that thermos. >> i have no clue >> none of --

and there was nothing ever connecting that it was even ice tea. >> and the motive, the prosecution suggested. the modest life insurance money, laughable. said the defense. wouldn't even buy a decent car. besides, holly said that she had no idea at the insurance existed. matt sanco, below the factory where might work, couldn't see other wise. do >> you have any personal knowledge to holly actually knew that there was a life insurance driver at the -- >> i cannot say that i do. >> but, all these defenders didn't have a problem. no getting around it. huge problem. the pillow talk with de missing kennedy when, according to, him halle actually confessed. if they couldn't knock him down, they were done. >> coming up -- >> was the prosecution bombshell witness seeded?

>> are you trying to accuse me of doing something to him? >> i'm not trying to accuse you of anything. >> well you're putting words in my mouth right now. because i never said any such words to you >> when dateline continues datelin continue begin to see the signs of hope all around you? what if you could let in the lyte? discover caplyta. caplyta is a once-daily pill, proven to deliver significant relief from bipolar depression. unlike some medicines that only treat bipolar i, caplyta treats both bipolar i and bipolar ii depression. and, in clinical trials, feelings of inner restlessness and weight gain were not common. caplyta can cause serious side effects. call your doctor about sudden mood changes, behaviors, or suicidal thoughts right away. antidepressants may increase these risks in young adults. elderly dementia patients have increased risk of death or stroke. report fever, stiff muscles, or confusion, which may be life-threatening, or uncontrollable muscle movements, which may be permanent. these aren't all the serious side effects.

in the darkness of bipolar i and ii depression, caplyta can help you let in the lyte. ask your doctor about caplyta, from intra-cellular therapies. we really had our hands full with our two-year-old. so naturally, we doubled down with a new puppy. thankfully, we also have new tide ultra-oxi with odor eliminators. between stains and odors, it can handle double trouble. for the #1 stain fighter and odor remover, it's got to be tide. flo, you're here. this pipe just burst on me. well, you bundled home and auto with progressive, so you have round-the-clock protection on all your stuff. like that cardboard tv. i told props to switch that out. okay, everyone, that's a wrap. [ bell rings ] wait, you faked this whole thing? i knew it was the quickest way to see you. i'm sorry, jon, but i'm already in love with insurance. you know that's weird, right? well, any weirder than faking a burst pipe? got a little carried away. yeah. what in heaven's name would

holly mcfeeture's do about this? >> her words was that you would put something in this drink there was no avoiding the impact of those few words from jameson kennedy. remember, just the mention of his name sent holly into an epic break down. weakening, sobbing, fleeing the courtroom. next day, it was the defense attorney's turn to take him on. >> good morning. >> holly had regained re-composure when she came back into court. . the strategy was to pick apart kennedys dory. exposing for what the defense said he most certainly was, a

liar. like the bit about being tipsy. holly, kennedy said, had a glass of one or two that night. but, he knocked off an entire bottle himself. >> you still are telling the jury here that holly was tipsy or drunk that night, right? >> yes sir. >> well, in fact it was you that was drunk that night. not. holly >> i think we were both, you know, feeling the bus >> now this is the sort of moment the defense attorney probably lives for, listen. >> were you aware that holly is allergic to grapes and she can't drink one. >> no >> it was this a man who could be believed when he said he had a real relationship with holly? >> she had told me that he was stalking her. he had got her name tattooed on him. he would not leave her alone >> how did she feel about this? >> oh, she was afraid >> and candy admitted, under the fence questioning that he got very angry with ali when he heard a rumor that she was with another

guy >> so angry that you grabbed her by the neck, threw her against the wall, you punch turnovers times that type of angry, right? >> no sir. >> no, that didn't happen? >> i do believe i pushed her only when she approached me to try and hit, me i think, with the phone or to smack me or something. i just kind of stiff charmed her away. i think she fell down that was the extent of it >> really? >> holly called the cops that night and said that kennedy punched her five time. he had already fled when he said he was going to get a restraining order against or. but before she could, he was at her door again. and, one holly called the police, this time, kennedy tried to escape and -- before he was finally arrested and it was only, then after she turned him in and he was in jail facing years in prison, burning up in anger towards holley that he called his attorney, charlie feliciano to try to break a deal. >> you're saying, charlie, get

me the police. i've got to help myself get out of this jam. i'm going to tell on holly, right? >> also, he was concerned that she would try to put this on me. >> so now we have a conspiracy theory going on here that holly is not going to blame you for the death of a man is that what you're telling me? >> it's just an attorney's recommendation. >> this attorney. who bent over backwards to provide jamison with a job in a place to stay while he was on probation from an earlier conviction. and, what happened? candidate stole from him. -- >> jamison threatened your life? >> he threatened me. yes. >> he threatened your family also? >> yes >> you had mental problems he was not stable, right? >> correct. >> according to the defense, not even the police believed kennedy. for more than two years they did nothing about his allegations. but after those years, one according to the defense they couldn't find any other evidence, they put a story to

the test. by orchestrating that phone call from kennedy, in person to holly. trying to get her to incriminate her cell. >> curiously, the prosecution didn't mention that call in court so, the defense was only too happy to push play for the jury this was something they had to hear >> halle. >> yeah. >> do you know who this is? >> yes, hi jameson. >> holly was taken by surprise. hadn't heard from him in years. police, of course, we're listening. do >> you remember what you told me about the drinks? >> the drinks. >> the drinks with matthew? >> what did i tell you about that? >> didn't work out so well for the police, or for mr. kennedy. >> are you trying to accuse me of doing something to him? is that what you're trying to do to me? >> i'm not trying to accuse you of anything. >> well, you're putting words in my mouth right now. because, i never said any such words to you.

about ever putting anything in this drink. i would never have done that. i'm not the type of person. he's the father of my children, we were supposed to get married. my whole world destroyed when he passed away. are you serious? this is a very sick thing for you to say to me right now. >> no, said the defense, holly did not confessed. not then, not ever. and kennedy was a sick puppy who saw an opportunity to combine revenge with a little self help. >> you are not trying to tell everybody that holly confessed to you about this case. because it would benefit you, correct? >> i don't think so -- i don't i just think it's morally. right >> it's morally, right if you would do what's marley right you would've gone to the police on september 26, isn't that correct sir? >> i should've. >> big morals, right? >> -- >> i have no further questions. >> the prosecution said that kennedy did not get a deal on

his exchange for a story. one more question to answer. if it wasn't holley who was it? >> for that, the defense offered doctor robert, bucks forensic pathologists. matt was not poisoned slowly over time said doctor bucks. the corner simply made a mistake. all that pain matt suffered in the weeks before his death, that was from simple kidney stone, said doctor buck. nothing at all to do with antifreeze. >> is -- a symptom of ethylene glycol lead poisoning. >> it shouldn't be, no. >> now, this was not the case of chronic antifreeze poisoning. this was a textbook case of acute poisoning. one large dose, said doctor. bucks >> this is a massive human injection. these injections are going to have to drink almost a pint of it. and the most likely person to a poisoned him with the drink of

that size was matt himself. >> as to the manner of death, what would your ruling be? >> probably be a suicide. >> suicide by antifreeze. the method more common than most people realize, said the defense. >> who killed himself with and -- at the league glycol, antifreeze, that stuff is horrible. what a horrible death. >> not true, it happens all the time. there had been famous cases covered in the media a retired pro football player, a writer for sunday night life. but, why matt? >> he had gambling debts he was depressed. he wasn't happy at work throw an experience of pain from kidney stones. throw, and maybe they weren't having the best relationship but that time. that all lives of the suicide. >> and, at, that the defense asked the judge to throw out the charges against ali. >> no, there has to be evidence,

there has to be proof. all to show that halle was the one who did -- for >> a moment, it's getting the judge migrant the motion. but, now he ruled holly mick features feet would be decided by the jury. as it turned, out very slowly. >> coming up -- >> at the link glycol, odorless, colorless, sweet tasting >> but, did holley use it to kill matt. we don't know, -- >> when dateline continues -- dateline continues -

it was seven years, almost to the days since matt podolak, took a last faithful death -- the jury convicted holly

mcfeeture. >> fell in love with the wrong woman. she was toxic to him. >> this was the closing message. a stark visual. look how easy, said the prosecutor, for halle to mix antifreeze into matt's beloved ice tea. look how hard it is for matt to detect the poison. >> -- odorless, colorless, sweet tasting. >> the defense, appeal to the heart. there were two tragedies in the story, they said. matt's death and holly suffering nothing could be done about the first, said the defense. but, the jury could rectify the second. >> you've got to end the night here. and you've got to put to russ this families tragedy. >> this could be a close call. the jury went out no verdict at the end of the first day. or the next. matt's brother, mark, didn't know what to think you don't know is the jury being out long a bad thing our good thing >> holly sister, chrissy, was nervous she tried to stick

confident. >> i mean they have hearsay from a man that was in prison. and some ice tea on the table. >> finally, towards the end of day three, cell phone started buzzing. verdict halle, looking like she had seen a ghost, headed toward the courtroom surrounded by family. >> we rise! >> as the jury filed in. holly began mouthing the lords prayer. >> i understand you reached a verdict in this case, is that correct? >> and then the judge began to read. >> we, the jury in the state being duly -- do you find the defendant, holly mcfeeture, guilty of aggravated murder, violation of section 29 -- >> to hear those words, guilty. and it was emotional. >> please, sir. >> mark turned to hug his mother. her face washed in tears. across the courtroom --

>> nobody could react. because it was total shock. nobody was expecting that. >> the guard came in. wrapped handcuffs around hollies wrist. she shook her head, no. seem to be reeling her words, less than a whisper. >> it's my children. >> she looked at me and she was gone >> what did that do to you. ? >> it tore me apart i really could not understand how this happened. >> it wasn't supposed to happen like this. >> the defense team felt gutted. the prosecution case had been so flimsy, they felt. how did it all gone so wrong? >> still wondering what happened. >> this was not an easy one for the prosecutors, either. the sort of case you might reasonably walk away from if you did let yourself get caught up and start to care, a lot. >> what was it like to get your guilty verdict?

>> it confirms the work that we do. it >> was a good one. >> a very good one. >> what made it so good? >> you meet with the family, at the beginning. and you're on this journey all the way through and to be able to deliver something, to them that they believed from the beginning made a very satisfying. >> a month later, at the sentencing, holly sister wanted the judge to know what the children thought. that their mother was not a murder. and, that they were begging them to send their home, to them. >> my mom is the greatest mom in the world. because she is sweet and kind. i really want to see her home. i really mr.. i wish i could have my mom back. >> then, a surprise. matt's father, the retired cop had become an ordained minister since the son's death. and he told the judge, he had

made a decision. >> i came to the point where i can forgive harley. and i have african -- forgiven her. and i'm asking you your honor, to tempt the justice with mercy. >> but mark, seven years of suspicion, frustration, anger finally came bursting out. it filled the courtroom. >> i just have one simple question. why? why put someone in unnatural pain when it could've just walked away from the relationship. why continue to slowly poison him when it could've stopped. and why take it away from those children that you so dearly loved? >> the sentence was swift and stern. >> the nature of the crime in the case without overlooking the matter, i'm first going to impose a sentence of life with parole eligibility after 34 years. >> holly mcfeeture won't be eligible for parole before 2043. this for the children, samantha and josh moved in with ali sister. mark said, he and the parents

see the kids often. and that both families have been very friendly towards each other. something that would've made his brother proud. >> we want them in our lives. we want them to know who their dad was. the night before hollywood shipped up to state prison to start serving her life sentence, chrissy took the children to visit with her. they couldn't touch the glass barrier separating them. they spoke over jailhouse phone. >> that just breaks my heart. >> it's hard to watch. >> very hard to watch. i had to turn away. numerous times. because, like i said, it's just heartbreaking knowing that they couldn't just touch. that she couldn't touch her babies that she loves so much. >> and, mark podolak, went where he always goes on the anniversary of matt's death to talk to his brother at the cemetery. >> i hope that you're proud of your big brother a little bit. because i kind of hopefully help do you rest in peace a little bit more than you have been. and, there was still a podolak

paying amateur hockey here in cleveland. matt loved the game. mark took it up in his memory. and since matt couldn't be here to play, said mark, he played for him our issues this sunday, confronting putin. >> you cannot seize a nation's territory by force. >> russian president vladimir putin threatens a nuclear confrontation and mobilizes hundreds of thousands of new troops. >> but global pressure is mounting to end the war in ukraine. is a diplomatic solution really possible? national security adviser jake sullivan is with us and more from my exclusive interviews with ukraine's prime minister. >> what do you want the allies to do. >> and the german chancellor. >> he will not win the war.