>> i'm craig melvin, and this

is dateline. >> it's hard to think, that could happen to you. >> a dive instructor, and his wife, on a dream trip to the tropics, until a scuba adventure turns into a disaster. >> he surfaces, screaming. >> she never reached the surface. what happened, some 80 feet down? prosecutors, calling it murder. >> this is the classic motivation? the other woman? >> yes. >> a wife, lost in the deep. >> fighting for my life. >> a husband, becoming the accused. >> you turned off the air supply, killed her underwater. did that happen? >> absolutely not. >> now, hold your breath for the twist. >> that was one of the most surreal moments of my entire life. >> hello, and welcome to

dateline. scuba divers, shelby, and her husband david, were captivated by the aqua blue waters of a caribbean island, posting a majestic underwater world. but, for one of them, the breathtaking views came at a deadly cost. the tragic twist, that exposes family secrets as dark as they come. here is dennis murphy with the last dive. >> for most of us who enjoy spending time in the water, and the occasional swim, in a backyard pool, it will suffice. it was in total immersion, and an open ocean would do. a ticket to paradise. >> it was incredibly peaceful. it was looking for you, and it was amazing. even the closer you look in, the more you can look at it. >> all of your senses are getting overloaded. your visual colors are

phenomenal. >> david swain, and his is scuba diving. >> that's where i belong. >> so, to escape a jury rhode island winter and march of 99, it was a 45 foot sailboat with another couple, and their child. in a scare free scuba vacation is what you want, it doesn't get much better than the caribbean british virgin's. >> it was definitely a different experience for her. >> she was a big fish person? >> yes, anything to do with animals, or critters that, was what she was about. >> she liked to count official underwater. he liked to photograph. what would go wrong on that? they were south of the island of tortola when it happened. >> i noticed that her breathing apparatus was out of her mouth. >> i heard an emergency call, because there was a diving accident. and they needed assistance. >> the body appeared to be

lifeless. >> what happened in 30 minutes time, and it was replayed and people's minds and, in the next decade. it was an experience diver, and it was lost like that. where exactly was their husband, the master diver, that was a safety body on that i've. >> my mouth dropped, i was in shock. >> he answers the tough questions. >> i do not know what happened, i was not there. >> give them a theory? >> i don't have a theory. >> it is a decade long story, beginning here in coastal rhode island, far from the beautiful waters of the caribbean. it was the early 90s when she was a dive instructor, and she was the customer on a boat. >> a couple of the big tough guys, and is going back in. >> she had some spunk? >> a lot. i was showing her fission away

she had not seen them before. so, that's what started things. >> shelley was a bundle of energy. a five foot nothing teacher, and school administrator. she was as a basis, as she was quiet. so, when they started dating, david was only too happy to show shelling the waters, where he pursued his life's passions. teaching scuba, and kayaking, through his dive shop in jamestown rhode island. here he is a 1997, giving a kayak lesson. >> it was an easy, figure eight stroke. >> he was known to his friends, and customers, as an honest businessman, and an active member of the community. likewise, the people in shelley circle raved about her. school parents, like colleen. >> she was effervescent. she was always on the move, always on the go. >> shelley, who, memorably, war above the caution to the school once, was seen as nothing left of a gift. they were there with their academy, and suburban boston,

where she was headmaster of the middle school. >> she had an ear for every child. and, when she spoke to you, looked you in the eye, she didn't care. the world fell away. >> always falling by her side, her constant companion, the burmese mountain dog. her furry comfort, always available to a people having a bad day. it was in 1983. they didn't have children together, but she quickly endured herself as well to his son and daughter from previous marriage. >> the kids loved her. >> what did you think was between you? >> i love the adventure, i love nature, and you couldn't find someone that had more liveliness or, determination. >> if there was a merit-able speed bump, it was shelley's weekday commute. the school where she work was a long slog from coastal rhode island. she was, probably, seeing more

of tory the dogs, and david her husband. >> this is a god awful amount. >> at least four hours behind a wheel? >> yes. >> did that start to get to her? >> there were times it would. she would be up at the crack of dawn, or before, and that would be at home late at night. we were struggling about the time apart. >> spring break of 1999, would be shelley and dave it's time to escape the grind, and to enjoy together what they love best. the water. but, of course, that trip, that last dive, would go so horribly wrong. how could anyone make sense of the deeply sound, and mysterious death, of shelley. >> coming up -- disaster underwater. >> he surfaces, screaming. >> what had happened beneath the surface? >> he has another driver with him, and i realize, it's shelley. >> when dateline continues. n dateline continues

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islands. sailing, diving, postcard perfect beaches. how shelley tyre look forward to it. she and her husband david chartered a sailboat with their friends, the other couple would be bringing along their young son. one week of diving and sailing, whichever way caught their fancy. >> upon arrival here in tortola, the men set out to arrange for their charter, and the rental of their scuba gear. the women went shopping for provisions for this sailboat, call the caribbean sole. the five motored out this marina for their holiday at sea. on this date, no one in the group can say that anything was

amiss. and it was by all accounts, the leisurely week, going around the caribbean, that all on board had hope for. they dove the british virgin islands critters hits, salt island, peter island, the wreck of the rhone. on the morning of march 12th, they set a course for cooper island, and the site known as the tween rex. tortola diving instructor keith royal has been backed down there hundreds of times. >> there are two wrecks sitting next to each other, bow to stern, there is a small gap between them. that is fish life. >> david swain, and his friend were both certified scuba instructors. between them, they had more than 1000 dives between their belts. and shelley tyre was no novice. in her book, she recorded more than 350 dives. now, divers with comparable experience will tell you that diving the twin wrecks site is a nice, flat sandy bottom, great visibility and minimal currents. it is about as challenging as a

walk in the park on a sunny day. at about noon that day, the caribbean sole tied up at the twin wrecks, nabbing the sole motoring buoy, it is sometimes busy tourist ocean, the friends on board would have the dive site all to themselves. then, david and shelley made their dive plans. >> this particular time, it was decided that we would go down first, shelley and i. >> david swain says he and shelley made a routine entry into the water, and then made their way down, over the wreath, and into the open sand, to the twin wrecks dive site. >> as we routinely did -- as i say routinely, probably 100, 150 times, she went off with her slates, started counting fish, i went off with my camera and started to take pictures. >> he says as each kid there underwater thing, they went their separate ways. >> when i get pretty much around the wreck, and navigate

it, i don't see here in the vicinity anywhere. i think, she's either someone around the wreck, or gone off somewhere else, so i could head off to the reef looking for better photo things. >> what is your recollection of the last time you saw shelley? >> as best as i can recall, it was when we parted ways on the wreck. >> he says when they parted, after ten minutes into the dive, she appeared fine, but somehow, at some point in what should have been a pleasant little dive before lunch, something went gravely amiss. david swain says he's surfaced alone and spoke to christian. >> my first question, was is shelley back yet? he said no, i said okay. looks like you are going in? >> at that moment, is there any alarm but she has not broken the surface? >> he was not alarmed, i was not alarmed. >> christian then started his dive. he later gave a statement that between the outer line of the wrecks, he found something off -- shelley's thin, like this one,

sticking out of the sand. when you got closer to the wrecks he found shelley herself, lying on the ocean for, face up, eyes open, near one end of the boats. he quickly grabbed her and brought her to the surface. >> then christine does come back? >> he does not come back, he surfaces, screaming. >> what did you hear in his voice? words? alarm? >> the word was emergency. >> swain hop in the dinghy and sped over to him. >> when i got close, i saw that he had another diver with him. as i get closer, i realize that it is shelley. >> how much trouble was she in? >> the idea was, she was unresponsive right away, that was a big problem. >> christian and david say they both attempted cpr, but her body did not respond. david, trained as an emt said she is gone. >> the part that really got me was, the people flat out not doing anything. that broke my heart, brought

this whole calamity to where we are today. >> back on the boat, swain radioed for help. the first to respond was keith roy. >> the scene on the caribbean soul was somber, shelley was laying in the cockpit. everybody obviously was very, very destroyed. >> back on island, shelley was pronounced dead. an autopsy was conducted at a local funeral home. the cause of death, drowning. the coroner ruled it an accident. swain was free to return to tortola, in return to his own island of jamestown, rhode island, to try to settle back into the routine he held for years, running his dive shop. but now, without his shelley. years later, though, he would return to tortola. this time, in handcuffs. >> coming up, call it an accident, could that jury have been deliberate? a dramatic reenactment, on tape of that day in the deep. >> we found out what we wanted

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i am puss in boots. and nearly 60 years of quality coverage the legend will never die. ohh!!! you are down to your last life. oh no. the legend tells of a wishing star. that star will get me my lives back. the wishing star is in the dark forest. 1, 2, after you. wait, what? dog, still alive? let's go find out. >> when we came home, and looked at the phone, and saw that there was 12 messages, we thought that somebody had died. >> colleen, for members of the day, their academy lost a headmaster, and beloved friend, shelley tar. >> how did you take that for colleen? >> i cried for three months in a row. it's hard.

it's a hard thing to think that someone -- that that could happen to them. >> and not just anyone, but someone so full of life, but vivaciously tire. what had happened to cause her to drown wall scuba diving off of the caribbean island of tortola? back home, in jamestown rhode island with, david swain, always, a man of few words, sharing few details, even with good friends like local marina owner, bill. >> do you remember the first time you saw him? >> yes. i gave him a hug. it was tears, from both of us. >> the top here, along rhode island, was that david wasn't acting the way a grieving widower should. to some people who, he was detached at her memorial service. to others, it looked as though he was living it up on the $600,000 he received after shelley's death. and, a few months after losing his wife, he started dating again.

>> going on main street, on how shelley fell underwater, some locals who knew the way around scuba thought, it didn't add up. >> certainly, when you go up, and down, it was people on both sides that they can't do. >> it could it be that it was remotely possible that david swain had something to do with his wife, charles, death? >> that was a question burning in the mind of shirley's parents, richard, and lisa. ever since swain had returned from the caribbean with her daughter spotty, they demanded answers from their son-in-law. answers that were not forthcoming. >> in the first moment i heard and kept saying over the phone to him, but you had the buddy system, you were there, you had the buddy system. and he just kept saying, i wasn't there. >> so they are saying, you are the expert, and you are the caretaker. >> they were wondering why -- >> why did you leave her?

>> why did i let this happen. >> swain's first face to face meeting with his in-laws ended in a shouting match, and swain recalls it. and, for the next three years, there's suspicion of foul play only grew. and, in 2002, they filed a wrongful death suit in civil court, claiming, swain was involved in shelley tire's death. >> nothing good happens in the court. nothing takes care of our pain, and our loss. >> i'm very emotional, yes. >> hired by experts to surely investigate shelley's drowning. after traveling to tortola and, examining shelley scuba equipment, they expert for in this an area that was reenacted on videotape. that david swain attack chile, underwater, approaching her from behind, shutting off her air supply, and then, holding her down until she drowned. >> it was a shocking allegation, indeed, and one that was, never, seriously, challenged. david swain's lawyer fell ill,

and swain himself chose not to appear in court. >> why didn't you take a civil suit? and what seems to outsiders, more seriously? it looks like you push this off it was a very serious event. >> in the civil world, he who has the most money, always, comes out on top. and not only did they have the most money, i had no lawyer. so, where was there a chance of me winning? >> at the end of the trial, david swain did make a surprise appearance. and, a last-ditch effort to defend himself. >> it's a grand story, but it's just not true. then, he called his sole witness. his daughter, jennifer, who described how her father showed genuine emotion when shelley was lost. >> he told us the story about shelley drowning. you are tearful. and angry. >> but, it wasn't enough. >> have we reached a verdict? >> we have. >> david was found responsible

for shelley's death. the jury awarded her parents three and a half million dollars. those, swain could not pay, because he filed for bankruptcy, months before. >> we found out what we wanted to find out what exactly happened. >> the friends who had stood by him, throughout, were shocked by what they saw as, nothing less than a miscarriage of justice. >> there was no cross-examination, and nothing that i know. it was a totally one-sided trial. >> that civil verdict did catch the attention of the authorities a world away. down here, in tortola, in the british virgin islands. officials here ruled her death, back in 1999, an accident. an accident, unless proven otherwise. that judgment gave civil court here fresh prosecutorial ammunition. >> portola review the evidence from the civil case, and made an extradition request. eight years after her death, u.s. marshals showed up at the dive shop, and arrested swain

for the murder of wife shelley. >> david headed back to the caribbean, but this is no indication. >> so much of this miracle that this is happening. >> this time, swain would not take any chances. he would launch a vigorous defense. but now, he would have to planted from his new home. a stifling cell in tortola's balsam prison. a fortress, high on the bluff, facing the ocean, where the view can't be beat, but comes at a price that no one wants to pay. >> as a criminal trial gets underway, a surprising revelation bubbles to the surface. >> coming up, another diver, in the life of david swain? >> this is the classic motivation. to classic ingredient of murder, sometimes. the other woman. >> yes. >> when dateline continues. when dateline continues with nucala. nucala is a once-monthly add-on treatment for severe eosinophilic asthma that can mean less oral steroids.

not for sudden breathing problems. allergic reactions can occur. get help right away for swelling of face, mouth, tongue, or trouble breathing. infections that can cause shingles have occurred. don't stop steroids unless told by your doctor. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. may cause headache, injection site reactions, back pain, and fatigue. ask your asthma specialist about a nunormal with nucala. dupixent helps you du more with less asthma. and can help you breathe better in as little as 2 weeks. dupixent is an add-on treatment for specific types of moderate-to-severe asthma that's not for sudden breathing problems. dupixent can cause allergic reactions that can be severe. get help right away if you have rash, chest pain, worsening shortness of breath, tingling or numbness in your limbs. tell your doctor about new or worsening joint aches and pain, or a parasitic infection. don't change or stop asthma medicines, including steroids, without talking to your doctor. ask your specialist about dupixent. >> hello, i'm dara brown.

grant wall, some time soccer,

journalist on friday in qatar, we'll covering the world cup. he collapsed in the closing moments of the argentina netherlands quarterfinal match. in a december 5th post on his personal website, wall said he felt sick. on-site personnel said he, probably had bronchitis, it was given antibiotics. the cause of death was not immediately available. he was known for his writing for sports illustrated, he started raking in 1996. he was 49 years old. now, back to dateline. w, back to dateline. >> david swain spell two years, in a small prison in the island. >> the little rice all is one or two hours a day that i could walk around. every day, that would let me out, and he was going for it. >> they finally had his day in court. the charge, murdering his wife shelley, anna scuba dive, ten years before. he pleaded, not guilty.

with the stakes so much higher this time, criminal, not about money, but maybe, decades in prison. swain came prepared, with caribbean council, plus, a top legal team from boston. >> it will be a lengthy trial the, government expects to call witnesses for another 12 days. >> but, shelley's parents also brought their attorney, to. he had won the civil suit against swain in rhode island, and is now helping tortola prosecutors. tim was wayne's attorney. >> the prosecution was not going to conduct any further investigation. they had something that was neatly packaged, in their view. they presented that in the criminal case, in tortola. >> the civil suit became the criminal suit? >> exactly. >> no cameras were allowed in court, but the press could audiotape the proceedings. prosecutor, terrence williams, laying out his case to the jury, methodically. speaking, first, of motive. >> this man here, his wife is

killed, and all his dreams come true. all his dreams came true. >> dreams, he would argue, about insurance money. more than $600, 000, and another woman in his life. illegal scheme, executed in an underwater set up. the autopsy has shown no underlying medical reasons for shelley to have drowned. so, the key to what did happen to shell eight, the prosecution said, was her driving year. how it was damaged. her snorkel, missing a mouthpiece. the strap to her mask, broken. the pin that held the strap in place, gone. that kind of damage happens rarely in the word of scuba, experts said. only one great force is applied to the equipment. >> we have never, ever, seen this stuff broken like this during a dive. never ever! >> what about shelley tires loan flipper? all by itself, stuck in the, santo first. it seals trap, pulled back? the prosecution said, it could

have ended in that position if shelley's foot was yanked out of it, was forcibly shoved into the sand. the prosecution put forth the same theory that the attorney said advance back in the rhode island civil trial. that shelley scuba gear, in such disarray, mentally one thing. that shelley tire had been attacked underwater. >> what this shows is a continued struggle with a human being. >> and the prosecution says, the only human on that dive, with shelley, was her husband, and dive buddy, david swain. but, swain had always insisted, he was nowhere near shelley when he she died. rather, he and shelley had gone their separate ways, after reaching the wreck. >> i have a vague recollection of circumnavigating the wreck, poking around the wreck, and seeing shelley still interested in looking at something around there. that is the last time that i saw her, as i swam off towards

the wreath. >> now, the prosecutor said, that's wayne's own words, in this taped deposition, proved, he was still with shelley when she died. listen to how long he says he was at the rex before leaving shelling for the wreath. >> how much time did you spend there? >> not long. certainly, less than ten minutes. maybe more than five. >> and after your 5 to 10 minutes at the rex, what did you do? >> we meandered over to the wreath area, to see if there is something there. >> but, according to the prosecutor, 5 to 10 minutes into the dive is, exactly, when shelley died. here is why, as laid out by his experts. the prosecution scuba expert said, based on the amount of oxygen used from charles air tank, on the fateful last time, they estimated, she had taken her last breath at about eight minutes into the dive. meaning, after eight minutes underwater, she had drowned. the experts then said it, given swain's description of his dive,

and eight minutes in, swain would have been right where shelley was, right when she was drowning. >> obviously, he was there, with her. further, it goes to tell you, when he swims away, according to him, looks back to see her, and she is fine, it cannot be true. >> why would he do it, the prosecutor asked? just take a snapshot of shelley and david's life before their vacation, he said. shelley had recently taken a new job, to spend more time with her husband, but, she had also taken a pay cut. the prosecutor said to sway, and this meant, shelley was not sinking money into his dive shop, as she had been doing for years. what's more, shelley maybe around the house more, but was this what swain wanted? the answer, said the prosecutor, fifth swain second motive. >> he had started to have an attraction to another woman towards the end, for the year before she died. >> that other woman, was married grace, doctor.

she was a local chiropractor, and diver who frequented david shop. tortola jurors heard from memory that david had tried to kiss her during an evening drinking wine at her home, but she, had rejected his advantage, because he was married. >> so this is the classic motivation, the classic ingredient of murder, sometimes. the other woman? >> yes, that is the motive that we advanced. >> then, there were the letters of swain wrote to marry. some of them, before his wife's death. in one, he asks, a particular playmate to join him in vermont. he calls her soulmate mary. another, he signs with, long i love, david. most ominously, this one, dated five months before shelby's death which reads, life has definitely gotten more complicated. i am wanting to be with you, but i cannot change this mess i have anytime soon. why not just divorce? because, there nuptial agreement prevented either david, or shelley, from receiving money from the other

if they parted ways. but, the prosecution said that swain saw another way. >> in the will, if she died, he benefited from her estate. >> in fact, with shelley gone, david would get the dive shop, the money, and the girl. just two months after his wife's death, he, and mary, started dating. >> in fact, they became a couple following sheila's death? >> yes, they did for, i believe, a year and a bit. then, she broke it off. >> lastly, williams also brought to the stand a trio of witnesses, critical to the prosecution's case. christian thwaites, wayne's own friend, and charter boat made, said that swain hardly attended cpr, even though cpr training mandates never to stop until help arrives. >> the order comes, and there was brief cpr. >> brief meaning, a few minutes? >> a matter of minutes. >> keith arroyo, who testified when he pulled into the cares

be insole off of existence of a surprise to be told, no thanks. >> he declined my offer of cpr, and oxygen. i thought it was a little strange. >>. >> another prosecution witness was phil brad. the island dive shop owner, who rented the couple their scuba gear. and, who collected shelley scattered, and broken equipment, from the ocean floor. brown said, when later came into a shop after the so-called accident, and told him, to give away charlize dive gear. >> added, upset the prosecutor, and you had a husband who wanted his wife's dive gear deep sixth before a proper investigation. a husband who did not really try to revive his weight, and a husband who wanted her dad. but, tides in the caribbean, like everywhere else, run in, and out. for the first time in ten years, rumors, and lawsuits, a jury would hear a true defense from david. and, the prosecutors account, that seemed as clear as a virgin island dive site, would

become murky, and cloud and over. >> coming up -- >> canoodling at her place with a glass of wine? >> i won't deny that. >> david, swain telling his story. when dateline continues. dateline continues. [coughing] hi, susan. honey. yeah. i respect that. but that cough looks pretty bad. try this robitussin honey. the real honey you love, plus the powerful cough relief you need. mind if i root through your trash? robitussin. the only brand with real honeyand elderberry. ♪ ♪

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prosecution witnesses. one witness that captured their attention in particular was a rhode island chiropractor, mary. >> what about marrying? buescher go front on the side? >> she was a girlfriend after shelby's passing. she was not a girlfriend before shelby's passing. >> yet, there is a story told of canoodling at her place with a glass of wine? and the attempt of a kiss? >> yes. i won't deny that. did i cross a line that i probably, in retrospect, we'd like to have back? sure. but there was no intimacy. >> merely was feeling a void of some kind, do you think? >> mary was being an emotional friend. she was fun to be with, she was a smart girl, she was empathetic. >> but was nary motivation for murder? >> absolutely not. >> what about those letters that david wrote to her? >> you have a dead wife on the one hand, and my soulmate on the other. did you give the prosecution ammunition with it? >> he really laid into me. i probably didn't answer things

in a way that made the jury happy. >> that idea, laid out by the prosecution, that was surely gone, david would get the money, and the girl, was a juicy sounding motive. but, swain to tierney, tim, says it is untrue. >> the idea of david, intentionally, attacking his wife is not borne out by history. he has no history of violence. he has never raised a hand to anyone in his life. >> yet, what else but an attack would explain shirley's broken dive gear, found strewed about the ocean floor? >> if i was a juror, i do wonder about what is happening with the scattered gear? why is the fence taking up? why is the spin off this? >> absolutely. all valuable questions. >> where is the mouthpiece? what happened to this woman? >> all valid questions. the paddy rescue divers manual points to the signs of a panicked diver. it says, they reject their

gear. >> jurors said that this was ripped off in a violent, underwater struggle? >> and the struggle may have been with herself. it's not common, in fact, routine, for panicked people to rip off their gear. >> why does it happen? it seems inexplicable? >> when you are in a panic situation, rational thought disappears. the only thing that comes into your brain underwater, under a panic situation, is getting to the surface. so, they claw things off. >> you have seen it? it's documented in the sport? >> i have road people to the surface, slowing them down, so that they don't go to the surface too fast. replacing the gear, as they ripped off their faces. >> a fresh angle for jurors to ponder about chilies puzzling death. could something, a sudden medical issue, or maybe, a startling see creature, have set off a chain of events that caused shelly to fatally panic? in court, the defense read the jury's exits from shelley's own, meticulous, dive logbook. a diary, in which she noted,

every time she had lost a little to fear. >> i've won 67. some initial panic. dive one 83, panic. dive to 66, i admit, i panicked. dive to 74, panicked a little, or more. but, what about the prosecution's claim, that if you believe david's description of his dive, he had to have been right there when shelley was drowning, eight minutes after she entered the water? now, the defense said, hang on. how do we know that shelley stopped breathing after eight minutes? in truth, shelley was so petite, she was known for using less air than the average driver. so, if she was only sipping at her air supply, it meant she likely died well after eight minutes into the dive, just as wayne had said. >> i was not there. by the time this happened, i was hundreds of yards away. >> but, if shelley had died alone, what about that confounding clue on the ocean floor? her dyson, found stuck toe

first into the sand. the prosecution argued, forced in, during the attack. the defense wondered about that theory, and dateline tried it out. conducting our own experiment, down at the twin wrexit, with the help of a tortola divert, keith royal. >> i went down, to the same area, and trying to do the same thing myself, with the thin on, and it was impossible. the only way i could get it to stick in the sand was, physically, with my hands, putting it into the sand. >> in other words, royal says, someone must have put it there, intentionally. but, who? in court, the defense brought all of the pieces together in its theory of what may have happened on shelley's final dive, number 355. she descends the morning line, a bruise, found later in the autopsy, had been bothering shelley on her left foot. so, she peels her fin off, and sticks it in this hand to retrieve later. she nears the twin rocks, and perhaps, a bit of water leaks

into her mask, but, the slight nuisance escalates fast. frustration takes hold, and mushrooms into panic. she cannot tamp it down, like before. irrationally, she tears off her mask, and rejects her regulator. out of sight of her husband david, she, tragically, fatally, loses control. next, david would take the stand, and dark family secrets were about to be revealed. would they seal his fate, or set him free? >> coming -- up >> i have had decades of love, and of horrific things happening to me. >> a painful past, and a dramatic turn of events. >> fighting for my life. >> when dateline continues. n dateline continues could make it hard for her. now i'm staying ahead of it. dupixent helps heal your skin from within. so they can have clearer skin and less itch. serious allergic reactions can occur that can be severe. tell your doctor about new or worsening eye problems

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in theaters christmas. join for free on the xfinity app. >> welcome back. xfinity rewards. our thanks. your rewards. david swain, on trial for the murder of his wife, shelley. the prosecution argued, david was a cold blooded killer. the defense, countering, that he was innocent. that shelley drowned after suffering an underwater panic attack. now, david was about to testify, and what he revealed would send a chill through the courtroom. here is dennis murphy, with the conclusion of the last dies. >> we really need to remember, she was an incredible life force. she had all of this energy, positive energy. so, every time it came around

to the criminal trial i thought, please, god, let someone find a way back to letting people know how wonderful she was. >> that special light of shelley tire, deeply missed by so many who knew her. was her husband, david swain, responsible for taking it from the world? or, was he an innocent man, whose private ways had made a tragic accident, only look like murder? a jury, in a courtroom, would soon decide. but, not before david himself took the stand, to answer questions from his island attorney. >> mr. swain, when you went on the dive was surely tire, on that 12th of march, of 1999, did you kill shelley tire? >> i did not, could not, would not dream of taking the rock of my life out of the world. no, i did not. >> did you, in any way, through the course of that dive,

deprive shelley tire of air? >> the last thing in the world i would do is deprive chalet of anything. certainly, i didn't deprive her of their. >> then, it was the prosecution 's turn. >> you held her down. >> i did not. >> and made her become unconscious. >> i did not. >> this was within eight minutes of the dive. >> it was not, i did not. you are making false accusations. >> you've got edgy on the stand. >> i'm sure i did. >> a little abrasive. a little in the face. >> i'm fighting for my life. >> missing from his testimony was the grief of a husband who had lost his wife to a diving accident. >> did you get penalized for not showing a turbulent soul that they expected? >> i am positive i was penalized for not being with people expected. >> david swain says, he's always had trouble expressing a motion in a way that people

expect. it is a problem he attributes to a dark, and secretive past. >> i have had decades of horrific things happened to me. and the only way i have survived these horrific things is to buckle down, and keep marching. >> you had a tough childhood, safe to say? >> safe to say. >> when david was in his early teens, his father was convicted of sexually abusing a family member. but, nothing was more traumatic than the actions of david's younger brother, ricky. >> at the time, he was having his own emotional problems. >> my first reaction was, boy, does he make a nice appearance. a clean cut, nice looking, young man. >> former minnesota prosecutor, jim erickson, says that nothing could be further from the truth. in 1976, 18-year-old ricky swain, snapped, and murdered his mother betty, by bludgeoning her to death in the basement of their home >> the skull was crashed into places.

there was a rage in distaff. >> a horrible, horrible event. >> yes, it is. >> back in tortola, david swim psychologist was prepared to explain, in court, how these horrible events could account for davidson motionless, and some say, suspicious behavior, soon after his wife's death. >> this strategy, i could see where that plays both ways. it could blow back and say, what is this instability going on in this family? is there a demon seed that people, the pop psychology understanding might say, is wrong with this? >> should a person be committed, and convicted of murder, because a pop psychology? >> wasn't a risk? >> i'm sorry, but i did not have a choice to live this truth. the truth is what it is. i'm just the one who is telling it. >> but, the defense strategy was never tested. the judge denied to psychologist the opportunity to testify, in part, because he was a psychologist, not an empty. so, now, it was left to the

jurors to decide at david swain's fate. >> i'm coming to, you live, in the road from the supreme court with the news that the jury is, currently, eight deliberating. >> then, after only five hours came word. there was a verdict. >> as a walking, i pretty much knew. >> how say? is excused, davis wayne, guilty, or not guilty of murder? >> we, the jury, find the accused guilty. >> guilty of first degree murder. the sentence? 25 years. ? >> how do you face a kind of time. >> one day at a time. >> give me a quick thumb nail of what your soul was like. >> six by, ten a few bucks. a commode. a sink. no screens on the bars, so the window, anything, and everything, would come in. >> bugs? >> bugs were the easy part. it was the rats, the animals, the other things. that was the hard part.

>> david swain settled into the misery of prison life. his only comfort, the prospect of an appeal. >> did you think he had a ghost of a chance? >> i did. this was not a good trial. it was not a fair trial. >> almost two years after his guilty verdict, david swain returns to court. a three judge appellate panel, took more than three hours of oral arguments, and then, it's something that no one anticipated. >> the head judge ends it by looking right at me and says, mr. swain, you are free to go. obviously, my mouth dropped open, and i'm in shock again. so i just sat there for, i don't know, 15, 20 seconds, and the bailiff guy not just me and quietly says, mr. swain, you need to walk out right now. >> why did he walk? the panel believed, in part, that the trial judge had been biased towards the prosecution in her instructions to the jury. once more, they ruled that swain should not be retried,

because too much time had passed since chile's death, for swain to get a fair trial. so, just like that, david swain was a free man. >> that was one of the most surreal moments of my life. >> did you think about shelley as you left the island? >> i think about shelley every day. but yes, i was thinking about her that day. >> david swain returned to the u.s., and to rhode island, not far from the home he once shared with shelley. >> you pinch yourself sometimes? they are back here? >> certainly, it's good looking at jamestown, looking at this body of water, where i spent years exploring, and teaching, and enjoying. >> but, also, it was home to many people who remained convinced, david got away with murder. >> is there still a cloud over eu? where people will say, david swain, he got away with killing his wife? >> that he was cut loose on a technicality? >> that is their opinion. i cannot tell you what to think, and i don't want to tell you what to think. if you want to hear the facts,

i will be happy to share them with you. but, i will not spend a lot of energy trying to change something that you have made your mind on. >> charlize gravestone was, also, close by. for those who loved, and admired her, to visit. and, to find lessons hidden beneath the surface of the senseless tragedy. >> if i was to ask shelley, what do i do about this, given the situation, she would say, focus on the here, and the now. find the good in everybody you see around you. seek life's blessings. and if you need help, i will put it out for you. that is what she would do. >> that is all for this edition of dateline. i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. thank you for watching >> hello, everyone i'm alicia mendes, in the