she was ready to move on. >> where will you keep ben? >> he will always be in my heart. he will never be forgotten. but we do have to go on. we stuff to be here and live day to day lives. >> he's looking down and watching you, what would he think about his daughter? >> i think he still loves me. and i'm doing much better than i was at my other house. >> do you miss him? >> yeah, i miss him a lot. >> you are pretty strong kid, are you? >> yeah. >> that's all for this edition of "dateline". i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. thank you for watching >> i'm craig melvin and this is dateline. >> this was an insane world that i was living in. i did what i had to do.

>> what if you were ripped away from your family? >> when you live in fear, it changes you. >> kidnapped by a killer? >> i came out of that just really messed up. >> held for years as a prisoner, and what if prosecutors never believed you? >> bobbi parker was not the woman she was portraying herself. >> absolutely. >> it was a mystery with a mind-boggling twist. this wife and mom taken hostage, was she really a hostage at all? >> their relationship was not one of kidnapper and victim, it was one of husband and wife. >> his prisoner, or his lover? >> i really do love you. sounds like a pretty heartfelt love letter. >> in this hour, she shares her side of the story. will you believe her? >> i was fighting for my life.

>> hello, and welcome to you "dateline". i'm craig melvin. bobbi parker was a prison officials wife, a teacher, leading a quiet life with her beautiful family in granite, oklahoma. until the day she went missing. for more than ten years, her family waited and hoped. and then, bobbi was rescued. she said she had been kidnapped, taken hostage by a dangerous inmate and forced to live on the land. but her story left investigators wondering, was bobbi parker a woman held captive, or was she a woman in love? >> on april 4th, 2005, a texas county sheriff near the louisiana border heard there might be a fugitive in his area. >> i received a telephone call from a local texas ranger. >> the call lead sheriff newton

johnson and his deputies 65 miles from the nearest big city to a rundown mobile home on a chicken farm, the home of a couple calling insoles richard and samantha deahl. >> if you wanted to hide, would this be a good place to do it? >> well, if a person keeps a low profile, a person could stay out of circulation for a while, yes. >> the deahls have been here for five years, until the law descended on their home. >> why did he say? >> i knew you were coming, i just did not know when. >> agents found mrs. deahl working on another farm just down the road. >> what shape was she in? >> she seemed to be fine. >> the man and woman were placed in handcuffs, a routine arrest. but it turns out the rest of the story was anything but. that is because richard and samantha deahl were not husband and wife at all, but instead, the oddest of odd couples. his real name was randolph dial,

an escaped convict and self confessed hitman, who claimed to have mob connections and also happened to be a talented artist and a relentless schemer. >> the whole idea, after you get to prison is one way or another do your best to get out. >> and the woman? her real name was bobbi parker, a school teacher, the wife of a deputy warden from the prison where dial had escaped more than ten years earlier. bobbi's friend, brenda hickerson. >> she was just an amazing present. she had life with her family, she volunteered everywhere, at school. >> what brought these two together and kept them together for more than a decade was a sensational mystery back in 2005. >> now, the bizarre twist in an 11 year old story. >> an escaped prisoner randolph dial was recaptured. >> a woman missing for more than a decade suddenly discovered alive and well. >> everyone was talking. was it a prison break and kidnapping? was bobbi parker a hostage?

>> there was no doubt in my mind she had been kidnapped by this man. >> or was bobbi dial's partner in crime and maybe much more than that? >> she says yes, i am fine. i am happy. >> nothing made sense. nothing. >> if you had to pick a woman to star in a sensational true crime story, you probably would not pick bobbi parker. >> i grew up on a farm in north central kansas. i had a good childhood. for me, it was a very normal upbringing. >> bobbi went to college just over the border in oklahoma, that's where she caught the eye of randy parker. >> the way she talked, the way she laughed. there was something special about her. >> he had a balance in his life. he was good for me. he gave me confidence. >> they married in 1982 and within four years, had two little girls. bobbi was a teacher, and randy worked in corrections.

at one point, they both worked at the same prison, randy in administration, and bobbi teaching inmates with special needs. >> we walked in together, at the end of the day, we walked out together. >> bobbi was named teacher of the year, and randy moved up the ranks quickly. in 1992, he was named deputy warden at the oklahoma state reformatory, in a tiny town called granite. bobbi and randy lived right on prison grounds, just outside the wall. >> what was life like in granite? >> it slowed down for me and my family, but it was good. >> if there was not much happening in granite, inside the prison, it was the opposite. there was a new warden, determined to shake things up. his name? jack cowley. >> i did not sit behind my desk a lot, i was in the yard with the guys. i let inmates call me jack. >> and one inmate that got cowley's attention? randolph dial. >> he was an unforgettable character.

intelligent, manipulative, a quick study, meaning i was not going to have any trouble with him. so, we hit it off. >> dial was one of the most illustrious and infamous inmates in oklahoma back then, a murderer who confessed to killing a karate instructor for money. >> he told me to get off his property and i pulled my piece out and fired once. >> yet dial was also an accomplished artist. one of his pieces was featured on the set of the old tv series, "dallas." >> he had all of these plans, wanting to do something with his art. i wanted to promote the institution and inmates. >> the warden decided to start an art program where inmates would make pottery to sell. dial would run it from the parker's garage. >> now in order to do this, he was going to have to be allowed? >> outside the wall. >> and in order to do that, he had to have his security clearance lowered to minimum security status.

>> right. >> what did you know about him? >> i knew that he was a murderer. he made that clear to everybody. >> he was said to be very charming, charismatic. >> i am not sure who put that out. >> you did not find him charming or charismatic? >> no. >> with time on her hands, bobbi offered to help sell the inmate's pottery. and dial was eager to teach her the art of making ceramics. >> he started in the garage. i told him i would prefer it out front. >> why did you not want to learn it in the garage? >> i was not comfortable. >> with him? >> yes. it is never good to be one on one with an inmate, it never is. >> nevertheless, she once drove dial into town by herself to meet shopkeepers, a trip she says it was okay by warden cowley. >> did it strike you as off that you are given permission to take a murderer off of prison grounds? >> yes. >> not long after that, one hot

august morning, bobbi parker's life turned upside down. >> i just remember being woozy, not feeling good, thinking i would be sick. and then it was shortly later then, dial was in front of me. >> dial, the convicted murderer, was in her home. >> i remember thinking, what are you doing in here? but then, it happened so quickly. he was there, pulled me up, and my legs went out from under me. >> the next thing bobbi says she remembers, is waking up and, well, it does not make a lot of sense. she was somehow driving somewhere in texas. she says dial was crouched on the floor, pointing a knife at her. >> i had blood on my arm, blood on my leg. >> by that evening, bobbi's husband randy and the whole prison began to realize bobbi was missing, along with convicted killer, randolph dial. >> what did you imagine had happened? >> everything from her being kidnapped to her being killed.

everything that was bad. >> had bobbi parker been kidnapped? she takes us inside her decades long drama. >> coming up. >> it messes with you, mentally. >> when "dateline" continues. sometimes, the lows of bipolar depression feel darkest before dawn. with caplyta, there's a chance to let in the lyte™. caplyta is proven to deliver significant relief across bipolar depression. unlike some medicines that only treat bipolar i, caplyta treats both bipolar i and ii depression. and in clinical trials, movement disorders and weight gain were not common. call your doctor about sudden mood changes, behaviors, or suicidal thoughts. antidepressants may increase these risks in young adults. elderly dementia patients have increased risk of death or stroke. report fever, confusion, stiff or uncontrollable muscle movements which may be life threatening or permanent. these aren't all the serious side effects. caplyta can help you let in the lyte™. ask your doctor about caplyta find savings and support at caplyta.com.

hi, i'm sally and i lost 52 pounds with golo in a year and a half. i struggled with my weight for a long time due to my thyroid issues but since being on the golo plan and taking release, the weight has not come back. >> nothing made sense in the (upbeat music)

nothing made sense in the environment that i lived in in the world i lived in.

environment that i lived in, in the world i lived in. it was insanity. >> on august 30th, 1994, bobbi parker, wife of the deputy warden at a prison in oklahoma, says she somehow found herself in texas with a convicted killer. randolph dial, serving a life sentence, had broken out of prison and escaped in the parker van. he took bobbi with him. she says she's not sure how it happened, that he may have drugged her, and he had a knife. >> i just remember at some point there was blood on me, blood on my arm, blood on my leg. and dial wanted to get those covered. he took me to a store, bought a few items, and i was able to make a phone call. >> later, some had found it odd bobbi called her mother, not her husband at the prison. she says she was happy to be calling anyone. >> making a phone call, to me, was a good thing. because i was hoping we could be traced.

>> back in granite, bobby's husband randy was coming to terms with the fact that his wife was missing, and so was a convicted murderer. >> it's just mind numbing. just get through the day, make sure the girls are doing okay. >> the parker girls were eight and 11. >> i just told them the truth. she's missing. she's gone. they were devastated. >> the community was devastated. yellow ribbons, prayer vigils, and a huge manhunt ensued. dial was on the fbi's most wanted list. meanwhile, bobby says she was in a texas motel at the mercy of randolph dial. >> he bound my wrist. he bound my ankles. and he beat me with his belt. it was a very severe beating, very severe. what i remember him saying is, this is nothing compared to what the people i know can and will do to you. >> what did he say he would do if you tried to get away?

>> he would either find me or my family, and he would harm them, kill them. >> by this time, they had ditched her van. she says dial, who claimed to have mob connections, managed to get a hold of some cash and a gun. >> he put it to my head and he said, this is what happens if you don't cooperate. and i just nodded. i wanted to get home. >> instead, they boarded a bus for houston, where she says dial locked her in an abandoned apartment, tied her up, and forced alcohol and drugs on her. >> he has complete control over everything, everything. >> he's feeding in? >> yes. >> bathing you? >> yes. >> cleaning me. >> having his way with you, sexually, when he wants? >> by instrumentation, yes. >> meaning?

>> by objects, rape by instrumentation. it is a violent act. it degrades you. it embarrasses you, humiliates you. it messes with you mentally. >> days passed, then weeks, then months. >> time just ran together. i didn't know always what day of the week it was. it didn't matter. >> eight months after bobbi's disappearance, in april 1995, the federal building in oklahoma city was bombed. the fbi focused its resources on that case. the hunt for randolph dial and bobbi parker, long since cold, was quietly back burnered. >> every time i would hear of a body been found, i would hold my breath and wait. but i just wouldn't accept she was dead.

>> by now, bobbi and dial were working on a small farm in east texas. dial, calling himself richard deahl, and introducing bobby as his wife, samantha. >> to survive, i became samantha. >> and who was samantha deahl? >> she was lonely, hurt and trying to make it day-to-day, minute to minute. >> when you would approach another human being, did you want to just shout out, i'm being held against my will, get me out of here? >> actually, i became fearful if i did something that was not approved, the revenge of dial was great. >> dial seemed ever more confident. in 1997, after three years on the lam, he started a pottery company called terracotta gardens. >> dial advertised it on the radio, did an interview on the radio. >> unbelievably, the attention led to an invitation for the

fugitive killer to speak at a woman's luncheon at a local country club. >> womankind are very near and dear to my heart. >> where were you while he was out front entertaining the ladies who lunch? >> i was back at the trailer tied up. >> from there, dial and bobbi went to work on an industrial chicken farm owned by debra grace. she never doubted they were married. but she could see dial was abusive. >> he's like, i can beat her. she's my wife, i can beat her. and i said, no, not on my farm you're not. i try to talk going to come into the house she wouldn't go. she said no, no, no. he wouldn't like it. >> in 2000, bobbi and dial moved again, to another bigger chicken farm. bobbi's daughters were teenagers now. she did missed five anniversaries with randy. >> there were times that the

loneliness was so great that my body would physically eight. >> and she says dial never ceased his campaign of terror, killing two of her dogs to punish her, one right before her eyes. >> he shot the dog. then he blamed me for it. it may have been only just a dog, but me, it was family. >> only wants, says bobbi, did she openly defy him. dial, artists turned killer turned fugitive, had already been the subject of a true crime book. and one night, he decided to phone the author, an ex-cop named charles sasser. >> he says for the last seven years we've been making it honest living. living a happy country life. >> sasser figured, included bobbi parker. but he wanted proof she was still alive. >> he said of course she's still alive, do you want to talk to her? >> i was in bed sleeping and he told me he was going to put me on the phone.

and i said, i'm tired. i'm really tired. and he reached back here for his gun and i just put my hand up and said, and he told me just stick to the questions that he asked you. >> but even with dial right next to her, bobbi says she dared to go off script. after all, sasser was a former detective. this might be her chance. >> i said, have you seen my children? i knew i would probably be beat for it. but sometimes it's worth it. i thought he would say, would you like me to make a phone call to them? and he didn't. >> still, she says, the conversation filled her with hope. >> i thought the fbi will be here. surely, charles sasser will call them and they'll be here. >> sasser did call the fbi, but he didn't know where bobbi and dial were.

no one came. bobbi says she was broken, resigned to her fate. and the years dragged on until one day in spring 2005 when her life took another wild turn. >> coming up -- a rescue is in the works. or, was it a rescue at all? >> they had a lot of valentine 's cards. >> valentines? >> yes. >> when "dateline" continues. ou dry? when i'm at work, i need to feel secured. what i'm looking for in a pad is, super thin, super absorbent. all of the things that you're looking for in a pad, that is always discreet. - this is thin. - my pad is thick. let's put it to the test. let's do it! look how it's absorbing! and locking it right on in! - look at that! - no liquid, no nothing. totally absorbed! - you feel no wetness. - oh my gosh! are you a believer now? i'm a believer! i got to get some always discreet!

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>> mr. dial had had a violent past. the best opportunities of success is to get hard and fast. >> it was april 4th, 2005. bobbi parker and randolph dial had been missing for ten years, seven months, and five days. bobbi was just finishing up work at a chicken farm near her home. she had no idea the place was surrounded by cops. >> i was greeted with three law enforcement officers in assault gear. >> what's the first thing you told them? >> my name. i actually said my name for the first time in so long. it was a good feeling, but it was the oddest feeling, because i had not used bobbi parker for so long. >> an anonymous tipster had called authorities after seeing the long cold case on "america's most wanted". and just like that, bobbi

parker was free. >> it was a wonderful feeling. it was, this is over. this is over. >> randy parker, still working for the oklahoma department of corrections, was home that night when he got a frantic call from his boss. >> as soon as i pick up the phone, and i said i'm coming to get you. he said bob he's been found. so all i can think about was getting to texas as soon as we could. >> randy anxiously drove six hours through the dark to east texas, while bobbi spent a tearful night in a hotel with then deputy sheriff donna clayton. >> it was just a mixture of so many different emotions, the fear, the anticipation. but yet, being afraid to get excited about seeing her husband and family, because what if they didn't want her anymore? >> and finally, the moment arrived. after more than a decade, husband and wife were reunited

in a hotel lobby. >> i just walked up to her, put my arms around her, told her she was going to be okay now. >> it was very natural to see him, to talk to him, to hug him. >> did you see any doubt in his eyes? >> none. none. >> you took her back, no questions asked? >> there was no taking her back. it was to go get her and bring her back home where she belonged. >> taking her back? you don't like those words? >> not for me. no, i don't like those words. >> why not, tell me? >> because it sounds like i'm doing her a favor. when the fact is, she's my wife. she's been missing. she's been found, finally. and i'm going to go get her and bring her home. >> the following day, bobbi and randy returned to oklahoma. she saw her daughters, little girls when she last seen them. now, young women almost 19 and 22.

randy says they lowered the shades to keep the world out to try to heal. >> did you ask her anything about what she had been through? >> no. i told her that we would start today and move forward. >> but he could see could see that bobbi was different. >> she would say, i'm going to get a coke, can i have one? she says, i'm going to the bathroom, is that ok? >> she was still acting like a prisoner? >> yes, she was. >> it certainly seemed like a triumph of survival and love, except for something the sheriff remembered. >> the only thing that i heard her say to mr. dial was, i'm not cooperating. i'm not cooperating. >> not cooperating with the authorities? why would bobbi say that after being kidnapped, raped, and tortured by randolph dial four years? >> tell dial i'm not cooperating, but what did that

mean? >> if it came out in the paper that i was cooperating, i felt like my family would still be in harm. >> so maybe bobbi was still afraid of dial. or maybe she had other reasons for saying she was not cooperating with law enforcement. along with her odd statement, deputies were finding odd things in that trailer. >> they picked up a lot of cards, like valentine cards, christmas cards, letters. >> valentines? >> yes. >> which just fueled the suspicions a lot of people had harbored all along. >> you don't buy the victim narrative on any level? >> not for a minute. >> a whole new ordeal was about to begin. was the victim now a suspect? coming up -- >> oh, my gosh. this cannot be happening. >> when "dateline" continues. rsv can severely affect the lungs and lower airways.

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marathon. he finished the men's race in two hours, four minutes, and 15 seconds, topping the previous best time set in 2011. the woman from kenya won the women's race, finishing it two hours, 27 minutes. now back to dateline. now back to dateline reason to celebrate. >> welcome back to "dateline". i'm craig melvin. randy parker had reason to celebrate, his wife bobbi was finally back home. she claimed she had been kidnapped by escaped convict, randolph dial. but new details about bobbi's time with dial were beginning to emerge. had she been a prisoner, as she told police, or did bobbi willingly go on the run? >> randolph dial, the convicted

killer who busted out of prison, was back behind bars. his hostage, bobbi parker, was reunited with her family after more than ten years as dial's captive. it seemed like a happy ending to an incredible story. but from the day bobbi disappeared, some people had doubts about what really happened to her. one of them was her husband's former boss, warden jack cowley. >> did you suspect bobbi parker had a hand in it right away? >> i was drawn to that conclusion. >> it was cowley, remember, who picked dial to run the pottery program out of the parker's garage. then one day, he now says, he was driving by the parker home -- >> and i saw dial and bobbi out on the front porch drinking coffee or tea, or something. >> and they looked a little bit too cozy? >> right. >> then there were the phone calls from bobbi just after the prison break.

she called her mother and she made two more calls soon after that to a friend and her sister in law, but none to her husband. what did you think about that? >> first of all, i thought it was a relief. i thought it was good that she was able to make a phone call. i didn't think that she would be calling home, because i didn't figure dial would let her. >> maybe randy wasn't suspicious, but plenty of others were, including charles sasser, the former detective who had written a book on randolph dial. >> dial started out tending the warden's garden. he tended the warden's ceramics shop. and then apparently ended up attending the warden's wife. >> sasser recalled that night in 2001, when dial called him and offered to put bobbi on the telephone. >> i said, are you all right? as she says yes, i'm fine, i'm happy. >> did she sound all like she was saying she was happy

because a kidnapper was standing next to her? >> she did not sound stressed to me at all. >> according to an oklahoma district attorney, john wampler, that conversation fit a pattern. >> there was just multiple opportunities that she had to make some effort to contact the authorities. or to tell somebody that she needed help. how could you be gone from your children for 11 years and never contact them? never make an attempt to get away? >> and now, as deputies searched the trailer were dial and bobbi had lived, they were finding evidence suggesting that maybe it took so long to find bobbi because she didn't want to be found. >> there were cards, valentine's day cards and things like that, that she had given randolph dial. >> they also developed a roll of film which showed photos of bobbi smiling. hardly the picture of an abused woman being held against her will. and they found this letter to dial in bobbi's handwriting. >> she talked about her love

for randolph dial, how much they had enjoyed being together. it certainly spoke volumes about the relationship that they had at that point. >> it wasn't just the letter, it was the circumstances that led to it. bobbi wrote it after dial was hospitalized for a heart attack in 2004. that's right, dial had a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital, and bobbi stayed by his side. >> there was just tons of evidence to show that their relationship was more than someone living in fear every day of her life. it was a loving relationship. it was one of husband and wife. i mean, that's basically how they were living down there. >> or so it seemed to investigators who searched their mobile home. >> the trailer house had two bedrooms. but only one of the bedrooms was obviously being used. there were condoms and a vibrator found in one of her drawers. >> and da wampler says he found evidence this was not the first time bobbi had been involved with an intimate.

one prisoner told investigators he'd had an affair with bobbi at the same prison where she was named teacher of the year. >> in her previous roles at the other institutions, she probably was closer to many of the prisoners than she should have been. >> remember how bobbi said she couldn't recall how she and dial left the prison that day? well, an inmate came forward to say he did remember. and bobbi was driving. >> he did notice that she was drugged or acting funny, didn't see anything in randolph dial's hand, no big knives or anything like that. he saw bobbi driving. he saw her look over at him -- >> and some funny look in her eye? >> yes. it was kind of a startled look. she looked at him for several seconds, and then drove off. >> why was she in the van at all, the da wondered? dial, he said, didn't need her. >> he had the freedom to roam

the prison grounds without anyone checking on him. so, all he had to do was walk away. >> if dial didn't need bobbi, maybe, da wampler said, it was the reverse. >> your feeling was that bobbi parker was not the woman that she was prepared portraying herself? >> absolutely not. >> in april, 2008, on the third anniversary of bobbi parker's liberation from a texas chicken farm, the district attorney filed felony charges against her for assisting randolph dial's escape from prison. >> what was your reaction? >> oh, my gosh. this cannot be happening. >> coming up -- from abducted to accused. >> did you fall in love with randolph dial? >> when "dateline" continues. ♪ alka-seltzer plus powermax gels cold & flu relief with more concentrated power because the only thing dripping should be your style. plop plop fizz fizz winter warriors with alka-seltzer plus.

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reporter: in 2008, three years after being reunited gamechanger for my patients- being reunited with her family, bobbi parker went from helpless hostage to alleged accomplice. she was charged with helping convicted murderer randolph dial break out of prison. >> i didn't know they were still investigating. so the day they brought charges, it was a shock. >> she faced up to ten years in prison. there was talk of a plea deal, but bobbi was adamant. >> i said no plea, because i would have to plead guilty to

something that i didn't do. >> the case didn't go to trial for another three years, in 2011. the state argued bobbi had plenty of chances over the years to leave dial, but didn't because she didn't want to. >> i think bobbi parker perhaps had a, not a perfect marriage. maybe she was lonely. maybe she was susceptible to a nice looking, very smooth talking, con man like randolph dial. >> at the trial, the state called former detective and author charles sasser, who told jurors his take on his 2001 phone call with dial and bobbi. >> she was with him willingly. they were living this happy country life. almost like this idyllic life together. they're happy together. >> that former inmate from years earlier testified about his affair with bobbi. the other inmate said he had seen bobbi driving during the escape. and randy's former boss, warden

jack cowley, testified about his observations that bobbi and dial seemed too cozy. >> you took the stand for the prosecution. >> yes. >> why? >> because i thought she's guilty. >> bobbi's attorney, garvin isaacs, made an impassioned offense. >> i took this case because bobbi parker is an innocent woman who's wrongfully accused of a crime she didn't commit. >> isaacs told jurors the state's case was built on faulty speculation, outright fabrication, and the suspicious testimony of convicted felons. for instance, that inmate who claimed he'd seen bobbi drive dial off the prison grounds, the defense showed he changed his story multiple times. and the inmate who claimed he'd had an affair with bobbi? the defense proved he was mentally ill, his story a complete fantasy. >> this is the most outrageous case i've ever been involved in.

it's a great miscarriage of justice. >> the defense couldn't call randolph dial to the stand. dial had died behind bars before bobbi was even charged. instead, her attorney told the jury dial had said or written about 100 times that he kidnapped bobbi parker. >> bobbi did not go with you willingly? >> oh, no. no. i was the hostage taker. and i'll probably live to regret it. >> then the defense tried to put someone else on trial, warden jack cowley. >> jack cowley is an incompetent warden. >> defense attorney isaacs showed the jury a psychological report written about dial three years before the escape. it described dial as dangerous with an extreme talent for manipulation. the report warned against letting dial do his art around women, because he would inevitably begin to scheme.

>> the head of security told jack cowley you need to read the psychological report. and cowley said to him, you mind your business, i'm running this show. >> the parkers say they never saw the report before cowley but dial's pottery studio in their garage. >> you didn't have any qualms about randolph dial? >> not one qualm whatsoever. >> and it came out in the trial that in the years after the escape, cowley got two tips about where dial and bobbi were but never told the fbi. >> the way my philosophy was, he's not doing anything wrong in terms of committing other crimes. so, they're living their lives. >> and you were okay with that? >> i was content with it. >> even though he's a convicted murderer and you are a warden? and you get a call that he's out on the streets, bobbi will say he could've helped me?

>> well, i suppose. >> he could have told this to someone. >> and? >> and maybe i could have been found, two years in, instead of ten years in. >> well, maybe that's true. maybe it is my fault. i mean, is that where we're going? >> that may have been where bobbi's lawyer wanted to go. but the warden was not on trial, bobbi was. and she chose not to testify. >> bobbi was not ready. it's too tramautic. she's better now. she's better every day. >> so, when we interviewed bobbi parker, we asked questions the jurors and countless others who wondered if she was a victim or an accomplice wanted to hear. >> did you fall in love with randolph dial? >> no. no. >> did you help him plan and escape to get out of prison? >> no. >> did you live with him as his lover? >> no. >> coming up -- bobbi parker explains it all. >> i mean, the man is having a

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nice footwork. nausea, indigestion, and stomach pain. man, you're lucky, watching live sports never used to be this easy. now you can stream all your games like it's nothing. yes! [ cheers ] yeah! woho! running up and down that field looks tough. it's a pitch. get way more into what you're into >> welcome back. when you stream on the xfinity 10g network. bobbi parker was on trial, charged bobbi parker was on trial, charged with aiding the escape of oklahoma prisoner randolph dial. prosecutors argued she had fallen for dial and they had

run off to be together. the defense countered that they fell victim and blamed the warden for being the killer. bobbi's fate was in the hands of the jury. but she sat down with us to confront the lingering suspicions about her story. here now is the conclusion of the devil and bobbi parker. >> bobbi parker, the deputy warden's wife, she said she had been kidnappe, held hostage for more than ten years by an escaped convict. now, she was on trial for helping him break out of prison. bobbi did not take the stand, but did our take our questions. >> why didn't you just take off? you could've gotten off. you felt like there was no law enforcement agent who would be able to help you out? >> no. i knew the consequences of what would happen to me and my family.

>> you're certain about what would happen? >> i know that. and that's what people do not understand. and -- the voice within. >> couldn't you dash off a letter, just letting your family know that you are alive? >> yes. but i didn't have permission. i had have permission to do everything. >> i one point, he had a heart attack. >> yes. >> i mean, you understand how that looks, right? the man is having a heart attack in a hospital, and even then, you don't leave. >> he was still alive. i just couldn't take that chance. i just couldn't do it. >> one of the things that they found where you were living was a letter that you wrote after his heart attack. we've had a great ride. let us enjoy life, celebrate living for it is so short. god placed me in your path for a reason. it sounds like a pretty heartfelt love letter. >> i was fighting for my life.

>> you can understand how people would look at this? >> i understand that completely. >> i really do love you? >> this was an insane world that i was living in. nothing made sense and that environment that i lived in, in the world that i lived in, nothing. but i did what i had to do. >> bobbi says emphatically despite how officers thought it looked in that trailer, she and dial were never a couple, they never slept in the same bed. the vibrator was a gag gift, never used. and the condoms? she says, part of the raids. >> did you ever stop to consider that maybe all of these threats were empty threats? >> i think my intuition was pretty right. i think he was a very dangerous man. i think he would retaliate. >> all you knew was what he was telling you? >> yes, and i had to sort through that. he spoke in half truths. >> the jurors did not hear bobbi speak of these things. but after 11 weeks of testimony

and 13 hours of deliberation, they did arrive at a verdict. as the jury filed back into the courtroom, bobbi says she was hopeful. >> there actually was no credible evidence. >> for that hope quickly evaporated. the jurors found her guilty. >> were you shocked? >> yes, yes. i think everybody in the courtroom was shocked. >> you had 38 defense witnesses and the jurors didn't believe them? >> no, didn't believe any of them, i guess. >> the district attorney thought justice was done. >> it was just a sense of relief that we had prevailed on it. >> there were those who thought you should've had the warden on trial as well. >> yeah, i don't doubt that. personally, i think he is to blame, to some extent, for allowing an environment within the prison, as far as security is concerned, that would allow something like this to happen.

i don't think he's personally responsible for it. i mean, bobbi parker is the one who made the decision to go with him. >> the warden says his policies were not the problem, that it was bobbi who ran off with an inmate. >> am i going to sit here and say that bobbi parker is a victim? no, never in 1 million years. and maybe that's just because i want to justify my decision, maybe it's -- who knows why. i don't think so. i think i'm a pretty good judge of character. no, bobbi parker is not a victim. and we have a jury that agrees with me. >> immediately after the verdict, bobbi was sentenced to one year in prison. the judge centered directly to jail, declaring her a flight risk. >> family members said please don't take her. and i said to them, i know this sounds odd, i will be just

fine. i've lived in captivity for so long. i will be fine. >> bobbi has now served her time as trying to clear her name. despite the guilty verdict, randi believes his wife is innocent and is angered by those who don't. >> it's easy to sit back in a normal safe environment when everybody -- when nobody is threatening you, when you're not being hurt, when you're not having any problems at all, and to be tough. but face a situation where you fear for your life, or you believe -- whether it's true or not, it doesn't matter, to her, it was real. and i believe to her that it was real. >> what do you personally make of the fact that this woman, who you absolutely believe fell in love with a prisoner, helped him busted jail, lived with him in a loving relationship for

ten years on the lam, was reunited immediately with her husband and they have never been a part since? >> i can't explain it. i mean, to me, it makes no sense. >> i loved my husband then. i love my husband now. we had a good marriage, we still have a good marriage. >> do you think your marriage will survive this? >> yeah, i have no doubt that will. we survive 10.5 years of separation. we survived the trial, present. [laughter] i don't know what else there could be. >> that's all for this edition of "dateline". i'm craig melvin. craig melvin this sunday, fun this sunday, funding fight. my exclusive interview with ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy who rejects any diplomatic negotiations to end the wart with russia. >> we don't want to make any dialogue with terrorists because their word is nothing.