9-1-1 emergency. somebody just shot my wife. >> nothing had been missing from the house, this was a premeditated. wonder >> why would anyone want to shoot janet? >> it makes no sense to me. >> he was there in the room when this happened to gianna. >> i did not do this.

>> the word divorce being thrown around. >> from the beginning they had one suspect, it was chris. there was another purse here that could've done this, and it was german. >> that would be a motive for murder. >> that was a concern. >> you see it on tv happening to other people, but you don't think it will happen to you. >> two shots were fired. and then 1001 questions. you >> just don't think that things will happen in a small town to good people. and it did. ♪ ♪ ♪ >> reporter: it was, this was where happiness lived.

happiness, memories, and desire. wishes and dreams just out of reach. its name is spider lake, one of those thousands of lakes that filled up the rocky gouges and glaciers left behind. maybe that's why they sparkle the way they do. why this one in minnesota spread out every which way. and here, near the tip of its northern is the spider lake resort. family cabins. it calls itself one of northern minnesota's best kept secrets. secrets. the word that will certainly apply to what you're about to hear. one way or another. >> i went with them a couple times up there. >> reporter: them being chris and jan cruz. this is jan's sister k. >> they would like to go fishing, and relax. it was quality time together.

they both enjoyed being there. >> reporter: in fact, they had a fantasy a dream, to live here all the time. to buy the resort and make it their home. >> that was brought up a lot. >> reporter: jan's dad terry could see how they loved being here. >> about every evening jan and chris would take the boat, they would take pictures of the loom in the wildlife and the sunsets from the. lake >> that was the life they would've liked. >> reporter: if they owned, it said jim's mother. frugal jan could use her accounting skills to keep the place in business, and chris -- >> chris was an outdoors person, john was the people person. with people coming in and out through the week, keeping them can hand and happy and busy. all of those things. >> reporter: chris's brother, josh -- >> it would've worked out well for them, chris was a handyman. jan was business smart.

it would've fit them. >> reporter: would have. until. until the events the events of 2015. >> reporter: by the time all of this happened, chris and jan had kruse been married for two decades. they had lived here in a tiny place called brewster, minnesota, population for 73. in the world southwest corner of minnesota. they had a good and happy marriage, and a happy life. >> what they had was what i hope to have some day. i loved our family. >> reporter: isaac, their eldest was 20. then his sister bailey was 15 that summer. that was the year spring of 2015, when isaac discovered that spider lake resort was for sale. and a buzz of excitement filled the house. >> reporter: did you ever fantasize about the family owning that? place when >> i found out they were talking about buying, it i

was starting to look for my line of the work in that area. i thought it would be very fun to help, and help work on the resort. >> reporter: that is the sort of place becomes month generational to you look forward to association with it for your whole life. come august, chris and jan drove the six hours from brewster, minnesota to spider lake to engage in negotiating. and there were obstacles, of course there were. as john told her sister k. >> it was just the timing with bailey having a couple years left of school, she just wanted to buy it, but it there was a lot that went into the decision. >> reporter: mostly of course, the money. john the bookkeeper around the numbers. they offered as much as their bank would allow. but it wasn't enough. was it jan who faced it first? they would have to move on?

chris would never own the resort he set his heart on. what did they say to each other on the long ride home, is not recorded nor is what happened two nights later in the middle of night. in jan and chris kruse bedroom. >> 9-1-1 emergency. >> they told me john had been shot. i said okay, i will be there. i go into the hospital. mom was quiet. i said she's going to be okay, right? she's going to be okay. mom said no. she was dead. [crying] i think i collapsed on the floor and screamed. >> reporter: why would anyone want to shoot jan? it must make any sense to you? >> it doesn't. it makes no sense to me.

>> reporter: no. i know what you might be thinking. but maybe it wasn't that at all. coming up -- >> there was a hole through the wall of the bedroom, it appeared one round had been fired and missed. it went through the head board along the wall, where their heads would have been laying. >> reporter: was this the sign of a possible intruder? >> i noticed a broken window into bedroom downstairs. >> reporter: could someone have got through the window that way? >> someone could have, it was broken and open. >> reporter: when dateline continues. continues. for the things you touch, nothing kills more viruses on more surfaces than lysol disinfectant spray. [girl coughs] and when it comes to your laundry, adding lysol laundry sanitizer kills 99.9% of illness-causing bacteria detergents leave behind.

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what happened to jan cruz, in what happened to jan juskruse in the early morning the early morning hours of august 2015. if dreadfully office of first. look as chris kruse told the 9-1-1 operator.

-- >> reporter: jan had taken a fetal shop on glass to the chest, we'll embed beside her own husband. sorry -- >> reporter: as chris called 9-1-1, he checked on 15 year old bailey in a downstairs bedroom. she had heard the gun of course. she was unhurt. the rush of first responders and police, and terrible emotions. chris and bailey huddled in the garage. while deputies secured the soaking. as john was approaching, chris himself spread the news to the family. he called his son isaac, often south dakota. >> he said that mom had been shot, he didn't know how to tell me that. i just said okay. i'm packing my stuff i'm on my way. >> reporter: did you know that she was, she was dead? >> i assumed.

i sued it wasn't good from the sound of his voice. >> reporter: he called his in laws. terry and mary jeanne pigment. >> he called us in the early morning, and was extremely broken up i couldn't understand what he was saying. i could tell he was in tears which wasn't a usual thing for chris >> he was pretty stoic. he was telling me, she didn't make it. we lost her. he didn't protect her. >> reporter: of all the people in the world, especially this tiny world brewster minnesota population for 73, why would jen need protecting? why would someone shoot her? the least likely murder victim. >> she was very true, very genuine person. she enjoyed spending time with her family and her kids and her husband. when she interacted with people, it was real. she cared.

you want to spend time with her. >> reporter: isaac, a young man of few words set a lot with a little. she was pretty amazing, i was a pain in the us growing up. she was really nice about it. an understanding. >> john has always been outgoing, friendly. she was the one that brought soup to someone that was sick, or baked the cake for whatever was going on. she took part in community things. they were both community minded. >> reporter: jan had run a daycare in the home earlier. but at the time of the murder she had a front office job at a local plant. here's the thing said her younger sister, she was a regular person. uncontroversial. nobody didn't like her. >> she was great. a good person. she loved to quilt with her neighbors. she loved her family.

that was definitely very important to her. >> reporter: she would never see her children get married, or welcome grandchildren. or be with chris at spider lake. and so, to say her family was in a state of shock would be to profoundly understate the feelings of that morning. on aware of the activities of this man i believed a call around three a.m.. >> reporter: he is a senior special agent at the state borough of criminal aberration. the dca in southern minnesota. >> i know most of the local investigators, when they have a violent crime or a hostile homicide. and need assistance, they call me. >> reporter: he got dressed and drove to booster. before dawn, he was staring intently at the carnage in chris and jan's bedroom. >> what i found was the victim on a back board, she was

deceased. >> reporter: what was the nature of her injury? >> it was a shotgun slug. it had entered below her right shoulder, and exited out her back. >> reporter: was it your sense that she would've died quickly? >> we wanted to know, was it right away, or could it have been minutes? i spoke to the medical examiner, he had thought she could've stayed alive for 3 to 5 minutes after the inner jury. >> reporter: it was after he approached the bedroom that he found two spent shotguns shells. >> right outside the door, those i don't pick up. those stay for a crime scene team to process. but i noticed, a 12 gauge shot shelves that were spent. >> reporter: two of them? >> two of them. >> reporter: two shots. two loud shots. one hit jan, but the other one? >> there was a hole through the wall in the bedroom. it appeared one round, had been fired and missed.

it went through the head board along the wall, where the heads would've been laying. it went out the wall of the house outside. >> reporter: that was strange given where the bullet holes were. it looked like the purse sleeping on the side of the bed closer to the door, would probably have been hit. what it is been possible to have been lying in the bed the hot beside jan, and be possible not to be hit by the bullet? >> i thought the bullet could hit him, prior to going through the head burnt. >> reporter: preliminary of course. he thought about it. he looked around the house, nothing missing. it did not appear to be a robbery. but had someone broken in? i >> noticed a broken window in the bedroom downstairs. >> reporter: could someone have gone through the window that? way >> someone could've gotten through the window, it was broken and open. but it had rain-heavy often on, the ground was wet. there was a little bit of dirt

or leaf that had blown in. but there were no muddy footprints below that window. >> reporter: so probably no entry through the window. but somebody was in here. not to rob, or rape. but to kill justin kruse, in cold blood. why would anyone want to do that? >> derrick woodford got in his car, drove to the local sheriff's office. someone he needed to talk to. right away. no idea then, how often they would be talking. or how confounding their conversations might be. >> reporter: coming up. -- >> reporter: anna ranged husband, with his family apparently under attack. >> reporter: the garage had burned down, and he said he was concerned it could've been part

of jan being shot. when dateline continues. e continues. re. but this is my story. ( ♪♪ ) and with once-daily trelegy, it can still be beautiful. because with 3 medicines in 1 inhaler, trelegy keeps my airways open for a full 24 hours and prevents future flare-ups. trelegy also improves lung function, so i can breathe more freely all day and night. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed. trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ [laughing] ask your doctor about once-daily trelegy for copd because breathing should be beautiful,

all day and night. this is senior special agent

derrick woodford. >> reporter: the man sitting with agent derek would furtive the county sheriff's office, was chris kruse. this was how they began the perplexing interviews. the interviews repeated efforts to match what they had seen, with what they were hearing. as we watch and listen to chris's many interviews, and those of the others. to try to piece together what happened to chris's wife, jan. who made it happen? and why? -- >> reporter: what happened said chris, was confusing. he was in bed, asleep. curled up in the way he always

slept, with jan. -- >> he described it as, spooning. she is laying on her side, he is laying on his side next to her. the front of his body would be alongside the back of her body. -- >> reporter: bobbing? but as would for new, there were two loud bangs. to shock on blasts. --

>> reporter: again, on fire? what fire? . that was two months earlier said chris, in june. just before he engine left for their annual trip to spider lake. >> the garage had burned down, he had said he was concerned, was it the same, and could it be part of now john being shot. >> reporter: at the time, the insurance adjuster said it looked like the fired but deliberately set. but by who, no one could say. -- >> reporter: interesting. but it was something else about the fire story, that occurred right away to adrienne woodward. >> it was concerning to me because a fire in a garage, smells a lot different than spent shotgun shell in a house. >> reporter: he would know that? >> he does a lot of trump shooting, and hunting. he would know the difference

between a shotgun, and smoke from the house or garage fire. >> reporter: he made note of that and went on with his questions. what have after what happened after chris said he heard what was a single lab bang, and her saw his wife was shot? -- -- -- --

-- >> reporter: everyone reacts to disaster, grief, stress in different ways. but though chris was clearly distraught, woodford was listening carefully to the words he was using. descriptions of the incident, that would already knew were not accurate. -- -- >> reporter: chris seemed to be saying the jon was shot as she was lying down in bed, and then she sat up.

-- -- >> reporter: but if he did lay her down, surely his hands would have been covered in blood? and they weren't. -- -- -- >> reporter: did he have any idea who that might have been?

>> no not at that time. he didn't see anybody. he didn't hear anything, but that one shot. and then just noticed the back door being wide open. >> reporter: but the idea that a stranger had walked in, killed gianna, and walked out again didn't make sense. in fact that morning after, nothing about the murder of a beloved local in a tiny hamlet in the middle of america made any sense at all. coming up -- questions for the other person in the house that night. -- -- >> reporter: a story begins to emerge, teenage tensions and troubles.

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more than 140,000 customers without power in michigan as, a heavy snow storm barrels through that region. high winds and treacherous conditions have forced to delay of more than 8000 flights so far in the region. that storm system, expected to drop more snow in michigan, and wisconsin, through saturday. for a second straight night, the u.s. hitting targets in yemen after houthi rebels launched a weeks-long campaign to disrupt commercial shipping vessels in the red sea and golf of hayden. now, back to dateline. we cannot begin to imagine, or possibly describe, the shock, and grief, that descended the

first morning on jane's parents mary gina and terry pigman. to learn that their daughter and son-in-law were dead and that he, chris, were taken for questioning. >> we threw on clothes and went there. >> when we first walked, and the first thing they were concerned about was how we found out he was there. the next thing out of their mouth was, you know, 85% of the time it's on it. at that point i felt, okay, i know we are going with this. i felt like telling them, your full of it. >> we never felt like he was the one who did it. >> no, they didn't. right after that first interview, they invited chris, and bailey, to move in with them. that is where chris's brother, keith, found him later, that first day. >> we've never been an emotional family. we don't wear our emotions on

our sleeves. i remember looking at chris, and i have never seen chris as devastated as he was. he was in complete, and utter, shock. >> how did he looked at was different? >> his eyes were welled up. he was biting on his bottom lip a little, and shaking his head back and forth. i have never seen him so devastated, ever. >> bailey was there too, of course, also a mess. early at the sheriff's office, she had her turn to share what seesaw, and heard, early that morning. not quite the same story as the one her father told. well chris and bailey have hearing deficits, bailey said that she heard, loud and clear, not one, but two shots. >> i heard two bangs, i didn't know if i should get out, or stay in bed. i texted my mom question marks causative no supposed to do. >> you texted your mom? >> and then i texted my dad.

i saw him come downstairs. it was like 2:30 when i heard that, and i could hear my dad upstairs, yelling, and i heard my mom grown or something, i don't know. i don't really know what was going on, i just stayed in bed. >> what was your daddy yelling? >> what the hell, then he stormed out of this room because in our house -- you can hear much of the house. you could tell he was walking out of his room. i don't know what he was yelling down, it was mush together. >> bailey, who had a digital clock by her bed, had just put the murder at, like, 2:30. chris called 9-1-1 at 2:39. maybe an issue. why the delay? >> bailey, what do you think happened? >> honestly, i have no idea. >> who do you think would want to hurt your mom? >> no one that i know of. >> do you know what happened to your mom? did someone tell you? >> yeah just said that she got shot. >> how did you find out that

she died? >> i actually didn't realize that she died until we were sitting in the garage and he told me. >> of course, those deputies were right when they told véliz grandparents that a significant other is, often, the prime suspect in cases like this. so, they had to ask, what did bailey know about her parents marriage? >> they get along good. everyone has their disagreements, but as nothing huge. >> disagreements about -- ? >> my mom wants my dad to quit smoking, and then about the cabin, they were both stressed out to get that resort. they don't ever yell at each other, really. they get along good, if you ask me. >> so they had no problems? when did this resort start? >> we've been going up there ever since i was little. ever since my brother was little. my dad's dream, and my mom's dream, was always to own a resort up there. >> here in the sheriff's office, it was bailey who told the investigators how she worried about the resort at spider lake.

it was making her anxious, she said. >> i've been worked up because my parents want to buy a resort up north and it was a weird time for me to move. >> when you say worked up, what does that mean? >> i got stressed out about moving because i don't really know what i want to do. the plan was me and my mom would stay with my grandma and grandpa so i could finish school and graduate here. then, i would go up in the summer to help at the resort. i was just kind of worried about that. >> to help her cope, bailey said, she confided in her friend. an older boy named jeremy. he had been coming around to see her that summer. >> he gives me a phone number. >> so you didn't feel like you want to move or? well, yes and no. i have mixed feelings about it. i play hockey here and everything. >> okay. when was the last time jeremy came over? >> yesterday. >> how old is jeremy? >> he's 19.

>> 19? >> yes. >> are you guys dating? >> no. >> what's your relationship with jeremy? >> just friends. >> just friends? >> yes. >> does jeremy get along with your mom and dad? >> they don't know that he comes over, actually. >> he came over one night, so we're gonna talk to my mom and dad, because they were home. we told them that we liked each other, and my mom and dad didn't want me to date him because he's much older. my dad is pretty protective of me. >> a resort they couldn't afford, an arson fire in a garage, and an unapproved, maybe inappropriate, older boy and their daughter's life. there were issues in this home. and a kid who needed talking to. jeremy. coming up -- >> did you guys kiss? >> no. we haven't yet. i don't want to go too far with it right now because she's younger than me. you have to be careful with, it you know?

>> absolutely. >> nothing that sounds suspicious until jeremy mentioned something else. >> she said they were in some pretty good arguments. >> who was? >> her parents. her mom and dad. >> when dateline continues. line continues hey, you should try new robitussin honey medi-soothers for long-lasting cough and sore throat relief. try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills. i'm jonathan lawson, here to tell you about life insurance and find your voice.

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what happened in the kruse house here in tiny brewster, what happened in the cruise minnesota was a truly, terrible thing. house here in minnesota was, truly, a terrible thing. the loss of that woman, jam kruse was a tragic event. even more so because it just seemed pointless. >> why would someone go to the house, and shoot a sleeping moment? it didn't make any sense. did she have enemies who would want her dead? >> that was a question we asked, often. who would have wanted jan dead? we could not find one person who did not like jan or thought that she wasn't a good person. >> there was, however, that young man, jeremy majerus, they're not quite boyfriend,

unapproved by bailey's parents, passions can run high in a situation like that. jeremy's place, his family farm, was a 25 minute drive away from the kruse house. deputies drove out to talk to him, and recorded the conversation. >> i have some questions for you about a gal you might be seeing. >> yeah. bailey? >> okay. >> me in her hang out a lot. we can honestly talk, and talk, and talk, and talk. >> so, asked the deputy, when was the last time he talked to bailey, or communicated at all? >> we snapshot of this morning and she said, all talk to you later. something that has happened. i'm kind of scared for her. >> jeremy said he met bailey while helping out with a high school marching band. he had graduated, but continue to volunteer. somehow, during those band practices, he and bailey grew close.

it was all innocent, he said, but they did really like each other. >> we are just friends right now. i told her, when we're older, maybe we can pursue something different but, right now, you know, i'm 19, she's 15, you need to be careful with that. >> so, are you guys boyfriend girlfriend? >> not really. we don't really do anything boyfriend girlfriend. we talk, more or less. >> what do you mean? >> well, you know, boyfriend girlfriends go on dates, they go out, they do all the kissing and stuff like that. we don't do that, really. >> really? you don't do it really or? >> we don't. >> have you guys? just >> know. no. we have entiat. i don't want to go far with it right now. she's younger than me. you need to be careful with it, you know? >> absolutely. >> i've talked to my pastor about it and he said, you need to be careful. if mna buddy things you've even done anything, you could get in a lot of trouble.

>> so, they just talk, says jeremy. the deputy asked, what about? lately? >> she would snap me a couple of nights where she said they were in some good arguments about this because -- >> who was? >> her parents. her mom and dad. >> jeremy said, the arguments, according to bailey, we're about trying to buy the spider lake resourced. >> she hates them yelling at each other, but they had some pretty good, you know, hey, calm down. they're arguing about this. it's a lot of money and her mom is very, very, very, very nervous about spending all of this money on a resort. >> so, bailey had trouble dealing with that, said jeremy. >> she avidly hates it. she's made it very apparent to me, she will literally put her headphones on, and turn the music loud. they've been having a tough time with it because her dad really, really, really wants to go through with this.

it's history. >> was a true what jeremy was saying? bailey hadn't said anything like that when she talked to investigators a few hours after her mother was killed. so, the next day, they brought bailey in again to ask about her parents. at first, they didn't tell her they'd been talking to jeremy. >> were they having some disagreements about this? >> not really, that i know, of no. >> no disagreements? then they told her about the jeremy interview. >> he said that you told him that your parents do argue about the resort, or have been arguing. >> well every once in a while, but i think it's more like they're frustrated because they don't know what to do, my mom and dad, i mean. they had their disagreements, but it wasn't like arguing at all. they never really yelled about it or anything. >> then she painted a slightly different picture of what was going on at home. things had been difficult lately. there was that upsetting garage

fire, and, also, jan had a hysterectomy, chris had his appendix out, and they were trying to figure out the entire resort deal. >> you're talking a couple of months that have been pretty tense. more tense than normal? >> yes, very much so. >> once again, they ask bailey, what happened the night her mother was shot? what did she hear from her bedroom, one flow below her parents room? >> we asked bailey, did you hear anybody running out of the house, or moving around and she said that she only heard one set of steps from upstairs, and that was chris. he was the only one that was moving around upstairs. she did not hear anybody else. >> now what did that mean? what would it mean when paired with csi reports coming in about curious particulars at the crime scene? coming up --

a fortunate missed shot, or was it a suspicious one? >> we do a trajectory with our crime lab. there is the hole, right? if we look at the way the round travels, it looks like you will get hit with that round. >> chris seems to change his story. >> she set up before i did. >> how do you know that? >> when dateline continues. ...thanks to dupixent. dupixent is not for sudden breathing problems. it's an add-on treatment for specific types of moderate-to-severe asthma. and can help improve lung function for better breathing in as little as two weeks. dupixent helps prevent asthma attacks... and can even reduce or eliminate oral steroids. imagine that. dupixent can cause allergic reactions that can be severe. get help right away if you have rash, chest pain,

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dermatologist-recommended cetaphil. the way people say goodbye can tell you the way people say goodbye a lot about a community and about the person can tell you a lot about the community. and about the person that they gather for. the funeral for jan cruz. >> the visitation was at the lutheran church, and there are people lined up down the block, waiting to get in. jan was so like to, and respected in the community, it was a long day.

it was, i don't know, heartwarming, but many people cared about her, family, chris, isaac, bailey to come and pay their respects for her. >> they will be pretty upset. >> they lived there all of their life, so she knew a lot of people. they had good things to say about her. >> so, there was a respectful pause. then, a few days later, chris cruise was, once again, at the sheriff's office, senior special agents woodford. some things had been bothering him. like how chris said he only heard one gunshot when, obviously, there was two. >> what we have this 2:12 gauge slugs. one of these you saw, one of these you didn't see, is that correct? you said you heard one shot,

okay? >> definitely heard. >> and then, did you say that because that's what you heard, or did you just see the one shot? >> i heard one, for definite, shot. >> but that first slug, the one he said he did not hear? agent woodford said, that one would have hit him, had he been lying this i'd jan in bed, like you said he was. >> we do a trajectory with a crime lab. so, there's a hole, right? she is laying here, you're laying here, on your side and if we look at the way the round travels, it looks like you will get hit with that round. >> i've been asking that question. >> this round doesn't actually hit anything, it's a miss. >> i saw it go all the way

through my house. >> so, i mean, the width, to the mattress, to that trajectory, -- >> i ask myself that. was it supposed to be both of us? >> do you think someone tried to shoot you, missed, and then shot her? >> i don't know. why would anybody? >> then agent woodford told chris that the autopsy reveal, that jan was sitting up when she was hit, with her right arm stretched towards the shooter. in fact, her right hand, was grazed by the shot. >> to me, almost like she saw it coming. that was a concern, based on what chris had told me the first time, that she was shot when they were laying down. >> what this shows is that she's not laying down during

this shooting, okay? that she is not on her left side. >> my thought was, after you think about it -- >> well, you were saying that you have your arm under her. you have your arm under her while she shot. >> no, when we were sleeping. >> here, chris seems to alter the narrative. says that he awoke to find his wife sitting up beside him. >> she was up. she set up before i did. >> how do you know that? >> because when i was laying there, she was up, and then i got up, and i mean, the shot. >> the first round, you said, you didn't get up on? >> no, it woke me up, i'm laying there. >> the first round woke you up? >> i'm assuming. >> was this man changing his

story? >> i did not know she was shot until i turned the light on. >> you told me, you said, he stood in the doorway of my bedroom and shot my wife. >> did i say he? >> you said you didn't see anybody. so who is he? >> if i said he, i meant nothing. >> and then doorway, why do you think it was the doorway? >> there was an empty shotgun shell right in the doorway of my bedroom. >> then, agent would first ask risk, again, what he heard gianna say that night. >> i am sure she said, oh my god. >> before she gets shot, you hear, oh my god? >> yes. >> okay, so, you're awake? >> yes. >> then you hear a gunshot? >> yes. >> so if you're awake, you hear a gunshot, who shot her?

>> no idea. >> chris was not under arrest, of course, so they had to know that he was under a microscope. the answers he was giving, was he just confused? what was going on? agent woodford was all too familiar with the worst of human behavior. very aware, to, that he was talking to a grieving husband, and that even the grieving friends are capable for the worst mendacity, the worst things around. he and his fellow investigators were, certainly, not finished with chris kruse. things that seem, to them, on. >> i notice that, throughout the 9-1-1 call, you never spoke to jan. no words of encouragement, hang on baby. >> i said something when i get the phone. >> remember what you said then? >> did you say hang on or?

>> ivory played this part of this over and over. >> dispatch does ask you, is she responding and you say, no, she's dead. >> i wasn't there. >> no, i'm just asking you. how did you make that determination? what did you see? what were you hearing? was she making any noise at that point? >> nothing. >> just laying there. >> how could you tell that? >> when i looked back in the doorway. >> so you did go back up after you were on 9-1-1 then? >> i think, one time. >> you guys of unmarried, what, 20 years? >> in october. >> you love your wife? >> very much. >> so, you go look at her and why do you think that she is gone? why do you think that she died? >> just laying there.

wasn't moving. wasn't nothing. >> is it possible that she could still have a heartbeat? >> i do -- i didn't go back. i didn't. >> coming up, another puzzling detail. if his wife was bleeding to death, how did chris come away so clean. >> by laying her back down, do you have blood on your hands? >> i don't. i didn't have blood on my hands. the only blood i knew i had was on my fore arm. >> when dateline continues.

keith morrison: chris kruse had buried his wife chris kruse had buried his of 20 years, along with their dream wife of 20 years, along with their dream of owning a lakeside resort. now, he sat in an interview room in a county sheriff office,

facing questions from agent derek woodford. >> that's not consistent with how you go to sleep. >> chris said that he was lying beside his wife when she was shot. he knew that jen blood rapidly, and profusely, and there was surprisingly little blood on chris. it didn't make any sense to woodford. >> we believe, with the amount of blood at the scene, we felt that there should have been blood on kruse. >> especially because chris said he wasn't just lying beside her, he actually laid her down, flat, on the bed after she was shot. >> how did you lay her down? >> i want to say my left hand was on her shoulder area, on her back. >> by laying her back down, do you have blood on your hands? >> i don't. i didn't have any blood on my hands. >> the only blood i knew i had was on my fore arm. >> no blood on his hands.

but, an odd mark on the front of his shirt. >> from how he describes being in bed with jane, we were trying to figure out where the merck came from. it did not make sense from laying next to her in bed. >> more like something was imprinted on the shirt, not blood spatter, or anything like that? >> right. >> this is a hard object, probably, of some type. >> what we are getting at here is, what we call, a pattern stain. it is something that had blood on it, that have some substance to it, and was placed up against you. whether it was placed up, or you leaned up against it. there's nothing in that scene that were matching it up with. >> what have to be from jan. >> well it would've been on, you said, you touched her, very light, and the only thing jet on was a t-shirt and shorts.

so there would've been where the blood came from? >> i don't know. i mean, i didn't even realize i had blood on my shirt until you pointed about. >> despite what some people like to claim, it can be quite hard to tell of a stranger sitting in front of you was lying, or telling the truth. but, in this case, said the investigators, what chris was telling them was not adding up. >> it is easy to remember when you tell the truth. i have interviewed thousands of people, and the statements that i get from people who are honest are pretty clear. when you go back to them, and talk to them a second time their story is accurate from the first time. this was not the case. >> this evidence tells a story. what it looks like is, it doesn't support what you are telling us. and, actually, it's the

contrary. it would almost appear that -- >> i promise you, i did not do this. >> they hope to chris up to a polygraph. the test, revealing deception, they told him. and then, chris offered up a possible suspect. >> the name lisa comes into my head. i don't want to tell you that because i -- k and i talked about it. that's part of the reason. i said, i didn't want to steer anybody to believing anything, you know? >> lisa? who was lisa? >> coming up -- >> we had gotten further information that she had, maybe, had some friction with jan. >> a possible lead. >> she found out gianna was quitting daycare, and she said something about it, thought we were friends. >> jeremy says, this was not a

happy family. >> bailey had told him, they had mentioned the word divorce. >> and the divorce didn't come out till they were, literally, shouting at each other. that is when -- jan was crying. >> when dateline continues. copd hasn't been pretty. it's tough to breathe and tough to keep wondering if this is as good as it gets. but trelegy has shown me that there's still beauty and breath to be had. because with three medicines in one inhaler, trelegy keeps my airways open and prevents future flare-ups. and with one dose a day, trelegy improves lung function so i can breathe more freely all day and night. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed. trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing,

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join the millions of people taking people talk.rivacy people talk, and in a town and in a town like brewster, everybody

like brewster, everybody knew about the murder of jan cruz. everybody had opinions, and one that investigators heard about was, they had one of jan's neighbors, living down the block, may have been nursing a grudge. >> we got further information that she had, maybe, had further friction with jan. >> this woman, lisa, had been upset about jan shutting down the daycare center she was running, because her son went there. >> she found out that jan was quoting daycare and she said something about, i thought we were friends, you did, this you weren't able to tell me, blah blah, she went on. case said something along the lines of, you guys have everything. >> it wasn't as if they didn't have access. >> they have a key to our house, they feed our dogs. >> investigators talked to lisa. they found her at work. >> we attended her 40th

birthday party last year. >> okay, and that was for gms birthday? >> janet. >> the daycare incident was ancient history, and didn't make sense. >> she was not involved. >> they look at other people, two other possible suspects. >> we interviewed 40 people. some people, multiple times. >> they even took a hard look at two of chris's own brothers. but they, and all others, were cleared. all but one. almost a year after the murder, investigators went back to jeremy majerus. they're not quite boyfriend. possible motive? his oldest, first love. chris, jeremy had told them, was, really, the one stopping him from dating bailey. so, investigators needed to consider, maybe jeremy tried to take revenge on chris, but shot

jammed by mistake? jeremy admitted, he snuck into see bailey, in her house, many times that summer, unbeknownst to her parents. and he knew, if they bought the resort, they would take bailey hundreds of miles away from him. so where was he, the night of the murder? >> an initially, he told investigators he did not leave his house that night. >> that was a lie. >> then, in further talking with jeremy, he admitted to us that he did leave the house to check on bailey, and was concerned about her. >> his story? bailey texted him after she heard the two shots, and there was, indeed, a text. one word, jeremy! that alarmed him, he said. he drove to brewster, texting her along the way, asking what was going on. when he arrived, bailey's street was filled with emergency vehicles, so he went

home. >> kind of something that he should have told you off the bat. >> yes. >> how did he explain that? >> what he indicated to us was that based on everything that has been going on at the kruse residence, his dad had told him, he thought he should stay out of it, and not get involved. thus, not tell us that he left to go to brewster that night after bailey had text him. >> jeremy took a polygraph. he, also, show deception. but not about where he was, jeremy swore. no, the deception he told them was something else. he didn't tell them earlier, he said, because bailey swore him to secrecy. it was about the state of her parents marriage. >> which was what? >> which was that bailey had told him, they had mentioned the word divorce. >> divorce? chris never mentioned that.

in fact, he said, he and john got along well. >> when did the divorce word come up? did you see a couple of weeks before? months before? >> as they were talking, they started talking, to arguing, to arguing, to fighting, and the divorce didn't come out until they were shouting at each other. that is -- general jan jan was crying, chris is mad all the time. >> he told them something else about bailey. >> if she gets crying about her mom, she said, her dad didn't do it, her dad didn't do it. >> like she's trying to convince herself? >> yes, that's the way it sounds. it's not like, you know, when someone says, no they didn't do it. she says it over, and over, and over, and over. she will say ten times in a row, crying. >> that is because bailey had told him -- >> she was scared that he might have been involved. she said, jeremy, i am scared

that dad did something that could have gone mom killed. that is exactly what she said. >> was he making all of this up to protect himself? or was this devastating evidence against chris? >> coming up -- chris points his finger at jeremy. >> can you think of a reason why he would want to do that? >> because jan and i was in the way of the relationship. >> but a discovery that points right at chris. >> the gun that shot jan was your 12 gauge. >> it was in the shop. >> any ideas on that? >> you have my mind racing. >> when dateline continues. before you decide... with the freestyle libre 3 system... know your glucose and where it's headed. no fingersticks needed. now the world's smallest and thinnest sensor...

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the letters turned up a year and a half after the murder. year and a half after the murder. it was kris kruse who found them, offered them to investigators. disturbing letters, said chris, sent, purportedly by jeremy majerus two bailey. but chris had an idea, it may have been creepy or than that, given this phrase and one of them. love you, daughter. >> chris had a concern that, maybe jeremy's dad was writing

some of these to bailey. i followed up on that, and that was not the case. >> they, were simply, jeremy's love letters, said woodford. nothing more. but chris wasn't satisfied. might jeremy be jan killer? >> can you think of a reason why he would want to do that? or what his reason would be? >> because jan and i were in the way for a relationship. >> and that's because of that initial conversation? it was with jeremy saying, you're not gonna date bailey at this point? >> did jeremy seem upset about that, or what was his reaction at that point? >> no, i mean, that was the last time i really saw him. >> but did he, himself, really think that jeremy killed jan? >> could i say i think he did this? no. >> no. and after four interviews with jeremy, agent woodford came to

the same conclusion. lies, or not, jeremy did not do it. that conclusion was bolstered by jeremy's father, who said he was up, watching tv with his son, when jan was shot 25 miles away. he saw the jeremy text, just after it came in. but, if jeremy was out of the picture, chris was not. in fact, the day chris turned in those jeremy letters, agent woodford turned the conversation back to a question he could not resolve. >> i'm trying to put you, you're in bed with jan, i'm trying to put you there because a lot of evidence looks like you weren't in bed. you didn't have blood on your legs, or anything on your shorts. i'm wondering why that was the case. >> the implication was impossible to miss, especially after they found the murder weapon increases own construction company shop, a

minutes drive from the house. bailey, remember, said she heard gunshots, quote, at, like, 2:30. chris called 9-1-1 at 2:39. was nine minutes enough time to stash the gun? >> i drove that at speed limit, to the shop, and back, and taking into account that it would take a minute to go into the shop, it was only three minutes. >> woodford broke the gun news to chris. >> i'm trying to figure out why that is? i mean, the gun that shot jan was your 12 gauge. >> it was in the shop. >> yes. >> i don't know that i can believe that. >> well, the reason i say that is we do forensic testing on the gun, and then, remember, the shells that were found. any ideas on that? >> you got my mind racing. >> his mind may not race for

long. even though they were clearly suspicious of him, they still had more investigating to do. so, chris was free to go. nothing happened, four months, four years. the whole family tried to let it go as they settled into the hard business of learning to live without jan, and without knowing who killed her, except that they were sure it was not chris. >> there is nothing to think that chris had any involvement. >> nobody could fake anything that much and not slip up. >> what's more, they all said, they never saw chris get violent, or be mean to jan, ever. >> they truly loved each other, and he never had a harsh word about her, ever. the same with jan towards chris. >> maybe they will just never know who killed jan. >> did you have an expectation that this would go away, and they never found out who did it? >> we were, emotionally, set

that no one would be brought to justice in this world. it would have to be by god that they would have to answer to. it would not happen here. >> and then, in march 2019, three and a half years after the murder, something did happen. the county attorney's office decided to take the case to a grand jury. that grand jury, indicting chris kruse for first degree murder, to his families utter dismay. and, insult to injury -- >> they simply asked him to come down to the police station and arrested him there, but they made a big scene. actually, about a block from where i work. guns drawn, and it was totally blown. i didn't understand that at all. >> once he was arrested, we all came together as a family, and figured out what we needed to do, to get an attorney lined

up. >> that would be tom hagen and steven groschen. this would be their first ever first degree murder trial. >> i gotta believe, i believe, on a friday night, late. chris was arrested, he didn't know is going, on he didn't know how this happened. >> they could not understand at either. they went through the evidence, looking for an answer, but could not find one. >> painstakingly, going through videos, going through interviews. when he spoke to law enforcement, he seemed, to me, very truthful, and trying to be helpful. his story was fairly consistent throughout. >> brayden, the assistant county attorney said that chris was not only inconsistent, there were serious problems with his stories. >> the thing that stuck out to me the most upon watching the version of events as described by mr. kruse was the difficulty that i was having making sense of, exactly, how this would have occurred without him

seeing, or being able to offer and a description of the supposed perpetrator. >> in other words, did his stories make sense? >> as a prosecutor, you always think about how it makes sense to a jury. it's not necessarily important what i think, or what the abyss we gave you the, but what does the average person think about this? the impression i walked away with was that i did not believe it would make a lot of sense to the average person in the county. >> what it? a jury, of those average people, was empaneled in january of 2020. what is an average person anyway? can you ever, really, know what average people will do? coming up. the prosecution's case -- >> the were divorce, being

thrown around. he's either killed by the first shotgun blast, or he is covered in blood, and mr. cruz was neither. this was, clearly, a premeditated murder. >> when dateline continues. his vision dimmed with age. he had amd. i didn't know it then, but it can progress to ga, an advanced form of the disease. his struggle with vision loss from amd made me want to help you see warning signs of ga. like straight lines that seem wavy, blurry, or missing visual spots that make it hard to see faces like this one, or trouble with low light that makes driving at night a real challenge. if you've been diagnosed with amd and notice vision changes, don't wait. ga is irreversible. it's important to catch it early. talk to your eye doctor about ga and learn more at gawontwait.com

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top stories. u.s., carrying out targeted strikes against iranian-backed houthi rebels for the second night in a row. those responses are to the houthi militants attacking ships in the red sea. and protesting israel's gaza storm. >> and i was storm halting the campaigning in iowa before the caucuses. donald trump, canceling three of his four in-person rallies and his rivals nikki haley, ron desantis, and asa hutchinson, making similar cases. now, back to dateline. back to dateline. prosecutor braden had a prosecutor braden hoefert had a story for the jury

story for cruise, and a story, he told, them that was simple. the killing of jam was an inside job. >> nothing was missing from the job so, clearly, this was premeditated. >> committed by the one person in a position to do it, the husband, chris. the evidence? well, four, one, he told the jury, there was all of those hours of police interviews, he said, inconsistencies. he played it for the jury. >> the version of events changes over time, and it does not appear to be possible based off of the physical evidence. >> break it down a little bit. >> he gave a similar version in the first two interviews. jan was asleep, or lying down,

when she is shot. but the report clearly established that she had her hand outstretched in the direction of the assailant which, of course, meant that she was awake, and saw the person who had done this to her. >> it was only after the autopsy report was explained to chris that a prosecutor said, he changed his story, and said that jan was sitting up when she was hit. as for the first bullet, the one that plowed through the pillows, the headboard, the wall. >> can you see anyway where he could've been lying in that bed, beside her, and not be touched by the passing slug? >> the description that mr. crews gave a very sleeping position, in effect, spooning with jan, that they were lying on the center of the bed, and he had his hand underneath her, and they were facing away from the door, the door to their back, it would not have been

possible for him to have been in that position without being killed by the first gunshot. >> the pillows said in the line, work filled with tiny fragments of the slog that went through jan. yet -- >> mr. kruse did not have scratches, or pieces of metal during his first interview with police, later that morning. >> it wasn't just lead on, or, in his pillows. >> the crime scene team counted 15 to 25 droplets of blood that were in the position that mr. crews claimed to be in at the time that the gunshot went off. >> magically, these blood shots would've gone through him, and landed on the mattress bed, or the pillows, without touching him? >> what i argue to the jury was, depending on his position in the bed, he either gets blood, or bullet.

he either gets killed by the first shotgun blast, or he is covered in blood, and mr. kruse was neither. >> thus, the prosecutor said, he could not have been in bed like he said he was when that shot was fired. he also pointed out steps that chris did not take. >> he did not arm himself, despite there being a firearm in the bedroom. he did not barricade the back door. he did not help, he did not attempt first aid, or to stop the wound from bleeding. did not hold her hand, or comfort her. he indicated, he went to the doorway, and, quickly, looked at her, and decided that she was dead, and left her there. which is problematic from our perspective, because the medical examiner said that she

would have lived 3 to 5 minutes after being shot. >> this, the state said, was the murder weapon. a remington eight 70 shotgun, as determined by a forensic scientist, the nationally accredited agency, the bca. because they have to analyze shotguns found in christmas home, and shot, on the specific one, she dusted a test with two shelves, not the usual three, or four. >> based on those test fires, it was not immediately apparent that the 12 gauge shotgun was the gun. >> in fact, she indicated and her notes, it may not be the murder weapon. >> she then went back and performed additional test fires to see what she could find out, and it became obvious, that was, in fact, the fire arm that had

fired the two shells that were found at the scene. >> all part of the testing protocol, they said. given all of the weapons they had in the process. >> forensic scientists don't complete tests with a goal of convicting, or acquitting, any specific person. so, the conclusion which was reached, and the only conclusion, must be verified by other scientists there. >> and it was. so, this was the murder weapon, he told jurors. he was found a minute away in his shop, where he must have put it before calling 9-1-1. >> the shotgun was found in a way that it was propped up against the wall, and it was the only shotgun in the house which was not put away, or in a case. >> but why would chris do it? why would he kill the only woman he had ever loved?

maybe, said the prosecutor, maybe it was this spider like resort, this dream that they could not let go, and the stream that could not afford, even if they sold all they owned. >> sell his house, his shop, his business, cash out retirement accounts, you name it. >> but, about 36 hours before the shooting, chris, alone, presented another offer. much more than the 550,000 that janet thought they could offer if they sold everything. in fact, chris's last offer was 150,000 more than that. this just happened to be the amount of insurance on jan's life. the defense admitted, in their opening statement, that mr. crews had, in fact, offered $700,000 for the purchase of this resort, which i found, to be important. mr. crews had, previously, denied, under oath, ever making

that offer. >> then there was the secret, he said. the secret that bailey interested to jeremy. the secret he spilled to investigators, and testified about, at trial. >> that the parents were fighting, more than ever. that she had heard the word divorce being thrown around, and that she had asked him not to tell the police. >> there was something unusual about this trial. almost everyone in the spectators gallery supported chris. believed, fervently, he was innocent. including witnesses like john's sister, k. >> at the grand jury, she indicated, the marriage between mr. crews, and jeanne, was not overly affectionate. a trial, she testified, it was affectionate. >> when bailey, on the stand, was asked about the secret that jeremy revealed? >> she indicated, her parents arguing would not be something that the 15-year-old would pay attention to. so, she denied that had

occurred. >> bailey did confirm, even though she is a heavy sleeper, and hard of hearing, and slept without her hearing aids, she, definitely, heard two gunshots. she told the jury, a gunshot as loud, you need to be on the other side of town to not hear it. so, prosecutor who i was confident. but -- >> anytime you have a case where the family of the victim does not want to be prosecuted, and they maintained, from the morning of the murder, that mr. crews could not have been involved in this case. that was a concern of ours. >> was it something that the jury could see, as well? coming up. the defense serves that investigators rushed to judgment. >> in the beginning, there was one suspect. chris. >> they also said that they

botched the forensics. >> if you saw the photograph that had a dip in the string, they didn't pull it taught when they pulled the measurements. >> who do they say the killer could be? >> jeremy majerus. >> when dateline continues. ne continues it may be time to see the bigger picture. heart failure and seemingly unrelated symptoms, like carpal tunnel syndrome, shortness of breath, and irregular heartbeat could be something more serious called attr-cm, a rare, underdiagnosed disease that worsens over time. sound like you? call your cardiologist, and ask about attr-cm. hey, you should try new robitussin honey medi-soothers for long-lasting cough and sore throat relief. try new robitussin lozenges with real medicine and find your voice. you know? we really need to work on your people skills.

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two words, they said. tunnel vision. >> from the beginning, there was one suspect. it was chris. i do not think that looked any further, and what they did is use the fact that he was trying to be helpful, trying to push more information, to get more facts, and chris was trying to fill in the blanks as he went. trying to remember what happened. trying to piece it together. >> besides, chris was not so inconsistent during his many hours of police interviews. >> in my opinion, what took place was the same. it was approximately the same. he was in bed, he heard a shot, he popped up. from there, he went to grab his phone. that portion never changed. >> of course, any one story would change a little bit. given -- >> from a dead sleep, you're woken up by a gunshot, you look over, and you see your wife is bleeding. i think it is reasonable to believe the fact you will not

remember everything clearly. the memory is an amazing thing, but i think that you don't remember everything the same every time you talk about it. >> how do you explain he didn't hear, or see, or find any evidence of an intruder in the house? >> it is a small home. it would not take somebody more than a second to get out of the house, how can a car, and take off. >> even the forensics were off, they said. like the string that was put up to calculate the path of the first bullet. >> if you see, the dip is in the string, they didn't pull it taught during the measurement. >> to the defense expert, meaning this. >> there is room in the band for two people, and the first shot to miss. is there a ton of room? no. be upfront about that. but, there was room in the shot to miss him. that was what they brought out in the trial. >> why would he not have had

more blood on him? >> my opinion is, after he heard the shots, he got out of bed quickly. >> as for chris hearing only one shot when there was two? >> he thinks the first shot that will come up, he doesn't recall hearing it, but he recalls hearing it on that second shot. >> why didn't you go back in ten to his wife, see how she was, how to do cpr? she was probably alive for a few minutes. >> that's one of his regrets. he didn't go back and do more. his attention, quickly, turn to his daughter who is downstairs, trying to figure out if anyone was in the house, to ensure his daughter was okay. i think he realized, fairly quickly, with all of the blood, it was a fatal wound. >> chris's lawyers far but the shotgun was the murder weapon, saying that the expert said that it wasn't, before they concluded, definitely, it was. that seemed subjective, they told the jury. >> our expert, who is

credentialed, and reviewed the evidence, concluded that the answer was inconclusive. you can't say this isn't the gun, you can say this is the cone. >> and, the lawyer strongly challenged the prosecutors claim that after shooting jam, chris quickly drove the gun into a shop before calling 9-1-1. they were critical of the investigators, and said, he should've gone back to bailey to confirm the time she heard the shotgun blasts. >> what bailey stated was, approximately, around 2:30. law enforcement never cleaned up when it took place. they never came back and said it was closer to 2:30, or 2:40. >> during the trial, four and a half years after the shooting, under cross examination by her father's lawyer, bailey agreed, she probably heard those shots closer to 2:38 am. remember, chris's 9-1-1 call was at 2:39. >> so, really, there isn't an 8 to 9 minute block. the timeline, the timeline, the

timeline. it was tight. >> really, was a resort at spider lake such an issue? such a motive? >> why would you murder someone that you would start to resort with? now, he started by himself? >> to me, it was never a sound motive on what took place. the reality was that does, he needed jan to run the resort with him. >> then, a possible alternate suspect. but they did. >> there was another person who could've done this, and it was jeremy majerus. >> jeremy majerus, by the time of the trial, was still with bailey as her boyfriend. and, yet, the defense went there. said, maybe jeremy did it. >> why would jeremy want to kill janet? >> the motive would have been bailey leaving town, and moving north for the cabin, and then she would have less interaction with jeremy. what i tell you it's a strong

motive? i do not. does it make more sense than crisis? in some ways, it does. i could see him becoming the jealous boyfriend. he perceives this cabin and if i remove chris, this will no longer happen. jeremy would never have been trying to kill jan. that would have been an accident. >> once more, jeremy was on the record lying to investigators. >> his story changed, it was never consistent, it never made sense. that is a part, i think, is the red flag for us. >> jeremy, eventually, admitted he did drive to brewster after the shooting, he said, after bailey texted him. what about if they got there earlier, suggested defense attorneys? got in through the broken basement window, and ran upstairs, aim to kill chris, but missed, and hit chan, before running out the backdoor? the theory, however, was problematic.

police looked hard and jeremy, and ruled him out. >> bailey didn't think jeremy didn't either. >> that's correct. >> that must have been awkward. >> she was in a bad predicament, either way. on one hand, her father's up for murder. on the other, you have us lawyers saying, you know, there is as much evidence, or more evidence, that jeremy committed this murder than your father. she was in a no win situation. >> what was an attentive jury to think of that? coming up -- >> if that doesn't speak volumes, i don't know what does. >> the verdict? it wasn't easy. >> one guy would not give up, and the judge said, there is no hung jury. you will keep at this until you are done. >> chris kruse speaks. >> i missed everything. her smile, the sound of her voice. >> when dateline continues. it's okay to show off.

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because advil targets pain at the source♪ ♪ inflammation. ♪ ♪ the courtroom was crowded. the courtroom was crowded. i sat through every day of that trial. >> i sat through everything of that trial. >> every seat filled, mainly family, friends, all here to support the man accused of killing her. >> why was that so important to you, to support chris? >> he's innocent. i never doubted that.

he is my brother and law. we have known him longer than the 20 years that they dated, from several years before that. that's family. >> it is unusual for everybody in the family to support the person who is accused of killing your sister. >> it says a lot. it says a lot right there. >> would it make a difference? a 3:10 pm, on the ninth day of the trial, the jury left the courtroom. alex mcgraw was the four person. >> throughout the full trial, to see the support from jan family, for chris, was telling. we found out he lived with jan 's parents for a year after this happened. if that doesn't speak volumes, i don't know what does. >> right away, alex took a poll. >> i think there was five or six of, us right away, who were

not guilty. there was two or three undecideds, and the rest were firm, he didn't, he was guilty. >> so, line by line, they debated the evidence. even performing a reenactment, said a juror, amber, minus the bullets, of course. >> we reenacted the scene on the tables. we push them together, we took the pillows, and we had two people on the bed. >> after hours of talk, and debate, it looked like it would be a hung jury. >> one guy would not give up. the judge said, there will be no hung jury. you will keep at this until you are done. >> it went quickly after that. finally, end of the second day, the rear did the courtroom. >> that was nerve wracking. we prayed for the best, and we knew the truth that it wasn't chris. >> and the jury found chris

kruse not guilty. >> i was surprised how much they were lacking in full proof evidence. >> when they said not guilty? >> i remember squealing. >> it was wonderful. i mean, we were cheering, hugging each other. >> the weight of the world was off my shoulders. i hugged everybody in that courtroom before we got out of there. >> including, the man for whom, the clouds were lifted. chris kruse. >> i don't know how to put this into words. >> it's hard to find words for things sometimes. >> yes. . >> one of the last five years been like for you? >> it's been a rough five years. unimaginable. >> now, finally, he could face his family, and the world, as an innocent man, vindicated.

except -- after the verdict, the county attorney issued a statement saying, while they respected the jury's verdict, they firmly believe, after a thorough investigation, that chris, did, indeed, kill his wife. >> at this point, there are no other suspects, there are no other leads in the investigation of the murder. >> not even believe boyfriend, jeremy? just, no, so the prosecutor. >> he is someone who was concerned about confessing to texting while driving, trying to make jeremy majerus the perpetrator is or trying to fit a square peg into around hole. >> even the attorney who pointed the finger at jeremy didn't agree with us. >> i won't insinuate, or say that jeremy did this. i wouldn't do that. >> where does it all leave chris?

not in a good place. >> i'm frustrated. these days, i'm mad, the way this was handled. it's upsetting to hear the prosecutors say, the jury was wrong, they made the wrong decision. chris is the guy. i don't know how they can say that. i don't feel that they put any effort into this. >> now, a question hangs in the air like a bad smell. >> i want to talk to jeremy, yes. >> what would you ask him? what would you say to him? >> like the stuff he said about me. i have a lot of questions. >> when we last spoke, chris told us, he, and his family, believed that james murder involved further investigation, and they would seek justice for jan. jan, who they remember lovingly, even if they cannot help but be

angry at the people who accused chris of killing her. >> my sister loved her husband, and we never should have had to go through that trial, ever. there was no grounds for that. had they done their job, looked at the facts in front of them, we never would have been in that courtroom for that reason. just to make matters worse, to put us all through this. how could this be? >> now, there are only memories. >> i missed everything. i miss watching her get ready for work in the morning. i miss a good day kiss. a hey honey, when i come home from work. i miss her smile. the sound of her voice. she was the best. >> and spider lake resort?

the magical place they hoped to own? >> did you ever go back to spider lake? >> yes. we go every year, yes. we take our vacation and june. i go back in september. jan birthday is the 24th of september, and she loved it there. >> in a way, he still takes her with him, out here, on spider lake. hello, i'm craig melvin, this is dateline. >> she told archie she was dating this man and if he didn't like it he could leave. >> he was stabbed multiple tilt line times. nobody saw anything. >> i went and i touched him, i'll never forget that feeling.

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