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eastern. follow us on x, instagram, tiktok thread, the blue sky using@weekend capehart. unshot. you just wonder how could this happen. it seems very surreal. andrea canning (voiceover): a quiet night at home shattered by a gunshot. andrea canning (voiceover): a young wife dying on the floor. she wasn't talking at all. man: asking like, conrad, what happened here? i was utterly confused. andrea canning (voiceover): so many different stories about what might have happened. he said many things that night. maybe someone could have shot something at the house. man: one point, he said that it was 80% suicide. andrea canning (voiceover): police had their own theory. i thought, oh man, there's something going on here.

we don't see a lot of women that commit suicide naked. conrad's stories were not adding up. andrea canning (voiceover): but something else wasn't adding up either, a key piece of evidence. we went to the house. and we walked in. and we think, aha. andrea canning (voiceover): would a mistaken measurement send an innocent man to prison or free a guilty one? we thought it was over. we thought this was settled. andrea canning (voiceover): one suspect, so many stories. only one of them could be true. something's going to break. and when it does, the truth's going to be known. hello. and welcome to dateline. heidy and conrad truman had a powerful connection, a deep love envied by others. then one fateful night, the young couple was jolted by unforeseen tragedy when heidy was killed by a single gunshot to the head.

in the aftermath, fingers were pointed. but were they aimed at an innocent man? here's josh mankiewicz with "as night fell." josh mankiewicz (voiceover): they seem so incongruous, the soaring majesty of utah's wasatch mountains and the story of a beautiful woman, struck down in her youth. it was a lot of things-- tragic, crushing, stunning. but was it an accident, or a suicide, or a murder? police felt they knew. but as most cops will tell you, both the evidence and the jury have their own stories to tell. and the answer is not always so clear. certainly, that is true for this story and quite possibly for the woman at its heart. her name, heidy wagner. as the baby, she was favored.

everybody loved her. she could do no wrong. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): autumn was one of heidy's four sisters. she was just special. she'd walk into the room. and she's ready for that good time. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): heidy grew up with no fewer than seven older siblings. tell me about her growing up. she was a fun loving girl. she was rather shy though so heidy seemed like an appropriate name. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): heidy's mom, janet. janet wagner: the family would get together. and we were kind of loud and boisterous sometimes. and she kind of got embarrassed easily. she'd hide her face. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as heidy got older, she was still cute and bubbly. but make no mistake. heidy was no pushover. she was kind of intimidating, actually, for being so small. you wouldn't think so. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): at just 20, heidy started working in the not entirely feminine gas and chemical industry just outside salt lake city. sandy sanchez was one of heidy's coworkers. we worked with hazardous chemicals and gases,

crazy things that you wouldn't expect a couple of girls to want to do. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): heidy seemed to thrive in a workplace that favored hard hats over heels. it was dangerous if you didn't follow the rules. in fact, quote from heidy, everything is dangerous. it's just what will kill you the quickest. josh mankiewicz: to sandy, heidy became more than just a co-worker. i considered her my best friend. she was a person that you knew would never stab you in the back. she was a person that you knew would always have your back. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): in person, she could be both sweet and salty. and that caught the attention of one of her colleagues, 25-year-old conrad truman. i noticed her first in the hallway. what did you think? um, i thought she was cute. and i noticed her hard hat. and they have a little personality or stickers, you know. and hers said, it's all about me. deal with it. and i was kind of thinking, this girl is kind of a feisty girl. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): soon, conrad asked heidy out on a date. conrad truman: i'm not that type usually.

i don't get super serious right off the bat. but it was almost like we were inseparable after that. - that was that first night? - yeah. yeah. josh mankiewicz: this tough girl even shared conrad's interest in guns. we would go to the range out of town and shoot in the hills. heidy knew how to handle a handgun? yes. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): one year into their courtship, conrad decided to pop the question. in true utah form, he chose a mountain on which to do it. janet wagner: she have any idea it was coming? no. so i got on one knee. and i asked her. and i started bawling. and she just said yes right off the bat. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad's sister collette dahl couldn't believe it when her little brother first introduced heidy to the family. i was actually really sort of surprised when i first met her. like how did he land that girl? and they just seemed to be such a great match. you saw love and chemistry there. oh, it was almost awkward. they were definitely an enviable couple. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): another year

later came the wedding. it was amazing. we went up on a lift, the chairlift. and then all of the guests left down these slides. so it was just so them. they said their vows. and he's kind of doing this champion pose like he was just-- everything was right with the world. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the enviable couple was just starting out with a future as bright as their smiles until, that is, a sunday evening in september 2012 three years after the trumans were married. tell me about that day. that day was just like any other day. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as night fell, heidy decided to take a bath. conrad said he went to the kitchen to get something to eat. as he fixed himself a sandwich, he said he heard a noise coming from the direction of the bathroom. it was like the new year's poppers or the halloween poppers where you can pull two strings or you can pull one and confetti and stuff comes out. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): that's

when conrad said he turned and saw heidy standing there in the hallway, naked. she wasn't talking. she wasn't talking at all. she was coughing. she was heaving. and she was bleeding. she was bleeding out of her mouth in her nose. i needed to call 911 immediately. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): an unimaginably shocking scene. heidy on the kitchen floor in a pool of her own blood, conrad on the phone pleading for help. it was bad to begin with and it got so much worse. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as you will learn, truer words may never have been spoken. what happened in that house? coming up-- i'm asking like, conrad, what's going on? he said, i don't know what happened. everything was just different answers, and different theories, different little things.

andrea canning (voiceover): --a search for answers and a race to save heidy-- andrea canning (voiceover): --when "dateline" continues. have you always had trouble with your weight? same. discover the power of wegovy®. with wegovy®, i lost 35 pounds. and some lost over 46 pounds. and i'm keeping the weight off. i'm reducing my risk. wegovy® is the only weight-management medicine proven to reduce risk of major cardiovascular events such as death, heart attack, or stroke in adults with known heart disease and obesity. don't use wegovy® with semaglutide or glp-1 medicines, or in children under 12. don't take if you or your family had mtc, men 2, or if allergic to it. tell your provider if you plan to have surgery or a procedure, are breastfeeding, pregnant, or plan to be. stop taking and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or any of these allergic reactions.

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ice works fast. ♪♪ heat makes it last. feel the power of contrast therapy. ♪♪ so you can rise from pain. icy hot. i got this $1,000 camera for only $41 on dealdash. dealdash.com, online auctions since 2009. this playstation 5 sold for only 50 cents. this ipad pro sold for less than $34. and this nintendo switch, sold for less than $20. i got this kitchenaid stand mixer for only $56. i got this bbq smoker for 26 bucks. and shipping is always free. go to dealdash.com right now and see how much you can save. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): something's wrong at the truman house.

josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the 911 call came in to the orem, utah, police department at about 11:00 pm that september night back in 2012. we got a call of a gunshot wound or some sort of injury. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): sergeant bill crook went to the truman home. so we all kind of rushed to our cars and headed that direction with lights and sirens. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): on the other end of the phone was conrad, kneeling on his kitchen floor, covered in blood and consumed by panic. it was devastating. it was a nightmare. you can't even explain it. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): with one hand, he held the phone, with the other his bleeding wife. it was so hard when it's your loved one like that. i had no-- i just did the best i could to try to keep her breathing. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): by then, conrad said he realized heidy had been shot in the head. when you went to heidy, did you see a gun? no. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): he remembered the pop he had heard and wondered if a stray bullet might have come through the bathroom window

and hit heidy. i was trying to think of the noise and how it wasn't very loud. and you know, maybe someone could have shot something at the house. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): it seemed far-fetched but he said neighborhood vandals had recently been shooting the back of his house with paintballs. i was utterly confused. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): within minutes, sergeant crook arrived. conrad by now had moved to the doorway of his home to wave crook down. he had blood on his hands. and he was screaming and shrieking. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad led the sergeant through the front door, up the stairs, and then into a scene straight from a horror movie. i could see heidy laying there. she was naked, blood everywhere, just right at the top of the stairs, just this horrific scene. what's conrad doing? well, he's screaming and he's yelling. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): and as these police photos make clear, covered in blood. i'm asking him like, conrad, what's going on? what happened here? he said she was in the bathroom.

and just i don't know what happened. everything was just different answers and different theories, different little things. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): right away, crook went to check one of those theories, a stray bullet perhaps coming through the bathroom window. the window's closed. there's no bullet hole. nothing to indicate that anybody fired a shot from outside. that's correct. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): crook returned to the kitchen. and that's when he discovered a gun lying on the kitchen floor. what did you think had happened? honestly, i didn't know. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): was this an accident, an attempted suicide, or something far more sinister? at least for now, those answers would have to wait. heidy was clinging to life. my focus at that time was honestly was to help heidy. paramedics took heidy to a nearby hospital. conrad followed in a police cruiser. a dash cam recorded the absolute desperation in his voice.

josh mankiewicz (voiceover): about an hour after conrad arrived, hospital staff delivered the devastating news. heidy wagner truman could not be saved. it was pain. it was misery. it was why. how? josh mankiewicz (voiceover): in a neighboring town, heidy's mother janet would soon agonize over those very same questions. it was after midnight when two police officers came to her door. what must that be like? the most horrendous thing ever. and i would never want anybody to have to feel that and that pain, that agony of knowing that your daughter, for whatever reason, is dead, has gone. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the officers wouldn't give janet any details, only where her daughter had been taken. i'm driving down to the hospital. and i make a comment to my daughter. i go, you know, autumn, as hard as it is that we lost heidy, we're going to have to be supporting conrad

because he must be overwhelmed with grief. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad's sister collette was thinking the same thing as she raced to the hospital. what kind of condition was your brother in then? he was just a total wreck, just absolutely hysterical. didn't know how it could have happened. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): no one did. but back at the truman home, sergeant crook had started analyzing the evidence and was already developing a theory. i thought, oh man, there's something going on here. you got a feeling. i got a feeling. yes. it wasn't just me. everybody was kind of looking around like there's something wrong here. we need a detective. andrea canning (voiceover): coming up, was it an accident, suicide-- we don't see a lot of women that commit suicide naked. that's not common. andrea canning (voiceover): --or something else? conrad truman: i felt like they thought i did something. andrea canning (voiceover): when "dateline" continues. psoriatic arthritis symptoms can be unpredictable. one day, your joints hurt. next, it's on your skin.

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josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as the sun inched above utah's wasatch mountains, questions swirled at their base. how did heidy truman wind up on her kitchen floor shot in the head? for sure, police were wondering about her husband. after all, conrad truman was in the house when heidy was shot. and there was no evidence of an intruder. i felt like they thought i did something. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): soon after he arrived at the scene, sergeant bill crook did begin to have his suspicions. we're telling him, conrad, back off. the paramedics are here. back off. and he wouldn't. he was, what, moving around, keeping paramedics from being at the body? - yes, sir. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): there were other scenarios that needed to be explored like accident and suicide.

that's where detective tom wallace came in. tom wallace: there had been a number of theories. we obviously are going to exhaust them. that's going to happen. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the medical examiner didn't make wallace's job any easier. his preliminary finding-- heidy's manner of death could not be determined. so wallace tackled each theory one by one. accidents seemed hard to believe. thanks to conrad, heidy had firearms experience. can you think of any way it could have been an accident? no. heidy wouldn't have been so careless. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): so what about suicide? we don't see a lot of women that commit suicide naked. that's not common. did you find anybody that heidy had spoken to about suicide or about being depressed? no. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): neither heidy's mother janet nor her sister autumn could imagine heidy even thinking about taking her own life. heidy would never do that. in fact, heidy was against that.

she had a friend who committed suicide. and she thought it was selfish and, in her words, dumb. janet wagner: heidy ever tell you she was depressed? no. ever act depressed? no. she was probably one of my happiest, most upbeat kids. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): that left wallace with homicide. and it put conrad back in the police crosshairs. wallace decided to speak to the officers first on the scene about their experience with conrad. everyone felt his behavior was odd. he's yelling but it's a violent yelling. he's like, if you don't save her, i'm going to [bleep] kill you. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): crook found those threats so alarming, he took out his phone to record them. it could just be the way this guy reacts to trauma. but i'm telling you, it was a red flag at that time. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): also a red flag, conrad was drunk. he admitted he and heidy had been drinking earlier that night. i could see in his eyes the redness. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): red flag number three.

conrad told crook he and heidy had been arguing. a minor dustup he said, no big deal, but enough for heidy to draw a bath and ask to be left alone. she went and locked herself in the bathroom. and then he details how he picked the lock and went in the bathroom. and then she kicked him out. to me, that's another-- it's just more proof of there was an argument, a bigger argument. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as for the location of the gun itself, that too was suspicious. that gun's how far from heidy? oh, i would say eight feet, 10 feet maybe. it's far enough away that it wasn't a normal like if she shoots herself and falls to the ground type of thing. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): later that morning, police asked conrad to come to the station for more questioning. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): heidy's family thought otherwise after finally learning from police

the details of how heidy died. the minute i heard how she died, i knew he did it. sounds like he had a temper. and he was very intoxicated. and he did something that perhaps he didn't plan. i just knew he did it. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): detective wallace next pored over conrad's statements to police about what happened that night. as wallace saw it, conrad's story went like this. conrad was in the kitchen. heidy was in the bathroom. at some point, conrad heard a pop. and when he turned, he saw heidy standing somewhere between the kitchen and the bathroom hallway, bleeding. and he either runs over and catches her or she falls down. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): wallace then went back to the truman home, making detailed measurements of the kitchen and surrounding rooms. he wanted to see if conrad's story checked out. his conclusion-- it did not. tom wallace: her body's at the top of the staircase.

it doesn't add up that she would have traveled the distance that he's saying she would have gone and then fallen at that location. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): it was hard for wallace to believe heidy could have traveled from the bathroom to the top of the stairs after sustaining such a severe head wound. she would have fallen immediately to the ground. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): wallace shared his findings with assistant district attorney craig johnson. johnson agreed. everything pointed to conrad. why would conrad truman want to kill his wife? under the circumstances, i'd say the motive was just based on this heat of passion argument that they were having. alcohol, a fight, and guns. that's where we got murder. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): at the same time, johnson was still reluctant to press charges. remember the state's own medical examiner couldn't say whether heidy's death was a homicide. and johnson knew that would be a huge hurdle in court. based on my experience in courts with juries, a medical examiner carries a lot of weight. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): so johnson and wallace

showed the me a 96 page powerpoint presentation of all their evidence, including those measurements, hoping something would sway him. the presentation worked. the medical examiner changed his ruling to homicide. janet wagner: it sounds like one of the things that got the medical examiner to move from inconclusive to homicide was the measurements of the crime scene suggested that her body was too far from where mr. truman said she'd been shot. exactly. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): and so after a 10 month investigation, the orem pd and the da's office arrested conrad truman and charged him with his wife's murder. autumn wagner: my mom called me. and i fell to the ground crying and so happy that he was finally behind bars. janet wagner: going into trial, what did you think? i thought we had a strong circumstantial case. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): at trial, the prosecution argued domestic violence ending in homicide. the defense-- self-inflicted gunshot wound.

the jury sided with the state. conrad truman was convicted of heidy's murder. it was like finally got him. finally got him. janet wagner: and as far as you knew that was it. that was it. did you think that was it? i did. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): but if you think that was it, well, then you haven't been watching enough "dateline." andrea canning (voiceover): coming up, heidy's heartbreak-- sandy sanchez: she did not know her dad. and she had always wanted that. that really bothered her. andrea canning (voiceover): --and conrad truman's hope-- this is going to work out. it has to because i didn't do this. andrea canning (voiceover): --when "dateline" continues.

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i'm richard lui with the news update. over 60 million americans

facing the severe winter weather. with dc and philadelphia bracing for snowy and icy conditions. and federal authorities on sunday revealing smart glasses video taken by the suspect in last week's deadly truck attack on bourbon street. the footage shows the alleged attacker visiting new orleans in october and november. for now, back to dateline. after his wife heidy's death, conrad truman stood convicted of her murder. he was looking down the barrel of a life sentence when he returned to a utah courtroom to learn his punishment. this is the moment where some convicted killers ask for mercy because of their difficult lives or tell the court they've been misunderstood. and sometimes, of course, they don't speak at all. but not conrad truman. listen to me please. i can't say sorry for something i did not do. i understood speaking out would make it way worse.

but i was like, i don't know. i was like to hell with this. i need to speak my mind. i didn't kill my wife. there's just no way. there'd be some proof i would think if i really did it. and i didn't. that's why there is no proof. you know, this is just a big injustice. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the judge had heard that before. the sentence he imposed-- 16 years to life, crushing for conrad and his family sitting behind him, including sister collette. you want to believe that things turn out the way that they're supposed to. and that's just not always the case. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): in prison, conrad did what many do. he retraced the steps that led him there. and he thought a lot about the night heidy died. as conrad saw it, the police rush to judgment began precisely when officers first rushed through his front door. conrad truman: it just felt like, this guy's drinking.

there's firearms in the house. so he must have shot her. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): well, why couldn't it be exactly that simple? this wouldn't be the first time that mixing alcohol, an argument, and a handgun led straight to a prison sentence. conrad told us what he told police. it isn't that simple. sure, he and heidy had been drinking. and yes, they had been arguing. but he said neither was an explanation for what happened. i could have upset her with some of the things i've said or the way i've acted with not being attentive to her. i know i do that sometimes when i drink. i don't pay a lot of attention. this still doesn't seem like grounds for a gigantic fight. no. it got to the point where i think she was-- i upset her. i was really, i just know she went to go take a bath. which is what she did when she was a little irritated. yes. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad also shared with us

how he picked the bathroom lock, not, he said, to confront heidy but just to apologize. she just said get out. and i was like, ok. and so i just let her be. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as for conrad's behavior after police arrived at his door, he said he had good reason for acting that way. i was trying to save my wife. i don't know. does that make sense? it was just-- i just wanted her to live. i get how frantic you must have been. i'm not sure i understand the threatening part of that. and i think that's one of the things that ended up getting you in trouble. could be. and i was like, do i have to-- how do i explain this to you guys? like get her help. and when you can't explain that to someone, i just started-- i started making threats. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): well, if all that's true, then why and how did heidy wind up with a bullet in her head? janet wagner: i think police found it hard to believe that you could be right there with her in a very small area, and she's shot,

and you don't know what happened. yeah. maybe in their heads. in mine, i was just-- i was confused. could this be an accident? what i say to that is i didn't see it. i don't know what happened. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): that's how he felt just hours after the shooting. but as the months passed, conrad came to the conclusion heidy may have taken her own life. his wife, he said, wasn't as tough as she appeared. was she a sad person? was she a depressed person. when she drank a little bit, you could see it come out. it wasn't every time but it did. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): heidy's friend sandy sanchez also saw another side to heidy. that strong, funny person also had some things inside that were very painful. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): according to sandy, those things had to do with heidy's upbringing, most significantly heidy grew up not knowing

the identity of her father. that really bothered her. you know, she did not know her dad. and she had always wanted that. it bugged her, tremendously. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): enough to take her own life? janet wagner: had she ever attempted suicide before? never, to my knowledge. she never talked about it? no. it's very hard to believe that what was going on in heidy's life at the time, what seemed like a pretty happy marriage to you. she's going to spur of the moment decide to commit suicide like that? well, that's a tough question. it's like how do you really know when someone's going to do that, you know? josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as he lived his life behind bars, conrad continued to speculate. he also tried to stay hopeful. i was just like, this is going to work out. it has to because i didn't do this. conrad's family never gave up on him so they scraped together the money to hire conrad some new attorneys. mark and annie looked into the case. to them, it was immediately apparent that there

were a lot of problems. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): mark moffatt and ann taliaferro were those attorneys. one of the first things they did was visit what had become the scene of the crime. ann taliaferro: we went to the house. and we walked in. and we think a-ha. within moments of being in that home, we knew immediately that there was a huge problem. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): not a problem for them, more for the people who had put conrad truman away. andrea canning (voiceover): coming up, is an innocent man in jail for someone's mistaken math? i remember thinking, well, that's strange. that couldn't be right. we immediately started measuring. and we knew right away that there was a big problem. andrea canning (voiceover): when "dateline" continues.

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josh mankiewicz (voiceover): while conrad truman sat in a utah state prison marking time, his sister colette searched endlessly for ways to get him out. was there a time when you or anybody else in your family thought maybe we don't know him as well as we thought we did? no. he couldn't have killed her? not possible. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): so much about conrad truman's trial bothered his sister colette but one detail in particular kept gnawing at her. it had to do with the diagrams used by the state, depicting the area where heidy's body was found.

i remember thinking, well, that's strange. that couldn't be right. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): post-verdict, colette shared her concerns with conrad's new attorneys mark moffatt and ann taliaferro. the defense team decided to visit the truman home to see for themselves if the state's diagrams were accurate. we later made that same trip with moffatt who showed us what they discovered. this is the area in question. and it's pretty small. it is. it's really small. and we immediately started measuring. and we knew right away that there was a big problem with their diagrams and the measurements. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the problem-- all those measurements were off. instead of 139 inches, somebody took the figure 139 and interpret it to be 13.9 feet. 33 inches became 3.3 feet and on and on and on. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): according to moffatt,

those flawed measurements which were used in court made the house appear much bigger than it was. mark moffatt: they used the theme of distance to argue that mr. truman was lying about where he said his wife was when he heard what turned out to be this fatal shot. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): at trial, the prosecution argued, to believe conrad, you'd have to believe heidy shot herself in the bathroom and then walked 12 feet before falling to the floor. and according to the medical examiner, that was impossible. he testified heidy's head wound was so severe that she could have at most walked a step or two. this issue of distance was this big issue. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): but for ann taliaferro, just seeing the house and how small it was was proof enough that the prosecution's argument didn't hold up. when you walk in the house. there's no way that there's even 12 feet there. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): what's more, according to the defense team, conrad never told the police heidy

shot herself in the bathroom. instead, he told them he had no idea where she was when he heard the shot. tell me your theory of what happened here. we believe that heidy truman shot herself in this very area. and we believe that she fell right in the area directly in front of me on the ground. and that's the very area where she was found when law enforcement entered the home that night. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): which they also said was completely consistent with the me's testimony that heidy would have fallen after only a step or two. she would have gone to the ground immediately. and your argument is she did fall down. exactly. and she fell right about here. yes. and that's exactly what our argument is. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): according to moffatt, this was not a simple mistake. is this just a case of a small town police department making some incorrect measurements or adding up some figures wrong? i don't believe so. i believe that they willfully lied to secure a conviction against conrad truman.

josh mankiewicz (voiceover): and for these attorneys, there were more issues with the state's case. one had to do with gunshot residue tests. the defense learned police swabbed both heidy and conrad's hands but those swabs were never sent to the lab. mark moffatt: when you have gunshot residue that was never tested, those things matter. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the defense team decided to test those swabs themselves. conrad's hands were negative for residue but there was a question as to whether conrad had washed his hands before they were tested so those results were meaningless. that's probably why they didn't test in the first place. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): as for heidy's swabs, there was no residue on her left hand but there was on her right hand. and significantly, heidy was right-handed. when you have gunshot residue in a location and in a quantity that is absolutely consistent with her firing a semiautomatic weapon, one of the possibilities is that she fired a gun.

you can't discount that. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the deeper moffat and taliaferro got into the case, the more it seemed to them heidy's fatal wound was self-inflicted. they believe the head wound, a contact wound, ruled out homicide. a contact gunshot wound to the right temple are the most common site of self-inflicted gunshot wounds sat there are. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): moffatt and taliaferro decided to take their findings to the me, hoping to sway his ruling on the manner of death once again, just as police did prior to conrad's arrest. we gave him a bunch of information. then he on his own with his investigator went to the home to look at it. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): and the result was just what they'd asked for. heidy truman's manner of death, once undetermined, then a homicide, was now officially once again undetermined.

it was manna from forensic heaven. ann taliaferro: how often do medical examiners change their findings and then change them back? i've never had a case where this has happened ever. kiic(voiceover): it took another year but conrad truman's conviction was overturned and he was granted a new trial. i never even thought that was even a possibility for the medical examiner to change. i never would have thought that. is there a part of you that thinks like, i can't get my hopes up about this? - yeah. yeah. yeah. that's exactly how i felt. i was beyond happy. we were just absolutely over the moon. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): for heidy's family, it was just the opposite. we couldn't believe it. you thought this was over. we thought it was over. we thought this was settled. that was a hard, hard, hard moment. we hated it. we just thought, so what are they going to come up with this time? josh mankiewicz (voiceover): and we know that's what you're thinking, too. andrea canning (voiceover): coming up, a new trial, a new jury, a different verdict?

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let's say you're deep in a show or a game or the game. on a train, at home, at work. okay, maybe not at work. point is at xfinity. we're constantly engineering new ways to get the entertainment you love to you faster and easier than ever. that's what i do. is that love island? josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad truman had been convicted of murder and had already served more than three years. now the revelation of those flawed police measurements had led to conrad truman's new trial.

that stunned everyone in the utah county da's office, especially the man responsible for conrad's conviction, prosecutor craig johnson. this is something that really took us by surprise. the defense says you had to have known. well, that's their take. and they're doing their job to zealously represent their client but i can tell you categorically that that's not correct. just as stunned was the man whose team took the measurements, lead detective tom wallace. ann taliaferro: what went wrong? how'd that happen? in the process of transposing numbers from actual measurements at the scene to the crime scene program, numbers were just transposed wrong. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): wallace admits the error but says it was minor, that conrad truman did not deserve a new trial. it's not that significant as they made it out to be. did those incorrectly entered measurements change your opinion of conrad truman's guilt? should they change anyone's opinion? they didn't change my opinion.

josh mankiewicz (voiceover): nor did it change the opinion of the deputy district attorney tim taylor, who decided to take on the task himself of prosecuting conrad once again. i think craig had been into the case for a long time so i wanted fresh eyes. so i went through all of the evidence. and even with the medical examiner changing his opinion, i still felt that there was enough to go forward. but we knew that going into it it was going to be tough. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): at trial, the prosecution's case was familiar, starting with the officers who testified about conrad's rambling, often incoherent description of what had happened that night. the core of our case were his inconsistent statements. the story was hard to follow. he was jumping around all over. it wasn't making sense to me. so it was hard to follow. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): those officers also told the jury about conrad's threats. he was telling us that we were going too slow and we needed to hurry up or he was going to kill us. i'll [bleep] kill you if you don't save my wife.

if you're making these violent threats to people who are there trying to help your wife, how are you treating your wife when it's only you and her alone? josh mankiewicz (voiceover): taylor then tackled the theory of suicide by calling witnesses to testify heidy was not suicidal. tim taylor: in your experience as heidy's mother, was she a sad or depressed person? no. i didn't see her that way. josh mankiewicz: did heidy not knowing her father or not really knowing who he was, that make her depressed or sad? no. no. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the prosecutor pointed out conrad's story evolved over time. immediately following the shooting on the way to the hospital, conrad insisted heidy would never commit suicide. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): taylor argued that it was only later after suspicion against conrad had mounted that he changed his tune.

as for the gunshot residue on heidy's right hand, taylor called an expert to say it proved nothing. nobody can identify a shooter based on the results of this test. that is the major limitation of this test. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): defense attorney mark moffett answered by telling the jury that before being allowed to wash his hands that night, conrad had pleaded with police to confirm he had no residue on them. he's telling me test my hands, test my hands. i didn't shoot a gun. did you wash your hands before saying that to the police? no. absolutely not. never washed my hands until they said, go wash your hands. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad's attorneys were working hard to establish reasonable doubt. and the state medical examiner's shifting opinion on heidy's manner of death only helped them. josh mankiewicz: that's your case right there. you would think. i mean, if he has reasonable doubt, hard to argue a jury shouldn't. exactly. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the medical examiner told the jury that, in the final analysis,

he didn't know the manner of heidy truman's death. i finalized the autopsy report with the cause of death as a gunshot wound and the manner of death as could not be determined. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): the me also testified how, in his experience, a contact wound like heidy's is rare in homicide cases. with a contact gunshot wound, it would be consistent with a wound that's self-inflicted. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): after 15 days of testimony, the jury began deliberations. so you felt pretty good leading up to the verdict. yes. there was enough there beyond a reasonable doubt. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad was having a much harder time. it was really difficult, you know, because why would things work out if it didn't work out the first time? you know what i mean? will the accused and counsel please stand? josh mankiewicz (voiceover): eight hours later, the verdict. hold up your hands. you're not wearing handcuffs. no cuffs. you're not in custody. i'm free. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): that's right. this time, conrad truman got the verdict he wanted.

not guilty. ann taliaferro: conrad just kept saying, did they say not? mark moffatt: yeah. he grabbed my arm, and he goes, are you sure? josh mankiewicz (voiceover): in the courtroom, conrad's family shared tears of joy. i was giggling and crying at the same time. it was weird. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): on the other side of the courtroom aisle were tears of a different kind. i don't know. my heart sank. and i just was in shock. josh mankiewicz: you fainted. i did. i couldn't believe there was a situation where that long shot happened where he would be freed. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): juror bryan christiansen said he and his fellow jurors had no choice but to set conrad free. i believe that we all pretty much felt that he probably did it. but you voted to acquit. we voted to acquit. because you had reasonable doubt. we had reasonable doubt. josh mankiewicz: whether you believe mr. truman is innocent or not, those measurements

either put an innocent man in prison or let a guilty man go free. well, so you're right. but my opinion hasn't changed. do i think he got away with murder? yeah. i do. what's it like to have your work called into question like that in a way that ends up freeing the guy that you helped convict? it's frustrating to know that a measurement that was inconsequential actually ended up freeing him. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): what's life been like for your family since then? we're trying to put the pieces together. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): for heidy's family, that is easier said than done. i miss the things that we had together. i miss the simple conversations. i miss her sassiness. i miss her wonderful personality. she lives on forever in our hearts. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): conrad is left looking both backward and forward. conrad truman: i mean, i would do anything to take another day, another walk with her.

i loved her. and i do love her still. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): you got a lot of life left, a lot. how are you going to live it? to the best of my abilities. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): there are jurors who think he might have done it, but i had reasonable doubt. i couldn't vote to convict. well, god bless him. but there's a lot of people that do believe in me. josh mankiewicz (voiceover): he's made his own peace with a simple truth, the very thing that freed him, reasonable doubt, could also shadow conrad truman for the rest of his life. that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm andrea canning. thanks for watching. . i'm craig melvin. and i'm natalie morales. and this is "dateline." at night, this is absolutely pitch dark. it was abandoned, and it was secluded. this was his playground.