keith morrison: that's an awful tough road. lynda whitehead: you can't even imagine. because every morning i wake up, i think about my daughter and my grandkids. it's just a tragedy. keith morrison: one about a mother who dared dream that her sweet gemini twins would surpass her who instead became their victim. craig melvin: that's all for this edition of dateline. i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline."my fam. that's in the movies. who would want him dead? someone came here with the intention to murder him.

and then i'm thinking, this person is still on the loose, you know? are we safe? craig melvin: she was a southern belle. kris hodge: a little lady, very fun, just someone you could have a good time with. craig melvin: and he was her long-time beau. emily roberts: he adored her and she adored him. craig melvin: united in life, divided by murder. it's just nothing but blue lights. and when you know it ain't good. craig melvin: she was with him that night, found bruised, crying, and wrapped in duct tape. so what was the motive? was it money or maybe revenge? there was a thick file of suspects. emily roberts: he could definitely have a laundry list of people who would want to kill him. craig melvin: but was his killer an enemy or a friend? those could be fighting words for someone. pretty strong words. i could see where somebody would get quite upset. craig melvin: and the mystery that haunts a small, southern town is a killer still walking free.

david roberts: i always say tick-tock, clock's ticking. andrea canning: you're coming? we coming. and we ain't givin' up. hello and welcome to "dateline." melvin roberts was a vip in his tight-knit community. and julia phillips was the light of his life. the couple seemed inseparable, then a murder shattered their love affair and exposed the dark underbelly of a zip code where it's considered polite to smile at your friends and your enemies. here's andrea canning with "death in the driveway." andrea canning: york, south carolina, a town steeped in american history and southern manners. its charm as deeply embedded as the pride

of the people who live here. it's a nice, southern town. it's very quiet. andrea canning: it's not the sort of place you'd expect evil to come knocking. my life has changed forever. andrea canning: and these are not the sort of people you'd expect to be victims of a vicious crime. he's a prominent man and in a small town. she's a good christian woman, sweet southern belle. andrea canning: and in the end, what would forever haunt this peaceful place was the who and the why of it all. shock, complete shock. andrea canning: it all started around dinner time, february 4, 2010, on the outskirts of town at the end of a long, winding driveway. it was 7:30 pm when the call came into police dispatch. between sobs, a female caller described her brutal attack.

she begged for help. police on duty raced through the rainy night, dashboard cam rolling, expecting to investigate a robbery. but what they found had detective billy mumaw's phone ringing as he sat down to dinner. i was called at home. and i was told that i need to come in. there was a robbery that occurred. andrea canning: when the detective went up the driveway to the back of the house, he discovered a woman huddled in her car. she had been bound in duct tape. i walked up to the car and i noticed that she had duct tape around her head. she also still had some duct tape around her wrists. andrea canning: and not more than a few feet from this blue and white suburban, police found a bloodied and lifeless gray-haired man. it was a bit of a shock for detective mumaw. the victim was someone he knew well. it was pretty surreal.

andrea canning: the man on the ground was melvin roberts, and everyone knew him. he was a former mayor of york, one of the town's wealthiest businessmen, and a legendary defense attorney. i'd had a few cases with him. kind of a stern man, but always friendly. andrea canning: and the woman who called police to the scene was julia phillips, melvin's longtime girlfriend. she was worried that melvin was dead. she said she didn't know what had happened to him. andrea canning: investigators at the scene told julia the devastating news. melvin had been murdered. is that a little jolt, melvin roberts is the victim? yeah, because melvin is not the type of a person to be a victim of anything. andrea canning: melvin was the longest practicing lawyer in south carolina. he had defended both the rich and poor for 55 years. he almost sounds like a bit of a small-town celebrity, whether he liked it or not. the thing about melvin is he was in to everything. andrea canning: he was so influential, the street where he lived was named after him, roberts avenue, a true renaissance man devoted to his family.

he was everything to me. he was my best friend. he was my mentor. andrea canning: melvin had two sons, david and ronnie. he was instrumental in making me into who i am. andrea canning: the three men shared an unusually strong bond. dad, david, and myself, it was our normal routine to have lunch every day. you all sound thick as thieves, the three of you. absolutely. the last thing i did every day before i went out was i'd give dad a big hug and a kiss on the cheek and tell him i loved him. and he'd tell me the same thing every single day. he loved to take me out to the farm. andrea canning: melvin's only grandchild emily roberts recalled how her granddad had a way of keeping his family close. we would always go vacationing in different countries, fishing in costa rica for my graduation from college or scuba diving in bonaire and just really bonding together.

it was quite an amazing relationship. andrea canning: and then there was julia. she and melvin started dating 10 years earlier. he was divorced and she had recently been widowed. did they quickly become a fixture around town? yes, immediately. he adored her. and she adored him. she loves to travel. she's spunky, she's fun, what he thought was his perfect match. andrea canning: she fit right in to this tight-knit family. she was bubbly. she was a good cook. yeah, that's a plus. - the way to a man's heart. - that's right. right through the stomach. or a woman. andrea canning: they became a team. melvin even helped julia start her own business. he eventually bought her her own store so that she could sell her cosmetics and women's clothing. andrea canning: she opened the store in gaffney, a nearby town where she had grown up. she called it julia's. so she started to become kind of part of the family? yeah. yeah, absolutely. yeah, i mean, we were really happy for dad. andrea canning: but now everything had changed.

as investigators work the crime scene, tommy jenkins, then york police captain, knocked on ronnie's door. so he says, "ronnie, i gotta tell you something." he said, "your father's dead." and i said, "no, tommy, that's not true." and he said, "no, ronnie, it's your father. you know, i've known him most of my life. and it's him." andrea canning: ronnie and his brother david drove to their father's house hoping it was all a mistake. i look over to the side and i see "coroner" written on the back. and that's when you know that he ain't coming back. andrea canning: as the news of julia's attack and melvin's murder spread, so too did fear. if it could happen to this prominent couple, who might be next? someone came here with the intention to murder him. and then i'm thinking, this person is still on the loose, you know? are we safe? craig melvin: coming up, police had one thing going for them--

a witness. but there was a lot investigators did not have. this would not be an easy murder to solve. everything was taken from the scene. there was no cutting instrument, no rolls of tape, no gun, nothing. it was all gone. craig melvin: when "dateline" continues. (vo) you were diagnosed with thyroid eye disease a long time ago. and year after year, you weathered the storm and just lived with the damage that was left behind. but even after all this time your thyroid eye disease could still change. restoration is still possible. learn how you could give your eyes a fresh start at tedhelp.com. gold bond believes touch says everything.

it says... i see you. i feel you. and...i know you. gold bond. get in touch with irresistibly touchable skin. when winter season hits emergen-c supports your immune system with so much more than vitamin c. be ready to fight back with emergen-c and for on-the-go immune support try emergen-c crystals. no water needed. your first week. looking for something different? try our new meal plans that support your high protein or low carb diet over 50 and fabulous! check out the women's over 50 program and reduce harmful belly fat by 8% in your first month. >> low carb, high protein and women's health. >> and we all lost weight with >> and we all lost weight with nutrisystem. if you take or have taken humira for moderate to severe crohn's disease

or ulcerative colitis and still have symptoms... you don't have to settle. ask your gastroenterologist if switching to rinvoq is right for you. it's one of the latest treatments from the makers of humira. rinvoq works differently than humira and may help. rinvoq is a once-daily pill that can deliver rapid symptom relief, lasting steroid-free remission, and helps visibly reduce damage of the intestinal lining. rinvoq can lower ability to fight infections. before treatment, test for tb and do bloodwork. serious infections, blood clots, some fatal; ...cancers, including lymphoma and skin; serious allergic reactions; gi tears; death; heart attack; and stroke occurred. cv event risk increases in age 50 plus with a heart disease risk factor. tell your doctor if you've had these events, infection, hep b or c, smoked, are pregnant or planning. don't take if allergic or have an infection. rapid symptom relief and lasting steroid-free remission are possible with rinvoq. ask your gastroenterologist to switching to rinvoq is right for you. you could pay as little as $0 per month. the thompsons' new front door looks sharp, right? to switching to rinvoq is right for you. did we need to wave her down to tell her that?

no. no. for a young homeowner turning into their parents, the neighborhood is their life. wonder who's visiting the burkes. that's not their car. hey, guys. who's winning? [ giggles ] now most of the neighborhood uses progressive -for their cars and house. -okay. she didn't ask. ohhhh! [ sighs ] progressive can't save you from becoming your parents. but we can save you money when you bundle home and auto with us. here he comes...like clockwork. [ giggles ] nights and weekends. >> because justice never sleeps. morgan and morgan for the people.com. >> are you certain he'll fit? >> sure. >> are you for imprint? >> certain. >> certainty matters. need promo gear for imprints? certainly. got it. apparel, drinkware bags and more. go get it at four and more. go get it at four imprint.com for imprint

andrea canning: detective billy mumaw stood on the driveway that cold february night, trying to figure out who killed prominent lawyer melvin roberts and brutally attacked his girlfriend julia phillips. he got a close look at melvin's body. could you tell immediately what had happened? he had a couple of abrasions, one on top of his head, one on the side of his head next to his ear. and they were good licks. i mean, somebody lit him up pretty good with some sort of metal object. andrea canning: the detective could also tell that melvin had been shot at. the bullet had only grazed his ear, punching holes through the back of his jacket. so what killed him? as i'm looking down at him, he also had a zip tie that was wrapped around his neck. and it was cinched down pretty good. andrea canning: 79-year-old melvin roberts had been strangled. police quickly search the scene and spotted their first clue. for prosecutor kris hodge who would handle the case, it was a big one. they were able to find footprints back to mr. roberts' house.

the footprints were in mud and muddy water. and they still had tread. so that tells us they're super fresh. andrea canning: investigators believe the footprints most likely came from a man. they quickly called in the k9 unit, hoping dogs could track down the killer if he was still in the woods around melvin's house. the dogs have picked up on a fresh scent. they go out to an adjoining neighborhood where the dog then loses the scent, which implies the person got into a car and took off. andrea canning: and that's where the trail vanished, leaving little else for investigators. everything was taken from the scene. there was no cutting instrument, no rolls of tape, no empty tape, certainly no zip ties, no gun, nothing. it was all gone. andrea canning: but detectives did have a witness. maybe she could help solve the crime. julia was gently escorted away, still wrapped in duct tape. have a seat for me, ms. julia. andrea canning: she arrived at the police station-- you ok, sweetheart? yeah.

andrea canning: --cold and shaken, with cuts on her arm and elbow and bruises on her hands and face. but despite all the trauma, julia told investigators she was ready to help find melvin's killer. she's your best witness at this point. correct. and at this time, she's our only witness. andrea canning: she took detectives through the details of the attack. it began here behind melvin's house in the large circular driveway surrounded by a red brick wall. she was getting groceries out of the back of her suv when she realized she was not alone. then, he made a demand. the next thing she knew, he was tying her up with duct tape.

she said he dragged her 60 feet to the back of the parking area, behind the brick wall. lying on the white ground, she soon heard melvin's car pull up. a short time later, she heard a violent struggle. >> why do you think you heard something that sounded like a pipe? i don't know, because i pipe? i don't know, because i heard it hit the ground. okay. after that, julia didn't hear anything else. she stayed behind the brick wall,

hoping the killer was gone, then made her escape. with the duct tape loose, she said she was able to use a key to break free. julie explained to police she wanted to get help for melvin, but a part of her knew it was too late. still wet and muddy, she told the police she'd stay as long as they needed her. she was just grateful to be alive. she sat at the police station for a good bit into the night. i believe she left sometime 1:00, 2:00, 3 o'clock in the morning, something to that effect. andrea canning: a few days went by

and the cops were no closer to finding the killer, so they did something unconventional. since julia was ready and willing, they took her back to the crime scene. what we believed if we take her back to the scene, that we could get a more clear and concise picture of exactly what happened. andrea canning: they wanted julia to show them where her assailant had thrown her in the mud. maybe they'd missed clues behind the wall. they also wanted to revisit the sound of that pipe she heard. detectives asked her to close her eyes and just listen. they were hoping it might unlock any suppressed memories from that night. she did remember more details about her attacker's voice.

detective mumaw continued to gently guide julia through the crime scene, but she often became emotional. it all seemed to be taking a toll. and melvin's family worried about her. i called julia on several occasions to check on her. and she was shaken up a bit. she was worried that someone was still out there? yes, to the point that at her store, they would leave the door locked and would not let anybody in until they saw who was at the door. andrea canning: so who could have done this to julia and melvin? detectives were about to discover the number of possible suspects was daunting. turns out melvin was a man with a lot of friends and a lot of enemies. coming up-- put a list together, anything that anyone could have had a conflict with dad about over whatever. how long was the list? it was at least 75 names. craig melvin: was melvin's killer on that list?

when "dateline" continues. words during conversations? trust me, you're not alone. that's why we developed new doctors preferred mindful advantage, the cutting edge, science backed brain health supplement that will help keep your mental edge sharp. >> to get your complimentary sample of new mindful advantage, just text mind to 321321. >> mindful advantage helps you think faster by targeting five areas of brain function attention, learning and memory, language, motor function, and even mood. with five key brain boosting ingredients. ingredients backed by five clinical studies. don't settle for slowing down. keep your mind and memory going at full speed with mindful advantage. >> to get your complimentary sample of new mindful advantage, just text mind to 321321. text

now and we'll send you a bottle of doctor's preferred magnesium. absolutely free. mindful advantage is not available in stores, just text mind to 321321. now when you call us for help, we answer even at 3:00 in the morning. try us holidays, nights and weekends because justice never sleeps. morgan and morgan for the people.com. >> we had such a great experience with empire. >> we would recommend it to anyone. >> real customers share their stories about empire today. >> as a matter of fact, we already have customer service and the personal touch is really where it's at. >> the quality too is important to us, and the quality of the flooring was great. i mean, we've had people come in our home and say, wow, this is really beautiful. >> where'd you have it done? >> empire 805 882 300. empire. >> today, when you call us for help, we answer. even at 3:00 in

the morning. try us. holidays, nights and weekends. because justice never sleeps. pete g. writes, "my tween wants a new phone. how do i not break the bank?" we got you, pete. xfinity mobile was designed to save you money and gives you access to wifi speeds up to a gig. so you get high speeds for low prices. better than getting low speeds for high prices. right, bruce? -jealous? yeah, look at that. -honestly. someone get a helmet on this guy. xfinity internet customers, get a free unlimited line for a year when you buy one unlimited line.

once again, nine tablets for just $7 is tri friday plans.com the first 100 days. >> it's a critical time for our country and rachel maddow is on five nights a week. >> now is the time. so we're going to do it. >> settle in the rachel maddow show five nights a week beginning monday, donald trump plans to reshape the u.s. government. >> democrats have wasted no time in laying the groundwork to fight the incoming trump administration. donald trump was a presidential cabinet full of loyalists. don't miss the weekends, saturday and sunday weekends, saturday and sunday mornings at 8:00 on andrea canning: the attack on julia phillips and the murder of her boyfriend melvin roberts looked like a robbery gone wrong. but once investigators took a closer look, the clues at the crime scene told a different story. no money was taken. the money bag that julia had brought with her

had roughly $80 in it. also melvin, i believe he had in the neighborhood of $400 in his wallet still. andrea canning: prosecutor kris hodge believed this was a premeditated hit. kris hodge: we had to figure out who would have any motive. so you had to really hone in on people that knew melvin and anybody that had a beef with him. andrea canning: that wouldn't be easy because melvin was no ordinary man. as detectives started looking into melvin's relationships with people around town, they learned he had two sides. while he could be incredibly kind and generous, he also had an edge. he had no problem telling you what he thought of you or what you should do or what you could do better. so he's known to have a little bit of a temper. andrea canning: police wondered if that temper might have given someone a reason to kill. they also took a close look at melvin's business dealings. besides being a defense attorney, melvin owned multiple rental properties and a used car lot.

police asked melvin's sons ronnie and david to come up with a list of potential suspects, anyone who might have a grudge. i had all the people who worked for dad put a list together of clients that he had represented or had a case against him, rental properties, evictions, repos, anything that anyone could have had a conflict with dad about over whatever. how long was the list? it was at least 75 names, at least. he's been an attorney for 55 years. he has made people pay child support who may not want to pay child support. lose their children, you know, in a divorce. there were people who may want to see harm to your dad, potentially. potentially. potentially. andrea canning: working from that list, police began knocking on doors and bringing people in for questioning. detectives also pursued a promising lead from their only witness, melvin's girlfriend julia.

they focused on a key detail she'd given them, the killer's accent. or if he just couldn't speak good english. one of the descriptions julia had given us was that it was an indian type with an accent. andrea canning: that clicked with detective billy mumaw. he'd learned about a couple who had rented a house from melvin. the husband had an indian accent, and his wife had a nasty fight with melvin. i had found out that about a week before that melvin had an argument with a fairly large female tenant. andrea canning: she had complained that the floor was cracking near the kitchen sink. melvin told her that if she wasn't such a fat ass that she wouldn't be breaking the floor. those could be fighting words for someone. pretty strong words for a husband to take. and i could see getting pretty upset with that and maybe going overboard. andrea canning: when the detective went to the house to speak to the husband, the man told mumaw he was at work at the time of the murder.

investigators set out to check his story. police were also very interested in someone else, melvin's handy man gene moss. david said he walked in on his dad and moss having an argument in the office conference room on the night of the murder. dad had been having some issues with gene. and i thought they were having a private conversation. i looked in, told him, you know, bye, dad, i'll see you tomorrow kind of thing. and i walked out the door. andrea canning: it was the last time david saw his dad alive. gene wasn't doing what dad wanted him to. was gene about to get the boot? yeah, i thought so. i thought dad was being a little bit too hard on gene. you know, like, "dad, you ought to back it down maybe a notch or two. if you're gonna get rid of the guy, why don't you just go ahead and fire him." gene was one of the main suspects that we were looking at. andrea canning: meanwhile, police got a break. they discovered dna on that zip tie found around melvin's neck. they immediately started swabbing suspects, hoping to find a match. i have over 80 dna samples that i've

collected from anybody and everybody connected to this case. did you interview all those people as well or just-- all those people had been interviewed by me or at least one of the other three or four or five detectives that had assisted with this case. 80 people? mm-hmm. andrea canning: clearly, it would be a tough case to crack. is it like finding a suspect in a haystack? in a stack of suspects, probably, yeah. andrea canning: but were they looking in the right haystack? craig melvin: coming up, a secret kept in a bedroom. we found a lot of empty prescription pill bottles and a lot of pharmacy receipts. craig melvin: had the police also found the motive for melvin's murder? when "dateline" continues. with dupixent, stay ahead of moderate-to-severe eczema. as you welcome the feeling of touch with clearer skin and less itch. the #1 prescribed biologic by dermatologists and allergists, helps heal your skin from within. severe allergic reactions can occur. get help right away for face, mouth, tongue

or throat swelling, wheezing or trouble breathing. tell your doctor of new or worsening eye problems, like eye pain, vision changes, or blurred vision, joint aches and pain, or a parasitic infection. don't change or stop asthma or other medicines without talking to your doctor. ask your doctor about dupixent. an alternative to pills, voltaren is a clinically proven arthritis pain relief gel, which penetrates deep to target the source of pain with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicine directly at the source. voltaren, the joy of movement. upset stomach iberogast indigestion iberogast bloating iberogast thanks to a unique combination of herbs, iberogast helps relieve six digestive symptoms to help you feel better. six digestive symptoms. the power of nature. iberogast. quicken. it's totally in my

budget. bad. mr. sparkles. >> allowance, birthday money, investments. >> quicken tracks all my income and spending and even built me a personalized budget so it's easier to save more. >> this is amazing. i know it is. >> yeah. >> do more with your money. >> i save up to 50% today. >> that's a lot of money. >> i'm certain it's level five. >> are you for imprint? certain? >> i'm certain it's level five. >> certainty matters. like the certainty of four. >> imprint your home for high quality promotional gear, including exclusive items and brands they love. >> printed perfectly and guaranteed to arrive on time to wow your clients, nail your next event or z's bakery is looking to add a pizza oven, arissa's hair salon wants to expand their space, and steve's t-shirt shop wants to bring on more help. with the comcast business 5-year price lock guarantee, they can think more about possibilities for their business and not the cost of their internet.

it's five years of gig-speeds and advanced security. all from the company with 99.9% network reliability. get the 5-year price lock guarantee, now back for a limited time. powering five years of savings. powering possibilities™. month. >> call 1-833-735-4495 or visit homeserve.com. >> hi, i'm richard lui with a news update. preparations underway as a winter storm bears down on much of the us. the northeast is expecting at least

six inches of snow sunday. several cities are opening warming centers to provide shelter to people who need to escape the frigid weather. and according to a document reviewed by nbc news, immigration and customs enforcement officials are planning a major operation. it will target immigrants for several days following the inauguration of president elect donald trump. for now, back to donald trump. for now, back to welcome back to "dateline." i'm craig melvin. melvin roberts was murdered outside his secluded southern home. and investigators believe he had been targeted. police quickly learned melvin had plenty of enemies. now, they were about to uncover a suspect hiding in plain sight. here again is andrea canning with "death in the driveway." andrea canning: four days after his murder, melvin roberts was laid to rest in the town he called home for the last 60 years. did it feel like the whole town came to the funeral?

it did. yeah, everybody was there, from all over. he was the go-to guy in york. if you need to figure something out or you needed help. and he wasn't afraid to take on anybody. he never backed down. he always looked out for the little guy, you know. because i think he always saw himself as the little guy. andrea canning: but as hundreds gathered to say goodbye to melvin, an odd feeling settled over the mourners. was it fear? was it suspicion? could someone amongst them be the killer? melvin's granddaughter emily started looking over her shoulder. who could this be? how could this have happened? who would want him dead? was it putting the town on edge? yeah, there's a killer on the loose. we've got gotta figure out who this is. andrea canning: detectives were working around the clock, trying to narrow down the long list of potential suspects. they learned that the angry tenant who fit the description of the man they were looking for couldn't possibly be the killer. he was at work, prosecutor kris hodge.

you have to clock in and clock out. and his employer verified the time he was there and that he had not left. he stayed until his shift was over. so he had an airtight alibi. andrea canning: then there was the handyman, gene moss, who'd had an argument with melvin shortly before the murder. when detective billy mumaw questioned moss, he said he was at home with his wife. that could be a shaky alibi, your wife. yeah there was a phone call that was made to him by another fellow that i interviewed. and he said that he had heard his wife in the background. on the home line? correct, and that was just after the murder. andrea canning: moss was crossed off the list. detectives were running into nothing but dead ends. they'd spent a lot of time delving into melvin's life. now detectives wanted to look for clues in julia's background. they took a ride 40 minutes west to gaffney to check out her business. and as they poked around her store, things weren't exactly what they seemed. it started out as a big, fancy store

and then basically had just declined into a thrift store. andrea canning: perhaps even more concerning to detectives was the reason julia's store was failing. investigators learned julia had a problem with pills. she was taking money out of the till. she was buying prescription drugs off people off the street. we found a lot of empty prescription pill bottles and a lot of pharmacy receipts. this was a woman with a serious addiction. she was. andrea canning: but it turns out, julia's financial troubles and pill addiction were no secret. a few years earlier, emily said her grandfather had even stepped in to help. he sent her to rehab. and she willingly went? correct. that must have made melvin really happy. that he could help change her life and spin it around to be a positive, yeah. andrea canning: when word got out that cops were asking tough questions about julia, many around town thought the police were wasting their time. everybody thought there was an outside person.

there's no way that julia would kill melvin. he was the love of her life. andrea canning: and julia said that was the case right up to melvin's death. she told police she had planned a celebration for that night. turns out it was her birthday. and julia had a few surprises for melvin. melvin collected matchbook covers. and she had gotten a few of those and gotten him a present for her birthday. she also bought mike's hard lemonade and was wearing special victoria's secret underwear. julia painted a picture of two people in love. sure enough, detectives found evidence to back that up. during the investigation, we did locate a few items that suggested that their sex life was quite active. andrea canning: still, detective mumaw's radar was up. he thought back to the first moment

he saw julia huddled in her suv. there was something about the way she'd been wrapped in that duct tape that didn't sit right. the duct tape that went around her hands, it basically looked like someone-- she had held her arms out. and it all looked like it was placed on there with care as to not hurt her. so right away, you could just tell that this wasn't a typical duct tape wrap? it was odd. the amount of duct tape that was around her feet did not match somebody who would be normally duct taped. there just wasn't enough of it. andrea canning: this got the detective wondering, was there anything else about julia's story on that fatal night that didn't make sense? craig melvin: coming up, a strange reaction to a simple request. did julia just reveal the naked truth? 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. serious side effects may include pancreas inflammation and gallbladder problems. call your prescriber if you have any of these symptoms.

wegovy® may cause low blood sugar in people with diabetes, especially if you take medicines to treat diabetes. call your prescriber about vision changes, if you feel your heart racing while at rest, or if you have mental changes. depression or thoughts of suicide may occur. common side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, stomach pain, flu, or upset, headache, feeling tired, dizzy, or bloated, gas, and heartburn. some side effects lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. with wegovy®, i'm losing weight, i'm keeping it off, and i'm lowering my cv risk. ask your prescriber about wegovy®. >> frank dulcolax kiwi fruit bites for fast and gentle bites for fast and gentle constipation relief i patients who have sensitive teeth but also want whiter teeth they have to make a choice one versus the other. sensodyne clinical white provides two shades whiter teeth as well as providing 24/7 sensitivity protection.

patients are going to love to see sensodyne on the shelf. i told myself i was ok with my moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis symptoms... ...with my psoriatic arthritis symptoms. but just ok isn't ok. and i was done settling. if you still have symptoms after trying a tnf blocker like humira or enbrel, rinvoq works differently. rinvoq is a once-daily pill that can rapidly relieve joint pain, stiffness, and swelling as fast as 2 weeks for some. and even at the 3-year mark, many people felt this relief. rinvoq can stop joint damage. and in psa, can leave skin clear or almost clear. rinvoq can lower ability to fight infections. before treatment, test for tb and do bloodwork. serious infections, blood clots, some fatal; ...cancers, including lymphoma and skin; serious allergic reactions; gi tears; death; heart attack; and stroke occurred. cv event risk increases in age 50 plus with a heart disease risk factor. tell your doctor if you've had these events, infection, hep b or c, smoked, are pregnant or planning. don't take if allergic or have an infection. done settling? ask your rheumatologist for rinvoq.

and take back what's yours. (♪♪) what they're inheriting. >> the fallout from meta ceo mark zuckerberg's decision to end fact checking. >> what's your message to concerned voters about where the country may be headed after the biden administration leaves? >> actually behind closed doors? they're still asking what the they're still asking what the hell happened? andrea canning: on the night of the murder, julia phillips, the sassy southern belle, sat in the police station and was gently asked a routine question. still, investigators were bothered by a few things.

besides the way julia had been gingerly wrapped with duct tape, detective mumaw also wondered about the amount of mud on her clothes. during one interview, she said she had been dragged 60 feet and forced face down into the ground. he's taking my face and he's literally pushing it down into this mud. so you would expect mud, like, head to toe? correct. and basically what we got was if she would have sat down in the grass, her butt and her pant legs at the bottom of the pant legs were muddy like she would have sat down. andrea canning: the police weren't the only ones growing suspicious. melvin's granddaughter looked back on something that happened at the funeral home. julia, who was there with her son hunter, approached emily. immediately, she wants to tell her story about what had happened that night. andrea canning: the timing was a bit inappropriate, emily thought. but more disturbing, julia's son knew this story better than she did. she tells us that she was, you know, her hands were bound from behind.

and he goes, "no, mama, your hands were bound in the front." andrea canning: it wasn't surprising that julia might be confused about small details from that violent night. but when detectives went to verify one thing she was crystal clear on, alarm bells went off. julia had told police she heard a gunshot and said she was nowhere near the gun. but forensic evidence told mumaw a very different story. you did a gunshot residue test the moment, i would imagine, you got to the police department. correct. her hands come back negative. but you found it on her-- sleeves --sleeves. if she's 60 feet away behind the wall and the assailant is shooting him-- gunshot residue is not going to travel 60 feet. andrea canning: an "aha" moment for the detective. when he added the gunshot residue on julia's clothes with all the other parts of her story he found questionable, he was convinced julia wasn't a victim, but the mastermind who arranged and helped carry out melvin's murder.

so three months after that cold, rainy night, police arrested julia phillips in the parking lot outside her store and charged her with murder. probably the best day of my life. my dad called me and said, they got her. andrea canning: police and prosecutors didn't think julia actually killed melvin, but that she hired someone else to do it. the fresh footprints, that was really how we knew that she absolutely had someone else. andrea canning: their theory painted julia as pure evil. the reason she was relatively dry, they surmised, was because she stood under an umbrella watching as her accomplice struck, shot, and strangled melvin before carefully wrapping her in duct tape. we've always assumed that there was a second person assisting in the actual physical hands-on part of the murder. andrea canning: so who could it be? there was one person who police learned was close to her, had a criminal record, and like julia had a drug problem--

her son hunter. well, he was a suspect just for the simple fact that he was most likely to help her. was he kind of a shady character? he was always involved with scams to get his pills. drugs really drove him? correct. andrea canning: but hunter had a solid alibi. he was with a former cop at the time of the murder, 40 minutes away, repairing his home computer. we could not put him in york at the time of the murder. andrea canning: hunter was never charged. in fact, investigators couldn't find anyone to charge. and the prosecutor worried that would make this murder-for-hire case a tough one to prove. there is no evidence whatsoever linking julia to a hit man? that's right, nothing. we tracked her bank records. we saw no exchanges of any type. she kept her phone clean. there were no odd calls. and that was the hurdle that i felt like we faced having an empty chair.

and you're trying julia and the empty chair. andrea canning: after 3 and 1/2 years working to build a case, in august 2013, julia phillips went on trial for murder. the once polished belle of york was now a shell of her old self. the years since her arrest had taken a toll. but hodge urged the jury not to be fooled by the frail woman in the courtroom. if you believe that the defendant is guilty of doing one thing, just one thing on the night melvin roberts was murdered to aid in that murder, then she is guilty. have a seat for me, miss. andrea canning: the prosecutor began by showing the jurors julia's interviews with police. hodge wanted them to hear one of the first things julia said on the night of the murder. they put a blanket on her and asked if they could take some photographs. the first thing the woman says, "are these

gonna be used for playboy?" right there, boom. like, no, that was totally inappropriate. andrea canning: then, the prosecution dropped a bombshell. they'd found a witness to testify that this was not the first time julia had melvin's murder on her mind. a police informant named guy blankenship, a man with a criminal past, claimed that a few years before melvin died, julia tried to hire him to do the hit. we had now an actual person who had heard her say that and even offered him money to kill mr. roberts. andrea canning: hodge built her case leading to one main question most jurors want answered-- what was the motive? melvin's granddaughter thought she knew the answer to that one and could be found in melvin's will. what did he leave her? the building and any car that she wanted from his car lot. andrea canning: the building was worth about $150,000. it housed her store julia's. in south carolina in a small community,

that would take you far, 150,000? mm-hmm. andrea canning: the state believed julia was worried she was never going to see that money. the reason? the relationship between julia and melvin was over, said prosecutors, and she knew it. they put a friend of melvin's on the stand to back up their claim. he wasn't paying her bills anymore and that he wasn't having anything to do with her. he wouldn't even touch her. andrea canning: and in what prosecutors believed was the final straw, that witness told the jury melvin had let julia know he had booked a cruise with another woman. that must have really gotten under julia's skin. i would think. he made it very clear to her she was being replaced. andrea canning: and it was no coincidence, the prosecutor argued, that julia had melvin killed on her birthday. do you think there's a possibility that this was julia's birthday present to julia? absolutely. andrea canning: melvin's family now thought so too. ronnie and david sat in the courtroom every day,

hoping for one thing. i wanted to hear one word. and i thought, you know, 3 and 1/2 years of work comes down to hearing one word-- guilty. guilty. andrea canning: but would they get their wish? now, it was the defense's turn. they had an explanation for the duct tape, the mud, the gunshot residue. in the end, they said, the state's case was all smoke and mirrors. craig melvin: coming up, another twist. authorities wonder, was there one murder or two? there was enough suspicion presented to me that i wanted the body exhumed. craig melvin: when "dateline" continues. if you take or have taken humira for moderate to severe crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis and still have symptoms... you don't have to settle. ask your gastroenterologist if switching to rinvoq is right for you. it's one of the latest treatments from the makers of humira. rinvoq works differently than humira and may help.

rinvoq is a once-daily pill that can deliver rapid symptom relief, lasting steroid-free remission, and helps visibly reduce damage of the intestinal lining. rinvoq can lower ability to fight infections. before treatment, test for tb and do bloodwork. serious infections, blood clots, some fatal; ...cancers, including lymphoma and skin; serious allergic reactions; gi tears; death; heart attack; and stroke occurred. cv event risk increases in age 50 plus with a heart disease risk factor. tell your doctor if you've had these events, infection, hep b or c, smoked, are pregnant or planning. don't take if allergic or have an infection. rapid symptom relief and lasting steroid-free remission are possible with rinvoq. ask your gastroenterologist to switching to rinvoq is right for you. you could pay as little as $0 per month. real meat. real veggies for peter. >> that's peter. should have >> that's peter. should have [coughing]

hi susan, honey? yea. i respect that, but that cough looks pretty bad. try this robitussin honey. the real honey you love, plus the powerful cough relief you need. mind if i root through your trash? robitussin, with real honey & elderberry. imagine you could do this without products that just temporarily hide the symptoms. imagine no more insta flex advanced. get a complimentary sample just by texting flo to 369369. insta flex advanced is different because it targets the root cause of joint soreness and stiffness. it doesn't just cover up symptoms, instead, it bathes your joints in its unique combination of five key natural ingredients found in no other product. key ingredients backed by five clinical studies, insta flex advanced is so powerful you could have better knees in just one week. maybe that's why it's number one at gnc. but you can only get your complimentary

sample by texting flo to 369369 plus text now, and will include a tube of insta flex pain cream with its exclusive oxygenated oil for fast acting relief from the pain of arthritis, back aches and sore muscles. absolutely ♪ ♪ with so much great entertainment out there... wouldn't it be easier if you could find what you want, all in one place? my favorites. get xfinity streamsaver with netflix, apple tv+, and peacock included, for only $15 a month.

nightmare. >> plans from homeserve start at just 4.99 a month. call 1-888-246-2612 or visit 1-888-246-2612 or visit homeserve. com. andrea canning: the trial of julia phillips had people talking and had melvin's sons worried. could julia's defense team convince the jury she had nothing to do with the murder of her longtime love? her attorney, bobby frederick, and his wife, joy, a paralegal on the case, said they had no doubt julia was innocent. we believed in julia from the beginning. she is kind and caring. and there was no question in my mind that she was in love with melvin. andrea canning: the defense set out to show the jury a very different version of julia. her comments that seemed inappropriate, they argued, were just part of her quirky personality.

after the man you love just died, you're going to be making jokes about "playboy?" i can tell you that she was traumatized. it's just how she is and it's how she talks. andrea canning: they even told the jury that julia was weird. her conversation style is unlike most people. weird was something to open the jury up to. she might be weird. she might be inconsistent. but look, you know, she's not a killer. andrea canning: the defense also reminded the jury julia was a victim. she'd been attacked. and as she told police, there was a perfectly good reason why that duct tape was loose. but wouldn't it have still pulled some skin or some hair? it was raining the night of the incident. so as it's raining, it's getting wet. it's not sticking as much as it usually does. andrea canning: and since it was raining that night,

the prosecution had asked, why wasn't julia wet and muddy? easy, the defense said, she was. joy frederick: on the video, you can see her jeans are soaking wet. she's not dry. she's got mud all over her pants, which was from the rain and the dirt. andrea canning: the defense also addressed the gunshot residue found on julia's clothes, which seemed to undermine her story that she was behind a wall 60 feet away from where the gun went off. julia's lawyer argued that there wasn't enough residue found on julia to do an accurate test. if this had been the fbi lab, any of our military labs, they could not have testified there was gunshot residue because the number of particles found did not meet the threshold. what we want you to get-- andrea canning: julia's defense team continue to pound home the notion that there was no physical evidence linking her to the murder. and if this was a murder for hire, they asked, where was the killer? they built their case based on motive, not evidence.

they want to say to you, we have no idea what happened. but we want you to guess and convict her. that is not how it works. andrea canning: next, the defense attacked the prosecution's star witness, guy blankenship, the man who said julia tried to hire him to kill melvin. they said he was a criminal and a liar, not to mention a police informant motivated by money. you went so far as to call guy blankenship a maggot. i don't remember. but does maggot fit? at the time, i'm sure it did. andrea canning: finally, the defense had to counter the heart of the prosecution's case-- motive. the state claimed julia feared she was about to be dumped and written out of melvin's will. but her lawyer said they were still a happy couple. just look at the lingerie julia was wearing and the booze she brought with her that night. she picked up mike's hard lemonade and went to meet melvin at the house on her birthday-- this was supposed to be--

bobby frederick: --with her boyfriend. --a hot and steamy night? and the idea that julia was broke and needed melvin's money, also not true, said the defense. julia's lawyer argued her family had plenty of money and was willing to spend it. her family came and paid substantial attorney fees. her family's paying her medical bills. her family's bringing her food, taking care of her, taking her where she needs to go. andrea canning: in the end, the defense decided not to call julia to testify. they said she was suffering from dementia. after seven days of testimony, both sides rested. by the end of the trial, the question was not is she involved, but how could she not be involved? andrea canning: the jury took less than four hours to reach a verdict. we're all sitting around, and everybody's kind of just killing time. then bailiff comes out, and they say, a verdict's been reached. did you hurt, though, just kind of-- i thought i was going to throw up. i was almost hyperventilating.

andrea canning: melvin's granddaughter wasn't in the courtroom with the rest of her family when the verdict was read. her dad called her with the news. he called me. he said, she's guilty-- murder. andrea canning: julia phillips, the belle of york, was now a convicted killer. i was jumping up and down. i remember waking up the next morning, and there was double rainbows. and i just thought, this is awesome. julia has been called an ice queen, a femme fatale, a cunning, greedy, murderous woman. yes. it's not really what comes to mind when you just look at her. right. when you look at her, you think, oh, she's an attractive older lady. then she opens her mouth. and you can see what's really in there. andrea canning: julia's arrest for melvin's murder triggered questions about another death. julia's stepdaughters from a previous marriage believe she didn't just murder one man but two.

my father is not here because of her, as well. andrea canning: the daughters insist their father, bryant phillips, didn't die of a heart attack. they think julia poisoned him. when the daughters heard about julia's arrest, they took their suspicions to county coroner dennis fowler. there was enough suspicion that was presented to me that i ordered the body exhumed. were there concerns revolving around julia phillips? there were concerns. andrea canning: julia denied she killed him and was not charged in that case. three years after her conviction, she died in prison. she was 72. for the family, that wasn't the end. ronnie said the investigation was far from closed. now we got to go after the next one. andrea canning: the family believed a hit man was still out there and offered a $10,000 reward to help catch him. lieutenant rich caddell headed up a new investigation team that took a fresh look at the case. we're confident it's going to be cracked one of two ways. either someone is going to tell us something, finally,

or it's going to be through digital evidence via phone records, computer records, or something like that. andrea canning: for melvin's family, only partial justice has been served. ronnie roberts: i will not give up until we know everybody that was involved. and what that son of a bitch needs to understand is it's going to be a lot easier on them if they come forward instead of the police having to find them. david roberts: i always say, tick tock, clock's ticking. andrea canning: you're coming? we're coming. ronnie roberts: we sure is. david roberts: and we ain't giving up. that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. . i'm craig melvin. and i'm natalie morales. and this is "dateline." thin a number of minutes. dizziness, confusion, weakness.