she would call me every morning and say, hi, mom. he took that away from me. so. and just our whole family. it's not complete without her. dennis murphy: there will always be an empty chair at the family table. only images of the smile and memories remain. 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." she was crying and crying. i said, what's wrong? and she says, debbie's dead. we all wanted to believe that it was an accident. there's no possible way he could do this on purpose.

craig melvin: a dark house, a husband with a gun, a wife dead on the floor. there was no question who killed her. the mystery was why. he just kept saying it was an accident. he said he didn't do anything wrong. craig melvin: others disagree. we never for a second believed that he didn't know who that was standing in front of him. craig melvin: was it a tragic mistake? he was broken. craig melvin: or cold-blooded murder? [crying] david phillips: these bits of emotion are only done in front of a detective. they're not done when he's alone. craig melvin: a room too dark to see-- so let's shut the light out. craig melvin: --or a story too hard to believe? there was nothing accidental about what he did. craig melvin: a shot in the dark and doubt in the light of day. david phillips: she's the love of your life?

yes, sir. david phillips: person you know better than anybody else? yes, sir. david phillips: and you can't tell that's her when you pull that trigger? [theme music] welcome to "dateline." theirs was a marriage of opposites-- she the hard-charging business woman, he the easygoing contractor. and yet somehow, debbie kelly and lars itzo made it work, or so it seemed, until a gunshot ripped through the night, leaving debbie dead and a family wracked with doubt. was her death a case of mistaken identity or the bloody end to a marriage gone bad? here's andrea canning with "the silhouette." andrea canning (voiceover): what happened inside this house would destroy everything the woman who lived there had worked for. she finally had it all--

the career, the dream home, the marriage she'd waited so long for. there was a brightness in her eye. i trusted that she knew her heart. they were in love. there's no other way around it. andrea canning (voiceover): her life now complete, fulfilled, safe. we never worried about her. andrea canning (voiceover): but was it all an illusion? andrea canning (voiceover): what happened that morning in the predawn hours in the dark? [balls bouncing] andrea canning (voiceover): the women at this san antonio racquet club say you can tell a lot about a person by the way they play tennis. i think tennis in general just really brings out your personality. tennis brings out either the best or the worst in you. andrea canning (voiceover): as for who had the best character at their club, the answer comes as fast as a serena williams serve, their friend debbie kelly.

debbie for me, was kind of the whole package of a person-- fair, fun, and a great leader. andrea canning (voiceover): debbie-- fiercely independent, driven. always wanted to be a career woman. andrea canning (voiceover): she climbed the corporate ladder in health care. her mom and dad, jim and anne kelly, marveled at her commitment. she spent many, many hours traveling and many hours working overtime. andrea canning (voiceover): but debbie hadn't found as much success in her personal life. she got married in her 20s, but it didn't work out. now in her 40s and dedicated to her career, there was little time to look for the right guy. was it hard to date? it was hard for her to date. andrea canning (voiceover): so in 2008, debbie took a new job that allowed her to focus a little more on her personal life. that's when she got serious about her tennis game. she was a little bit of a tiger. andrea canning (voiceover): that's how she met this bunch-- betty pace, syrett schook-kelly, and ellen mitchell.

she was not a big person, but all of her went up. and the hair would fly up. and she would smash that ball. andrea canning (voiceover): the ladies clicked off the court too, bonding over post-match drinks. she had a great laugh. she throws her head back and chuckles, and just her whole body laughs. she had a real silly, funny, quirky side. andrea canning: so i've heard that she was very private. would she talk about dating and guys with all, or? not with me, mm-mm. she just wasn't one to talk about herself, period. but i was always trying to find her somebody. how did she receive betty the matchmaker? well, she'd always be like, oh, no. andrea canning (voiceover): husband or not, debbie was ready to plant some permanent roots. she bought a house in a gated community and began to remodel it on her own. she told her friend, liz sevilla, all about it. was she like an hgtv type of girl? [laughs] yes, oh my gosh. hey, i'm going to home depot. i mean, she's working on the sprinkler system,

or she's deciding on materials for the floor. andrea canning (voiceover): but the busy executive couldn't do everything herself. so in 2012, she hired a contractor. his name was lars itzo. so but once work got underway, lars seemed in no rush to finish the job. she was getting very frustrated, and she's just like, i wish this person would finish. andrea canning (voiceover): but lars's siblings, ken and christy, said he wasn't dragging things out for the money. he had an ulterior motive. he goes, yeah, she keeps flirting and talking. and we're laughing and having a good time. andrea canning (voiceover): lars liked debbie, and he thought it was mutual. and he goes, can i ask her out? and i'm like, well, yeah. why can't you? andrea canning (voiceover): so began an unlikely courtship between debbie, the petite powerhouse, and lars, the six-foot-two nordic he-man. they were cute. they were goofy. ken itzo: yeah, like teenagers. andrea canning (voiceover): debbie got a kick out of lars's

laid back ways, just a guy into old school board games, restoring muscle cars, and drinking texas's favorite homegrown soft drink, dr. pepper. about a case a day. i mean, he-- what? --drank a lot dr. pepper. at least a 12 pack, i know. i've never heard of someone drinking that much dr pepper. i thought it would kill him. [laughs] doesn't drink a lot of alcohol at all, just dr. pepper. andrea canning (voiceover): and when private debbie brought lars out to meet her friends, they knew it was serious. and he arrived with her, hand in hand. andrea canning (voiceover): sure, they noticed lars was a different sort of match for their friend. he's very quiet. he's very quiet. he's go the blond hair that would go with being named lars. he seemed like a surfer big man. andrea canning (voiceover): but to debbie, he was the right man. i felt like she was really in love with them. i can understand her thinking, you know, maybe it's time to try something just different.

andrea canning: and pretty soon, that something different was official. after a year of dating, debbie and lars were engaged. so baby brother finally settled down. he did, and he was happy. never seen him that happy. andrea canning (voiceover): they married soon after at this chapel in arkansas near her parents' homes. how beautiful did she look on her wedding day? the main thing is she just looked so happy. that was really important to me. andrea canning (voiceover): debbie and lars embraced the contented rhythms of married life, spending weekends with family, enjoying the outdoors and her dog, cody. but after two years together, things started to change. debbie got a coveted promotion to vice president. that was going to entail more traveling and a lot more working too. andrea canning (voiceover): big responsibilities, more pay, but less time at home, less time with lars.

october 9, 2015, debbie, recently back from a business trip, went to bed early for a morning tennis game. debbie's beloved cody slept on the floor beside her. the shades were down. lars joined them a little past midnight. four hours passed, and then. what had happened in that texas home? coming up-- craig melvin: --danger in the night and the confrontation in the dark-- craig melvin: --when "dateline" continues. ♪♪ sonya earlene and marcia are among the thousands of real women living with metastatic breast cancer; doing what they love. and taking ibrance. ibrance with an aromatase inhibitor

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>> the rachel maddow show weeknights at 9:00 on msnbc. when you need brutal honesty, when you need answers first thing in the morning, when you need to go deep inside washington and hear from someone who's been there. you need your morning joe weekdays at six. morning joe weekdays at six. only on msnbc. andrea canning (voiceover): 4:13 am, lars itzo called 911. andrea canning (voiceover): that female was debbie, shot and gravely wounded. andrea canning (voiceover): the 911 operator guided lars through cpr.

>> oh, baby. andrea canning (voiceover): police raced up to the house, dash cams rolling. the audio kept recording as they entered the house. [dog barking] lars itzo: [inaudible] andrea canning (voiceover): they found lars standing over debbie's body back by the bedroom. [beep] andrea canning (voiceover): as an officer tended to debbie, lars tried to explain how the shooting happened. >> yeah. >> you hear. >> her voice? >> i was in bed. >> and where did. >> you. >> hear the voices? >> at my front. out front. >> at my front. out front. >> she heard the andrea canning (voiceover): as emts took over trying to save debbie, lars went with police down to the station. they urgently needed more details.

where were the intruders? were they armed? what did lars know? what exactly did he do? sitting in the interview room wrapped in cody's dog blanket, lars took them through what happened step by step. he said he was awakened around 4:00 am by strange noises in the house. andrea canning (voiceover): he said he'd never heard cody growl before, so he was instantly on alert. lars says he moved toward the sound that he heard with his shotgun in hand. he reached this tiny hallway where he says he saw a silhouette standing in front of him about three feet away. he says he made the split-second decision to fire his gun, fearing for his life. all of this happening, he says, in the pitch black darkness.

andrea canning (voiceover): but the person shot was not an intruder. it was debbie. police quickly determined that the only shot fired in the house came from lars's gun. he said it was an accident, a case of mistaken identity. andrea canning (voiceover): nevertheless, andrea canning (voiceover): lars answered each of the investigators questions. in return, he just wanted to know one thing. andrea canning (voiceover): so after two hours of talking, they broke the news. andrea canning (voiceover): just before 10:00 am, police let lars go.

ken and christy remember their younger brother that morning overwhelmed with grief. he was completely hurt, shattered, you know. he-- he was broken. andrea canning: in those hours afterwards, what was he talking about? ken itzo: he really wasn't talking. he was just in shock. yeah. if he opened his mouth, he broke down. andrea canning (voiceover): across town, debbie's tennis friends were out on the court waiting for her to start that early morning match. one of their husbands came out to tell them about debbie. he called me over and said that lars had shot her. what what are you thinking when you hear that? it was very surreal. out of the box for you. i mean, i couldn't comprehend. how could someone shoot somebody? it didn't-- it didn't even make any sense to me. andrea canning (voiceover): in arkansas, jim and anne kelly learned the news from their son.

that's just the worst news that a mother could ever hear. how does your brain process that information? i don't think you do. i couldn't process the shooting part, i guess, just that she was gone. [crying] and a part of me died the day she died. i just kept saying, not debbie, not debbie, not debbie. andrea canning (voiceover): debbie's parents flew to san antonio to spend time with lars to support him in their shared grief. he could hardly talk. he seemed extremely remorseful. was he saying everything that you would want to hear? like, i messed-- i did it. i'm sorry. he apologized profusely for it and said it was just an accident. it was dark. andrea canning: some people might be really angry, but you didn't go down that road. we did not go down that road. we supported him. andrea canning (voiceover): but that support was

about to be put to the test. craig melvin: coming up. i know that she was frustrated. craig melvin: how strong was that marriage? how dark was that night? craig melvin: when "dateline" continues. we're in a volcano. to test finish ultimate against tough burnt-on stains. finish ultimate breaks them down, cuts grease, and boosts shine, for the ultimate clean. even on the toughest stains. on medicare? living with diabetes? progress is having your coffee like you like it. the freestyle libre 3 plus sensor is covered by medicare for more people managing diabetes with insulin. this is progress. ask your doctor today. ♪♪ i got this wow skin from olay body wash. it's new super serum: sink into my skin with 5 powerful ingredients. 5 benefits in 1!

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but said it was a terrible accident. from the very beginning, he cooperated with police, answered every question no lawyer present. then, about eight hours after that first conversation about the shooting, lars headed back to the station and sat down for a polygraph test. he volunteered to go do it, like, i'll take a polygraph. because he said he didn't do anything wrong. andrea canning (voiceover): but the polygraph indicated lars was deceptive in some of his answers. his brother and sister said it was perfectly understandable. ken itzo: well, he's nervous. he's in shock, you know. christy izto: he couldn't even get his name right, his birthday, where he was born. andrea canning (voiceover): maybe so, but his performance on the polygraph was enough for detectives to grill him relentlessly. andrea canning (voiceover): no matter how dark it was, how scared he was, how could lars fail to recognize debbie three feet away?

was dark? >> do you understand how. >> lame that sounds? lars. >> it's not true. >> you're 36in. >> from a human. >> being and you can't. >> tell it. your wife. i don't care if it's pitch dark. no room is completely dark. >> there's ambient. >> light from every room. it may >> light from every room. it may not. andrea canning (voiceover): lars insisted he thought there were intruders in the house, and he and debbie were in danger. >> me this way. >> me this way. >> that's w andrea canning (voiceover): there was no witness or apparent evidence to contradict him. after an hour of questioning, police once again let lars go.

six days later, he said his final goodbye to debbie, her parents by his side. how was lars at the funeral? very composed, very reserved. he stood up with me. andrea canning: what did that say, that the family was supporting him? it said a lot. it was great. andrea canning (voiceover): debbie's friends weren't nearly as supportive. did you say anything to him? did he say anything to you? - no. - no. i didn't. i did not. andrea canning (voiceover): they were furious at lars for doing something so stupid, so careless. everything he did bothered them, even his taste in flower arrangements that day, like the one that's pictured here. there was a wreath up at the front that was a huge flower heart. and in the middle of it, it was broken with these lines, so it was this broken heart. and it actually looked like a heart beat. and it was in such poor taste. she was actually shot in the heart? betty pace: well, it penetrated--

syrett schook-kelly: like right here betty pace: --the lining of her heart, yes. andrea canning (voiceover): as family and friends tried to sort out their feelings, police reviewed the case, looking to see if this was a crime or not, since even an accident can warrant criminal charges. and sure enough, 11 days after lars fatally shot debbie, he was charged with manslaughter. reporter: anything you want to say? andrea canning (voiceover): prosecutors carl alexander and leo gonzales caught the case. why did manslaughter fit? manslaughter is defined in the texas penal code as causing the death recklessly of an individual. essentially, that's what it boils down to. it was somehow, somewhat of an accident. andrea canning (voiceover): lars was released on bail. debbie's parents continued to support him. manslaughter is still, in our understanding, would be an accident. an accident, more accidental. and so we go forward from there. andrea canning (voiceover): but as the days without debbie stretched into weeks, something cooled in their relationship.

he starts changing in terms of my conversation connections with him. and he's not so forthcoming. if i ask him something, he kind of holds back. andrea canning (voiceover): lars's sister said his behavior could be explained. he had sunk into a deep depression. christy izto: he just kept saying he wanted debbie back if he could get her back. it was an accident. he was sorry. andrea canning (voiceover): investigators, as they worked through the case, looked into the couple's finances. debbie's assets totaled more than a million dollars when she died. her dad was named the beneficiary on most of her investment accounts. so lars, it seemed, had little to gain by killing her. still, the whispers continued among debbie's friends who told investigators there was another side to the marriage. i know that she was frustrated. andrea canning (voiceover): even simple things caused tension. liz sevilla volunteered that lars the contractor was slow to finish projects around the house. she did send me a picture of what lars did in the bathroom,

and the measurements were incorrect. and so it ended up making a hole. she goes, i just want my bathroom fixed. she would express frustrations about lars sitting around on the couch all day and watching tv. andrea canning (voiceover): debbie's friend, ellen mitchell, noticed a change in debbie's behavior when she returned home from business trips. ellen mitchell: she would come home from some of these trips and say, hey, let's go, you know, get a drink. let's have some dinner. and your expectation would be, i want to get home to my husband. she didn't seem to be in any particular hurry anymore. andrea canning (voiceover): looking back now, debbie's parents wondered if the marriage frayed because debbie, the modern woman, wasn't meeting lars's old-fashioned she was not the kind to stay home and bake cookies or walk in the door and serve you a meal, because she

had worked just as hard too. and all these friends, she goes and spends tennis time, does things. maybe just you feel like you're getting shortchanged. he wanted more of debbie? right, exactly. he did want more debbie. andrea canning (voiceover): all marriages have problems. very few end this badly. so investigators decided to take an even closer look at the husband who pulled the trigger. craig melvin: coming up, lars seemed upset. was he? david phillips: these bits of emotion are only done in front of the detective. they're not done when he's alone. craig melvin: when "dateline" continues. hey, i just got a text from my sister. you remember rick, her neighbor? sure, he's the 76-year-old guy who still runs marathons, right? sadly, not anymore. wow. so sudden. um, we're not about to have the "we need life insurance" conversation again, are we?

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that's one (800) 403-7539. >> hi, i'm richard lui with the news update. the philadelphia eagles flying to victory against the kansas city chiefs, avenging their super bowl loss last. year and squashing kansas city's hopes for. >> a historic. >> three peat. the 40 to 22 blowout victory earned the birds their second lombardi trophy in

franchise history. and president trump says he will announce reciprocal tariffs this week, plus a 25% blanket tariff on steel and aluminum imports. the united steelworkers union did not respond to a. not respond to a. >> request as as 2015 gave way to 2016, investigators weren't so sure debbie kelly had been happy in her marriage to lars itzo, and they took a closer look at the circumstances of her death. they pulled all those recordings from the day of the shooting, examined larisa's behavior, his turns of phrase, even things he didn't do, starting with the 911 call. this is lars in the first moments of that call. did shot

andrea canning: what do you make of this tone from lars? he's not really that upset about what he's just done. i thought he was having more of "aw, shucks" moment as opposed to an "oh my god" moment, i just shot my wife. andrea canning (voiceover): but within moments, lars became frantic. andrea canning (voiceover): hyperventilating. [heavy breathing] moaning. andrea canning (voiceover): the question, was it for real? the way he switched up emotions from when he starts doing cpr, it sounds a lot like mouth breathing. to me, it sounded like overacting. andrea canning (voiceover): and investigators also noticed how lars's story evolved over just a few hours. on the 911 call, he set the scene this way. andrea canning (voiceover): to responding officers, he changed the order of events, telling them he saw that light

after he got out of bed. andrea canning (voiceover): and lars added various new details to his story. andrea canning (voiceover): in his interview down at the station, lars revised his story again. that's when he said he woke to the front door squeaking and offered for the first time this description of how he realized he'd shot debbie. andrea canning (voiceover): during those interviews, lars appeared heartbroken, at times, falling apart. he was described as pacing in the blanket. he was mumbling. he was moaning. at various times, yes. yes. [crying] andrea canning: is that not the-- what a husband should do after something like that? it sounds normal. well, that's the thing. it sounds normal, right? but when the detective looks at him, and he doesn't see any tears, ok, that doesn't

jive with everything else. david phillips: these bits of emotion are only done in front of the detective. they're not done when he's alone. what was he doing when officers were not watching him? david phillips: sat in this manner, sleeping at moments. andrea canning (voiceover): and sipping his signature drink, dr. pepper. free on bail, lars understood he was still under the microscope. it was difficult. he didn't sleep much. andrea canning (voiceover): watching lars suffer was torture for ken and christy. they knew how much their brother loved debbie and how dark and confusing that house could be at night. you felt it was important that we come to the house now. yes, i did. andrea canning: why? because no one realizes how dark it was. we're here. it's around 4 o'clock in the morning. yes, is is. this was lars and debbie's bedroom. the bed was on this wall. ken itzo walked us through this story lars told him countless times. he wasn't sure what he was seeing. he just thought it was an intruder, maybe two.

there's the thought of, well, debbie's only 5'3. she's blonde. she was wearing a light t-shirt. how could he not see his own wife? at 4:00 in the morning, you don't see anything. it's dark. and i don't think size, weight, or complexion matters at 4:00 in the morning when you're awakened by a noise, and your dog's growling. andrea canning (voiceover): ken wanted us to experience it with the lights off. let's do it. so let's shut the light off. at first, it was pitch black. but as my eyes adjusted, i could make out something. i can see a little bit of a silhouette, but i cannot see your face. i'm gonna turn the light back on. i believe i was standing about where lars was standing. yes. you were standing about where debbie was standing. i will say he would be able to see probably about the height of the person if he has similar eyes to me. and that depiction means absolutely nothing at 4:00 in the morning. andrea canning: what's your reaction to that? does that change anything? by her size alone he should have known it was her,

a silhouette, i mean, three feet away, he should have known that that was his wife. andrea canning (voiceover): prosecutors believed it simply was not as dark that morning as lars claimed and said photos from inside the house proved it. david phillips: those are the big picture windows that are there in the living room. the drapes were never pulled back. and just circle where the shooting happened there. david phillips: it would have-- it would have been over here. these are the windows the prosecution made such a big deal about. even the curtains are exactly the way they were the morning of the incident. they believed ambient light would have had to have seeped through these windows from neighborhood streets, from homes, even the night sky. prosecutors believe that ambient light was enough for lars to see debbie's silhouette. they factored in his inconsistent behavior, his shifting story. when you kind of put it all together, there was nothing accidental about what he did. andrea canning (voiceover): five months after debbie's death, the state made its move.

had you all kind of thought maybe this was going to go away, since so much time had passed? i was kind of hoping it would. andrea canning (voiceover): instead, on march 3rd, 2016, lars itzo was re-arrested. the charge this time? murder. craig melvin: coming up. officer: here you go, mr. itzo. craig melvin: a very thirsty suspect. i enjoy dr. pepper every now and again. but i don't want to drink a dr. pepper when my hands are covered in my wife's blood. craig melvin: but does that make lars a murderer? when "dateline" continues. have joint health. comes first. >> and it starts with cosequin. >> for athletes in the. >> ring and at home. >> trust cosequin. >> cosequin. mr. clean >> coseqmagic eraser... >> the officia wow - where has this been my entire life? having to clean with multiple products is a hassle. with magic eraser... i use it on everyday messes.

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>> to immigrants is. >> something they. say they're going to do every day. >> what's democratic strategy. >> for trying to take that on? >> for trying to take that on? >> andrea canning (voiceover): was lars itzo a loving husband who made a deadly mistake or a killer trying to cover his tracks? that was the central question as "the people versus lars itzo" began in december 2016. the stakes were high. if lars was convicted of murder, he could face up to 99 years in prison. if he was convicted of manslaughter, as few as two. we never for a second believed that he didn't know who that was standing in front of him. andrea canning (voiceover): but the prosecutors knew proving intentional murder wouldn't be easy. especially in this case, though, where you have someone saying, i did it. i confess. but it was an accident. i love my wife. yeah. we were aware of that, and we were willing to accept that challenge.

andrea canning (voiceover): lars's attorneys, david phillips and tamara cochran-may, may believed their client and thought the jury would too. david phillips: this was simply a terrible accident. when i first met lars, i could see his remorse. and after speaking with him, i said, this man didn't do anything on purpose. your honor, at this time, i'd-- andrea canning (voiceover): the prosecution started off in dramatic fashion. they played lars's 911 call for the jury. as the tape rolled, lars shook and sobbed with his entire body. once again, the prosecution wondered, was it real remorse? i have small children. i have seen that face before. and it usually involves just before a dirty diaper. now, that's a first on "dateline." he had that expression of bearing down, and he was kind of turning red. and you never saw a tear. andrea canning (voiceover): next up, the first officer on the scene that night. he testified that lars didn't look like a man who'd been doing cpr on his mortally wounded wife.

he was clean. david phillips: and what do mean by clean? he didn't have any-- he didn't have any blood on his body. once they saw him doing some cpr, then he had blood on his hands. andrea canning (voiceover): detectives told the jury lars put on an emotional display. the sobbing noises, you know. david phillips: ever see a tear? no. andrea canning (voiceover): they played that video of lars at the police station to show how he seemed to keep adding details to his story of the shooting. andrea canning (voiceover): and how, in the midst of tragedy, lars still had the presence of mind to ask for his favorite beverage. officer: here you go, mr. itzo. i enjoy dr. pepper every now and again. but i don't want to drink a dr. pepper when my hands are covered in my wife's blood. he doesn't even seem to take notice of that. there was one point in the video where he actually sees it and kind of wipes it off on the blanket. no big deal. whatever.

little debbie, it's cool. andrea canning (voiceover): the prosecution's case revolved around this question. around 4:00 am in a dark house, could lars see well enough to know who he was shooting? liz sevilla, a frequent guest of debbie and lars's, testified she could easily see at night in their home. that there was enough light coming in through the big windows that i could find my way. andrea canning (voiceover): and remember, debbie was only about three feet away when lars shot her. prosecutor carl alexander wanted to show the jury just how close that is. that close. andrea canning: what was the experience? carl alexander: terrified. andrea canning: why? carl alexander: i'm a gun owner. one of the absolute cardinal rules of using a firearm is you do not point the barrel at anything you do not intend to destroy, ever. i knew it was unloaded. but in that, moment my pulse skyrocketed. andrea canning (voiceover): he wanted the jury to think hard. no matter how dark it was, wouldn't you recognize your own spouse?

he knows her scent. he knows her sound. he knows her shape. and he knew who that was in front of him. andrea canning (voiceover): after laying out how lars killed debbie, the prosecution thought the jury would want to know why. what was the motive? the couple, they said, had hit a breaking point. david phillips: liz sevilla-- andrea canning (voiceover): liz sevilla testified that her hard-charging, multitasking friend debbie found lars a little too laid back. like there was always a project, and it was taking a long time for-- lawyer: and who was doing this for her? lars. lawyer: so it'd be fair to say she was frustrated with lars? yes, sir. its importance is-- andrea canning (voiceover): the prosecutors told the jury this marriage of opposites became too lopsided for lars to handle. she took time to play tennis. work was very important. she took time out to go have dinner with friends and family. he wasn't a factor. basically, she didn't consider him enough to be a part

of her normal everyday life. andrea canning (voiceover): they said lars wanted more from debbie, and when he didn't get it, he got rid of her instead. this is a new one for me. one of the possible motives that was brought up that lars was old school and was upset that debbie did not take his last name. she was a professional woman, and she was very driven. and i think that's part of why she didn't take his name. she kept everything separate. andrea canning (voiceover): including her bank accounts. she never put lars's name on them. this was not about money? no, it wasn't. and i think it really has to do with he loved her more than she loved him. andrea canning (voiceover): when its turn came, the defense said, of course lars loved debbie, which is exactly why he did not murder her. lawyer: lars itzo accidentally shot and killed the love of his life. what he is guilty of is making the most horrific mistake of his entire life.

andrea canning (voiceover): and they called a reluctant surprise witness, debbie's own mother, whose early support for lars had waned. she did not want to testify on his behalf. i didn't take it well. i actually start screaming at the attorney. andrea canning (voiceover): but anne took the stand. lars's attorney showed her a check she once wrote to debbie. david phillips: who is the check made out to? debbie itzo. andrea canning (voiceover): debbie itzo. proof, the defense argued, that independent debbie sometimes went by her married name. they called lars's friends to say the couple's marriage was solid. david phillips: how would you describe his relationship with debbie? perfect. it was very good. david phillips: did you ever notice any sense of any marital conflict? no. [laughs] andrea canning (voiceover): christy itzo explained how her normally stoic brother was overcome with profound grief. he was crying. he was curled up in a ball. he grabbed me. we cried for like 20 minutes.

and all he wanted was debbie back. andrea canning (voiceover): but the defense knew their case hinged on one thing, lars's state of mind the moment he pulled the trigger. judge: i need you to raise your right hand. andrea canning (voiceover): and there was only one person who could tell that to the jury. craig melvin: coming up, a grieving husband or a lying one? david phillips: the love of your life? yes, sir. david phillips: the person you know better than anybody else? yes, sir. david phillips: and you can't tell it's her when you pull that trigger? craig melvin: when "dateline" continues. when you live with diabetes, progress is... having your coffee like you like it without an audience. ♪♪ [silence] the freestyle libre 3 plus sensor tracks your glucose in real time so everyone else doesn't have to,

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welcome back to "dateline." on trial for the murder of his wife, lars itzo was about to take the witness stand. what could he say to make jurors believe he simply didn't know that threatening shadow was debbie? here's andrea canning with the conclusion of "the silhouette." i heard a moaning. and at that time, i knew it was my wife. andrea canning (voiceover): lars itzo up on the stand in his own murder trial to tell the story of what he described as the perfect relationship. it was bliss, the best thing that ever happened to me. andrea canning (voiceover): then, what everyone in the courtroom was waiting for-- details about the morning debbie was killed.

i heard a grumbling. and as i woke up, i got up to see what that was. it was pitch dark. andrea canning (voiceover): lars stuck to his story that he couldn't see what he was shooting at. he thought their lives were in danger. i had seen the movement in front of me, and i had pulled the trigger at that time. andrea canning (voiceover): he said he was a good man who made a horrible mistake. no, she was the love of my life. andrea canning (voiceover): a mistake he said he would regret forever. andrea canning (voiceover): on cross-examination, prosecutor carl alexander challenged lars's key claim, that in the dark, he simply couldn't distinguish debbie from an intruder.

david phillips: you know debbie's shape. lars itzo: i know her shape, yes, sir. david phillips: she's the love of your life? yes, sir. david phillips: the person you know better than anybody else? yes, sir. david phillips: and you can't tell it's her when you pull that trigger? no, sir. andrea canning (voiceover): lars testified for two and a half hours. but would it be enough to convince the jury he was innocent? they now faced a decision between murder, manslaughter, or not guilty. judge: please stand. andrea canning (voiceover): after more than six hours of verdict, on count one, the murder charge-- juror: we the jury find the defendant, lars eric itzo, not guilty. andrea canning (voiceover): but before anyone in the courtroom had time to react, another verdict. juror: [inaudible] guilty of manslaughter as charged. andrea canning (voiceover): the verdict pleased almost no one. no, this can't be. for for so many on debbie's side, it was as if the jury just let lars off. disbelief, anger beyond words.

andrea canning (voiceover): but lars's family believed prosecutors had it all wrong. it was about them winning. it had nothing to do with justice or the truth. andrea canning (voiceover): then came sentencing. in texas, the jury decides. it soon became clear they wanted to hold lars accountable. juror: for a term of 15 years. andrea canning (voiceover): 15 years, just a few years shy of the maximum sentence. i spoke with lars at the state penitentiary in beeville, texas, where he says he carries a photo of debbie in the pocket of his prison uniform. lars itzo: i kiss her picture every morning, every night. and andrea canning (voiceover): i asked him to describe, once again, what happened the morning he shot debbie. i was awake-- woken in the middle of the night. the story sounded familiar at first. but then-- and i seen the door closing very, very, very slowly. andrea canning (voiceover): he'd seen the door closing slowly? as he had before, lars just added a new detail to his story. moments later, he seemed to add another.

believing that there were, you know, people in my house reaching for me. reaching for you? well, i just seen movement. so i asked lars about his inconsistencies. why was your story changing? i don't believe it was. i don't have the script in front of me that i'm reading. this is exactly what happened, step by step by step. but isn't the truth the truth? absolutely. but to have an exact answer every single time, it's not me. i will have an answer that is the truth that is going to be said differently each time. then, we talked about the key question. what really did he see before he fired the gun? i was in the house. yes, ma'am. and it was very dark, but i could make out your brother's silhouette. would you not clue in that that could be debbie,

and maybe i shouldn't pull the trigger? i know assailants come in various forms. i didn't recognize that it was my wife. if it was, i would have never pulled the trigger. did you see her silhouette? no, ma'am. i seen movement. that was it i seen was like a shadow moving. the first thing was, in my mind, was to protect. did you stage the stuff? absolutely not. andrea canning: did you murder debbie? no, ma'am. my wife was everything. she was great in every sense of the word. andrea canning (voiceover): that offers the kellys little comfort. dad: no, real satisfaction would be to have your daughter come back through the door, and that's never going to happen. what do you want people to walk away from watching about her and her life? i think debbie was an inspiration. [crying] she will always be a part of me and still is.

andrea canning (voiceover): so ambitious, so hard-working, so close to realizing her dreams. debbie's tennis friends say they miss her every day. syrett schook-kelly: i think debbie is all around us and supporting us. and we find hints of that constantly in our lives. she was a wonderful presence. betty pace: and we're blessed to have known her as a friend. that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. [theme music] hello, i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." veronica ord: i was, what happened to my sister? hello, i'm craig melvin, and this is "dateline." i had to grow up without one. in an instant, she was gone. and it changed everything.