16% is a low number, but they think it will be higher than that. >> all right, tom brokaw brokaw. that's "nightly news" for this sunday. we'll be back here tomorrow night when the first votes are cast. thank you for watching. good night. his arms raised. he grabbed me, i was shaking. i said stop stop. what are you doing? stop! >> reporter: they had a charmed life by the beach. surfer dad. >> he was a stud you, know, i'm not gonna lie. >> reporter: do-it-all mom. things. >> reporter: and a picture perfect home, tucked away on

>> this is our little american dream. >> he wanted a lifestyle where he could be there for his family, for his kids. >> reporter: that's what made what happened so startling. >> it was dark when they got there. >> they found the body upstairs in the master bedroom. >> the victim was clearly shot with a handgun. >> the kids are missing, julie was missing. >> reporter: was this a case of murder? >> this is our neighborhood. these are our friends. you're just in utter shock! >> reporter: there were secrets in that house. who would unlock them? >> i didn't want my friends to know, i didn't want my family to know! >> devious. manipulative. >> this was our best friend. it didn't have to end like this. >> reporter: i'm lester holt and this is dateline. here's keith morrison. >> reporter: grief, like the ocean, rolled into their lives in waves. ride the waves or sink, it seemed to say. ride them again and again.

>> reporter: once there were four fast friends. four tall men, before it all went down and the waves took on >> it didn't have to end like this. >> reporter: no. except it did. and when it did? >> just felt like someone hit you in the stomach really hard and wanted to cry. >> reporter: what could they do? ride, it's what harp would have wanted, after all. >> reporter: harp. jason harper, sports loving, outdoors loving california boy. with a childhood best friend named paul severns who, as they grew, became tall paul. >> we were always together. in the early years, he was always taller than me. but then i caught up to him. we were both the two tallest guys in school. >> reporter: so when they got to high school, there was one sport they were very well-suited to play, volleyball. >> harp was a stud, you know. i'm not gonna lie to you.

he was -- he was -- you know, mvp on the team. >> reporter: yes, and went on to play at ucla. where he met jeremy brandt. here they are together on ucla bruins talk, on public access tv. >> everybody came back and goes we're not going to lose or whatever and we came back and haven't lost since then. >> we can beat a lot of the teams out there. you know, we could definitely be a final four contender. >> i always said we -- we -- we ran the same speed. and so we would run the warm-ups the same speed. and we would end up talking together. and we became roommates throughout college. and, just a great guy, a great friend. >> reporter: quiet, mind you. shy, at least around the girls. >> he wasn't quite the ladies' man. you know, i'm not gonna lie to you. >> reporter: and then one night back in 2000, four years after he graduated from college, harp met a girl at a party. tall paul was there, too. the girl's name was julie cihak. >> she kinda zoned in on harp right off the bat and started to

impression she picked him. >> yeah, exactly. >> reporter: it went pretty fast after that. and, why not? julie was pretty and smart, and from a well-to-do family. still, when harp proposed just three months after he met this first real girlfriend. >> i felt like it was the first girl that he really loved and there's a lot that goes with that and i just didn't want to him to be, have the wool pulled over his eyes. >> reporter: but, they stood up diego's historic hotel del coronado was a great happy party. >> i remember the first dance. they were in this giant ballroom. ballroom dance, you know. and -- and harp had -- >> reporter: go figure. >> a big old smile on his face. >> reporter: they moved to the seaside, to carlsbad, california, just north of san diego. and jason harper signed on as a math teacher and volleyball coach at a local high school.

southern california surfer, beach volleyball, public school teacher. >> reporter: where he met the third of those tall friends, andy tompkinson. andy and his wife kristin taught at the same school, carlsbad high. >> on a campus of 3,000, 2,500 students, you tend to notice other people who are at the same eye level as you. and jason being 6'6" and myself being 6'9" -- >> reporter: there aren't too many people at the same eye level as you. >> no, no. so you -- you do notice, after a while, who they are. >> reporter: the two became fast friends. surfing, pick up basketball, poker. guy things. and then jason and julie started a family, jake first, then jackie. j names. >> even if that meant not playing cards with the boys or going on a surf trip, those kids always came first. >> reporter: so th -- it -- th -- were there times when you wanted to do something with him, and he said, no. sorry, i gotta stay home. >> abs -- absolutely.

>> reporter: home was here, in the terraces at sunny creek. a brand new gated place not far from the beach. these were their neighbors. >> reporter: so many neighborhoods now, you don't even know who your next-door neighbors are, but this, that's not like this place at all, right? >> no, not at all. >> julie ran the mother/tot group in the neighborhood. so she would actually organize all those activities. she was a good mom. she was really involved with her kids. >> reporter: and hard to know exactly just why things changed after joshua, their third, was born in 2011. julie just didn't seem the same. >> and, as time went by, you would see less and less and less of her. >> she would say, hi, and get in her car and drive away really quick. >> reporter: but she -- like she was hiding from everybody. >> yeah. >> reporter: but jason? >> he was part of the permanent landscape of our neighborhood. he was there every day. i mean, literally, every day. >> every day. >> a very hands-on father. >> i'd look out my door to see if he's out there and wave, you know, and we'd walk over. bring the kids over and walk on the driveway, and the kids would start playing right when we got

august morning in 2012. >> you don't know what's happened but you know it's not something good. your some -- stomach kind of sinks. >> reporter: didn't take a rocket scientist. something was awfully wrong. >> there was crime tape. my house is inside the crime tape and there's a police officer stationed at the base of my driveway. and so i ask the police officer, is everything okay? and he said, "no. no, it's not." >> what had really happened that morning? when we come back. >> they say they found the body upstairs. the kids were missing. julie was missing. >> worry about their kids?

share every minute of it. right now at at&t, buy the samsung galaxy s6 and get one free. all the hard work... time in the service... community college... it matters. it's why we, at university of phoenix, count your relevant work and college experience as credits toward your degree.

sfx: ziploc bag opening sfx: ambient school cafeteria sounds, children talking life doesn't cry over spilled milk. it cheers. life needs ziploc. sfx: ziploc bag closing sc johnson weight watchers has changed. our all-new beyond the scale program puts the focus on you and not just the number on the scale. see how good you'll feel with the new weight watchers beyond the scale program! join for free now and lose 10 pounds on us. a typical male penguin shows his love by offering the female... a pebble. some male penguins, however... are a little smarter than others. this valentine's day... everyone loves a gift from kay jewelers.

in rhythm. its continuous motion catches light from every angle. at kay, the number one jewelry store in america... and, apparently antarctica. every kiss begins with kay. there's no one road out there. no one surface... no one speed... no one way of driving on each and every road. but there is one car that can conquer them all. the mercedes-benz c-class. five driving modes let you customize the steering, shift points, and suspension to fit the mood you're in... and the road you're on. the 2016 c-class. lease the c300 for $399 a month

>> reporter: at 7:30 in the morning on the 8th of august, 2012, michele cullen gazed on the police cars, the crime scene tape, and asked the cop in her driveway what's happening? >> you need to go inside. you need to turn on your television. >> reporter: a policeman told you this? >> he told me that, yes. what are you talking about? >> reporter: that was apparent soon enough, when they wheeled out the body bag. >> one of our colleagues and friends called us and said, "i think something really bad has

they say that they found a body upstairs in the master bedroom. and it looks like it's jason's house." >> reporter: bit by awful bit, andy and the rest of them heard the details. the body had been hidden under a blanket and other debris. one bullet still lodged in the chest. death was, at least, quick. the victim, was the beloved member of that tall quartet. the neighborhood dad, jason harper. that was terrible enough. but it wasn't all. >> the kids are missing. julie was missing. and as details unfolded, we were in complete shock. >> reporter: this afternoon officers continue their investigation at the harper residence. >> we're all in shock. jason's dead. we're flipping out. and they're saying, "have you seen this woman?" >> and where is she? >> and flashing her plates and her picture. >> reporter: wow. >> on the news. >> reporter: so what happened? home invasion? kidnapping? murder suicide? >> reporter: did you worry about their kids? >> oh, yeah.

>> absolutely. >> absolutely. their safety. number one, their safety. are they okay? >> reporter: but the carlsbad police department had one piece of information the neighbors lacked. which came in a strange phone call at 11:00 pm the night before. sergeant jeff smith, was the lead detective. >> the watch commander working that night, got a phone call from an attorney, asking him to go -- or the police department to go do a welfare check at a residence. >> reporter: a welfare check? seemed like an odd request. >> reporter: who was this lawyer who called? >> it was attorney paul pfingst. >> reporter: that paul pfingst? he just happened to be the ex-d.a., and now criminal defense attorney who knew the police department very well. he'd called an internal extension that unlike a 9-1-1 call was not recorded. the cops went to the house, and

but not julie and the kids, they were gone. so police talked to paul pfingst again, who said not to worry. julie and the kids were fine. julie was not a victim. she was his newest client. he arranged the safe return of the children to a local children's hospital. and then 15 hours after the cops discovered jason's body, pfingst orchestrated julie's surrender at her father's house. >> reporter: did she talk to you? >> no. >> reporter: but her attorney spoke with local reporters. >> she's very upset. she's upset about her children. she's upset about her health. she's upset about seeing that basically at this point her life is in shambles. it's a catastrophe all the way around. >> reporter: so it was. but what happened in the bedroom? neither julie, nor attorney pfingst, would say. so the police launched an investigation to figure out what

anything? to begin, they had specialists interview the two older children, ages eight and six, who said their day started like a typical summer morning. and then sometime between eight and 9:00 a.m. -- >> when you were watching cartoons. >> uh-huh. >> yesterday morning and you heard the loud -- >> clunk. >> clunk. >> reporter: a thud. that's all they could tell ya? >> a loud thud. >> reporter: did they know at that point that their father was dead? >> i don't believe so. >> reporter: they must have been very confused. >> yes. >> reporter: frightened? >> yeah. young children. >> reporter: and the only things a bullet hole and the kids heard a thump -- >> yes. >> reporter: not a lot to go on. >> not a lot. >> reporter: so what did you do >> we talked to neighbors who'd possibly seen things. one neighbor said that they saw miss harper leaving right around 9:05 in the morning, and exiting the -- the-- their gated community. >> reporter: so now you know

>> roughly. >> reporter: now the detectives did what they could to retrace julie and the kids' movements. during their interviews, the kids said their mom took them to a coffee shop first. >> from that point they went to a local play-works, or jumpy type house place. and from the kids' accounts that's where they stayed for a short period and played. and we were able to corroborate that with cell phone analysis. >> reporter: which led to a if the thud the kids heard was jason being shot, then the coffee run and the play date happened afterward while he lay, wounded or already dead on the bedroom floor. on august 9th, two days after the shooting, a medical examiner conducted an autopsy and recovered the bullet. that killed jason. it came from a .38 caliber handgun. >> we did find a gun in the home

>> reporter: but it was not the gun that killed jason. so, no murder weapon and the only suspect wasn't talking. >> we believed that there was an argument between the two, and a gun was produced, and she shot him. and we were -- we didn't know why. >> reporter: not an easy question, under the circumstances. oh, there was an answer. but do you think anyone intended to reveal that? coming up -- >> i don't understand why any of it happened. you know what i mean? >> new clues. >> she was preparing for change in her life. >> private journals and secrets in the attic. >> my wildest dreams, i would have never expected that.

powerful. by design. i've smoked a lot and quit a lot, but ended up nowhere. now i use this. the nicoderm cq patch, with unique extended release technology, helps prevent the urge to smoke all day. i want this time to be my last time. that's why i choose

>> reporter: by the time julie harper's attorney arranged for her to turn herself in, her husband jason had been dead for a day and a half. for reasons nobody could understand. they appeared to be a solid couple. why would she shoot him? that's what carlsbad detectives were determined to figure out. julie wasn't talking, so they interviewed friends and family, and peeled back the layers. sergeant jeff smith learned that a whole year earlier, julie sent a friend some envelopes for safe keeping. >> reporter: what was in the envelopes? >> journals, writings, bank statements, personal history. >> reporter: in that personal history, signs of a marriage that wasn't as perfect as it seemed.

at me" and, "maybe divorce is the answer." >> it appeared that they were not happy with each other, and that their marriage was going towards the end, or divorce. >> reporter: whatever was going on, jason tended to keep to himself, said his teacher friends andy and kristin. >> he would never say any ill words or bad things, he kept it very personal and -- and private. >> reporter: but it was pretty clear, they said, that the marriage was winding down. >> arrangements were being made. >> jason's parents actually bought a house down here. and it had enough room for jason and all the kids. i mean, they were preparing for him to be able to leave. >> reporter: julie seemed to be getting ready to get out, too, said sergeant smith. in fact, she filed for divorce five days before the incident. and that same week made some unusual financial transactions. >> days prior to -- miss harper had taken out about $10,000 in cash out of a dormant account that was under her daughter's

and she'd written two $4,500 checks to herself. and it was against a credit card in mr. harper's name. >> reporter: julie had pulled out nearly $20,000. cash. >> we found that to be very suspicious. >> reporter: deputy district attorney keith watanabe was assigned to the case on day one. >> reporter: did it suggest to you that she had been hoarding money in anticipation of something? >> she was preparing for a change in her life. >> reporter: but did the change involve divorce or murder? julie's father, john cihak, lived here. 30 miles or so from jason and julie's house. this, apparently, was where julie and the kids spent the night after the shooting. so sgt. smith got a search warrant for dad's place and found nothing useful. there were other guns but none of them fired the bullet that killed jason. perhaps a little frustrated, eight days later he got a second search warrant.

something new. tucked away in the garage attic, in a spot they searched the first time around, a blue backpack, must have been hidden between searches. >> they opened up this blue backpack and they discovered julie harper's wallet, credit cards and id, her passport, a different gun and jason harper's last will and testament. >> reporter: also, jason's cell phone. its batteries removed and call and text history cleared. the backpack gun was also clean. not the one used to shoot jason. this had to be a getaway bag, the prosecutor decided. she must have packed it up after she killed jason. >> that's the only reason to take a person's last will and testament. it's because she realized he was dead. >> reporter: julie's actions before and after the shooting raised all sorts of questions. and foremost for the prosecutor was, did she plan this? was it premeditated?

>> we believed we could prove first-degree murder, not on the theory that she had planned this murder the days or weeks before the shooting had taken place. instead we were relying on the theory that, even during this argument, she took enough steps in order to get the gun, that this would've been planned and premeditated, even if it was only for a minute or two before the shooting. >> reporter: and that's enough? >> in california that qualifies as first-degree murder. >> reporter: so that's what he charged her with. first-degree murder. julie pleaded not guilty but otherwise kept her mouth shut and sat in jail. but strange details kept coming out. like what julie's dad said at her preliminary hearing about the blue backpack. >> there had actually been $39,000 inside that backpack. >> reporter: julie's father admitted that he found the cash in the backpack and gave it to julie's lawyer to help pay for bail and legal fees.

when you heard that? >> in my wildest dreams i would've never expected that. >> reporter: by the way, julie's dad testified at the prelim only after being granted immunity. he initially pleaded the 5th. and even though bail was $2,000,000, julie's family eventually coughed it up. and after more than a year in jail, she moved back into the house on badger lane three doors down from michelle miller. >> she knocked on my door to let me know that she was back and that we're gonna have a good talk someday when this is all over. >> reporter: what did you say to her? >> i was just completely shocked. i couldn't believe it. >> reporter: all those comfortable notions about her neighbors and maybe michelle didn't know them at all. >> i don't understand why any of it happened, you know what i mean? he was our friend and he's gone. i don't know who she is.

finally did start talking, well -- coming up -- >> i said stop, stop. what are you doing? stop! >> on the stand, her life on the line, and -- >> get a carpool [ bleep ] -- >> secret recordings from behind closed doors. r again! again! again! again? again! again! general mills is removing artificial flavors and colors

so you can love cereal... again! are you ready? are you ready? you've got to be ready. i mean, really ready. are you ready to open? ready to compete? ready to welcome? the floors, mats, spotless. the uniforms clean and crisp. do your people have the right safety gear? are they protected? i'm ready! you think your customers can't tell the difference between who's ready and who's not? of course they do. everybody wants a piece of ready. now you can create your own tour of italy at olive garden, starting at $12.99. choose 3 of 10 favorites to enjoy on one plate. plus unlimited salad

the best tour of italy is the one you create. at olive garden. (cell phone rings) well the squirrels are back in the attic. mom? your dad won't call an exterminator... can i call you back, mom? he says it's personal this time... if you're a mom, you call at the worst time. it's what you do. fifteen percent or more on car insurance, r it's what you do. where are you?r it's very loud there. are you taking at zumba class? there's no one i'd rather... share with. no one i'd rather have dinner and a movie with. no one i'd rather lean on. being in love is an amazing thing. being in love with your best friend... ...is everything. introducing the ever us two-stone ring. one diamond for your best friend... one for your true love. for the one woman in

ever us. new this valentine's day

>> reporter: september, 2014. death, his wife, julie, the mother of their three children went on trial for first-degree murder. >> she didn't look like a murderer, if there's such a thing. >> reporter: but even though deputy d.a. keith watanabe had never been able to talk to julie, had never heard her story, he was confident. his theme was something he called the "deterioration of julie harper." >> her life had become a disaster, both in terms of her marriage, her children, her health, her financial state. and we believe she was seriously abusing her prescription medication. >> reporter: "look at this," he told the jury. pill bottles. "though julie suffered from an auto-immune disease," he said, "this made it clear she was abusing powerful medications." "and," said the prosecutor, "look at the mess in julie's bedroom.

when jason's body was found, it was hidden under a blanket and surrounded by debris. the bullet that killed him entered from a side-rear angle. so he was shot pretty much in the back. what happened? "julie must have shot jason between 8:00 am and 9:00 am," said the prosecutor, "while the kids were downstairs watching cartoons." a neighbor saw julie leaving just after 9:00 am. and she was at la costa coffee roasting 40 minutes later. >> she wasn't crying. she wasn't upset. she didn't ask anyone to call 9-1-1. it showed that this woman had a calloused heart. she was capable of murdering her husband and really had the wherewithal to be able to go out into public and appear to be perfectly normal. >> reporter: "it was clearly murder," said deputy d.a. watanabe. but was it? remember, julie did not talk, not once, to the police, or the

never allowed it. but now it was time. defense attorney paul pfingst called just one witness, julie harper. and she said, "yes." she did it. she shot him, but, she said, "it wasn't murder." why? because, she said jason harper, so beloved by friends, and neighbors, and colleagues was, in private, an angry, abusive husband. >> did you videotape jason telling you -- >> reporter: and here was her proof, she said. here was her secret recording of jason, losing it, over money. >> i don't want to enable your horrible money waste! and your poor credit score and everything else. i don't want to enable that. it's horrible! >> reporter: and then, this -- >> get a carpool, bitch. figure it out. i can't help it if you're too dumb to do it. too lazy. >> well, you know, at least i

than you do. seems like the b-i-t-c-h is the only word that you can use. >> that's right. right now, that is darn right. cause that's what you are. >> reporter: "but," said julie, "it got worse. it got physical." >> he grabbed my wrists and my hand so forcefully and twisted it so hard that i mean it was hurting into the next day. >> reporter: remember, jason was a 6'6" athlete, about a foot taller than julie. by then they slept in separate rooms. but sometimes, she said, when he got angry, he came to her room and the abuse turned sexual. >> slamming me up against the wall face first. >> and what were you saying? >> i said, "stop stop! what are you doing? stop!" >> reporter: julie told the jury that jason raped her about 30 times. she said she was so frightened

pillow, just in case. she woke up the morning of the shooting, she said, to the sound of jason, yelling and screaming. >> he was, you know, using some curse words, and, "god i'm so sick of this [ bleep ], you know, where's my [ bleep ] computer?" >> reporter: jason believed, said julie, that she'd hidden his computer. >> his face was all red, and he was just, you know -- his nose scrunched up, his eyes squinting, and he'd just get this look of absolute rage and hate, but this was, i don't know, this was bad. >> what did he attempt to do to you then?

yanking my top off. >> i started pushing back and somehow managed to sort of wiggle my way free pulling away as quickly as i could moved from there across the room to my bed. >> what did you do when you got to the bed? >> i grabbed my gun from under my pillow. >> reporter: a derringer .38 caliber handgun. >> he was coming towards me with his arms raised, and he said, "i'm gonna kill you, you [ bleep ] bitch!"

holding on to my gun tightly. next thing i knew, i felt -- felt my hand jerk and heard the loud noise. and he was still like coming forward at me. and then all of a sudden, he froze, completely and just like a tree in the forest, just fell forward at me. >> reporter: just like a tree, jason, the tall man, the athlete, the volleyball coach, the math teacher, was dead. so that, finally, was julie's story, that she was an abused woman, who shot her husband in self defense. >> on that date, did you still

>> did you have -- did you want him to be dead? >> no. >> reporter: but now, for the first time, julie would have to face a prosecutor with a lot of questions. coming up -- the crime recreated in court. >> do you need a moment, ms. harper? >> but did the witness outmaneuver the prosecutor. >> this is the smartest woman that i had ever cross-examined in my life. >> when "dateline" continues. itch to sprint and save 50% on most verizon, at&t and t-mobile rates. you get the new lte plus network and we'll cover your costs to switch, up to $650 per line. only from sprint. (troublehearing on the phone,

nivea in-shower body lotion. first i wash... then i apply it to my wet skin. it moisturizes with no sticky feel. i quickly rinse off. and i'm ready to go. nivea in-shower body lotion -- in the body lotion aisle. those who define sophistication stand out. those who dare to redefine it stand apart. the all-new lexus rx and rx hybrid. never has luxury been this expressive. this is the pursuit

he was coming towards me with his arms raised. >> reporter: so finally julie harper told her story. her husband, jason, was an abuser and she killed him in self defense. >> reporter: what did you think when you heard that? >> it hurt my stomach. it hurt my heart. >> yeah. >> she could say anything she wanted because there's two sides to everything and he's not here to tell his. >> reporter: the story was not a big surprise to deputy da watanabe. but, as a prosecutor who'd specialized for years in spousal abuse cases, he just didn't believe it.

and she was willing to throw her dead husband under the bus and ruin his reputation in order to do so. >> reporter: well, that's your point of view. maybe it was true. >> we considered that possibility. but it simply didn't stand up under the scrutiny of truth. >> reporter: it was when the prosecutor began his cross examination that he discovered julie was ready for him. >> as you sit here today, do you believe that your shooting of jason was justified based on your need to defend yourself? >> i didn't even intend to shoot him. i only wanted to scare him, or to get him to stop. not rape me, not hurt me, or possibly worse. >> this was the smartest woman in my life. >> reporter: dodging and weaving. >> yeah. she was able to think on the spot. >> reporter: those pill bottles, all necessary for her medical condition and prescribed by her

she never abused them, she said. but if, as she said, jason was coming at her when she shot, why then, the prosecutor wondered, did the bullet enter from the back? >> do you mind stepping down here and i'm going to have you -- >> reporter: prosecutor watanabe set up a courtroom re-creation. >> okay, i'm going to have because then i can -- >> reporter: but, things didn't quite play out the way the prosecutor hoped. did julie use this moment to her advantage? crying now. >> do you need a moment ms. harper? >> no, it's okay. >> okay, position his hands where they were. the record will reflect -- >> she broke down and started crying and was visibly upset in front of the jury. >> reporter: that was maybe not the best strategy on your part then, as it turned out. >> it was a powerful moment for her because it allowed her to really retell the story in an emotional way and bring the jurors into her story.

stand for three days. and then the jury had to decide, was she a murderer? or a victim in fear for her life? >> i was juror number three in julie harper's trial. >> reporter: joseph dyal said he knew early on in the deliberations it wasn't going to be easy or quick. >> within 15 minutes, we had taken a vote. and it showed we were way, way apart. and we would argue each points to the -- to where there was nothing conclusive. >> reporter: on the second day of deliberations, the judge called everyone back to the courtroom. >> we received a note from the jury this morning at 10:06am. the note reads, "we are unable to reach a verdict on some of the counts. we are deadlocked." >> reporter: deadlocked on some of the counts. but they had been able to reach a unanimous verdict on one count. >> let's bring in the jury. >> reporter: this was the moment of truth. did the jury believe julie? >> i'll ask the clerk to read the verdict.

we the jury in the above entitled cause find the defendant julie harper not guilty of the crime of murder in violation -- >> reporter: yes! they did believe her. she did not pre-plan and deliberately kill her husband. so it couldn't be first degree murder. but was it 2nd degree? not-premeditated, but still intentional? on that, the jury was hopelessly deadlocked. the judge declared a mistrial. defense attorney paul pfingst. >> obviously, when there's a murder trial and you get any form of acquittal, that's a good thing. she would have hoped for total acquittal. >> reporter: so, with a hung jury, and bail already established, julie walked out of the courthouse a free woman. >> did she do it? yeah, she did it. was it self defense? it certainly was after who knows

incredible cruelty. >> i felt like i've lost a little bit of faith in the >> reporter: jason's friends just couldn't understand it. were a little kid and someone hit you in the stomach really hard, and you wanted to cry, but you weren't gonna cry. and your eyes started tearing up. >> it was very, very s -- emotional. >> reporter: while the prosecutor thought about whether to charge her again, julie went on with life back at the house on badger lane. in the neighborhood. >> and then there she is. >> yeah. >> like before. we're like, "is this ever gonna end?" >> reporter: well. they couldn't know, of course. there was another secret julie was keeping from everyone. coming up -- >> really that devious? >> another bombshell and another trial. >> i didn't want my family to know. i didn't want my neighbors to

>> what would the verdict be this time? atients, lyrica significantly relieves fibromyalgia pain and improves physical function. with less pain, i feel better. serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away new or worsening depression or unusual changes in mood or behavior. or swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling or blurry vision. common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands, legs and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. those who have had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. fibromyalgia may have changed things. but with less pain, i'm still a doer.

how do you eat healthier, while you enjoy life and lose weight? now you can do it all with one simple plan. the all-new smartpoints from weight watchers. our most advanced plan ever. join for free now and lose ten pounds on us. sfx: ziploc bag opening sfx: ambient office sounds, a phone rings, laughter life makes you deal with things far outside your job description. life needs ziploc sfx: containers stacking sc johnson all the hard work... time in the service... community college... it matters. it's why we, at university of phoenix, count your relevant work and college experience as credits toward your degree.

behind every open heart... is a story. a story about finishing the race... no matter what the obstacles. about rebuilding the bond between a mother and a daughter. or about helping build homes for others... because you remember what it felt like... not to have one. when you keep an open heart, amazing things happen. that's what the open hearts collection at kay jewelers is all about. right now, save up to 20% on select open hearts jewelry at kay. keep your heart open.... ...and love will always find its way in.

every auto insurance policy has a number. but not every insurance company understands the life behind it. those who have served our nation have earned the very best service in return. usaa. we know what it means to serve. get an auto insurance quote and see why 92% of our members plan

>> reporter: julie harper was walking on air. acquitted of first-degree murder? a jury deadlocked on 2nd degree. it tasted like sweet victory as keith watanabe bit down on frustration. >> the images of her walking out of that courtroom as a free woman were tough for me to swallow. >> reporter: still, what he could do was try again. of course first-degree murder was off the table now. but, he could go for a lesser charge of second-degree murder, which he did. a new trial date was set for six months later, april, 2015. and then, one month before that trial was to begin. surprise! julie had some astonishing news for the judge. >> the retrial for a carlsbad woman accused of killing her husband, her attorney says she is pregnant. >> reporter: seven months pregnant, caught everybody by surprise, that did.

pregnant in order to interfere with our retrial. >> really, that devious, in your mind? >> she's really that devious and well-planned and manipulative. >> reporter: what's more, julie's pregnancy was highly intentional, in vitro fertilization. the judge, no choice, really, delayed julie's trial for five months. and josephine faith cihak was born on april 29, 2015. no father listed on her birth certificate. 2.0. >> reporter: well, not quite, of course. in september, 2015, julie, the judge, the attorneys, all assembled before a brand new jury, 12 new strangers to win over.

prosecutor watanabe knew what was coming from julie. and so he canvassed the witnesses. did they ever see signs of abuse? this is jason's mother, lina. >> did julie appear in any way to be fearful to you? >> no. >> did you see any bruises or marks on her? >> no. >> reporter: julie and jason's eldest son jake, by this time, 11, on the state of the marriage. >> tell me about how their arguing became worse. >> it just escalated. >> even though the arguing became worse, did you ever see your dad hit your mom then? >> no. >> reporter: neighbor michele cullen saw jason and julie together five days before jason's death. >> did you ever see anything that led you to believe that she was being physically abused? >> no, never. >> reporter: but julie's sister amy said julie did confide in her that jason was physically

>> jason had become very, very angry, was constantly yelling at her, would grab her by her wrists and twist them. >> reporter: nothing about rape though. so, why would the jury believe julie's claim that jason did rape her violently, and repeatedly? when julie testified, she asked the jury to look at entries in her private journals and day planner. whenever they saw the word, "sex," said julie, that was code for rape. >> were you making notations of days you had coerced sex? >> yes. >> reporter: prosecutor watanabe, of course, didn't believe that. but, when he challenged her, was this real emotion? >> now, have you ever called the police on jason for any of these incidents? >> no. i was very embarrassed. i was very embarrassed that he was doing it. i didn't want -- i didn't want my family to know.

i didn't want my friends to know. >> reporter: manipulation? or the awful truth? once again, a jury was asked to pass judgment on julie harper. >> in the superior court of the state of california. >> reporter: everybody waited, baited breath. >> we the jury in the above and titled clause find the defendant julie harper guilty of the crime of murder, and fix the degree thereof as murder in the second degree. >> reporter: guilty of second-degree murder. on went the handcuffs, just like that. jury number two was not at all like jury number one. >> no doubt at all? >> no, no, no, no. not at all. no. >> reporter: but what about the secret recordings, jason yelling at julie? >> i don't want to enable your horrible money waste! >> he did lose his temper at times. but the tapes were so conveniently done, it seemed to come on just at the time when he

that's pretty good evidence, but i -- i just had the feeling that they were staged. >> reporter: and how about that diary, in which the word sex was supposed to mean rape? >> so it would say, "sex. then we went to the west, a fine dinner house, had filet mignon." >> say -- saying, "cuddling." [ laughter ] >> cuddling, and then we talked and cuddled more," and et cetera. >> but that meant rape. >> but -- but she would say that meant rape. and that made no sense to us. >> no disrespect to the first set of jurors from the initial trial, i just don't understand how they could not have found her guilty. >> reporter: and so we made an appointment to talk to julie, by then behind glass in a san diego county jail. >> i don't think you expected this result at all. would i be right about that? >> you'd be correct in that, yeah. what was really so shocking, was that they could ignore all of that independent evidence outside of my testimony. >> reporter: by that she meant

and her claim that in her diary sex meant rape. and despite what the jury thought, she has big plans. >> because of what i've gone through with my husband and the abuse that i've suffered, i am planning and working with a couple of people to start the "julie harper foundation" as a charity benefiting victims of domestic violence and their families. >> but first of all, you have to start with getting a jury to believe that you were a victim of domestic violence, and that was your problem. >> well, and that's where you go. like, the first jury did believe that. there's different people that process information, the same information, same evidence in very different ways. >> reporter: the way jason harper's friends processed it was that julie tormented a good and decent man, and then threw him under the bus to save her own skin. >> the hardest thing i think for me was the rape allegations. i just, there's just no way. no way. not harp.

you know, we miss him. and we love him. but, you know, for her to be put away -- it -- it -- it helps -- it helps heal. >> reporter: and julie? on january 15th, she was sentenced to 40 years to life in prison. >> and essentially, i'm 42 years old, and it's a death sentence. >> reporter: very true. which brought up a question on a lot of minds. >> why did you get pregnant? >> i was such a good parent, and i had that love to give to another child. and really wanted to be able to give and share that love with my daughter who i love more than anything in the world. >> reporter: her other children live with jason's parents now. the baby is with julie's father, who sent us a statement repeating julie's abuse claim and saying, "the verdict is unjust." we asked him and julie's attorney and her friends and siblings, any of them to sit with us on camera and talk about

defend her.