bye. >> saturday afternoon, macomb county, michigan, just north of detroit. this investigator from the macomb county medical examiner's office is on her way to a house where a man is discovered dead. >> this is a 50-year-old who was found by his father. he is known to be a heavy drinker. and he is found naked, appears to be a lot of blood at the scene and it sounds like his head is thrown into a wall. >> renee is one of six investigators who work for the macomb county investigator dr. daniel spitz. >> they work around the clock, going to scenes, working with the police, basically being the eyes and ears for the office and telling the story of the deceased person. >> it isn't the law that requires investigators to show up at death scenes. it's dr. spitz's rule implemented when he was appointed in 2004. prior to that investigators didn't have to physically attend death scenes making it possible in one instance to nearly miss a case of foul play. >> it was a concern of mine when i came that that was something i wanted to avoid, obviously. this is not the role of

patty roland, the investigator on call at the macomb county medical examiner's office has just received news of a death in the county. >> and what happened? who's the attending? what was her pressure when she came in? >> patty is one of six medical investigators working 12-hour shifts around the clock for macomb county medical examiner dr. daniel spitz. >> this is a 24/7 operation, holidays, weekends. it doesn't really matter. sometimes the days other people aren't working are our busy days. >> dr. spitz has agreed to allow our cameras unprecedented access to the inner workings of his office just north of detroit. it's only saturday morning. anything can happen this weekend. and it will. >> it's a different thing every day. i go to crime scenes. i work with the police involving deaths and involving injury cases, so i never know when my phone rings what the next mystery may be. >> the m.e.'s office responds to any death that's unwitnessed, unexplained or suspicious within macomb and neighboring st. claire counties. if a terminally ill person dies a natural death and their doctor is willi

macomb county sheriff looks to dr. spitz to try to make some sense of the disturbing incident. >> when you start doing the autopsy you can find a whole lot more. i'm certain when dr. spitz gets that opportunity, he will have a little bit better information for us as to how she died, when she may have died, what may have caused her death. >> when dr. spitz is done examining the body, a private company contracted by the medical examiner's office transports the victim to the morgue where the autopsy will be performed the next morning. as the body leaves the scene, the sheriff's office continues its investigation. detectives talk with neighbors who say they've been hearing loud noises over the last few weeks. >> doors slamming, commotion, loud talking, mostly at night, a lot at night when i'm sleeping. midnight, after that. it's been pretty consistent, i would have to say. >> investigators also question the woman's family and the man she lived with. the man is the father of the first of her four children. he tells police h

. >> four years after his father's death eric smith was elected chief prosecutor in macomb county, michigan. he became responsible for all of the criminal cases in clinton township and beyond. >> i can't tell you how many people came up to me and said ily member of theirs had been murdered and been killed and nothing had been done and you could see the desperation on their face and they really thought that the d them by, and i thought if i'm going to be the chief law enforcement officer of this county i can't let people out there think that we don't care. so we started a cold case unit after i came in. >> one of prosecutor's smith's first acts in office was to send out a letter to all of the police departments in his county asking police chiefs and ok at their old unsolveds with fresh eyes. >> i did it with michael george in mind. y mind that at the time i was hoping that we'd get a lot of cases i was hoping that clinton township would pick this case up. >> and maybe resolve one for the old man. >> that's it. dad. >> just as he'd hoped, the clinton township p.d. re-opened book murder case a

at this time i'm remanding you to the custody of the macomb county sheriff's department. >> the comic book man was now a >> put your hands behind your back. >> george! >> i didn't do this. his hands were cuffed and deputies led him away. >> i had no doubt that the verdict that we came to was the correct one. >> the juror his returned to their deliberation room. they said they could hear george sobbing, but that didn't shake their confidence in their verdict. they said it had come down to the testimony of the man who said he called about a spider-man comic. >> i think i hear you all saying he was tripped up by answering that phone call from michael renaud. >> yes. he should not have been there when mike renaud called. >> the cold case unit started by prosecutor eric smith with this case in mind had won a conviction. >> i really thought he was finally going to face the just punishment he deserves. >> and smith had notched one up for his dad, the late police chief or so he believed. my old man. i wish he was here to share this with, but i know he's smiling. >> the losing defense lawyer v

at this time remanding you to the custodyf the macomb county sheriff's department. >> the comook man was now t. >>y.>> p your hands behind your ba. georg >> iid >> iidn't do thi his hands were cfed and deputies led him away. >> i had no doubt th the >> the jur his returned to their deliration room. they said they could hear orge sobbing, but that didn't shake thr confidence in their verdict. th said it had come down t thtestony thean who saide called aut a sper-man comic. >> i think i hear yoall saying he wasripped up by answering that phone call fr michael reud. >> yes. he should t have been there when mike renaud called. >> the colcasenit starteby prosecutor ec smith with this case in mind had won a convicon. >> i really thoughhe was finally going to face thju punishment he deserves. >> and smith had notched one up for his dad, the late police chie >> my next thought went right tomy old man. i wish he was here to share this with, but i know he's smiling. >> the ling fenslawyer voed the kinds of mments you'd pect to hear. >> i thinkhe jurgoit wrong. i believe we have a strong shot w