suspicion fell quickly on marc's dad, jack despain. michelle's mom heard about it when she called to tell a relative that marc was dead. >> somebody's murdered marc. and he was like, "oh my god." he said, "have they found jack despain?" >> reporter: he thought right away it was jack. close to jack and his family knew, a poison far more potent than money had come between father and son. >> i never saw it coming. i don't think marc ever saw it coming. >> reporter: it began, said michelle, when her 13-year-old daughter told them an ugly story, that her grandpa jack asked her to take nude photos of herself on his phone. marc called a family meeting. >> marc told his dad, there's a problem. we want to help you. you know, we're not here to point fingers at you or judge you. >> reporter: jack swore he did nothing wrong. marc called in the police. tana, jack's wife of more than 30 years, left him. moved in with marc and michelle. well, how do you prepare for a thing like that? >> you don't. you don't prepare -- >> reporter: well, what is that l

suspicion fell quickly on marc's dad, jack despain. michelle's mom heard about it when she called to tell a relative that marc was dead. >> somebody's murdered marc. and he was like, "oh my god." despain?" >> reporter: he thought right away it was jack. >> uh-huh. >> reporter: because anyone close to jack and his family knew, a poison far more potent than money had come between father and son. >> i never saw it coming. i don't think marc ever saw it coming. >> reporter: it began, said michelle, when her 13-year-old daughter told them an ugly story, that her grandpa jack asked her to take nude photos of herself on his phone. marc called a family meeting. >> marc told his dad, there's a problem. we want to help you. you know, we're not here to you. >> reporter: jack swore he did nothing wrong. marc called in the police. tana, jack's wife of more than 30 years, left him. moved in with marc and michelle. well, how do you prepare for a thing like that? >> y y don't. you don't prepepe -- >> reporter:r:ell, what is that >> you just -- your min

it's where marc despain breezed through school with his easy charm. tana is his mother. >> he was the only freshman that we know of that was chosen by a senior to go to the senior prom. >> reporter: marc became a high school football star and his sister jacque watched him bring his trophies home to lay at the feet of his father, jack. and he -- you knkn, he always wanted to, you know, impress him and stuff. >> reporter: and then -- well, its an old story, really. >> when i was 18 and he was 19, we just bumped into each other. >> reporter: pretty michelle. she was sitting on top of a car when marc spotted her one night. long, pregnant. >> the way i was brought up, you know, if you got a girl pregnant, you married her. what you did. >> reporter: so there was a shotgun wedding. two families thrown together, marc and his parents, jack and tana. michelle and her long divorced parents, her mom kathy and her dad carl. michelle also brought along a baby from an earlier relationship. >> and he never treated her like she was not his. never. >> reporter: together

marc. it was all about jack despain's hatred toward me. >> reporter: you seriously believe that?>> reporter: michelle, out on bail, waited for trial. her mother, kathy defended her around town. did you ever let yourself think she was involved? >> the daughter i know? the daughter i helped raise? no. >> reporter: meantime, michelle's attorneys, ray nickle and bill stanley, took a closer look at those recovered text messages. they filed a motion arguing that investigators didn't obtain them properly. >> they didn't get a new search warrant every time they searched the phone. we're talking about, i think 15 searches. >> yeah. >> of michelle and carl's phones. and they didn't have 15 search warrants. >> reporter: their arguments about improper search warrants may have had some traction. with the trial looming, the prosecutor was worried. >> we're at the high stakes poker game where it's all or nothing when that judge rules the next day on whether to admit the evidence or not to admit it. >> reporter: the prosecutor agreed to start talking about a plea deal. the defense played it toug

marc. it was all about jack despain's hatred toward me. >> reporter: you seriously believe that? >> reporter: michelle, out on bail, waited for trial. her mother, kathy defended her around town. did you ever let yourself think she was involved? >> the daughter i know? the daughter i helped raise? no. >> reporter: meantime, michelle's attorneys, ray nickle and bill stanley, took a closer look at those recovered text messages. they filed a motion arguing that investigators didn't obtain them properly. >> they didn't get a new search warrant every time they searched the phone. we're talking about, i think 15 searches. >> yeah. >> of michelle and carl's phones. and they didn't have 15 search warrants. >> reporter: their arguments about improper search warrants may have had some traction. with the trial looming, the prosecutor was worried. >> we're at the high stakes poker game where it's all or nothing when that judge rules the evidence or not to admit it. >> reporter: the prosecutor agreed to start talking about a plea deal. the defense played it tough, said michelle was only willin