wearing shackles, steven mcdowell seemed to hold back tears as he appeared in court for the very first time. chambers county sheriff's brian hawthorn admitted he strangled his ex-wife crystal and led investigators to her body. >> it took a number of different interviews, you know, before he confessed. >> reporter: one day before hurricane harvey hit in southeast texas on august 25th, crystal texted her boyfriend paul hargrave to say she was on her way to pick up her children. no traffic today. you are so sweet. >> i knew something was wrong. because of the conversations we had had about her ex-husband, i was a bit concerned when i didn't get a reply back. >> reporter: mcdowell was staying at her ex's house because her home was being renovated. their children ages 5 and 8 were also staying there. mcdowell's car was found abandoned in this flooded motel 6 parking lot three days after she vanished. >> the cops were here busting in doors to find out where this lady was. >> reporter: police finally low indicated the 37-year-old's body. mcdowell's unz kel jeff walters reported her missing. >

wearing shackles, steven mcdowell seemed to hold back tears as he appeared in court for the first time>> everything in the investigation leads to us that he acted alone. >> reporter: chambers county sheriff, brian hawthorne, said mcdowell admitted he strangled his ex-wife crystal, and led investigators to her body. >> it took a number of different interviews before he confessed. >> reporter: one day before hurricane harvey hit southeast texas, on august 25th, crystal mcdowell texted her boyfriend, paul hargrave, saying she was on her way to pick up her two children. no traffic today, she wrote to him. you are so sweet. >> i knew something was wrong and because of the conversations we had had about her ex-husband, i was a bit concerned when i didn't get a reply back. >> mcdowell was staying at her ex's house because her home was being renovated. the children, ages 5 and 8, were also staying there. >> she never went and picked up her kids. >> reporter: mcdowell's car was found abandoned in this flooded motel 6 parking lot three days after she vanished. >> so the cops were here busting in

the 38-year-old mother of two was divorced in june but still shared a home with her ex-husband, steven mcdowellered but he told crystal's relatives she intended to pick up the kids and ride out the storm in dallas. >> i think she was concerned for her well-being. >> reporter: paul hargrave said he and crystal started dating in june-her divorce and suggests the relationship with her ex-husband was not an amicable one. >> i think she wanted to get out of that situation as quickly as possible and move forward. >> i think there was probably some animosity between boyfriends and husbands and husband probably might think the boyfriend had something to do with it and the boyfriend might think the husband had something to do it which is what we're faced with right now. >> reporter: sheriff hawthorne knows this family wants answers and wants them fast but he says resources are stretched thin. two of the investigators on this case have been flooded out of their homes. >> oh, boy, michelle, that sounds sinister. sounds like a story for 48 hours. children are missing their mother and it's a sad story. than

steven mcdowell is now charged with first degree murder.revealed a possible motive. >> there had been some tension and stress and there have been some, you know, potential disagreements. >> i had my suspicions from day one. i can't say that surprised given the arguments they had the week prior of her missing. >> reporter: the mcdowells shared custody of their children after finalizing their divorce in june but mcdowell was still living with her ex-husband while her home was being remodeled. >> a lot of that was so she had access to the children. the children were primarily staying with steve. >> reporter: and this isn't the couple's first encounter with the cops. police say crystal called them in march saying steve had threatened to hurt himself and their children but he returned the kids safely the next day so no charges were filed. george, of course, he will face a charge in this case, first degree murder. not clear how he'll plead. >> we'll be watching. >>> we turn to the grieving parents who are suing the boy scouts after their 15-year-