she'd been a passenger in his car. he admitted as much to the original detective in 1982, when he was called in for an interview. >> one of the first things that russ said to detective bratton was the reason i didn't say anything was because i was on parole and i was scared to have police contact me. >> and he was gonna get jammed up if he -- >> correct. >> reporter: the bouncer had served time for receiving stolen property. he didn't want any trouble, he told the detective. but he did want to help. here was the truth, he said: he was driving dana home, nearing a corner, when suddenly he heard the engine rev louder and his car door close. next thing he knew dana was out of the vehicle. it would be such a simple explanation, if true. dana's massive head wound had been the result of an unlucky fall from a moving car, an accident. but that wasn't what was written on dana's death certificate. >> what did your coroner, back in the day, find? >> he found that she had, in fact, died from skull fracture. but he couldn't answer why she had died.