Transcripts For KNTV Dateline NBC 20151003

Its deeply creepy. It has a creepy feel to it. Was it self defense . I think julie snapped. I would bet my life on it. Or Something Else entirely. Is this changing for you by the minute . It is. Sometimes it seemed there would never be an answer. Have you ever had a more traumatic moment in court . No. 832 days comes down to one hour. I would put my life in the hands of god. I am lester holt and this is dateline. Her is Dennis Murphy with the agents wife. They comprise americas elite Law Enforcement team, the 35,000 men and women of the federal bureau of investigation. Lets go and their careers begin here at the fbi academy in quantico, virginia, where trainees are taught how to lead, how to survive and how to shoot. In a kind of back lot movie set of a small town, a place called hogans alley, when they place a threat, they need to eliminate it, stimulus response. Its kill or be killed with no time to overthink the situation. But back in april of 2013, something happened just down the road from the academy involving one of the fbis own. A call to 911. Im an fbi agent. Please hurry. This Law Enforcement community struggled to understand the ghastly thing that had happened here in just seconds. I remember dropping the phone, falling to my knees and just crying. Friends and neighbors sat in disbelief. We know that thats not what happened. It just doesnt make any sense. While a family lay torn apart. With you relive that moment every time you think about it. Of. Our story begins here in the suburb of stafford, virginia. Its a quick commute to quantico for the many fbi agents who live here. Safe and secure as a town can get. Thats exactly why it appealed to bureau special agent arthur gonzalez. Back in 2010, he and his wife julie moved to this quiet, conservative community with their two young sons, chris and aiden. Terry smith and her daughter taylor were neighbors across the street and became close to julie. How did you come to know them . We met at the block party right across from our house and it was like an old friend, even though i had just met her. The couple were devoted parents. Coach soccer for the boys at their school and julie was the dutiful soccer mom. Did she like being a mother . Oh, yeah. She loved her boys. It was their whole life, everything. If she ever had a big goofy grin on her face, she was probably talking about them. Julie is a lot like me. Arts sister, eileen. We both really have a bubbly personality. I think were friendly people. She was like my sister. We were two peas in a pod. Julie and art had been born and bred in new mexico, where the two met cute in college. Hes a threesports athlete star, right . Right. Valedictorian of the class . Correct. Art is very focused, goaldriven. And his biggest goal was a career in Law Enforcement. Out west, art racked up 15 years in service as an fbi field agent, covering his wall with awards. Then he got his dream job, recruited to be an instructor at the elite fbi academy at quanti quantico. Thats reaching high as good as it gets. I knew he would succeed. Art always succeeded at what he put his mind to. Thats who he is. Julies dad says his soninlaw would carry his bureauissued gun just about everywhere. It went to church with him, and he made sure that everyone saw him as an agent. So he liked the persona of being an fbi agent. Yes. For a time julie joined at bureau too, working as an evidence technician on some highprofile cases. One involved the takedown of a major mexican drug cartel. She was good at the job. She was great at everything she did. But julies fbi days were behind her. She had quit to raise the boys. And when they moved to virginia, she took a lowstress job as a teller for their local bank. Here she is, rehearsing a speech for a Training Program there. I would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you. Its not hard to love julie. Coworker Tiffany Clark became a close friend. It took all of a couple days to realize what a great person she was. As tiffany got to know julie she sensed her cheery disposition hid some trouble at home. During the summertime had he lifted up her hand and showed me she was no longer wearing her wedding ring. After 18 years of marriage, julie and art were going through some rough times. There was even talk of divorce. She came to visit mige and t kids. She was crying more than i had ever seen her cry. Then came the day that would change everything. It was a friday in april, 2013. Art had gone to his instructors job at the fbi academy, julie had the day off and spent the morning doing errands and grabbing some lunch with a neighbor. But that afternoon, a friend called tiffany at the bank and said that something was very wrong in julie and arts neighborhood. She told me of a story where there was some kind of shooting. A shooting in the seemingly safe haven of stafford. Tiffany called julie and left a message to warn her. When i called julies, i told her there has been a shooting in the neighborhood, lock your doors, go upstairs, i love you, be safe. Then the news got even worse. The shooting wasnt just in julie and arts neighborhood, it was in their very own house. What is your emergency . When we return, what had happened in that house . Who had been shot . And who had done the shooting . But ultimately, the hardest question of all, the one that would take years to answer was, why . I just didnt want to believe it. There was still that shred, that shred of hope that this couldnt be happening. Ibsd. It may be caused by changes in my gut. And that i can do something about it. It was the greatest news. Ask your gastroenterologist if your symptoms could be ibsd and learn about prescription treatment options. gargling wookiee noise both wookiee noise the best place in the galaxy for everything star wars. Walmart. I want to get the new iphone as little birthday treat for myself. Oh, great well, when you get an iphone from at t, you get the network with the nations strongest 4g lte signal. So happy birthday. Thanks. But actually my birthday is not for another 5 months. I just wanted the new iphone, but now im feeling guilty because you went and got me an awesome network. Actually, we offer that to everybody. Even that guy . Yep. You didnt even look. Hes part of everybody. Get the new iphone at at t and the network with the nations strongest 4g lte signal. And right now get 300 credit for every line you switch. Skwhat are you doing . I just gotta scrape the rest of the food off them. Ew. Dish issues . Cascade platinum powers through this brownie mess better than the competition, the first time. Cascade. What is your emergency . I need a deputy and an ambulance. Im an fbi agent. Please hurry. The agents wife, julie, was lying on the Kitchen Floor with gunshots. First responders rushed to the scene as the operator began talking art through instructions for giving cpr. Listen to me carefully. Pump the chest hard and fast 30 times, at least twice per second. She kept him on the phone with deputies moments away. Julie had been shot, but how . What had happened inside the gonzalez home . En route to the scene, it was this mans job to find out. Im running lights and siren myself over there. Reporter as soon as detective todd nosal hit the ground, he knew this was no routine case. Did you know he was an fbi agent . When i got on the scene, i was immediately informed of that. Reporter and that fbi agent, the distraught husband who had called 911, had just walked out of the house, hands up, holster on his hip, as captured by dashcam video. Now, he was in the back seat of a sheriffs cruiser. Thats because art admitted right away that he was the one whod just shot julie. First contact, demeanor. Did you see anything . No. It was just, hey im detective nosal. Im gonna be speaking with you later. Reporter later became sooner. After their introduction, the detective followed the cruiser and art downtown to the Sheriffs Department for an interview. And when i read him his miranda, he was agreeable to talk. Obviously youre an fbi agent so you kind of know how this goes, and we have a job to do. Reporter certainly art knew the drill knew the camera was rolling, as nosal began to take down arts story of what had just happened in that house. So how does the story come out . I just started asking him very openended questions, you know. Why dont you tell me what happened . I went to eat lunch at moes with a friend. I took the friend back to the academy. Then after that, i drove straight home. I drove up to the house, and she was there. Reporter art told the detective that he was surprised to see julies car in the driveway. The couple had recently separated art was staying in the house with the boys, while julie had moved to an apartment nearby. I said, what are you doing here . You need to call me before you come here. Reporter so he was annoyed she hadnt called before stopping by, but said he saw an opportunity to talk about the relationship, and get julie to agree to a quick divorce. We were standing in the kitchen and i told her, look its over. We need to complete this process. And then she said, well i thought we were trying to reconcile. I said, no, julie, were not. I just said, i didnt love her anymore. She said, well, i cant take this anymore. Um, i turned around for a second. I guess there was a knife sitting on the counter. She attacked me. Reporter julie, he says, charged at him with a knife. The fbi agent told the cop that what happened next was pure reflex. She came at me. I put up my arm, and i pushed her away. Um, she came back at me again before i said, stop, and at that time i just reacted, and drew my weapon and i fired a shot. Reporter art said his fbi training had kicked in to neutralize the threat with the weapon he had at the ready right there on his hip. A tragic case, he said, of self defense. Thats really the extent of what happened. Reporter selfdefense. She came at me with a knife. Selfdefense. Reporter im trained to deal with threats. Its his estranged wife. He has exclusive use of the home. But detective nosal had Law Enforcement training too and his reflex . To be skeptical of any situation where a husband shoots his wife. In fact, from the start of the conversation, hed been watching art very closely, even as he talked about julies condition. Is she okay . Well, obviously shes not okay right now. Uh, shes being treated medically. Once i get an update on her, ill let you know. Reporter nosal decided not to tell art the truth. Julie, age 42, had been pronounced dead on the way to the hospital. I intentionally withheld it. We do that for a couple of reasons. One, to be able to conduct an interview, just in case somebody gets so visibly upset they cant talk at the time. And then, two, to just kinda gauge his reaction. Reporter the detectives job now was to keep art talking see if his story held up. He asked art another one of those openended questions. This one about their marriage. What kind of a relationship did you have with your wife . Excellent up and until the point that four years ago, i dont know what happened to her, something happened. Reporter art told the detective that the marriage had been unraveling for years. Julie, art said, was unstable and had a serious drinking problem. Four years ago it was was nightmarish. Wasnt taking care of the boys. Reporter just hours after shooting his wife, art was recounting a litany of aggressive acts. Things shed done to him. She went to me and got my shirt and just ripped it right off my back. My head was scratched from here you know down to my shoulder blade. There was another time when we had to call the deputies. And you know they actually had her in handcuffs before. Reporter detective nosal steered the interview back to that days tragic shooting. He asked about the defensive move the agent says he made with his left arm. Do you have any injuries on you right now . I dont know. Youve got a couple cuts right there. I asked him several more times to either expound on things or just take me again from the top of what happened that day. Standard procedure. Lock in a story. Then check for inconsistencies in the repeat cycles. How many rounds you think you fired . Two or three. I dont know. What happens to her then . I think she like takes a step back and falls on the ground. I pick up the phone and call 911. My wife just attacked me with a knife and i had to shoot her. Reporter does he tell you hes giving compressions and breath, that hes doing the whole cpr he did. Reporter regimen . He did. Reporter about 40 minutes into their talk, art again asked how his wife was doing. I got some bad news. Um, shes dead. She, i guess passed on the way in the ambulance. Reporter art put his head down and sobbed. All right, im just gonna step out for a second, okay . Reporter minutes later, he was back a tough cop expressing his sympathies. Obviously, this is probably one of the worst situations, especially a Law Enforcement officer, could be in when youre defending yourself and its the mother of your children. Reporter after hearing multiple recounting of his story, nosal looked across at his fellow lawman and told him it seemed like a case of self defense. Tragedy in the kitchen, but the law speaks to this situation . Yes, sir. Reporter and a person has the right to defend themselves. Yes, sir. Its not making things better, and its not going to change how today is. But, you know, i mean, you had to defend yourself. Reporter back in arts neighborhood, news of the julies death had quickly spread across the street. A knock came at the door. It was a police officer. And he asked me if i could go get the children from school because there was an incident at art and julies house. Reporter terry smith, julies good friend and neighbor, could barely wrap her head around the awful news. I just didnt wanna believe it. Reporter she texted her daughter taylor to call. And i remember all she said was, shes gone. And then i said, okay, im coming home. And she couldnt really understand me cause i was crying. And i said, im coming home, and i hung up and then i just remember screaming the rest of the way home. Reporter when julies work friend tiffany started hearing the shooting involved julie she didnt want to believe it either. She started frantically calling the hospitals hoping her friend had just been injured. There was still that shred, that shred of hope that, you know, this couldnt be happening, you know, this worst nightmare. But they confirmed that she had died. Reporter julie, the only other person in the kitchen that april afternoon, was dead. But was there more to the story . 2 ademas de arthur esa cocina your undies are upstairs. That is correct. And the story raises doubts. This doesnt jive with what i heard in the Interview Room. When dateline continues. How can you see yourself in new glasses. Without your glasses . At lenscrafters, our unique camera and screen system lets you compare yourself in four different frames at time. Making sure all your vision choices are clear. Lenscrafters loves eyes reporter art gonzales had just told the detective his selfdefense story. But now he braced himself for something even harder. Telling his family that julie was dead. During an interview break, art phoned his dad. Dad, i said i need you and mom to get on a plane out here tonight. Julie attacked me with a knife so i had to shoot her. Im sorry, dad. Reporter at her home in texas, arts sisters cell phone was blowing up with urgent messages from family members. She called her father back first. I said, dad, what is wrong . And he said julie attacked art with a knife and he shot her and she didnt make it. And i said, what . And at that point, i just i remember dropping the phone, falling to my knees, and just crying. Reporter after art broke the tragic news to his family, he called his boys, then ages 10 and 12. They knew something happened to their mom but no details. Art decided not to reveal anything over the phone. Hey, are you ok . Well talk about it later, ok . Um, just know, whatever happens, i love you with all my heart. Reporter during another break in the interview, detective nosal had his own tough call to make. He had to tell julies father that she was dead. Reporter its terrible part of the job, huh . Oh, horrible part of the job. He said, im sorry, to say that, she, she uh, i dont know remember exactly how he phrased her dying. And my first thought was that she might have suffered. I didnt want that. And he told me, i dont i dont think so. Reporter and after the detective broke the terrible news, he gently asked julies dad a few questions. One concerned her drinking. She drank an occasional beer or an occasional glass of wine. Reporter so you wouldnt say she was a problem drinker. No, no, no. Reporter his response was immediate and it kinda took me back. I heard an hour and a half of art telling me a story about Julie Gonzales being an alcoholic. I go, okay. This is the first thing that doesnt jibe with what i just heard in the Interview Room. Reporter so now, nosal was starting to wonder if there were, perhaps, other contradictions or inconsistencies in arts story. By nightfall, art was still in the chair when nosal began receiving reports from investigators at the house. One discovery in the master bedroom was big news to him. Some ladies undergarments in there, as well as there were some mail in the master bedroom. And it had the name cara kast on it. Reporter and who was this cara kast . Suddenly, theres another woman in the picture. Reporter and her undies are upstairs. That is correct. Reporter and youve got the husband in the chair who has just shot his wife four times. So now, the tone shifts a little bit here in the second pass at Arthur Gonzales, doesnt it . It it does. I just gotta gotta a question or two for you. Um, i i guess in your bedroom, i guess in one of the the hampers, there were some female panties or undergarments in there. Is that was that your wifes . Or or who is it . Um, its a friend of mine thats been staying over every once in a while. Ok. Reporter detective nosal, a trained interrogator, knew that words mattered. And this wasnt the first time art had characterized cara as just a friend. I went to eat lunch at moes with a friend. Reporter that unnamed friend art saw just before the shooting turned out to be cara. And earlier in their interview, art had mentioned cara kast to nosal once, in passing, as someone whod know how to reach the boys. Cara worked at the fbi alongside art and was almost 20 years his junior. I know im not the morality police, you know. Like are you guys you guys hooking up . Are you guys were were were good friends. I mean are you guys having sex and stuff like that . Yeah. Ok. Reporter whats the importance of finding the lovers underwear . I think that hurt art gonzaless credibility in an Interview Room that im not hearing this. Reporter why hasnt he offered it up . I figure especially as a trained Law Enforcement officer and somebody working with the fbi, he wouldve probably have volunteered that at some point during the interview. And then of course when i started talking to him about it, i felt he was being evasive and minimizing it. Reporter and nosal noticed that when he asked what julie knew about cara, art seemed to fumble around with his answer. Did did she know about you two . Um, i think shed seen us out before. I dont think it was a secret. Ok. I mean, but did she know you guys were in a relationship or anything like that . I i i never hid it. Ok. She knows she stayed there at times . Yeah, im sure. Yeah, i mean, she stayed there a few times. I dont know if she knew or not. Reporter is this changing for you by the minute . It is. It obviously starts putting some chinks in Arthur Gonzaless story. Reporter so this is topic number one. It is. Reporter detective todd nosal had caught an unusual and difficult case to analyze. This wasnt a whodunnit, no question about that, so much as it was a whydunnit. Only two people knew what went down, and one of them was dead. He says she comes at him with a knife and that he reacted and shot her. Reporter shot her four times. Shot her four times. Reporter the mother of his two children. The mother of his two children. Reporter in what used to be her home. And then you have to wonder, is this selfdefense or not . Whats going on here . So you guys have to figure out, is this story true . Yes, sir. Reporter by the end of the first day, art gonzales was a free man. Not under arrest but under a cloud. Reporter so he doesnt spend the night in your jail . He does not. But we were gonna continue with the investigation. 3 f2 carcel. The pictures are of cara undressed. And takes one of his own. Its deeply creepy. It does have a very creepy feel to it. Yoplait. The smooth and creamy yogurt your whole family loves. Yoplait original with no artificial sweeteners, no artificial flavors, and no high fructose corn syrup. Because i make the best chicken noodle soup. Because i make the best chicken noodle soup. 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Reporter nosal and his fellow investigators now wanted to examine it from julies point of view for starters, how did she regard their failing marriage . Reporter terri, what do you think was happening . He was telling her she couldnt do anything right. Reporter terri smith, more than just a neighbor, told detectives she invited julie to live at her home at the beginning of the separation from art. She said julie had complained that art had belittled her constantly. Terri also said julie characterized art as a control freak, and ultimately, she was glad to be out from under his thumb. She said, im just gonna be happy to be able to watch a tv program and not be told im silly for watching it. Reporter and before the shooting, terris daughter noticed that julie, now living in her own place, was really coming into her own. She never thought that she could be that happy alone. But it turned out that being alone was, like, this amazing thing that she had forgotten how to do, i guess. Reporter on what would be the last day of her life, julie spent time with terri. About 10 30, she texts me, hey, im off today. You wanna get together . Reporter terri invited julie over to her house for chinese takeout. Reporter was she talking about reconciliation no. Reporter of getting back together with art no matter what no. Reporter it took . No, she wasnt. Reporter Tiffany Clark, julies pal from the bank, told investigators that shed seen art treat julie in a demeaning way. And she said in the weeks before the shooting, julie was finally overand done with art. She didnt want anything to do with the relationship anymore. Reporter was she in a good place, did you think, tiffany . Absolutely. Yeah. Reporter she was ready to move on . Yup. For sure. Reporter that all contradicted what art had told detective nosal that the trigger for julies attack was his declaration that he didnt love her anymore and theyd never get back together. In fact, julies friends and family said nothing about arts story made any sense. Theres absolutely no doubt in my mind that she would never, ever be capable of, you know, coming at somebody with a knife. I couldnt see it then, i still cant see it. It wasnt her nature. Thats not who she was. When you Start Talking to the family and you Start Talking to other people, they made it clear that there was a different version of Julie Gonzales. Reporter so this is becoming a very complex issue. It was. Reporter so nosal then turned his attention to art. What was his state of mind before the shooting that day . By that point, the detectives Investigative Team had grown. I got a call that afternoon from our sheriffs office. Reporter Stafford County prosecutors eric olsen and kristin bird say they were first intrigued by the way art seemed to downplay his relationship with that young fbi employee, cara kast. We wondered whether it had anything to do with what happened inside the house that day. So, we tried to build up the timeline of that relationship. Reporter so detectives headed to the fbi academy with a search warrant and found something intriguing. In, like, an inbox on cara kasts desk, i find i believe its a nine page letter. Reporter it was this rambling, romantic letter that art had written to cara fourmonths before julies death. In it, art wrote cara, the special connection between us is undeniable. We are two pieces of a puzzle that fit perfectly. Yin and yang, ricky and lucy, spongebob and squarepants. You complete me and i you. We belong together and i wish you could see that. Reporter none of us are psychologists, but what do you think is going on with a guy in his mid40s, writing this kinda document . It was described to us by one of the witnesses and one of the individuals who knew mr. Gonzales well, and and worked with him. That it seemed like it was an older man obsessed and in love with a younger woman. Reporter detectives pulled the records from art and caras phones and started to learn more about arts behavior in the days and hours before he surrendered to deputies. Two nights before julies death, the couple slept together at his house. And late that night, art discovered something. He picks up caras phone while shes sleeping and goes through it. And then he sees that there are photos in her phone of her and a fbi agent that she had been seeing. Reporter another younger agent. A romantic rival for art. Reporter hes snooping in her phone. Hes snooping in her phone. And the pictures are pictures of of cara undressed. Reporter this is graphic evidence, detective, that shes got another guy and hes very much in the picture. Yeah, that is correct. Reporter in the picture on the phone and in her life. That is correct. Reporter and nosal says after art forwarded those nude selfies of cara to himself, he then took this strange photo of his own. She appears to be sleeping, and he appears to kinda be hovering over. Reporter so he wants some pictures. Heres another picture for your collection, huh . You could on you could on reporter its pretty its deeply creepy. You could only it it it does have a very creepy feel to it, yes sir. Reporter the investigators then talked to some of arts colleagues at the fbi, who saw him in the office the following morning. Reporter what was his demeanor at work . That thursday he was described as being unkempt. Disheveled. And i believe at one point we were told that he even said is it possible for her to love both him and me . And just far more emotional than his friends had ever seen him before. We end up hearing from arts officemate that there was a confrontation with cara over those pictures. Reporter to prosecutors, it all looked as though cara had dumped art for that younger man. Based on that, they now believed that if anyone had reason to be angry and unhinged in the kitchen that day, it wasnt julie, it was art. He was completely obsessed with miss kast. And completely devastated when the relationship ended. Reporter so if art had hidden the truth about his girlfriend, and distorted facts about his wife. The investigators wondered what else he might be hiding about the shooting. Announcer coming up, the knife art says julie was holding when he shot her. What makes more sense for an overhand kind of thrust . The old slasher movie, psycho style. But thats not how a deputy remembers seeing the knife in julies hand. It was like this. Leaving detectives to ask, was she ever holding it . When dateline continues. Blind spot and forward collision monitoring. And lane departure warning. The all new Jeep Renegade take off. And take on anything. Get an extra 15 off through saturday october 3rd. Go to kohls. Com to download your savings pass. 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Even better. A game changer the ready for you alert, only at lq. Com. Reporter days into the investigation, todd nosal now believed art had been less than honest about the women in his life julie and cara. So the detective decided take another look at his interview with art from the day of the shooting. Ive got some bad news. Specifically the moment when he told the agent that his wife was dead. And his reaction was what . He started sobbing. He didnt have tears. Reporter that a red flag moment for you . No, its not. At that point. Being on a lot of death scenes in my career, you see all kinds of different forms of folks grieving. But looking back at it its one of the red flags that go up. I put that in the negative boxes as im checking the list. Reporter initially, the detective told art he understood his need to defend himself. But now, he was looking at everything in a new light, including the level of deadly force. A lot of people outside the world of firearms and Law Enforcement would wonder, cant you shoot her in the foot . If you feel youve actually gotta produce your weapon, fire a shot into the ceiling . Something short of putting four rounds center mass torso. Most use of force policies are to protect the officers life or other human life, and to stop the aggressive action. But the glaring difference is, is that this wasnt an unknown suspect on the street who is approaching you, wielding a knife. This is somebody who he was sobbing in an Interview Room because it was the mother of his two children. So why was it necessary for four shots . Reporter as a lawman himself, nosal may have understood both sides of the issue. But to laymen, like julies friends and family, it was a simple case of common sense when looking at the physical faceoff between a mother of two with a knife and a fit fbi man with a gun. I just thought, coward. You dont need to shoot a woman four times to take her down. Reporter arts story was that he was trained to react instinctively, trained to pull the gun that was right there in his holster, he said, when faced with a deadly threat i. E, the knife. This is the knife. Can you show us . This is it right here. Reporter detective nosal brought it along for a demonstration. Its the allbusiness blade that julie had in her hand when the responding deputies arrived. But one of the officers noticed she was holding the knife in what he said was an unnatural three fingered grip. The bottom Three Fingers were grasping the handle of the knife. What does that suggest to you as what kind of a motion that would be . Well, given the way that Arthur Gonzales describes the attack. He basically acts like hes defending from an overhead blow. So the only thing you can envision is a almost an awkward ah. Reporter what makes more sense in terms of a grip for an overhand kind of thrust . You wanna go with the probably the old. Reporter slasher movies. Yeah, the old slasher movie. You know psycho style. Reporter but thats not the way the deputy recalls the blade in her hand . No, sir. Its it was like this. Reporter the detective had to wonder was the knife placed there . And if art was lying about that, nothing in his selfdefense, instinctive reachforthegun story could be believed. So as he went about picking apart arts account of the day, the detective pulled video from the restaurant where he said he had lunch right before the shooting. These freeze frames notice arts right hip gave the detective his ahha moment. The red flag was flappin in the wind as i as im goin through the moes video and i realize hes not wearing a holster or a gun. Reporter no gun on his hip. Videoproof, the detective thought, of another big lie if art wasnt wearing the holster out in public, at lunch, he almost certainly wouldnt have it on when he stopped at his own house a short time later. The detective believes the fbi agent strapped it on after the shooting just to make it look like selfdefense to the arriving officers. Its a very good story to say, i came in. I had a holster on my hip. When i was attacked i just reacted. It was just from my training and experience that i was defending myself against a threat. Reporter so nosal and the prosecutors developed a theory as to how and why the shooting went down. They believed art was an emotional mess and ready to explode after hed been dumped by his young girlfriend for a rival fbi man. I think the fuse was lit when he pulled up into the house. Reporter he doesnt expect to see his wife. Right. Reporter and yet there she is at the house. What do you believe happens next . He sees her vehicle in the driveway. He would have the thought wtf. Whats she doin here . And then he goes he goes inside the home. Reporter carrying his bureauissued glock in hand. Then, in a rage and unprovoked, nosal believes, art shot julie in cold blood. You believe this wasnt selfdefense at all . Oh no. Reporter this was murder. Our belief was it was murder. Yes, sir. Reporter julies dad had also become convinced his soninlaw was a heartless killer. He had promised to keep her out of harms way, to do whatever he needed to do to protect her. But he failed in that and he betrayed her and he betrayed us when he killed her. Reporter prosecutors believe the shooting was not premeditated, but it was intentional and certainly not selfdefense. Threeweeks after the shooting, art gonzales was indicted for Second Degree murder. The fbi man was now behind bars, waiting to stand trial. Julies people thought they knew what happened. So did arts. But we the people the criminal Justice System would have a much harder time deciding. 3 f2 criminal tendria grandes julie liked to pick fights with art when she was drinking. She knew how to push his buttons. 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Lenscrafters loves eyes reporter fbi agent art gonzales was released on bond, suspended from his fbi job without pay. His sister arlene, julies close friend, remembers the first time they talked about the shooting. I looked at him, he looked at me. I said, i just need to know the truth. And i said, you have one chance to tell me. I said, did you shoot her in self defense . And he started crying. He said, yes, i did. I swear to you, i swear. She came at me, arlene. There was nothing else i could do. And i believed him. And at that point, i chose to stand by my brother, because i knew. As an f. B. I. Agent, we respond to the truth. Reporter retired agent doug merel stood by him as well. Hes the man who first hired art at the fbi academy. Do you think they had enough to go on, the commonwealth, to bring i was these charges . Very, very surprised when an indictment was handed up. Its a clear case of selfdefense. Reporter his former colleague and sister were by arts side as his trial began in march 2014. They all listened as prosecutors made their case that art gonzales was a liar and a murderer. He was trying, from the beginning, to paint a portrait of selfdefense. And we knew a large part of that portrait was a lie. Reporter the prosecutors told jurors how on the day of the shooting, they believed the fbi agent was emotionally unstable. Driven by that breakup with his girlfriend. It was an obsessive, deeply romantic relationship. And that was the context for what happened in the house that day. Reporter they laid out in court their theory of a man fueled by rage. One who murdered his wife, then staged the scene to look like self defense. Strapping on his holster and inventing the knife attack. We believe the knife was placed in julies hand. Reporter as proof, olsen called experts who noted that gunshot residue was found on the handle of the knife. Suggesting it was touched by the shooter himself. Its the only way that we could figure how the gunshot particles could get on the handle of the knife. Reporter and although art had a few cuts on his body. Theres no blood in the blade of this knife. It supposedly cut through the shirt, and cut his arm three times. We dont believe that, that knife was used to cut him. Reporter and the prosecutors believed they had final, definitive proof that arts story was a lie. They played that 911 call art had placed after he had shot julie four times in the chest. Jurors could hear the operator instructing him to perform cpr on his wife. Were going to do this six hundred times until i can get somebody to take over, ok . All right im doing it. Im doing it. We got cpr going again . Yeah im gettin you got it . Ok ok keep doing it. The visual image that one gets listening to that is the one that i got the next day, is a bloody crime scene. Reporter so the prosecutor assumed that after art performed cpr, blood would be all over that white shirt he was wearing. Except the evidence told a much different story. We take a look at the clothes. And he has no blood on his clothes. And he has no blood on his hands. Reporter but an arriving deputy who did perform cpr on julie came to court and testified to what happened when he began compressions. He describes that the blood starts oozing from the wounds in the chest. His hands are covered with blood. Reporter prosecutors told the jury all this could mean just on thing. Art gonzales never performed cpr on his wife. Its not just that hes not doin cpr, hes faking doing cpr. Reporter the state said it was the foundation lie for the case. Completely flying in the face of the fbi agents story. His story was that i didnt want to shoot my wife, but i did it because i had to do it. There would be no reason not to do cpr if that was the case. But thered also be no reason to fake doing cpr, if that was the case. Reporter when julies friend taylor smith heard the evidence in court, she was astounded. Why was there no blood if youre giving cpr . You just shot somebody in the chest four times and theres no blood . Reporter none of it made sense to tiffany either. So you believe the prosecutions case . Absolutely. He shoots her in cold blood . Yeah. And once shes on the ground, puts the knife in her hand to stage the scene. Absolutely. I think that he walked in that house and probably had that gun in his hand for intimidation because thats, you know, that that was him. And i think that he probably intended to scare her at first. But the rage brought him to, you know, even further. And he just decided to kill her. Reporter not at all the case, said the defense. The physical evidence supported, arts report of what happened. Reporter arts attorney mark gardner told the jury what happened on that april afternoon, and said it was the same story art had been telling since that first 911 call. And there was nothing except speculation to counteract that physical evidence. Reporter take that knife, for example. All of the talk about how julie was gripping it was based on a single witness, one of the First Responders on the scene. We know that the, the officer saw her hand lying down, with the blade sticking up. But then the officer kicked it out of her hand. So we dont have a photograph of that. Reporter and experts testified that the gunshot residue on the knifes handle could have gotten there when it got kicked across the floor or its consistent with being found on the knife, if the knife was in her hand at discharge. But the evidence also showed that it absolutely is possible for her to have gripped the knife and not completely covered the handle. Reporter as for the confounding lack of blood or dna on the knife, a forensic expert testified that arts wounds were minor. She could not rule out the possibility that that knife inflicted those wounds without leaving any blood on the blade. Reporter in court, the attorney was determined to shift attention away from art and his relationship with that young fbi employee, and make sure the jury focused on julie. Thats a risky road to go down for you, right . Well, it is. On the other hand, its absolutely essential to an understanding of what happened, for the jury to have a clear picture of what was goin on in picture of what was going on in reporter the defense presented evidence that, in the months before the shooting, julie had been seeing a psychiatrist for depression, taking medication. And while they concede julie wasnt drinking on the day of the shooting, she had recently been treated at an alcohol rehab center. Arts dad says his side of the family saw the problem and had been trying to get julie help for years. Were you worried about it . Yes, i was very worried about it. Matter of fact, i talked to julie several times about her drinking and her behavior. But it didnt stop, did it . It didnt stop. And during their separation, a judge had given custody of the boys to art. She was sad, she was depressed. She was lost. She was tired. And, anyone whos gone through depression or alcoholism, a divorce, anything that emotional, you can just see it in their face. And it broke my heart. Reporter and arlene says that over the years, julie would confront art, sometimes aggressively. Julie liked to pick fights with art when she was drinking. When you say that, what do you mean . Loud, in your face kind of things . Yeah, absolutely. She knew how to push his buttons. Loud, in your face kind of things. She liked to poke at art. Reporter but in the end the defenses case would really rise or fall based on the testimony of one man, art himself. No cameras were in court for his testimony, but he did sit down in front of ours. I had nothing to hide. Announcer when dateline continues. Plus oxi boost and febreze for 3 big things in one gain fling. Its our best gain ever back to our story. An fbi agent has admitted killing his wife but says it was in self defense. There were only two people who knew what happened in the kitchen that day, and one of them was dead. Here again is Dennis Murphy. Reporter not every jury in a murder case gets to hear from the accused. This one did. Whyd you elect to take the stand . I had and still have nothing to hide. Ev everything that happened is is what i testified to. I i believe that they needed to hear it from me. And art gonzales wanted us to hear his story too. Start the clock there. Youre comin in the driveway, art. What do you see . As i drive down the driveway, i see julies car parked and, you know, im kind of surprised. And i say, well, you know if youre if youre gonna come here, you need to let me know. Something like that. And shes, i know. I shoulda called you. And i say, hey, do we need to talk . And she says, yeah, lets talk. I follow her into the kitchen. She walks between the island and the counter where the sink is. Yeah. I stop just just before the range. So i dont know, maybe five feet away from each other. We have a brief conversation. Whats the conversation, art . And and, you know, dennis, i i i i cant remember verbatim. It was about speeding up the divorce. There was conversations about you know, me not loving her anymore. And, you know, the final thing i remember saying, i turned away, and she asked, do the boys know her . And i looked up at her and i say, yes. Do the boys know her . Art says julie was referring to his girlfriend cara. It was a detail he mentioned on the stand but one he never told detectives. Still, as art described what happened next, his story was largely consistent. And at that point i turn back to the counter. Out of the corner of my eye i catch her coming at me. I see her with her arm raised. I put up my arm to block it. This kind of a motion . Right. I pushed her away and, as i pushed her away, i saw the knife in her hand. I pushed her away, far enough probably where she she stepped back about three steps. And i remember vividly her first step was coming at me again. She raises her arm. Her right foot stepped right in front of our dishwasher. And at that point it happened. I drew my weapon and i fired. Four times. I didnt know how many times. But four times, yes. I need someone, my wife just attacked me with a knife and i had to shoot her. And julies down on the floor. Yes. Is she making any noises . Is theres anything . Is she moving . Shes shes not moving. And im having the discussion with the 911 operator. Whats going on in your mind at that moment . It was surreal. I had i mean, im thinking about julie, hoping that theyd be able to revive her. I was thinking about the boys. I was just praying that shed be okay. You didnt know whether she was dead or alive, as you left the house . No, i didnt. And then youre in the back of a car. Right. The fbi agent being detained. Right. You knew you were in trouble. If you could have stepped back and looked at the situation. Well, i dont know if i understand what they were doing. Ever since the day i walked out that door, i knew that what happened or what i was forced to do was justified. Anybody lookin over my shoulder at this point is gonna say, couldnt he have deescalated that moment . Couldnt he have turned and backed out of the kitchen . If he drew his weapon couldnt he have fired into the ceiling or maybe shot her in the foot . Could there have been some way without four shots, center mass . Dennis, ive thought about this every day of my life since then. I i had no choice. I didnt have time to consider any other alternative. She came at me so aggressively. Could you have done anything else . I couldnt have. There was nothing else i could have done. Nothing. And in the years of my training and were never taught to retreat. Were never taught to back down. Reporter in court art told the jury about his multiple stints of Firearms Training in his 18 year career. In fbi speak, Law Enforcement speak, the assailant is called the threat. Yes. And the person being attacked has to what . Eliminate the threat . Right. They they engaged the threat until there was no longer a threat. Theyre taught to shoot center mass, which is which is the biggest part of of the body, of the target. Thats the way that were trained to address a threat. Reporter in fact, hed been recertified in that training on the range at the academy just one month before he shot julie. And yet julie wasnt a target on the range. She wasnt a home invader threatening you with a gun. She was julie. She was your wife of almost 20 years, mother of your children. Its not the standard threat. No. But i do believe that the julie that was in in that kitchen that day wasnt the same julie that that i had known for the previous 20 years. You know, there was just it was Something Different about her. Reporter all of that art says is the truth. He believes the lies in the case are all those prosecution theories of what he did beginning with his relationship with his girlfriend cara kast. He says he wasnt distraught or angry with her, and that by that last night they slept together, he already thought a breakup was coming. Why are you going through her phone that night . Youre snooping, right . Yeah, well i had some sus suspected something. And she was lying down. And i looked at it and and i found what i found. Whats the word . Is it anger . No. It was disappointment. I i wasnt angry, because i had suspected it. And with the person that that i had seen, i had known that there was some history. So my disappointment was in the fact that she was you knew who the guy was in the picture . Correct. Another agent . Right. So my disappointment came from the fact that she wasnt honest with me. Reporter and he says that when they had lunch on that day of the shooting, it was a calm and civil conversation to talk about that breakup. So that was what lunch was about . Yeah, pretty much. Well, are you volcanically angry with her . No. Reporter as for his holster, art says its true that he wasnt wearing it at the restaurant. But he says he holstered up right after lunch stopping by the fbi academy and then heading home. So lets tell the story of your arrival at the house and the kitchen from the prosecution point of view. Theyre saying, follow the holster. It doesnt make sense, jurors, that he would have his holster on when hes going home. He sees the car. What is goin on . And brandishes the gun. Hes got it out and with him as he goes through the front door. Uhhuh. And theres not this dialogue about you know, we need to speed up the the divorce. Right. Does any of that happen so far . No. This is the prosecutions story of how this goes down. Right and and however they developed that theory, i have no idea. When i walked in the house, my weapon was in my holster on my hip. Im clueless as to how they came up with that, and i was surprised whenever they alleged it. Reporter but what about that cornerstone of the prosecutions case that after the shooting, art faked cpr . Keep pumping, fast and hard. Im doin it. I know you are, keep on goin. Did you do c. P. R. . Did you do cpr . I did. Reporter art says there wasnt much blood on his hands and shirt because hed had little cpr training and what he did know he did badly. It was surreal to me when i was giving c. P. R. I i was doing w everything that she said. And and i dont know if i was afraid to hurt julie. I do remember every time i gave a rescue breath that that it that it was wrong. You know you know, her lips were cold. And and it it just wasnt the same julie. You did do it . I did do it. What the i i [ noise ] i i i dont know what else to say. I did c. P. R. The the the best that i could. And i i i i wish there was a camera in that kitchen. You you know, so everything that that had that happened could have just been, you know, put inside the d. V. D. Player. And they press play. Would that show you pulling your weapon, killing julie in cold blood, and then placing a kitchen knife in her hand . That would show everything as i described it. That would show me w with my with me facing the counter, julie comin at me with a knife in her or with something in her right hand. Me blocking it, pushing her away. Her taking a few steps back, coming at me again, and me drawing my weapon. Reporter the jurors had heard two very different stories of what happened in that kitchen. Which one would they believe . 3 2 que habia ocurrido en esa cocina start your day with 150 nourishing calories. In a bowl of special k. Eat special, feel special. Special k red berries, now with more real strawberries. First i wash. Then i apply it to my wet skin. It moisturizes with no sticky feel. I quickly rinse off. And im ready to go. Nivea inshower body lotion in the body lotion aisle. So, when i rent a car, yep. Wherever you need us. Up . Perfect. Well, looks like my boyfriends here ahhhhh. Hi. Im rob. From enterprise. Rob and i cant stay just wanted everyone to know so they could stop asking me about finding a nice boy. So lets go yes. Lets go. Dear. vo always going the extra mile. Pick enterprise. Well pick you up. liz sorry. Happens more than you think. Reporter charged with murdering his wife julie, fbi agent art gonzales had just told his story of selfdefense to judge and jury. The prosecutions calling you a liar, manipulator . Was that painful, the personal attack . Yes, it was. When they asked me difficult questions, i told the truth. Reporter and arlene, who says she and julie were so close, hoped the jury would see that art was also telling the truth when he described that confrontation in the kitchen. What do you think was in julies head. You know, i think julie lost it. I think her mind finally snapped when art said there was no possible reconciliation between them. She was already depressed. She was already sad. And for julie to think that she had just lost her entire family and that another woman was possibly going to come into their lives, she snapped. I would bet my life on it. Reporter after an emotional two weeks, the jury retired to deliberate. Now art and his family awaited his fate a conviction could mean 40 years in prison separation from his two young boys. If he was found guilty, there was no goodbyes, no nuthin. They would just take him. And that the hardest part for me with that was his boys. His boys wanted to sit there and they wanted to stand by their dad every single day. Reporter yeah. And i mean thats not a place for them. But, you know, at the end, when we were waiting for jury, yeah, i chose to bring them and sit with their dad, for the last few moments if they were gonna come back guilty. Reporter they could come back any minute and you could be given the jumpsuit and put in the van and be gone. Right. Reporter you dont know. I was fully aware of that and you know, that wait was excruciating. Reporter julies family and friends focused on their hopes praying for a conviction. Its a hard job for a jury. I remember watching people cry when the prosecutor was up. Reporter for prosecutor kristin bird, it was only the second homicide case of her young career. As a prosecutor, i think the most important thing that you can do is give a voice to their loved one in that courtroom and tell the story, tell the true story and we did that. Reporter one entire day passed without a verdict. And theyre out and they stay out. Uhhuh. Reporter whats going through your stomach and your brain . We knew that there was a lot of evidence so we expected that it would take quite a bit of time. I dont think any of us expected as long as it took. Reporter on day two the hours ticked away. What did you think was going on . I had to pull myself away from trying to speculate. The jury kept deliberating into a third day. Then it came. A note. The jury was deadlocked. The judge declared a mistrial. We were relieved, but disappointed. Reporter julies friend Tiffany Clark so convinced of arts guilt could not believe it. They couldnt come to a solution. They were hung, mistrial. For me, its, like, any logical person could put two and two together. Speaking with people, you know, that briefly heard the story, every conversation that i had with them was, how does an fbi agent shoot his wife four times and theres a mistrial . How is there any question . Reporter detective todd nosal whose team had kept investigating even during the trial knew more work lay ahead. Its hard to stomach but, you know, its one of those things is its a tie and you get to fight another day. There was no question about what we were gonna do. We were going to try him again. There was not reporter no question, you were gonna go there was not reporter for it again. A moments hesitation we were gonna try art gonzales again. For art, prosecutor olsens decision was a crushing blow. I was hoping that mr. Olsen would have seen that, you know, maybe there was some errors in his ways of thinking and he would dismiss it at that point. Reporter he gets up within nanoseconds and says, were going for this trial again. Right, right. Reporter after that trial, art was fired from his job at the fbi. A number of agents had testified against him. But doug merel, the former agent who hired him, continued to stand by art. I saw the arguments. And my loyalty was not to art, but to the truth. And i believe what art had said was the truth. Reporter selfdefense. Its an awful incident. But were done here. Exactly right. Reporter the judge later polled the jury and learned they had been deadlocked 10 to 2 with 10 jurors in favor of an acquittal. Two votes short of getting the verdict you wanted to hear, not guilty. Thats the official vote. What i had learned is the vote that the jury had taken as they walked out of the jury room was 11 to 1. Reporter it was even closer than the official tally . Right. Reporter for the prosecutors, that nearacquittal meant they had an uphill battle and needed a new strategy for round two. After the post mortem, so to speak, on the jury trial we realized that if we could better explain some of the forensic evidence that we had. Reporter more science . More science. Then we would be in a little bit better shape. Reporter so they turned to a new star witness in fact a worldrenowned one. And she said that science told her the real story of what happened between art and Julie Gonzales. 3 f2 que habia ocurrido entre art y Julie Gonzalez was shot on the floor. When dateline continues. Ty. Get up to 400 when you switch to verizon and trade up to the iphone 6s. And now you can upgrade to a new iphone every year without the wait. So youll always have the best iphone on the best network. New dannon oikos triple zero is my go to protein snack. Protein from yogurt . Yeah, this greek nonfat yogurt packs 15 grams of protein punch. But what else . It has 0 added sugar, 0 artificial sweeteners and 0 fat. Dannon oikos triple zero. Dannon get an extra 15 off through saturday october 3rd. Go to kohls. Com to download your savings pass. Plus, everyone gets 10 kohls cash for every 50 spent. Kohls. Hush my darling. Dont fear my darling. The lion sleeps tonight. [snoring. ] hush my darling. [snoring. ] dont fear my darling. The lion sleeps tonight. [snoring. ] take the roar out of snore. Yet another innovation only at a sleep number store. Yoplait. The smooth and creamy yogurt your whole family loves. Yoplait original with no artificial sweeteners, no artificial flavors, and no high fructose corn syrup. Reporter Stafford County courthouse in virginia. A bleak winters day in january 2015 as parties arrived for the second murder trial of Arthur Gonzales. Art was free on bond so he could use the front door of the courthouse to arrive in the morning and leave at night. But that also meant hed run into the people from julies side. People that used to sit together as family at thanksgiving are now on very opposite sides here. Yes, it was a true ordeal. Reporter it all made for an uncomfortable scene when julies friend and neighbor terry smith would run into arts side in court. How did it feel to be going into a courtroom in a murder trial . I thought i would be all right, but i was not. Yeah, i was very intimidated and there he is right in front of you. Yeah, i had a hard time looking over there. Reporter arts sister helped him get past all those angry glares. I stood by my brothers side, literally. I would not let him walk in or out of that courtroom without me by his side. I guess i felt like his protector. Reporter art and his defense attorney were optimistic after the last deadlocked jury split 102 in their favor. We were both encouraged that we had come so close. And yet the other side of that coin is, oh my god, we came that close to an acquittal and now we have to go through this all over again. I dont know what im expecting out of this next court. But hopefully theyll have new information that they can present in that courtroom to help convince those people there is no reasonable doubt. Reporter in the months between trials,prosecutors eric olsen and kristen bird believed they found just that. A new witness with new forensic evidence to bolster their case. Her name is dr. Marcella fierro, the former chief medical examiner for the commonwealth of virginia. But if youve ever read one of these hugely popular crime novels, youd know her by another name, kay scarpetta. Kay scarpetta in the Patricia Cornwell novels was modeled after dr. Fierro. Its my understanding the author actually worked with dr. Fierro. Impeccable resume. Absolutely. Reporter dr. Fierro came to court with her report, and it was a bombshell. Art gonzales had always maintained that he had shot julie four times while she stood facing him in the kitchen, coming at him with that knife. Examining the photos from the scene and the autopsy photos of julie, dr. Fierro noticed something. In csi language its called a shored bullet. A shored bullet is a bullet that as it exit is met by resistance by something firm and hard. Reporter dr. Fierro says she clearly saw a wound on julies back caused by a shored bullet. And in this case, the bullet couldnt even go any further, so it had to be a hard surface. Reporter given the possibilities at the crime scene, to her that could mean only one thing. She was down when she got that shot. She came to the remarkable conclusion, and the inescapable conclusion, that Julie Gonzales was shot on the floor. She was not standing up. Reporter the prosecutors saw a gamechanger. What it means is that art gonzales is not telling the truth when he says that Julie Gonzales, all four shots she was still coming at him with the knife. She was on the floor for at least one of those shots. If you believe dr. Fierro, this is clearly a murder. We believed at all times her science we her narration of this we believed at all times describes a murder. That it was a murder. And dr. Fierros opinion and testimony certainly confirmed that. If the jury believes her, youre done . Right. Shes saying, shes on her back. Hes above her . Right, yeah, she creates that the threat is over . I think thats what she was trying to infer. And you know, when that came out, it was heartbreaking. I was dumbfounded. I had i had no idea where that foundation was coming from, or or where that line of thinking was comin from. It never happened. Reporter arts sister says that given the trajectory of the bullets and the tight space where art and julie were in the kitchen, fierros theory just wont work. I never, for once, believed that. I mean no offense to dr. Fierro. Im not scientific at all. But there was no possible way common sense would, if youve seen the kitchen, and youve seen the positions, my brother woulda had to been standing in his sink, literally, to do what she said was done. And i mean it was absolutely absurd. Reporter and arts defense attorney believed he had the evidence to refute fierros findings. The doctor who performed the autopsy, did not agree with dr. Fierros conclusion. It was stressful to have an opinion that went against the grain. Reporter dr. Jennifer bowers is the medical examiner who performed the autopsy. She said dr. Fierros testimony surprised her. If thats her position and shes comfortable with it, its fine. But i happen to disagree. Reporter the m. E. , a prosecution witness, ended up helping the defense. She told jurors the shored bullet wound could be caused by any number of things, not just the floor. It can be a brassiere or something hard and flat up against the skin such as a wall. Until youre able to rule all of these possibilities out you have to consider them all. And even though shes a prosecution witness, in effect, she is at odds with the prosecution on this pivotal issue. Yes. Reporter then the defense called its own expert, who told the jury there was no way the floor could have caused that shored exit wound. In this case, i believe it was her brassiere. Reporter dr. Donald jason said definitively that the bullet was stopped by the bra julie was wearing, not the floor. The bra was, made of fairly hefty material. Was elastic. It caught the bullet like a catchers mitt would. Reporter as arts defense team fought back, art himself may have been wearing down. He testified again in his own defense, although his own lawyer said he may not have gotten better with time. He had lost weight, he was not as strong. Every day of his life, he he had this hanging over him and the uncertainty of it. And i think that took a toll on him and and affected how he testified. Reporter and during cross examination, the prosecution hammered at that extra detail he first gave on the stand and later told us. She asked, do the boys know her . And i looked up at her and i say, yes. Reporter that led the prosecution to another theory in this whydunnit. A possible motive for art wanting his wife gone. They speculated that julie, armed with information about the other woman, may have threatened to use it against art in a custody battle. For a man that was was meticulous about making sure that he got custody of these boys, the potential for danger was very, very real, that she had some ammunition for custody now. After eight tense days of trial, julies dad was even more convinced. The second time made me a stronger believer that he did it on purpose, that he murdered her. Reporter would the jurors agree . The decision was now in their hands. Announcer coming up. Art gonzalez waits to hear his fate. God saves his toughest battle for his mightiest warriors. 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Thats why i only choose nicorette mini. Because i make the best chicken noodle soup. Because i make the best chicken noodle soup. Because i make the best chicken noodle soup. For every way you make chicken noodle soup, make it delicious with swanson®. Cause, i cant wait this is what ive been waiting for i, i cant wait baby, i cant wait reporter when the jury is out deliberating your fate, for the second time theres not much a defendant can do but pace and be nervous again. It was difficult. You know, i would say my prayers. And just finding ways to pass the time. It was excruciating. And every time the door opened, wed jump. Every time. We would think, oh, the jury is back. Reporter but you also knew that you might not see art again. Right. We tried not to talk about that. We tried to stay positive. We needed to remain strong, not only for ourselves, but more for his boys and for art. Reporter art said his sons, 11 and 14 years old when the second jury was deliberating, kept him going. Both of them said, hey, dad, we read this and we thought about you. God saves his toughest battles for his mightiest warriors. And those two boys, for everything that theyd been through, have been one of my greatest sources of strength. Reporter the two trials had been no less hard on julies dad, rey, such a long way from his home in new mexico. He sat in the Stafford County courthouse and waited for the conviction he hoped was coming. Its kinda like ping pong. You you get your hopes up that its gonna be resolved. And and you hope the resolution is favorable. You hope for justice to be served. Reporter but then, after only a few hours of deliberations, julies dad, and everyone else, was hearing, once again, that the jury was struggling. Reporter did you take a straw vote . Just to see where you stood . Yeah, we did. Reporter this man knew exactly what was going on behind closed doors. Juror Paul Brastrom recalled for us the debate as they went around the table, laying out their choices guilty of 2nd degree murder, guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter or not guilty at all. And one thing was clear right away, they were sharply divided. So, we had some work to do, yeah. Reporter to this juror, the Critical Evidence wasnt the scientific dispute whether julie was standing up or lying on the floor when she was shot, but another issue had art, in fact, really tried to do cpr to save julies life . He didnt think so. If that part wasnt factual. That i could really believe that. What else couldnt i believe . Reporter he thought art was capable of staging the whole scene. Hes an fbi agent. Hes probably had cases like this. So, you cant just discount his abilities. And thats what i told other jurors. Reporter but not everyone agreed. Some made the case for reasonable doubt. Not guilty. After a few more hours of going back and forth, they sent a note to the judge. Theyd hit a brick wall. The lawyers could only guess the cause of the impasse. One of my concerns, was that there was a debate within the jury between Second Degree murder and manslaughter. We didnt know what the debate was. We had already gone through one mistrial. And we didnt want another one. Reporter so what to do . The judge convened a closed room conference with defense and prosecution. Hoping to break the logjam in the jury room, the prosecutors agreed to have the judge dismiss the murder charge. That meant art was, essentially, acquitted of murder, and the jury was left to deliberate only on the manslaughter charge. Reporter did you have to hold your nose to come to that conclusion . It was not taken lightly. It was a very, very difficult decision. Because if i was wrong about that assessment, then if it ended up still being hung, we couldnt try him again on a seconddegree murder. Reporter ironically, it didnt matter to the jury. The prosecutors, as it turns out, did guess wrong. They didnt know the jurors, on their own, had already rejected the murder charge but were still divided on manslaughter. Some refused to convict art of anything. But they all kept talking. And then. We went around the room, in in a very, you know, cordial way. And just said, hey, were we cant come up with a decision. We wrote another note to the to the judge. And said, were were stuck. Reporter another hung jury. Reporter your second mistrial here. Second mistrial. Reporter years of work at this point. Yeah, itd itd been a long haul. Reporter howd you handle that . It was devastating. Reporter but the prosecutors, with their new star medical witness, felt they were headed in the right direction. Last trial, it was 10 to 2 for acquittal. This time, a complete 180. 10 of the 12 jurors voted guilty. We put on a very compelling case. And the evidence was there. Reporter but for art, an even split of 24 jurors, over the course of two trials, meant an abundance of reasonable doubt. I was cautiously optimistic that that they would just dismiss the entire case and and not go for for a third trial. I come across sometimes as the cheerleader of the group or the the football coach. Like, yelling people to you know, were still in this. Reporter the prosecutors were certainly on board. Without any hesitation, they said they were Going Forward again. Reporter but trial number three would be different. Thered be no hung jury. Thats because thered be no jury at all. The defense and prosecution agreed to whats called a bench trial. The judge hearing the evidence the same one from the previous two trials would decide for herself whether art gonzales was guilty or not. Third trials gonna be different. Reporter it was gonna be directed to the judge, thered be no jury. And and its gonna be resolved. Reporter and there has to be a result. Thats right. Announcer coming up. There would be a result. But would there be a resolution . When he started speaking, you know, it was it was a roller coaster ride. When dateline continues. Read the news. Wait, you read the news . Kid yep of course you do. Now you can change apps like this. Pay at more places like this. And the new color looks like this. Its rose gold, its awesome. And siri is more helpful than ever. Bill hader hey siri, show me photos of tortellini. Siri here are some images of tortellini. Maybe get take out . The camera shoots 4k video now, which changes how your movies look. Nice. Even selfies have changed. Now your screen is the flash. Thats gonna get, like, a million likes. Selena gomez thanks. Actually, photos themselves have changed. They move now. You just touch them. So yeah, thats whats changed. How can you see yourself in new glasswithout your glasses . At lenscrafters, our unique camera and screen system lets you compare yourself in four different frames at time. 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Tiffany sat in court and prayed for a conviction. Youre not going to have a hung jury. This is going to be and yeah, youre going to reporter a decision. Have a decision. Its going to be done and over with. But is it going to be the decision that weve wanted for these last 2 1 2 years . Reporter the crucial questions at trial, three remained the same. Did julie attack art with that knife or had he placed it in her hand . Was julie an unhinged alcoholic or was art enraged over his breakup with his girlfriend . Tiffany took the witness stand one more time to say that julie was nothing but a gentle soul. Did she ever, in your experience with the two of them, get aggressive with mr. Gonzales . Not at all. In your experience with mrs. Gonzales in the time that you knew her, did she ever get aggressive with anybody in your presence . Never. Thank you. No further questions. Reporter as they had in the last trial, those three medical experts each came to court to answer that other key question was julie standing up when she was shot or was she on the floor . But the prosecutions case really hinged on how the judge viewed art gonzales. What i hope to show is that he simply cant be believed when hes the only one saying that Julie Gonzales came at him with a knife. Reporter again, prosecutors argued he lied about performing cpr, lied about his girlfriend, cara kast, and lied about when he holstered up that day. And they added still another layer of doubt about art, calling some of his former fbi colleagues from his days out west to testify against him. Are you aware of whether or not he has a reputation for truthfulness in the community out there . Yes, maam, i am. And do you know whether it is good or bad . Its bad. Reporter fbi agent Janet Johnson also recalled a conversation she says she had with art about his plan to move to virginia, one prosecutors believed further showed him as a controlling, manipulative husband. He told me that he was going to lure julie out here. He said, im going to buy her a good house. She has no job, she has no money, she has no place to go. He told me that his plan was to file for divorce, and that the custody laws here were more favorable. Reporter and prosecutor olsen had another tidbit to chip away at arts character. This photograph, one art had taken for his attorney to demonstrate julies position in the kitchen that day. Have you seen this picture before . We showed that picture to one of art gonzales good friends who knew his son, christopher, and he identified without question that that was christopher. Reporter to prosecutors it meant art had used his son to help illustrate the shooting scene. When julies dad heard about it he was so furious he had to leave the courtroom. I was so upset that i wanted to jump over that rail and punish him. Because hes a narcissist that will use anyone, manipulate anyone, including his own children, to get what he wants. Reporter art admits his son did stand in for a moment in the photo. But he says he was appalled that the prosecution would try and use his own children against him. If i had thought it would have been harmful in any way to anyone, i would have never have done it. Reporter in his closing statement to the judge, the prosecutor said that she should believe nothing gonzales said in court. Art gonzales is dishonest. He is just a liar. And its so frustrating for him to wrap himself in the cloak of the fbi that so many of us have such respect for and to just be such the liar he is. Reporter arts attorney appealed to the judges assessment of the law and the evidence. Judge, i maintain that theres no real evidence to contradict arts claim about what happened in that kitchen. If it does not contradict him then hes not guilty. Reporter with closings complete, the judge said she would take an hourlong break to prepare her decision. Those on both sides of the gonzales case now faced a very tense lunch hour. Where did you go for lunch that day and what were you thinking . I didnt. I stayed at the courtroom. The first thought that i thought was, you know, 832 days. 832 days comes down to one hour. You know, is it going to be a situation where we, you know, can look up and say, we got him, jules . Reporter what did you do during that hour . What i did every hour since this happened, spend as much time with the boys as i possibly could. Reporter then it was back to court. All rise. Remember the moment . I remember. Reporter theres judge deneke sitting on the bench. Oh, ill tell you, i dont think ive ever been more scared in my life. Reporter what followed was an extraordinary scene. The judge would deliver her verdict in the case, but only after she ticked through the evidence, what she believed, and what she didnt. When she started speaking, you know, it was a rollercoaster ride. I dont think i have to tell anybody here that this is a difficult case. Reporter first, that knife art said julie used to attack him. Prosecutors argued its position in her hand when she fell meant art had staged the scene. Theres something unnatural about the position of that knife in that hand. But thats the best that i can say about it. Theres something unnatural about it. Reporter a point for the prosecution. But that wasnt all she had to say about that knife. The knife when viewed in person is a scary looking knife. There is no question that if this knife was in her hand as she came at mr. Gonzalez that that knife constitutes a deadly weapon. Reporter a score for the defense. But what about that question that had loomed over so much of the case . Did he or did he not perform cpr to try and save julie . I find that very doubtful given the evidence that ive heard here. I cant conclude that he did certainly perform cpr. It looks most likely that he didnt. Reporter with that the prosecution might have sensed victory. But the judge had other surprises. We have to address the issue of cara kast. Reporter the prosecution had presented hours and hours of testimony about cara kast, the other woman in arts life. The commonwealths presented a theory that upset over that relationship may have contributed, but i dont find evidence to support that. Reporter the judge basically threw it all out the window. Still, she wasnt revealing her verdict just yet. She had another shocker. Evaluating the work of those three medical experts and that question of whether the floor or julies bra had stopped that bullet, the judge made her call. Im not sure well ever know exactly what happened. But i do find that under all of the evidence that ive heard, that the most likely explanation for that shored exit wound is the floor. Reporter the floor. That alone could make the difference between an acquittal and a conviction. I put my life in the hands of god at that point and just waited. I was Holding Hands with friends and family, and i hear, well, i agree with the commonwealth on this. The evidence proves this. Reporter but on the other hand but on the other hand, this happened. So you know, were squeezing hands going, you know, shes about to say it. Reporter after 33 minutes of explanation, the judge was about to deliver her verdict. I have considered all of the evidence in this case. Announcer coming up. I felt positive it would be our way. They had already lost their mom and i couldnt imagine them losing their father. 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The only thing that im 100 sure of is that Julie Gonzales should not be dead. Reporter her evenhanded analysis completed, judge deneke had finally gotten down to the nitty and the gritty. After one statement i said, okay. Im okay. After another statement, im like, oh, no, im in trouble. I felt positive that it would be our way. I was hoping for a conviction. We will proceed to the decision. Reporter have you ever had a more dramatic moment in court . No. It is the conclusion of the court that the commonwealth has proven beyond a reasonable doubt the crime of manslaughter. Reporter art gulped and blinked. Was it over . Had he lost . She said that the prosecution had proved manslaughter, i mean, my heart just sank. Reporter but the judge wasnt done talking. But it is also the opinion of the court that the defendant has met the burden of raising a reasonable doubt as to whether this offense occurred in selfdefense. Reporter meaning she found the defense had raised reasonable doubt, and that trumped everything else. I have no choice under those circumstances but to find the defendant not guilty of the crime of manslaughter, and this court is adjourned. Reporter three trials, 2 1 2 years, and it was finally over. I looked to god, and i said, thank you. Reporter an emotional art gonzales was whisked out a side door to freedom. On arts side of the aisle, there were hugs. You know, i had called christopher and i told him that, you know, daddys coming home tonight. And to hear my brother tell them, daddys coming home, are the most beautiful words ive heard in such a long time. That god gave art back to his boys. That they had already lost their mom, and i couldnt even imagine them losing their father. Reporter on the prosecution side, tears of disappointment. I think as a young prosecutor, you try to figure out how you deal with that, how you look at the victims family and essentially say, im sorry. We tried as hard as we could. Reporter todd nosal, the detective who lived this case since the very first day in april 2013, tried to console a distraught prosecutor kristin bird. He felt her pain. And his own. Respectfully disagree with the judges decision. Reporter so its got to be a tough day for you . Tough day. Horrible. Reporter there are going to be a lot of people who think he got away with murder here. I think he got away with murder. Reporter are you going to be okay with that kind of innuendo and whisper following you around, art . You know, i have no choice, dennis. But what ive learned over the past two years is the people who know me know that all the allegations that have been made against me arent true, and thats where i place my faith and my hope. Reporter whats the road ahead for you, art . What do you see . Whatever god puts in front of me, ill accept. Reporter you need a job. I need a job. Reporter and he says he still hopes to have a career in Law Enforcement. It was ironic that art served 18 years in the bureau, but never fired his gun at anyone until the day he killed his wife. I pity him because he has to live with what he did. I feel sorry for him, i feel sorry for my grandchildren. Reporter rey serna, a tragic figure as he left the courtroom, not only lost his daughter but now is missing out on her boys. Do you see them being part of your life Going Forward . Were hoping that thatll happen. But only time will tell. Reporter do you have remorse that you can share with julies family . Absolutely. You know, from the bottom of my heart, i just want to say that im sorry that if there was something that i could have done differently i would have done it. They lost a daughter. And the boys lost their mother. But the boys wont ever forget their mother. I wont ever let them. Reporter in honor of julie, who would have turned 45 today, her birthday, Tiffany Clark gave her newborn son a meaningful middle name julian. When im looking at my children, you know, shell never get that chance again to hug her boys, to tell them how much she loves them. Reporter rey, when do you miss julie the most . I miss her all the time. We get up in the morning and were doing things, and it hits me that shes gone. Birthdays, christmas, thanksgiving. Shes gone. 3 f2 de gracias, ella se fue. Losing her son in the deadly oregon shootings. Tonight the a that mothers sorrow over losing her son in the deadly oregon shootings. More vigils and more tears as the community and country prepares for the next phase of this tragedy. Good evening. Thanks for being with us on this friday. Families prepare to bury their loved ones this weekend as others keep bedside