Transcripts For KNTV Dateline NBC 20160711

They were rocking back and forth traumatized, disturbed. What had the girls seen that day . Could they provide a clue to help crack this case . We were told by the twins that nicky had a second boyfriend. Two boyfriends . Two boyfriends. Jealousy, passion, revenge . She was fearful. She contacted the police. What secrets might the twins reveal . Its terrifying. Is it possible that this could happen . I was shaking. Oh, my god. Oh, in i god. I couldnt even imagine. Im lester holt, and this is dateline. Tonight watch for the double twist. Heres Keith Morrison with bad blood. Reporter once in a while in a complicated life, a woman can get lucky, which is why youre looking at a sweet little town called conyers, georgia, good schools, the sheen of newness. It was really pure luck that brought Nicky Whitehead to this house in this quiet, safe neighborhood, just far enough away from atlanta, that capital of overheated ambition down the highway. Here in conyers, she could give her beautiful twin daughters a better life than hers. But, of course, luck, fortune, fate can go either way. Sometimes in ways very hard to comprehend. Everything about this goes against nature. How could somebody do that . It was definitely the bloodiest crime scene ive ever been to. Reporter in the next few minutes, you will know exactly when it happened, where it happened, how it happened, but, of course, the real question is why it happened. And the answer to that, as you will see, its kind of complicated. But thats how Nicky Whiteheads life was. I loved everything about nicky. Reporter dr. Harris grew up with nicky. She was a wild child and pretty and fun, irresistible. Nicky was to me, he was a phenomenal, amazing person. Reporter and she was effervescent said nickys mother, linda. Bigger than life. Shes the kind of person that when she comes in the room, she just take over the space, you know, with her personality, her laughter. Reporter but when nicky was 12, ooh, boy, a handful. Linda was a single mom with other kids at the time, so she agreed to let young nicky move in with della, nickys grandmother. The problem was that della let the girl run wild. Boys and parties. We grew up kind of fast. Then later she became pregnant at the age of 18 or 19. So we move kind of fast. Reporter yeah. Yeah. Reporter pregnant with identical twins whom she named jazz and as thtaz. Their dad was around briefly then gone. And their mother figure . Nickys grandmother, della. Nickys mother, linda, didnt like that. I wanted nicky to get her own place, establish her own life, and my mom would discourage that. She would, you know, find ways to tell her, no, youre better off here. Reporter thats how it went for years. But nicky had learned how to style hair and was doing well at it. And eventually saw the possibility of independence. So she eventually wanted to kind of get out from dellas control. Definitely. She did. She wanted to as the girls got older, she definitely wanted to take control of her life. Reporter then one day in 2000, nicky was shopping at the mall and robert head just happened to be in exactly the right spot. I was sitting there one afternoon at about 6 00. And there walks nicky coming into the mall. Reporter your eye caught . Yes, i cant let her get away. Reporter that he was old enough to be her father didnt matter. Robert was in love. So he persuaded her to go to dinner that very night. He took her dancing. He bought her nice things, treated her like a lady. She was my movie star. Thats what i call her, my movie star. Reporter his movie star with two sweet daughters. He also soon loved as if they were his own. And thats how nicky came here to safe, secure conyers, this is roberts house. And here they made a family. Unusual in some ways, as you will hear, but it was nice. It was really nice. And everything clicked just right. Reporter and she wanted her life to get even better. So while she kept her job as a hairstylist, she enrolled in atlantas Bauder College to study fashion design. Thats when i actually learned that nicky was a hairstylist. Reporter she thought nicky had a sense of purpose, whether it was about her kids, her fashion or other peoples hair. I came to class early one day, as i normally do. She looked up at me, whats going on with your hair . And i said, what . Excuse me . And she asked me this question. Do you have a hairstylist and does she know you have your hair looking like that today . I said yes and no. Im giving her one more chance. One more chance, and if its not right, im taking over. Reporter rhonda loved nicky and nicky loved her girls. She put the twins in dance and music classes, at school, they won awards. Their teachers describe them as almost angelic, sweet and happy and engaged, and theres pictures the of them, you know, one on each of nickys arms. Reporter katie beck is a reporter at nbc affiliate wxia in atlanta. Teachers describe them that way, that they had a sweet demeanor in their classrooms and with their classmates. They were almost timid. Reporter then, as they reached their teens, they changed somehow. In the ways children often do and the way nicky herself once did. And just like nicky, the twins were sent to live for a couple of years with the rather permissive family matriarch, della. Until, 2010, when nicky welcomed taz and jazz back. All together again in roberts house. A fresh start. And nicky turned up at school beaming. She was in a very good mood. She looked great. She had a new look with her hair. And she had braids in and she was happy. Reporter as if the braids in her hair were kind of an announcement. Her girls were back. They were pretty much her pride and joy. Reporter you start thinking about her . Yeah. Its really hard. Reporter it was january 13th, 2010. A sheriffs deputy happened to be in the neighborhood. The girls had just come home from school. The deputy saw a look of horror on their faces, heard their screams as they came pounding on his car. One of the twins ran up and literally beat on the side of his car and told him that they had come home from school and found their mother murdered. When we come back, exactly what had happened . They were going in and out of fits and tears and crying, traumatized. Disturbed. Two distraught daughters are about to reveal a clue. Were told by the twins that nicky had a second boyfriend. Two boyfriends . Two boyfriends. On this cushion for generations. Alright kiddos everybody off the backpack, we made it to the ottoman. I like to watch them clean, but theyll never get me on the mattress finally theres a disinfectant mist designed for sofas, mattresses and more. Introducing new lysol max cover. Its innovative cap has a 2x wider spray that kills 99. 9 of bacteria. Max cover is another great way to lysol that. Meta appetite control. You and temptation with. Clinically proven to help reduce hunger between meals. New, from metamucil, the 1 doctor recommended brand. Squuuuack, lets feed him lets feto the sharks sharks yay and take all of his gold and take all of his gold ya and hide it from the crew ya. . Squuuuack, theyre all morons anyway i never said that. They all smell bad too. No you all smell wonderful i smell bad if youre a parrot, you repeat things. Its what you do. If you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. Its what you do. Squuuuack, its what you do. Put under a microscope, we can see all the bacteria that still exists. Polidents unique micro clean formula works in just 3 minutes, killing 99. 99 of odor causing bacteria. For a cleaner, fresher, brighter denture every day. Wopen up a lot of dawn. Tough on grease. Yet gentle. Dawn helps open. Something even bigger. Go to facebook. Com, dawn saves wildlife. First you start with this. These guys. A place like shhh no. Found it and definitely lipton ice tea. Lots of it. A lipton meal is what you bring to it. And the refreshing taste of lipton iced tea. Are how clear windexith makes your windows . Introducing. Schmindex look windex makes glass too spotless and too dangerous. But shmindex makes it dirty shmindex. Order yours today lashblast is our most coveaward winning mascara news for lashes millions of girls, millions of looks billions of beautiful lashes blasted the lashblast collection from easy, breezy, beautiful covergirl wednesday afternoon, 2010, a gated community in the town of conyers, east of atlanta, twins yasmiyah and tasmiyah arrived home in school, walked in the door, followed the bloody trail and there she was, in the bathtub. Their mother, 34yearold Nikki Whitehead very, very dead. We walked in. Reporter the mess that greeted arriving conyers detective chris moon told a terrible story. This was a long, drawnout fight. Nikki was fighting for her life for several minutes. This was not a quick attack and over with. She fought here. She was struck in the back of the head. She had a laceration to the back of her head. There was blood on the door, on the door handle. Reporter as if somebody tried to get out. Tried to get out, yep. Then along this wall, you can see a bloody imprint of hairbraids which nikki had her hair in braids where she fell, slid down the wall, the most severe blows came when she was face down in this area. This is clearly where the assailant got on top of her from behind and started stabbing her at the base of her neck. Reporter a huge amount of blood here. Yes, this was the largest pool of blood in this area right here. Reporter she was dead or near dead when her assailant dragged her to the bathroom, and thats where she was in a tub of water, what her daughters saw before they ran to the street screaming. As we get there, you have these two beautiful young 16yearold girls that discover their mother murdered. Reporter Conyers Police captain jackie dunn wanted to get jazz and taz away from the house. Thats when he noticed they were hurting themselves. One of them was biting her arm. Why are you biting your arm . Im so upset, i do that when i get upset. Reporter this was the worst kind of case, detectives needed information fast. But how do you get it from children who just left their dead mother . [ crying ] they were going in and out of fits of tears and crying. I want grandma. Asking for their mom. I want mama. She both seem to be rocking back and forth, you know, contemplative, traumatized, disturbed. It will be okay. I want grandma. It will be ok. I remember thinking, man, i hope there is a civil Family Member to adopt these girls because they really need somebody to reach out and be good parents for them. Reporter word spread through the Late Afternoon gloom. A friend called yucca harris. She asked me when is the last time i talked to nikki. I said saturday. You may want to go over to her house because the helicopters were there and the news reporters. Reporter tell me when you heard that, what did you think . I dont know. It was like television. I was just like in slow motion. Reporter yucca called her mother linda. Told her something bad was going on over at nikkis. I was so nervous, i didnt know what to do. I was like, oh, my god, oh, in i god. I was just shaking. Reporter linda pulled into her daughters neighborhood and saw a Police Officer. Okay. Pull over there. I said, no, i need to go to my daughters house. He said, maam, will you just pull over there, please. And i pulled up to the side. I said, what is going on . I said, the only thing i can tell you is your daughter has expired. Reporter there is no getting over news like that. As nikkis family tried to take it in, investigators set to work figuring out who did this. The girls said their mother was still in her room with the door locked when they left the house for school at 7 30. We missed the bus, so we had to walk. Reporter perhaps the crime scene would yield more clues than the girls could. Lieutenant chris moon headed back there. They were looking for cell phones, computers, indications typically the victims have called for spoken with their assailant just before the murder or around the time of the murder. Reporter the attack did not look random. It was not rape, but it was so violent. That suggested rage, and when you look at a rage murder, its usually somebody very, very close to the deceased. Reporter so naturally, the first person they wanted to talk to was the man of the house, robert head, nikkis boyfriend, but robert wasnt around. When is the last time you saw robert . Yesterday. He left. He came in on sunday. He stayed for a day. He left. Reporter heres the thing. Robert was a long haul truck driver which explains his absence but not where he was, especially when nikki was murdered. We had to find robert, and we had to check on his gps. Reporter that takes a while, right . Yes, sir. Reporter meanwhile, detectives spread out through the neighborhood, knocking on doors. Had anyone seen anything unusual . A couple of neighbors said they saw a red car in nikkis driveway that afternoon, a car they had never seen before. And a black car on the street, too. They asked the girls who could have been there . Does your mom have any other friends or anybody else that come over that you know of. She talks to a lot of men. She talks to some men. But the only one ive been hearing her talk lately is joe. Reporter joe . Who was joe . We were also told by the twins that nikki had a second boyfriend, joe carter. Reporter two boyfriends . Two boyfriends. Reporter now that got the investigators attention. Time to dig a little deeper into the life of Nikki Whitehead. Coming up two boyfriends, two possible suspects . Jealousy or bad blood . They were clearly having an argument, yelling screaming over the phone. He was an immediate person of interest. Detectives in conyers, georgia, were getting a crash course in the short life of Nikki Whitehead, found stabbed to death in the home she shared with her livein boyfriend, robert, and her twin teenage daughters, jas and tas, who, at least, had each other for support. The girls put their arms around each other and, its going to be okay. Were going to find out who did this. They were clearly relying on each other to get through this. Reporter but they were able to convey some real information. Any idea who she was talking to . It was joe. It was joe . Reporter their mother had a second boyfriend, a man named joe carter, a local barber whose shop was right next to nikkis salon. Love triangle . Now the homicide detectives thought was a potential recipe for murder. They talked to robert who was on the road in his long haul truck. How does he react to any of this . He was devastated. Reporter easy enough to check on roberts. Gps records put him a full days drive away when nikki was murdered. When they met him, as we did, they could plainly see his grief was real. Because that was my better half, and shes gone, you know. Its a hard thing. Reporter this was how detectives discovered the unusual nature of robert and nikkis relationship. Robert told them he knew about the other boyfriend, wasnt a secret. He didnt mind. He said he wanted nikki to be happy when he was away on the road. Hes a truck driver and when he was home he expected for her her and him to be a couple. And when he was away, he realized that she was going to have other relationships. Reporter but what about joe . How did he feel about that . He was upset about something, said the twins. Night before the murder, they said, joe and nikki had a nasty, loud argument on the phone. All she told joe was that he couldnt come over there last night. Reporter was there some suggestion that there might have been, you know, jealousy or bad blood involved . Well, and thats what we immediately thought. And so, obviously, he was a immediate person of interest. Reporter so he was. And remember, a neighbor spotted a black car near nikkis house the day she was killed. Joes car perhaps . You know what joe drives . No. I know the black car in that driveway. And its a black car. Reporter Rockdale County District Attorney richard reed. We need to look at joe carter. Especially since nikki and joe had been in an argument. They were breaking up. Reporter thats a dangerous time in a relationship. It can be a dangerous time in a relationship. Reporter it wasnt hard to track joe down. He was at the barber shop where he worked. It was around closing time. We was ready to pack up and get out of there, and they approached me and my friends. Then they basically said that she passed away. I mean, shes dead. I was shocked. I was just in shock. Reporter how did he react when you came to see him . He immediately started weeping. Reporter he didnt know about the or claimed not to know . He claimed not to know. Reporter but reactions dont always tell the real story. They was basically asking about our relationship. When the last time i seen her. I started to realize i was a suspect. Reporter detective moon did what any good detective would do. He looked for the sort of marks nikki might have left on her assailants body. Looked at his hands, his arms. He took off his shirt. Reporter but joe was clean. Not a suspicious scratch on him. And detectives learned that black car outside nikkis house didnt belong to him. Still, they brought him in for questioning and hooked him up to a polygraph and asked him point blank if he killed nikki. And the polygrapher determined that he was not deceptive in answering questions. I wanted them to find the killer, and i wanted them to know that it wasnt me. Reporter so thats it for joe . It appeared that joe was not involved in the death of Nikki Whitehead. Reporter so two boyfriends and two dead ends. You know, in addition to robert head and joe carter, there could have been a stranger. Could have been another did you look into that possibility . We did. Reporter yes. And they still wanted to know who owned another car, a red one, that was also seen in nikkis driveway the day of the killing. It didnt take long to find out. It belonged not to a murderer at all, but a friend. Nikki had missed a hair appointment with this friend and the friend had come by, knocked on the door and not been able to make contact with nikki and left. Reporter imagine had she opened that door. Such a grisly scene. So full of rage and passion. So who killed nikki . Someone close . Then, as they struggled to figure it out, investigators encountered in their own police file something rather stunning. Coming up i just woke up and my daughters gone. Your daughter was abducted . I dont know, maam. Shes just gone. Family secrets. There were a few yet to be revealed. It turned into a fight. A physical fight . A physical fight. And she contacted police. The worst thing about toilet germs . They dont stay in the toilet. Disinfect your bathroom with lysol bathroom trigger. Lysol power foamer. And lysol toilet bowl cleaner. They kill 99. 9 of germs including e. Coli. To clean and disinfect in and out of the toilet. Lysol that. Your current gel antiperspirant wet ais. Sticky now, were going to show you how degree dry spray is different. Degree dry spray. Degree. It wont let you down. Wopen up a lot of dawn. Tough on grease. Yet gentle. Dawn helps open. Something even bigger. Go to facebook. Com, dawn saves wildlife. What are you doing . Sara, i love you, and. [phone rings] ah, its my brother. Keep going. Sara, will you marry. [phone rings again] what do you want, todd . . . . [crowd cheering] keep it going if you sit on your phone, you buttdial people. Its what you do. Todd if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. Its what you do. I know we just met like, two months ago. Yes [crowd cheering] [crowd cheering over phone] this pimples gonna aw comon. Ver. Clearasil ultra works fast to begin visibly clearing up skin in as little as 12 hours. And acne wont last forever. Just like your mom wont walk in on you. Forever. Lets be clear. Clearasil works fast. No other scents feel like glade. Melt your mood with our hawaiian breeze fragrance. Feel relaxed, feel glade. Its builtin backup wbraid helps stop leaks by channeling them back into the core giving you the best protection at home and onthego tampax. Power over periods. The investigation into the murder of Nikki Whitehead was not offering up any usual suspects. The two men in her life, robert head and joe carter, had been eliminated. And a Home Invasion seemed very unlikely in her gated community. There was no histories of any peeping toms. No histories of assaults in the neighborhood. So we just kept coming up to dead ends. Reporter thing is, they felt sure this had to be a rage murder. So violent. So protracted. Which made it very likely it was someone nikki knew, even possibly a Family Member. So we started getting into some of the family dynamics. Reporter and thats when they turned up, in police files, this remarkable incident back in 2007. One brief snippet of family history, but an event that changed everything that came after it. Conyers, 911. Yes, maam. I just woke up and my daughters gone at the house. Meaning your daughter was abducted . I dont know maam. I woke up. The door was unlocked. Shes just gone. I have twin girls. One of them is gone. How old is your daughter . Oh, lord, 13. Reporter you can hear her terror. Oh lord, my worst nightmare. Do you think that maybe somebody came and got her . Or do you think i dont know. I dont know if somebody came and got her, maam. She dont do stuff like this. I dont know. Reporter but a few hours later, nikki learned that her daughters did do stuff like that. Jas had not been kidnapped. Shed snuck out to fool around with a boy. Up until that day, i believe in nikkis mind she had perfect girls. Nikki realized they werent necessarily the girls that she thought they were. Reporter nikki was determined to help her girls avoid the mistakes she made at their age. So she cracked down on curfew, on boys, on cell phone use. The following months would be familiar to many parents of teenagers. Screaming, slammed doors, stony silences. And then one summer night in 2008, a year after jazz sneaked out of the house. Big argument. And it turned into a fight. Reporter a physical fight . A physical fight. It was tas and jas against their mother. And at that time i think she felt fearful and she contacted police. Reporter was it the right decision to call the police . That ensured the family ended up in Juvenile Court, nikki asking the judge to help her teach her daughters a lesson. Instead, seemed to linda, the judge was blaming nikki. I guess the judge thought they were too cute and too smart that, nah, they couldnt be doing, you know he did not take it serious. Reporter what did he decide to do . Well, he asked my daughter, he said, would do you want your kids to come back home . And she said, no, your honor, not unless they understand that im not going to tolerate that kind of behavior. And so he was like you mean to tell me you dont want your kids to come home . Reporter what nikki wanted was a courtsanctioned demand that her daughters obey the rules. But thats not what she got. Instead, the Juvenile Court judge sent the girls to live with della, their greatgrandmother. What were they doing while they were at dellas house . Pretty much whatever they want. They kind of ran wild. Reporter and got in trouble repeatedly, in school and out. Shoplifting, smoking marijuana, seeing the wrong type of boys. Well, she didnt want that. She knew, you know, she was going back to when she was their age in her grandmothers custody. She didnt want that for her kids. Reporter seemed to nikki that della was undermining her and had somehow stolen away the daughters who mattered to her more than anything else in her life. She really wanted them back. Really wanted them back. Reporter how did you know this . How did she express it . She said it every day. I want my girls. Im going to fight for my girls. Reporter and in january 2010, nikki finally won. The judge ordered the girls back to nikki. And jas and tas did not like it not one bit. So they started screaming and hollering, we dont want to go back. Why would you make us go back . Reporter in court they were doing this . Yeah. Reporter nikki told her mother not to worry. She said, theyll be fine. Theyll mellow out. Theyll come around. Reporter a few days after the courts decision, on a saturday night, nikki put on a Welcome Home Party for the girls. They hugged me. You know, they kissed me. Reporter and that was the last time yucca saw nikki. Four nights later, there they were, jas and tas, answering the increasingly pointed questions of a couple of detectives. Can you tell me what happened when you got home today . Reporter seemed a little odd that the girls were still wearing outdoor gloves. The detective asked, could you take them off, please . I need to see your hands and your arms. When we did that, we did see a cut on one of their hands, we saw bruising on the knuckles and the skin marks and bite marks. Reporter bite mark. And we asked them to explain those. Reporter the bite marks could have been selfinflicted. Remember the girls were so upset on the way to the station. They were biting themselves. And the other cuts and scratches . The twins told the cops they had been fighting with each other. We didnt get along yesterday. Reporter it was, as they told their story, detective dunn took a good look at jazz and taz and a disturbing idea settled down somewhere in his brain. I havent made up my mind, but im suspicious. Coming up suspicious . Were there reason to be suspicious . We watched the High School Video surveillance. You see the twins showing up about 2 1 2 hours after they should have for school. What were the girls doing the morning of the murder . Guess what i just did . Built a sandcastle . Ha, no, i switched to geico and got more. More . 24 7 access online, on the phone or with the geico app. That is more. Go get some mud. All that more has to be why theyre the secondlargest auto insurer. Everybody likes more. Mhm, i think so. Geico. Expect great savings and a whole lot more. Your heart loves omega3s. But theres a difference between the omega3s in fish oil and those in megared krill oil. Unlike fish oil, megared is easily absorbed by your body. Which makes your heart, well, megahappy. Happier still, megared is proven to increase omega3 levels in 30 days. Megared. The difference is easy to absorb. School lunch can be difficult. Cafeteria chaos. One little struggle. Can lead to one monumental mishap. Not with ziploc easy open tabs. Because life needs ziploc. Sc johnson. Meta appetite control. You and temptation with. Clinically proven to help reduce hunger between meals. New, from metamucil, the 1 doctor recommended brand. If you a dry mouth can be ations common side effect. Thats why theres biotene. It comes in oral rinse, spray or gel, so theres moisturizing relief for everyone. Biotene. For people who suffer from a dry mouth. To show your roots. With root touch up from nicen easy it blends with leading shades, even salon shades. In just 10 minutes. So pick your shade. And show the world your roots. With root touchup. Sfx crowd cheering sc johnson this pimples gonna aw comon. Ver. Clearasil ultra works fast to begin visibly clearing up skin in as little as 12 hours. And acne wont last forever. Just like your mom wont walk in on you. Forever. Lets be clear. Clearasil works fast. Its builtin backup wbraid helps stop leaks by channeling them back into the core giving you the best protection at home and onthego tampax. Power over periods. Thanks for tnorfolk around and i just wanted to say, geico is proud to have served the military for over 75 years roger that. Captains waiting to give you a tour of the wisconsin now. Couldve parked a little bit closer. Its gonna be dark by the time i get there. Geico®. Proudly serving the military for over 75 years. Theres a look, a way of talking, that suggests a thing the spoken words most certainly do not say. As Nikki Whiteheads petite teenage daughters told their story, how they discovered their mothers body, how horrified they were, the detectives watched their eyes, their tearless sobs, saw their bruises and cuts and just knew. Theyre not behaving consistent with somebody that found their mother murdered. Reporter mind you, theres a hurdle a person has to overcome to imagine that these two sweet teenagers might have been involved somehow in what could only be called a slaughter. Though nikkis mother, linda, remembered clearly how angry the twins were just a week earlier when the court sent them back to nikki. When jas came out, she looked over at my daughter and she said, if i got to go back home with you, im gooding to kill you. Reporter you heard this . I heard this. And it stunned me. Reporter but teenagers sometimes do talk that way. Doesnt mean they actually do anything about it. So the detectives set about factchecking the twins version of events on the day of their mothers death. Starting with their claim that they had to walk to school that morning. They told us that they had overslept a little bit, that they had missed the bus and had walked to school. Reporter it was a rush, said the girls, but they did get to school on time. Made all your classes today . Yes. Reporter so the cops did what the cops do. They checked surveillance tape from businesses along the route to school. And what do you know . Law enforcement had observed the girls walking down the roadway next to the gas station a little after 10 00 a. M. That morning. Reporter nowhere near on time, as the School Surveillance camera confirmed. We watched the High School Video surveillance, and you see the twins showing up about 2 1 2 hours after they should have for school. Reporter so the twins were caught in a lie. And it was a big one. But it wasnt proof of murder. They flatly denied any involvement in that. Even when they were put in separate rooms they presented a united twin front. They wouldnt sway. There was never any disloyalty to each other. They never said a negative comment about each other. Reporter getting one to flip on the other was not going to happen . No. Reporter after those interviews they released the girls. The Juvenile Court farmed them out to family and friends. And police sent their dna and photos of their injuries like those apparently selfinflicted bite marks off to the lab. And then they waited pretty sure science would tell them that these sweet little girls were anything but. Did they appear manipulative to you . Absolutely. Ill give you a for instance. Jasmiyah is in one room. Tasmiyah is taken to a smaller interview room. Its apparent that tasmiyah knows theres a camera and theres a recording system in that room. And she starts to pray. I really want them to catch this person. Please, god. She knew at some point in time somebody would watch that video and they would see a young, innocent, sweet girl asking god to help Law Enforcement find the person who did this. Reporter and meanwhile, at the glacial pace these things occur, the crime lab worked on the dna and pored over those photos of the bite marks. One on tazs arm was the impression of a big, ugly bite. They compared the contours of that bite to a mold of nikkis mouth. The similarity was uncanny. Nikki was most likely the source. Reporter had their mother bitten them trying to fight off an attack . The bite marks on tazs arm would be consistent as if she had her mother in a chokehold from behind. And that her mother, nikki, is biting her, trying to get away. Reporter and when detectives saw the twins biting themselves right after the murder . Maybe that was an attempt to cover up evidence. Then the dna results came back. They knew theyd find nikkis blood. But, remember, one of the twins had fresh cuts on her hand. And, sure enough in a smear of nikkis blood, mixed with her likely assailants, a match. It belonged to one of the twins. But which one . They were identical twins. They have identical dna so we dont know. Couldnt tell for sure which twin the blood came from. Reporter by this time, the twins had been out in the World Without a word from the police for five months. Wxia reporter katie beck. I think those months built their confidence, built almost an arrogance that were going to get away with this. Reporter so, you can only imagine how it was, may 21st, 2010, just after school. How did they react to being arrested . Shocked. Though thut it was over with. It had been five months since they had heard from us. Reporter the arrest was big news in atlanta. Two sweet little girls charged with the murder of their mother. Who would have thought . I mean, people were riveted by this story. Reporter oh, yes, they were. And when the twins finally told their version of events that cold morning in january, the city was riveted all over again. Coming up she threatened us. The fatal struggle. Did their mom start it all. She like charged forward. I kept telling her to stop. Just stop. Its a complicated thing. Lots to do if youre a prosecutor preparing a murder case against pretty twin teenagers. And so d. A. Richard reed was interested when, one day, Defense Attorneys suggested they wanted to make a deal. My response is its great to hear it from you, but i want to hear it from them. And so id like to talk to your clients. Id like to ask them questions. Reporter and thats how d. A. Reed met the 19yearold jazz and taz and heard them confess they did kill their mother. But was it a confession, really . In fact, said the twins, it wasnt their fault. She started it. Shes starts cursing and stuff. I think she was mad about us being late. Reporter that morning, they said, nikki was furious that they were late for school and picked up a pot in the kitchen, they said, and swung it at them. She still calling us whores and sluts and everything like that and stupid and everything like that and she threatened us. I dont know. Were all going to die today. Reporter thats jazz. And then taz picked up the story. All right, so you took the pot away from your mom. What happened then . She kind of just like charged forward, not at me though, at jazz. Reporter now, nikki had a knife, said the girls. They tumbled, room to room, trying to get it away from her before she cut one of them. And in fact, said taz, thats how her finger got cut. I kept telling her to stop. Just stop, just stop, just stop. Reporter but she didnt, they said. So, im trying to punch her, i guess, and i think taz stabbed her. She stabbed her. And at this point in time, how many times did taz stab her . It was once. Reporter at some point, exhausted, the twins said they all called a truce. It didnt last long. And they both describe mom lunges for the knife. And when she does, its on again. Reporter finally, said the girls, they overpowered their mother who stopped struggling and moaned that she was cold. So, they put her in a warm tub, tried to soothe her even though, they said, she was still spitting mad and threatening them. Kill me now or ill kill you all. Reporter eventually, they said, she stopped talking, drifted off in the warm water and died. So, what did the d. A. Think after listening to the girls tale of selfdefense against a mother gone berserk . Did you believe them . Did you believe everything they said . No. Still dont. Reporter the idea that nikki launched an attack on her own daughters . Difficult to believe, said the d. A. Sheer nonsense, is what nikkis mother called it. My daughter never have hit her kids. They never had a spanking more or less. Anybody that knows nikki knows that wasnt her behavior. Reporter it was very clear, said the detectives who worked the case, that, in fact, nikki was the victim of an unprovoked attack. She had at least 45 stab wounds. Her spinal cord was almost severed. Nikki fought for her life. We think she fought defensively. You can see where shes on her back some of the time fighting off people that are attacking her from above with knives. Reporter as for the girls claim that they put their dying mother in the tub to keep her warm as she watched her fade away, fiction through and there, said the police. We think she was dead before she was placed in the tub. Or she would have bled into the water and the water would have been bloody. They were putting her in the water trying to wash off the crime scene, wash off the evidence. Reporter in truth, said the detectives, these girls were remorseless, defiant, brilliant little actresses. Remember how they sounded just after their mothers death. I want my mommy. I want them to catch this person, please god. Reporter listen to the little darlings when they didnt know they were playing for the cameras. This was recorded in the back of a squad car just after their arrest. Sweet little girls . Hardly. They got [ bleep ] evidence. They cant do anything with [ bleep ] evidence like this. Man, get real. Did they find a murder with my fingerprints on it . Or something . I get if they said they found a murder weapon. Please do that please find a murder weapon. Thank you they are aggressive. They are angry. They are combative. These [ bleep ] rednecks, down dirty ass cops did this [ bleep ]. Reporter oh, and one more thing. Tucked away in one of the girls bedrooms, police found this journal. Inside, in childish handwriting, a death sentence. They were notes to each other, said the d. A. , written just before the killing she dont care. She selfish. We got get rid of her. To which the other twin responds thats what i think also. Shes got to go asap. It may be the most telling piece of evidence that the whole death of mom may have been premeditated. Reporter still, the d. A. Worried maybe a good defense attorney could spin the familys turbulent history, the juvey court drama, nikkis two boyfriends, and somehow sell a jury on selfdefense. It wouldve been an ugly trial. I think to some extent it would have been a misrepresentation of nikkis life. Reporter so he didnt like it much, but he let them plead guilty to the lesser charge voluntary manslaughter. 30 years for each. Not enough, said nikkis mother linda. These children have killed my child brutally, and you are going to give them 30 years . They shouldnt even be able to walk the street. I know these are my grandkids, but come on now. I mean, if they can do this to their mom, god help us all. Reporter and the questions that go over and over in your head are like what . How everything about this goes against nature. How the person that provides for you and raises you and loves you and gives birth to you, how you could watch that person die in a bathtub and lie about it. Reporter it was wxia reporter katie becks reports that brought the story to an atlanta both horrified and fascinated. She, who first secured access to all those police video tapes, exposing these Pretty Little Liars for all the world to see. It suddenly becomes clear that these girls have multiple personalities, that they can be whoever they need to be for their own purposes, that they can morph between a fragile, disturbed, innocent teenager into sort of this demonized criminal. Reporter those girls you knew. Those sweet little girls. Yeah. Reporter what happened to them . Its hard for me to even i dont know. Reporter and nikkis mom, linda whitehead, carries the helpless grief with her every day. Every sleepless night without her daughter, without the granddaughters she thought she knew. I was so proud of them. And i knew and they would talk about what college they wanted to go to. Reporter thats okay. So im sitting here and everybody gone. Reporter thats an awful tough road. You cant even imagine. Because every morning i wake up, i think about my daughter and my grandkids. Its just a tragedy. Reporter one about a mother who dared to dream that her sweet gemini twins would surpass her, who instead became their victim. Thats all for now. Im lester holt. Thanks for joining us. Divided, a week that began with the shooting of two African American men by Police Officers. I wanted everybody in the world to see what the police do. And this way. With the killing of five Police Officers at a black lives matter rally in dallas. The suspect stated he wanted to kill white people, especially white officers. And sparked protests across the country. Black lives matter black lives matter from policing the politics, the season seems increasingly divided. Ill talk to the head of Homeland Security and two top senators, a republican and democrat, each a former mayor. Plus a week of violence and the president ial campaign. How can either of our decisive candidates heal the nation . Joining me for insight and analysis, Michael Eric Dyson of Georgetown University and msnbc contributor and longtime republican strategists marry madeleine and Washington Post columnist michael gerson. Welcome to sundays meet the press. This is meet the press with chuck todd. Good early sunday morning. Too early to make comparisons but we live through a week that will stand out in vent history. Headlines in the recent newspapers tell the story of a nation divided and at times feeling as if were at war with itself. The shooting of two African American men and the subsequent deaths of police sparked protest, most peaceful but there were tense confrontations. Last night in st. Paul, minnesota protesters clashed with police injuring two of them as marchers pushed past state troopers and closed a freeway. All of it exposed racial divisions in the u. S. And comes at a time of growing Political Polarization of it all with americans becoming more table separated by region, income, culture and race and the two candidates who themself are divisive and uniquely unseated to heal the countrys wounds. The images are burned into the consciousness of a nation deeply polarized about race and policing. Alton sterling killed by Police Officers while selling cds outside a baton rouge convenience store. Philando castile shot dead in his car by a Police Officer in minnesota. Hes licensed. Hes carrying. The aftermath broadcast live to facebook by her fiancee h