Interview. She did not do it. But a lot of people, even family members, think she is a brat who needs to stay behind bars. She said, just give me the effing money. There was no rage, no motive. And there was almost no alibi. Just tell us where you were. In your opinion, this entire trial was was a joke, where the punchline is, she spends 11 1 2 years in the pen. Good evening, im elizabeth vargas. David is away tonight. Its a decadeslong saga that just concluded this week. Did she or didnt she . Tonight, a woman is free, but her hometown is convinced she committed a crime as brutal as it is rare. Let us know what you think, guilty or not . Heres John Quinones. Reporter come to western tennessee and you can catch sight of bald eagles, snow geese, and even white pelicans. But on this steamy sunday morning, we are there to catch a glimpse of a rare species of memphis jailbird leaving prison. Noura jackson is officially a free woman today. Reporter convicted of killing her own mother. It didnt feel real. I was just really scared that someone was going to tell me to come back in the building. Reporter her name is Noura Jackson, and the astonishing crime for which shes served 11 years is just one aspect of her astonishing story. Ansley larrson, one of just a handful of friends noura has left, drives her back into an outside world thats become oddly unfamiliar. And then when we got in the car she drove off really fast. You are speeding. Reporter time now for slow, simple pleasures. Sipping a starbucks latte, exploring a smartphone for the first time. Where are you the buttons . Reporter noura asks to drive past the home where she was raised, the same house where her mother died. You want me to do anything . I want you to keep going. Okay. Im trying to think of something to say to stop the tears. Let yourself go baby, stop trying to control it. Its okay. Reporter so many memories, so much pain saturate the silence. Echoes of a horrific murder, a panicked 911 call. Oh, my oh, my god, please, please help me. Reporter and to hear noura tell it, a miscarriage of justice. Guilty of Second Degree murder as included in the indictment. Being incarcerated is tough in itself. But being incarcerated for something you didnt do is, is, Something Else entirely. Its very unusual to have an 18yearold woman accused of killing her mother. 18yearolds fighting with their mother, very common, 18yearold killing her mother almost never happens. Reporter it wasnt supposed to turn out this way. Noura and her mother Jennifer Jackson lived in this neighborhood just ten miles from the raucous barbecue and blues scene of the famous beale street. Mom was a successful bond trader, a triathlete, regular she raised her only child as a single mom. The fondest memories of your mother. Birthdays were a really big thing in my house. Its really the little things, you know. Reporter noura shared these precious photos of happier times together for mother and daughter. She also recalls shopping with jennifer at the nicer stores in memphis and says it was moms favorite pastime. I dont think theres just one i can pinpoint but just having a mom, you know . Thats kind of rough. Reporter as the only kid among her friends raised by a single, working mom, she struggled to fit in. For her part, Jennifer Jackson was by all accounts a very permissive parent. And noura admittedly pushed that freedom to the limit. I had a good life, you know. I was your typical memphis teenager, i guess. Reporter well, it depends on your definition of typical. Several people have described your life as one of partying, and drinking and drugs. It didnt seem like a big deal to us ath that was, that was our life, you know. We did go to parties, you know. We did smoke marijuana. We did drink. Now i look back and i cant, you know, rectify who i was as a 16 and 17 or an 18yearold. Reporter but at 18, noura still hadnt graduated, bouncing between five different high schools, and finally home schooled. She was a brat. Reporter ansley larsson, a family friend who makes her living selling handmade jewelry, saw noura as a diamond in the rough. She knew because jennifer often called for advice on raising her difficult teen. Noura is extremely charming, even when shes a brat, and i just loved her from the minute i met her. My mother was not just a parent. But she was a friend so when your friend is your disciplinarian, you know, the rules are different for you. And there, there werent rules for me the way there were for everybody else. Reporter so other parents thought you were the wild child then. Yes. I was. I had earned that reputation, yes. Reporter yes, the shoe fit and noura wore it till the heel came off. Which brings us to the turning point, the hotly disputed events of that saturday night in june 12 years ago. School is out and the party is on. Noura gets this nice manicure, remember that detail. Then she says she goes out and paints the town red and doesnt stumble home till 5 00 a. M. The next morning. I had no idea what was about to happen to me or, you know, how it would shape the rest of my life. I remember coming in and seeing the broken glass at my house. Reporter this is the glass shes talking about, part of a broken door window. There had been times when my mother had broken the glass before. Like if she was locked out. That didnt register in my mind that something terrible had happened. As i went back to my bedroom i noticed that my moms door was open. And i dont even think that i could even describe what i saw, let alone what i felt. But i found my mom. Reporter at the foot of the bed . Yeah. Can i have just one second . Reporter its still hard for her to talk about, and heres why. Jennifer jackson is covered in blood, sprawled naked on the floor. Stabbed 50 times. Nancy grace has studied the case. The mom was so brutalized, just soaked in blood, she had stab wounds to every part of her body. She wasnt moving. I remember shaking her. And then i remember being scared. I remember running across the street to get help. Reporter noura rouses a neighbor and they run back to the house together. She says panic has set in by the time she calls 911. Oh, my god. Oh, my god. Oh, my god, please, please help me. Please send please calm down so we can help your mother, okay . Reporter an ugly crime, a pretty victim, and a mushrooming whodunit. The 39yearold jackson was killed over the weekend. Reporter but what makes this case truly remarkable is that this isnt the first time. Noura jacksons been through this before. Her father was killed a year and a half ago. Reporter thats right, this is actually the second time one of Noura Jacksons parents has turned up dead. Stay with us. See me. See me. Dont stare at me. See me. See me. See me to know that psoriasis is just something that i have. 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Breathe happy with new febreze. 20 20 continues. Once again, John Quinones. Reporter as the yellow tape goes up on Jennifer Jacksons front lawn, theories of her murder start blooming like tennessee passion flowers. Police calling jacksons murder a Home Invasion robbery homicide. Reporter maybe its a robbery gone wrong. The house appears to be ransacked. A mess of boxes and packages all over. Yet police soon realize thats because Jennifer Jacksons shopping habit was really more of a compulsion. Nothing was stolen from the home. Nothing was even ransacked or pillaged. Reporter but now another disturbi t linked to a prior tragedy in nouras life. Jennifer was divorced from nouras father, Nazmi Hassanieh and coincidentally, nazmi was murdered as well. Jackson has been through this before. Her father was killed a year and a half ago. Reporter we havent said much about nouras father because, in truth, he wasnt around much. This much we do know Nazmi Hassanieh, born in lebanon, owned a local Limousine Company and gas station convenience store. He named it nouras kwik stop, after the daughter he rarely saw. He led an alternative lifestyle to say the very least. Reporter on this fateful night in january, 2004, the kwik stop Security Cameras are rolling when a killer comes to call. Nazmi meets with him offcamera and is immediately shot in the head. So it was more or less walk through the front door, walk to the back, fire the shot. Reporter a Police Investigator tells a local station that this doesnt look like a routine robbery. Watch as the killer stashes the Security Camera tape in his coat, not knowing theres a backup. He goes through the drawers in the office as if hes looking for something, and its sort of a last minute thing in which he takes the cash from the cash register. Reporter an afterthought. He was really assassinated. Reporter bill shelton was friends with nazmi. He feels the killer may have been searching for an incriminating videotape. But why . Theres been speculation that it may have been a video of someone in a sexual encounter. Reporter a clue nouras kwik stop was between a Police Precinct and a strip club. Not prime real estate, but perhaps a good place for another kind of quick stop. Naz t policeman had used his back office to have sex with one of the dancers down at platinum plus. Reporter wait, theres more. Shelton suspects his friend had quite a dark side. Was nazmi running a blackmail operation . Ive heard other speculation that he had cameras in his limousines and he was filming people having sex with prostitutes. Reporter a secret sex tape . Did someone want them badly enough to kill . That man was looking for something then. 16 months later was murdered, probably by the same person who killed nazmi. That is a myth. Things like that only happen in the movies, and this is not a movie, this is real. Reporter the murder of nouras father was never solved. And now her mother has been killed too. The wild child is now an orphan. 18yearold Noura Jackson returns home to collect a few things just one day after she your parents are, like, the people that bring you into this world and theyre the people that you know, no matter what, you know have your back. Reporter unconditional love. Unconditional love, yeah. Reporter nouras problems are just beginning, because police are suddenly gravitating to a new suspect her. Their suspicion starts with that 911 call. Listen as the operator asks if her mother has been shot. Was anyone shot . No. So when did Noura Jackson get her medical degree . That night . How did she know from a distance her mother had not been shot . Reporter then, those 50 stab wounds. When someone has been stabbed this many times, the authorities will immediately be thinking that this isnt a stranger, this is someone who was angry and enraged. I know that everybody say i think it means that whoever did it was scared and adrenaline took over and started stabbing just out of their minds. Reporter but now take a look back at the broken window noura noticed when she came home. The scene is totally staged. Theres no intruder. Because look at the glass that was broken. Only someone familiar with that home would know that there was a lock, a second lock up beside the broken glass, but it was only visible from inside the house. Reporter did you break that glass . No, i did not. Reporter theres a much bigger question that trips noura up. Jennifer jackson was killed sometime between her last phone call with noura at 12 20 a. M. And that 911 call at 5 00. So where, exactly, was noura during that time . You were not in that house . No, i was not in that house. Reporter before 5 00. Reporter thats what she says. Nouras story to the cops her evening kicked off at a local italian festival. Then hits two house parties. After a phone call with her mom, noura buys cigarettes at 12 46. Then at 4 20, she buys gas before heading home. But what about this . Between 1 00 and 3 00 a. M. , nouras cell phone goes oddly quiet. And something she failed to mention to the cops a 4 00 a. M. Stop here at this walgreens to buy first aid supplies for a cut on her hand. I could watch that walgreen security footage all day long. She couldnt stop the blood on her hand. In fact she takes the paper towel away from the cashier and is trying to staunch the flow of blood on her hand. Reporter the most damning evidence, though, noura is that video tape of you at walgreens buying emergency first aid supplies. The peroxide. The bandages. Right. Which is why i probably neglected to tell the police i was put in a locked room. They started making a very big deal about the cut on my hand. And id just got that feeling that something wasnt right. So, no, i was not forthcoming with information, but not because i had anything to hide, but because i felt like i was being looked at. Reporter yes, she was. And three months later, the party is officially over for Noura Jackson. Shes arrested for her own mothers murder. And even if matricide is a rarity, the good people of memphis seem to think noura had it in her. She mustve just gone berserk. You know, i dont know. I hate to throw that in, but thats the way we all feel. Everybody knew it. Everybody. Reporter did you have anything to do with the killing of your mother . No. Reporter could it have been that you were high, you were, you said you were smoking weed, you did drugs. Maybe you were in a no. No. No, i wont deny that. I smoked marijuana that night. We had been drinking. Amongst other things, but no. I didnt kill my mother. Reporter but now the die is cast and nouras hard partying reputation and that controversial cut are about to cause trouble for her in court. The biggest problem for her in this case, what she was doing and her own differing accounts of how she cut her hand. Reporter and could that fresh manicure be nouras best defense . Well be back. Knowing exactly where every almond comes from. But the whole careandnurturingmaking suretheygrow upjustright part . That idea. We borrowed from the experts. Blue diamond almond breeze. The best almonds make the best almondmilk. To you and me theyre more than toys gonna find one so i wont be lonely shell be mine forever only and when i do itll be alright wee hoo i tell ya now boys are boys and girls are joys i take movantik for oic, opioidinduced constipation. Had a bad back injury, my doctor prescribed opioids which helped with the chronic pain, but backed me up bigtime. Tried prunes, laxatives, still constipated. Had to talk to my doctor. She said, how long you been holding this in . laughs that was my movantik moment. My doctor told me that movantik is specifically designed for oic and can help you go more often. Dont take movantik if you have a bowel blockage or a history of them. Movantik may cause serious side effects, including symptoms of opioid withdrawal, severe stomach pain and or diarrhea, and tears in the stomach or intestine. Tell your doctor about any side effects and about medicines you take. Movantik may interact with them causing side effects. Why hold it in . Have your movantik moment. Talk to your doctor about opioidinduced constipation. If you cant afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. You have to put good in here to be great out there. Real good energy. Real delicious energy. Nature valley granola bars. Just good. Real is letting the true you shine through. Real is nice n easy natural tones and highlights work uniquely with your hair for color so natural looking, it doesnt look like hair color it just looks like you. Nice n easy. Color as real as you are reporter the Shelby CountyJustice Center in downtown memphis is about to become a coliseum for two legal gladiators. In Noura Jacksons corner, a pitbull of a defense attorney named Valerie Corder, who loves a legal dogfight almost as much as she loves her dog, beasley. Why would you take this case on, pro bono . I have a soft spot for people who are being bullied or treated unjustly or unfairly. Reporter across the aisle, prosecutor amy wierich, an ambitious, noholdsbarred assistant d. A. Amy is a real nononsense type. Very intense throughout. Reporter as the trial starts, wierich comes out swinging for the electrified fences. She wants a life sentence. That defendant killed her mother with premeditation. Reporter wierich calls many of the kids in nouras circle to the stand. A phalanx of her nowformer as a girl gone wild. On the stand today we heard from more of Noura Jacksons friends. She liked to use xanax bars. Pharmaceutical drugs. Cocaine. Reporter how much did that hurt her case . Significantly. Reporter nouras friends admitted to doing much of the same alongside her. Most of the stuff they said was true. I mean, she was doing that. But so were they. If the behavior that she exhibited was grounds for mother murder, then why arent all those other childrens mothers dead . They were right along with her. Reporter aside from soiling nouras reputation, the prosecution raises suspicions about her behavior on the night of the crime. This is the neighbor noura ran to for help after finding her mothers body. He grabbed his gun and ran back with noura. And i got to that front door first and i took a deep breath. I do remember that she went in the door before me. And i thought, theres somebody in that house. If you thought somebody was in the house and you thought your mother was injured, why would you have run back in before the guy with the gun. A lot was made of my actions, you know, of what i did or didnt do or, you know, but i dont think they write a handbook on stuff like that. If my mother had been murdered, id be running all over the place without realizing what i was doing. Reporter and anyway, why would noura murder her own mom . To answer that, the prosecution paints a picture of a relationship in crisis. Jennifer jackson, they claim, was finally trying to rein in her untamed daughter. She was just out of control. Reporter judge chris craft presided over the case. She was shutting down her lifestyle and was going to send her somewhere where she wouldnt be able to have sex and drugs. And that was the motive for the killing. There was a portrayal of her as not only friction in, in their relationship, but much more than that. Much more violent, much more antagonistic. Reporter that is the theme of this damning testimony from onetime friend kirby mcdonald. Noura said, my moms a [ bleep ] and needs to go to hell. You know what, my mother was a bitch sometimes too and sometimes i wanted her to go to hell. I dont know if noura said that or didnt say that, but so what if she did . Theyre teenage girls, for heavens sake. Reporter noura says it never happened. Did you argue about partying and curfews . I didnt, i didnt have a curfew. We had things that we didnt agree on, but there was a respect there. I didnt hide things from my mom. Reporter another suggested motive money. Prosecutors claim nouras deceased father left behind a sizable estate. The defense denies that, but neighbor sheila cocke says noura was salivating for cash. I was out on the street walking my dog and they were coming in and i heard noura say, just give me the effing money. Just give me the effing money. Reporter and its not just friends and neighbors pointing the finger. Now, remarkably, nouras own family has come to court, not to praise her, but to bury her. Heres nouras uncle eric sherwood. I asked noura if she had any idea about my sisters death, anything to help out with the detectives, and she just basically just put her head down and wouldnt say anything. That was it. Reporter he also tells the court that he had heard noura pressing jennifer about her assets and Life Insurance just days before she was murdered. Your own uncle testified that you killed your mother because you wanted the money. Thats the one that hurt me. Thats the one that pierced my heart. Reporter nouras aunts also pile on, hoping to send their own niece to prison. They wouldnt talk to each other, and just, it was very cold. What shocked me was what they didnt say, you know. They they never really cared for me. They didnt say that they never liked my father. Its never helpful when your family isnt on your side in a case where someone is accused of killing a family member. Reporter nouras aunts say the real reason they turned on her is because she could never explain where she was at the time of the crime. I would have gotten her lawyers, anything she needed if she had an alibi and could prove to me where she was or who she was with when my sister was murdered. And she said i dont know. Reporter and now the prosecutions key witness, her quiet, reserved friend andrew hammack, who they hope will blow nouras alibi out of the water. Andrew hammack describes their relationship at the time as friends with benefits. Reporter he tells the jury he exchanged calls and texts th the murder. He says she told him she was at the house, and asked him to meet her there. She also left a string of messages. It was throughout the night and the last thing i do remember when i woke up the morning of june 5th is i had a text message or a voicemail that said answer, i need to talk to you or something. Reporter and what about that suspicious cut . The biggest problem for her in this case are her own words. Her own differing accounts of how she cut her hand. Reporter lets count. She claimed that she cut it at an italian festival. She told me that she was in her house, chasing her kitten through the kitchen and cut it on some glass. She said that she cut it on barbed wire. She said she cut it getting the cat out of the garage. I burned it cooking macaroni and cheese. I cooked a lot of kraft mac and cheese and ive never gashed my hand open and raced to walgreen for bandaids. Reporter all these people testified that there were different stories you gave about how you got that cut in your hand. I mean, i gave my statent that to speak for itself. Reporter that statement matches the first version. That she cut it at the italian festival. But then why, prosecutors ask, was there a coverup, literally, despite the steamy 90degree heat. For days afterward wearing nothing but long sleeves that she held in her wrists like this to try to cover up that cut. I mean, what more do i have to tell you . Yes. I wore long sleeves. I was known for that. My fathers lebanese. I have very, very hairy arms. I used to shave them when i was younger. Reporter the battery of witnesses, the waferthin alibi, the questionable cut none of it looks good for noura. But, wait. Will dna found at the scene get her off the hook . Not only was nouras dna not found in the room, but someone elses was. Reporter stay with us. Igh o. Where to go, and how to work around your uc. Thats how i thought it had to be. But then i talked to my doctor about humira, and learned humira can help get and keep uc under control. When certain medications havent worked well enough. Humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. Serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. Before treatment, t tested for tb. Tell your doctor if youve been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if youve had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flulike symptoms or sores. Dont start humira if you have an infection. Raise your expectations and ask your gastroenterologist if humira may be right for you. With humira, control is possible. Starts with turkey covered in a rich flavorful gravy,e and a crust made from scratch. Its good food and good company that keep you warm inside. Marie callenders. Its time to savor. Only tylenol® rapid release gels have laser drilled holes. They release medicine fast, for fast pain relief. Tylenol® 20 20 continues. Once again, John Quinones. An emotional start to day six of the jackson murder trial. Reporter the news is bad for Noura Jackson. With thi evidence, it seems unlikely shell be walking in memphis. The defendant killed her mother. Reporter but noura does not despair, because theres a gap in the states case as wide as the mississippi. Theres no forensic evidence connecting her to the crime. You would think if you have a bloody fight with a knife that her dna will be somewhere. There was no bloody clothes found, and there was no bloody knife found. Reporter these knives are at the scene but cops cant identify the murder weapon. And they tested a lot of evidence. And its quite significant that most of that evidence had absolutely nothing to do with Noura Jackson. Nouras blood was not at the crime scene. And jennifers blood was not on noura. It does seem a little bit strange that there would not be any of hers there, giving the violence of this whole episode. Reporter but now it gets more complicated, because investigators did find the dna of two other females, still unidentified. Were they the real killers . Not only was nouras dna not found in the room, but someone elses was. The defenses position is, well, find those people. Reporter investigators couldnt find a match, but they also had no way of knowing if that dna predated the night of the murder. And there is more evidence that could point to another unknown suspect, and away from noura. This envelope contains small clumps of hair gripped in jennifers dead hand. Theyre blonde. Nouras hair is brown. So whose were they . We dont know, because Forensic Experts never tested them. The clump of hair. I find that really hard to believe. That, you know, you will parade 40 witnesses to say that i did this, partook in drugs, that i drank, that i did all that. But you didnt test a clump of hair found in a murdered womans hands . News flash. Check your law books. The defense can test evidence too. Noura jacksons team wouldnt touch that hair with a tenfoot pole. Why . Because that way they could complain about it throughout the entire trial suggesting that the state had failed. Reporter but nouras lawyer says a test would have been worthless. The hair that was later found had not been maintained in a chain of custody that would have made it worthwhile to test it because we would not have been able to prove it hadnt been tampered with. The prosecution has now rested its case. Reporter the prosecution rests, and theres a big surprise. You dont call a single witness. Was that a reckless decision . No, it wasnt a reckless decision. It was its very unusual for a defendant to testify unless its a selfdefense case. She wasnt going to testify, but other people couldve testified in her defense. Reporter so why not put some witnesses on the stand who were friends of her, who would have spoken positively of noura . Well, in retrospect that does seem to be an issue. She needed to have a defense. I dont know what they couldve done, but they couldve done something. Reporter if noura had testified, she might have sounded Something Like this. You wouldnt kill your mother because you were in a rage . No. Reporter you wouldnt kill her for the money. No. There was no rage. There was no money. There was no motive. So one was created. Ladies and gentlemen, this case is about Jennifer Jackson. Reporter in closing, prosecutor steven jones returns to nouras motivation for matricide. Her mother was the only thing between the defendants lifestyle of freedom, she was the only thing between the defendants fathers money and the defendant. She wasnt going to cut bologna with standing in the way of her lifestyle of freedom. Reporter then prosecutor amy weirich turns to noura and adds a dramatic flourish that will later have a farreaching impact. Just tell us where you were. Thats all were asking, noura. Objection, your honor. Reporter and then there was that manicure. In the defense closing, Valerie Corder argues the condition of nouras hands is actually proof of her innocence, despite that cut. Her nails that had been manicured the day before were pristine. There was not a chip. A flake. A crack. No blood. No hair. No nothing. Those were not the hands of a child who had killed her mother. It just seems logical that youve got all this motion, youve got all this force, youve got blood going wherever, it seems like there would be more of that type of injury than just one cut. Reporter then corder plays her strongest card. The lack of other physical evidence. But is it an ace . None of Noura Jacksons pillow, none of Noura Jacksons blood. This doesnt prove it. This doesnt prove it. This doesnt prove it. Comforters, dust ruffles, other items from the bedroom, none of Noura Jacksons blood. The only place where they found nouras dna was in the sample she had volunteered to them. It wasnt on any of the evidence. Is she a diabolical, premeditated killer whos brilliant and leaves absolutely no blood on the scene . Or is she some drug addled foolish teenager . It cant possibly be both. Your best hope if youre the defense isnt that the jurors say, theres no way she did it. Instead youre hoping they say, yeah, i think she might have done it, but thats not proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Reporter when we return, theres a verdict, but is there justice . How the prosecutor winds up on the hot seat. Wed really like to talk to you about this. Why cant we sit down and talk to you . You can make an appointment like everybody else. Reporter stay with us. Lets talk about haribo goldbears. Aloha. I cant stop eating this orange one. The red one is more gooder to me cos it tastes like berries. It has this juicy flavor to it. Theyre really squishy. My bears are like doing cartwheels and back flips and stuff. And then im gonna fly it in to my mouth. [all laughing] kids and grown ups love it so the happy world of haribo 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. New pantene doesnt just wash i wiyour hair, it fuels it. Gain. Making every strand stronger. Because strong is beautiful. Then youre a couple. Think of all youll share. Like snoring. Does your bed do that . The dual adjustability of a sleep number bed allows you each to choose the firmness and comfort you want. So every couple can get the best sleep ever. Does your bed do that . Only at a sleep number store, where queen mattresses start at just 899. T now save 400 on our most popular mattresses. Go to sleepnumber. Com for a store near you. Reporter after 12 days and 40 witnesses, the jury has heard enough. All right, verdict reads as follows. We the jury find the defendant guilty of Second Degree murder. Circumstantial evidence just drew a tight noose around her and there was no way she could get out of that. Reporter noura bows her head while her dead mothers sisters and friends exchange hugs. I just couldnt believe it. Its they didnt prove anything. How do you convict this child . I really was of the belief that, you know, i would go to trial, and i would prove that im innocent, and then i will get to go home. And i think i was in shock. We are disappointed with the verdict. Reporter years later, noura is still haunted by her decision not to testify. Are you sorry you didnt . Oh, im beyond sorry that i didnt. But i dont like to live in a world of regret. You know, theres nothing i can do about that. Reporter its true that there was virtually no forensic evidence against noura, and yet the jury convicted her. Were you overconfident . Too cocky . Oh, i dont think i could be described as that. It was very difficult to sit through two weeks of family members, friends, neighbors, and other people, focusing on behavior that did not prove she had killed her mother. Reporter during the following years in prison, only ansley and a handful of other friends visit noura. Was it tough on you . Made you a tough person . Yes, its definitely survival of the fittest. Reporter Valerie Corder never stops fighting for noura. Over the next 11 years, while her client is doing her orange is the new black thing, corder appeals the case all the way up to the Tennessee Supreme Court with newsworthy results. More information on the jackson case. Reporter remember prosecutor amy weirichs big law and order moment . Just tell us where you were, thats all were asking, noura. Reporter those words, according to corder, violated nouras constitutional right not to testify. It was a rhetorical question, but the Supreme Court in their wisdom decided that that was a comment on nouras choice to remain silent. Reporter and remember that key witness andrew hammack, the only one who put noura at the crime scene . It turns out the prosecution never disclosed this contradictory statement. He had written a handwritten note saying, oh, yeah, i was totally drugged out and high as a kite at the time, so i dont remember it all that well. Reporter he was rolling on ecstasy, he wrote. We know now, his misstatement of the evidence is rather clear. Im like, i was ecstatic. I didnt even believe it. And it said Noura Jackson to receive new trial. I cant even begin to express the emotions, but it seemed surreal. Reporter so, in your opinion, this entire trial was it was a joke. But it wasnt a joke. Because the punch line is Noura Jackson spends 11 1 2 years in the frigging pen. Reporter for something she did not do it. Reporter now, a retrial looms. But it doesnt look like that throng of prosecution witnesses is too eager for a repeat performance. Other witnesses have not been able to be located and yet other witnesses have indicated to us that they will not be willing to come forward. Reporter so both sides compromise. Noura signs whats called an alford plea. She basically said, i will accept responsibility for this. I will take the punishment for this, but i have to be able to say that i didnt do it. Im not going to admit guilt. It counts as a guilty plea and it counts as a conviction. So that under the law you are guilty. Its very likely that it would have taken another year, if not two years, to have gotten her case to trial. It is a way to end this decadelong drama and trauma to be able to leave prison and begin your life. I felt pressured and i had no i wanted my life back. Reporter still, it takes another 15 months until noura is finally sprung from the big house. Greeted by her friend more than a decade behind bars. Reporter as for amy weirich, shes now the County District attorney, but found herself facing ethics charges from the state. Prosecutor amy weirich is up on charges of professional misconduct. Shes refused to give us an interview so were waiting here to demand answers. All right, lets go. Im John Quinones with 20 20. Wed like to talk to you about the Noura Jackson case. Not right now. Reporter weve been trying to get in touch with you. The state has called for your public censure, for botching that murder case. Its not a Fair Assessment at all and it will play itself out in the appropriate forum. Reporter your trial errors either sent an innocent girl to prison or they let a killer go free. Which is worse . She killed her mother and did her time for it. Reporter wed really like to talk to you about this. Why cant we sit down and talk to you . You can make an appointment like everybody else. Reporter we tried. Judge craft, on the other hand, is happy to discuss the case. I thought Noura Jackson had a very fair trial and she was obviously guilty and i ruled she was obviously guilty. Reporter when we return, noura is free at last, and ready to return to the family hornets nest to claim her inheritance. Are going to fight your family for a piece of that . Yeah, i just saved a whole lot of money by swhuh. Ing to geico. We should take a closer look at geico. You know, geico insures way more than cars. Boats, motorcycles. Even rvs geico insures rvs . Whats an rv . Uh, the thing weve been stuck on for five years wait, im not a real moose . . Weve been over this, jeff. Were stickers im not a real moose . Give him some space. Deep breaths, jeff. Whats a sticker . . Geico. Great savings. And a whole lot more. With a crust made chfrom scratche and mixes crisp vegetables with all white meat chicken, and bakes it to perfection. Because making the perfect dinner isnt easy as pie but finding someone to enjoy it with sure is. Marie callenders. Its time to savor. 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One of the few places in memphis where shes still welcome. I want to go outside, can i . Yeah. Theyve always had a great backyard. Its just so nice to be able to go outside if i want to go outside and to not have to get someones permission. Reporter then they visit target to shop for new clothes. Noura didnt have a mother anymore and her family reporter turned on her. Shame on them. Reporter trying to restart her life, noura begins a job in the kitchen of a nearby bar and grill. Having earned her ged in jail, shes applying to colleges now. Your mother left an estate thats worth about 1. 5 million. Yes. Reporter are you going to fight your family for a piece of that . Yes. Reporter since we spoke to noura, she settled with her mothers sisters for a portion of that estate, though the amount is confidential. She may have some of the money, but she hasnt won over many of her critics. She basically won the lottery on this one. She walked free on her mothers murder. Reporter how often do you think about your mother . Every day. Every day. But more than anything i just, i wish i could talk to her. I think shed be proud of who i am. My home was my mom. You know, it wasnt a house. It wasnt clothes or a car. It was, it was my mother. Just this week, disciplinary charges were dropped against the prosecutor in exchange for her accepting a private reprimand. Our question, would you take that conviction or fight to prove your innocence . Thank you for watching tonight. Im elizabeth vargas. For david and all of us here at 20 20, good night and have a great weekend. Michelle briefina shot to death. That was our baby. That was the love of our life michelle a young woman gunned down while home from spring break. Horace the mysterious murder of an artist. The face that the police want you to look out for. Michelle obamacare stays. With it, division. This is a disappo