and this is dateline! it s gut-wrenching. there s a body lying off the side of the road. this young woman shot three times. this was a murder. a young single mom, out with friends on game day. it was packed. but as night fell, fear grew. they re asking who would want to harm your sister? but as night fell, fear grew. was it someone that was a stranger? was it someone that we knew? i just had this weird feeling that there was something she was hiding tucked away. in her kitchen a clue to it all. on top of the refrigerator was a manila folder. did it just give you chills? it was horrible. why didn t she just tell us? did a secret lead to murder? it s got to be unimaginable. here s andrea canning with nightfall. welcome to dateline. when the body of brooke morris was discovered by the side of the road, her family started looking for answers. they were surprised to discover that she may have been involved in an allegedly violent relationshi
game day. it was packed. but as night fell, if you re grew. yeah they re asking who would want to harm your sister? was it someone that was a stranger? was it someone that we knew? i just had this weird feeling that there was something she was hiding. talk to in her kitchen, a clue to it all. on top of the refrigerator was a manila folder. did it just give you chills? it was horrible. why didn t she just tell us? did a secret lead to murder? it s got to be unimaginable. welcome to dateline. when the body of brooke morris was discovered by the side of the road, her family started looking for answers. they were surprised to discover that she may have been involved in an allegedly violent relationship. could that revelation be the key to solving her murder? here with nightfall is andrea canning. i d ask that you all close your eyes for a few minutes this morning. i d like for you to envision roane county in the middle of october. the leaves are changing,
about what happened the monday following brooke s murder. now on that day did mr. smoot come into the office? he came in that morning. when i saw him the first time, he didn t see me and he was crouched down under his desk, um, unhooking his computer. and i asked him if he was ok, and he said, no. and i asked him if there was anything i could do, and he said, turn back time. amy had already heard about the murder, and that investigators had been to smoot s house. she told the jury what the defendant said next. i asked him if he was directly or indirectly involved, and he said, both. did you take that as an admi a total admission of guilt? absolutely. absolutely. it had taken nearly five years after brooke s murder to get her alleged killer before a jury. it took the jury less than four hours to reach its
that that you re being treated this way. you should never be treated that way. the jurors also had to decide smoot s sentence. that s when prosecutor tiffany starr smith asked them to imagine the horror of brooke s last moments. i d ask that you all close your eyes for a few minutes this morning. were you hoping that having the jury close their eyes like that would have a powerful impact? i wanted them to try to envision this young woman out in the middle of nowhere being shot three times by an angry man that she was afraid of. all goes silent and at 23 years old brooke morris is dead. the jury sentenced smoot to life without the possibility of parole. he is appealing his conviction. that conviction and the sentence, have provided comfort for brooke s family. but not closure. i can t make any more memories with her. the only memories i have are are past
the defense also argued that the ballistics report linking shell casings from the crime scene to a bullet at smoot s home had no actual scnce behind it. there s no scientific evidence othat or any standard that show that, is there? there s not currently a standard that shows that every firearm makes unique marks. as for the volatile relationship described in the order of protection? the defense pointed out that smoot never admitted to any of the allegations. and he was never charged, much less convicted, of any assault on brooke. the order doesn t mean that mr. smoot ever did anything. it doesn t mean that mr. smoot admitted that he did anything. and the order of protection didn t prevent them from seeing each other which they clearly did. ms. morris told the judge that she wanted to have social contact with mr. smoot. jolley argued if brooke was so afraid of smoot, why would