reporter: at first glance marie walsh seemed to have it all. three children, a loving husband, a happy life in san diego. but marie had a secret. one she kept hidden even from her husband and kids. that secret 1970s michigan when marie was known as susan lefevre. as a teen, she had fallen in with the wrong crowd and started doing drugs like marijuana and cocaine. when she was 19, susan said a friend convinced her to drive him to get pizza but that he was really going to sell drugs. when the police showed up, they arrested susan as well. they didn t find any money on me. they didn t find any drugs. at my apartment. they found nothing incriminating. reporter: she says the prosecutor and her attorneys told her if she pleaded guilty, she would get probation. but susan was sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison.
after one year behind bars and with the help of her grandfather, susan made the bold decision to escape. she moved to california, changed her name, got married, and started a new life as marie walsh. hi, honey. hi. reporter: as the years passed and she raised her family, marie said she wondered if she would live the rest of her life as a fugitive. but in 2008, law enforcement caught up with her at home in california and sent her back to prison in michigan. i ve been through 30 years of paying off a debt. i hope that there s some consideration for the fact that i did turn my life around. reporter: after one year, marie was released on parole. i m just delighted that this nightmare is over. and that was nbc s lester holt reporting. it took just 12 seconds. that s all. to bring down an old navy hospital. this was the naval medical center in oakland, california.
the shelves while wedding guests are told how to behave on the big day. good morning, everyone. welcome to msnbc saturday. i m alex witt. let s get to what s happening right now out there. well, it came down to the wire. just minutes after midnight congress passed a budget bill to avoid a government shutdown. today there s new reaction from president obama who says the $38 billion in cuts will require sacrifice by all americans. some of the cuts we draeed to will be painful. programs we rely on will be cut back. infrastructure projects will be delayed. i would not have made these cuts in better circumstances, but we also prevent thissed important debate from being overtaken by politics and unrelated disagreements on social issues. well, removing those social issues, specifically a provision that would have blocked federal funding of planned parenthood, is being hailed as a win by democrats. meanwhile, republicans are flaunting sweeping spending cuts. all 100 of us, and
show? today s april 9th, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning, welcome to today on a saturday morning. i m lester holt. i m amy robach. the budget deal came right down to the wire. not without a little drama. during the day yesterday it looked like we would wake up to a government shutdown. they got their act together. it was close, the high drama unfolded on capitol hill. just before midnight the president came out with congress. they agreed to a deal to keep the government running. what that means is the national parks remain open. members of the military will receive their paychecks. as you might expect, democrats, republicans both claiming victory this morning. a lot more on this in just a moment. also ahead, a soccer mom with a secret. marie walsh lives what seems like a perfect life in california. but what nobody knew is that she was a fugitive for 32 years after escaping prison. she s going to join us live this morning to talk abou
april 8, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning, everyone. welcome to today on a saturday morning. i m lester holt. i m amy robach. that budget deal came right down to the wire. not wout a little drama. in the day yesterday, it looked like it wasn t going to happen. we would wake up to a government shutdown. they got their act together. it was close. the high drama unfolded on capitol hill. before midnight, the president came out and agreed on a deal to keep the government running. that means the national parks are open, they remain open. the members of the military will receive their paychecks. as you might expect, democrats, rep pubs, both claiming victory this morning. a lot more on this coming up in a moment. a soccer mom with a secret. her name is marie walsh and she lives what seems like a perfect life in california. what nobody knew is she was a fugitive for 32 years after escaping prison. she s going to join us live this morning to