on youtube just a month before marie vanished. and now, in the evidence file whenever someone is back stabbing me, lying about me, gossiping about me, trying to tear me down or whatever, you know what i want to do? my feelings say, choke the life out of them! [ laughter ] is that what the pastor did to marie? we were definitely very interested in that sermon. what minister talks about choking the life out of somebodisome right. detectives spelled out their case. circumstantial, difficult. but the prosecutors bought it. and james flanders was charged with second degree murder. persistence paid off. we were 4 1/2 years in. most people would have given up by now. but as the pastor waited in jail for his trial, his attorney and former church member glenn was optimistic. what did you think your chances were as you went to trial? i did believe the state had second degree murder. they didn t have a body.
physical altercation before she went missing. and she had scratched him on his arms. reporter: james insisted marie was still alive the last time he saw her. i was just so in shock of everything. reporter: that was it. he could not continue as pastor. james would have to resign. he announced that he and tanya were leaving town. did you realize that? if he was repentant, and we could move to a process of restoration, but the only other option would be to step down. reporter: james announced that they were leaving town. they were supposed to leave the following morning to say good-bye to church members.
and as it got more and more and more into weird stuff, it was just that the stakes got higher. right? that s right. imagine the secrecy that the inner circle, that tanya actually told the truth to, that it s james baby. reporter: but no room for secrets in an official investigation. the detectives invited james and tanya to voluntarily come in for a chat. but only tanya showed up. and here in this little room at the sheriff s office, she let it all come out. about that night of sake and sex, when grace was conceived. yeah. yeah. he had a little bit too. i was the only one that was sober.
but then they talked to ex-husband jeff. and the story he heard? completely different. and it came directly from marie when she came to visit jeff shortly after she got pregnant. i put my hand on her stomach. and i said, what s what s going on with this? and she wasn t really showing. and her story at that time was, well, i m just being a surrogate for james and tanya. so we did basically the a type of artificial insemination. reporter: well, well, well, the pastor was the sperm donor. in this new story, marie s gift was to be the pastor s artificially inseminated surrogate. but why the conflicting stories? to find out, the detectives consulted three special church ladies, tanya flanders closest confidants. did you have a name for this group? we called them the inner circle. reporter: and the inner circle said yes, tanya told them. but swore them to secrecy. but then tanya gave up a little more. the method was very homemade. i remember them saying, oh,
reporter: no body. so what happened to marie? more months went by. police kept trying to speak with james but got no response. then after a whole year, they tried again, and he picked up. i had been asked by our attorney not to talk to anyone without him there. reporter: but he did talk talked for two hours, in fact, from his car. at times sounding like he was the victim. what emotions have i felt over the past year and a month, you know? anger at marie for going and not letting us know what s going on, and then back to anger at myself for not making a phone call to get her help. and anger at myself for ever letting the relationship became what it became. reporter: the pastor said he knew he was the prime suspect. i am terrified of the prospect of marie taking her own life. and if she did, and i pray she didn t, i hope she did it very, very, very, very, very, very, very far away.