pesci, but she had a strong alibi. >> do you know who shot eric? >> i don't know. >> that's only the start in the twists to this hollywood mystery. >> this is one of those stranger than fiction type things. certainly nobody would write a script like this. >> the most stunning twist of all was what didn't happen. >> my mom said don't shoot that [ bleep ] gun. that hit me harder than the bullet. my mom never swore. ♪♪ >> hello and welcome to "dateline." garrett warren was a hollywood studentman was a hollywood stuntman, then one night he was looking down the barrett of a gun. moments later, four shots rang out and soon investigators would be embroiled in a who done it with more twists than a feature film. here is josh mientkiewicz with "the plot thickens." >> action. it ranks second only to money as the single most important word in hollywood. and here in l.a. where life and art are often the same thing, there's a real life drama that rivaled any action movie, with a plot that includes all of the elements of classic film law. a mystery, featuring an assassin, a femme fatale, a hollywood star, and a stuntman who takes the fall. as for the money, we'll get to that. let's start with the biggest name on the marquis, joe pesci, famous for his role as a cold blooded killer. this drama would co-star his ex-wife, claudia hara, a model and actress who appeared in the gangster film "casino." it includes claudia's brother, who harbors a terrible secret in his past. and finally, claudia's second husband, garrett warren, a hollywood stuntman and martial arts expert, a man very familiar with danger. early evening in the quiet town of west lake village, california, outside of l.a., stuntman garrett warren heard a knock on his door and a voice on the other side asking about his new silver volvo parked in the driveway. garrett answered and then comes our first plot twist. three shots into his body. one more into garrett's right eye. the dare devil's luck had run out. >> i called and his mother answered the phone. screaming, crying, just distraught, wally, you're not going to believe what happened. what? you know, garrett's been shot. wally was a fellow stuntman and garrett's good friend. >> garrett was one of those men that you could count on you hear in life that you're very lucky if you have five friends or count a friend or one hand, garrett was that friend to me. >> wally had been in the business for more than 30 years. >> garrett warren was probably the finest fight man you could ask for. i had hired him on several shows and got to know him, watched his expertise, phenomenal athlete subjectman. >> you've probably seen garrett's work but didn't know it. his stunt work was featured "charlie's angels." but he said garrett's personality was not what you would expect. >> he was a focused individual. people think of dare devils as stunt people, crazy people. that's the last person i want on my job. i want the best. >> towards the end of 1997, wally says that focus shifted the minute garrett warren meant claudia har ra. >> beautiful woman. we just wanted garrett to be happy. he had found somebody that he sounded like he genuinely loved and wanted to start a life with. >> there was something special about her. people who got to know her, a beautiful soul. and i think men were attracted to that as much as to her beauty. >> claudia's good friend julie remembers when claudia and garrett first got together. >> one day she says to you, i met this guy. >> yes. and she was very excited. i was always a big fan of garrett's, he was sweet and funny, and she just seemed so happy with him. i should say, actually, joe and i both were very supportive. >> by joe, she is referring to claudia's ex-husband, a character actor who became a star by playing mafia tough guy joe pesci. >> it sounds like her marriage to joe pesci didn't end badly. >> not at all. not at all. they are like family, they are very close. >> claudia stay closed to joe pesci even after she started to date garrett who came from a different part of the movie business. garrett loved action and adventure. but when he met claudia, he was ready to settle down. >> we felt this would be the gal that garrett would end up with, no more dating or running around. i'm going to end up with claudia. >> garrett and claudia were married less than a year after they met. >> in the beginning, i think it was a very good relationship. >> oh, my gosh. >> they soon had a beautiful daughter, kyla. >> look at that hairdo. >> the new couple enjoyed being parents. >> i love you guys. >> love you too. >> but happy scenes like this one did not last. claudia and garrett couldn't make it work. >> it was a series of events, it just wasn't the right marriage. >> once the relationship went south, it went fast. less than two years after their wedding claudia and garrett split up for good. >> divorce is never easy but in the long run, it was two parents trying too figure out a way to live and both see their children. >> garrett went back to his old life as a stuntman, back to the set in the world of make believe. so then how did his life go from playing dead to bleeding out on the floor of his home shot four times at close range? >> someone wanted him hurt or dead at that time. >> but who? detective mark gamen of the l.a. county sheriff's department said investigators looked at every angle. remembering how the gunman at first asked garrett about his brand-new volvo. they wondered if this could be road rage, someone garrett tangled with on the l.a. freeways. >> mr. warren is a stuntman. >> yes. >> i'm guessing maybe he doesn't always drive the speed limit or use his blinker when it's time to change lanes. >> that could be possible. >> or it could be personal. >> could have been an ex-business partner or somebody he was dating that was jealous, maybe an ex-husband or ex-boyfriend. there was an array of possibles on who could have done this. >> possibilities that led from a bloody crime scene to the bright lights of the movie business. all the way to the parts of l.a. that the tourists never see. >> so who did want garrett warren dead? there seemed to be an entire cast of suspects. coming up -- getting ready to say good-bye to a friend. >> i'm going to lose my friend. he's not going to make it. >> when "dateline" continues. all the serums out there this is the #1 in america this is serious revitalift hyaluronic acid serum from l'oréal. with our highest concentration of hyaluronic acid in a serum it seriously hydrates to visibly replump skin in one week and reduces wrinkles . for younger looking skin. powerful results validated by dermatologists. and effective for all skin tones. bounce back. revitalift hyaluronic acid serum from l'oréal paris. we're worth it. why walgreens? 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it's one neither garrett's family nor the gunman saw coming. this is garrett warren today. >> thank god i'm still here. i mean, i was very fortunate. i was very lucky, very blessed. to the surprise of doctors treating him, garrett warren pulled through and lived to tell the story of the night he was almost murdered. a flashback as vivid now as it was then. here's bullet one. >> to be honest with you, when a bullet hits you, you don't know it hits you. it's not like you see in the movies. as i slipped to the side and it hit me center mass, it went right by my chest, passed by my heart and stuck in my rib cage right here and still there. >> then bullet two. >> so i look down and look back up and here came another one. i slipped my head to the side and it hit me in the neck and went straight up my back. >> bullet three. >> then i realized, okay, this is for real. i went to close the door and he shot center mass at me. he hit me here in the hip and straight out my back and past my hip. that one hurt. that one hit my bone. >> if that sounds gruesome, what's next. >> i fell back behind my door to the ground, then he walked in and put the gun to my head. when the gun was placed to my head, when i saw him squeeze the trigger, i flinched like this, and as i did this it hit me in the eye and came out my ear and got stuck in the wall behind my head. >> those are pretty good reflexes. >> if it was the matrix it wasn't good, it's like keanu going back and the bullet hitting him. as much as i moved, i still got hit. >> somehow the bullet that went through garrett's head missed his brain. >> you know when they tell you your life passes through your eyes, it doesn't pass before your eyes. you run through it and think about everything that happened in your life and wonder, did i do anything wrong, did i not make up for it? am i ready to die? >> at the time of the shooting, garrett's mother was at his home helping with baby kyla. garrett's mother ran to see what was happening, and the gunman took two shots at her, but he missed, and then out of bullets he fled. >> i looked at her, and i said i love you, mom. i'll see you on the other side. my mom said, don't you [ bleep ] die. i was shocked. that hit me harder than the bullets. my mom never swore and she says don't you [ bleep ] die. you've been a fighter all your life, fight one more time. i looked at her and said, you got it, i'm not going to go. i'll stay. >> as garrett ran through his life, he looked back on his failed marriage to claudia haro. >> it was true love. it was the things that poetry was written about, the thing movies were made of. >> hi, daddy, what's up? >> that brief marriage produced their daughter, kyla. even though the marriage didn't last, the bond both parents felt with kyla surely did. >> my daughter being born was amazing, most amazing parts of my life and greatest things that i can leave as my legacy, i guess. >> but when the marriage broke up, there was a nasty fight over who would get custody of kyla. in the midst of it, claudia made perhaps the worst accusation you can make, she claimed garrett had sexually molested their daughter. after a thorough investigation, a family court judge ruled that there was no evidence of abuse. but it was shortly after that that the gunman showed up at garrett's home. so naturally detectives brought in claudia for questioning. >> it was just another road we went down. during the investigation, you know, it's like, could it be an ex? >> claudia was cooperative and didn't appear to have any ties to the shooting and had a strong alibi for that evening. she even expressed concern for garrett. investigators were satisfied she wasn't involved. so they kept talking to garrett, who had gotten a glimpse of the man who shot him. >> it was very difficult to decipher what his ethnicity was because i was looking through a peephole in my door. >> not somebody you knew. >> never knew him before. >> as garrett recovered from his wounds, the sheriff's department tried to piece together some theories. i'm guessing detectives asked garrett if he was carrying on with someone else's wife or girlfriend? >> yes, everything was being looked at in his life and lifestyle and his business. >> an exciting high-energy lifestyle, from the gym he owned to the film circle he ran in. garrett warren had no shortage of adventures. but investigators received a tip suggesting that garrett also had enemies. >> the sheriffs station received an anonymous letter just advising that there were some people involved at the gym that garrett was having some kind of relationship with, people that might be of interest to detectives that they might want to question these people. >> detectives checked out every name that came up and followed up on every lead but hit a dead end at every turn. >> depressing? >> very depressing. sometimes you need that one break. you need a phone call that somebody wants to really give up some information and give us another road to go down and give us another adventure to try. >> it took almost two years before that break arrived. that's when police in another county, searching a car for drugs, instead found a note and photo that would make clear just what kind of danger garrett warren was facing. coming up -- was garrett warren's would-be killer about to try for take two. >> i'm scared he's going to come back and finish me. >> when "dateline" continues. flea and tick protection, and it's easy to see why. it protects for a full 30 days, prevents the infection that causes lyme disease... ...and is safe to start protecting puppies as early as 8 weeks. but your vet doesn't just prescribe it to her patients... ...she also trusts nexgard to protect her own dog. and she knows that its beef-flavored deliciousness makes it #1 with dogs. ask your vet about nexgard, and why it's #1 with pretty much... everyone. dave! do you remember when we kicked you out of the band for recommending the general for our car insurance? 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>> no, i gave up and chalked it up to experience and move on with your life, that's it. >> and you did move on with your life. >> i did. >> a year after his shooting, garrett still faced multiple surgeries and painful rehab. he was back at work as a personal trainer at the gym he owned, and that's where he met issa. >> she was also a client of mine that i was personal trainer to. so while we were first training she said i really like you, i would like to date you. and i said i don't date clients. >> so issa quit the gym. >> she came back and said i'm not your client anymore, let's date. >> they married in december of 2002, two years after the shooting. maybe the happiness brought along from garrett's wife made it easier to get along with his first, claudia. anger that had marked the divorce faded. >> back to the visitation schedule again, back to shared custody, on speaking terms and actually friendly. >> it was about 18 months after garrett was shot that detectives got that lucky break. in an unrelated case san bernadino police served a search warrant on a car belonging to a man named miguel curos, they were looking for drugs but found something unless under the spare tire in his trunk, photograph of garrett warren with a circle drawn on it and garrett's home address which very few people knew. so detectives showed garrett a six pack, a photo lineup that included a photo of miguel. >> i look at the pictures and i say by all means, that's the guy i recognize. >> that's the guy that shot you. >> yep. >> no doubt in your mind? >> no doubt in my mind. >> in 2003, detectives arrested quiroz for attempted murder. he was neither a gangbanger or a hired gun. instead, he owned a pizza parlor. sheriffs detective mark gayman. >> seemed like he was your middle class, very nice guy that everybody in the community loved. >> yet garrett was identifying him as the shooter. >> yes. >> other than garrett's i.d., there was nothing to suggest they had ever met. >> they never done any business deal before? >> no. he was connected to the gym in any way? >> no. >> any chance he was driving a car near garrett that night? >> no, none whatsoever. >> what their connection was or why he would kill him, not clear? >> there was no direct connection whatsoever. >> and as detectives soon learned, proving an attempted murder charge against miguel wouldn't be easy. multiple witnesses said they saw and spoke to him at the pizza parlor on the night of the shooting. these witnesses weren't beholden to him in any way, they weren't family, they were customers. >> yes, they were, frequent customers of the establishment. and he had the receipts. pretty good alibis. >> and so at the preliminary hearing, evidence pointed both ways. witnesses put him nearly 80 miles away from the scene of the crime on the night it happened, but then why did he have garrett's picture hidden in his car? how and why would garrett finger quiroz as the shooter? hoon chun was the deputy district attorney brought in from the major crimes unit and he knew he had more work to do. you got a guy stopped for drug charges. >> right. >> a map sitting in his car of somebody who was nearly a murder victim. >> sure. >> and a photograph of that guy. >> right. >> and guy picks him out. >> you think what's the question, right? >> aren't there people on death row for more than that? >> sometimes there's more to the story than meets the eye, which is the case here. investigators discover another picture of garrett warren, the man he accused of shooting him. coming up -- >> this is one of those stranger than fiction kind of things. nobody would write a script like this. >> when "dateline" continues. your mission: stand up to moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis. and take. it. on... ...with rinvoq. rinvoq a once-daily pill can dramatically improve symptoms... rinvoq helps tame pain, stiffness, swelling. and for some rinvoq can even significantly reduce ra fatigue. that's rinvoq relief. with ra, your overactive immune system attacks your joints. rinvoq regulates it to help stop the attack. rinvoq can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious infections and blood clots, sometimes fatal, have occurred... ...as have certain cancers, including lymphoma, and tears in the stomach or intestines, and changes in lab results. your doctor should monitor your bloodwork. tell your doctor about any infections...and if you are or may become pregnant while taking rinvoq. take on ra. talk to your rheumatologist about rinvoq relief. rinvoq. make it your mission. if you can't afford your medicine, abbvie may be able to help. hello. here's what's happening. pfizer is asking the fda for approval to store their vaccine in standard freezer temperatures. new data shows the vaccine survives at the higher temperature for two weeks. encouraging news out of israel, a study shows a single dose of the vaccine is 85% effective against the coronavirus two to four weeks after inoculation. now back to "dateline." welcome back to "dateline." i'm craig melvin. police had just arrested suspected drug dealer miguel quiros for the attempted murder of garrett warren. they were conducting a search of his car when officers found a photo in his car. but the case wasn't adding up. then a closer look at the evidence led to a stunning discovery. garrett warren wasn't out of danger yet. here again is josh mientkiewicz with "the plot thickens." fade in, los angeles county, california. garrett warren was gunned down, shot four times in his own home but somehow survived. it fit his character really. a hollywood stuntman, martial artist, and former fighter. not only did he survive but able to identify his shooter, man caught with what looked like a hit note in his car. >> and they tell you his name is mightal quiroz. >> yes. >> did that name mean anything to you? >> not at the time at all. >> sounded like strong case but more prosecutor hoon chun investigated, the weaker it seemed to become. >> done a lot of work, mostly proved your defendant's alibi. >> and really proved that he didn't do this. >> remember, multiple witnesses put miguel quiroz 80 miles from garrett's home on the night of the shooting. then like a scene from "columbo," came this latest twist that the prosecutors saw in a court hearing. >> noticing something, first of all, quiroz was left-handed. the shooter was described by witnesses and his mother as right-handed. and that's a little odd. >> odd because what left-handed person would try to commit murder with the gun in his right hand? >> it's like out of a movie. >> it's out of a movie, right. a script writer might do something like that but in real life didn't make any sense. >> then prosecutor chun saw this photo taken at a party, a barbecue. >> in this photo you have garrett warren and he is facing miguel quiroz, kneeling down, children in front of them. we can tell from the scar on garrett warren's face underneath the left ear this is post shooting. we can tell from the ages of those children as well as the lakers championship t-shirt that mr. quiros is wearing this is shortly after the shooting. >> the two men were guests at the same party after the shooting but before garrett made his eyewitness i.d. of quiroz. >> you think this is where garrett knew miguel quiroz from. >> right. >> you think he identified him as a shooter because he remembered him from this party? >> right, classic transference. >> to the prosecutor and to garrett the photo explained the i.d. >> for some reason when i saw him in the photo lineup it clicked, that must be him, i recognize him. obviously it wasn't him. >> so garrett was wrong in picking quiroz as the man that shot him. that left prosecutors with two questions, who did shoot garrett and since he had the photo and address in his trunk, could quiroz still possibly be involved? prosecutor hoon chun began to rethink the case. >> the defense attorneys agreed that we could talk to mr. quiroz and we talked to him, and the detectives and i kept coming back to this hit note, where it's found. he doesn't know garrett warren, their interaction was very brief at the barbecue. >> detectives kept after quiroz, they knew whoever ordered the hit really wanted garrett warren dead. because here's one more twist, the postmark on the note is from after the shooting, meaning it's not so much a hit note as a note explaining to someone how to go back and finish the job. >> it's a rehit, if you want to call it that. >> that finish the job note says chun started to unravel the mystery. >> that is really what kind of broke the case open. that was, quite frankly, the lifeline we had on this case. >> the one unavoidable piece of evidence that finally cracked miguel quiroz. >> we go background and round about this, and finally he admits he was one of the middle men. >> miguel admitted while he wasn't the shooter, he was in on the plot and he was caught by his own carelessness. >> he explained that that hit note had been sent directly to him, that he had put it under the spare tire in the trunk of his car and literally he said he had forgotten about it. >> so the reason you ended up finding that hit note under the spare tire in trunk of mr. quiroz's car is he put it there for safekeeping and then forgotten it? >> this is one of those stranger than fiction kind of things. certainly nobody would write a script like this, because they would have any look that any self-respecting producer and director would have looking at you that you're having that that's ridiculous. but people forget things. >> disorganized crime. >> yeah. >> luckily for processors, miguel quiroz had not sworn a blood oath to never rat on his friends. quite the opposite, he rolled over like lassie and cut a deal. he agreed to wear a wire and help collect evidence on his cocoa spea co-conspirators. and so, as they say around here, the plot thickened. coming up, the world's worst hit man. >> i'm not a good shot. >> we'll finish it off. >> when "dateline" continues. start your day with secret. secret stops sweat 3x more than ordinary antiperspirants. the new provitamin b5 formula is gentle on skin. with secret, outlast anything! no sweat. secret ♪♪ for skin as alive as you are... don't settle for silver 7 moisturizers 3 vitamins 24 hours hydration gold bond champion your skin gold bond i'm a verizon engineer. we built our 5g nationwide so millions of people could do what they love in verizon 5g quality. and in parts of many cities, we have ultra wideband, the fastest 5g in the world. this is 5g built right. only from verizon. nighttime, a police informant wears a wire as he talks to a partner in crime. >> i ain't got to worry about you, you ain't got to worry about me. >> yeah. >> the informant, miguel quiroz, he's the pizza parlor owner turned small-time drug dealer, and the man found with hit note had his car targeting garrett warren. now he was cooperaing with investigators. detectives already knew quiroz wasn't the shooter. quiroz told them the man who actually pulled the trigger was an old friend of his named jorge hernandez, heard here. >> you don't say nothing, i don't say nothing. >> as part of his deal with prosecutors, quiroz wore a body wire and approached hernandez at party. he said he paid $10,000 to kill garrett warren. on the tape hernandez makes it clear he didn't waste any money on transportation. >> used my own car. >> hernandez can be heard saying he's sorry he didn't manage to kill garrett warren. >> i apologize to you, i'm not a good shot. >> and hernandez made clear he was ready to try again. >> just get the guns and whatever and we'll finish it off if that's what you need. >> speaking to prosecutor hoon chun, quiroz explained his own involvement, that he had been paid to hire hernandez as a hitman, and he explained where the trail led. >> mr. quiroz told you that he didn't do it but was in on the planning. >> right. >> and that he did it at behest of his friend manuel haro. >> manny haro was miguel quiroz's long-time friend, and if the name haro sounds familiar, it should. manny's sister claudia is garrett warren's ex-wife. prosecutor chun says that explains mr. haro's involvement. >> manual haro was doing this for his sister, claudia. >> who was married to garrett. >> who at once was married to garrett but going through a contentious device. on a scale of 1 to 10, this was a 11. about custody of the daughter. >> exactly. and she had antipathy expressed to garrett warren. >> she said you're going to bleed. >> yeah. >> generally it's a sign there are bad times to come. >> you're right. >> prosecutors believe they were beginning to understand the outlines of the plot to kill garrett warren. infuriated by a bitter custody battle, they believed claudia haro had set it all in motion, but proving that wouldn't be easy. investigators began by looking at how claudia might have persuaded her brother to get involved in a murder. detectives arrested jorge hernandez and manny haro and charged them with attempted murder and conspiracy. when they questioned manny, they learned about a secret of his that might explain why manny would want garrett warren dead. >> i didn't talk about me getting molested until i was 22 probably. >> manny told investigators he had been molested as a child and remember manny's sister claudia during her divorce from garrett warren claimed that garrett had molested their daughter. those allegations were thoroughly invested and a judge said they were unfounded, but now investigators had to consider another plot twist because of something else manny said. not only had he been molested but that the only other person in the world who knew about that secret was his sister, claudia. >> being i've been through certain things in my childhood, as far as molestation, and my sister was the only one that i confided in, and told her about the molestation thing that happened to me when i was younger. >> had claudia manipulated manny by telling him only part of the story? >> did she ever let you know that the judge, someone independent in her child custody case had found that the allegations that she was making against garrett were false? did she ever tell you that? >> i never asked and she never told me. i think she knew how to hit the nerve that he was molesting her. so i think she knew it was hitting a nerve, because i never really talked about it. >> manny said his sister's exact language was that she wanted garrett taken out. >> i'm almost positive she didn't use the word "murder" or "kill" but telling me want to take him out, you know what that means, that slang, it means kill. >> manny haro, a small-time criminal is pointing the finger of guilt straight at his sister, an actress and mother who was married to hollywood stardom and never had a problem with the law. it was hard to believe, except maybe for the intended victim of the murder plot who believed claudia was behind it from the get-go. >> i knew there was only one person who wanted this done to me. >> he felt that way even as the investigation pointed every other direction. until finally five years after the shooting, detectives arrested claudia haro. >> i did think to myself, thank god, finally i don't feel crazy anymore. >> but he was in for another shock. prosecutors did not feel the case was strong enough because manny haro had not agreed to testify against claudia and the d.a.'s office declined to file charges. i'm thinking you probably hated that. >> yes, but that's not the worst of it. i was proud to call garrett and say i arrested claudia haro for hiring a hit man to kill you. >> and then you got to call him back to say -- >> you're not going to believe it, i've got to let her go. >> 48 hours after detectives arrested claudia, she was back on the street, completely free once again. >> but i guaranteed him i would not stop. >> what would it take to write a new ending to this story? with a new role for the beauty that investigators believed was their femme fatale? or would claudia haro escape prosecution simply by denying she was involve dinvolved? >> the bottom line principle is this, lying isn't just saying the words, when words don't make sense you're going to have a problem. >> lying is tougher than people think it is. >> a lot tougher than people think it is. coming up, claudia haro tells her story. >> it's your day in the limelight. >> do you know who shot garrett warren? >> i don't know. >> do you know why he was shot? >> no. i don't know. >> when "dateline" continues. -go talk to him. -yeah, no. plus it's not even like he'd be into me or whatever. ♪♪ ♪ this could be ♪ hi. you just moved in, right? i would love to tell you about all the great savings you can get for bundling your renter's and car insurance with progressive. -oh, i was just -- -oh, tammy. i found your retainer in the dryer. crafting our authentic fragrances begins with ingredients from the earth ...tammy. to create fragrances infused with natural essential oils. air wick scented oils. connect to nature. these are real people, not actors, who've got their eczema under control. with less eczema, you can show more skin. so roll up those sleeves. and help heal your skin from within with dupixent. dupixent is the first treatment of its kind that continuously treats moderate-to-severe eczema, or atopic dermatitis, even between flare ups. dupixent is a biologic, and not a cream or steroid. many people taking dupixent saw clear or almost clear skin, and, had significantly less itch. don't use if you're allergic to dupixent. serious allergic reactions can occur, including anaphylaxis, which is severe. tell your doctor about new or worsening eye problems, such as eye pain or vision changes, or a parasitic infection. if you take asthma medicines, don't change or stop them without talking to your doctor. so help heal your skin from within, and talk to your eczema specialist about dupixent. if your financial situation has changed, we may be able to help. three derm-ingredients in one cream? 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>> yes. >> okay. >> my sister, claudia, approached me. claudia haro approached me. >> that made the difference. detectives rearrested claudia haro. this time, the prosecutor charged her with two counts of attempted murder and one of conspiracy to commit murder. claudia denied everything. >> do you know who shot garrett warren? >> i don't know. >> do you know why he was shot? >> no, i don't know. >> but while there was evidence enough to charge claudia, was there enough to convict her? >> you've got mr. quiroz's admission. >> right. >> and you've got mr. haro and mr. hernandez on tape. >> right. >> but you don't have anything proving that claudia haro set this in motion? >> we have the motive, the contentious divorce proceedings, we have the timing of this. because what happens is that the judge finds the child abuse allegations to be false on april 12th, i believe, of 2000. the hit occurs about a month and week after that on may 20th of 2000. >> all of that is circumstantial. >> i agree. i agree. >> but soon, there was more. prosecutors said the handwriting on the hit note matched claudia haro's. and when prosecutors compared samples of claudia's letters to garrett with the hit notes, they noticed the misspelling of this word, agoura, as in agoura hills, the location of garrett warren's home. on the hit note found in his car and in claudia's letters, the word is misspelled the exact same way -- "augora." claudia insisted she had never given any notes or maps to miguel quiroz. >> did you give him anything on paperwork? >> no, not that i can think of, no. >> if we have some of the address written in your handwriting -- >> i don't know. not from me. i don't know. >> she claimed to know very little about what her brother manny haro may have been up to. >> why would your brother, who never even met garrett, want to kill him? >> i don't know. it's not -- >> why would he tell us you're the one that asked him to be killed and helped arrange it? >> i don't know. >> did you ever give your brother a large amount of money? >> no. >> any amount whatsoever? >> i don't think i ever had a large amount of money. >> as we said, every hollywood story eventually comes back to money. if claudia haro paid somebody $10,000 to ice garrett warren, where did she get the cash? detectives took a good look at her other ex-husband, tough guy actor joe pesci. remember that party snapshot of garrett and middleman miguel quiroz along with their kids? that was taken at the hollywood hills home of joe pesci. >> we actually interviewed joe pesci and we just wanted to ask if he gave her a large sum of money at that time. he denied that he gave her any money and there was no evidence to indicate he had any involvement. >> claudia haro said she wanted to do an interview with us but we were not able to speak with her in jail. we spoke with her defense attorney, tom residence mesereau, best known for defending michael jackson. >> the picture drawn of her is sort of this vengeful woman who would stop at nothing to keep her daughter away from her ex-husband. >> whoever gave that information doesn't know claudia haro. >> mesereau says if claudia's guilty of anything, it is of having a career criminal for a brother. >> i believe manny haro was angry about being abused and molested as a child, he was desperate to maintain his street credibility as a drug dealer, and then when he got caught, he tried to blame it on his sister to try to gain freedom for himself. >> not only that, he said, but those hit notes allegedly written by claudia? >> i'm convinced these are forgeries. claudia never wrote a hit note to anybody. nobody ever talked to her about whacking someone or shooting someone. >> mesereau was ready with those arguments and more, and who knows what a jury might have done? remember the movie "my cousin vinny," where pesci played a lawyer who got his cousin acquitted of murder charges? well, this movie didn't end that way. on the eve of trial, claudia haro decided not to fight the charges. she pleaded no contest to two counts of attempted murder. she received a sentence of 12 years and four months. claudia's friend, julie. >> the deal she was offered, she'll be out in eight years and she gets to see her daughter grow up. >> and that's why she took it. >> and at her sentencing, joe pesci showed up to support his ex-wife. as for the others, miguel quiroz and manny haro took plea deals. quiroz got a three-year suspended sentence in return for his cooperation. haro was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. he was released in june 2017. the hired gunman, jorge hernandez, was tried and convicted on charges of attempted murder and conspiracy. he's serving a sentence of 77 years to life. in total, claudia haro served just more than nine years before being granted parole in august 2019. if claudia did mastermind this attempted murder, she ended up getting a very good deal. claudia's brother, manny, who set it up, and the actual shooter both pretty much got maxed out on their sentences. >> the amount of time you spend behind bars is nothing to, you know, what i believe will be eternity afterwards, you know? and i believe that, you know, we all pay one day, no matter what. >> you seem remarkably free of anger. >> i am. and everyone should be in this world, you know? she made a mistake. i've made mistakes. no one's perfect. >> surprised? you shouldn't be. that trifecta of love, money, and murder isn't new to hollywood. neither are stories about beautiful women who turn out to be as tough as a $5 steak and the men who somehow find it in themselves to forgive them. >> that's all for this edition of "dateline." i'm craig melvin. thank you for watching. breaking on msnbc -- growing nightmare. the water crisis looms large in texas. busted pipes are flooding homes and there's not enough clean drinking water. 13 million texans -- nearly half of the state's population -- still under a boil water advisory. >> residents looking for groceries and bottled water arriving to stores with bare shelves while hundreds line up for hours in their cars and on foot to get much-needed supplies. >> a growing human toll. at least 47 people nationwide have died after the severe winter storm, the majority in texas, including that 11-year-old you