Its the playground of snow, and gold. And she was at its heart. Beautiful, privileged. Magnetic. Whether it was a taxi driver or her movie star friends. She had a very genuine connection with people. But what happened one night in her secluded chalet sent shivers through this glamorous ski town. Oh my god. No. I was going into shock. Hyperventilating. Murdered in her sleep. It was a crime of rage. Where would investigators start . An exboyfriend . There were some stories about a jilted lover. Her new tenants . They were a couple that had been pushed over the edge. Her old friend . I just remember the hair. There is no way that she saw what she said she saw. The real killer would stun them all. Took my world and just flip it upside down. We were all wrong everybody was wrong in this case. [inaudible] oh my god. A cold night. February 2014. 911 colors can also be hysterical. This one was all but in comprehensible. I thought mys friend in the closet. She is dead. But then, the sort of thing does not happen to people like the one now lying dead in the closet. She is dead [inaudible] and certainly not in this zip code. You dont see many homicides here. But there are moments where no person is safe. No person. Not this storied victim. Not her securely pampered chalet in the snow. There are no words for it. When a Childhood Friend dies. Yes, and nancy . Life of the party. Confident of bellhops and billionaires. Who would want to harm her . And why . Aspen, colorado. The tiny Municipal Airport here tells a story. In the long line of private jets parked and waiting for their well heeled owners to come down from the mountainside chalets. Their beginner castles. As the late nancy used to call it. Half playfully, of course. These were her friends. As where the passing tourists and ski bums. And bus boys. And just about everybody. Mary met nancy when they were both teenagers. You cannot come to this town without meeting nancy. Come on really . Everybody met her at one point or another. I have never known another person like her. As joyful and a outsized personality and all of that that she was. She had a very deep and soulful connection to the world. Some special sauce in nancy. And when she smiled . There were just pure radiance. It was just pure radiance, it was just beaming. Billy was closer to nancy than anybody. Almost like a brother. It was like she had a secret and she wanted to share it with you. And that secret was lets all lighten up and have fun and enjoy life and be grateful. Nancy had reason to be grateful. She was born into a Legendary Aspen family led by local royalty. Her father made a fortune when he turned his ranch into the ski resort. And her mother betty . Was a world war ii pilot who in later years flew a helicopter. Parked it in her driveway. And nancy . Stories about nancy would fill a book. Like the one about how she met jack nicholson. A convertible pulled up and asked them directly questions. And nancy said i will take you there. But i want to ride in that nice car of yours. And next thing you know, she and jack are best friends. Nancy could and did live anyway that she wanted. Out loud many many times, when i thought we were gonna have a normal day. She would say lets go to saint barts. Or lets go to hawaii. Or lets go somewhere. And i would go okay. But, her relationship with the impulsive and gregarious nancy came with a price. Her business and your stuff was her stuff. Sometimes she expected her friends to give her the stuff that she wanted. It was quite a job to love nancy. So, after what happened to her. Flies on a carcass. The tabloids feasted on the gossip and half truths that flew around town. She was a spoiled, wild child. Jack nicholsons party girl. Hunter s. Thompsons drinking buddy. An incurable flirt. Once engaged to michael douglas. All very breathless. The stories about the quote, aspen socialite. And insulting, said her friends. It didnt paint her character accurately at all. Some people collect famous people as friends. And its important to them to be able to talk about them. Definitely not her. No . She had a lot of famous friends. She had a lot of friends who were not famous. She treated everyone the same way. She had a very genuine connection with people. She didnt have the entitlements that made a snooty little rich kid. She had the entitlement that every day of life was precious. And should be live to the fullest. Nancy was a traveling philanthropist. A devoted environmentalist. She had a daughter too, julianna. Born when nancy was 29. And sometimes she took her on the way with her when she traveled. But sometimes she didnt. Nancy had a lot of very Close Friends and people who loved julianna, and we all raised our children together. Unusual . Certainly. But she just truly deeply love julianna and did feel that this was her greatest role of her life. Was to be a mother. The thing is, nancy trusted people. Even with the care of her own daughter. With her house, with her money. Like the teller that she happened to meet in the local bank. She loved people, all kinds. It didnt matter who you were. Kathy carpenter was that teller. And one day in 2013, Out Of The Blue, nancy asked her to lunch. Kathy accepted. And learned firsthand another of nancys hallmark traits. She was sometimes brutally honest. No edit button . No edit button. I like that. Yes. No edit button. She actually when i first met her told me that i was very fat. What a thing to say to somebody when you first meet them hi, be my friend, your fat yeah. Your beautiful but your fat so, she was blunt. Undiplomatic. But, irresistible. By the time lunch was over, nancy and kathy were fast friends. Thats how nancy was. Like when she made plans to leave town for the winter. She decided to rent her house to a retired doctor and his horticulturalist wife. Total strangers. Who she befriended in a heartbeat. Actually invited them to move in a month early. So she and dr. Trey and his wife, who also happen to be named nancy. They all live together like roommates. She said im going to take you under my wing, and have you meet all my friends. And i know a lot of people around here. But now, in february 2014. At just 57. Nancy was gone. Murdered apparently in her own bed. While the grief was still very fresh, much of aspen crowded into the storied, hotel drone. For our memorial, that was more like a goodbye party. However she died, we need to celebrate her life. Thats what she wouldve wanted. Because her life was a celebration. Except one person. Notably absent from the Overflow Crowd in the jerome wasnt celebrating. But certainly could hear the music and laughter that burst out of the hotel windows that night and drifted down the street. , and into a particular cell. In the county jail. Coming up when i open that door. That odor was so overwhelmingly. It hit me in the face. I looked down. What had happened to nancy . The awful discovery that launch this aspen mystery. Oh my god no that house has this story to tell. Are we going to be able to figure out what that story is . When dateline continues [sneeze] dude you coming . Because the only thing dripping should be your style. Plop plop fizz fizz with alkaseltzer plus cold flu relief. Also try for fizzy fast cough relief. To give your teeth a dentist clean feeling. Start with a round brush head. Add power. And youve got oralb. Round cleans better by surrounding each tooth to remove 100 more plaque. For a superior clean. Oralb. Brush like a pro. Oh what a good time we will have you can make it happen yeah oh now, try new Dietary Supplements from voltaren for healthy joints. Nice footwork. Now, try new Dietary Supplements from voltaren man, youre lucky, watching live sports never used to be this easy. Now you can stream all your games like its nothing. Yes [ cheers ] yeah woho running up and down that field looks tough. Its a pitch. Get way more into what youre into when you stream on the xfinity 10g network. Aspen, colorado is the center of the universe. For a certain crowd that is. In 2014, as always in avalanche of skiers crowded on to lift and fill the restaurants, and bars, and shops. That lined aspens carefully attended avenues. The lovely of pricey skiing heaven. Except that is, for nancy. Did you ever think of leaving here . I know she was away a lot. She brought it up all the time. She told me. Because aspen has changed so much, thats not sleepy anymore, theres traffic. With her daughter julianna, grown and out of the house by then. Nancy at the peak of ski season had no reason for winter in aspen. Which is why she rented her house to the retired doctor and the wife from denver. Well she sipped her champagne in warmer climate, this year australia. So it was a surprise when this february she notified her friends that she was coming home early. She arrived in aspen saturday, the 22nd of february. Kathy carepenter picked her up at the airport. I was with her that evening. I got her back, to get organized. How is it to have her back . It was wonderful. Fun. She shared a lot of her video clips that she took on her trip. Did you say over the weekend . I did. She asked me if i would say with her. So i did. On monday morning, february 24th, kathy got up early and left for work. Leaving nancy and her dog at the house. Knowing that he would need peace and quiet to get over her jet lag. She put a note in the front door. Asking wouldbe visitors to leave nancy alone. She did not want to be disturbed. She never wanted to be disturbed when she slept. You do not call her, you do not wake her. She always slept with her earplugs and her eye mask. Everything shut. Close the door. And do not disturb billy also left nancy alone. But felt much better knowing she was home. I worried about her constantly when she was away from aspen. But when she returned to aspen, i did not worry about her. I would relax. I sent her an email and there was a photo of my fouryearold son. To aunt nancy, were so glad your home. Because when your home, we dont worry about you. Everything is good. But billy did not hear back. Not a word. And then on wednesday, the people who had been renting nancys house called kathy. They moved out quickly on nancys return. Had been going back and forth to the house all week clearing out the last of their stuff. And they found it odd that they had not seen nancy. Not once. So, this is monday, tuesday, and then wednesday. And you still havent seen her . Still had not seen her. But they did see nancys dog, gabe. And then i went and called kathy. And said this dog has been alone for two days and it is clear that she has not been back. I was concerned because normally that is not nancys behavior, she would call me and asked me to pick the dog up. So after work kathy drove up to nancys place in the mountain to check on her friend. What was it like when you went inside the house . I called her name out and gabe was there and was happy to see me. But nancy wasnt there. Kathy checked her bedroom. Stuff that was there that i had unpacked. It was clear, cleaned up. And when i turned, went to the closet. It was locked. Was it usually locked . No. Not with nancy home. Kathy knew that when nancy rented her house, she kept her personal belongings locked in a closet in the Master Bedroom. But she and kathy had unlocked it when she got home. At that point i was just, not feeling well. Something was not right. Kathy, who often house sat for nancy had a spare key. But it was back at her house. So she went home, got the key, returned. Open the closet door. When i open that door. That order was so overwhelming. It hit me in the face. And i looked down and, i could see the shape. A shape hidden under a pile of blankets and covers. But with one glimpse, kathy just knew, she said. It was nancy. Hard to get that image out of your mind . It is. Stuck there . It is. Kathy fled the house, got into her car, called 911. Oh my god no its pretty desolate up there. So i jumped in a car and i thought, i will just drive up the hill. Get to the police. Her hysterics made it very hard for the dispatcher to comprehend exactly what was going on. Can you get near your friend . No. No, i cant. Then finally, understanding. The dispatcher told kathy to pull over. Wait for the First Responders. I want you to pull over and put your flashers on. Okay. When the police arrived, they, i stepped out of the vehicle. I was going into shock. Hyperventilating. Dash cam video shows a distraught kathy as she was taken to the hospital. Then sheriffs deputies arrived on Buttermilk Mountain. To look in that room. And confront the mystery. That house, and the room in particular has the story to tell. And are we going to be able to figure out what that story is . Coming up she had to die from Blunt Force Trauma to the head. And it seems that she had several. Any defensive wounds . No. So it appeared to come Out Of The Blue for her . Yes. It did appear to be a premeditated crime that occurred while she was sleeping. More than one suspect. And maybe more than one killer. Hard to do that alone . It is awkward. In a difficult to move a body. When dateline continues its time to make a stand. And im feelin good. Start a new day with trelegy. No oncedaily copd. Medicine has the power to treat copd. In as many ways as trelegy. With three medicines in one inhaler,. Trelegy makes breathing easier for a full 24 hours, improves lung function, and helps prevent future flareups. Trelegy wont replace a rescue inhaler. For sudden breathing problems. Tell your doctor if you have a Heart Condition or high Blood Pressure before taking it. Do not take trelegy more than prescribed. Trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. Call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating,. Vision changes, or eye pain occur. Take a stand, and start a new day with trelegy. Ask your doctor about oncedaily trelegy. And save at trelegy. Com. Oh what a good time we will have you can make it happen yeah oh now, try new Dietary Supplements from voltaren for healthy joints. Lisa miller, then the das now, try new Dietary Supplements from voltaren [music playing] lisa miller, then the das investigator for the county that includes aspen, is a tall, rangy woman investigator for the county that includes aspirin, is a tall grange a woman with an impish grin that looks like shes hiding a secret. The investigator was and in an arm failure in from Murder In Aspen . It just does not happen. Or hadnt at least and more than a decade. I was a little surprised that we had a Murder In Aspen. And called to a persons home like nancy fister especially so. Correct. And yet here she was, in nancys living room looking at the window. The juxtaposition of looking at that house and taking a look at the beautiful scenery. And then knowing an act of terrible violence that occurred in the highway. In the bedroom she found surprisingly little evidence of it. There was a small blood smear on the head board. There was a couple of small droplets of blood on the carpet, and a little bit of a spatter on the wall. And the body in the closet . Well. When First Responders opened the door. They knew they were looking for a body and they opened the door and they look inside, and they immediately recognize the body. You just looked down and you saw white coverings. And underneath those coverings . What nancy had been bound with an extension cord. She had multiple plastic bags over her head that had been bound and secured tightly. And then another large one of the tearresistant darker colored bags in her body as well. With it all over her body. They clearly saw that the killer had gone through a lot of trouble to hide what he or she had done. But there was no hiding now. When the Crime Scene Personnel started taking a look they flip the mattress and found blood on the bottom part of the mattress. So it was clear, nancy was killed on the bed drag to the closet, stash their, wrapped up by money. And whoever did it took the extra trouble to flip the mattress in an effort to hide the silk in blood. And ryan was a desperate District Attorney who started working on the case the night the body was found. We know that she had to die from Blunt Force Trauma to the head. Several blows to the head. Any defensive wounds . No. So it appeared to come Out Of The Blue for her . It did appear to be yes, a premeditated crime that occurred while she was sleeping. It looked like it had happened monday morning. And then the body in the closet undiscovered until wednesday evening. The investigators then can compiling a list of suspects. A long list. None of us really lived like nancy. So open. I mean she was totally open to strangers. That openness made Nancy Friends Wherever she went. But when nancy open herself up, people didnt always like what came out. Say whatever she thought. Say what she thought. Did she realize that maybe she was neck and negative impression when she did that . Well. She definitely has people of. There was no doubt about that. Many times i could just see peoples steam coming out of their ears. And theyre thinking, nobodys ever talk to me like that. But her thinking was, someone should have a long time ago. No question that she rubbed some people the wrong way. Spoke her mind a bit too often, maybe. Treated friends a little like her personal servants, sometimes. Like kathy for example. Did she treat you more like a friend . Or like she was a boss . Friends, and its depending on the day. And someday, she would boss me around. And i would express how i felt. And she always apologized. And her friends, forgave. Because they loved nancy for who she was. And investigators now had to figure out if someone in nancy s life had stopped loving her. Or if she had simply opened herself up to the wrong person. Were working diligently at that point to follow up on others that were coming in. Like . The leads of other people in the community that may have had some resentment towards nancy. Like perhaps a jilted lover. One of them may have harbored some hidden rage. Her friends knew that the irreplaceable nancy was also a woman who fell in and out of love. Often. Usually nancy is having affairs, or romances. They didnt last a long time. Because there were some stories about a jilted lover somewhere. Somebody i didnt know. So when i heard that, i was like, theres crazy people out there.