Transcripts For WCAU Dateline NBC 20140629

I really dont. The fact that she had a brand new dress ready for a funeral said something else. Every woman needs a black dress. [ cheers ] her lucky number. The girl from the crosstown rival watching the game up in the stands. The pretty blond named michelle who would become 1986 homecoming queen at pepperell high. 3 f2 graduacion de su ano fue un supongo. I guess. Reporter number 15, Thad Reynolds, and michelle sullins were prom dates, married right out of high school. They were both popular, both nice looking, both friendly, had a lot of friends, social. I mean, they had it all. Reporter but years on people had strong opinions about the onetime homecoming queen. She is one of the most evil people that ive ever dealt with. Reporter and thats because of what happened early one morning. Lots of stab wounds. It certainly was a bad crime scene. Reporter with their church at the center of their lives, supportive families living right next door, how had it come to what it did . This kind of gruesome murder was very odd in our community and very big news. Reporter so much lost in the blink of an eye, so much blood. Im looking at myself in the Rearview Mirror for a minute before i go in. Its hard to believe things got to where it was. Reporter a sense of place is important to this story, and here it is. Rome, georgia, a county seat northwest of atlanta, population about 35,000. Not too big, not too small. Proud to be in the bible belt and all that implies about how you live your life and treat your neighbors, a great many of whom youll know by name. Growing up here in this conservative community in the 70s was a sparkly little girl named michelle. She always seemed to end up front and center in the family snapshots kept by her aunt trish, trish benefield. She was always wanting to pose for my camera. And she would sit at my moms and dads in the swing. I would take her picture. Grab the little poodle, you know, the doggie, and take another picture. Reporter what the old photos of a happy kid dont reveal were the fault lines in michelles childhood. Her parents split up when she was a little girl, and her father died when she was only 13. Her single mom raised michelle and her two older brothers with the teachings of the Baptist Church as a moral foundation. Michelle grew older and stayed cute, a kind of little miss sunshine who always thrived in the attention her golden looks brought. I mean, she was just a beauty, absolutely. Walk into a room, and everybody looks. Yeah, she had that presence. Reporter there were teenage boyfriends but no one special until she went to that football game, the one with number 15 on the field. I asked who number 15 was, and it was thad. And then i saw him at a dance and then i just fell, you know, head over heels for him. Reporter Thad Reynolds, Football Player, wrestler later on in the school year and an athlete not afraid to be in the school play and skits, seen here dancing in his number 15 jersey, he started seeing michelle, someone as full of life as he was. Thads sister, beverly, remembers it as a match made in high school heaven. He was the Football Player. She was the cheerleader. I mean, i guess thats how it started. Reporter the pair reminded their friends of another couple. A lot of people called us ken and barbie, and he was just fun to be around. Reporter fun for thad was down home and yeehaw. Our first date was a tractor pull in atlanta with his family. Reporter a tractor pull with his family . Yes, sir. Reporter this is a good start. Right. And actually, when we got back to their house, i got sick and threw up because i was so nervous. Reporter still, michelle remembers having a good time, and two months later thad asked her to wear his class ring. The challenger with a School Teacher and six regular astronauts on board was consumed by a giant fireball explosion less than reporter no sooner had she slipped it on than ten minutes later they both remember the Space Shuttle exploding. The date, january 28th, 1986. But they didnt see the disaster as a personal omen. They finished high school as a couple. We went to the prom together. Thad john glenn reynolds. Reporter and right after michelle and thad graduated, the Football Player and the homecoming queen got married. They picked august the 15th, 15 their now mutually lucky number. They had a Big Church Wedding at Hollywood Baptist, the church that would be so important in their lives in the years ahead. Ken and barbie were now mr. And mrs. This was it. This was her family. She was finally going to have what she wanted. Reporter so how was it to be a young married woman . It was awesome. I enjoyed it. And having our own place was nice. Reporter reliable thad was unlike the father that had left the family. Her aunt trish wasnt surprised that michelle married young. Security. Because when i saw them together, i saw that. I saw that security. I know she loved him, and i also know that she could lean on him and depend on him. Reporter thad, like michelle, had been raised religious. The Baptist Church was a cornerstone for the young couple. Thad was a come in even when he was sick kind of hard worker at a grocery. We had goals. We wanted to buy a house. We wanted to go on a cruise and buy a camcorder, and we did all three. And after that we decided to try and start having children. Reporter they had a little girl and named her olivia, but the young marriage was foundering. Five years in, michelle and thad divorced. One had cheated. The other one had cheated. So you have both stories. We had problems. Reporter michelle got an office job and started dating a little. Thad kept on plugging along sort of, but he especially took the divorce hard. His mom remembered getting a bad phone call from thad. He was in an apartment that he had rented, and i can remember him saying that he curled up in the fetal position in the closet and asked for god and asked for reconciliation. Reporter michelle, too, wasnt finding much satisfying as a single mom in the dating scene. I dated a few times, but i knew back in my mind that i still loved thad. And i kept our wedding rings in our safe. But we still did things together. We had christmases together and some holidays. And i even went to florida with his family. So its almost like we really wasnt divorced. Reporter after four years apart, thad and michelle went into counseling, and at the end of that they decided to try it again. They would get remarried. So one sunday at Hollywood Baptist, with some of the same friends from the first wedding looking on, thad and michelle exchanged marriage vows for a second time. It was a beautiful ceremony because it involved olivia. It was the three. It wasnt just the two of them. It was a family. Reporter the local paper splashed a heartwarming story about the young couple whod overcome adversity and been reunited with all their Church Members looking on. The article concluded, theirs isnt a fairy tale, its a love story. Aunt trish, though, thought michelle looked at it through less rosecolored glasses. I thought it was more ill have a home for my child and for future children, and hell provide, which he did, a great provider. Reporter later on, with everything that happened, some Church Members would rue the day they ever encouraged thad and michelle to get back together. Among the flock, wandering eyes and suspicious wives. Scotty told me that she was jealous of me and asking him if he thought she was prettier than me. Ifyou may be muddlingble withrough allergies. Nger. Try zyrtec® for powerful allergy relief. And zyrtec® is different than claritin. 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Thad and fellow Church Members pitched in on the construction. By then his mom, kitty walker, knew that michelle would always be her boys one and only. He just fell head over heels, and it was total commitment. Reporter commitment to a growing family. He and michelle would have three more girls. Commitment to his job, working his way up the ranks at fritolay. And commitment, most of all, to the god he worshipped every sunday at hollywood Baptist Church. You know how they always say god, family. I think god was first with him, then his family. God working in my life, watching god work in their lives. Reporter thad was perfectly comfortable rising in front of the congregation at hollywood and speaking with the conviction of a polished preacher. John 8 36. God has done a miracle in my life. God says pursue righteousness. Pursue faith. Pursue love with others who call on the lord. I really truly deep down think he wanted to be a missionary. Reporter thad and michelle decided to homeschool their four little girls to shield them from the secular worldly influences of public classrooms. When we were getting back together, he had asked, you know, if id pray about it, about homeschooling our children. Reporter so i think i hear you saying youre really living quite an active religious christian life. Yes, sir. Reporter the church became their familys focal point. Thad was elevated to deacon at Hollywood Baptist, a volunteer position as one of the pastors righthand men. Michelle became active with the teens, putting on dance performances. A lot of Baptist Churches that ive been to, theyre just, you know, quiet and dont clap or anything. Its to where theres more freedom to worship at hollywood. Reporter the teen Group Michelle helped organize was footstompingly professional. Oh we worship you hallelujah reporter and to further cement their commitment to god, michelle and thad both starred in an elaborate church play. Now that you have asked jesus into your heart, we are a complete christian family. Reporter thad and michelle are featured in a scene about a christian couple, the wife traditional, the husband understanding of her lapses. Oh, honey, i was so busy this morning, i forgot to put the roast in the oven. You know how crazy it gets around our house on sundays. Thats okay, sweetheart. I understand. Well go out for lunch. Reporter when thads sister Beverly Owens looks back, those days of church and family were good times for her brother. If i had to pick a time that he was his happiest, it was when he had all four kids and michelle at home. Reporter and the church provided likeminded, godfearing friends. One of those couples was scotty and paige harper, almost a mirror image of thad and michelle in so many ways. Scotty on thad you know, he was a good guy. Reporter like thad and michelle, they lived next door to his parents. Like thad, scotty was deeply religious and also a Church Volunteer leader. He was the volunteer family pastor, giving his time to tend to the young people of Hollywood Baptist. And scotty and paige had their own three small children, also all girls. Our children were like best friends, and we would go out to eat with them, go to a movie. Reporter barbecues, volleyball, camping trips, prayer groups. Thad and michelle, scotty and paige and all the kids together. The husbands, whod first met when thad was divorced, became especially fast friends, the bible and scriptures their glue. Thad thought so highly of scotty, he praised him in front of the congregation. Our family pastor, official title now, Scotty Harper, has always taught the people that are under him and the kids that we need to teach them the things that are relevant to them these days. Thats his keyword, right . Relevant. How to minister to them right now with their lives. He was a good role model. Reporter thad and scotty became the tightest of friends, helping each other hold firm to their faith. Sunday mornings before church thad, him and scotty and several other guys at hollywood would meet at mcdonalds and have a little worship there before they actually went on to church. Reporter the two moms, though, michelle and paige, never grew as close. Scotty told me later on that she was jealous of me and asking him if he thought she was prettier than me, and she was just jealous of me, and so she just started getting away from me. Reporter but michelle was getting closer to scotty. Her Church Performances for the middle schoolers came under his direction as the family pastor. They talked Church Business on the phone and exchanged emails. Scotty had actually gone to the same high school as michelle two years behind her when shed been elected homecoming queen. I knew who she was. I mean, if i saw her, i might say hey, but we really didnt cross many paths in high school. Reporter after a tour in the air force, including duty in desert storm with a combat communications unit, scotty parlayed his electronic savvy into a good job at the countys Major Medical complex, floyd Medical Center. He helped keep the Computer Systems going. Everything was good, you know, as far as vocationally, you know, a good job. Reporter but there was some turbulence on the home front with paige. He prayed for his marriage with thad, who as part of his duties as deacon regularly counseled church couples at his home. He and i over the years have batted things off of each other. I mean, hes had some downs. Ive had some downs, and wed go to each other. Reporter for her part, michelle was happy to see scotty at her house. He was always so complimentary about her church work with the teenagers and her effervescent good spirits. He was fun to be around and made you laugh and just a great sense of humor. Reporter by 2004 there were signs that michelle was getting restless about rome, georgia, and maybe even all the churchiness in their marriage. Like a lot of families in the area, michelle and thad liked to visit the campgrounds in gatlinburg, tennessee, the smoky mountains. Michelle felt so itchy she seriously wanted to buy a cabin resort property from her family, uproot from rome and cater to the tourists in tennessee. It was unreal, a Million Dollars or something. Theyd already qualified for it, and some guy stepped in supposedly before they did and bought it. And that was thads excuse as to why she was so down in the dumps and everything. Reporter that spring michelle started popping in on her inlaws next door less frequently. When thad got home from work, shed say shed had a long day with the kids, and she was going off to shop. Thad, meanwhile, was becoming even more involved in the church. After a missionary trip to cuba, he came back home afire with the idea of becoming a minister fulltime, leaving his job to see where jesus would lead him. Michelle was said to be frosty to the idea. When did it begin . Well never know, but michelle, feeling she was playing second fiddle to god in her marriage, began telling someone she was having naughty thoughts about him. Someone very taboo. And he was only too happy to say, funny, me, too. Two of the faithful play with fire. Hes saying, boy, youre a beautiful girl. Youre awesome. Very welcome words for your ears at that point. Yes, sir. vo average. Its out there, convincing you that one donut hole couldnt possibly lead to another. vo average sets the treadmill on mosey. Or stroll. Or loiter. vo average. Has memory issues. man i forgot to work out. I forgot to work out. vo . And memory issues. man my workout. vo but average is average. You can beat it. And it starts at gnc. People shave you, pour hot wax on you. They dont treat you like skin. Presenting dove advanced care. Clinically proven to reduce irritation. So you can be a softer, smoother, more beautiful little armpit. Could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. S mmmhmmm. Everybody knows that. Well, did you know that old macdonald was a really bad speller . Your word is. Cow. Cow. Cow. C. O. W. E. I. E. I. O. [buzzer] dangnabbit. Geico. Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. Its time to find some real harmony, with nature. [ family screams ] elmo [ wolf, kids howling ] [ train whistles ] [ bird chirps ] [ people screaming ] [ snoring ] music to moms ears. [ female announcer ] stay late for nightly fireworks and get unlimited visits for just 10 a month. [ mom ] we may live in houses, but were born for busch gardens. Michelle reynolds had become almost a theatrical producer at hollywood Baptist Church. Her christian rock and gospel presentations with the churchs young people were slick and polished. But in their marriage by may 2004, michelle and thad had again hit a rocky patch. He was thinking about pursuing the ministry full time, and that would mean major changes in their lives with four little girls. Certainly less money. But money didnt mean all that much to him. His mother tells a story about thad driving along one day listening to christian talk radio. God spoke to him, and he said, son, give. And he said, what do you want me to give . And he said, every what you have. And thad opened up his wallet, and he had 35 in there, and he drove to this radio station, and he gave the 35 to the receptionist. And he said he wanted it to bring marriages back together. Reporter did thad, whod been through an excruciating divorce from michelle, even realize that his wife was feeling ignored . My husband was married to his job and church, and i did everything from a to z in our household and homeschooled and had toddlers, taking care of babies, and i would tell him i needed a date. I always told him, i need a date, i need a date. Reporter now, they did have an active social life, but it was mostly with other young couples from the church, mainly scotty, thads friend, the youth pastor, and his wife, paige. They went on weekend camping trips together, grilled burgers, played family volleyball. But something had made its way back to michelle when thad had been counseling scotty over some marital problems hed been having. Thad told michelle to be careful around scotty because when scotty had confided in him during those sessions, it dawned on thad that michelle would make his best friend scotty the perfect wife. My husband, he told me to stay away from scotty because hes im everything that he wants in a wife. Reporter but even if she wanted to, which she didnt, there was a problem with avoiding scotty. He was her boss in a way. All those church youth extravaganzas were planned with him. I would have to ask him if i needed like costumes or something for one of the dramas, and he would tell me how to go about getting it. Reporter so youre seeing him and talking on the phone. I imagine emailing and yes, sir. Reporter you got issues to talk about with the church . Yes, sir. Reporter now on scottys end, he says his wife, paige, was sensing that her husband and michelle were getting way too cozy. After a rafting trip theyd all taken together that may, when there seemed to be electricity dancing between the two of them, scotty says paige told him to back off from michelle. Not wanting me to be around her without paige around. Not wanting me to talk to her. Reporter but they did talk, and a favorite topic, their spouses suspicions that something flirtatious was going on between them. By the end of may 2004 scotty, who seemed to put the onetime homecoming queen up on a pedestal, and michelle, the ignored spouse, were crossing the line from friendship to intimacy. I started getting the attention from scotty, and its like well, okay, somebody is showing me attention and, you know, saying that youre awesome. Reporter so here comes scotty and hes saying, boy, you are a beautiful girl. Youre awesome. Reporter very welcome words to your ears at that point, huh . Yes, sir. Reporter michelle began by sending scotty an explicit erotic email, the kama sutra of things shed like to do with him. I would have never suspected that wed go there. Reporter scotty was tingly and hit return with equally naughty thoughts. I mean you dont get tempted by something that you dont want. Reporter the weekend following the exchange of sexy emails, the two Church Leaders and their families shared a camper vehicle together. In the afternoon scotty and paige went off to the lake with the children. And thad and i were left in our camper sleeper, and i tried to make love with my husband, and he said no. He brushed me off, and that was very frustrating. Reporter that night in the camper, with thad sleeping next to michelle, paige by scotty, scotty says there was erotic midnight tension crackling between the two not yet lovers only a few feet apart. Was she flirting with you . Yeah. We were. Reporter her husband there and your wife there and the kids around . Yeah. Reporter she was coming on to you . We were just enjoying the weekend, yeah. Reporter on that camping trip scotty says thad teased him about losing thads hunting knife. Scotty promised to replace it. The following tuesday, michelle met scotty in the parking deck of the Medical Center where he worked. She waited for him in her suv, and they clambered into the back seat like teenagers. The two had crossed the line and for scotty, anyway, there was no looking back. I wanted what i wanted. Reporter which was . Michelle. Reporter so this was the big thing. You thought youd met your soulmate here . Yeah. Reporter it was june 2004, and scotty, the family pastor, and michelle, the youth pageant director, were suddenly hot and heavy. Mornings when they used to go to the gym were now passed in illicit hours at motels just down the road from Hollywood Baptist. They started whispering about portland, the city of their fantasized exit strategy. They called and emailed all day long. There was even a stolen dinner together and a movie in a neighboring town. Im guessing neither of you wants to be found out at this point. No. Reporter you want each other, but you still want to keep what you have, is that the dilemma . We want each other, and we dont want to destroy what we have. Reporter so how do you get out of that box . The easiest thing was just to keep going day to day, but that obviously wasnt reasonable. Reporter that wasnt working, huh . No. Reporter michelle also felt trapped between the two men. Did you start to feel bad, michelle, about what was going on . Yes, sir. I actually reporter that you were cheating on thad . Yes, sir, i actually did. At times i was like i cant believe that it came to this. I really wanted to grow old with my husband. We always talked about walking on the beach all pruned out. Reporter midjune, and another Families Together weekend, a big one, a road trip to alabama where michelles kids from the church dance troupe would attend a christian gathering at a place called the ramp. Thad had stayed behind at home. The group overnighted at a nearby motel. While most of the parents, including scottys wife, paige, stayed in rooms piled high with sleeping bags chaperoning the teens, scotty, the family pastor, arranged for michelle to have her own room. I get the picture of you kind of easing your way out of the room after lights out, tiptoeing down the hall, is that the way it happened . Correct. Yes. Reporter into michelles room . Yes. Reporter spend the night with her . Yes. Reporter make love and then sneak back into your own bed . Pretty much. Reporter that night in michelles single, the two in pillow talk used an expression for the first time that would become their lovers code, the word ugly, a word that would come to hint at where they were headed. At the end of the weekend they headed back home to rome, georgia, but theyd all be getting together again soon for the big fourth of july weekend racing up on them. Everything about michelle was great to me. Reporter you loved her . Yeah. Michelle tries one more time to put her marriage back together. A date night that goes horribly wrong. So pick a word for how you feel listening to this. Disgusting. Yup. All five of you for 175. Our clients need a lot of attention. Theres unlimited talk and text. Were working deals all day. You get 10 gigabytes of data to share. What about expansion potential . Add a line anytime for 15 bucks a month. Low dues. Great terms. Lets close. 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Im impressed. Looks like you got everything under control. We got it all under control here, were all good, right guys . Yeah. Yeah, were all good here. Yeah. Yep. Love you guys. [ dad kids ] love you bye. [ computer beeps ] [ male announcer ] finally a paint thats stain resistant and scrubbable. Introducing new valspar reserve. Now the colors you love stay the colors you love. Exclusively at lowes. The deacons wife and the family pastor were having a torrid affair. In only a months time theyd crossed the line from friends to lovers. Scotty didnt think his wife knew. I think paige knew that michelle and i was closer than she wanted us to be. Reporter she didnt know you were physical . No. Reporter michelle was sure her husband thad was in the dark. Not surprising as she says he was oblivious to everything but his job and church. Be not therefore ashamed of the testimony of our lord and what hes done in your life. Reporter all of which she says pushed her into the affair with his best friend. Was this love or lust were talking about here . I would say a need. A need that needed to be met that i wasnt getting at home. Reporter but there was a major lovers problem here. Scotty was reasonably sure that paige would give him a divorce. Michelle was just as certain that for her divorce wasnt in the cards. By then thad had started chatting with friends and family about becoming a fulltime minister. Being a twotime loser at marriage wasnt going to do him any good. Scotty says michelle started joking with him that, if you want me as your bride, then youre just going to have to outlive thad. In the midst of their hot sheets mornings at local motels, the two began to email each other about other ways to get around their problem with their gnats. Thats what they called their partners, gnats. Scotty says he joked with michelle that, for instance, she could slather extra butter in thads food to induce a heart attack, or maybe they could have a spaghetti dinner for their spouses with two pots bubbling. In one, dinner for thad and paige, they would poison the sauce. Maybe it did put some things in my head. Reporter you think it did . Maybe i was already thinking things. I cant really say. Reporter wheels started turning. Scotty began toying around with internet searches, and the lovers increasingly talked to each other about portland. I had seen something about portland, oregon, and i said i would like to visit there. And we had said had we got married, that we could move out there. Reporter portland became their code word theyd drop into a conversation when the gnats were all together at a gathering. Portlands nice this time of year, theyd say with a private smile. Was that a fantasy, or did you actually think it would happen . A fantasy. I believe it was a fantasy. Reporter but they both realized they were now in deep, and the spouses had to be told. It was agreed that scotty would be the one to tell thad. Are you insisting that he be the one to tell him . Yes, sir. I was afraid that my husband might hit me, and i was just afraid that he would blow up. Reporter its late june now, and michelle starts telling her lover, scotty, places where her husband thad is going to be, say, on the following day, suggesting to scotty that those are locations where he can deliver the very unpleasant news that he and michelle are on and that his best friend, thad, is odd man out in a lovers triangle. At least thats what michelle claims those messages were all about. Another code word by then was ugly, meaning how things might get when scotty finally confronted thad. It first crept into their pillow talk during that alabama weekend, how the two men had to talk and how the talk might get ugly. I took ugly to mean something, and when ugly meant something, talk all of a sudden took a different meaning as well. Reporter scotty followed michelles instructions on her husbands whereabouts and haunted spots where thad was expected to show up. He couldnt work up the nerve to confront him, though, and sensed michelle was growing frustrated. You know, have you been on scotty . Have you talked to him yet . Have you done the thing you promised you were going to do . I just asked him when he was going to talk to him. Reporter on july 1st, a thursday, scotty had walked into this kmart and bought a knife like the one he says thad had blamed him for losing. Was it a replacement or what . The next morning, friday, he sat waiting for thad to come out of this restaurant. And whatd you do . Nothing. Reporter chickened out . Yeah. Reporter that afternoon was a low point in the scotty and michelle affair. Michelle wanted him to meet her by the towns levee at lunchtime. But this time she wanted to talk, not make out. Scotty could feel her pulling back, dousing cold water on their fling. I dont remember the exact words, but i felt like she was to the point of, you know, the conversations not going to happen. Reporter youre not man enough to do this thing you said you were going to do . Basically. Reporter and forget about me, bud, because im going to be gone . I dont know that i really saw that she was doing that, but i guess she was willing to do that. Reporter michelle was aloof by the river that day. She says she was starting to have serious second thoughts about the relationship. That was actually when i was trying to cut it off at that point, and he said, no. Reporter but it kept going . Yes, sir. Reporter but to make an even bad rendezvous worse, michelle told scotty that she and thad were going out that night, the date shed been going on and on about with thad that she really needed to have. So they went out. But before dinner, michelle says thads date night began with an unexpected stop at a prayer group. I was a little frustrated with that type of situation, and he said, yall pray for me. Im not a good husband to michelle. Reporter at the Church Meeting . Yes, sir. Reporter in public out loud stand up and talk . Yes, sir. He says, im not being the husband that i should be to michelle. Thats exactly what he said. Reporter so pick a word for how you feel listening to this . I was disgusted. I was thinking, dont go to these people, come to me. Lets talk about it. And i was disgusted really, because i just felt like he was woe is me, you know, hes the victim, i messed up. Reporter so that probably wasnt a great date . No, sir. Reporter the saturday of fourth of july weekend, the two families and a few other couples were getting together for the usual festivities, scott, paige, thad, michelle and the seven girls. Michelle says she was starting to get edgy about her affair with scotty. Was it starting to eat at you . Just feeling convicted . Yes, sir. Reporter but that night whatever concerns there may have been were pushed aside to watch the fireworks. Their little girls oohed and ahed at the fireworks spectacular. The next day, sunday, a cookout and vollyeball. Michelle says scottys wife commented on her wearing attire too skimpy for an afternoon family picnic. We got together with some couples at the park and played some volleyball, and paige even commented on my clothes there. Reporter in kind of a snide way . Yeah. I cant believe youre wearing that tank top. So that was uncomfortable. Reporter scotty had his own reasons for feeling uncomfortable at the afternoon cookout. How strange is it that the guy youre cooking steaks with is the husband of your lover . Strange, like any affair, i guess. Reporter later that afternoon scotty received an email from michelle with information about where thad was going to be the next morning, monday. After the chilly talk at the levee, scotty knew full well that he might lose michelle unless he confronted thad soon, even if it turned out to be that lovers shorthand they had, ugly. And ugly it would be. After a bloody predawn discovery. He told me about it, and i just fell on the floor crying. When dateline continues. You used to sleep like a champ. Then boom. What happened . Stress, fun, bad habits kids, now what . Lets build a new, smarter bed using the dualair chambers to sense your movement, heartbeat, breathing. Introducing the sleep number bed with sleepiqtm technology. It tracks your sleep and tells you how to adjust for a good, better and an awesome night. The difference . Try adjusting up or down. Youll know cuz sleep iq™ tells you. Only at a sleep number store, mattresses with sleepiq start at just 999. 98. Know better sleep with sleep number. And a razor that understands my sensitive skin. New venus embrace sensitive. More than a strip. 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Thats powerful. The fourth of july weekend was over. Thads mom had babysat her granddaughters when thad and michelle had gone out on their date night that friday. He went and come and picked up the girls, and he said, thanks, mom, we needed that. And thats really the last conversation i can remember having. Reporter thads shift at the fritolay warehouse often began before dawn. Thats where a coworker found him. 36yearold Thad Reynolds had been stabbed to death in a frenzy. 19 wounds. Sheriff Tim Burkhalter could barely believe what he was hearing, a wellliked local man brutally stabbed at his office. We typically have maybe two murders a year. This kind of gruesome murder was of course very eyepening for our community and very big news. Reporter it was a scene right out of the movie psycho. Not one you would normally ever see in the quiet city of rome, georgia. No one could make sense of it. It just seemed out of character for what is a nice, quiet place to live. Reporter assistant District Attorney natalee statts and her boss Leigh Patterson got news of the murder that morning. When the first officer arrived, they called in for detectives to come in. They didnt know at that point who to even focus on. Reporter the warehouse wasnt a place to have cash lying around. The drivers picked up their snack orders there. They wondered if it was a stranger murder where somebody had just walked by and saw the lights on, saw the cars outside and then came in. Reporter while detectives gathered evidence at the scene to try to make sense of the crime, the pastor from Hollywood Baptist went to break the news to michelle that thad was dead. They came and knocked on the door, and he told me about it, and i just fell on the floor crying. Reporter thads mom kitty found out while at work. I got the call from the pastor at hollywood, and he said, you need to come home and you need to come home now. Michelle needs you. And i guess it was just like automatically i knew it was thad. Reporter kitty raced to michelles, where she was officially told her son thad was dead. Thats a mothers nightmare. Basically from there its like all a blur. Reporter thads sister beverly had arrived, too. Her mom told her. I just kind of lost it right then and there in the front yard. I remember her going to her knees. Yeah. They helped me get back up, and i walked in and went to michelle. She was sitting on the couch. I hugged her. Reporter when she heard the news, aunt trish came to the house to comfort her niece. She seemed like she was in shock because reporter obvious grief . Crying . Sobbing . No. She was like almost like she was in a trance, because like i say, almost in shock, because she said i keep waiting for him to walk in the door, you know, for thad to walk in the front door. Reporter an emergency prayer request went out to the Hollywood Baptist community, and members of the congregation started arriving to comfort michelle, the new widow. Reporter were you taking medications . Yes, sir. I was on an antidepressant and a sleeping pill, and actually one of the girls that i go to church with is a nurse, and she brought me some xanax. Reporter and some of the people helping you through your grief, theres paige. It was only like a fiveminute that i remember her just hugging me. And that was pretty much it. Reporter paige was joined at michelles by her husband, scotty. The pastor had called him and told him the news at his office at the hospital. He told me that thad was dead. Reporter scotty showed up at michelles house with a bandaged right hand, a weightlifting accident at the gym, he explained. He sat there and played games with thads kids and my daughter. I mean they were all just sitting around cutting up playing games. Reporter meanwhile, at the crime scene, the police were recovering what would turn out to be key evidence. Great stuff. A homicide detectives dream. Whoever the killer was, he had been a bungler. Hed dropped his prescription glasses on the ground. Nearby, they found a sheath for a knife, the apparent murder weapon, and a witness recalled seeing a burgundy minivan. As a murder, how clumsy is this crime . Incredibly. Reporter the killing of a family man and Church Deacon in rome was, of course, a big story. There was a man who had heard the news of the murder. He worked on the phone systems at the floyd Medical Center. Later that night he was sitting down with homicide detectives, and they were very interested in what he had to say. They would also be interested in certain emails. Things like i want to taste you. Thats the tame part of it. So not Hallmark Cards and kittens and clouds . No. The prototype that we built sorry, can i ask a stupid question . Sorry, do you have a minute . Sorry. Guys . Oh yeah. Oh sorry. Hey, there he is mind if i squeeze in here . Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry. Did i tell you so i was tempted sorry, you go first. Nah, its just, i was going to say. I have a question. Why dont we go back to the original thing that we did . Morning. You got a minute . Sorry, not sorry. Sorry, not sorry. Actually it can. Neutrogena® ultra sheer. Its superior uva uvb protection helps prevent early skin aging and skin cancer, all with the cleanest feel. Its the best for your skin. Neutrogena® ultra sheer. Its the best for your skin. Donlobster toppers event. Ew four entrees, starting at just 15. 99. Like our new lobstertopped woodgrilled shrimp. Or the new lobstertopped lobster. And now for lunch, try our new lobster tacos, just 9. 99. Ends soon so hurry in. Are kept at theirt peak by freezing. Ables because freezing is natures pause button. But do you know what else it keeps at their peak . The just crafted, just baked meals youll find in your freezer aisle. Take a fresh look at frozen. Its how delicious stays delicious. Frozen. How fresh stays fresh. Hungry for more . Go to howfreshstaysfresh. Com floyd Medical Center in rome, georgia is the largest employer in the county. Keeping its vast phone system up to speed is a big job. There was a tech person who was helping the hospital change over to a new phone system. You might say he was a perfectly legal eavesdropper. And one day, as he was working to switch over the phone lines, he heard a fellow employee, someone he knew by name, having an intimate conversation with a woman who wasnt his wife. The technician was discreet. He didnt tell anyone that hed caught Scotty Harper in an affair, cooing with a woman named michelle something. Didnt tell until the day of Thad Reynolds murder when he happened to drive by the crime scene that morning abuzz with Police Activity and later heard this crimestopper tip, be on the lookout for a burgundy van. Hes listened in on these phone calls, and he knows that scott harper is having an affair with somebody thats not obviously his wife. And he knows that scott harper drives a burgundy van. And he immediately calls the police. And so at that point the police begin to focus their investigation on scott harper. Reporter with that tip, the detectives went to the hospital to get Scotty Harpers computer with all his emails. What the cops find reads like steamy porn. A months worth of erotic messages between scotty and michelle, more than enough to persuade them that michelle had lit the spark that started the affair. She put the fullcourt press on him to to try to seduce him. And she used everything in her power to do that. Shes shes very good at it obviously. Reporter they even referred to one of the messages as the wheel of fortune email. It was michelle to scotty after shed confided to him that she was having bad thoughts about him. Well, she sent him an email that details what she wanted to do to him sexually, and it would be a series of phrases like i want to, and then thered be several words or several blanks that youd have to fill in the letters to form a word. Reporter just like on the tv game show . Just like on the game show. Reporter and when you bought a vowel and filled it in, what were the kind of things she was talking about . They were pretty graphic. Things like i want to taste you. Thats a tame part of it. I want to make love with you. But they were extremely more graphic. Reporter so not Hallmark Cards and kittens and clouds and stuff . No. He filled in the blanks, and that was when their relationship changed. Reporter michelle and scotty tried to keep their cool with their spouses as though nothing at home had changed. The custom of the two families getting together most weekends continued and was a kind of cover for their infatuation. People who have affairs often when they think theyre being secretive and theyre hiding things and they think theyre, you know, in this little bubble, will think that if youre with a big group of people and the two of you are together and you can talk with the big group of people there, that no will think theres anything about it. Reporter and they were finding their secret tingles lovers code words, a discretely brushed hand, all with her husband and his wife only a few feet away. Reporter is she the initiator here . Absolutely, absolutely. He would never have crossed the line. He would never have initiated this. Reporter and he was willing to go along . He absolutely was. Reporter but the homicidal math was starting to add up. Thad, the deacon, stabbed to death. The family pastor in a sexual relationship with the murdered mans wife. A dropped pair of prescription glasses spattered with blood, a burgundy van. On tuesday night, the day after thads murder, the detectives told scotty they wanted him and his wife to come to the Police Station for an interview. The next morning he arrived there with his wife, paige. They ask him, you know, where are your glasses . Have you had an affair with Michelle Reynolds . Reporter he knows theyre penning him in at that point . He cant explain, and hes lying to them flat out when he says hes not having an affair to them. And they already had the emails, and they already had knowledge at this point. Reporter does he give it up . Does he say, you got me . No. They ask consent to search his van, the burgundy van, and he agrees. Reporter the police go to the hospital to get scottys van for processing. Paige is with him now, well aware from the Police Questioning where this is now heading. He wants to go back into work to the hospital, and paige says no, were going to your mom and dads right now. Reporter investigators believe scotty was desperately trying to get back to his office to delete anything on his computer that would link michelle to the building case. Hes trying to get rid of those emails because thats going to hook michelle, that he loves, into this. Reporter surprising, of course, that a computer professional like himself would have kept the emails on his laptop in the first place. Reporter what was he thinking . Why does he let this stuff reside on the computers . Well, of course he would save them so he could go back and reread and be excited all over again about this affair and its progression and all these things that they wrote to each other. He writes these long, flowery emails to her about how much he loves her and how much he cares for her and how much he wants to be with her. And when she writes back to him, thats catnip to him. Hes not going to destroy that. Reporter even an armchair detective would have started following the trail right to Scotty Harpers door. The killer had used a knife like this to stab Thad Reynolds 19 times that monday morning. The detectives knew that on the morning of the murder, Scotty Harper had gone to the e. R. Of the hospital where he worked to have a cut hand stitched up. Those explicit emails he failed to get rid of told them he was a month into an affair with the murdered mans wife. Had Scotty Harper murdered his best friend, the husband of his lover . Every mirror i passed i mouthed the words, you just killed thad. You killed thad. Reporter scotty was confessing to the mirror, but not to anyone else. There was nothing i could say that could take it back and there was nothing i could do to fix it. And what about the widows reaction to the husbands murder . She wasnt shedding a tear. Welcome to the framily, dad ive been hearing good things about sprints new network. 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Much like these majestic rocky mountains. Which must be named after the. That would be rocky the flying squirrel, mr. Gecko sir. Obviously ahh come on bullwinkle, theyre named after. First president george rockington that doesnt even make any sense. Mr. Uhh. Winkle. Geico. Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. As parents we hold our kids hands when crossing the street so think of the internet as the worlds busiest street. Teach your kids to surf and post responsibly. Theyll be safer with a dedicated crossing guard. The more you know. Even prosecutors whod seen a lot were sickened by the savagery committed on Thad Reynolds. With a gun you can stand far away from somebody and shoot them, and you dont have to touch them. And you dont have to smell the blood. And you dont have to put your hands on them. But a knife is pretty cold. Reporter and as unimaginable as it was, all signs were pointing to thads close friend, Scotty Harper, as the killer. And the night before Scotty Harper had gone down to the Police Station for questioning by detectives, he called michelle and confessed to her that he was indeed the killer. I told her i did it. Reporter and her words as you recall . She got quiet. I remember her saying, the nightmare never ends. She ended up saying, she had to she said, i got to go. I got to go. Reporter after hanging up the phone, scotty says they talked again, and michelle pleaded with him that if he was going to confess to the crime, that he not do it until after thads funeral still two days away. We talked later, and she said, i dont want my girls to ever know you did this. This is crazy. I said, well, theyre going to. And she said, can you at least give them the funeral . Reporter dont talk to the police until after the funeral . Well, no, no, i mean i was wanting to talk to her oldest daughter and thads mom and her. I was wanting to be able to sit down with all three of them. And thats when she said she didnt want her daughters to ever know that i did this. Reporter and while hed confessed to his lover, scotty still hasnt broken the news to his wife. Had you told paige . No. Reporter but the morning of the detectives questioning, scotty says his wife had started to figure out that he had killed Thad Reynolds. We go to my mom and dads house, paige and i. They call my sister over there, and they call the pastor over there. Reporter and you say, i did it . Yes. Reporter i was the one that murdered thad . Yes. Reporter in the next 24 hours, scotty met with a lawyer and then checked himself overnight into a psychiatric hospital. The lawyer suggested it . He said, i think you really need to go there, because and i probably did. I mean im not suggesting i was insane when it happened. I remember it happening. Reporter scotty out of sight overnight in a psych ward was also buying michelle the time she wanted to prepare for thads funeral without the pall of scottys involvement hanging over it. But no one in their circle suspected yet that Scotty Harper could be the killer. Friends were nonetheless privately buzzing about the new widows demeanor. Why did michelle seem so calm . And why did she tell the ladies who asked if they could help her shop for a funeral dress that that wouldnt be necessary . She had a new black dress in her closet with the price tags still on it. What was going on with the newly widowed michelle . Thads mother and sister dont remember michelle shedding any tears at all. And there was like no emotion, no i mean i thought maybe she was in shock. I remember michelle coming outside and hugging me, but i saw no tears. Reporter michelle had also requested that police not give her any details about her husbands murder. The investigators saw it all as odd behavior. Everybody thought that she acted very strange. There werent really any tears. She wasnt crying. And people at the church, again, were just devastated. And she wasnt shedding a tear. In fact, she was making jokes to some of the people that came in and would say inappropriate things. Reporter friends at the house told investigators though michelle would later say she was just joking that she initially talked about getting a nose ring soon after thad was killed. Michelle looked over and said, do you like so and sos nose ring . And the lady said, no, i dont really like nose rings. And michelle said, well, now that thads dead, i think im going to get one. And everybody in the room just kind of went and something like, he because he wont be able to say anything about it. Yeah. Thad didnt like them. Shes cold. Ice cold. Reporter michelle, thads family says, is also talking about cremating thads remains. If that was his wish, hed never mentioned it to them. I was shocked, but i knew that there was nothing we could do because she was calling the shots. Reporter and it all started crashing down on thursday morning when thads mother went over to the house and was told that she couldnt go in. One of the ladies from church kind of backed me up against the car and said you cant go in. Theyre searching the house. Theyre seizing the computer. And thats when she told me that scotty and michelle had had an affair. Reporter when the detectives read through all the emails that scotty, the computer expert, had failed to delete, when they saw a message from michelle about when and where scotty would be able to find thad the morning he was killed, and when they considered how coolly the new widio took the news of her husbands death, arrest warrants were drawn up, not just for Scotty Harper, but for surprisingly michelle, as well. She would be charged as his cokiller. She is one of the most evil people that ive ever dealt with in all the years ive been a prosecutor. Reporter the two lovers the deacons wife and the family pastor were issued jailhouse jumpsuits and charged with murder. They would face the highest count. You announced your intention to go for the Death Penalty on the both of them . Yes. Reporter her as well . Yes. Reporter even though she was clearly not at the scene . Even though she was clearly not at the scene. She is a party to the crime. She aided, abetted, encouraged and helped plan this. Reporter but could the state prove that michelle knew all along what scotty was going to do . The prosecutor was confident she could. Shes the brains, and hes the muscle. Reporter astonishing phone calls between the jailed lovers. Would they give prosecutors the proof they need . I dont believe that id ever been loved as much by somebody as i have by you. Defending our. Thank you for your sacrifice and thank you for your bravery. 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Inspired by pets. And then the king said to all his servants, do you not know that a prince and a great man forgive me. Has fallen this day in israel. Reporter Thad Reynolds was eulogized as a man of god, sent to his rest by his many friends at hollywood Baptist Church where hed been a beloved deacon. So poignant, those four little girls, stairstepped in size, their father suddenly dead, and their mother charged with killing him. If you could hear them pray, olivia prays just exactly like her daddy. And the baby, she always says when she prays, she says, you know, the usual stuff, keep our family safe. Bless mama, bless papa, bless mama, bless daddy. Reporter mama, Michelle Reynolds, was not at the funeral but in the county jail charged with planning thads murder with her lover Scotty Harper. Both were denied bond as flight risks. If convicted, both could face the Death Penalty. But the two were still apparently so desperately in love that they convinced a recently released fellow inmate to set up threeway calling for them. An inmate at the floyd county jail. If you wish to accept this call reporter the inmate turned out to be a jailhouse snitch. Hey. Hey. Hes on the other line, okay . Reporter and while michelle and scotty talked, their conversations were being recorded. Its not even funny. Reporter listen for yourself. Scotty and michelle from behind bars still hinting at ending up in portland, their fantasy city where theyd start a new life together. I wonder how portland is this time of year . Oh, i know. Reporter even though they faced the possibility of death row, scotty and michelles conversations remained light, flirtatious, even racy. What are you wearing . Orange. [ laughter ] reporter and they kept speaking of their devotion to each other as investigators listened in. It always amazed me. They were talking about how much they missed each other. I dont believe that ive ever been loved as much by somebody as i have by you. And i mean that. Im with you. Theyre stopping in the middle of the conversation and saying things like, oh, wait a minute, i love you. Did you know that i love you . And theyll say it over and over and over. I love you. No, you dont. Yes, i do. No, you dont. Yes, i do. Reporter and its what they werent hearing from michelle, a lack of outrage, that reinforced the prosecutors conviction that michelle knew all along that murder was afoot and was actively planning it with scotty. If you were arrested for the murder of your spouse and you got to have communication with the person who actually committed the murder, dont you think you would Say Something like what have you done . Reporter what did you get me into . Why did you do this . There were several of these conversations, and in none of them are there denials of any of it. Reporter there were prison letters exchanged, too. In one from michelle to scotty two weeks after the murder, she uses some verses from the bible to pass on an only slightly encoded message to him. The letter page is headed freedom for me and my children. She quotes a verse from genesis and you see shes underlined the word all. The next bit of scripture is from psalms, who have i in heaven but you. The i is underlined. In all michelle rights out 17 verses with certain words underlined. And when you read all those underlines together it forms the thought, all i knew was that you were going to speak to him about us. Help me if a man would give for love. And thats her message to him. She knows that he loves her, and she wants him to save her and take her away from this, take her out of it. Reporter so thats her campaign at this point. Yes. Reporter shes setting up her defense, which is i had no idea. Right. Reporter you were so much in love with me, i had no idea you would go to that length . Yes. Reporter and in the days following the arrests, the detectives continued to build their case. They took note of an insurance policy on thad that would have paid michelle more than 250,000. Was money part of the motive . But what the detectives initially didnt have was the murder weapon, the knife scott harper had used, but that changed when one of his coworkers at the hospital had an inkling of where a good hiding place would be. He and another guy who worked at the i. T. Department started looking, and they went into the server room, and they took this suction cup device, and they started pulling up the tiles one at a time, and i think he told us he got to the third one, and he pulled it up and there was the jcpenneys bag. Reporter inside this bag was scottys bloody clothing, his shoes, the knife and even this receipt for the knife from kmart. It was virtually a murder conviction in a bag. Ive never had a case where somebody gave me not only the receipt from them buying the murder weapon but packaged it all up along with what they were wearing at the time they did it. Reporter later theyd recover this Security Camera tape from kmart. Scotty, seen here, goes into the store to buy the fourinch hunting knife. So is he among the worlds stupidest guys . . Yeah. Reporter and youve got everything but a movie of him doing it. Thats true. Hers is definitely the harder case. Reporter not in any of the recovered emails had michelle written words to the effect we need to kill thad. So instead the prosecutors focused on that fourth of july weekend that began with that frosty rendezvous at the levee on friday. By that day scotty had already failed on two occasions to confront thad after he says michelle had given him instructions as to where he would be. To scotty she seemed upset that afternoon that he hadnt been manly enough to tell thad. He thought hed lost her. Sunday she emails scotty letting him know where thad will be early the next morning. And the best nugget the prosecution had was this, an email exchange late sunday evening. He writes, stop me if you have any hesitations. She replies, im ready. Please be observant of your surroundings and be careful. I cant wait to be your bride. Was it enough . Would a jury buy that as her knowing, deliberately giving her headoverheels lover a green light for murder . Michelle had hired seasoned criminal defense lawyers jimmy berry and vic reynolds. They were very worried about trying a case in a town they believe was ready to convict their client with biblical fury. In this case there was absolutely a moral backlash against michelle. I think there was a perception by the community that she had initiated this affair, had taken this man of god with her womanly ways, sexual ways, had gotten him to do this heinous act. And i think the community was convinced that thats what michelle had done. Reporter but despite the Defense Attorneys fear a local jury would be willing to brand their client with a scarlet letter, they didnt believe those emails between the lovers gave the prosecutors the smoking gun they needed to send michelle to death row. Theres a lot of ways to interpret what some of these emails may have indicated. Reporter the Defense Attorneys version of events would be that scotty acted entirely on his own, just crazy in love with their client. Talk to thad, he suggests, means that and only that. No coded language. She basically indicates to me that she never indicated to scotty that she wanted him to kill her husband. Reporter so which was it . Two lovers whod carried out a murder in order to get to their fantasyland of portland together, or was she totally in the dark . Was it really about one crazed man killing the husband who stood in the way . And would the prosecutors be forced to cut michelle loose from their case altogether . Was it time for prosecutors to play their least favorite game, lets make a deal . And how about lets piece together the evidence. Some wondered why michelle seemed to have a brand new funeral outfit ready to go. Every woman needs a black dress. Whats my advice for healthy looking radiant skin. A good nights sleep. And aveeno®. [ female announcer ] only aveeno® positively radiant face moisturizer has an active naturals® total soy formula. One of natures most effective skin tone correctors. It helps reduce the look of brown spots in just four weeks. Now thats an idea you dont have to sleep on. [ female announcer ] aveeno® positively radiant. Naturally beautiful results™. Homework is done. Baths are taken. Im impressed. Looks like you got everything under control. We got it all under control here, were all good, right guys . Yeah. Yeah, were all good here. Yeah. Yep. Love you guys. [ dad kids ] love you bye. 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Nuts to the flabby guys go, you chicken fat, go away go, you chicken fat, go run, two, run running like a tortoise okay too far, and too slow. now double up, ready run two three four. running run two three four. like a hare run two three four. now you are run two three four. getting there run two three four. go you run two three four. chicken fat, everybody sing go away go, you chicken fat, go go go go dismissed michelle would write in an email later that she could relate to the words of that old song torn between two lovers. Feeling like a fool i loved my husband. I didnt want him to be hurt. Reporter but the prosecutors had come to look at Michelle Reynolds in the worst possible light, a seducer who used her sexual powers to dupe a sap of a lover into killing her husband for her. Shes been referred to as a puppetmaster. She was absolutely pulling his strings and pushing him and hinting and saying were never going to be together unless. Reporter unless, they argued, scotty killed her husband. Did you ever have a conversation, michelle, where you said weve got to think about the worst possible thing, the only way were going to be together is to get rid of thad . No, sir. Reporter michelle denied that shed sent her lover to kill her husband as she talked about her extramarital aaffair with dateline. At one point we were both talking about it. You know, we need to stop, and then he came back, and he says, i cant, i cant stop. Reporter guilty of adultery, she says, but not murder. And as you hear her tell her story, youll realize that for michelle it was never endless love. She talks of scotty indifferently as though hes an inconsequential old boyfriend she has to squint to remember. We met in the parking deck at his job, and we just kissed. Reporter did anything else happen that day . No, sir. Reporter and when did you go past kissing into actually having sex . We actually didnt have sex. Reporter you never had sex with him . No, sir. He couldnt get it he couldnt get an erection. Reporter scotty, michelle was saying, was impotent. A startling revelation if true, given all the horror that had spilled out of the affair. She says the trysts at the motels, all heavy petting and making out without consummation. And ditto for him sneaking into her room during that weekend in alabama. Again, he couldnt get an erection. Reporter kissing and hugging . Yes, sir. Reporter and then at dawn hed leave . Yes, sir. Reporter when scotty was in the county jail, months after the murder, authorities confiscated in his cell a 58page letter hed written michelle but shed never received. Over and over he writes lines like these i want to love you, spend the rest of my life devoted to you and making you the happiest woman alive. But the letter is more than just another avowal of his endless love for her. Its also a bullet point outline for how they need to keep their stories together for their upcoming trial. In this phone book of a letter, scotty also outlines for her how he plans to defend himself. Hes going to argue that he took a pill for erectile disfunction, something which triggered a psychotic episode during which hed killed thad. Not guilty by reason of temporary insanity. So this idea of impotency is floating around the case, but the prosecutor isnt buying that argument. She says she has on the record michelle boasting about her sexual dexterity. She bragged about that she had shown him positions that he had never seen before. Reporter and he loved it. Those were exactly her words. And he loved it. Reporter whatever the truth, michelle and scotty were only a few weeks into their romantic relationship when they met at the levee, the day she didnt want to cuddle. She wanted to talk about the dead end they were facing unless scotty had a mantoman confrontation with thad as he promised. Were you on him saying have you talked to him yet, has this happened . We had discussed it because there at that time he said, oh, my gosh, im losing you because thad has said we was going on a date and so that even increased his wanting to move forward even more so. Reporter that was the friday of fourth of july weekend when a dejected scotty felt he was losing michelle. That weekend there was barbecue, volleyball, fireworks. And on sunday michelle remembers scotty telling her he was finally going to talk to her husband. He said send me your husbands schedule so ill know wheres hes at and ill, you know, hook up with him. And thats what i did. Reporter what did that mean to you, michelle . That he was going to go and confront him about us. Reporter did you get the feeling he was talking about a violent resolution to this thing . No, sir, i really scotty was a nice, outgoing guy. I would never imagine him hurting anyone. Reporter but what about those troubling emails the lovers exchanged on sunday, the day before the murder . Scotty sends you an email that says, im ready for tomorrow. Stop me if you have any hesitation. Do you remember that . Yes, sir. Reporter what did you think that meant . If i wanted him to go and tell thad about us or not. Reporter and you reply, no hesitation, im ready. Please be observant of your surroundings and be careful. I do want to spend time with you. I want to be your wife. Yes, sir. Reporter is there any way to read that, michelle, other than to say be careful in what we both know is going to happen and look over your shoulder and do pull this thing off . I know that theres people there because they come in and out so being careful is, like, dont get in a fight. Reporter remember during that church trip in alabama, michelle and scotty started using the words talk and ugly as a lovers code for scottys upcoming confrontation with thad. Youd used a shorthand, the word ugly between you . Yes, sir. Reporter what did the word ugly mean to you . Them getting in a fight. Reporter so when you say in this email be careful, youre thinking about dont do something dumb, dont get in right. Reporter a fight . Right. Reporter michelle says she never told or even hinted to scotty that he needed to kill thad. There were no special looks, no nods, nothing. Had you told scotty explicitly or given him some sort of body language that weve got to kill thad . No, sir. Reporter this is how were going to be together . No, sir. Reporter and when scotty called her that morning, she says she still didnt suspect that he had killed thad. He had said that he met with him and told him, but he didnt bring up the fact that what happened. Reporter so what did you think had happened . I mean, youre a bright woman. Here it was the morning of the confrontation. He says they did have the confrontation. And then thad is found stabbed to death. I didnt want to believe it, that it was him. Reporter did you suspect it . No, because that is just not his character. Its not part of him. Hes just an alltime sweet guy and no. Reporter so at the very moment hes supposed to have this confrontation, which is going to be unpleasant under the best of all worlds, it happens, and then out of the blue somebody else comes into the place of business and stabs your husband 19 times at dawn in a botched robbery . I mean, that doesnt add up. Yes, sir. Reporter michelle also says there was no dark humor between her and scotty about killing thad. You dont remember joking with him about, well, well make a batch of spaghetti and thatll take care of it . No, sir. Reporter well annihialte them . No, sir. Reporter as for the perception that she seemed unreasonably cool at the house in the days after the murder, michelle says she was simply in shock. In all honesty, i was blacked out for the most part because those people that said they came to my house and that they saw me, and i dont ever recall. Reporter and the fact that she had what seemed to some a preneed black funeral dress already hanging in the closet, michelle says this has been taken entirely out of context. Every woman needs a black dress, and along with that black dress they didnt mention the fact that i had like two other dresses, a top and skirt still with the tags on them. Reporter to michelles lawyers none of it may have looked good, but it was still all very thin evidence for the prosecutors to build a capital murder case against their client. They were all just bad innuendos. Reporter and even the prosecutor knew if they were going to get a conviction on michelle, theyd need scotty to testify against her. And four years after the murder, as the two lovers sat in separate cells in the county jail, prosecutors finally got just that. You fully understand whats going on here today . Yes, i do. Reporter a sworn taped confession from Scotty Harper. Are you freely, cooperatively giving us this statement . Yes, i am. All right. Reporter scotty cut a deal with the District Attorney. He taped this confession and would testify for the prosecution in michelles upcoming trial provided the state dropped the Death Penalty on not just him but also on her. I had to hold my nose in a major way. Reporter you dont offer a get out of death row free card casually . No. Hes going to have to give us her and her part in it and her complicity in it. Not, you know, i love her and she had nothing to do with this. Hes got to reporter hes got to come off that line . Yeah. Hes got to tell the truth. Reporter but would they ever get the complete truth from a man who would do anything for the woman he loved . Coming up, scotty recounts what happened when he called michelle to tell her hed finally confronted thad. Did she say words to the effect, scott, if hes dead, did you kill him . Dear armpit, people shave you, pour hot wax on you. They dont treat you like skin. Presenting dove advanced care. Clinically proven to reduce irritation. So you can be a softer, smoother, more beautiful little armpit. Scotty harper had fallen hard for the former homecoming queen at his high school. The enormously tangled dilemma was that Michelle Reynolds was also his best friends wife, the mother of four little girls. For him what had started out as email flirtations turned into irresistible hot sex. Was it exciting . Was it risky . Was it good . Exciting . Risky . I mean, it was something i wanted. Reporter i think i hear you saying this is like a narcotic, that michelle has become your drug, and you cannot get enough of it . I guess thats fair to say. She was everything, yeah, everything i needed. She said, youre probably just going to have to live longer than him if you ever want to be with me. Reporter as part of a plea deal with the state, Scotty Harper had agreed to testify for the prosecution in exchange for taking the Death Penalty off the table for both of them. She said that if were going to continue, were going to get caught. Its not a matter of if, but when. Reporter in this sworn confession that was taped before michelles pending trial, scotty described the path he says they traveled down that ultimately led to murder. It all started in earnest he says at the weekend church trip in alabama when he sneaked away to the private room hed arranged for her. She asked me, she said, when you when you talk with thad, what if it gets ugly . And i asked her, i said, well, what do you let me ask you your perspective what if it gets ugly . And she told me, she said, i love you. She said, as long as i end up with you, i would deal with just about anything. You believe in michelles mind talking meant a lot more than just saying words to somebody. It meant taking some action. Correct. Eliminating thad . Correct. Reporter scotty also said he heard relief in michelles voice when he spoke to her the morning of thads death. I sensed relief. And youre talking about relief on the part of on michelles part . Yeah. Reporter but when dateline talked to Scotty Harper, he backed away from that position hed given the prosecution as part of his plea deal, that michelle was relieved the morning thad is found dead and that she even knew what talk and ugly were really all about. He seemed to once again want to protect her from any involvement in the murder. So whats the truth . Theres nothing to cover for. Theres nothing to protect her from. The truth is i did this. I see no guilt on her part. I really dont. Reporter scotty is now saying that he acted alone and says when he went to sleep that sunday night, even he didnt know how the confrontation with thad was going to play out. He said he got up before 5 00 that monday morning, but instead of his usual trip to the gym he made the decision to drive to the fritolay warehouse. Its hard to believe things got to where it was. I pull in. Im looking at myself in the Rearview Mirror for a minute before i go in. Reporter was that always going to be the outcome from that moment on, as youre looking at yourself in the rearview . Its like i was sitting outside looking in. And im not removing myself from the responsibility because that was me. But its hard to imagine myself with the thoughts that i was having. Reporter see yourself walking in . Yeah. Reporter hear him saying, hey, Scotty Harper, what are you doing here . Yeah. Reporter what do you say to him . I want what you got. Reporter michelle . Correct. Reporter scotty says he then pulled the knife out of the sheath. Thad, he says, thought he had simply come to return the hunting knife he had lost on that family camping trip. Its in my right hand. He sees it, and he looks down. He holds out his left hand. Reporter as though youre going to, what, hand the knife to him . I guess so. You know, me saying i want what you got, he had a little confused look on his face. He didnt know what i was talking about. Reporter but he didnt have much time to reflect because youre on him with a knife right away . Correct. Reporter its the worst minute of your life and a lot of other peoples lives . Yeah. Reporter thad tried to fight back. Do you remember anything about it . Pretty much. Reporter they would say later in the autopsy report that you stabbed him 19 times. I dont remember 19 stabs, but i remember enough. Reporter he went down and stayed down . Yeah. Reporter did you say i want what you have again . I said it more than once, yes. Reporter did you think, now ive got her . No. I couldnt believe what id done. Couldnt believe what id done. Reporter scotty left thad, his best friend, bleeding to death on his office floor. He knew he needed to get away quickly. I had to wrap my fingers. Id cut myself. Reporter and there go your eyeglasses. You lost them. Its dark, and theyre gone. And youve lost the sheath to the knife. No plan. Reporter this is no plan, scott. No plan. Reporter whats going on . No idea how it got there. Not a thing to do to take it back. Reporter what are you going to do next . Thats what 6 00 a. M. Is about. Whats 7 00 a. M. . Whats 8 00 a. M. . What are the next years of your life going to be about coming off of this moment . The aftereffects wasnt planned. Im not thinking about running, escaping, doing anything. Reporter but also not going to the police . And also not going to the police. Reporter he drove to the hospital where he worked and entered through a side door. I had blood all over me. I changed clothes. Theres other people going to be coming in. And im not going to leave bloody clothes and a knife sitting out. I just put them under the floor. Theres a raised floor, data center, where we had our servers where you could pull the tiles up. Reporter did you think, wow, this is going pretty good now . No. At no point during that time i felt like this is going pretty good, no. Reporter he then headed to the e. R. To get stitches for the knife wound on his hand. Later he drove to his gym to shower up. Every mirror i passed, i would mouth the words, you just killed thad. You killed thad. It just seemed surreal. It was like it didnt happen. But i knew it did. Reporter your bloods on him, his bloods on you . Your good friend. Yeah. Reporter scotty then calls michelle. She asked me, she said, did you talk with him . And i said yes. Reporter did you say it got ugly . Yes. Reporter did she say words to the effect, scott, is he dead . Did you kill him . Is it over . No, no. Reporter youre saying that her understanding was that youve had the talk with him, and it was nasty, and it was ugly, and what, ill talk to you later . Yeah. I mean, she said shes sure shed hear all about it a little bit later. Reporter soon after speaking to michelle, scotty got the official word from their pastor that thad was dead. He headed over to michelles where he was immediately surrounded by thads family and these pictures were snapped of him holding the dead mans youngest daughter. I see his daughters. Reporter the children who dont have a father. Yeah. I see his sister. I see his mom. Reporter the mom of the man youve just murdered. Yes. Reporter how are you holding it together . Why dont you just come undone at that point and say, i throw myself at your mercy. This thing happened . There was nothing i could say that could take it back. And there was nothing i could do that could fix it. Reporter so youre just going to muddle forward and see what happens . I didnt know what to do. Reporter scotty says he and michelle had barely any time alone that day, too many friends were arriving to express their condolences. But when he called her late that night, he says it still hadnt occurred to her that he was the killer. Before we hung up, she said, do you think this was a sign . Reporter a what . A sign. Reporter a sign from where or what . A sign from god. And i asked her, what are you talking about . And she said, of all days for you to go talk to him. I saw then she didnt know. Reporter she didnt know that you were going to go kill him . No. No, she didnt. When i went to bed that night, i cant say i knew that i was going to kill him, so i know she couldnt have. Michelle had no idea. Reporter Scotty Harpers story, from friendship to homicide, all for a onetime homecoming queen who now says their fling was just a big mistake. Was he still the 15yearold boy in high school fixated on the homecoming queen . I believe so. Yes, sir. Reporter and now after everything what would you say to scotty . On making good food choices, i had no idea that it was damaging the enamel of my teeth. I wanted to fix it. I wanted to fix it right away. My dentist recommended pronamel. He said that pronamel can make my teeth stronger, that it was important, that that is something i could do each day to help protect the enamel of my teeth. Pronamel is definitely helping me to lead the life that i want to live. Lets say goodbye to those, pronamel is definitely helping me and hello to woah. Lets find a better way to cook this, wash that compare those and save these. Because you can make dinner or you can make dinner a breeze. Are you ready . Lets do this. More saving. More doing. Thats the power of the home depot. Right now this whirlpool washer dryer just 349. 00 each. With roc® multi correxion® 5 in 1. Proven to hydrate dryness, illuminate dullness, lift sagging, diminish the look of dark spots, and smooth the appearance of wrinkles. 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Scotty harper pleaded guilty to stabbing to death his good friend Thad Reynolds. Okay, mr. Harper, you have previously entered a plea of guilty in the charges of murder of mr. Thad reynolds. Reporter he was given life in prison without the possibility of parole. Michelle reynolds also ended up taking a deal from the prosecutor. Do you understand that you are presumed innocent until Proven Guilty . Yes, sir. You understand that by entering a guilty plea youre giving up these rights . Yes. Reporter knowing that scotty was planning to testify for the prosecution, michelle agreed to a sentence of ten years for voluntary manslaughter and ten years for party to the crime of burglary, a charge related to scotty entering the fritolay warehouse. And how do you plea the charges, guilty or not guilty . Guilty. Its always hard to roll the dice when youre talking about a Death Penalty. Reporter michelles lawyers were prepared to go to trial and argue that she had no idea that scotty was going to kill her husband, but when they hadnt managed to get a change of venue out of rome, georgia, and when the prosecution was offering to swap the Death Penalty for a much lesser charge, they advised michelle to take the deal. Its the bible belt. Nobody likes folks in the bible belt having affairs. Everybody pretty much had made up their mind that she was guilty, that she forced this boy, never been in any trouble, good boy, she forced him into killing her husband so that they could be together. Reporter michelle accepted the 20year prison term without a trial because a part of her does feel responsible for thads death. Morally, because i had the affair, i feel responsible because had i not had the affair this wouldnt have happened. And im deeply sorry that so many people were hurt, that ive hurt a lot of people. Reporter so you agreed to do 20 years for an affair . Yes, sir. Reporter is that what it comes down to . Yes, sir. Reporter but you didnt ask your lover to kill your husband . No, sir. Reporter scotty, though, says he wished michelle had fought the charges. I dont understand why she pled. Reporter because if she lost her bet, she mightve ended up on death row. If youre innocent, why would you plea . I mean i just dont understand. Reporter scotty told us he took the plea deal because he didnt want his family to go through a Death Penalty trial and he didnt want michelle to face that either. Was that as important as your deal, that they take death off the table for her . Correct. Reporter so youre still trying to do her some good. For what good it is. I mean, i cant say that ive done good for anybody. But, yeah. Reporter as part of her sentence, michelle may have no contact with her four children until her term is served. And what would you say to scotty . At this time i dont have anything to say to him. Reporter hes just a memory, and not good ones . Yes, sir. I was definitely crazy about her. Reporter but now . Some things you have to suppress. Reporter suppress . Its there, but you dont want to touch it . You cant, so you dont. Reporter the other thing that michelle said which just really surprised me, when you think of everything that you guys gambled, she said that you never really completed a sexual relationship. Ive heard that from people. I dont know. Reporter she said that basically you were impotent with her and never consummated the act. Im not sure why she said it, but ill just leave it at that. Reporter you loved her . Yeah. Reporter michelles four girls went to live with thads family. His Life Insurance went to their care. Scottys wife, mother of his three, divorced him. He was left with only regrets. Im sorry doesnt cut it. Thats all i have now. Theres nothing i can say to undo what ive done. Reporter the prosecutor is not surprised by any of it, that scotty said he still loved michelle from behind bars and that michelle seemed not to care. When last heard from, he was still hanging the moon and the stars for her. Yes. And probably will for the rest of his life. Reporter as giddy as a teenager . He still loves her. Shes still all he has. Reporter well, what about her . She never loved him. She used him. She uses people as objects. If youre useful to her, shell use you for a while, and then shes going to cast you aside. Sweetheart, wasnt the Service Great today . It sure was, sweetheart. Reporter in the church play michelle and thad were featured in, they go to a cotton candy heaven as their reward. This is heaven. This is what we lived for. Isnt it wonderful . Reporter a sunday school dream. Nothing in that script about sexual obsession and a hunting knife. A man who wanted what the other had. Its another Beautiful Day in the hippest city in the world. The temperature outside is a balmy 82 degrees. For those of you lucky enough to see jayz at the Barclays Center last night, what a show and beyonces surprise appearance . Is she the bomb or what . [ bells on door jingle ] you see that guy . [ laughing ] [ cell phone vibrates ] [ cocks gun ] [ tires squealing ] [ siren blaring ]