1 00:00:03,780 --> 00:00:04,910 - Harlan, over here. 2 00:00:05,350 --> 00:00:06,830 - Ladies and gentlemen, Harlan Coben. 3 00:00:08,870 --> 00:00:10,570 - He's the greatest thriller writer. 4 00:00:10,740 --> 00:00:13,010 - Aw, come on. 5 00:00:13,180 --> 00:00:15,710 - Coben's written over 30 "New York Times" bestsellers. 6 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:18,840 - With over a dozen hit TV shows and movies. 7 00:00:21,450 --> 00:00:23,370 - In all our stories, the same question-- 8 00:00:23,540 --> 00:00:26,370 what made the killer cross that line? 9 00:00:33,850 --> 00:00:35,470 I'm Harlan Coben. 10 00:00:35,640 --> 00:00:38,030 I write mysteries because I like answers. 11 00:00:38,210 --> 00:00:41,120 But real life doesn't always work that way. 12 00:00:41,300 --> 00:00:43,560 In the real world, answers are elusive. 13 00:00:43,730 --> 00:00:46,520 They linger in the dark, just out of reach. 14 00:00:46,690 --> 00:00:49,610 Sometimes they just don't come, 15 00:00:49,780 --> 00:00:51,350 which is what caught my attention about 16 00:00:51,520 --> 00:00:53,530 the tragic murder of Joy Hibbs, 17 00:00:53,700 --> 00:00:55,830 a case that went cold for three decades 18 00:00:56,010 --> 00:01:00,450 and left a family unable to move forward, until now. 19 00:01:00,620 --> 00:01:03,360 And that's where our mystery begins. 20 00:01:05,450 --> 00:01:07,930 - Police now suspect foul play in the tragic death 21 00:01:08,110 --> 00:01:10,630 of local woman Joy Hibbs, whose body was found 22 00:01:10,800 --> 00:01:12,590 yesterday in a house fire. 23 00:01:14,680 --> 00:01:18,380 - I was mostly alone throughout all of this. 24 00:01:18,550 --> 00:01:20,160 We didn't really talk about it. 25 00:01:20,420 --> 00:01:23,640 Whoever killed my mom may come back at any point 26 00:01:23,820 --> 00:01:25,730 for me and my sister. 27 00:01:25,910 --> 00:01:27,820 It was terrifying. 28 00:01:28,000 --> 00:01:32,830 - I've lived in Bucks County for my entire life, 29 00:01:33,000 --> 00:01:36,400 knowing that there was a killer out there. 30 00:01:36,570 --> 00:01:40,310 I always felt, is this person coming back? 31 00:01:40,490 --> 00:01:43,490 - My mom was a compassionate person, 32 00:01:43,660 --> 00:01:46,450 and she just had so much life and so much energy. 33 00:01:46,620 --> 00:01:50,150 She taught me to be a man. 34 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:54,110 I want the world to be outraged. 35 00:01:54,280 --> 00:01:56,590 We have family members that went to their grave 36 00:01:56,760 --> 00:01:58,680 not knowing who the murderer is. 37 00:01:58,850 --> 00:02:01,420 - We wanted answers, so we went to stir the pot. 38 00:02:01,590 --> 00:02:04,210 - It had been 20 years as an unsolved murder. 39 00:02:04,380 --> 00:02:08,820 I was not afraid to set the whole town on fire. 40 00:02:08,990 --> 00:02:11,910 It became almost like an obsession. 41 00:02:12,080 --> 00:02:13,480 Let's get justice. 42 00:02:19,260 --> 00:02:21,440 - A crime happened here. 43 00:02:21,610 --> 00:02:24,440 The past isn't what it seemed. 44 00:02:24,620 --> 00:02:27,360 The story told turns out to be deception. 45 00:02:27,530 --> 00:02:29,620 And just when you're sure you have the answer-- 46 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:32,540 - 911, what is the address of your emergency? 47 00:02:32,710 --> 00:02:34,450 Hello? Anyone there? 48 00:02:34,630 --> 00:02:37,330 - There's one final twist. 49 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:49,990 - April 19, 1991 was actually a beautiful spring day. 50 00:02:50,170 --> 00:02:53,690 Our neighborhood was very quiet, working class. 51 00:02:53,860 --> 00:02:57,480 I was 12 years old, and that day I had received 52 00:02:57,650 --> 00:02:59,170 an honor roll certificate. 53 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:01,220 And I was so excited to come home and show my mom. 54 00:03:01,390 --> 00:03:03,870 And I knew she'd be really proud of me. 55 00:03:04,050 --> 00:03:06,530 As I was walking down the driveway, 56 00:03:06,700 --> 00:03:08,490 I started noticing that there was smoke 57 00:03:08,660 --> 00:03:10,750 billowing out of the house. 58 00:03:10,920 --> 00:03:12,970 And immediately, I felt panic. 59 00:03:15,280 --> 00:03:18,800 - Two neighbors came up to school to get me 60 00:03:18,980 --> 00:03:20,720 and said, you need to come home. 61 00:03:20,890 --> 00:03:22,810 There's been a fire at your house. 62 00:03:24,900 --> 00:03:26,770 - It got the attention of a neighbor who was out 63 00:03:26,940 --> 00:03:29,420 doing some lawn work and started screaming, 64 00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:30,640 call 911. 65 00:03:30,810 --> 00:03:32,080 - 911, what's your emergency? 66 00:03:32,250 --> 00:03:33,860 - I got out of the car. 67 00:03:34,030 --> 00:03:38,080 It was absolute chaos. 68 00:03:38,260 --> 00:03:39,780 - I get the call. 69 00:03:39,950 --> 00:03:42,300 My pager goes off. 70 00:03:42,480 --> 00:03:46,400 Spencer Drive, for a dwelling fire. 71 00:03:48,310 --> 00:03:50,790 The house was full of smoke, and I noticed as 72 00:03:50,960 --> 00:03:52,360 we were going low through the kitchen, 73 00:03:52,570 --> 00:03:55,190 I saw the four burners on on the stove. 74 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:57,140 So I turned them off. 75 00:03:57,320 --> 00:03:59,670 We took the hose line to the back bedroom 76 00:03:59,840 --> 00:04:02,110 when I noticed that there was 77 00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:03,980 something next to me that was odd. 78 00:04:04,150 --> 00:04:07,550 Then I realized that it was a person. 79 00:04:07,720 --> 00:04:10,200 So I tapped my buddy on the shoulder. 80 00:04:10,380 --> 00:04:12,640 I said, there's a body here we have to get out. 81 00:04:16,640 --> 00:04:18,080 - It was actually the ambulance driver 82 00:04:18,250 --> 00:04:21,870 who told me that my mom had died. 83 00:04:22,040 --> 00:04:24,960 She was 36, 84 00:04:25,130 --> 00:04:28,310 maybe 110 pounds, extremely athletic. 85 00:04:28,480 --> 00:04:30,130 In my mind, there was no way 86 00:04:30,570 --> 00:04:33,660 that she wouldn't be able to climb out a window or escape. 87 00:04:33,830 --> 00:04:35,230 - And it didn't make sense. 88 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:36,790 She was strong. 89 00:04:36,970 --> 00:04:38,750 My mom would have gotten out. 90 00:04:38,930 --> 00:04:40,620 I was 16. 91 00:04:40,800 --> 00:04:43,150 I just kept saying, what happened? 92 00:04:43,320 --> 00:04:46,060 What--what happened? 93 00:04:46,240 --> 00:04:49,240 And then I remember my dad pulling up, 94 00:04:49,410 --> 00:04:53,590 and I remember him approaching the house. 95 00:04:53,770 --> 00:04:57,200 And they were holding him back. 96 00:04:59,160 --> 00:05:01,080 - I thought it was my fault. 97 00:05:01,250 --> 00:05:04,170 My mom's body was found in my bedroom. 98 00:05:04,340 --> 00:05:08,690 And in my brain, I told myself that it was an extension cord 99 00:05:08,870 --> 00:05:13,090 or that somehow the aquarium caught on fire. 100 00:05:13,260 --> 00:05:14,440 - Say something, Mom. 101 00:05:14,610 --> 00:05:16,400 - Those your fishes? 102 00:05:16,570 --> 00:05:19,270 - Mom, get out of my bedroom, please. 103 00:05:19,440 --> 00:05:20,880 - Excuse me for living. 104 00:05:23,670 --> 00:05:25,280 - A bad extension cord or something, 105 00:05:25,450 --> 00:05:27,630 she might have been fussing around with it 106 00:05:27,800 --> 00:05:29,630 and got electrocuted. 107 00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:32,020 But we're in a house that's on fire, 108 00:05:32,200 --> 00:05:34,240 and the stove is still lit. 109 00:05:34,420 --> 00:05:36,420 And there was multiple fires lit 110 00:05:36,590 --> 00:05:39,940 in different rooms that were not connected to each other. 111 00:05:40,120 --> 00:05:43,290 - Working through the scene, it was determined that 112 00:05:43,470 --> 00:05:44,990 the gas burner is on, 113 00:05:45,210 --> 00:05:50,260 and there's a wastepaper basket that is also burning. 114 00:05:50,430 --> 00:05:53,440 Two separate fires in one room-- 115 00:05:53,610 --> 00:05:56,180 at that stage, it would be arson. 116 00:06:02,100 --> 00:06:04,490 - The first couple days after my mom died, 117 00:06:04,660 --> 00:06:08,580 I remember as a 12-year-old trying to understand 118 00:06:08,750 --> 00:06:11,190 why the world hadn't stopped. 119 00:06:11,370 --> 00:06:13,410 Kids were still going to school, 120 00:06:13,590 --> 00:06:16,590 that there was still programming on television. 121 00:06:16,760 --> 00:06:21,070 But I felt like my world had completely ended. 122 00:06:21,250 --> 00:06:24,900 I remember at her funeral, a car parked out front, 123 00:06:25,080 --> 00:06:28,250 two detectives with a telephoto lens 124 00:06:28,430 --> 00:06:30,430 just sitting there, taking photos of everybody 125 00:06:30,600 --> 00:06:32,260 going in and out of the funeral. 126 00:06:34,480 --> 00:06:38,310 - A few days later, I overheard my aunts and uncles 127 00:06:38,480 --> 00:06:40,530 and grandparents upstairs talking. 128 00:06:40,700 --> 00:06:42,570 And something-- 129 00:06:42,750 --> 00:06:45,100 there was foul play. 130 00:06:45,270 --> 00:06:50,060 - At the autopsy, it was determined the fire had not 131 00:06:50,230 --> 00:06:53,970 been the cause of death, that she'd been stabbed 132 00:06:54,150 --> 00:06:56,280 multiple times, and that there was 133 00:06:56,450 --> 00:06:59,240 also signs of strangulation. 134 00:07:00,550 --> 00:07:03,370 - I remember the detective comes up. 135 00:07:03,550 --> 00:07:06,460 He says, it's a homicide. 136 00:07:13,600 --> 00:07:16,000 I was right next to the body. 137 00:07:16,170 --> 00:07:18,040 It was devastating. 138 00:07:18,220 --> 00:07:20,300 - Fire is the ultimate cover. 139 00:07:20,480 --> 00:07:24,400 Flames consume the clues, the chaos, the truth. 140 00:07:24,570 --> 00:07:28,440 But what they can't erase are our memories. 141 00:07:31,530 --> 00:07:33,930 - This case was mind-boggling. 142 00:07:34,100 --> 00:07:36,890 Who would want to kill Joy? 143 00:07:37,060 --> 00:07:40,800 You start to look at the people closest to the victim 144 00:07:40,980 --> 00:07:44,680 because it's the most logical place to start. 145 00:07:44,850 --> 00:07:48,290 Police officers started with the husband. 146 00:07:48,460 --> 00:07:49,940 - My dad had a temper. 147 00:07:50,120 --> 00:07:53,510 He would blow up. 148 00:07:53,690 --> 00:07:56,080 - My mom was the soft side. 149 00:07:56,250 --> 00:07:57,950 My dad was the hard side. 150 00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:00,000 - Where in the hell have you been? 151 00:08:00,170 --> 00:08:01,690 - I've been trying to get my bike, 152 00:08:01,870 --> 00:08:03,870 and then Mommy beeped at me. - Do what? 153 00:08:04,040 --> 00:08:07,000 You were supposed to be home by 8:00. 154 00:08:07,180 --> 00:08:08,920 You know what time it is? 155 00:08:09,090 --> 00:08:10,570 - I'm sorry. 156 00:08:13,270 --> 00:08:15,880 - Joy's husband, Charlie, has anger issues. 157 00:08:16,060 --> 00:08:19,060 He had a big beard and tattoos, 158 00:08:19,230 --> 00:08:21,020 drank beer and smoked weed, 159 00:08:21,190 --> 00:08:22,450 rode his motorcycle. 160 00:08:22,630 --> 00:08:23,890 He's a biker. 161 00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:25,540 Some people questioned if he was part 162 00:08:25,720 --> 00:08:27,680 of a motorcycle gang. 163 00:08:27,850 --> 00:08:29,810 He had that reputation. 164 00:08:29,980 --> 00:08:33,600 Could this have started out as a small argument? 165 00:08:33,770 --> 00:08:36,030 And then there was the phone call. 166 00:08:38,120 --> 00:08:40,470 A coworker of Joy's gave a statement to the police 167 00:08:40,650 --> 00:08:43,560 that Charlie called her at work in a threatening manner 168 00:08:43,740 --> 00:08:45,740 on the day of the homicide. 169 00:08:47,610 --> 00:08:49,480 - He was questioned several times by the police. 170 00:08:49,650 --> 00:08:52,530 I had all this doubt in my mind that my dad 171 00:08:52,700 --> 00:08:54,880 had something to do with this. 172 00:08:55,050 --> 00:08:57,010 - Within the community and the neighborhood, 173 00:08:57,180 --> 00:08:59,060 there were suspicions on my dad. 174 00:08:59,230 --> 00:09:00,490 Could he have? 175 00:09:00,670 --> 00:09:01,540 Did he do it? 176 00:09:08,500 --> 00:09:10,720 - You ready? 177 00:09:20,080 --> 00:09:23,690 - Detective work isn't just about fingerprints and fibers. 178 00:09:23,860 --> 00:09:27,820 It's about reading people, analyzing their body language, 179 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:30,700 putting yourself in their shoes. 180 00:09:35,270 --> 00:09:41,050 - Friends of ours decided to set Joy and I up on a date 181 00:09:41,230 --> 00:09:43,010 at the local race track. 182 00:09:45,100 --> 00:09:48,670 I really fell for her right away. 183 00:09:48,840 --> 00:09:50,320 She was outdoorsy. 184 00:09:50,500 --> 00:09:51,890 She loved to fish. 185 00:09:52,060 --> 00:09:53,500 She loved gardening. 186 00:09:56,240 --> 00:09:58,900 Joy had a wonderful job as a medical assistant 187 00:09:59,070 --> 00:10:01,900 with a prominent doctor, and I had a career 188 00:10:02,070 --> 00:10:03,600 with one of the biggest real estate companies 189 00:10:03,770 --> 00:10:05,690 as a carpenter. 190 00:10:05,860 --> 00:10:08,120 Our children were thriving-- 191 00:10:08,300 --> 00:10:10,870 the American dream. 192 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:12,610 We were on top of the world. 193 00:10:22,010 --> 00:10:26,230 - I thought something like this could never happen to us. 194 00:10:26,400 --> 00:10:31,230 I couldn't believe that I was a suspect in this case. 195 00:10:31,410 --> 00:10:35,240 Three of the cops and a detective or two 196 00:10:35,410 --> 00:10:38,020 started asking me questions that day. 197 00:10:39,980 --> 00:10:42,510 Detectives had already started 198 00:10:42,680 --> 00:10:47,250 the "Charlie Hibbs killed his wife" scenario. 199 00:10:47,420 --> 00:10:50,820 After the third lie detector test, 200 00:10:50,990 --> 00:10:53,000 I got pissed off. 201 00:10:53,170 --> 00:10:56,090 They kept hounding me, questioning me. 202 00:10:56,260 --> 00:11:00,610 The detectives were trying to pin me with this murder. 203 00:11:00,790 --> 00:11:02,870 - Although they'd looked at various other people, 204 00:11:03,050 --> 00:11:07,360 it made more sense that Charlie had something to do with it. 205 00:11:07,530 --> 00:11:10,490 But he had an alibi. 206 00:11:10,670 --> 00:11:14,410 - That day, a property manager from work 207 00:11:14,580 --> 00:11:18,320 set my schedule at the Philadelphia Fire Department. 208 00:11:18,500 --> 00:11:21,200 I was there to meet them to make repairs 209 00:11:21,370 --> 00:11:23,940 to their fire alarm system. 210 00:11:24,110 --> 00:11:27,730 I was with another full-time employee 211 00:11:27,900 --> 00:11:30,250 the whole time. 212 00:11:33,510 --> 00:11:36,730 - At the time, investigators found another lead 213 00:11:36,910 --> 00:11:39,000 through the family. 214 00:11:39,170 --> 00:11:43,480 - I told the police, weeks before my mom's murder, 215 00:11:43,650 --> 00:11:45,790 all four tires of her car were slashed. 216 00:11:48,960 --> 00:11:51,530 - The family told detectives 217 00:11:51,710 --> 00:11:54,190 there had been instances of vandalism. 218 00:11:54,360 --> 00:11:57,840 The tires on one of the Hibbs' vehicles had been slashed. 219 00:11:58,020 --> 00:12:00,800 Somebody had tried to kick the back door in. 220 00:12:00,980 --> 00:12:04,760 There was also a brick thrown through the window 221 00:12:04,940 --> 00:12:06,420 in the front of the house. 222 00:12:06,590 --> 00:12:08,160 All three issues happened in the months 223 00:12:08,330 --> 00:12:09,770 leading up to the murder. 224 00:12:10,030 --> 00:12:12,600 - We thought maybe someone tried to break in 225 00:12:12,770 --> 00:12:17,430 and got scared away or neighborhood mischief. 226 00:12:17,600 --> 00:12:19,690 But I just wasn't sure. 227 00:12:21,430 --> 00:12:24,610 - I remember them asking us, were you fighting with anybody? 228 00:12:24,780 --> 00:12:27,740 Would any of your friends do this? 229 00:12:27,920 --> 00:12:31,350 - Who are the shady characters in our neighborhood? 230 00:12:31,530 --> 00:12:34,140 Well, everybody knew Andy Wilson. 231 00:12:36,490 --> 00:12:39,280 - James Andrew Wilson, who went by Andy, 232 00:12:39,450 --> 00:12:42,230 everyone knew that he was transient. 233 00:12:42,410 --> 00:12:44,720 He was seen by multiple neighbors 234 00:12:44,890 --> 00:12:48,280 in and out of a vacant house on the block, 235 00:12:48,460 --> 00:12:51,980 and Wilson was suspected of using drugs. 236 00:12:54,070 --> 00:12:56,470 - My dad really didn't like this guy. 237 00:12:56,640 --> 00:13:00,560 He had been in and out of jail and had a checkered past. 238 00:13:00,730 --> 00:13:02,600 - The detectives tried to track him down, 239 00:13:02,780 --> 00:13:07,690 but he was nowhere to be found until they received a tip. 240 00:13:07,870 --> 00:13:11,350 - James Wilson left and joined the circus. 241 00:13:14,700 --> 00:13:18,490 They actually tracked him down to Madison Square Garden, 242 00:13:18,660 --> 00:13:21,010 went up there and met with the New York Police Department 243 00:13:21,190 --> 00:13:22,540 and polygraphed him. 244 00:13:22,710 --> 00:13:24,580 - And when they went to go interview him, 245 00:13:24,760 --> 00:13:27,320 he absolutely was very cooperative in the interview. 246 00:13:27,500 --> 00:13:30,240 He was with individuals that verified his alibi. 247 00:13:30,410 --> 00:13:31,760 It was heavily vetted. 248 00:13:31,940 --> 00:13:34,940 He had an ironclad alibi. 249 00:13:35,110 --> 00:13:38,860 - The reason behind these three acts of vandalism 250 00:13:39,030 --> 00:13:41,820 at the Hibbs' house is still unknown. 251 00:13:41,990 --> 00:13:43,910 It's like mole whacking, you know? 252 00:13:44,080 --> 00:13:46,390 One investigation goes dead for six months, 253 00:13:46,560 --> 00:13:48,210 something pops up. 254 00:13:51,350 --> 00:13:54,520 - On the day of the murder, I passed the Hibbs' house. 255 00:13:54,700 --> 00:13:57,530 I noticed that it looks like someone just quickly 256 00:13:57,700 --> 00:14:00,790 parked in front of the house. 257 00:14:00,970 --> 00:14:03,490 The car was facing the wrong direction, 258 00:14:03,660 --> 00:14:06,800 and it was not parked properly. 259 00:14:06,970 --> 00:14:09,410 It was a blue Chevy Monte Carlo. 260 00:14:11,630 --> 00:14:13,800 - I told the police right away that our neighbor, 261 00:14:13,980 --> 00:14:17,240 April Atkins, drives a blue Monte Carlo. 262 00:14:18,810 --> 00:14:23,070 - Joy and April were friends, neighborhood friends. 263 00:14:23,250 --> 00:14:26,380 Many, many days I would come home from work, 264 00:14:26,560 --> 00:14:29,170 park my motorcycle, walk in the house, 265 00:14:29,340 --> 00:14:32,560 and April would be sitting there. 266 00:14:32,740 --> 00:14:34,300 And we did buy pot 267 00:14:34,480 --> 00:14:36,390 from April's husband, Bob, once or twice. 268 00:14:38,870 --> 00:14:41,960 - At 12 years old, I had told the police 269 00:14:42,140 --> 00:14:45,230 I heard my mom on the phone with our neighbor, 270 00:14:45,400 --> 00:14:47,490 Robert Atkins. 271 00:14:47,660 --> 00:14:49,450 She had purchased a small amount of marijuana 272 00:14:49,620 --> 00:14:52,840 from Robert, and she had asked for a refund. 273 00:14:53,020 --> 00:14:54,800 The police said they would look into it. 274 00:14:54,980 --> 00:14:57,110 - Detectives looked into the drug deal. 275 00:14:57,280 --> 00:15:00,460 There was a disagreement over the quality. 276 00:15:00,630 --> 00:15:01,720 It was just junk. 277 00:15:01,900 --> 00:15:03,590 Joy complained. 278 00:15:03,770 --> 00:15:06,470 Could there have been an argument over this? 279 00:15:06,640 --> 00:15:08,900 Could the small amount of marijuana have 280 00:15:09,080 --> 00:15:12,170 been the tipping point that just sent him off the edge? 281 00:15:19,220 --> 00:15:20,830 - The darkest mysteries don't always start 282 00:15:21,000 --> 00:15:24,050 in an alleyway or a back road. 283 00:15:24,220 --> 00:15:26,490 They often start at home. 284 00:15:26,660 --> 00:15:29,840 As the investigation widens, so does the radius of suspicion 285 00:15:30,010 --> 00:15:34,800 to our neighbors, our workplace, our community. 286 00:15:34,970 --> 00:15:36,580 When we live in small towns, 287 00:15:36,760 --> 00:15:39,240 soon there are no strangers left to question. 288 00:15:39,410 --> 00:15:42,460 And that's when we realize the horrible truth. 289 00:15:42,630 --> 00:15:45,680 The killer is one of us. 290 00:15:49,810 --> 00:15:52,470 - Detectives look into Robert Atkins 291 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:54,640 and learned he has this alibi that proves 292 00:15:54,820 --> 00:15:56,340 he could not have committed Joy's murder. 293 00:15:56,520 --> 00:15:59,080 He was in the Poconos, a resort area 294 00:15:59,260 --> 00:16:03,570 about an hour and a half or so north of Bucks County. 295 00:16:03,740 --> 00:16:06,310 - Also, April and Robert Atkins admitted 296 00:16:06,480 --> 00:16:08,660 to having owned a bright blue Monte Carlo, 297 00:16:08,830 --> 00:16:11,400 but Robert claimed it had been a different color, 298 00:16:11,570 --> 00:16:15,140 and he had it painted blue after Joy's murder. 299 00:16:15,320 --> 00:16:20,450 Officers spoke to Atkins on his return from the Poconos, 300 00:16:20,630 --> 00:16:22,720 and he was cleared. 301 00:16:25,540 --> 00:16:29,200 - Meanwhile, another lead came up. 302 00:16:29,370 --> 00:16:33,990 The day of the murder, multiple neighbors saw two individuals 303 00:16:34,160 --> 00:16:38,040 at Joy's front door, invited into her home, 304 00:16:38,210 --> 00:16:41,080 leaving the home 35 minutes thereafter. 305 00:16:43,870 --> 00:16:46,960 - I told detectives my mom was interested in joining 306 00:16:47,130 --> 00:16:50,130 the Bensalem Baptist church, 307 00:16:50,310 --> 00:16:54,180 and this minister was following up on that. 308 00:16:54,360 --> 00:16:57,970 - The pastor, his name was Furie Orlando, 309 00:16:58,140 --> 00:17:00,880 and the second man was a church associate 310 00:17:01,060 --> 00:17:03,450 named Madison L. Day. 311 00:17:06,980 --> 00:17:10,810 Records were showing that Madison L. Day 312 00:17:10,980 --> 00:17:15,330 had an extensive rap sheet, an extensive criminal history, 313 00:17:15,510 --> 00:17:17,730 and had violent tendencies. 314 00:17:17,900 --> 00:17:21,690 The theory was, perhaps, maybe the associate had doubled back 315 00:17:21,860 --> 00:17:23,910 and attacked Joy in her home. 316 00:17:24,080 --> 00:17:26,170 And maybe the motive was sexual. 317 00:17:26,340 --> 00:17:29,220 And the rear neighbor of the Hibbs family recalled 318 00:17:29,390 --> 00:17:33,570 specifically hearing Joy Hibbs and a male individual 319 00:17:33,740 --> 00:17:38,310 getting into some heated argument at Joy's house. 320 00:17:38,490 --> 00:17:42,930 That timeline fits squarely with the timeline we know 321 00:17:43,100 --> 00:17:48,410 when pastor Furie Orlando and Madison Day left Joy's home. 322 00:17:48,580 --> 00:17:52,410 - Evidently, the minister that visited the house brought 323 00:17:52,590 --> 00:17:55,370 an ex-convict with him. 324 00:17:55,550 --> 00:17:59,510 Even if this guy seen the light and changed 325 00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:02,860 and was working with the minister, 326 00:18:03,030 --> 00:18:05,210 that devastated me. 327 00:18:05,380 --> 00:18:09,300 - But it turns out there were two men living 328 00:18:09,470 --> 00:18:12,000 with that same name in Bucks County, 329 00:18:12,170 --> 00:18:13,700 very close dates of birth. 330 00:18:16,960 --> 00:18:20,140 - By some strange quirk of coincidence, 331 00:18:20,310 --> 00:18:24,750 we had two Madison L. Days living in the same area, 332 00:18:24,920 --> 00:18:26,840 and officers mixed up the names 333 00:18:27,010 --> 00:18:28,620 during the investigation. 334 00:18:28,930 --> 00:18:32,280 - Madison L. Day, who was a member of this church, 335 00:18:32,450 --> 00:18:35,760 was a man of average size, not a criminal. 336 00:18:35,940 --> 00:18:40,940 The other Madison L. Day we had a rap sheet for was giant. 337 00:18:41,120 --> 00:18:42,940 He was 6'7". 338 00:18:43,120 --> 00:18:46,770 - The pastor and the church member, Madison L. Day, 339 00:18:46,950 --> 00:18:50,650 went back to the church, signed into the church, 340 00:18:50,820 --> 00:18:53,560 two people together the whole time. 341 00:18:53,740 --> 00:18:56,910 I've never seen somebody sign in or sign out 342 00:18:57,090 --> 00:18:58,700 of a murder before. 343 00:19:01,960 --> 00:19:07,010 - I was so angry to be right back to the beginning. 344 00:19:07,180 --> 00:19:09,360 That just--I boiled over. 345 00:19:11,710 --> 00:19:14,630 - The only thing that buries the truth better than fire 346 00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:16,540 is time. 347 00:19:16,720 --> 00:19:19,540 Each dead end, each year that passes, 348 00:19:19,720 --> 00:19:21,630 it chips away at us. 349 00:19:21,810 --> 00:19:23,770 We stop trusting each other. 350 00:19:23,940 --> 00:19:26,250 We stop trusting ourselves. 351 00:19:28,600 --> 00:19:33,600 - I just kept thinking, this is never going to be solved. 352 00:19:33,780 --> 00:19:37,000 We are never going to get our family justice. 353 00:19:38,740 --> 00:19:40,570 David would come home from college 354 00:19:40,740 --> 00:19:42,700 and go knocking on their door over there 355 00:19:42,870 --> 00:19:44,310 at the police department and say, 356 00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:45,960 is there anything new? 357 00:19:46,140 --> 00:19:47,660 What's going on? 358 00:19:47,830 --> 00:19:49,920 And there was just never anything. 359 00:19:52,660 --> 00:19:56,020 - Over a decade had passed, 360 00:19:56,190 --> 00:19:58,630 and I went to the police department 361 00:19:58,800 --> 00:20:00,540 to plead with them to look at the case 362 00:20:00,720 --> 00:20:02,760 and see if they can develop any new leads. 363 00:20:04,590 --> 00:20:06,590 The detective, he said, 364 00:20:06,770 --> 00:20:10,120 if anybody knows who did this, it's your dad. 365 00:20:15,170 --> 00:20:17,780 Why would the police tell me that? 366 00:20:20,170 --> 00:20:22,650 What do they have that they can't share with me? 367 00:20:27,610 --> 00:20:31,230 - Looks pretty bad, don't it? 368 00:20:43,190 --> 00:20:45,940 - Truth doesn't give a damn about what you want. 369 00:20:46,110 --> 00:20:49,110 It doesn't care about your comfortable little narrative. 370 00:20:49,290 --> 00:20:53,200 Truth just sits there, silent in the shadows, 371 00:20:53,380 --> 00:20:57,250 waiting for your eyes to finally adjust. 372 00:20:59,470 --> 00:21:01,820 - My imagination ran wild. 373 00:21:01,990 --> 00:21:05,390 I told myself that maybe my dad owed somebody money, 374 00:21:05,560 --> 00:21:07,830 or that with his temper, he must have done something 375 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:11,090 to really anger somebody. 376 00:21:11,270 --> 00:21:15,970 - All of a sudden, David and I quit talking. 377 00:21:16,140 --> 00:21:20,490 I was completely cut off, no communication. 378 00:21:20,670 --> 00:21:23,670 He wouldn't return my phone calls. 379 00:21:23,840 --> 00:21:26,500 Joy's mom, our family, 380 00:21:26,670 --> 00:21:29,670 over the years passed away. 381 00:21:29,850 --> 00:21:33,460 These people died and went to their grave 382 00:21:33,640 --> 00:21:36,200 thinking that I did this, 383 00:21:36,380 --> 00:21:40,900 that I murdered their daughter, their sister. 384 00:21:41,080 --> 00:21:43,210 That really upsets me. 385 00:21:43,380 --> 00:21:46,000 I missed David's graduation from college. 386 00:21:46,170 --> 00:21:50,910 I missed a lot of things that only come around once. 387 00:21:51,090 --> 00:21:52,650 It was devastating to me. 388 00:21:55,960 --> 00:21:59,790 - It was years before I spoke to my dad again. 389 00:21:59,970 --> 00:22:03,190 I had many conversations with my grandfather, his father, 390 00:22:03,360 --> 00:22:05,010 who I loved and trusted. 391 00:22:05,190 --> 00:22:08,710 And he helped me to see that my dad would never have 392 00:22:08,890 --> 00:22:12,240 hurt my mom, and that we all have our own mechanism 393 00:22:12,410 --> 00:22:15,500 of dealing with trauma and grief. 394 00:22:16,940 --> 00:22:19,460 - During that time, all my biker friends, 395 00:22:19,640 --> 00:22:21,160 they were there for me. 396 00:22:21,340 --> 00:22:23,510 After almost three years, 397 00:22:23,690 --> 00:22:27,250 I remember I had a pig roast in the backyard, 398 00:22:27,430 --> 00:22:30,820 and here come David around the corner. 399 00:22:31,000 --> 00:22:35,000 We started talking again. 400 00:22:35,170 --> 00:22:38,740 I found out my children were told 401 00:22:38,920 --> 00:22:41,620 that I knew who did this. 402 00:22:41,790 --> 00:22:46,010 These cops betrayed our family. 403 00:22:46,190 --> 00:22:47,880 I wanted retribution. 404 00:22:50,800 --> 00:22:55,370 - Throughout the years, I was really angry. 405 00:22:55,540 --> 00:22:58,150 There's something left undone, 406 00:22:58,330 --> 00:23:00,370 and you're never going to feel whole 407 00:23:00,550 --> 00:23:02,770 until you figure this out. 408 00:23:05,160 --> 00:23:08,730 So the only thing I could think of to do was go to the media. 409 00:23:12,080 --> 00:23:15,690 - That article David did, it lit a fire. 410 00:23:15,870 --> 00:23:18,870 The case broke wide open. 411 00:23:19,040 --> 00:23:20,390 Power of the pen. 412 00:23:26,050 --> 00:23:32,710 - You can tell by my frankness in that article that I'm angry 413 00:23:32,880 --> 00:23:36,410 and that I'm no longer playing nice with the police, 414 00:23:36,580 --> 00:23:38,540 that I'm actually pointing fingers. 415 00:23:38,720 --> 00:23:41,850 There's something that they're not telling us. 416 00:23:42,020 --> 00:23:46,200 - What's stopping this from being solved? 417 00:23:46,380 --> 00:23:48,900 We wanted answers as to why. 418 00:23:49,070 --> 00:23:52,120 - That put a lot of scrutiny on the police, 419 00:23:52,300 --> 00:23:56,430 and it prompted them to reassign the cold case. 420 00:23:58,210 --> 00:24:01,090 - This case was given a new set of eyes. 421 00:24:01,260 --> 00:24:03,480 Detectives filed and gathered 422 00:24:03,650 --> 00:24:05,350 every piece of information they could 423 00:24:05,530 --> 00:24:07,960 and interviewed as many people as they could. 424 00:24:08,140 --> 00:24:11,140 - The detectives looked at past pieces of evidence 425 00:24:11,310 --> 00:24:13,360 to make sure that they were vetted again, 426 00:24:13,530 --> 00:24:16,230 including the phone call, where David hears 427 00:24:16,410 --> 00:24:20,060 Robert Atkins is threatening his mom. 428 00:24:20,240 --> 00:24:23,890 - I had told the police, I heard my mom on the phone. 429 00:24:24,070 --> 00:24:25,980 I could hear our neighbor, Robert Atkins, 430 00:24:26,160 --> 00:24:27,500 screaming at her. 431 00:24:30,460 --> 00:24:33,470 - I heard that for the first time over 20 years 432 00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:36,560 after my son told the police. 433 00:24:36,730 --> 00:24:39,080 Joy never told me about that phone call 434 00:24:39,260 --> 00:24:41,950 because the temper I had at that time, 435 00:24:42,130 --> 00:24:45,090 she knows it would have been explosive. 436 00:24:46,920 --> 00:24:49,180 - The new investigation team, they said, 437 00:24:49,350 --> 00:24:52,830 let's revisit the Robert Atkins aspect 438 00:24:53,010 --> 00:24:55,450 of this case. 439 00:24:55,620 --> 00:24:59,230 We know that a blue Monte Carlo was parked 440 00:24:59,410 --> 00:25:03,060 right out front of the house on the day of the homicide. 441 00:25:03,240 --> 00:25:07,070 Robert Atkins claimed his car was a darker color 442 00:25:07,240 --> 00:25:08,760 at the time of the murder. 443 00:25:08,940 --> 00:25:12,680 He said he repainted it blue weeks after. 444 00:25:12,850 --> 00:25:15,640 - From an Atkins family photo taken just weeks 445 00:25:15,810 --> 00:25:17,730 before Joy's murder, we discovered that 446 00:25:17,900 --> 00:25:19,770 Robert's Monte Carlo was blue, 447 00:25:19,950 --> 00:25:22,650 so it was repainted before Joy's murder. 448 00:25:22,820 --> 00:25:24,950 So we know that Robert and April lied 449 00:25:25,130 --> 00:25:26,870 about painting the car. 450 00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:29,830 But in an interview, he reiterated this claim 451 00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:32,790 that he had an alibi. 452 00:25:32,960 --> 00:25:37,710 - One of Robert's alibis was April's coworker, Tanya. 453 00:25:37,880 --> 00:25:40,660 Robert claimed that at the time of the murder, 454 00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:44,360 at 12:00, he was at home and spoke to Tanya. 455 00:25:44,540 --> 00:25:46,980 She provided a statement claiming she did telephone 456 00:25:47,150 --> 00:25:51,200 Mr. Atkins's home, but she stated the time 457 00:25:51,370 --> 00:25:54,160 was between 1:00 and 1:30 p.m. 458 00:25:54,330 --> 00:25:56,460 And the original investigators didn't 459 00:25:56,640 --> 00:25:59,200 catch this inconsistency. 460 00:26:02,210 --> 00:26:04,730 - He further then claims there would not have been 461 00:26:04,910 --> 00:26:07,080 sufficient time for him and his wife 462 00:26:07,260 --> 00:26:09,480 and their two children to get to the Poconos 463 00:26:09,650 --> 00:26:11,520 for their weekend trip 464 00:26:11,700 --> 00:26:13,960 and that he could not have been in two places at once. 465 00:26:17,220 --> 00:26:20,050 - The Atkins booked into the hotel in the Poconos 466 00:26:20,230 --> 00:26:25,100 two hours away at 5:00 on the day of the homicide. 467 00:26:25,270 --> 00:26:28,280 So that gave them five hours after the murder 468 00:26:28,450 --> 00:26:31,060 to get up there. 469 00:26:31,240 --> 00:26:36,150 - It was 100% possible for him to have murdered Joy, 470 00:26:36,330 --> 00:26:39,510 packed up his family, had that phone call, 471 00:26:39,680 --> 00:26:42,420 and fled to the Poconos. 472 00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:44,860 The alibi fell apart. 473 00:26:45,030 --> 00:26:48,430 These things were missed by the investigators in 1991. 474 00:26:51,430 --> 00:26:56,350 Then, to everyone's surprise, April Atkins, Robert's wife, 475 00:26:56,520 --> 00:26:58,960 showed up at the Bristol Township Police Department. 476 00:26:59,130 --> 00:27:01,960 What she describes, it was just shocking. 477 00:27:04,440 --> 00:27:07,580 - We're speaking to April Atkins. 478 00:27:24,810 --> 00:27:28,550 - The interview was mind-boggling. 479 00:27:28,730 --> 00:27:30,690 She was the key. 480 00:27:39,780 --> 00:27:44,440 - Over time, suspicion slowly fades into the background. 481 00:27:44,610 --> 00:27:48,230 Silence takes over where laughter once lived. 482 00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:50,010 Grief hardens. 483 00:27:50,190 --> 00:27:51,750 Hope fades. 484 00:27:51,930 --> 00:27:56,630 Then someone speaks, and everything rushes back. 485 00:27:56,800 --> 00:27:59,320 Only this time, the memories look different-- 486 00:27:59,500 --> 00:28:04,240 sharper, louder, impossible to ignore. 487 00:28:17,340 --> 00:28:22,430 - In 1991, April was 24 years old. 488 00:28:22,610 --> 00:28:24,870 She had a young child. 489 00:28:25,050 --> 00:28:28,440 And she was living in an abusive relationship. 490 00:28:28,610 --> 00:28:30,140 - It was bad. 491 00:28:30,310 --> 00:28:32,490 The hollering and screaming and the fighting 492 00:28:32,660 --> 00:28:36,670 that came from that house was just beyond belief. 493 00:28:46,280 --> 00:28:50,200 - For decades, she was afraid to speak out against him. 494 00:28:50,380 --> 00:28:54,290 But now, she'd separated from Robert. 495 00:28:54,470 --> 00:28:57,640 It was a whole different world, a whole different person. 496 00:28:57,820 --> 00:29:00,120 She wanted to come clean. 497 00:29:00,300 --> 00:29:03,390 She wanted to clear her conscience. 498 00:29:03,560 --> 00:29:05,260 This was the big break. 499 00:29:05,430 --> 00:29:06,700 This was it. 500 00:29:23,760 --> 00:29:26,890 - Robert Atkins, he admitted that he'd stabbed somebody 501 00:29:27,060 --> 00:29:28,940 and set fire to the house. 502 00:29:29,110 --> 00:29:30,940 He told her to call out of work, 503 00:29:31,110 --> 00:29:33,240 and they drove up to the Poconos. 504 00:29:35,460 --> 00:29:39,030 April's recording was huge. 505 00:29:39,210 --> 00:29:41,820 But we had no DNA evidence. 506 00:29:41,990 --> 00:29:44,430 We had no photographic evidence. 507 00:29:45,650 --> 00:29:49,040 So we tried various forms of electronic surveillance. 508 00:29:50,830 --> 00:29:54,050 We told April to call Robert and say, look, 509 00:29:54,220 --> 00:29:56,270 the police are down here to speak to me 510 00:29:56,440 --> 00:29:58,570 about Joy's murder. 511 00:30:18,860 --> 00:30:22,160 - In the meantime, I made phone calls 512 00:30:22,340 --> 00:30:24,170 to family members and people 513 00:30:24,340 --> 00:30:25,950 who knew Robert in his early life. 514 00:30:53,410 --> 00:30:59,720 - When he was a teenager, Robert had attacked his aunt. 515 00:30:59,900 --> 00:31:04,640 He had attempted to strangle her with a telephone cord 516 00:31:04,810 --> 00:31:09,600 and left her for dead, and then fled. 517 00:31:09,780 --> 00:31:13,260 - It was unequivocal that Robert committed these acts, 518 00:31:13,430 --> 00:31:16,000 and he later was prosecuted in juvenile court 519 00:31:16,170 --> 00:31:19,350 and held responsible for the attack on Aunt Charlene. 520 00:31:54,170 --> 00:31:57,260 - It painted a picture of a very dangerous, 521 00:31:57,430 --> 00:31:58,960 menacing person. 522 00:31:59,260 --> 00:32:01,740 But after the April confession, unfortunately, 523 00:32:01,920 --> 00:32:04,830 that evidence wasn't acted upon. 524 00:32:09,750 --> 00:32:12,710 - These are the details that keep me up at night. 525 00:32:12,880 --> 00:32:15,930 How did they not do anything with April's confession? 526 00:32:16,100 --> 00:32:17,710 - With this case, the first time 527 00:32:17,890 --> 00:32:19,410 when they said they didn't have evidence, 528 00:32:19,580 --> 00:32:20,980 it was believable. 529 00:32:21,200 --> 00:32:26,370 But the second time, you start asking questions. 530 00:32:26,550 --> 00:32:31,250 I thought the police were covering things up. 531 00:32:31,420 --> 00:32:33,900 - There was some things that were pretty suspicious. 532 00:32:34,080 --> 00:32:37,470 We're now trying to seek out information for ourselves. 533 00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:42,830 - My motorcycle club, my biker friends, 534 00:32:43,000 --> 00:32:47,570 all those guys raised a reward for information. 535 00:32:47,740 --> 00:32:53,790 And before I knew it, the reward went to $50,000. 536 00:32:58,840 --> 00:33:02,450 Yeah, them old, no good nasty bikers came through. 537 00:33:05,460 --> 00:33:08,070 And the word got out to this biker dude. 538 00:33:08,240 --> 00:33:11,680 Billy Barker picked me up, and we went to a bar. 539 00:33:11,850 --> 00:33:15,420 And Barker's dad is a retired cop. 540 00:33:15,600 --> 00:33:17,470 He has a lot of connections. 541 00:33:19,210 --> 00:33:21,560 Billy said, I heard on the street 542 00:33:21,730 --> 00:33:25,040 that Atkins was a CI, 543 00:33:25,220 --> 00:33:26,910 a confidential informant. 544 00:33:28,650 --> 00:33:31,050 That was such a gut punch. 545 00:33:31,220 --> 00:33:35,440 Law enforcement buried this whole thing and just let it go. 546 00:33:43,360 --> 00:33:47,460 - We forced our way into the Bucks County 547 00:33:47,630 --> 00:33:50,410 prosecuting attorney's office. 548 00:33:50,590 --> 00:33:54,380 Detective Hanks and Jen Schorn got involved with the case. 549 00:33:56,200 --> 00:33:58,120 - When I became the district attorney, 550 00:33:58,290 --> 00:34:00,380 I wanted to make sure we secured 551 00:34:00,560 --> 00:34:01,900 the outcome for the family 552 00:34:02,080 --> 00:34:03,120 that they deserved and waited for 553 00:34:03,300 --> 00:34:04,860 for so long. 554 00:34:05,040 --> 00:34:06,820 We discovered that 555 00:34:07,000 --> 00:34:09,170 Robert Atkins was a drug informant, 556 00:34:09,350 --> 00:34:12,260 and these 1991 narcotics detectives had 557 00:34:12,440 --> 00:34:15,610 a relationship with him in that capacity. 558 00:34:26,060 --> 00:34:28,670 - Robert Atkins had the benefit of being tipped off 559 00:34:28,840 --> 00:34:31,110 that he was a suspect. 560 00:34:31,280 --> 00:34:35,630 He had that benefit of time and to get his story straight. 561 00:34:35,810 --> 00:34:37,630 - Narcotics detectives, 562 00:34:37,810 --> 00:34:40,250 his handlers as a confidential informant, 563 00:34:40,420 --> 00:34:42,640 sent a message to Robert Atkins 564 00:34:42,810 --> 00:34:45,950 giving him a warning to go get your alibi straight 565 00:34:46,120 --> 00:34:48,780 and to provide ample time and information 566 00:34:48,950 --> 00:34:53,130 to evade the police. 567 00:34:53,300 --> 00:34:58,740 - I became involved with Joy Hibbs' murder in 2021. 568 00:34:58,920 --> 00:35:00,350 What happened prior? 569 00:35:00,570 --> 00:35:02,310 There's a lot of things we don't know. 570 00:35:02,490 --> 00:35:06,060 There was no report generated on this conversation 571 00:35:06,230 --> 00:35:08,840 between the narcotics investigators 572 00:35:09,010 --> 00:35:11,970 and Robert Atkins. 573 00:35:12,150 --> 00:35:14,460 This is not normal. 574 00:35:15,720 --> 00:35:17,850 Unfortunately, the politics 575 00:35:18,020 --> 00:35:19,900 and personalities of police work 576 00:35:20,070 --> 00:35:24,120 interfered with the actual job in 1991. 577 00:35:25,900 --> 00:35:31,470 - This could have been solved within a matter of days, 578 00:35:31,650 --> 00:35:35,520 but they were protecting a drug informant. 579 00:35:37,780 --> 00:35:39,570 - There are some specific things, 580 00:35:39,740 --> 00:35:41,350 having the benefit of hindsight, 581 00:35:41,530 --> 00:35:44,350 I wish would have been done differently. 582 00:35:44,530 --> 00:35:49,660 But now we needed the powers of the investigative grand jury. 583 00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:52,230 We put up the arson investigation 584 00:35:52,410 --> 00:35:55,410 and all of the other strong circumstantial evidence. 585 00:35:55,580 --> 00:35:57,930 - After several months of the grand jury 586 00:35:58,110 --> 00:36:02,240 hearing testimony, it was a unanimous presentment 587 00:36:02,420 --> 00:36:05,200 for murder in the first degree. 588 00:36:05,380 --> 00:36:07,770 Let's get justice. 589 00:36:07,940 --> 00:36:09,340 - It's been more than 30 years since 590 00:36:09,510 --> 00:36:11,210 a Bucks County mother was murdered. 591 00:36:11,380 --> 00:36:13,910 And now a former neighbor, arrested for her death, 592 00:36:14,080 --> 00:36:15,600 is finally on trial. 593 00:36:17,780 --> 00:36:19,260 - Wow, wow. 594 00:36:19,430 --> 00:36:21,650 I remember that day. 595 00:36:21,830 --> 00:36:24,530 - We needed this. This was our win. 596 00:36:24,700 --> 00:36:27,960 This was 30 some years at this point now. 597 00:36:28,140 --> 00:36:31,580 You know, 30 years. 598 00:36:33,660 --> 00:36:36,010 - Robert Atkins, that son of a bitch, 599 00:36:36,190 --> 00:36:38,060 wouldn't look me in the eyes. 600 00:36:38,230 --> 00:36:41,410 He sat there clutching a Bible. 601 00:36:41,590 --> 00:36:43,280 And I just had thoughts of taking 602 00:36:43,460 --> 00:36:47,370 that Bible out of his hand and beating his head with it. 603 00:36:48,980 --> 00:36:52,030 - Robert Atkins never confessed to the crime, 604 00:36:52,210 --> 00:36:55,770 and the arson was set to cover up the evidence. 605 00:36:55,950 --> 00:36:59,120 - In 1991, no one had the wherewithal 606 00:36:59,300 --> 00:37:03,260 to preserve DNA evidence, but we had communications 607 00:37:03,430 --> 00:37:06,440 between Robert Atkins and April Atkins, 608 00:37:06,610 --> 00:37:10,050 an eyewitness admitting that she saw her husband 609 00:37:10,220 --> 00:37:12,660 come home covered in blood. 610 00:37:12,830 --> 00:37:15,580 And the critical piece of evidence that came forward 611 00:37:15,750 --> 00:37:18,320 was when Robert Atkins' son testified. 612 00:37:18,490 --> 00:37:20,890 When confronted with the evidence, 613 00:37:21,060 --> 00:37:23,760 he admitted that his father all but confessed 614 00:37:23,930 --> 00:37:28,330 to having murdered a woman and then fleeing to the Poconos 615 00:37:28,500 --> 00:37:30,550 following her murder. 616 00:37:30,720 --> 00:37:33,990 - 56-year-old Robert Atkins, sentenced to life in prison 617 00:37:34,160 --> 00:37:38,210 today over a cold case from April of 1991. 618 00:37:38,380 --> 00:37:41,340 - The judge says it was Atkins who killed Joy, 619 00:37:41,520 --> 00:37:44,170 fueled with a hot temper in his bitter fight 620 00:37:44,340 --> 00:37:46,170 with her over marijuana. 621 00:37:46,350 --> 00:37:49,310 Prosecutors say he wanted revenge. 622 00:37:49,480 --> 00:37:52,180 - When that guilty verdict was delivered, 623 00:37:52,350 --> 00:37:54,010 we looked at one another, and we knew we did it. 624 00:37:54,180 --> 00:37:56,270 We finally got justice for Joy's family. 625 00:37:59,320 --> 00:38:02,490 - I walked in that shadow for 30 years, 626 00:38:02,670 --> 00:38:05,580 the shadow of doubt. 627 00:38:05,760 --> 00:38:10,070 After being treated as a criminal, 628 00:38:10,240 --> 00:38:12,460 as a murderer, 629 00:38:12,630 --> 00:38:16,070 the day that all that suspicion went away, 630 00:38:16,250 --> 00:38:18,330 I was so happy. 631 00:38:18,510 --> 00:38:22,510 I had a renewed trust in people. 632 00:38:22,690 --> 00:38:29,480 - We are thrilled with the outcome of today's verdict. 633 00:38:29,650 --> 00:38:32,390 We feel like justice has finally been served. 634 00:38:32,570 --> 00:38:34,870 We're sorry that it took 32 years to get here. 635 00:38:41,920 --> 00:38:45,540 - I was glad he was going to jail, 636 00:38:45,710 --> 00:38:50,540 and capital murder means without parole. 637 00:38:50,710 --> 00:38:53,060 I hope when he dies, 638 00:38:53,240 --> 00:38:56,200 they'll wash his lousy remains 639 00:38:56,370 --> 00:38:58,980 down a floor drain in Benner Prison. 640 00:39:01,510 --> 00:39:03,510 But I didn't feel justice. 641 00:39:06,600 --> 00:39:09,300 - Still, I can't sleep at night. 642 00:39:09,470 --> 00:39:13,780 The police, we were being gaslighted for years. 643 00:39:13,960 --> 00:39:17,570 This wasn't just gross incompetence. 644 00:39:17,740 --> 00:39:19,740 This was corruption. 645 00:39:19,920 --> 00:39:24,750 This was years of systemic cover-up. 646 00:39:24,920 --> 00:39:28,670 This is a group of detectives playing prosecutor, 647 00:39:28,840 --> 00:39:33,280 judge, and jury, and determining for themselves 648 00:39:33,450 --> 00:39:36,540 what justice looks like. 649 00:39:36,720 --> 00:39:40,460 - It was a hollow victory. 650 00:39:40,630 --> 00:39:44,030 I will never know why they thought 651 00:39:44,200 --> 00:39:50,600 it was so important to leave Robert Atkins untouchable. 652 00:39:50,770 --> 00:39:53,650 He got to live his life, 653 00:39:53,820 --> 00:39:58,480 where mine was shredded to pieces at the age of 16. 654 00:39:58,650 --> 00:40:00,780 Am I on camera? 655 00:40:00,960 --> 00:40:02,790 - OK, guys, have a good time. 656 00:40:02,960 --> 00:40:04,400 - Bye. 657 00:40:04,790 --> 00:40:09,920 Now all I can do is just be the very, very best person 658 00:40:10,100 --> 00:40:13,100 that I can be to honor her. 659 00:40:15,890 --> 00:40:19,370 - My mom never got to meet her grandchildren. 660 00:40:19,540 --> 00:40:22,200 She never got to meet her beautiful niece 661 00:40:22,370 --> 00:40:24,240 and her amazing nephew. 662 00:40:24,420 --> 00:40:26,070 - Well, this is my bedroom. 663 00:40:26,240 --> 00:40:27,900 There's my shelf. 664 00:40:28,070 --> 00:40:30,250 Say something, Mom. - Your fishes? 665 00:40:30,420 --> 00:40:31,770 - Yeah. 666 00:40:31,950 --> 00:40:34,120 My mom was my best friend. 667 00:40:34,300 --> 00:40:36,300 I would rather be with her 668 00:40:36,470 --> 00:40:38,430 than anybody else in the world. 669 00:40:38,610 --> 00:40:42,440 I'm trying to keep her memory alive. 670 00:40:42,610 --> 00:40:45,350 I feel like I owe her that. 671 00:40:45,530 --> 00:40:48,270 And I wouldn't have stopped for nothing. 672 00:40:53,050 --> 00:40:54,880 - Never stop. 673 00:40:55,060 --> 00:40:57,100 Always pursue the truth. 674 00:40:57,280 --> 00:40:58,450 Here she comes. 675 00:40:58,630 --> 00:40:59,840 - Hello. 676 00:41:01,370 --> 00:41:02,590 New hairdo. 677 00:41:02,760 --> 00:41:04,980 She's going California style now. 678 00:41:05,150 --> 00:41:06,110 All right. 679 00:41:06,280 --> 00:41:07,630 Talk to you later. 680 00:41:11,550 --> 00:41:13,160 - The challenge for law enforcement is 681 00:41:13,340 --> 00:41:16,640 to stay objective and stick to the cold, hard facts. 682 00:41:16,820 --> 00:41:18,650 But what if the facts lie? 683 00:41:18,820 --> 00:41:20,950 What if the clues are scrambled, 684 00:41:21,130 --> 00:41:23,520 and all you have left is gut instinct? 685 00:41:23,690 --> 00:41:26,090 The smart criminal fears the law. 686 00:41:26,260 --> 00:41:28,870 They should fear a family's intuition more. 687 00:41:29,050 --> 00:41:30,830 I'm Harlan Coben. 688 00:41:31,010 --> 00:41:32,180 Good night.