All language subtitles for Buried In The Backyard - 3x04_track3_eng

Narrator: On a pristine day
in a michigan town,

a woman and her field hand,

attend to some work
in her sprawling backyard.

Suddenly, the afternoon chores
take a horrific turn.

He dug out a scoop of dirt.

And as he described it,

"a skull was looking at me."

mark: Teeth were still intact,

and one leg bone was there.

Narrator: The grisly discovery

leaves this close-knit
community

shaken to its core.

Lynn: I went to my mail,

and there was a--
one of the flyers

for missing children.

I freaked out,
I just freaked out.

Narrator:
Could a playful pastime

be the perfect hunting ground?

John: After a carnival
had been in a town,

one or two kids
would disappear.

Narrator: Has a killer
penetrated the safety

of this midwestern town?

John: The van drove south
out of harrison

with bumper stickers,
that said,

"don't let your child
go with strangers."

narrator: Or is evil lurking
much closer to home?

Stacy: We may think
we know our neighbors,

but do we really know
who lives next door to us?

[♪♪]

narrator:
Even in the dead of winter,

the folks in harrison, michigan

know how lucky they are
to call this quintessential

midwestern town home.

Harrison is a small
quiet community.

It's a tight-knit community.

Almost everyone is, uh,
familiar with their neighbors,

um, we have
hardworking folks, uh,

retired folks,

and their-- there are a lot
of family in harrison.

Our backyards can be
a single city lot,

or they can be hundreds
of acres of backyard.

Narrator:
And in the warmer months,

people pour
into their backyards,

and that's just where
vicky hudson finds herself

on a late summer day in 1997,

tending to some yard work.

Stacy:
They were disassembling a--

a structure barn,

and their farmhand
was removing that structure

and digging the ground,

uh, with a piece of equipment.

And he dug out a scoop of dirt.

And as he described it,

"a skull was looking at me."

jeffery: He ran to get a hold
of vicky.

Vicky got a hold
of the dispatch.

Narrator: Officers are quick
to arrive at vicky's backyard,

curious as to what exactly
has been unearthed.

As soon as I got out there,
and I walked down

to where the scene was,

I pick up the skull,

and I get chills
going up my back

because right then and there,

I knew it was a human skull.

Narrator: The stunned officer
secured the scene,

and call in a forensic team

to begin
a painstaking excavation.

Mark: Crime scene examiners
came in, and then we, uh,

proceeded to, uh,
work through the property.

Digging shovel-loads
of dirt out of the ground,

sifting them.

Jeffery: They were looking for
any type of skeletal remains.

Narrator: What they discover
is a grisly burial site.

Mark: The leg bone
was laying out there,

you could tell
that was a femur bone.

John: We also found
a pair of socks

that were bound together
by rope.

It was obvious that the death
was very violent.

Mark: Personally, you know,
I've been in law enforcement

for a lot of years,

that was very horrific to find.

Narrator: Nearby, residents
watch from a distance,

shaken by what's unfolding.

Mike: My dad had told me
that they had found some bones.

Almost in my dad's backyard,

I could see the police,

they were sifting dirt,

collecting bones.

It was quite a horrific scene
to actually see.

Stacy: The news spread rapidly.

It's not every day
that we find skeletal remains

buried in the backyard
in our small community.

Narrator:
Could this shallow grave

solve a decade-long mystery?

Stacy: We may think
we know our neighbors,

but in all reality,
do we really know

who lives next door to us?

Narrator: There's an almost
imperceptible change

in the michigan breeze,

signaling the start of fall,

and the end of summer break

for the local kids.

In September of 1997,
the harrison community schools

had just, uh, resume session
after the summer break.

Lynn: Kandy and randy laufer
lived about five miles

out of town with their parents,
bob and lois.

Kandy was randy's older sister.

Mike: Randy was kind of
a shyer kid a little bit,

he was smaller.

He was kind of quiet,
unless he knew you.

A little more timid
than most kids, I would say.

Lynn: They helped each other,

kandy was very protective
of randy.

I would say they were closer

than a lot of children
that age.

Narrator: When the final bell
rings later that day,

17-year-old kandy is swept up
in the wave of other kids

heading home.

Off in the distance,

she spots
her 15-year-old brother.

Kandy was getting out
of the bus,

and she saw randy
walking toward

the edge of the schoolyard.

Mark: She saw him walk out
through the parking lot.

Lynn: Randy had told
his parents

that he was going to spend
the night with a friend,

so it wasn't odd
that he didn't

get on the bus that day.

And so, that night,
there was no concerns at all.

Narrator: But the next day,
randy's parents get a call.

Lynn: The school contacted
bob and lois,

and they thought
he was at school,

but the school told them

that randy did not
show up at all.

So then they got a hold
of the boy

he was supposed to stay with,

and he hadn't spent
the night there.

Sometimes randy used to go off
to get a little attention.

I thought he just maybe
had gotten mad at something,

and just decided
to strike out on his own.

Stacy: And it wasn't until
after randy was not reported

in any friend's homes
or any family member's homes,

um, no one had seen randy,

um, and then, the family
became, uh, concerned

that randy was gone missing.

Narrator: With fear creeping
into their hearts and home,

randy's parents
called the police.

Mark: We sent out an officer
to their location,

took initial report, got the--

randy's full
physical description,

he was five-three,

a hundred, a hundred
and five pounds,

if that, uh, soaking wet.

Blonde hair, real skinny,

he was last seen
wearing shorts,

uh, with a red patch on them.

Narrator: Randy's parents
sheepishly explain

there may be
a very simple explanation

for why their son
hasn't come home.

Jeffery: Randy got, uh,
mad at his father, uh,

because his father refused
to take him

to hunter safety class.

Mike: Maybe he was being
bullheaded,

and maybe he did wander off.

Maybe he's out in the woods,

gonna camp out for a week

or do whatever,
just to get away.

Narrator:
But after a couple of days,

randy's parents know their son
won't be okay alone.

Lynn: Bob and lois,
and kandy really thought

something had happened to him.

The worry was starting
to set in big time.

John: At that point,
we interviewed several

of his friends,
people that he was known

to, uh-- to hang with,

and that friend who randy
was going to be spending

the night with,
but randy never showed up,

and unfortunately,
we learned nothing at all.

Now, too much time had passed

without any information,

we became really concerned.

Narrator: Harrison investigators
redouble their efforts,

canvassing the community,

and it isn't long
before a neighbor comes forward

with a disturbing story.

John: The husband and wife
who knew randy saw him, uh,

in the downtown of harrison.

Randy was in a van,

and they specifically saw randy

reaching out of the van,

waving at them,

and the van drove south
out of harrison

from that location.

And that was the last
anyone ever saw of randy.

John: We learned randy had been
seen with an individual

from our community.

Mark: Well, it drew a--
a fear in our minds

that we have a devil
living in our county.

Lynn: That took us
into a deep dark hell.

Narrator:
Everyone in the small town

of harrison, michigan
is eager to find missing teen,

randy laufer.

And just a couple of days
into the investigation,

detectives have
their first lead.

John: There was at one sighting,

there was a husband and wife
who knew randy,

saw him going in a van
of some type,

and there was an adult male
driving the van.

Stacy: We became fearful
as this wasn't a regular event

in our community.

We felt that it was possible

that randy was abducted
by an outsider.

John: There are a lot of vans,

especially during
that period of time.

And so, we're looking,
trying to find that van,

but there wasn't enough
specific descriptive information

leading to the van
that the investigators

were able to pursue.

Stacy: The sheriff's department
began putting out flyers,

talking to news media,
asking for help,

um, asking if anybody
had seen randy.

John: Randy's, uh, picture
was also placed

on milk cartons.

Uh, all of them,
which in those days,

uh, displayed pictures
of missing, uh, children.

Randy's mother had a number
of posters printed up,

and those were posted
all over the harrison area

that sent out
the law enforcement agencies

throughout the state.

Lynn: I can remember the day,

uh, that I went to my mail.

And there was, uh, one of the
flyers for missing children

that was randy.

I freaked out.

I just freaked out.

Narrator: Hoping for a new lead,

investigators circle back
to the laufer family

to learn more
about the missing teen.

Ready laufer
is a homegrown harrison kid,

he and his big sister, kandy,

have always been a tight pair.

Lynn: I watched both
randy and kandy grow up.

And they lived out of town,

so they didn't have
a biggest circle of friends.

Mike: He was kind of quiet,
unless he knew you, uh,

a little more timid
than most kids, I would say.

He was just getting bullied
by some kids,

and I stuck out for him.

And we got along good
after that.

Randy and another one
of my friends,

rodney mcrae,
become pretty good friends.

We spent most of our time
on rodney's farm,

where they had goats.

And we'd like going out
in the woods,

and a lot of fishing.

We were kids,
we could pretty much do

what we wanted to then.

Narrator: On most days,
a small town kid

in rural michigan
has to make his own fun,

except when the carnival
comes to town.

John: We learned randy had--
he had a love for clowns,

that he love circuses,

uh, fairs, for instance, the--

the clare county fair
that came to town every summer.

His mom had a theory
that perhaps he had run away

to join the circus.

Lynn: Randy was just totally
fascinated by games,

and the smells,
and the sound of it.

Randy felt that the carnival
was a good opportunity

for going places,

and meeting different people.

I could see randy saying,

"oh, yeah,
that sounds like fun."

narrator: It's certainly
a far-fetched theory,

but it's one police believe
is worth pursuing.

John: Quite often, after
a carnival had been in a town,

one or two kids would disappear.

And they were traveling
with that carnival.

Jeffery:
There was a carnival in town

at the clare county
fairgrounds

in the same timeframe

about the time
randy disappeared.

John: We, uh, checked with
the people who had been in town

with the clare county fair.

Jeffery: We wanted to know
if there was any information,

you know,
if they've seen this kid

and, where we were headed about
the time randy went missing.

So after we talked
to the people

at the clare county
fairgrounds,

there was no indication
that-- that we could find,

that he have gone
with the-- the carnival people,

and ran away.

That all came to a dead end.

There was no validity
to that idea.

Lynn: We thought if he did
something like that,

maybe he'll walk
in that back door.

But hope really took
a nosedive after that.

[birds chirping]

narrator:
Despite tireless efforts,

weeks go by
without any word on randy.

And this entire community
is wrapped

in a blanket of fear.

John: The longer
a child is gone,

the less chance
there is of,

uh, a recovery
of a live child.

Lynn: It was like
holding your breath,

and just waiting for something,
you know, to happen,

and you knew
it was gonna happen,

you knew
it wasn't gonna be good,

but you didn't want
to admit it to yourself.

Narrator:
Fall gives way to winter,

and a distinct chill hangs
in the harrison air.

Now, three months into
the search for randy laufer,

an eyewitness comes forward

with some intriguing
new information.

John: We learned
randy had been seen

with an individual
named marvin farand.

Mark: This person saw randy
with marvin, uh, farand

at his residence
numerous times.

Narrator: Some local kids
playing football

on marvin's lawn claim
they saw randy

through an open door,
sitting inside.

John: There were sighting
by local kids,

it was on the day

he disappeared,
and he was never seen again.

Lynn:
Marvin was randy's friend.

Marvin was a little bit older
than randy,

maybe three, four years.

John: We had suspicions

about the friendship between
marvin farand and randy.

When a--
a young child disappears,

unfortunately,
one of the first things

that comes to mind
is that child has been taken,

or lured into a situation.

We were inserting
the possibility

that randy might be
held hostage.

We thought he could be
in tremendous danger.

We knew we had to locate randy
as quickly as possible.

Narrator: Nearly three months
after the disappearance

of 15-year-old randy laufer

from the tiny town
of harrison, michigan,

authorities in clare county
have eyewitnesses

who claimed to have seen randy
with an older friend.

Mark: Through our investigation
with the sheriff's department

learned that randy was a friend
of an individual

by name of marvin farand,

who lived in harrison.

Lynn: We would see him
at barbecues,

and we'd see him at bonfires,
and stuff like that.

He was somebody I knew on site,

and we spoke to and that,

but I didn't really know
anything else about him.

Narrator: After some digging,

investigators talked
to a store owner who claims

marvin would laugh
every time he saw

randy's missing person poster
in his shop.

Mark: We had interviewed
marvin farand.

His reaction, just like
stone cold personality,

uh, not agitated, not upset.

He denied having any contact
with randy laufer.

Narrator:
Investigators tell marvin

they have eyewitnesses
who claim otherwise,

and suggest a polygraph test
could clear things up.

Jeffery: During the polygraph,
we asked him,

"what's the story leading up

and afterward
that randy disappeared?"

"do you know
where randy laufer is?"

"do you know
any physical harm came to him

or were you part
of this physical harm?"

narrator: Marvin's answers
remain consistent,

while he continues to maintain
he knows nothing

about the disappearance
of randy laufer.

Jeffery:
Polygrapher said that...

Marvin passed the polygraph.

Mark: Marvin, he was not able
to give any information

on randy.

Jeffery: The frustration
is just, um, unbearable.

And especially,
uh, a case where--

when there is a youth.

Uh, you're beating your head
against the wall.

You get to the point
that there's no hope.

Narrator:
While much of town is filling

with christmas cheer,

the laufer family struggles
to cope without randy.

Lynn: Randy loved christmas,

but christmas that year,
that was different.

Everybody just kind of
closed down,

and pulled in
a little tighter,

and just,
"well, he'll come back."

even if we had doubts,
none of us voiced them

because it would've
made it final,

and we weren't willing
to do that.

[♪♪]

narrator: 1987 ends painfully

with no new leads
in randy's case.

And then,
like a bolt from the blue,

authorities receive a call
from 1,500 miles away.

John: An investigator in florida
was inquiring

as to the whereabouts,
or any information

with an individual
named john rodney mcrae.

Mr. Mcrae, uh,
as the investigator related,

was a suspect in at least
three missing individuals,

uh, ranging in the age,
I believe,

from about 12 to 19

in the florida area.

They had word
that he was living

in the harrison area,

and were looking
for any information

that the authorities
in harrison could provide.

It came as a shock.

We had no idea
who john mcrae was,

uh, his background,

or, uh, that he was living
in their community.

Narrator: What the florida
investigator relays next

is bone chilling.

John: In the 1950s, in michigan,

john mcrae
as a 15-year-old boy,

was convicted
of first degree murder.

A young child was murdered

and buried in a shallow grave,

and a large chunk of concrete

had been pulled over
the top of this body.

Mark: The boy
had been mutilated.

John: John mcrae served...

20 some years,

and was granted a parole.

Narrator: When mcrae is released
from prison in 1977,

the 43-year-old
convicted killer

eventually settles in florida.

Around this time,
kids start to disappear.

Three boys
all with ties to mcrae.

Mark:
There were some similarities

between randy laufer
and the boys

who were missing in florida.

They were small in stature,

they sought out guidance
from other individuals.

When we did some research
on mcrae.

The sheriff's department
found out,

that in fact, he did live
in clare county on monroe road,

which is about a mile

as the crow flies
where randy lived.

We knew pretty much
everybody and anybody

that lived in clare county.

But john mcrae
kept a low profile.

John: All of a sudden now
we have someone that--

that can become the focus
of our investigation.

Mark: It drew up a--
a fear in our minds

that we have a devil
living in our county.

Lynn: That took us into
a whole deep, dark hell.

[♪♪]

narrator: Authorities in the
small michigan town of harrison

are stunned to learn
there's a convicted killer

living among them.

John: We learned john mcrae
and his wife barbara

and their son martin,

uh, they were living out
on a farm.

They're renting a piece
of the property

in the area south of harrison.

Mark: And he raised the goats
inside his trailer,

and they're all over
the property.

John: We learned his son martin
and randy laufer

went to school together,
and became friends.

As a result, randy laufer,

uh, spent a great deal of time
apparently

at the mcrae household,

uh, including overnights
and weekends.

John: John mcrae and his wife
would dress as clowns,

and entertain
the 4-h kids as clowns.

We later learned
that john mcrae

would pick up randy laufer

and take him
to the 4-h meetings.

Narrator:
In this tight-knit town,

no one can fathom
one of their own

might be to blame
for randy's disappearance,

especially his parents.

Lynn: I don't think
bob and lois thought

anything negative
about john mcrae.

I don't think it's something

that would've entered
their mind.

Stacy: We did not know
john mcrae's history,

john mcrae's past.

We knew nothing
other than where he resided.

John: Mcrae was very good
at staying under the radar.

But at that point, uh,

investigators are starting
to connect the dots.

Narrator:
Eager to question mcrae

about randy's disappearance,

authorities dash
to the mcrae's farm.

John: John and barbara,
and martin mcrae

had packed up and were gone.

To me, as a--
a criminal investigator,

he's on the run.

It's as simple as that.

He's running from something.

Mark: There was a complete
search of that property.

The trailers, the barn,

uh, all the surrounding areas.

We had, uh, probes that
we probed the ground with,

looking for randy
or anything suspicious.

Lynn:
I couldn't believe that randy

might be on that property.

The whole family
just kind of shattered.

It was just--
it was horrible.

John: At one point,
they did bring in

cadaver search dogs.

Covered the entire property,

uh, with no indicators at all
of a body being there.

Narrator:
But investigators do make

an unsettling discovery.

Mark:
Authorities were able to locate

actual missing person fliers

of the boys
who were missing out

in the state of florida,

where john mcrae
was a suspect in.

Jeffery: In our minds,
we had no doubt

mcrae did something to randy.

And we were convinced that
something bad had happened.

Narrator: Investigators race
to track down mcrae.

They found out
that he had moved to arizona.

Mark: We contacted
the arizona authorities,

and they offered to do
a surveillance on him.

John: We learned the van
that john mcrae was driving,

uh, in arizona

was the same vehicle
that he had in michigan,

which goes back to the couple
in harrison

who saw randy,

uh, waving to them from a van,

being driven by an adult.

Um, john mcrae's van,

there were a number
of bumper stickers on the back.

One was, "have you hugged
your kid today?"

and one that was
even more startling was,

"don't let your child go
with strangers."

narrator: Michigan investigators
are on the next flight

to mesa, arizona,

determined
not to let this predator

slip through the cracks again.

And when they track him down,

mcrae is surprisingly cool
and cooperative.

John: Mcrae was open,
willing to talk.

He even seemed to enjoy talking
to the investigators.

John mcrae
was the type of individual

who thought he was smarter
than any investigator

that was out there.

He said something about,

"I was convicted once
because they found the body.

Do you think
I'd ever let that happen again?"

john: "you don't have a body,

you don't have me."

other words,

"if you don't have a body,
you don't have a case."

mark: We believed that
he learned from being caught

on the first murder
back in the 50s

how to do it right
and get away with it

without leaving
any evidence behind.

John: And it was
extremely frustrating

for the investigators
interviewing john mcrae.

At that point, they had no idea
where randy was.

But they know in their hearts

they're sitting across
from the individual

who is responsible.

Narrator: Whatever mcrae knows,
he's not giving it up.

But authorities
aren't giving up either.

The investigators were able
to secure a search warrant

for john mcrae's van.

Mark: During the search
of his vehicle,

authorities sprayed his van
with luminol.

And at that point,

they found some dna
in his van.

John: They unearthed
a pair of socks

bound together by rope.

I get chills going up my back
about this case.

I think john mcrae enjoyed
every minute of it.

Narrator: When investigators
find blood in the van

of convicted killer john mcrae,

they fear it could belong
to 15-year-old randy laufer.

[camera clicks]

they seized a rag

that appeared to have
old blood on it.

They also seized
a old dirty blanket.

Narrator: Investigators rush
the samples to the crime lab,

hoping this could be
the evidence

they need to arrest john mcrae.

[♪♪]

mark: They did not find
any evidence

of randy laufer
in the van.

They did not find
any of his, uh, dna,

uh, anything to do
with randy laufer.

They found nothing.

John: We were not able
to be success and identify

the blood in the van.

Jeffery: We could link randy
and mcrae together,

but we can't link him
for the murder.

Mark: It's very frustrating
as an investigator

to get so close
to an individual,

you know you had
the right individual,

you just don't have
enough information

to arrest that individual.

Narrator:
Michigan investigators know,

if they don't put
mcrae behind bars,

another life
could ultimately be lost.

Mark: If you have a body,
you have evidence,

so we needed randy laufer's body
in order to proceed.

John: They ran cadaver dogs
through the mcrae's property

a couple of more times.

[dogs barking]

john: There were ongoing
interviews, uh,

searching for people
who knew anything

about a connection between
randy laufer and john mcrae.

But there were just no leads
to follow.

The investigation
had just kind of stalled out.

[♪♪]

lynn: It was hard
on the entire family,

especially kandy.

And I think the saddest part

was that everybody
kind of closed up,

and didn't share a lot.

It was just like silence,

and we wouldn't have
to bring it to the top,

and it wouldn't hurt
quite so bad.

[♪♪]

narrator:
Ten painfully long years

after sweet randy laufer

vanished from the safety
of clare county,

investigators have just
unearthed a human skeleton

in a local backyard
they know well.

Mark: The farmhand
unearthed a skull.

We had probably
60% of the bones there

of a human body.

And it was on the property

that had belonged
to john mcrae.

Vicky hudson is a neighbor

that actually bought
that property

where john mcrae
was living.

John: The remains were found
almost immediately adjacent

to the mcrae house trailer.

Narrator:
Investigators are baffled.

They did an exhausted search
of this yard many years ago.

Mark: It turned out,
that goat urine

will actually throw off
the scent of a human body,

and mcrae used to having a goat
on that property.

Then we, uh, proceeded
to, uh, work the scene.

It was a crime lab,

pulling bones
out of the sifter,

and putting them
in, uh, a special pile.

The skull was there, uh,
teeth were still intact.

The leg bones
was laying right there.

And it was a surreal feeling.

John: But they also unearthed
a pair of socks

that were bound together
by rope.

And in those socks
were the foot bones,

indicating that the feet
were tied together.

Mark: We recovered
numerous clothing items.

We've recovered
the pair of shorts with the--

the red patch on them.

I get chills going up my back
about this case

because I just knew for sure
it was randy.

Narrator: Hoping for a positive
identification,

the remains and the evidence
are transported

to the medical examiner's
office.

Mark: After comparing teeth
we've obtained

with the dental records
from the family,

and by the clothing that we had
recovered at the scene,

it was definitely being
what randy had on last.

The crime lab
positively determined

that was randy laufer.

Stacy: The autopsy revealed
that randy was, uh,

stabbed multiple times.

Mark: Cause of death
was, uh, mutilation,

the cutting of the body.

Lynn: When they found randy,

there was just kind
of numbness.

It was just nobody knew
what to say.

But we just kind of sat there.

It's just heartbreaking.

Stacy: It was horrifying
to discover

that randy was abducted,
murdered,

and buried
by one of our local residents.

Why didn't we see the signs,

uh, that there was a--

a prowler residing
in our own backyard.

Narrator: Investigators
can't afford any mistakes,

and need an air-tight case
before they arrest mcrae

for the murder of randy laufer.

And as they collect evidence,

they're hit with a twist
they never saw coming.

Mcrae may not have acted alone.

A boyhood friend
of john mcrae's son, martin,

related to us an event,

uh, that struck him, uh,

after he learned
that randy had been buried

on that property.

Mike: Back then, I spend a lot
of time at marty mcrae's home,

because I live
around the corner,

and me and marty
were good friends.

I remembered going up there
to his house one day,

and him and his dad argued
because marty was upset

that he had to dig a hole
for his dad,

paid no mind to it.

In hindsight seeing
what has happened,

marty and his dad,

they were digging a hole.

For randy.

Mark: At that point in time,

we knew that martin
had something to do with, uh--

with killing
and burying randy laufer.

Narrator: On the verge
of arresting john mcrae

for the murder
of randy laufer,

investigators now suspect
his son

may have played a hand
in his friend's death.

The friend of john mcrae's son,
martin mcrae,

said martin told them
that he'd helped his dad

dig the hole
randy laufer was put into.

We felt that martin mcrae
was involved with the murder.

John: We felt we had enough
evidence at that point in time

to arrest john mcrae,
and to charge martin mcrae

as an accessory
after the fact.

Narrator: After a decade,

michigan authorities
fly to arizona

to finally arrest
the now 63-year-old john mcrae

and his 23-year-old son,
martin.

Mark: We brought them
both back to the, uh,

mesa police department,

and interviewed
both individuals.

John mcrae was read
his miranda rights,

and he didn't request
an attorney,

he just wouldn't give up
any information at all.

Same thing with martin mcrae,
he would not give up his dad,

or do anything towards, uh,

saying that he dug the hole
for randy.

Narrator: Both father and son
are extradited to michigan

to face charges for the murder
of randy laufer.

Lynn:
When I heard that both john

and his son had been arrested,

we were just flabbergasted,

just-- just could not believe

that this really happened.

We all had the same anger.

Why was he turned loose
on a population after years

and years ago,
he killed a boy?

Narrator: As prosecutors
prepare for trial,

they receive
an unexpected blow.

The judge deemed
that for the murder in '87,

martin mcrae would have
only been a juvenile,

so you couldn't charge him
as an adult,

the judge threw that case out,

and martin was released
from jail.

We were disgusted about it,

but it's the law.

Narrator: John mcrae's trial
is now the last chance

to see justice served.

And in may of 2005,
he faces a judge and jury

for the murder
of randy laufer.

Mike: When the trial come about,

that time, it was surreal,
you know?

I thought we would finally
have the answer, though,

for the laufer family.

The whole family
was there.

It was, uh, heartbreaking
for his parents, his sister,

because they had to relive
all their pain again.

Narrator: Prosecutors lay out
the chilling details

of the murder of randy laufer.

Mark: Our last, uh,
known sighting of randy

was at the school,
after school,

where his sister see him
walking through uh,

the parking lot.

After that, we believe
that he was picked up

by john mcrae,

who was sitting down
the road in his van.

We don't know how long,

many days he spent
with john mcrae,

or how long he kept randy
from his family.

Eventually,
randy was killed by john mcrae.

Randy's homicide consisted
of being stabbed numerous times.

John: Randy laufer incurred
some horrific mutilation,

and I think that john mcrae
enjoyed every minute of it.

Mark: I think john mcrae
just killed him,

just cut him up in pieces,
and put him in that pit

right there in the backyard.

[♪♪]

mark: During the trial,
john mcrae just sat motionless,

didn't say a word,
even when the forensic examiner

showed the jury how randy
was murdered,

how the body
was cut up in pieces,

just sat there
like he didn't care.

Narrator:
After a three-day trial,

and just three hours
of deliberation,

the jury returns
with a verdict.

Judge: 001 verdict 1,

we the jury
find the defendant guilty

of first degree
premeditated murder.

Mike:
When they found him guilty,

first thing crossed my mind
was it was finding

just a little bit of justice
for randy.

Lynn: We just kind of hugged
and cried,

and it could never
get randy back,

but at least no one else
could be hurt by mcrae.

[♪♪]

he was in prison
for about three weeks,

and died
of natural causes.

Lynn: When mcrae died,
we felt it was totally done.

I wish he could've suffered
longer in prison, to be honest,

but I was just glad
because it was over.

We did not have to deal
with his part

of any of this anymore.

Narrator: Now, randy's family
can focus on him,

and the memories
they'll always hold dear.

Mike: Randy was a friend,
a good spirited person,

a happy person.

He was-- he was one
of the good people.

Lynn:
For everybody in the family,

christmas
was the main holiday.

One of the last pictures
I have of randy's at christmas,

and he was just special.

Randy had a lot of smiles,
and a lot of love to give.

And I think if he would have
had a chance,

he would have been
a great man.

[♪♪]

woman: For more information
about buried in the backyard,

go to oxygen.Com.