08x27 - True Lies

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: the m*rder of a beautiful young woman went

Unsolved for years -- a m*rder with forensic evidence and

Plenty of suspects.

But sometimes, that's not enough.

It took the victim's -year-old child, notations in a diary, and

Forensic psychology to determine which forensic evidence was

Important and which to ignore.

-Year-old kathleen lipscomb was trying to find her way --

Raising two young children while at the same time working as a

Nurse in san antonio, texas.

[ Mariachi music plays ] she was a very caring person.

She loved her family.

She stayed in constant contact with us.

Narrator: kathleen had been married for eight years to

Bill lipscomb, a sergeant in the united states air force, but

They had recently separated.

Their arrangement was for bill to take care of their children

On weekends.

But one sunday night, kathleen didn't arrive to pick them up as

Planned.

Bill drove the children to kathleen's apartment, but she

Wasn't there, and her car was missing, so they left notes on

Her door.

The next morning, there was still no sign of her.

One of her co-workers called me and told me that they were

Worried, that she hadn't showed up for work.

My stomach got knotted up for a minute, and then I thought,

"No, you know, bill had the kids.

Kathleen probably went out with some girlfriends or something.

She'll be in.

She's just late today."

Narrator: later that same day, a man spotted a nude body

Along a deserted road outside of town.

It was kathleen lipscomb.

It was clear she had been m*rder*d elsewhere.

Without a doubt, she had been transported from point "a" to

This point, "b," being where she was left.

Narrator: the fact that kathleen's clothing had been

Rolled, not folded, told investigators something

Important.

That's definitely military.

Just without a doubt, that's the only people that I have ever

Seen roll their clothes in that fashion is a military-type

Person.

Narrator: unfortunately, there were no discernable tire

Or footwear impressions near the body.

Kathleen's estranged husband, bill, was immediately called in

For questioning.

I did check him to see if there were any wounds on his

Body -- possibly any defensive wounds -- to see if there was

Any kind of scrapes, bruisings, anything under his fingernails

That would indicate where he had scratched anybody, and could

Find none.

Narrator: the children have told police that their father

Was with them the entire weekend, confirming his alibi.

At the autopsy, the medical examiner determined the cause of

Death was strangulation.

It appeared kathleen had sexual relations hours before her

Death.

Friends told police that kathleen had been dating a

Married doctor in town, david pearl.

Kathleen and dr. Pearl worked together.

Through their close association, kathleen fell in love with him,

And she was thoroughly confident that he loved her, too.

He promised to get a divorce and marry her.

We found out that dr. Pearl had had many relationships and

Told his girlfriends that he was, in fact, separated from his

Wife when he wasn't, and, you know, just the jealous ex-wife

Kind of thing -- that was one concern of mine.

Narrator: dr. Pearl admitted he was with kathleen during the

Weekend but insisted he had nothing to do with her m*rder,

And investigators had another suspect.

Vincent robideau, a nurse, worked with kathleen at the

Hospital and lived in the same apartment complex.

He hadn't shown up for work, either.

He had left town, he didn't even go back to pick up his

Paycheck, nor did he even request it be sent to him.

Narrator: with so many suspects, investigators hardly

Knew where to start.

Narrator: one week after kathleen lipscomb's m*rder, her

Car was found in a restaurant parking lot not far from her

Apartment.

Investigators found no foreign fingerprints on or in the car.

To determine the time of kathleen's death, medical

Examiner dr. Robert bux had two ways to tell.

She had eaten chinese food.

It was basically undigested, which indicates that she had

Eaten in a short period of time prior to her death.

Narrator: and the marks on kathleen's legs were identified

As ant bites and helped establish a time frame.

Most of the ant activity occurs during daylight hours, so

That probably occurred beginning around dawn on that morning.

Narrator: these two indicators meant kathleen had

Probably been k*lled around dinnertime on sunday night and

Dumped in the field before dawn.

Forensic investigators found four strands of red human hair

On kathleen's clothing.

Under a stereomicroscope, scientists noticed the hairs had

No root.

At the root end, you should see the root, which is a

Bulb-shaped structure, depending on what the stage of the hair

Growth is.

Narrator: when magnified times, you can see evidence that

The hair was dyed.

Many times you will see an actual demarcation line between

The original color of the hair at the root end to the dyed

Color of the end towards the tip end of the hair.

Narrator: all four hairs showed the same dye pattern.

When compared, the hairs were not similar to kathleen's

Estranged husband, bill, or her boyfriend, dr. David pearl.

At the time, genetic testing was still years away.

The hair was minus its roots.

Back in -- it is then the late 's -- the forensic

Technology was not as advanced as it is today in , so

Beyond that point, that's as far as we could go.

Narrator: about the only bright spot in the investigation

Was when investigators located vincent robideau, kathleen's

Co-worker and neighbor who disappeared the same weekend she

Was m*rder*d.

He had gone back to galveston, where he was from,

And got a job there as a nurse with a local hospital because he

Had a fight with his boyfriend, and therefore, he just didn't

Want anything to do with san antonio again.

Narrator: robideau was no longer a suspect.

We had hit a point where we didn't feel like we were going

To be able to solve it without some big break, and we just did

Not feel that that break would ever come.

Narrator: then investigators got another tip -- kathleen's

Neighbor said she saw a suspicious person leaving

Kathleen's apartment on the same day her body had been found.

The neighbor actually just saw this redheaded lady walk up

To the door, and then a few minutes later, walk away from

The door.

Narrator: was this mysterious woman kathleen's k*ller?

Narrator: for two long years, investigators searched for

Kathleen lipscomb's k*ller.

Kathleen's family always suspected that her estranged

Husband, bill, was somehow involved.

Just seven months before the m*rder, bill had increased

Kathleen's life insurance to $,.

The family turned to a private investigator, tom bevans, for

Help.

Bevans examined all of the personal items from kathleen's

Apartment.

In her diary, bevans found two items of interest.

The first was an unusual reference.

It said, "baseball tournament.

Shannon gilbert there."

When I first came across the name shannon gilbert, I didn't

Know what to make of it.

It was obviously a name I had never seen or I never heard of,

And so my question was, why did kathleen write it down?

Obviously it meant something to her.

Narrator: a background check revealed that gilbert was in the

Air force with kathleen's husband, bill, and there were

Rumors the two were having a sexual affair.

Bevans went to visit shannon gilbert.

She said, "is this about bill lipscomb?"

We said, "yes, ma'am, it is."

She says, "I will need an attorney," and at that point, I

Knew I had something.

Narrator: bevans found another interesting entry in

Kathleen's diary.

It said, "numerous calls and nights out, passing information

About w.a.p.s. Testing.

Bill has all questions for the test."

W.a.p.s. Stands for weighted airman promotion test, which all

Military personnel must pass in order to gain promotion.

Kathleen's entry suggested that her estranged husband, bill, had

Cheated.

Bill lipscomb had been promoted faster than any other master

Sergeant in air force history.

This entry possibly explained why.

Since these cheating allegations involved the air force,

Dr. Charles mcdowell joined the investigation as part of the

United states air force office of special investigations.

If you have a related peripheral crime -- which in its

Own respect, I guess, was serious enough but certainly

Doesn't compare to a m*rder case -- that gives you a venue

Of access that makes it easier to get closer to your subject.

Narrator: while reviewing the crime-scene photos, dr. Mcdowell

Made an important discovery.

The positioning of the body and the context of how it was

Found suggested to me that the scene had been staged in order

To convey an impression that this was a r*pe/m*rder, and this

Is where the victim wound up, and it didn't have a ring of

Authenticity to it.

Within , minutes of reviewing the evidence, he told

Us that bill did it.

Bill was actually the m*rder*r, where we had all, at that point,

Thought he just paid someone to do it.

Narrator: furthermore, mcdowell believed kathleen's

Crossed legs revealed the body had been stored in a small

Cramped space after death when rigor mortis set in.

Mcdowell also suspected that someone other than the k*ller

Had dumped the body.

That's because K*llers who know their victims tend to cover the

Body or conceal the victim's face, which wasn't done in this

Case.

That became extremely important because if you have

Multiple players in a crime, you have better opportunities for

Identifying -- first of all, for identifying who they are, and

Then for playing one off against the other.

Narrator: and kathleen's daughter, now years old,

Revealed another piece of new information.

She said to me, "grandma, who do you think k*lled my mother,"

Or "my mama?" And I said, "I don't know.

Who do you think k*lled your mama?"

And she told me, "my daddy did because he wasn't where he said

He was that night."

Hey, tony, what's up, buddy?

Narrator: the children now revealed they were with their

Father's best friend tony burello, who had taken them

Out for dinner on the night their mother was k*lled.

You guys have a good time.

Narrator: and later that same night, the children said they

Woke up and discovered their father was not home and his car

Was gone.

I remember asking tom bevans one day, "what do they want, a

Picture with his hands around her neck?"

To me, we had so much evidence that was pointing to him, and we

Kept getting told, "no, it's not enough.

It's not enough."

I was, like, "you know, there wasn't anybody there to take a

Picture for you."

Narrator: bevans then requested forensic testing of

The biological evidence collected during kathleen's

Autopsy to determine the identity of the person kathleen

Had been with before her death.

Inexplicably, in the two years since the m*rder, the sample had

Been mislabeled, then mishandled.

Forensic testing was no longer possible.

Prosecutors needed more than just circumstantial evidence to

Corroborate the childrens' story.

Narrator: kathleen lipscomb's family hired a private

Investigator to help solve her m*rder.

An entry in kathleen's diary suggested that her estranged

Husband, bill, had cheated on his military promotion tests,

And kathleen knew it.

In addition, the divorce proceedings between bill and

Kathleen had been bitter.

Bill wanted custody of the children, and kathleen wasn't

About to let that happen.

Was it possible that kathleen had been using that information

As blackmail in her custody battle?

She knew it, and he knew that it would bust him, so that's the

Button she used.

I mean, she pushed it, and he told her, "you can't do this

Because if you do, you're going to end up on a cold slab."

Narrator: at the crime scene, kathleen's clothing was neatly

Rolled, suggesting someone with military training dumped the

Body.

The only other military person around bill lipscomb's home that

Weekend was tony burello.

Months after the crime, burello had been dishonorably discharged

From the air force.

When questioned, he was eager to talk.

He said he would go to church.

He could hear god telling him, "confess, confess your sins,"

And that's what changed tony.

Narrator: tony burello immediately acknowledged that he

Had dumped kathleen's body in the field just as dr. Mcdowell

Suspected, and burello said that bill lipscomb was the k*ller.

He also confirmed something else -- that kathleen's body was

Stored in a cedar chest, which explained why her legs were

Folded when rigor mortis set in.

Surprisingly, tony burello still had the chest.

He said bill lipscomb asked him to dispose of it after the

m*rder, but for some reason, tony kept it.

Forensic scientists found a tiny stain on the bottom of the

Chest.

Testing confirmed that it was kathleen's blood.

Tony burello met with bill lipscomb while wearing a

Hidden microphone, but he didn't say anything incriminating, so

Investigators devised another strategy.

This was an event that was a consequence of a marriage that

Went bad.

There was a tremendous amount of anger, there was a tremendous

Amount of hostility.

I wanted to see if I could feel that hostility so I could

Understand it and understand his reaction to it, and then develop

An investigative methodology that would counter that and deal

With his own psychology.

Narrator: the osi made sure that bill lipscomb knew he was

Being investigated.

I wanted him to hear footsteps that weren't there, I

Wanted him to have that feeling in the pit of his stomach every

Time the phone rang, I wanted him to worry about whether today

Was going to be the day that he heard the knock on the door, I

Wanted to raise his level of anxiety.

Narrator: eventually, bill's former girlfriend

Shannon gilbert admitted that bill once confided to her that

He planned to k*ll kathleen.

And investigators let lipscomb know that both gilbert and

Burello were cooperating.

Bill lipscomb was playing mind games with us, and we were

Playing mind games with him.

Narrator: after weeks of these psychological tactics,

Dr. Mcdowell brought bill lipscomb in for

Questioning.

Dr. Mcdowell vividly remembers the exchange.

"Of all the ways this had to end, I don't understand why it

Had to end the way it did.

Why did you k*ll her?" And he said, "I don't know why I

k*lled her."

But then he immediately caught himself and leaned forward and

Crossed his arms and said, "I did not k*ll my wife."

But we had him.

Three of us within the sheriff's office tried to get in

On the same level as bill and get him to break, and we

Couldn't do it.

We could not do it.

Narrator: prosecutors believe kathleen threatened to expose

Bill's cheating on the military exams if he tried to get custody

Of the children.

And with that...

Bill sought revenge.

On the day of the m*rder, bill asked tony burello to take the

Children to dinner.

Then he called kathleen, asking her to pick up the children

Earlier than planned.

[ Knock on door ] when kathleen arrived and

Noticed the children missing, the two argued.

Where are the kids?

They wanted to go to mcdonald's, so tony took them to

Mcdonald's.

Narrator: and at some point, bill strangled her to death.

Bill stored the body in a chest until nightfall.

Kathleen's blood was found in the chest.

Once the children were asleep, tony burello dumped kathleen's

Body in the field, trying to make it appear to be a sex

Crime.

But the positioning of the body and the fact the body was

Uncovered revealed the truth -- that someone other than the

k*ller was involved.

But what about the red hairs on kathleen's clothing?

I believe the hairs were planted by bill lipscomb or his

Partner, one of the two, to make it look -- naturally throw us

Off to go looking for someone else.

Narrator: investigators later identified the woman who was

Seen leaving kathleen's apartment after her m*rder.

She was a co-worker who had gone to check on kathleen when she

Didn't show up for work.

Bill lipscomb pled guilty to his wife's m*rder to avoid the death

Penalty.

He was sentenced to life in prison.

In return for his cooperation, tony burello avoided

Prosecution.

No charges were brought against shannon gilbert, who changed her

Name and is now in the federal witness-protection program.

Prosecutors do not believe kathleen's boyfriend,

Dr. David pearl, had anything to do with the crime.

Forensic pathology, forensic psychology, and crime-scene

Reconstruction helped solve a very complicated case.

There's one thing that you really do need to include is

That this was a very complex investigation.

It involved a very large number of people and a tremendous

Amount of careful coordination and orchestration.

I feel kind of guilty because you're interviewing me.

People who commit crime think that they're very, very bright

And that the rest of us out here that try to solve crimes or work

On crimes, are involved with law enforcement, are not very

Bright.

Most often, it's the other way around.