07x03 - Reel Danger

[bunniefuu]

[music playing]

NARRATOR: In 1991, this tranquil
pond in rural Connecticut

was the scene of
a horrific crime.

[police siren]

Two young boys were beaten,
thrown into the water,

and left for dead.

Investigators had
little evidence

until they examined
the pond itself,

and found thousands of clues
invisible to the naked eye,

in a simple drop of water.

[theme music]

Waterford, a small Connecticut
town where the water table

is so high, homes are built
around numerous small ponds

and lakes.

In 1991, two boys, we'll
call Steven and Bobby,

decided to spend their afternoon
fishing at their favorite spot,

Stenger's Pond.

[laughs]

That's pretty good.

Mm.

I told you.

NARRATOR: Some time later,
they were approached by three

older boys they didn't know.

Without warning,
one pulled a knife.

The other two threw Steven
and Bobby to the ground.

Steven tried to
fight back, but was

hit on the head
with a baseball bat,

almost knocking him unconscious.

Both boys had their hands
and feet bound with duct tape

and their mouths covered.

Once out in the pond,
Steven was hit once again

and held underwater so
that he would drown.

Bobby was next.

Fortunately, he saw the
bat coming and ducked,

then pretended to
be unconscious.

After throwing
Steven and Bobby's

fishing rods in the water,
they took the boys' bicycles

and fled.

Bobby was able to remove the
duct tape from his hands,

mouth, and feet.

He swam to Steven
to try and save him.

By the time he got there,
Steven was unconscious.

Bobby managed to
get him to shore,

then carried him a quarter
mile to the nearest home.

Open up!

Open up!

NARRATOR: Deborah
Chamberlain heard

a frantic knocking at her door.

Oh, my God!

What happened?

One had a serious head wound
and was not very coherent.

And the other was just
almost hysterical.

And so I knew that
something awful

had happened to the two boys.

And that would be
something that we

would sort out over the
next couple of minutes.

But I think the
duct tape was really

almost my first impression.

Because I thought, oh, my God.

Someone taped their
wrists together.

[siren]

NARRATOR: Steven was rushed to
the emergency room of Lawrence

and Memorial Hospital.

Dr. John Urbanetti
was Steven's doctor.

JOHN URBANETTI, MD: Despite the
number of people that have seen

with this kind of
circumstance, he

came as close as I've ever seen
anyone come, to not surviving.

[monitor beeping]

NARRATOR: As Steven
lay in intensive care,

doctors questioned whether
he would live or die.

And Waterford police had
questions of their own.

Who had tried to m*rder
Steven and Bobby?

And why?

Waterford police
detective, Donald McCarthy,

was assigned to
investigate the as*ault

and attempted m*rder of the two
young boys at Stenger's Pond.

[monitor beeping]


for his life-- the victim

not only of an
attempted drowning,

but of massive head wounds.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY:
One of the doctors

had told one of my detectives,
at the time, that it was

the closest he had
ever seen anybody come

to drowning and not being dead.

He was very lucky.

If the older child was
unconscious, had he not

had his little friend with him,
he probably would have drowned,

I think.

NARRATOR: Steven's
friend, Bobby,

had escaped serious injury.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY: I think
the remarkable thing is

he had the presence of mind to
immediately go to his friend

and pull his friend
from the water.

There's no doubt in our minds.

If he did not remove
that duct tape,

the older male would have
died if he did not remove

him from that body of water.

DEBRA CHAMBERLAIN: When
he came to the door,

the little guy
amazingly was quite

a bit smaller than his friend.

He was just literally
supporting him completely.

NARRATOR: Police went
to Stenger's Pond

to collect evidence.

But they ran into
a major obstacle.

The crime scene was
a body of water.

DET.

RICHARD WEISS:
The fishing poles,

the tackle box-- the suspects
had tried to sanitize the crime

scene by throwing those
items in the water,

so that the police
would not recover them,

making it difficult. That
fact that they were submerged

in water, we would
normally not have

fingerprints available to us.

NARRATOR: The bat used as
the w*apon was found floating

in a nearby sewer grate.

But there were no fingerprints.

And any other possible evidence,
such as hairs and fibers,

had apparently been
washed into the water.

Police talked to residents
of the neighborhood

closest to Stenger's
Pond to see if they

had seen anything unusual.

Susan Picardi came forward to
say that earlier on, the day

of the attack, a young teenager
she had never seen before,

came to her door
asking for help.

Can I help you?

Yeah.

I was walking down
the street when

I began to feel a little
light headed and hungry.

May I come in and
get something to eat?

SUSAN PICARDI: He said
he wasn't feeling well.

He was a diabetic and
was in need of something,

whether it was sugar or orange
juice, or a piece of chocolate,

or something.

I immediately felt bad for
him and invited him in.

Why don't you come
in and have a seat?

And I'll get you some juice.

Thanks.

NARRATOR: Mrs. Picardi
gave the young man

a glass of orange juice.

You're welcome.

NARRATOR: A few minutes later,
he said he was feeling better,

thanked her, and left.

Because I can call a doctor.

TEENAGE BOY: No, no.
I'm fine.

Thanks.

NARRATOR: Later, as Mrs. Picardi
was about to take a shower,

she saw something unusual
in her bathroom mirror.

SUSAN PICARDI: And I caught
the image of what was going on

in my backyard from upstairs.

And I saw two other youngsters
in the corner of my yard,

teenagers, 16ish--
around there--

a red headed boy and another
Afro-American young man.

That's all we got.

NARRATOR: And they were later
joined by the young man who

just left Mrs. Picardi's home.

She gave me orange juice.

She treated me so nice.

NARRATOR: The boys had
a bright green baseball

bat and what looked like--

What are you kids doing?

NARRATOR: --rolls of duct tape

I'm calling the police!

SUSAN PICARDI: I
automatically panicked,

and knew whatever
they had planned,

was not going to
happen at my house.

So I yelled out the
window to them--

I think you better leave.

It's obvious that you're
planning something,

or you're up to trouble.

And I'm calling the police.

So if you know what's good for
you, then you better get going.

NARRATOR: Susan Picardi
was able to provide

a detailed description of the
boy who'd come to her door.

DET.

RICHARD WEISS: Mrs. Picardi told
us two things that stood out.

One, he was wearing
eyeglasses, and described

those eyeglasses to us.

The other was he had an unusual
shaped scar, a U-shaped ray

scar on his forearm.

NARRATOR: Since the perpetrators
were apparently on foot,

police checked the neighborhoods
nearest to Stenger's Pond.

DET.

RICHARD WEISS: We put
officers in that neighborhood

and started doing
neighborhood canvasses--

and that, based on the
description of the three

suspects-- as a result,
we were able to identify

the suspect immediately.

NARRATOR: This suspect,


had the up-raised scar
described by Susan Picardi.

Neighborhood informants
identified the two friends

Davis spent the most time with.

One was 17-year-old
Christopher Green.

The other was an
African-American juvenile

whom we'll call, Jason.

All three suspects
fit the descriptions

provided by Susan
Picardi, but denied they

were involved in the as*ault.

In Christopher
Green's house, police

found a knife, like the one
Bobby had told them about.

In Green's basement, they found
a pair of wet muddy sneakers.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY: We
inquired of the suspect,

why are these things wet?

He was trying to
tell us that it was

as a result of walking
through mud puddles and things

like that.

As soon as he said that, we
started working on a theory

that, how do we attack this?

He's coming up with a defense.

This is how my clothes got wet.

I was playing in mud puddles
and things like this.

NARRATOR: Was the mud on Green's
sneakers from Stenger's Pond?

And if so, how could
scientists prove it?

But the answer is police
turned to a new type

of forensic science,
one that had

never before been used in
a criminal case anywhere

in the world.

[monitor beeping]


oldest of the two boys

who were assaulted and left
for dead in Stenger's Pond,

was in intensive
care for a week.

His condition
gradually improved.

He was extremely fortunate.

Doctors found no evidence
of permanent injury.

JOHN URBANETTI, MD:
Fortunately, he'd

had an episode that
was short enough

so that he suffered no
permanent injury to his brain.

But during the time of recovery,
he needed a fair amount

of intensive care support.

NARRATOR: Police
had three suspects

in custody-- Brian Davis,
Christopher Green, and

the juvenile we'll call Jason.

All denied any involvement
in the att*cks.

Brian Davis and Jason had no
prior brushes with the law.

But Christopher Green had a
long history of petty offenses

and small time v*olence.

Police took the sneakers
from Green's basement,

but no one was sure if
the mud on the soles

could be used as evidence.

We had the shoes.

How do we find out now-- find
someone who's going to tell

us what to do with this?

Do you understand exactly
what it is we're trying to do?

NARRATOR: Waterford
police spent weeks calling

around the country,
looking for someone

who might be able to help.

The FBI told them of a scientist
at nearby Connecticut College.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY: Here we are
all, going all over the United

States, Connecticut College
is 3 minutes, 5 minutes

from our police station.

NARRATOR: The scientist
was Dr. Peter Siver,

a forensic lymnologist, an
expert on microscopic life

in freshwater environments.

Dr. Siver was asked to find out
if the mud on Green's sneakers

came from Stenger's Pond.

He took the mud
from the sneakers,

and added a mixture of sulfuric
acid and potassium dichromate,

which removed the dirt, leaving
behind only the life forms that

may have existed in the water.

It's a world invisible
to the naked eye.

PETER SIVER, PHD: Inside
that small drop of water

exists literally hundreds
of different organisms.

They come in all different
arrays, all different shapes,

all different colors.

And it's an entirely different
world underneath that one

drop of water.

NARRATOR: And what
Dr. Siver found were

diatoms-- microscopic
single cell

organisms, a form of algae.

Each diatom is housed in an
incredibly complex structure

made up of silica, or glass.

PETER SIVER, PHD: I would say
that diatoms are pieces of art.

They're pieces of art,
because each diatom

can make exactly
the same pattern

each time it makes a new cell.

And these patterns
are very ornate,

they're highly
artistic in their look.

NARRATOR: While
diatoms may be art,

they can also be
pieces of evidence.

Any body of water has
hundreds, if not thousands,

of species of diatoms.

The types of
diatoms and how many

exist of the various species,
is unique to that body of water.

PETER SIVER, PHD: In any given
water body you can essentially

examine the microscopic
organisms, and in effect,

create a fingerprint
for that water body.

NARRATOR: On the
sneakers, Dr. Siver

found large numbers of one type
of diatom known as Eunotia.

Shown here, Eunotia
are characterized

by the crescent shapes
of their glass shells.

There were three species
of Eunotia on the suspect's

sneakers, and they were there in
unusually high concentrations.

And Dr. Siver found
one more clue.

He found what's known
as a scaled chrysophyte.

Scaled chrysophytes
are related to diatoms.

But unlike diatoms,
they can swim.

It was only one
species of chrysophyte

in the mud-- Mallomonas
caudata, shown

here, magnified 2,000 times.

When Dr. Siver analyzed the
water samples from Stenger's

Pond, he found the same high
concentrations of Eunotia,

and the same species
of scaled chrystophyte.

The fingerprint of the
water at Stenger's Pond

was the same as the
sample on the sneakers

of Christopher Green.

This was the break police
had been counting on.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY: One
thing that we found,

is there's always a
scientist out there.

As off the wall as it may
sound, or what you're trying

to accomplish, we have found
there's always somebody out

there that will listen to you.

NARRATOR: Christopher Green,
Brian Davis, and Jason,

were arrested and charged with
as*ault and attempted m*rder.

But the question now
turned to motive.

Why did they attack
the two young boys?

And was there another
intended victim that day?

Forensic scientists
found a way to prove

that one of the suspect's
sneakers had been in the water

at Stenger's Pond, where
the two young boys had been

assaulted and left for dead.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY: I think the
physical evidence in this case

was just overwhelming.

And the diatoms, and
the pond evidence,

or the aquatic evidence,
whatever way you want to use

it, was just devastating.

And I think the defense
attorneys realized that.

NARRATOR: The forensic analysis
showed that when Christopher

Green went into the water
to strike his victims,

he got mud on his
shoes-- mud that

contained the microscopic
fingerprint of the water

in Stenger's Pond.

The diatoms in that mud clearly
tied him to the crime scene.

DET.

RICHARD WEISS: For me, I thought
it was unique and unusual,

because it's something
that you normally

don't read about in textbooks.

NARRATOR: Even though
Steven and Bobby's bicycles

were stolen after the as*ault,
police and prosecutors do not

believe robbery was the motive.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY: These three
kids, I'm totally convinced,

were on a mission that day.

As a result of interviewing
the three after their arrest,

they went out that day
to look to k*ll somebody.

There's no doubt in my mind.

Can I help you?

Yeah.

NARRATOR: Police believe
that Susan Picardi was

originally the intended victim.

Brian Davis did
not have diabetes

as he claimed, but only
used it as an excuse

to gain entry to her home.

Have a seat And I'll
get you some juice.

Thanks.

NARRATOR: When he
rejoined his accomplices

in Susan's backyard, they
may have been planning

how to get into the house.

SUSAN PICARDI: The real
alarm bells went off

when I went upstairs
and I saw two

boys in the corner of my yard.

Then I sort of all
put it together.

And then I started feeling
like I was just set up.

NARRATOR: Fortunately,
Susan Picardi

saw them in her bathroom
mirror and called the police.

She looks back to that
day, and often wonders

how close she was to danger.

SUSAN PICARDI: A great way to
describe it-- as a sixth sense.

The mirror was in
the right place.

The kids were in
the right place.

It was meant to be
for me to see them

and to-- just by
their body language,

understand that something
is not right here.

NARRATOR: Police determined that
Christopher Green, the only one

of the defendants with
a history of v*olence,

had instigated the att*cks.

DET.

RICHARD WEISS: Christopher Green
was probably the ringleader

for the other two.

He was the one that
brought the bat.

He was the one that
brought the duct tape.

He was the one that did the
striking on our victims.

He's the one that basically
directed the other two.

NARRATOR: Brian Davis
and Christopher Green

were both tried as adults and
were sentenced to a minimum

of 18 years in prison.

Their 16-year-old
accomplice, Jason,

was only 2 weeks shy
of his 17th birthday

when he committed the crime.

As a result, he was tried
and convicted as a juvenile,

and was sentenced to
spend time in a facility

for young offenders.

He has since been released.

The microscopic diatom
evidence on Christopher Green's

sneakers, so simple in purpose,
so magnificent in design,

and so potent as evidence.

For Waterford police and for law
enforcement around the world,

the case set a precedent.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY:
It's a landmark case.

It was the first time that
this evidence, or evidence

of an aquatic environment,
meaning the diatoms,

were used to place a
suspect at a crime scene.

We found that it had
never been used before.

What was nice about it is
they were willing to take it

on and try it.

And that was the key for us.

NARRATOR: Shortly
after this case,

law enforcement in
Switzerland solved

the m*rder of a young boy
using diatom evidence.

The boy had drowned,
and the species

of diatoms in the
victim's lungs matched

the species of diatoms
found on the gas pedal

of the suspect's automobile.

Both cases were solved,
because a group of Connecticut

detectives had a hunch that
some mud on the bottom of a shoe

might tie a suspect to a crime.

DET.

DONALD MCCARTHY:
I would never say

give up being the old fashioned
hard beating road cop.

But you've got to be
aware of the sciences

that are there to help you.

If you don't, you're
beating yourself.

A lot of the thoughts
that Lieutenant

McCarthy came up with, we
always thought were unusual.

But 9 out of 10
times, he was right.

I have to say 99.8% of
the time, he was right.

[theme music]