Star Witness

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You get over 20 bioavailable vitamins and minerals, and the ingredients are backed by over 35,000 research publications. Instead of choking down earthy powders or swallowing a handful of oversized pills, you just open one daily pack of Groons. Plus, they taste great, so you actually remember to take them every single day. Even better, each pack delivers six full grams of prebiotic fiber, which is three times the fiber of standard greens powders, an equivalent to over a thousand grams of prebiotic fiber. So, if you want to save up to two cups of broccoli, save up to 52% off with code HOURS at groons.co. That's code HOURS at g-r-u-n-s dot c-o. This man is in prison for life because of the testimony of a six-year-old child, his own niece. I need somebody to get my mom for me. I'm all alone, but when I get home, with no physical evidence Clarence Elkins was convicted of murdering his mother-in-law I thought it was my uncle Clarence case closed not by a long shot now five years later the little girl is changing her story do you think it was uncle Clarence at first yeah Susan Spencer investigates is an innocent man behind bars it is outrageous what they have done to this child and Gloria Killian was on her way to becoming a lawyer she ended up in prison for masterminding a robbery homicide I just kept thinking this can't be happening it can't be happening the key witness a career criminal would you have believed his story well I even lied my ass off on the stand for you people 16 years later she's out but for how long Peter van Sant reports prosecutors want to put Gloria right back in jail I would rather die than go back to prison 48 hours investigates star witness I don't want to get wet it's so beautiful Gloria Killian has waited a long time for this moment it's the most beautiful sight on earth 16 years and four months to be exact it's hard to believe looking at her but that's how long she was locked away here in a California state prison I would rather die than go back to prison what's more it was for a robbery murder Gloria says she didn't commit I'm innocent I did not plan the robbery I did not know those people I was not involved and I'm not the perpetrator she's not out of prison today because she was found to be innocent a technicality has gotten her out you can say that Lana Wyant is with the district attorney's office in Sacramento California she wants Gloria back in jail we're convinced that she was the mastermind of this murder Rose Wood Drive is a sleepy street in the Rosemont section of Sacramento the crime Gloria was convicted of occurred in 1981 two burglars apparently searching for what could have been gold in the house in this quiet middle-class neighborhood of Rosemont California near Sacramento the place had been ransacked and things thrown out of the closet in search detective Stan Reed now retired was among the first to arrive on the scene drawers pulled out things on the floor closets in disarray two men had broken into the home of 71 year old Ed Davies a coin collector who kept gold and silver in his house Davies was found dead on his kitchen floor shot twice to the head once at point-blank range you saw my face you die you die no witnesses no witnesses within days authorities acting on a tip this is a photograph of Gary Massey at the time of his arrest arrested career criminal Gary Massey and charged him with the Davies murder how did you find out about the crime I saw it on television and that's really all that I remember about it in her mid-thirties Gloria had almost finished law school but decided to take time off to enjoy life I love to go to clubs love to party that's dance so I went out a lot not a lot was this a wild time for you you could say that you could say that I knew some people I should not have known and one of those people was a friend of Gary Massey the man arrested for the Davies murder Gloria says she never knew Massey but when the anonymous tip mentioned her name and his together she was arrested they cuffed me and took me away what's going through your mind panic hysteria I have no idea what is happening to me and I'm terrified but detectives didn't buy her claims of innocence after they discovered a notebook in her purse including this address eight nine three three Rosewood two doors from the victim's home after her stating she didn't know where that was also in the notebook a list of items that could have been used in the crime including rope mr. Davies feet were tied with rope and gloves not one fingerprint was found that indicates to you that they wore gloves they took some completely unrelated lists and phrases and cobbled them together to constitute what they called corroborating evidence it was enough for authorities to charge Gloria with murder but after spending three and a half months in jail awaiting trial she was released charges are dropped yes for lack of evidence yes a year later Gloria was rearrested what had changed well what had changed is that Gary Massey went to trial he was convicted on all counts and he was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole but Massey's sentence was withdrawn and eventually reduced to 25 years to life after he testified against Gloria saying for the first time she was the real mastermind behind the Davies murder Gloria was convicted and sentenced to 32 years to life you go from somebody's working with a private investigator three years law school bright future to what felon convicted criminal condemned I just kept thinking this can't be happening it can't be happening it can't be happening but it's what happened to Gloria behind bars that makes her story so remarkable her passion for the law led to a job in the prison law library in time Gloria became the jail house attorney advising her fellow inmates on everything from parole hearings to appeals to see Gloria behind bars that makes her story so remarkable her passion for the law led to a job in the prison law library in time Gloria became the jailhouse attorney advising her fellow inmates on everything from parole hearings to appeals to see to appeals to see her do all the paperwork all the legal work and and knew that she had so much passion i'm walking out of this prison soon and i would not be doing that without gloria it was what gave my life meaning and it's what kept me going gloria was johnny cox gloria coached joyce houston on how to best present herself to the parole board and i'll never forget her never her biggest triumph is brenda eris who was serving a life sentence for killing her husband who repeatedly beat her lost my appeal and had no other resources so i went to the library law library crying you know what can i do now help me gloria sent out more than 6 000 letters on behalf of brenda and even published an article about her case in a law review what was it about brenda that made you want to help her because it was wrong it was wrong he broke my jaw he cracked my ribs he totally isolated me in the end i'm not someone who sits around and advocates oh everybody in prison deserves to be out or anything like that but there's so many injustices gloria's efforts paid off eris's release six years ago marked the first time a battered woman who killed her husband was granted clemency in california and that was very powerful not because i did it but because it was right so brenda gets out joyce gets out but gloria is still in prison there were periods of time when i was sure that i would never get out that i would never ever get out that no one would ever care what happened to me but that would all change the day she met this 79-year-old widow from Pasadena. I'm profoundly annoyed by injustice and I just have to do something. SNHU offers more than 200 online degree programs with flexibility that puts you in the driver's seat and trusted support to keep you on track even when life takes an unexpected turn. Summer is flying by and if your calendar looks anything like mine, it's packed with plans to squeeze in before the season ends. Groons can help make your morning. A little simpler. It's all those things and then some. Even better, each pack delivers six full grams of prebiotic fiber, which is three times the fiber of standard greens powders, an equivalent to over two cups of broccoli. Save up to 52% off with code hours at groons.co. Okay, let's go. I'm going straight for the cookie aisle. After spending 16 years in prison, I can't stand all the choice. A trip to the supermarket is a real adventure. Oh my. Oh, well, I can't resist. For Gloria Killian. Do you know how many years it's been since I've had raspberries? 16 years and four months. Probably longer than that. She would still be in prison if not for this woman, a widow from Pasadena named Joyce Ride. My daughters describe me as the elderly widow Ride. You probably remember one of Ride's daughters. Lift off, and the shuttle has cleared the tower. America's first woman astronaut, Sally Ride. It seems determination runs in the family. Joyce has been a volunteer visitor at women's prisons for years. I just go in as a friend and listen. In 1992, she listened to Gloria's story and believed it. Clearly, she was innocent of the crime. So at that point, I said, is it all right with you if I hire an investigator? During the next 10 years, Ride spent nearly $100,000 of her own money to help Gloria. Why do you do it? I am profoundly annoyed by injustice, and I just have to do something. Joyce hired Bill Janago, a lawyer who specializes in post-conviction appeals. He wasn't optimistic about Gloria's chances. Even if you think the person might have gotten an unfair trial, or even if you have a sense that the person is innocent, that's just not good enough in and of itself. Janago's law clerk at the time, Lauren Eskenazi, was fresh out of law school and ready to take on the world. I was idealistic, and I was thinking, this is what, this is why I went to law school, and this is what it's all about. And I am just as eager as can be to just look at every single piece of paper. Gloria Killian's new legal team had always believed the prosecution cut a secret deal with Gary Massey. Remember, Massey's life is not a secret. It's a secret. The sentence was reduced after he testified against Gloria. But in court, under oath, Massey denied any deal existed. He got on the stand. He said, I don't have an agreement. I don't have any promises. But Janago was given a letter that suggested otherwise. It was written by Massey to the prosecutor's office just months after Gloria's conviction. In it, Massey refers to, quote, a verbal agreement about a lighter sentence, lying on the witness stand during Gloria's trial. Quote, I did my part all the way to the end. I even lied my ass off on the stand for you people. When you read those words, I lied for you. I mean, this was powerful stuff. Right. But the problem was, who's going to believe him? Nobody's going to believe Massey. He's not a believable guy. Janago knew he needed something else, something even bigger to overturn Gloria's conviction. After months and months of digging through court documents, Lauren Eskenazi found it. Bill jumped out of his seat. He's very, very excited. He's just like, we found the smoking gun. It was another letter, this one written by the prosecutor in Gloria's case, addressed to the judge who was going to sentence Massey, saying that Massey's cooperation, quote, deserves consideration by the court. This case to me is about the lengths that at least this prosecutor was willing. To go to, to get a conviction, absent really any evidence, any credible evidence. There was no verbal agreement with Gary Massey. Lana Wyant is spokesperson for the Sacramento District Attorney's Office. Why did he think there was one? The only promise that was ever made to Gary Massey was made to him by the sheriff's department, and that was to keep him safe. But he didn't write the sheriff's department. He wrote the DA's office about our verbal agreement. There was no such agreement. But what about the recommendation from the prosecutor to the judge regarding Massey's sentence, noted in that second letter? Wyant says that letter had been sealed by the court, and Massey never even saw it. Gary Massey did not know about the letter, so his testimony was not affected in any way by this letter. But, Janego says, at the very least, the prosecutor should have handed over the letters to Killian's defense attorney. You know, in retrospect, the letter should have been disclosed, but it didn't matter. Gloria Killian is not out. She is actually innocent of the crimes for which she was convicted, and her conviction does not lie on perjured testimony. But last year, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denounced the prosecution's conduct, finding that all the errors made were devastating to one's confidence in the reliability of this verdict. The court set aside her conviction, and after 16 long years in prison, Gloria Killian was released. What was going through your heart at that moment? I mean, when you realized, I'll be damned, I'm getting out of here. People that I didn't know that were jumping up and down and clapping, and it's like the whole unit is cheering for me. And it was a truly amazing moment, and I'm looking at people that I know are never supposed to get out of prison, and I still feel that tremendous outpouring of love. And happiness, and a hope that I can do something, that I can figure out a way to help everybody else. And that's exactly what Gloria has been doing ever since her release. Most women in prison, that's the law in the state of California. I would phrase it as a woman's issue. Working full time, raising money. All of you have contributed, and I'm so, so grateful. And people's consciousness. And I'm so grateful that you're here. I miss her. -And I know she's not at rest. I thank you for all the blessings that you've given us. -And it was a violent death. 58-year-old Judith Johnson and her 6-year-old granddaughter were at her modest home outside Akron, Ohio, that June night in 1998. -Not one much emergency. -Yes, I need an ambulance and the police. My mother-in-law's been stabbed. -Stabbed, beaten, strangled, and sexually assaulted. -I love you, Mom. -Also assaulted was the 6-year-old, Melinda's niece, but the little girl lived. -Oh, my God. My little girl spent the night here. -And she lived to tell a shocking story, that the man who had killed her grandmother was none other than her uncle, Clarence Elkins, Melinda's husband. Within a few hours, police had arrested him and charged him with the murder. And today, 40-year-old Clarence Elkins sits in prison for life, convicted largely on the word of his own niece, for there never was one shred of physical evidence linking him to this bloody crime. -I'm not a violent person whatsoever, and I did not do this crime. I'm totally and completely innocent. -You didn't kill your mother-in-law. -No, I did not. -Categorically, you know nothing about this at all. You were home sleeping. -No knowledge. No knowledge. No knowledge. -But the jury disagreed. -Brandon, I'm gonna set the table. -Today, Clarence, a steel press operator with no record of violence, sits in prison. And that something his two sons, Clarence Jr., now 20, and Brandon, now 17, still have a hard time accepting. -Oh, thank you for this food. Thank you for this day. -You know, not to have a dad in your teen years, you lose your childhood. That's what happened to me and Clarence. We lost our childhood. -How are your sons doing through all this? -I can only imagine. I'm sure they're struggling. And I miss special time in their lives that I've never had. And I never get back. -Okay, let's carry the stuff out. -For more than four years, Melinda Elkins has campaigned to convince the world of her husband's innocence. With her in-laws' financial help, over $100,000 so far, Melinda hired Martin Yant, a private investigator who has helped overturn eight convictions. -It was really abysmal. It's one of the worst investigations I've ever seen. An immense amount of evidence, was overlooked inside as well as outside. -And in this very bloody crime scene, he says, some of that evidence might have provided the killer's fingerprints or DNA. If only police had bothered to test it. -There are defensive blows on her arms. Fingernails are ripped off, indicating that she possibly scratched the person. -What little testing was done didn't implicate Elkins. In fact, to the contrary. Lab reports obtained over 48 hours show that two hairs found on Judith Johnson's buttocks definitely did not belong to Clarence Elkins. -The little bit of evidence they did bring forth to the trial, it excluded me. The state said it excluded him and his family. It doesn't add up. It doesn't add up. -Clarence said he had an alibi for that night, that he'd gone to several bars before going home. But at the trial, Melinda's six-year-old niece, whom we've agreed not to identify, was a powerful eyewitness. The jury heard the desperate message she left on a neighbor's answering machine. -I need somebody to get my mom for me. I'm all alone. Somebody get home to my grandma. -By the time the child told her mother, Melinda's sister April, what had happened, the attacker was no longer somebody. It was Uncle Clarence. -She knew who he was. She knows the sound of his voice. I mean, what was I supposed to do? I had to believe my daughter. -I ran by my grandmother's couch, and I peeked in the kitchen. -What could you see when you peeked in the kitchen? -I saw a man standing over my grandmother, yelling at her. -You were scared. -Yes. -Did you think you knew who it was? -Yes. -And what did you think? -I thought it was my Uncle Clarence. -And you knew Uncle Clarence pretty well, right? -Mm-hmm. -Did you have any reason to think that your grandmother and Uncle Clarence didn't like each other? -No, but the people were fighting over money. -In court, the sweet, curly-haired little girl was absolutely sure and absolutely convincing. -You know, the only thing I could think of was mistaken identity or persuaded by someone. Or coached, I don't know. -Hawk your horn for Justin! -You know, it was not an easy decision. It was a very emotional decision. I mean, most of the jury was crying. -Roger Owen and Arnise Rice were on the jury that convicted Elkins. Did that trouble the people on the jury, that there was not a shred of forensic evidence linking this guy to this crime? -It was disgust, but it all came back to the little girl. Towards the end of her testimony, when she said, "Why would Uncle Clarence hurt me in the bedroom?" I mean, that, to me, was, you know, damaging. -That really got to you. -Yes, because. -Okay. -From her testimony, it was he was close enough to her. Why would she be mistaken if it wasn't him? She knows him. -And prosecutor Mike Carroll remains sure to this day that the right man is behind bars. -Trust me, based on the evidence and based on everything I know, he did it. There was hatred between Judy Johnson and Clarence Elkins. -I mean, you know, this guy is not the jackal. I mean, how could he possibly -- have committed this crime and left absolutely no trace? -Well, I won't say left no trace because we did have the witness, but once he leaves the house, if he does have bloody clothing or shoes or whatever, all he has to do is dispose of them. -But Clarence Elkins' new attorney, Elizabeth Kelly, hopes to reopen this case with a remarkable development that seems too good to be true. -Why did you say it was Uncle Clarence? -Because it looked like him. -It looked like him. -The prosecution has said that the prosecution's star witness, Clarence Elkins' niece, now 10 years old, has recanted her original testimony, saying she never was sure to begin with that it was her Uncle Clarence who attacked her. -But do you think it was Uncle Clarence? -At first, yeah. -At first, yeah, but do you think so today? -No. -Okay. -So if Uncle Clarence didn't do it, who did? The Elkins team says they know. ♪♪ -True crime is full of unanswered questions, but earning your degree doesn't have to be a mystery. Find the answers you're searching for at snhu.edu/48hours. ♪♪ -On Reddit, true crime doesn't come from journalists. It comes from the victims, the witnesses, and sometimes the suspects themselves. -Every Tuesday on "Crimes of Reddit," we read these posts out loud. -I'm Sabrina D'Anaroga. -And I'm Alexis Linkletter. One of us brings the story, the other goes in blind, reacting in real time just like you. This episode's dropped every Tuesday. Listen to and follow "Crimes of Reddit," available now wherever you get your podcasts. -Summer is flying by, and if your calendar looks anything like mine, it's packed with plans to squeeze in before the season ends. It's all those things, and then some. Save up to 52% off with code "OURS" at groons.co. That's code "OURS" at G-R-U-N-S dot C-O. I'm angry, I'm very angry, and sad at the same time. I mean, how can they convict a person with DNA evidence that excludes him completely, that doesn't add up? My mother is still laying six feet in the ground, "Someone other than my husband has murdered her." Melinda Elkins has no doubt in her mind that her husband Clarence is innocent of the murder of her mother, Judith Johnson. But a jury found him guilty, and Melinda needs new evidence to get a new trial. This is the suspect that you have in mind? That's right. Martin Yant, the private eye Melinda hired, says his own investigation has convinced him not only that Clarence Elkins did not commit this gruesome murder, but that this man did. Twenty-nine-year-old Ryle Rush, whom Yant describes as a Clarence Elkins lookalike. This is a picture of Clarence? Correct. That was taken at his arraignment the day after his arrest. You think these two guys look alike? I do. Both have facial hair. Their haircuts are somewhat similar. When you're talking about a six-year-old girl. Seeing somebody in a darkened house, I can see how that mistake can be made. All right, Ryle, let's go. Ryle and Johnson did know each other. They're seen here dancing at a friend's wedding. But Yant claims Rush was interested in more than friendship, that he had a crush on the much older woman, and that Johnson's rejection could be a motive for the murder. Yant also says Rush, who lived in Johnson's neighborhood, was known to carry a club like this one for protection. It's a pool cue that was sawed off at both ends. And that the six-year-old girl who survived the attack said the man was carrying just such a club. Clarence Elkins' attorney, Elizabeth Kelly, claims the most damning piece of circumstantial evidence. That's outside of the funeral home. Okay. is, ironically, a police surveillance video shot the day of Judith Johnson's funeral. Whoa. Exactly. That man does not want to be seen. Kelly says it shows Rush had deep scratches on his face and hand. Where's the scratch? On the cheek? On the cheek. Mm-hmm. And you say his finger has a bandage on it? She wants police to collect a sample of Ryle Rush's DNA to see if it matches DNA from the two hairs found on Judith Johnson's buttocks, ones that did not match Clarence Elkins'. You characterize this as though this necessarily means that he's a guilty man. Well, I'm not a guilty man. I'm a man of my word. daily pack of Groons. I hate coming down here. Every time I do, I get nervous and angry. The thought of him in there, it's like, you know, this isn't real. It's a nightmare. Melinda Elkins dreads this road trip every time she takes it. Four tedious hours to the Ohio prison where her husband Clarence sits. Sentenced to life for the murder of Melinda's own mother. I feel victimized by the system. But she hangs on to the hope that she may not have to make this trip much longer. It's just so hard leaving him there. The same judge who presided over Clarence's trial for the murder of Melinda's mother now has agreed to hold a hearing on the defense claims that new evidence warrants giving Clarence a new trial, if not setting him free altogether. I lost four years of my life and my family's being together because I'm falsely accused. I'm wrongly convicted. You think this time around a judge will be convinced of that? I'm hoping he will. I'm trusting he will. When the day arrives, emotions understandably are at the breaking point. Though the two Elkins sons steal themselves, seeing their father in shackles is too much. I've seen him like that. Yes, to me. The courtroom is packed. Defense attorney Elizabeth Kelly begins by presenting her case against Ryle Rush. We have discovered a man who looks like Clarence Elkins, sounds like Clarence Elkins, and who in all probability murdered Judith Johnson. We have pending before this court a motion to obtain a hair sample from this alternative suspect. But Judge John Adams insists he has no legal authority to order a DNA sample from Rush. What about his constitutional rights? He hasn't been charged. He hasn't been charged with any offense at this point in time. All I have is the information gathered by your private investigator. That's sufficient for me to order sampling to be done to this individual. Kelly then cites a laundry list of potential evidence from the crime scene that never even was tested by police. Failure to test items in the kitchen. Failure to test a bloody fingerprint. They failed to test the fingernail scrapings from Mrs. Johnson. But Assistant District Attorney Richard Kaysay insists jury members were well aware of the lack of physical evidence tying Elkins to the crime. And it didn't seem to bother them. The jury heard it. The jury considered it. The jury found Mr. Elkins guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. What clinched it for the jury was the testimony of the child eyewitness. That child, Kelly argues, now has recanted, saying she was wrong. Do you think it was Uncle Clarence? At first, yeah. At first, yeah. But do you think so today? No. Judge Adams has real doubts about this recantation. It would be reprehensible if a child who has been the victim of a brutal sexual assault, witnessed the killing of her grandmother, was being manipulated to free an individual who was guilty. With those ominous words, the hearing ends. Truth. Justice. And all the family can do now is wait for the judge's ruling. Summers' grass is covered with snow before the decision comes down, four agonizing months later. We're scared, but we're hopeful. I'm hoping for fairness today. I'm hoping that he at least will allow us to have another chance. Hello? Hello? Hello? A local newspaper reporter calls from the courthouse with word of a ruling. Hi, Karen. The news is devastating. The judge has denied the defense's motion for a new trial. Son of a bitch. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Don't clap. Oh, my God. Don't clap. Try to prepare yourself for this. There's no preparation. None. Hello? Melinda breaks the news to her husband, who calls from prison. He denied the motion. I didn't. Clarence, I don't even know what to say. Don't worry that much. Keep quiet. Judge Adams has rejected the child's recantation, calling it unreliable. And having presented. I think he's afraid if we get another chance in court, we're going to prove ourselves right. As for Ryle Rush, the judge says it's up to prosecutors to decide if they want to investigate him. Meanwhile, Melinda Elkins vows to take her battle next to federal court, insisting this fight is far. from over. I'm not going to give up. and Column A, Members FDIC.