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Celebrating 1,000 NCIS-franchise episodes

S03.E10: Devoted (Fort Walton Beach, FL)

maraleia

By maraleia
in Cold Justice [V]

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Lizzing

Lizzing

Uuuugghhh...another unsolved one.  Though, I think the "pastor" had a hand in the murder, but I wouldn't discount his wife any faster.  And I do think it was a murder.  The situation was so weird.  Maybe it is too late, but I'd have sent out cadaver dogs to exhaust that possibility and search around the house area.  I felt horrible for the one sister, when the other one said something along the lines of "Not only I lost my sister but I lost my best friend" while the other sister was sitting there.  I get it, you're grieving, but for crissake, the other sister is sitting RIGHT THERE!

 

I'm glad the church people decided to come clean on the specifics.  I kinda (maybe not fairly) give a side eye to churches whose place of worship is in a strip mall, but these folks, a few years removed, told the true story.  I just wish they'd done it earlier.

 

It's a sad case and I hope that we get more resolution from episodes to come and in the rape cases in the spin off.  And I want Yo back.  Abbey was okay, but not Yolanda.

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andromeda331

andromeda331

I don't buy the wife wasn't a part of it for a second. Loved that Kelly wasn't phased by the fact his dad was dying. I wondered if I was cold blood because if it was even true or something the wife threw out there thinking it would stop the police from wanting to interview her husband or at least buy time to contact him and warn him.

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Galloway Cave

Galloway Cave

I know we were only shown the cell phone tracking in relation to the movements of Marie's truck, but Tanya could have been present when Marie was killed. Then she could have been on the other side of town when her husband moved the truck to the gas station, then to the airport. I too don't think Tanya wasn't a part of the murder. I'm surprised Kelly crossed her off the board just based on cell records. Interview her first, then make a decision based on her behavior and answers.

 

I guess the detectives could quickly determine if Pastor Flander's father was in the hospital (was it there in Tucson?). At least they can say they tried to contact him. But there was no way he was picking up the phone, not after the call to Tanya.

 

Now that they have the cell phone tracking abilities, I wonder if they can use it to track both of the Flander's phones, in hopes of finding the body.

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KHenry14

KHenry14

Now that they have the cell phone tracking abilities, I wonder if they can use it to track both of the Flander's phones, in hopes of finding the body.

 

This was interesting that they didn't say a word about finding the body, especially after they were pretty certain about who was involved. They could easily search the Church grounds with dogs, wonder if they did and just didn't mention it. 

 

I also agree with most of you that I'm not eliminating the wife from the accused list. Marie was threatening to keep the baby, and that cuts directly into Tanya's heart. Few things would make her more defensive than the possibility of losing the child. It is not much of a stretch to think that Tanya would murder to keep the baby.

 

And boy is there a lot of interesting little tid bits of circumstantial evidence in this case. The Youth Pastor's story was telling. As was the inner circle ladies' stories. 

 

But despite all this stuff, you'd be hard pressed to get a conviction at this point. 

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SunnyBeBe

SunnyBeBe

(edited)

Yeah, that wife must really be bold and stupid to speak so rudely to a law enforcement officer.  What does she think she'll get out of it?  IMO, people like her normally have a personality disorder.  They are a legend in their own minds and think they can lie and get away with it.  Therefore, she may have made quite a few mistakes.  I don't doubt the pastor killed Marie, but I wonder if she was the only one the pastor was talking about wanting to kill in his sermon?  Tanya must be a real witch to live with.  

Edited by SunnyBeBe
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andromeda331

andromeda331

Yeah, that wife must really be bold and stupid to speak so rudely to a law enforcement officer.  What does she think she'll get out of it?

 

I wondered that too you'd think she'd realize that's the type of reaction that makes the cops look closer at you. I applaud the cops for not laughing at answers I could never hear some of those answers and not laugh.

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TribbleTrouble

TribbleTrouble

I suspect that there is typically evidence that is withheld from what they air on the show either for the benefit of the case or simply because of time constraints. There is often a lot of stuff up on those whiteboards that is never directly discussed on camera. Or, it may have been discussed, but ended up on the cutting room floor due to time.

In this case, it seems pretty obvious that the pastor and his wife know a lot more than they are telling. Common sense makes it pretty clear that they know and probably caused what happened to Marie, but proving it in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt? Sadly, no I don't think the cops are even close to that. Without a body or a confession it seems like at most they might be able to charge him with obstructing a police investigation with that phony text and by trying to get rid of the truck and then moving it to the airport in an attempt to lead the police in a false direction that Marie left town of her own accord. Beyond that, at least based on the evidence they discussed on the show, they really have nothing that *proves* that a) Marie is definitively dead, or b) the pastor, Tanya, or the two of them together caused Marie's death. As it stands now, they have nothing on him except an apparently quite heated affair with Marie, some suspicious behaviors, and the cell tower evidence. They have no usable evidence against Tanya except her disagreeable and defensive attitude. Even if Tanya knows he did something to Marie, and Tanya had no part in it, I don't know about Florida but in most states failure to report a crime is not a crime.

I have a bad feeling that, unless something blows wide open in the case, this may be one of those unsolved "I know who did it but I can't prove it" cases that will haunt those cops forever. I hope something breaks their way, but right now it doesn't look good. Makes me sick to think of those two getting away with it and retaining custody of that little girl.

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SandyToes

SandyToes

Several good points brought up here.  It DID look like a whole lot of info on the white board wasn't discussed, and that the wife was crossed off in spite of what we all saw and heard as fairly convincing evidence of involvement. I know we've covered before that (hopefully) there is a lot  more evidence not shown on TV that is saved for the future trial.  And I got to wondering if maybe these "unresolved" cases are intended to be just that - so once a little community pressure sets in after the show airs, perhaps additional folks will come forward? Or in this case, Tanya will think, "Hey, I'm off their list, so maybe I can cut a deal."  It would seem reasonable that someone would see the show and recall hearing or seeing something that before seemed unrelated or unimportant.

 

And was it just me, or did the beginning of the show make it sound like they might be investigating a shady pastor at one some fly-by-night church? Just different than the usual set up.  Could just be me. Hard to explain.

 

I hope there are updates at the end of the season for all of these cases that will be heading to the DA "soon."

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Soobs

Soobs

 Or in this case, Tanya will think, "Hey, I'm off their list, so maybe I can cut a deal." 

 

 

The case may have to get a bit colder before that happens but her husband looks like the type of guy that will cheat again. Maybe she'll get sick of his shit someday and come forward in revenge. That happens in these cold cases.

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cooksdelight

cooksdelight

Thank you so much for the update, I want all of these cases updated as soon as anyone knows anything. I had a feeling it was him, and I'm still thinking the wife was involved or knew about what was going on.

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TribbleTrouble

TribbleTrouble

I wonder if something new broke with the case and that's what prompted his arrest. Honestly, I was afraid that this might be one of those cases that got away. While it certainly seems that the pastor and his wife were very suspicious and involved somehow, the actual evidence of a murder (at least the evidence that was shared on the show) was pretty thin. Based on what we saw, a decent defense attorney should have plenty to work with to try to create reasonable doubt, even if it means playing the pastor and his wife off each other. It seems like at least a somewhat plausible alternative theory of the crime could be that someone else killed her (the wife?) or that she killed herself and the pastor is only guilty of attempting to cover it up. Unless there's new evidence I think the prosecution has their work cut out for them.

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SandyToes

SandyToes

(edited)

I agree. think a lot of these shows have numerous hurdles; that's what makes them cold cases to start with. But I also think maybe this show is doing a public service in showing that not all cases are like CSI/Law and Order TV shows, where everything lines out easily and the bad guy always confesses.  I've heard that many juries don't convict because the evidence presented isn't neat and tidy like on the TV shows.  So maybe Kelly and Yolanda are helping to educate the general jury population that "evidence" comes in lots of forms. That said, I think prosecutors are still reluctant to take a case to court that they aren't pretty convinced they will win. Once a suspect is acquitted, it's over. No point going forward unless they've got enough to really get a conviction.

Edited by SandyToes
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attica

attica

(edited)

SandyToes, I agree with you. I wish Kelly could school the prosecutors, showing them how best to present these cases, not just the investigators.

Edited by attica
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meisje

meisje

(edited)

Glad I came here to see the update, I only wish the pastor's wife had been arrested too. Even if he was the brawn, she was definitely the "brain" of most of it. Please tell me they don't have custody of the child any longer... When I was reading about the arrest, I found this as well, and this quote is interesting:

 

Bill Bishop, the chief assistant state attorney in Okaloosa County, distanced his office from the “Cold Justice” program.

 

“Our office did not participate in the ‘Cold Justice’ program or any of the preparation for that show,” he said. “We elected not to be involved."

 

I'm not sure if it's a statement in defense of not having soiled a potential jury, or confirmation of the viewer's sense that the biggest hurdles can be the ASAs or SAs? I tend to think the latter. The pastor's lawyer sounds like a complete baby complaining about the show's effect on the public while also arguing that there's no body. Hint to the lawyer: you should have stuck with the "no body" defense instead of reminding everyone of the huge circumstantial case that's out there for anyone to see!

Edited by meisje
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