After the First 48

In Dallas, Detective Rick Duggan arrested two suspects for the murder of Leonel Valle. Now the justice system needed to determine which of them was most responsible - the girlfriend, Marsela Cortez, whose fingerprints were found on his empty safe, or her jealous ex-boyfriend, Gerardo Hernandez?

In Dallas, Detective Eddie Ibarra used surveillance video to track down Jose Castro who was accused of brutally murdering a fifty-one year-old woman in the lobby of her office building. Castro now faced the death penalty, but his defense team would come up with an unexpected counter argument that could change the outcome of the case.

Detective Robert Arredondo and his team find themselves involved in a cross country manhunt for suspects in the brutal shootings of three young men.

A look back at the Ashes and Snow and Backyard Murder cases.

Ashes and Snow: Sgt. Rick Zimmerman and Sgt. Tammy Diedrich were called to the murder of a young woman, found strangled in a partially burned car in Minneapolis just days before Christmas. 
Backyard Murder: Sgt. Mike Martel found a young man shot to death in a neighborhood yard in Detroit. Martel had to rely on a friend of the victim's to help him close the case.

On a Sunday night in June 2007, Christian Marton and his girlfriend Monica Stafford drove two hours from Axtell, Texas to Dallas where Christian had arranged to buy a car. By the end of the evening, Christian was dead–shot in a robbery attempt. Lead Detective John Palmer and his partner, Armando Perez used both surveillance footage from a fast food restaurant and cell phone records to build a case against the man who planned the robbery. For the man who actually pulled the trigger, Palmer relied on both his fingerprint found at the scene of the crime and an id by Monica. Both men were charged with capital murder. The case went to trial in February of 2009.

A father of five found stabbed over 50 times shocks friends and family. Cleveland Homicide follows a bizarre trail of evidence that takes the case someplace they least expected.

In Dallas, detectives investigated the disappearance of a 20-year old woman who suddenly went missing. After a six-day search, detectives arrested Douglas Edwards who confessed to the murder of his ex-girlfriend, found strangled and burned in a remote field. Two years later, in the hope of begging the court for mercy, Edwards opts to have his sentenced determined by a jury.

On March 26th, 2006, homicide detectives were called to the site of a burning car. Inside were the charred remains of 22-year-old Xenia Wilson, the mother of a four-year-old daughter. Detectives Rick Duggan and Randy Laboda closed the case by arresting three suspects: Jose "J.J." Verduzco, Chito Rojas and Ismael "Boogeyman" Moreno. Verduzco and Rojas pled guilty and agreed to testify against Moreno. The trial would take turns that surprised both defendant and prosecutor. And the case itself would have a tragic postcript.

In Dallas, detectives investigated the shooting death of 26-year-old Daniel Barron, who was killed in the doorway of his home. Detectives soon discovered that the victim's residence doubled as a drug den and that he was robbed. A tipster called-in and eventually six suspects were arrested and charged with capital murder. All six individuals admit involvement in the crime and point to 19-year-old Callie Marshall, mother of two, as the group's ringleader. A year and a half later, Callie finally faces a jury of her peers. Will they see a confused girl who organized the robbery in order to bail her boyfriend out of jail in time for Christmas, or a coldblooded killer?

In Dallas, Texas in 2007 Darell Billingsela was charged with brutally attacking and killing twenty-two-year old Jessica Lewalling in a jealous rage. Billingslea was a two-time convicted murderer out on parole. Prosecutor Jennifer Bennett was determined to make sure Billingslea would not slip through the system again. And, in February 2007, thirty-six-year old Antoine, "Tony" Hamilton was found shot dead, and left behind a vacant house. His friend, Carlos Mitchell, confessed to the crime. Prosecutor Jenni Morse thought she had a slam dunk case--until the verdict in a similar case shook her confidence in getting a conviction.

In November 2006, Dallas detectives investigated the murder of a twenty-nine-year-old mother of four, found burned beyond recognition in her car behind a remote warehouse. Detectives soon discovered that the victim's former boyfriend and father of her infant son, had been stalking her for months, leading up to her death. After tracking down two homeless witnesses and finding a piece of crucial evidence, police were able to charge James Bartley with capital murder. The Dallas DA's office was responsible for bringing the case to a close. In order to do that successfully, the prosecutor and her investigator had to keep close tabs on their key homeless witnesses for years, while the cased awaited trial. When Bartley finally stood trial in 2009, the prosecution worried the jury wouldn't believe the testimony of two homeless crack addicts and find the evidence insufficient to prove Bartley guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Suspects in the case of a cab driver who was robbed and murdered face their day in court.

In July of 2006, Miami detectives Rolando Garcia and Orlando Silva responded to the shooting death of nine-year-old Sherdavia Jenkins. After a three-week investigation, detectives were able to close their case, charging two men with second-degree murder: Damon "Red Rock" Darling and Leroy "Yellowman" Larose. Three years later the two men would face Sherdavia's family in court.

Now that some of our strongest cases have been adjudicated, we can take viewers inside the powerful and dramatic events that unfolded after the arrest, up to and including the conviction.

Cases involving a football game murder and a shooting at an illegal dentist office go to court.

In 2008, 19-year old Mikael Hudson was shot in Texas, two suspects were arrest. In 2005, Virginia Rodriguez was murdered, and her husband was caught and extradited to the US, but Prosecutor Treena Kay had concerns about getting a conviction.