WEBVTT - Melissa Wolfenbarger: Karyn Greer | Part 2 0:00:08.320 --> 0:00:12.920 My fourth grade teacher, Miss Eleanor, had her husband take 0:00:12.960 --> 0:00:15.960 an old TV set that used to sit in a 0:00:16.000 --> 0:00:20.160 wooden framed cabinet and he took the back panel off 0:00:20.760 --> 0:00:23.520 and cleaned out all the wires and bulbs and all 0:00:23.520 --> 0:00:26.840 the inner workings. She then had him bring it dire 0:00:26.920 --> 0:00:31.240 classroom in nineteen seventy four for us to use to 0:00:31.360 --> 0:00:35.479 do our book reports. Literally, we got to do our 0:00:35.520 --> 0:00:39.320 book reports on TV. And for me, it was a 0:00:39.440 --> 0:00:45.239 complete game changer of whether I hated the idea of 0:00:45.240 --> 0:00:47.920 giving a book report or I couldn't wait to do it. 0:00:48.560 --> 0:00:53.320 So for me, that weekly chore became something that I 0:00:53.360 --> 0:00:57.320 looked forward to because again, not only was I on TV, 0:00:58.160 --> 0:01:01.160 but one thing we did as a family, especially my 0:01:01.320 --> 0:01:04.360 four sisters and I, we never missed Mary Tyler Moore. 0:01:04.959 --> 0:01:07.880 So we just loved the idea of being a news anchor. 0:01:08.440 --> 0:01:11.360 To me, you know, they were so smart, they were informative. 0:01:11.440 --> 0:01:15.759 I mean, they were celebrities. So today it means so 0:01:15.880 --> 0:01:20.320 much to me to have you here, Karen. You are 0:01:20.360 --> 0:01:24.480 that just epitome of what a news anchor should be. 0:01:25.280 --> 0:01:30.200 Thank you, Cheryl, You've taught me everything. But I'll take that. 0:01:30.640 --> 0:01:33.480 But it's true You're smart, you're quick on your feet, 0:01:34.080 --> 0:01:38.320 You're extremely articulate, you can read and absorb and it's 0:01:38.360 --> 0:01:42.040 just amazing to watch you work. But I tell people 0:01:42.040 --> 0:01:44.080 all the time, and I've said it to you privately, 0:01:44.680 --> 0:01:49.120 as good as you are on TV, you are better 0:01:49.480 --> 0:01:53.280 privately when that camera is off. The way you truly 0:01:53.360 --> 0:01:56.560 love and care for people is amazing. So here's what 0:01:56.600 --> 0:02:00.560 I want the audience today to know about you. You 0:02:00.600 --> 0:02:05.080 are the anchor for WSB Channel two Action News in Atlanta. 0:02:05.320 --> 0:02:09.560 You are a ten time Emmy Award winner. I believe. 0:02:09.720 --> 0:02:13.120 Is that right? Ten yes and one with you and 0:02:13.160 --> 0:02:18.079 one with me. You're welcome for that one. I'm sure 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:21.639 I had a lot to do with it and not you. 0:02:21.639 --> 0:02:25.520 You are a legend in Atlanta new circles, and not 0:02:25.600 --> 0:02:30.320 just the new circles, but your volunteer work, your community outreach. 0:02:31.000 --> 0:02:36.639 You're a sorority sister, devoted. You're a wife, loving mother, 0:02:37.320 --> 0:02:40.880 a daughter, a friend. You're part of my Zone seven 0:02:40.960 --> 0:02:44.360 and have been for twenty years. You are loyal, you 0:02:44.400 --> 0:02:48.959 are trusted, honey. You are battle tested. There's no doubt. 0:02:50.160 --> 0:02:53.799 And when it comes to working scenes, I mean, Karen, 0:02:54.639 --> 0:02:58.480 I've told people I don't know how many times that 0:02:58.600 --> 0:03:01.680 when I watched some of these crimes shows and the 0:03:01.760 --> 0:03:05.440 hummer pulls up and a sexy leg and a stiletto 0:03:05.600 --> 0:03:09.880 heel comes out, you know that that's just not realistic. 0:03:10.360 --> 0:03:14.440 Until I worked with you, and when you came on 0:03:14.480 --> 0:03:19.080 a live scene with knee high Gucci boots, I thought, well, 0:03:19.760 --> 0:03:23.760 I can't ever say that again because I've seen somebody 0:03:23.800 --> 0:03:26.520 work or crime saying looking sexy. I've seen it, so 0:03:26.560 --> 0:03:31.239 I can't say that anymore. But we worked Melissa Wolfenberger together, 0:03:31.440 --> 0:03:34.120 and that's what we're here to talk about today. So 0:03:34.240 --> 0:03:38.920 Karen Greer, welcome to Zone seven. So excited to be 0:03:38.960 --> 0:03:41.080 a part of Zone seven. Let me fix something here. 0:03:41.120 --> 0:03:44.680 I had those boots on because I was in between shows. 0:03:44.920 --> 0:03:47.360 So I met you in the middle of my shift. 0:03:47.360 --> 0:03:50.000 That's when I was doing early mornings and came out. 0:03:50.040 --> 0:03:51.480 We hung out for a couple of hours and I 0:03:51.520 --> 0:03:54.200 went back to work. So I learned after that to 0:03:54.920 --> 0:03:58.280 bring other boots. Yes, And I've also seen you do 0:03:58.400 --> 0:04:01.400 such a quick change that you were live on air 0:04:01.520 --> 0:04:04.520 doing the news, ran out, did a quick thing with 0:04:04.640 --> 0:04:07.760 me on seen, ran back, and then the next thing 0:04:07.800 --> 0:04:11.280 I know, you're walking out in an evening gown. Yeah. 0:04:11.320 --> 0:04:13.400 I mean you're one of the hardest working people I've 0:04:13.400 --> 0:04:16.440 ever met. I don't know that you've ever told any 0:04:16.520 --> 0:04:21.640 nonprofit no and everybody benefits when you show up. So again, 0:04:21.800 --> 0:04:24.960 thank you. Well, I'm honored to work on this, Cheryl, 0:04:25.080 --> 0:04:30.680 because you know, the Wolfenberger the family has been amazing 0:04:30.960 --> 0:04:37.800 and her whole disappearance, what happened? How long it's taken 0:04:38.400 --> 0:04:41.039 to just get any answers and we're still waiting for 0:04:41.120 --> 0:04:44.520 answers A twenty one year old You know, I look 0:04:44.560 --> 0:04:49.839 at my children, your children twenty one, twenty two, and 0:04:50.040 --> 0:04:53.600 to disappear in nineteen ninety eight, where you live with 0:04:53.600 --> 0:04:56.560 your husband and your two children, and nobody really knew anything. 0:04:56.800 --> 0:05:00.680 That's just bizarre. It is bizarre. And ask you, now 0:05:00.720 --> 0:05:04.000 you've covered this case for a long long time. When 0:05:04.080 --> 0:05:06.520 you cover a case like this, do you have a 0:05:06.560 --> 0:05:09.000 method or do you just kind of keep it fluid 0:05:09.080 --> 0:05:12.440 and as witnesses come up or people want to be interviewed, 0:05:12.839 --> 0:05:16.279 how do you operate? Try and keep it fluid because 0:05:16.279 --> 0:05:18.960 as you know, people will, you know, sometimes say I 0:05:19.000 --> 0:05:21.599 saw something, I know something. So you don't want to 0:05:21.600 --> 0:05:25.160 ever discount some of those people who will contact you 0:05:25.240 --> 0:05:27.760 about your story because we have you, as you know, 0:05:27.920 --> 0:05:31.320 heard from people who had a tidbit had some information 0:05:31.400 --> 0:05:34.080 for us. So I just try and keep it open 0:05:34.480 --> 0:05:38.400 and try and encourage people to be a part of 0:05:38.440 --> 0:05:42.000 our investigation. Work this with us, because it takes a 0:05:42.080 --> 0:05:44.680 village to solve some of these Oh, there's no doubt 0:05:44.680 --> 0:05:48.040 about that. And I think you hit on something really 0:05:48.080 --> 0:05:52.160 important that I want to explore. A lot of times 0:05:52.240 --> 0:05:55.760 people will talk to you when they won't talk to 0:05:55.760 --> 0:05:59.160 the police. So the Karen Greer that comes into their 0:05:59.200 --> 0:06:03.480 home every night, they do know you. They are connected 0:06:03.520 --> 0:06:06.680 to you, they feel like and they see you so 0:06:06.760 --> 0:06:08.880 much and listen to your point of view and the 0:06:08.880 --> 0:06:11.919 way you, you know, talk on TV. I think that 0:06:12.000 --> 0:06:15.320 they trust you. I know that they trust you, and 0:06:15.400 --> 0:06:18.640 sometimes if they don't trust law enforcement, you have an 0:06:18.760 --> 0:06:21.520 end where a lot of times the police don't. And 0:06:21.560 --> 0:06:24.720 I think that's powerful. I've worked more than thirty years, 0:06:24.720 --> 0:06:27.440 three decades in this market, and I've worked hard to 0:06:27.560 --> 0:06:31.039 be a trusted source, someone people feel comfortable talking to, 0:06:32.080 --> 0:06:35.120 that you weren't afraid of sitting down with me, that 0:06:35.240 --> 0:06:37.880 you you know, knew that I was going to be 0:06:37.920 --> 0:06:42.920 fair and honest. So I do love that, and you know, 0:06:42.960 --> 0:06:46.800 I love the way you've guided me into walking crime scenes. 0:06:46.920 --> 0:06:50.080 You can't just say this happened, you know in Southwest Atlanta. 0:06:50.200 --> 0:06:52.640 Go walk over there, see how this happened, See where 0:06:52.640 --> 0:06:55.520 the body was found, see where the house was walk it, 0:06:56.400 --> 0:06:59.680 learn it, be a part of it. And I appreciate 0:06:59.720 --> 0:07:03.680 you for that. Oh honey, listen, there was no better 0:07:03.680 --> 0:07:07.320 time in my career than working with you. So when 0:07:07.400 --> 0:07:10.720 you and I decided we were going to take on 0:07:10.800 --> 0:07:14.760 Melissa Wolfenberger, I think we did something pretty good in 0:07:14.800 --> 0:07:19.080 that we brought in a lot of different people at 0:07:19.120 --> 0:07:23.280 the same time, which I think was critical. I'm going 0:07:23.360 --> 0:07:25.560 to tell everybody just a little bit and then I 0:07:25.600 --> 0:07:28.520 want you to kind of give your opinion of the 0:07:28.560 --> 0:07:32.160 way we did this. So we got the mama and 0:07:32.160 --> 0:07:37.280 the sister, the assistant disc attorney, Agrian Love, investigator Stein, 0:07:38.440 --> 0:07:43.000 Dwayne Thompson who's an expert search away metal detectors, Tray 0:07:43.000 --> 0:07:49.000 Sergeant who's an expert work in canine searches, and everybody 0:07:49.120 --> 0:07:52.960 was there so there was no confusion about where something happened, 0:07:53.000 --> 0:07:57.560 where something was located, what could possibly, you know, be done. Now, 0:07:58.720 --> 0:08:01.600 everybody got to be the collectively and get on the 0:08:01.640 --> 0:08:05.960 same page with can we find additional evidence in the 0:08:06.560 --> 0:08:11.200 case of Melissa Wolfenberger. But something really incredible happened when 0:08:11.200 --> 0:08:14.040 the assistant distric attorney got on scene. What was that 0:08:14.240 --> 0:08:18.400 care She was amazing. She you know, came in her 0:08:18.440 --> 0:08:25.600 work attire and walked into that wooded area looking for clues. 0:08:26.360 --> 0:08:30.880 She got in there, got dirty, and then had a chance. 0:08:31.040 --> 0:08:33.000 She had a chance to talk to the family, the 0:08:33.120 --> 0:08:36.760 mother and the sister and told them She's not letting 0:08:36.800 --> 0:08:39.440 this go. This this is going to be something that 0:08:39.520 --> 0:08:44.200 she champions because this case is is just unbelievable. Now, 0:08:44.280 --> 0:08:49.840 let's get real. When Adrian Love stood where the skull 0:08:49.960 --> 0:08:54.280 was found and saw its proximity to where the husband worked, 0:08:54.679 --> 0:09:02.280 what was her reaction flabbergasted? Right, she her face told 0:09:02.280 --> 0:09:06.960 it all, told it all. She was literally speechless. And 0:09:07.040 --> 0:09:11.640 what was so fantastic for me in that moment is 0:09:11.679 --> 0:09:17.640 watching Melissa's mama and sister Norma and Tina because they 0:09:17.720 --> 0:09:22.559 knew and that just that one moment they had an 0:09:22.559 --> 0:09:28.520 ally because Adrian Love got mad. She got mad thinking 0:09:28.600 --> 0:09:31.320 that skull is right here and you could put a 0:09:31.400 --> 0:09:33.760 golf ball to the front door of where he worked. 0:09:34.160 --> 0:09:36.920 I mean, she's gonna do something about that. She is 0:09:37.000 --> 0:09:40.480 not playing when it comes to this case. And if 0:09:40.520 --> 0:09:43.760 anybody knows what's going on in Metro Atlanta right now, 0:09:43.800 --> 0:09:48.880 she's on a big crime case now with some rappers here, 0:09:49.080 --> 0:09:52.880 young thug and she is part of that team that 0:09:53.040 --> 0:09:58.079 is prosecuting them. And she is no joke, no joke. 0:09:58.440 --> 0:10:02.200 How she steps in, how she does her homework, and 0:10:03.000 --> 0:10:06.320 know that she's not going to let this go. So 0:10:06.400 --> 0:10:10.040 I love that about her. And she kind of gave 0:10:10.120 --> 0:10:13.360 us an education that you know, this isn't the end 0:10:13.400 --> 0:10:16.040 of this for her. Expect something very soon. So that's 0:10:16.040 --> 0:10:19.200 what we're waiting on at this point, yep. And you know, 0:10:19.240 --> 0:10:21.680 when everybody was there together and got to, you know, 0:10:21.760 --> 0:10:25.079 kind of give their opinion about what should happen next, 0:10:25.080 --> 0:10:28.720 and where we were watching Dwayne search for the Saul 0:10:29.440 --> 0:10:34.000 and watching you know, Trace work her dogs, I felt 0:10:34.040 --> 0:10:37.440 like we stand a really good chance of finding something, 0:10:37.679 --> 0:10:41.600 of locating something that might push this thing even further 0:10:41.679 --> 0:10:45.400 than we've gotten right now. Cheryl, those dogs with Trace, 0:10:45.840 --> 0:10:48.600 I've never seen anything like it. She got them out 0:10:48.600 --> 0:10:53.599 there on the scent. They charged into that wooded area charged. 0:10:54.160 --> 0:10:56.240 I mean they were dragging her. Oh yeah, they were 0:10:56.320 --> 0:10:58.640 dragging her and they were pulling out things that we 0:10:59.040 --> 0:11:02.080 were surprised. But they went from the front to the 0:11:02.120 --> 0:11:07.080 back of those woods looking and we really were thinking 0:11:07.160 --> 0:11:09.760 they're gonna find something the way they're digging. And you know, 0:11:09.960 --> 0:11:14.240 with investigators Steyn there, he got to not only understand 0:11:14.280 --> 0:11:16.760 that crime scene three sixty that we talked about three 0:11:16.880 --> 0:11:20.840 sixty one specifically for those that know me, but you know, 0:11:20.920 --> 0:11:24.640 with he and Adrian and you and the mama and 0:11:24.720 --> 0:11:28.320 myself all standing there saying, you know, this is going 0:11:28.400 --> 0:11:30.480 to be something we need to put in our playbook 0:11:31.000 --> 0:11:34.440 and this is where we go from ground zero to 0:11:34.600 --> 0:11:38.160 one to two, to three to four, etc. And it 0:11:38.280 --> 0:11:41.439 reminded me I grew up with a family that ran 0:11:41.520 --> 0:11:43.520 a small business in Atlanta and then it became a 0:11:43.559 --> 0:11:48.480 really incredibly large business. But their daddy, Jean, he would 0:11:48.480 --> 0:11:52.280 always say, let's have an understanding, so we don't have 0:11:52.320 --> 0:11:56.760 a misunderstanding. And that is another thing that went through 0:11:56.800 --> 0:11:59.440 my mind while we were all standing there. There was 0:11:59.520 --> 0:12:02.199 no doubt out we were all on the same page. 0:12:06.480 --> 0:12:09.800 The media is a tool for law enforcement on cold 0:12:09.840 --> 0:12:15.440 cases period. The media can do things law enforcement just 0:12:15.720 --> 0:12:19.920 can't do, and one of them is reach a ton 0:12:20.000 --> 0:12:23.200 of people with one episode of something. I don't care 0:12:23.200 --> 0:12:27.080 whether it's a story on the nightly news or a 0:12:27.160 --> 0:12:33.360 documentary or something on social media. Typically, your hometown newspaper 0:12:33.760 --> 0:12:38.000 or larger news organizations have more followers than the local 0:12:38.040 --> 0:12:42.960 police department, so again, they can reach people at a 0:12:43.120 --> 0:12:48.800 larger volume, faster. There's no better way to ask for 0:12:48.840 --> 0:12:54.720 the public's help with witnesses with a missing person. Regarding 0:12:54.800 --> 0:13:00.280 reward money, other types of tips, you have to have 0:13:00.520 --> 0:13:05.080 the media's help to reach the most people possible to 0:13:05.120 --> 0:13:09.960 help on cases. People oftentimes will speak to the media 0:13:10.000 --> 0:13:13.280 when they don't feel comfortable speaking to the police. I've 0:13:13.320 --> 0:13:17.600 seen it over and over. They know that reporter can't 0:13:17.760 --> 0:13:22.000 arrest them. They feel like they know that reporter personally, 0:13:22.120 --> 0:13:25.760 oftentimes because they see them in their home at night 0:13:25.800 --> 0:13:29.360 on the TV, whereas that police officer they've never met 0:13:29.400 --> 0:13:33.959 that person before. The media also has tools of their own, 0:13:34.360 --> 0:13:39.760 such as archives of past interviews and crime scene footage. 0:13:40.520 --> 0:13:44.200 This can be a money tree for law enforcement. If 0:13:44.240 --> 0:13:47.440 you go to your local reporter because you have a 0:13:47.440 --> 0:13:50.440 good work in relationship, or even if you don't you 0:13:50.480 --> 0:13:53.960 want to start one? And you ask them if they 0:13:54.000 --> 0:13:56.760 would let you see crime scene footage from a crime 0:13:56.760 --> 0:14:00.760 that occurred twenty five years ago, fifteen years ago. You 0:14:00.840 --> 0:14:04.160 may see a witness being interviewed that you didn't even 0:14:04.160 --> 0:14:07.960 know existed. They may have a teacher, or a neighbor 0:14:08.600 --> 0:14:12.000 or a boyfriend of the victim that's not in your file. 0:14:12.600 --> 0:14:16.960 It will also give you the benefit of watching footage 0:14:17.360 --> 0:14:20.560 so you can see exactly what the crime scene looked 0:14:20.640 --> 0:14:23.840 like them if it's been built up, if the woods 0:14:23.840 --> 0:14:26.680 have been cut down, and now there's a building where 0:14:26.680 --> 0:14:31.120 the crime scene was. Sometimes law enforcement they might have 0:14:31.200 --> 0:14:33.760 taken a video back then, but maybe they didn't. Maybe 0:14:33.760 --> 0:14:36.840 it's been lost. Maybe you haven't had time to convert it, 0:14:36.880 --> 0:14:38.720 so you don't have anything to watch it on. If 0:14:38.760 --> 0:14:41.800 it's eight millimeter, your local news can help you with that. 0:14:43.280 --> 0:14:46.040 I mean, Cheryl, how does something like this happen? Is 0:14:46.080 --> 0:14:50.080 the biggest question I have in a city like Atlanta. 0:14:50.200 --> 0:14:54.320 You know, a young woman, a mother, a wife, a daughter, 0:14:55.240 --> 0:15:00.600 goes missing. Later we find parts of her body learned 0:15:00.600 --> 0:15:04.160 in doing this. There was so much technology that wasn't 0:15:04.160 --> 0:15:08.400 available back then when this happened, that we knew we 0:15:08.520 --> 0:15:11.920 had to get them to test some of this. Now, 0:15:12.640 --> 0:15:16.560 another important aspect you and I have talked a lot about. 0:15:16.680 --> 0:15:20.680 We've been on different scenes, Nicole Smith specifically. I remember 0:15:20.720 --> 0:15:25.000 we had the conversation that at some point you stopped 0:15:25.040 --> 0:15:28.360 being a news anchor and I stopped being a crime 0:15:28.400 --> 0:15:33.320 scene investigator, and we're just two mamas. That's the only 0:15:33.360 --> 0:15:35.880 way you can see these cases is from that point 0:15:35.920 --> 0:15:38.800 of view, and I think Melissa did that for both 0:15:38.840 --> 0:15:43.680 of us as well, because you being able to craft 0:15:43.720 --> 0:15:48.400 a story to compel action not just of police and 0:15:48.520 --> 0:15:52.920 prosecutors and experts, but the public at large. This was 0:15:53.040 --> 0:15:58.280 not an easy sale. It's a family where the parents 0:15:58.320 --> 0:16:02.640 had been involved in meeting homicides themselves, and now we're 0:16:02.720 --> 0:16:05.640 asking people to care about what happened to their child 0:16:05.840 --> 0:16:10.160 in spite of their past. But you did that so expertly, 0:16:10.640 --> 0:16:13.800 and the love and concern and care that you took 0:16:13.840 --> 0:16:19.840 for Melissa was so apparent that people understood what happened 0:16:19.840 --> 0:16:22.720 to her was a separate issue and needed to be 0:16:22.760 --> 0:16:26.880 looked at because somebody's walking around free. Somebody is walking 0:16:26.960 --> 0:16:30.280 free that beheaded and dismembered a young mother of two, 0:16:30.880 --> 0:16:33.760 And we know Melissa threw no fault of her own. 0:16:33.840 --> 0:16:37.440 She was born into this family, so she had nothing 0:16:37.480 --> 0:16:42.120 to do with the sins of her parents. So you know, 0:16:42.200 --> 0:16:45.800 for what, the cruel way in which she was murdered 0:16:45.800 --> 0:16:49.160 and dismembered, she didn't deserve it. No one deserves that, 0:16:49.960 --> 0:16:52.800 and so it was important for us to tell that 0:16:52.920 --> 0:16:57.600 story so that people didn't blame her. Didn't you look 0:16:57.600 --> 0:17:01.080 at her family situation as a why I no one cared. 0:17:01.520 --> 0:17:04.240 You have to care. I mean, you look at her smile, 0:17:05.000 --> 0:17:07.800 you look at her innocence, you look at her babies 0:17:07.880 --> 0:17:10.480 who are not babies now because this has been so long, 0:17:11.640 --> 0:17:15.919 and it just breaks your heart. It does. And Carl 0:17:15.960 --> 0:17:18.760 Patton wrote a letter to the two of us, and 0:17:18.840 --> 0:17:22.280 in that letter he told us that if he had 0:17:22.320 --> 0:17:26.320 had any idea what he had done to those other families, 0:17:26.720 --> 0:17:30.359 he was just young and stupid and he didn't realize 0:17:30.960 --> 0:17:33.719 how he made them feel and how he destroyed their world. 0:17:34.440 --> 0:17:37.080 And he told you and I on that letter that 0:17:37.440 --> 0:17:40.879 ever since Melissa had been murdered, part of what he 0:17:40.920 --> 0:17:45.840 feels every day is just that remorse and guilt towards 0:17:45.960 --> 0:17:50.080 how he destroyed somebody's life. Do you think we'll find 0:17:50.119 --> 0:17:54.639 the torso. You know, s I worry, It's been so 0:17:54.880 --> 0:17:58.439 many years. You know, as we know, there was a 0:17:58.560 --> 0:18:02.080 dog that was pulling back out of the woods, so 0:18:02.160 --> 0:18:07.439 who knows what animals may have literally been in those 0:18:07.480 --> 0:18:13.480 woods and disturbing that evidence. I wondered that we may 0:18:13.560 --> 0:18:16.520 not ever find that torso. But we found it. We 0:18:16.600 --> 0:18:20.480 found her skull, we found her head, which I thought 0:18:20.560 --> 0:18:25.480 was crucial, and the arms and legs, and her arms 0:18:25.480 --> 0:18:30.040 and legs, and we talked about perhaps testing those bags, 0:18:30.400 --> 0:18:33.639 finding out where those bags came from. You know, I 0:18:33.720 --> 0:18:38.600 was unseen two weeks ago, and now is almost the 0:18:38.680 --> 0:18:42.760 perfect time to search because all the leaves are off 0:18:42.760 --> 0:18:46.640 the trees and the brush is way back. You can 0:18:46.800 --> 0:18:51.800 see openly all kind of rusted machinery and different items 0:18:51.800 --> 0:18:54.320 that are out there, big items, And you know, I 0:18:54.359 --> 0:18:56.840 don't know that we don't need to get the search 0:18:56.880 --> 0:18:59.879 party back together and go back now. I would love that. 0:19:00.480 --> 0:19:02.640 And we just need to tell people because this case 0:19:02.760 --> 0:19:05.280 is going to be so captivating to them and important. 0:19:05.680 --> 0:19:08.760 You know what, don't really don't don't go on social media, 0:19:08.880 --> 0:19:12.600 don't post what you think you know, don't ask questions. 0:19:12.880 --> 0:19:17.359 Just let the professionals handle this. Let the investigators work 0:19:17.400 --> 0:19:21.520 on this, because we don't want to damage or hurt 0:19:21.560 --> 0:19:25.080 the integrity of this case. Oh that's a good point, absolutely, 0:19:25.480 --> 0:19:27.280 And I know you're willing to go back. I know 0:19:27.359 --> 0:19:30.199 the family's willing to go back to Yeah, and I 0:19:30.280 --> 0:19:33.320 know Adrian she'd be all about it too. Pick a 0:19:33.440 --> 0:19:38.280 day before those leaves come back, and you know everything's 0:19:38.320 --> 0:19:41.000 grown over again because that area was grown over. Sure, 0:19:41.040 --> 0:19:45.040 how many years are we talking about? Twenty? Oh? Yeah? 0:19:45.080 --> 0:19:48.800 And you don't I remember most when the dog started pulling, 0:19:49.480 --> 0:19:51.639 and I think it's important to let people know the 0:19:51.680 --> 0:19:56.320 dogs worked independently. She worked them separately. But when that 0:19:56.359 --> 0:20:00.239 first dog went, Trace was right behind them and she 0:20:00.480 --> 0:20:05.600 just disappeared into the kud zoo in the woods. It 0:20:05.640 --> 0:20:14.639 took her all in first. Face first. I think everybody 0:20:14.680 --> 0:20:17.600 remembers Scott Peterson when he was talking to Diane Sawyer 0:20:17.960 --> 0:20:20.960 in two thousand and three when he said about his 0:20:21.080 --> 0:20:26.520 missing wife Lacy, she was amazing. I think we all were, like, 0:20:26.760 --> 0:20:30.960 what he just referred to her in past hints? That 0:20:31.119 --> 0:20:35.119 was so important for law enforcement. If he's referring to 0:20:35.160 --> 0:20:37.760 her in past hinse he on some level does not 0:20:37.880 --> 0:20:41.080 believe she's coming home. Why would he not believe that? 0:20:41.960 --> 0:20:44.040 There are people that have worked in the media that 0:20:44.119 --> 0:20:48.320 have done unbelievable work on cases. We all know Woodward 0:20:48.320 --> 0:20:51.760 and Bernstein and what they did when it came to Watergate. 0:20:52.640 --> 0:20:55.760 Karen Greer, who y'all have heard from, She's put cases 0:20:55.760 --> 0:21:00.520 out there that had a positive conclusion. Part of the 0:21:00.560 --> 0:21:04.280 reason it did because Karen would not let these cases go. 0:21:05.200 --> 0:21:07.680 She's going to keep them in the spotlight. So cases 0:21:07.720 --> 0:21:11.560 like Honey Malone, Nicole Smith, and of course Melissa Wolfenberger, 0:21:12.080 --> 0:21:17.200 she keeps them alive in the public. Have you ever 0:21:17.240 --> 0:21:20.000 seen a case like this before in your career three 0:21:20.040 --> 0:21:22.960 decades here in Atlanta. You know, I worked in Charlson, 0:21:23.000 --> 0:21:29.440 South Carolina, Champagne, Illinois, never anything to this degree. It's 0:21:29.520 --> 0:21:33.359 amazing the twists and turns of this case that make 0:21:33.400 --> 0:21:37.679 it so intricate. But it's gonna get solved. You just 0:21:37.760 --> 0:21:41.119 trust us. Oh, I trust it, And I know that 0:21:41.240 --> 0:21:43.520 media is going to be a big part of that, 0:21:43.680 --> 0:21:47.040 because that's what kept this case alive. This case what't 0:21:47.080 --> 0:21:50.600 on anybody's radar. Nobody was talking about it, nobody was 0:21:50.680 --> 0:21:53.679 doing anything about it. Nobody was mad about it, But 0:21:54.600 --> 0:21:58.719 enter Karen Graham and that whole thing changed. You and 0:21:58.760 --> 0:22:02.160 I got a chance to go Nancy Grace and discussed 0:22:02.240 --> 0:22:04.960 this case live at Crime Con. What was that like 0:22:05.160 --> 0:22:10.840 for you? Amazing? That room was awesome of people who 0:22:10.880 --> 0:22:14.240 were like us and care about cold cases, who care 0:22:14.280 --> 0:22:16.880 about helping get to the bottom of things. They were 0:22:16.880 --> 0:22:19.320 trying to give us ideas and things we needed to do. 0:22:20.480 --> 0:22:25.800 It was unbelievable. And I never knew crime true crime. 0:22:26.840 --> 0:22:29.960 These kinds of stories meant so much to so many. 0:22:30.280 --> 0:22:33.160 The audience that really is a part of this are 0:22:33.200 --> 0:22:37.040 die hearts. They really want to make a difference. Yeah, 0:22:37.080 --> 0:22:39.600 it was great, But you know, we sat there and 0:22:39.680 --> 0:22:43.000 you know and Jim Clementi came and sat with us 0:22:43.000 --> 0:22:45.840 and helped out, and Jared Bradley came and sat with 0:22:45.920 --> 0:22:48.359 us and helped out. And you just think all of 0:22:48.400 --> 0:22:51.280 these wonderful people that have come and given us time 0:22:51.359 --> 0:22:54.000 and information. You and I had a chance to work 0:22:54.040 --> 0:22:58.679 with Paul Holes on Nicole's case. Yeah, So all of 0:22:58.680 --> 0:23:02.320 these people, given the best of themselves, has to me 0:23:02.600 --> 0:23:05.240 been such an uplifting part of what we do. Because 0:23:05.800 --> 0:23:07.840 you and I both get asked a lot, how do 0:23:07.920 --> 0:23:10.679 y'all not burn out? Well, I don't know how you 0:23:10.760 --> 0:23:15.159 burn out when you're just surrounded by just fantastic, heroic, 0:23:15.400 --> 0:23:18.359 loving people. I mean, it's kind of an honor to 0:23:18.400 --> 0:23:21.320 get to be with them every day. And I love 0:23:21.359 --> 0:23:23.879 that we had an opportunity to work with law enforcement 0:23:24.520 --> 0:23:27.199 and this great state to teach them, show them some 0:23:27.280 --> 0:23:29.280 of the new technology that is available so that they 0:23:29.320 --> 0:23:32.879 could use it in their arsenal. Yes, and Sergeant Layton, 0:23:33.119 --> 0:23:37.560 I mean, what an incredible ambassador for the Atlanta Police Department. Him. 0:23:37.680 --> 0:23:41.800 I do too, just a spectacular human being. But what 0:23:41.960 --> 0:23:46.399 I tell you, not only is he capable and willing 0:23:47.400 --> 0:23:52.560 and just ready to jump in this thing with both 0:23:52.600 --> 0:23:55.800 feet every chance he gets, but he's also open and 0:23:55.920 --> 0:23:59.520 willing to hear somebody say, hey, have you tried such 0:23:59.560 --> 0:24:02.679 and such, or we can maybe help connect you to 0:24:02.720 --> 0:24:06.360 somebody that can maybe open some doors to some new technology. 0:24:06.880 --> 0:24:11.560 That's very rare. It's rare. It's rare. Now, I did 0:24:11.640 --> 0:24:14.800 mention a crime come But for y'all that don't know 0:24:14.840 --> 0:24:18.159 what that is. It is the number one true crime 0:24:18.200 --> 0:24:22.040 event in the world. It lasts a whole weekend, and 0:24:22.119 --> 0:24:26.159 it is dedicated to anything and all things true crime. 0:24:26.880 --> 0:24:30.800 People from all walks of life come and you know 0:24:30.880 --> 0:24:35.639 they don't necessarily have anything in common except true crime. 0:24:36.280 --> 0:24:43.160 That's the common denominator with everybody. So it could be teachers, plumbers, actors, 0:24:43.760 --> 0:24:47.280 detectives all in the same room working on the same 0:24:47.320 --> 0:24:50.119 case at the same time, trying to help a family 0:24:50.119 --> 0:24:57.040 get answers. There are experts, survivors, authors, podcasters, and media 0:24:57.119 --> 0:25:02.119 personalities all in the same place for the same reason, 0:25:02.600 --> 0:25:06.960 and it is an unbelievable experience. You and I both 0:25:07.000 --> 0:25:10.160 know Vince Vlasquez, and I remember Vince told me years ago, 0:25:10.520 --> 0:25:14.080 and for the audience, Vince Velasquez is a retired homicide 0:25:14.080 --> 0:25:17.800 detective in Atlanta, but he's on a show called atl Homicide. 0:25:18.359 --> 0:25:23.320 Wonderful person. But Vince told me once, if anybody contacts 0:25:23.400 --> 0:25:26.080 him and says, hey, I have an idea for how 0:25:26.119 --> 0:25:29.439 you can solve a case, he said, my only response 0:25:30.040 --> 0:25:32.880 should be thank you. And that's all this is. I mean, 0:25:33.119 --> 0:25:34.679 I tell people all the time, you and I do 0:25:34.760 --> 0:25:37.440 not have a crystal ball. I wouldn't use it if 0:25:37.440 --> 0:25:39.399 you gave it to me. And we worked on a 0:25:39.440 --> 0:25:43.960 case with him that yield it, yield it answers. Oh yes, 0:25:44.640 --> 0:25:47.520 I mean that case, and we're going to be discussing 0:25:47.560 --> 0:25:51.840 it at another time. But again, that case was so powerful. 0:25:52.000 --> 0:25:56.040 Vince even said, I'm retired, but I will work this 0:25:56.119 --> 0:25:59.520 case for free till the day I die. Yes, stick 0:25:59.560 --> 0:26:03.639 around it. See what case that is? People, Oh, please 0:26:03.640 --> 0:26:06.280 stick around because it's gonna be a good one in 0:26:06.320 --> 0:26:09.320