When A Teen Killer Realizes She's Been Caught

- [Narrator] The following interrogation footage has never been seen before. - Oh, you... (video swishing) - Grandma? - (sobbing) Oh, my God! - I wonder if she can get out. (Karen sobbing) - She would (indistinct) probably. I'm not gonna ask any questions right now until we get... (Alyssa crying) (door latch clicking) - [Karen] (sobbing) It'll never be okay. No! - [Narrator] What would make a grandmother emotionally break down like that? For Karen Brooke, it was the murder her 15-year-old granddaughter, Alyssa Bustamante, just confessed to. If you had to describe Alyssa Bustamante's childhood with a single word, it would undoubtedly be tragic. According to case documents, Alyssa confided in a mental health professional that she had been subjected to severe mistreatment at a young age. The resulting drama led to Alyssa being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, and the doctor stated she developed an abhorrence for violence. She'd been the result of a teenage pregnancy, as her mother, Michelle, was only 15 years old when she was born. Though her grandparents were excited to have grandchildren, Alyssa's parents, Michelle and Ceasar, weren't prepared for parenthood. It wasn't long before Alyssa was joined by three younger siblings, twin brothers, and a sister named Emma. The children grew up in a turbulent household. Ceasar Bustamante was eventually charged with three counts of assault and was sentenced to serve three concurrent prison terms. There was no stability for Alyssa, her brothers and sister, and they were often evicted, forcing them to constantly pack up and move. Michelle's parents, Karen and Gary Brooke, stepped in to help take care of the children. However, they soon found that many of their efforts such as sending food to the family and visiting, were all in vain. Eventually they realized that there was only one thing they could do that would truly make a difference in the children's lives. The grandparents decided to campaign for full custody of Alyssa and her siblings. When they gained full custody of the children, Alyssa was about eight years old. Living with her grandparents offered her stability for the first time in her life. But Alyssa had already been exposed to far too much. Seeking a new start, Alyssa's grandparents moved the family to the small town of St. Martins, Missouri, where they bought a nice home on a large piece of land. Right away, the twin boys and Emma flourished in their new location, but Alyssa seemed to have difficulty adjusting. It was in this small town of just over 1,000 people, where everyone knows everyone, that Alyssa's gruesome crime would devastate all who lived there. It was Wednesday, October 21st, 2009, when Alyssa's younger sister, Emma Bustamante, now six years old, knocked on the Olten's front door. She wanted nine-year-old Elizabeth Olten to come out and play. The Bustamante's and Olten's only lived four houses down from each other, and the two young girls would often play at each other's houses. But on this particular day, Elizabeth would never make it home. Elizabeth Olten was a typical girly girl. Before Emma showed up at Elizabeth's house, she'd been excitedly practicing her lines at the dining room table for an upcoming musical, "Noteworthy." Elizabeth's mother, Patty, said she couldn't go play at first, dinner would be ready soon, but the girls begged her enough for her to finally give in. Patty gave her daughter clear instructions to be home by 6:00 pm, when the sun would nearly be set in late October. And Patty trusted that Elizabeth would come home since the fourth-grader was terrified of the dark. Emma and Elizabeth played board games and hopscotch in the Bustamante driveway. Eventually Elizabeth told Emma that she needed to go home. Emma stood on the big rock by her driveway and watched her friend begin her walk home. However, she didn't stay to see if Elizabeth made it all the way home safely. Emma was later asked by investigators if Elizabeth might've walked through the woods to get home, but she was adamant that they never went in the woods. Emma continued playing outside, though she didn't know for how long. At some point she lost a hair tie in the thorns by her driveway and when she tried to retrieve it, she scratched her hand and her foot got stuck. Emma said she yelled until Alyssa came to help her, claiming Alyssa had been in the house and heard her through an open window. As Alyssa helped her out of the thorns, Emma noticed a spot of blood on the thigh of Alyssa's pants. She asked her sister about it, who explained it away by saying she had her period. Alyssa made her little sister promise not to tell anyone about the blood. When 6:00 pm passed, Elizabeth hadn't returned home. Worried, Patty called Elizabeth's cell phone over and over, but there was no answer. Patty then called Emma's grandmother, Karen, to ask if Elizabeth was still at their house. Karen told her that Elizabeth had never even been to the home and wasn't even aware that the girls had been playing. She hung up and immediately called the police. Authorities began their investigation by interviewing the last known person Elizabeth was with, Emma Bustamante. Emma described playing with Elizabeth from approximately 5:00 to 6:00 pm, before Elizabeth left for home. Grandma Karen sat in the room during this questioning, Emma continually glancing at her as she answered the investigator's questions. There was one detail Emma gave that struck investigators as odd, the blood stain she spotted on Alyssa's pants. Karen seemed removed from the interview, but toward the end, she stated, "We just want the truth to come out whatever it is." By 10:00 pm, word of the missing nine-year-old spread through this small town and hundreds of residents came out in support of the Olten family to search for little Elizabeth. When they had searched the whole neighborhood, as well as the woods and turned up nothing, law enforcement decided to ping Elizabeth's cell phone and found that it led back to the 60 acres of woods behind her home. Volunteers then made a strange discovery, a hole in the woods in the shape of a grave. As the forensics team began to process the scene, the FBI began interviewing Alyssa for reasons that are still unknown. They brought her to the hole where Alyssa admitted something odd, she dug the hole. When questioned why exactly she dug it, she said she just likes digging holes and would bury dead animals when she found them. Strangely, the hole ended up being empty, but investigators knew something was very off with Alyssa. They then conducted a search of her room and discovered a shocking key piece of evidence. One that they would wait to confront Alyssa with until her videotaped interrogation. This led to the most dramatic meltdown in any interrogation we've analyzed yet. - Oh, if you don't mind, I'm gonna sit here. - Huh? - If it's okay. Ooh, it rocks. - Yeah, it rocks, so if- - That's okay. - If you don't mind, if I can sit here so I can write. - Yeah. - 'Cause I'm gonna be taking a lot of notes, so- - Okay. - [Narrator] It's important to note that when a person is brought in for interrogation, law enforcement have likely developed a reasonable suspicion that the person is involved in the crime. Karen accompanied Alyssa in the interrogation room. Going in, she fully believed Alyssa was innocent. She was in for the shock of her life as the truth began to unfold right before her eyes. - [David] Walk me through exactly what happened. - We didn't go to Sunday that day, right? - No. - Okay. So I woke up and I got ready and I went out to go get the bus, but I missed the bus, 'cause it doesn't usually pick me up. - Okay. - So I went back the house and my grandpa gave me a ride to school. So I went to school. - [David] Okay. - And I was there all day. And then I came home on the bus on my own around 3:00. No, 4:00. - [Karen] 3:30. - 3:30, 4:00. I get on my own there and I just hung out in my room for a little while. And then I went for a walk around 5:00? 4:30, 5:00, something like that. - [Narrator] She is feigning ignorance, commonly referred to as playing dumb. - I was just walking around in the forest for a while. And I was supposed to take my little sister with me, but I ditched her 'cause she's annoying. - [David] Okay. - And I was just walking around in the forest and then, for about an hour. I came back around 5:30, 6:00-ish, and I went up in my room and then I heard like yelling. So I went outside and then like, she was down in the like ditch area. She was stuck in thorn bushes, so I went down there and I helped her out and she asked me why I was bleeding, because I told her I was on my period. I'm like, "Yeah, don't tell anyone that." And so I went out there and my brother and were asking about, because they saw that she was supposed to be at home or something. - [David] Okay. - And I didn't really think much of it, so we just went back to the house. - [Narrator] Alyssa nonchalantly shrugs her right shoulder. Shrugging only one shoulder is considered a modified shrug or a variant of a natural shoulder shrug. Abnormal movements like this often suggest uncertainty in what the person is conveying. She leans to her left, an additional non-verbal display of discomfort. The interrogator is in the position of power, blocking the only exit. Although she initially appeared comfortable, Bustamante is now attempting to regain her power in a position of powerlessness. - And we started to get ready to go to church, 'cause we have Wednesday night activities. - [David] Okay. - And came and he was banging on the door and he was like, "Do you know where is?" 'Cause he couldn't find her. - [Narrator] She begins to nod her head as she speaks. This does not align with her baseline pattern of non-verbal behavior. Something is off. Although we can only speculate, this may serve as a self-pacifying behavior. Bustamante is assuring herself that what she says is believable. Alternatively, Bustamante's head movements could be a conscious or subconscious manipulative non-verbal, meant to spur agreement and empathy in the interrogator. - And that's when things started to get, people were like, "Oh, what's going on?" Like, "Where is she?" - [Narrator] Continue to observe all the non-verbal indicators of discomfort that we mentioned previously. But take note of contrasts. - But we ended up going to church and a lot of stuff happened while we were there, 'cause it's from 7:00 to 8:15-ish. And when we came back, there was three sheriff cars in our property for those people who were out searching everywhere. - [David] (indistinct). - And, um, that's pretty much it. I went to sleep after that. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Bustamante says "um" here. She does not use this consistently throughout the interrogation. It is not one of her baseline tendencies. Because she does not regularly say um, this moment is worth noting. It's also interesting to note that Alyssa uses what is known as an exclusion qualifier when she states, "That's pretty much it." According to the retired CIA interrogator, Philip Houston, an exclusion qualifier is defined as being a tactic that enables people who want to withhold certain information to answer your question truthfully, without releasing that information. Examples of exclusion qualifiers include statements such as, "Not really," "Fundamentally," "For the most part," "Probably," and so on. - That's pretty much it. I went to sleep after that. - [Narrator] By stating, "That's pretty much it," she's technically being truthful, but only by leaving out key details and withholding information, specifically the murder of Elizabeth Olten. When the CIA is interrogating an individual, they conduct both body language and statement analysis. They look for clusters of three or more indicators that occur in either quick succession or all at once. This exact moment is the perfect example of what a CIA officer looks for during an interrogation to determine if someone is being deceitful. - Um, that's pretty much it. I went to sleep after that. - [Narrator] When Alyssa states, "That's pretty much it," there are four indicators that occur within just a few seconds, the aforementioned "um"- - Um... - [Narrator] a half shrug of the shoulder, shaking of the head and then nodding the head. Note, how she shakes her head no, as she states, "That's pretty much it." - Um, that's pretty much it. - [Narrator] This is known as incongruent body language. Though, of course, you always want to look for clusters. This particular moment is significant as it's paired with other indicators, including statement analysis. Alyssa employs the exclusion qualifier multiple times throughout the interrogation. See if you can spot the other moments where she employs this tactic and post the timestamps in the comments. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Alyssa gives Officer David Rice the outline of her movements on Wednesday, the 21st, but two things become clear during this retelling of events. Alyssa had come into contact with Elizabeth Olten on the day she went missing and Alyssa unwittingly places herself in the woods, where Elizabeth's cell phone last pinged, and where eventually, they'll find Elizabeth. This confirms opportunity and the place for the crime to take place. But Alyssa's demeanor comes across as calm and confident. - [David] And you have a boyfriend. - I do. - Okay, what's his name? - His name's. - [David] Dustin. Okay. Do you know, has anybody talked to him about any of this or not? - I'm pretty sure he's been interviewed. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Alyssa's boyfriend had been interviewed by law enforcement, and when the interview opens, we see him biting his nails and looking nervous. According to the case files, there had been an eye witness who claimed to see a teen allegedly resembling him near the location of Elizabeth's disappearance. This interview took place after Alyssa's own interrogation, though he was also interviewed previously as well. And as the interview begins, he had just taken a polygraph test and was about to be confronted with the results. - [Interrogator] You're not being truthful with me about everything that's going on here. And we need to come to... We need to get the truth. That's what we're here for. - [Dustin] Mm-hmm. - [Interrogator] We know a lot more stuff than we're leading on to believe. We've talked to several people. - [Narrator] The interrogator sits closely to Bustamante's boyfriend, Dustin, and speaks with authority. He states that they know Dustin has more information. This is a direct confrontation approach to interrogation. - [Interrogator] We've talked to several of your friends, we've talked to several of friends, and they've told us some stuff. They've told us some phone conversations they've had, and everything. So what do you know? - [Dustin] I don't know anything. - [Interrogator] What do you know? - [Dustin] Nothing. (video swishing) All that I know is what the FBI told me. (video squeaking) - [Interrogator] Why is the polygraph telling me different? Why is your body telling me different? Why is your heart telling me different? - [Dustin] 'Cause I'm nervous. - [Interrogator] Nervous has nothing to do with it. We've talked about that. - [Narrator] The interrogator is looking for a reason why Dustin is nervous. The polygraph test is all about psychophysiological detection of deception, PDD, or the use of physiological measures to detect lying. It measures certain autonomic, physiological markers, such as heart rate, perspiration and blood pressure. Examiners measure these markers at suspects baselines before they're interrogated. Then they measure how these markers change from question to question. These markers are associated with anxiety, which is often present when one lies. The interrogator knows that Dustin is nervous. However, the polygraph can not show exactly why he is nervous, when he is nervous. An adrenaline spike to a question could indicate lying or some other form of emotional arousal not directly related to the topic of the question. The interviewer isn't outright saying if he failed the lie detector test. Later case documents revealed the polygraphs results. Alyssa's boyfriend was asked three questions during this polygraph, all concerning Elizabeth. Did you physically cause her death? Did you physically take her life? Did you do anything physical that ended her life? He answered no to all three. Yet, according to the case file, it was determined that he was being deceptive in some way with his answers, to all three questions. - Nervousness has nothing to do with this. Nothing at all. Your heart rebels against a lie when you know you tell a lie, and there's nothing you can do to control it. You can try to control your breathing all you want, you can think of other things all you want, but your heart, that right there, is gonna tell the truth. - [Narrator] The heart is the first autonomic physiological baseline measurement collected. Some studies suggest that both heart rate and respiration rate show no significant increase or decrease depending on whether the subject told the truth. But research has produced a mixed results. Regardless of these inconsistencies, what is most telling is how suspects respond when under the impression that they were caught in a lie. Let us see how Dustin reacts when the interrogator implements this technique, a technique we will explain in just a moment. - What if I told you that we did a neighborhood canvas out there, and talked to all of the neighbors that live out there? Even the neighbors that live in the subdivision behind where lives and then there's Elizabeth's subdivision behind where lives. We talked to all those neighbors. We did a spot check out there with cars and all the cars that came off and came through there, we stopped and talked to 'em. - [Dustin] Oh. - What if I told you that somebody saw a kid about your size in a black hoodie with a black T-shirt and blue jeans on, standing there on the side of the road next to the guardrail? - [Narrator] From that point on, we see the interview began to use what is called the Reid technique. The Reid technique is an interrogation type used in the accusatory process. An interviewer tells the suspect that the results of the investigation clearly indicate they committed the crime in question. It's a three-phase process, beginning with fact analysis, then a behavioral analysis interview. This phase is designed to be non-accusatory, to develop investigative and behavioral information. The third phase follows, when appropriate, the nine steps of interrogation. - And we did a photo line up. - Well, you can do a photo line up. - We did. - [Narrator] During the initial neighborhood police canvas, the eyewitness said that they had seen a strange boy in a dark T-shirt and baggy pants standing alone at a guardrail near where Elizabeth went missing. The eyewitness had been shown a copy of Alyssa's boyfriend's driver's license photo, and they claimed that the picture resembled the person they had seen. We know that eye witness testimony is notoriously inaccurate, though admissible in court. Witnesses rely on autobiographical memory, specifically episodic memory, which is a type of recall involving events with contextual details, such as where and when something occurred. This type of memory is sensitive to memory bias. A witness might recall a suspect wearing a blue shirt a day after the occurrence, but state that the shirt was red a week later. - So why is that? - [Dustin] I wasn't there. - [Narrator] Alyssa's boyfriend comes across pretty confident, borderline defiant, when he looks the interviewer directly in the eyes. It's interesting to see him be combative with the interviewer at the mention of law enforcement having already done a photo line up. Contrary to popular belief, anger is a more common reaction in individuals accused of something that is not true. If law enforcement had completed a photo line up and it led to a positive identification, he would have already been arrested and charged. The constant accusation becomes exhausting and suspects just want the process to end. They assume that admitting something will end the interrogation. And most suspects think that invoking the rights of silence and counsel, will label them as guilty. Alyssa's boyfriend is strong-willed throughout the entire interrogation and didn't take any of the bait the interviewer dangled in front of him. After he is questioned by the interrogator in the video, he's then questioned by Sergeant Rice. It was then that he confirmed the investigator's suspicions all along, he had been hiding something. - [David] Exactly what did she tell you? - [Dustin] She told me that she killed her. - [David] Okay, she told you. (video swishing) Told you that she killed her. She told you that she strangled her, and what else? - [Dustin] Cut her, but she didn't get into detail with that, she just said strangled her and cut her. - [Narrator] On October 22nd, Alyssa had gone to his house and told him about the crime she'd committed just the day before. He denied having ever been involved in the crime and said he wasn't present when it happened. So why had he lied? - [David] You haven't said anything? - [Dustin] She scares me. - [David] You scared of what? (video swishing) - [Dustin] What if she ever found out that I gave away information that got her locked up? What if she, like I have a family and she comes, and she finds out where I live, because she's obsessed about it, and kills everybody? What if she gets out on bail and she finds out a way how to take off her ankle bracelet and she comes and kills me in my sleep and my mom, and then finds out where my sister lives and kills her? (video swishing) - [David] Scared of what? - [Dustin] (indistinct) if I'm gonna have anymore girlfriends like this. - (laughing) You poor guy. Well, I guess that's- - We're not all crazy! - [David] I guess that's understandable. - [Narrator] Dustin was never implicated in the murder of Elizabeth Olten. Back in Alyssa's interrogation, Sergeant David Rice pulls a map of the surrounding woods and neighborhood. - There's like a tree line. Do you want to like draw this for you or something? - I have a map. - Oh. (David laughs) - Why didn't you say anything. - Now the thing about this map, I don't think it has where your actual house is. So the way I understand is that your house- - Round about here. - [David] would be round about here? - Yes. - Is that right? Okay, let's say the new house's all park here. (video swishing) - And then there's a trail that goes out here and it's like right- - [David] Draw it for me if you will, Alyssa. - Okay. Um, I'm not exactly sure how far back it goes. It's like past all the clearings and then when it starts to get to like a smaller trail and whatnot, there's a little side thing. It's like a side channel I go off on. (video swishing) - There's something we always do, is we'll walk a person through their day and we make a timeline just so we can go through everything. So what time did you go for your walk? - [Narrator] The interrogator is using the TED technique, or the tell, explain, describe technique. He is making it clear to Bustamante that he wants her to recount the day of events as a narrative. By recounting the day of events as a narrative, Bustamante is more likely to reveal other telling personal or contextual details. - I went for a walk around 4:30 or 5:00. - [David] Okay, so you got home about 3:30, how long were you at home messing around before you went on your walk, do you think? - I was home at least an hour, hour and a half. - So about 4:30 or 5:00 you were there? - Right. (video swishing) Well, there's a, I believe that this little line here is the trail or something where- - Did you go out all this way over here. - Yes. And then this- - Where'd you go from here? - I just kept following the, um, path. - Where did you go from here? Show me. - [Narrator] The interrogator speaks more rapidly and presses Bustamante for an answer. During this portion of the interrogation, Bustamante has displayed many disruptions in speech frequently saying um and like. - Um, it was like, but like, um- - Did you- - [Narrator] And altering her vocal intonation. - Um, then it goes like- - That small path. - It does some turns and whatnot, but it's a pretty easy path to follow. - Yeah. - It's like a round path. - Well, I mean, show me what, does it loop back around then? - No. No, it doesn't loop, it like goes this way, I think. - [David] Okay, and then what'd you do? - And then there was a pasture, I just hung out by the creek. - [David] And then what'd you do? - I came back. - [David] Then you walked back. - Yes. - [David] And then what'd you do? - I went home? - [Narrator] She draws out the I and ends by saying home, with an upward inflection. - I went home? - [Narrator] This is what linguists would say. One, upward inflections are used when asking questions. Bustamante lacks confidence. Two, drawing out words conveys a double meaning, but the statement is not implicative or not meant to convey a double meaning. Put together, her underlying communication is, "I am not confident in what I am saying and what I am saying is in conflict with what I am thinking." As we move forward, listen for these subtle cues. Sometimes it is not just one word, but a combination of words that tell the true story. - [David] How long did that take you to do? - Um, well, it takes about- - [David] How long were you on your walk, that's what I'm asking. - Oh, well, it's about 15 or 20 minutes, I believe? Right, Grandma? It's the first cow pasture we went to when we took Princess with us. - [Karen] It's been a long time, since I've been- - Yeah, I don't actually- - [David] How long were you gone for your pasture walk? - I was gone for about an hour. - [David] Okay, so you were gone about an hour. - Mm-hmm. - When you walked out there, to the cow pasture, what were you doing out there? - I was just enjoying nature, taking a walk. - [Narrator] Alyssa, happily draws the path she took on her walk for Sergeant Rice, which confirms her knowledge of the surrounding woods. She recounts her day again. Suspects are typically asked to repeat their story several times so that law enforcement can look for inconsistencies or for information that only the perpetrator of a crime would know. - We went to church and just did the activities 'til 8:00, came back and everything was crazy. (video swishing) - [David] So you got back at 8:00 and then, I mean, what did they tell you? What? - Well, they were like, "Yeah, there's three sheriffs here. People went out searching her, they can't find her." (video swishing) - Did they just say- - And they were like- - [David] she was missing? - Yeah, they were like questioning me about the day. They didn't actually question me that day though, because I went up to like take a shower and then, I don't know, they just left or something (indistinct). - [David] They just told you was missing? - My grandpa did, yes. - [David] How did that make you feel? - I was just, I didn't think it would like happen. - [Narrator] The interrogator asks how it made Bustamante feel and she responds cognitively, explaining what she thought instead of how she felt. It is easier to describe thoughts than emotions for individuals who struggle to identify emotions. It could be reasonably assumed that Bustamante is emotionally stunted and certain, but not always. - Like, things like this don't happen here, you know? - [Narrator] Even though she says that she didn't think something like this, a little girl going missing, could happen in St. Martins, Missouri, she doesn't seem too concerned or shocked or surprised. The investigator then asks what Alyssa knows about Elizabeth. - [David] Tell me about. - Um, well, she's nine. - [David] Okay. - I don't really know that much about her either, um. - [David] I mean, tell me what you do know about her. - Okay. She'd come over and swim. She's kind of girly, like not like naturistic, I guess you could say. - Okay. (video swishing) She can be annoying. - [David] (laughs) Okay. Okay. - Um. - Well, you know, there's been, uh, yeah, there were some folks out there, out in the forest, I guess, digging some holes or looking at some holes. - Mm-hmm. - [David] Yeah, and I guess, they had said that you like go out there and dig holes. So I mean, I'm going to have to ask you some stuff about yourself. - Okay. - [David] 'Cause you know, obviously that plays into here, if they were looking at holes and you were out there in the forest and that sort of thing. So I guess just tell me a little bit about yourself so I understand where all this is coming from. - Um, I really like nature, animals, being outside. - [David] Okay. - It's just, I'm naturistic like that. And I get bored really easily and I'm entertained really easily. - Okay. So, digging holes is just something to do. - [Narrator] Alyssa keeps this explanation casual and surface level. It sounds like digging holes is genuinely a hobby for her, which doesn't seem too odd given the fact she's a teenage girl in a small town with probably not a lot to do. But at the same time, it's still interesting to note, she mentions that her brothers and her dig holes all the time, sometimes near their home, sometimes out in the woods. - [David] Okay. You just like to dig holes? - And I like to climb trees. - [David] Okay. - Oh, and I bury dead animals that I find 'cause I want to be respectful to them. - [David] Okay. Okay. - [Narrator] It almost seems like Alyssa is beginning to understand where the direction of questioning is starting to head, yet her behavior remains calm. David Rice, as the main interviewer, is playing everything very casual. He makes it seem like he's on her side and doesn't believe she has anything to do with Elizabeth Olten going missing. - [David] What kind of holes do you dig? - Um. - [David] Tell me about these holes that you dig. - Well- - [David] You dig them a certain way every time or just dig holes? Just dig a hole, pretty much. - [David] Okay. Just wherever they're at? I mean, do you dig at a certain spot or what? - No. - [Narrator] Whether digging holes is a hobby of Alyssa's or not, she makes it seem like the most normal thing in the world for a 15-year-old to do in the woods. (David chuckles) - [Tobie] I'm such a not dirt kind of girl. - (laughs) Yeah. - That's amazing to me. I don't do worms and I don't do dirt. Well, I do rugby. - [Tobie] Oh. - And so like we do a lot of contact, physical in the mud and whatnot. And yeah, it's nice, it's cool. - I've heard of several girls playing rugby, that's kind of the thing right now, isn't it? - Yeah. - The interrogation turns into a friendly conversation between the juvenile counselor, Ms. Tobie Meyer. The woman sat next to Alyssa and told the rest of the room about how girls rugby is a new sport to the area. - High school girl rugby, and they get after it. - Oh, I'm sure they do. - Yes, they do. - The school disbarred it 'cause it's too dangerous, but there's a team in Jeff City. - I think there's at least two teams in Jeff City. - Yes. I'm not sure about the island, but on St. Martin. - [Tobie] And you love it? - I do. - [Tobie] And you love the mud and you love dirt under your fingernails? Do you mind worms? - [Narrator] Sergeant Rice gets right back to business, steering the conversation back to the holes. - [David] This hole that you dug, when did you dig that hole? - Sunday at the- - Sunday? - Yes. - [David] Why did you dig that hole? - Because Sunday I was bored. You don't really do much on Sunday. Can't watch TV, play video games, you know? So, I decided to go outside. - [Narrator] There's something in her voice that tells you she's not being entirely truthful. She's also beginning to nod her head a lot, which could be her way of trying to convince Sergeant Rice that her story is true. - [David] When did you dig it? - Ooh. I think my grandpa would have the exact time. - [Narrator] This statement is odd. It's unclear how or why Alyssa's grandpa would know the exact time the hole was dug, especially considering what is revealed later. - I don't really remember. - [David] What were you doing Sunday? Tell me about Sunday then. - [Narrator] Her non-verbal indicators are more obvious. Look for the self pacifying behaviors mentioned earlier, in addition to new behaviors, like lip licking and interlocking fingers. - We didn't go to church Sunday, right? 'Cause we were at Mom's house, I believe. I was at my mom's house for the weekend. - Okay. - She lives at the lake. And we came back around 5:00 and I know I dug it before dark so it was sometime in between. Wait, what time would we come home? - [Karen] I didn't pick you up till 6:00. - Oh, well, it must've been in between like 6:30, 7:00, I guess. - You picked her up where? - [Karen] Eugene. - You picked her up at 6:00 pm at Eugene? - [Karen] Right. - And it's a, how long of a drive? - [Karen] Half hour. - So you got back home 6:30, 6:45-ish probably? - [Karen] I think might have been 6:30. - 6:30 - About 20 to 5 minutes out. - [David] It's getting dark by then. - [Karen] Yeah. - Yeah, well- - [David] So you got home at 6:30. - Yes. - [David] And how did you dig a hole at, what? So what did you use to dig- - Well, my grandpa- - [David] I'm not asking what your grandfather, when you got home at 6:30, it's Sunday, what did you do then? - Oh, well, I think I took a shower and went to sleep. So I don't think I did it, I think it was Saturday actually. No, 'cause I wasn't here Saturday. - [Narrator] Bustamante is digging herself deeper and deeper into her own hole. - [David] You weren't here Saturday? - Nope. - On Sunday. - Right. - Monday- - I think it was Friday then, 'cause I was here Friday. (video swishing) - [David] It would seem possible for this. - Right. Right. - [David] And you weren't here Saturday? - Correct. - [David] And you didn't do it during the week, 'cause there was only Monday, Tuesday. - Right. - [David] So then you're thinking it had to have been Friday? - Yes. - [Narrator] These weaknesses in her story will later be exploited in the interrogation, but for now David is playing it close to his chest. He's aware her story is changing and it seems like Alyssa is also realizing that her story is starting to fall apart. - Okay, so tell me about Friday. Do you remember Friday? Did you go to school on Friday, you ditched? - We didn't have school Friday. - No school on Friday. - So I got up around like noon-ish. - Okay. So were Grandma and Grandpa home on Friday, or did you work on Friday? - I worked half a day. - You worked half a day. So would you have been home at noon-ish? - No, 12:30 is when the sub comes in, it's about quarter to. - Okay, so was she asleep when you got home? - [Karen] I just do not recall. - [David] Okay. (video swishing) So then Friday, what'd you do? Think back to Friday. - After getting up, I hung out for a while at the house and it was a nice day, Friday. - [Narrator] She is deflecting or attempting to redirect focus elsewhere. In certain contexts, hair stroking is a pacifying behavior. Hair stroking is not one of Bustamante's baseline behaviors and is occurring in a high pressure context. This is likely a pacifying behavior. Bustamante is uncomfortable. - Relatively nice day. So I decided to go outside, just do whatever. And I dug a hole. - [Narrator] Alyssa's bouncing around more than she was at the beginning of the interrogation. She's rocking back and forth, nodding her head. It seems that as her story is unraveling, so are her nerves of steel. - [David] Why did you dig that hole? - Um, because I was bored and I felt like doing something. - [David] Tell me about that hole though, it's a very specific hole. That's a very unique hole, I should say. - Are all of your holes like that? - No. - Okay. - [David] But why? You dug the hole, so do you know what I'm talking about? - Yes. - [Narrator] Rice is describing the hole in a vague way to see if Alyssa might add anything that would explain why she dug it. She doesn't really have an answer or a reason to give as to why she dug that particular hole. - [David] That was a very, very unique hole. - Mm-hmm, I guess. I was digging. I mean, whatever shape comes to mind, I was just educating myself. - The reason I'm asking, it just seems like a... And you can understand why if people were out in the woods looking for a person, if they were lost or God forbid looking for, if they thought it was, God forbid, a body, why they would be alarmed by that hole, because they come along a hole, a freshly dug hole that was, and so I think a perfect rectangle, about three feet by about four and a half, five foot, straight shovel marks down about, as you described, when I talked to you out there, about that deep. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [Narrator] Interrogators probe for specific answers after asking broad open-ended questions. This is again, part of the TED interrogative technique or the tell, explain, describe technique. Imagine the flow of interrogation as a funnel. Alyssa's interrogation has become more focused, narrower. Rice is asking a very specific probing question. Not only does he ask a very specific probing question, but he illustrates with his hands, the exact size and shape of the hole. - Straight down, the first few inches of dirt, up until you get to that real hard packed dirt, almost as if somebody were digging down, got to a point where you got to those roots in that hard dirt and realize it's too hard to dig. Do you see what I mean? - Yes. - [Narrator] Rice relays details and speculation surrounding the crime scene, but does so from Alyssa's perspective. Alyssa is likely to identify with the story he tells. Liars tend to distance themselves from their lies, but Rice has psychologically repositioned her into a self-identifying mindset. Her non-verbal indicators become increasingly prominent. - [David] Most people, if they were just going to bury a bunny or something out there, they dig. If I'm digging a hole, by God, just dig a hole. But for a 15-year-old girl to dig a perfectly rectangle, three by four or five square rectangle hole, it just caught a lot of people as very odd. - That makes sense, it does. - [Narrator] The hole Alyssa dug is the perfect size and shape for a small grave. It's a perfect three foot by five foot rectangle, shallow and is alarming to come across during a search for a missing child. - [David] So what do you think about that? - [Narrator] When Sergeant rice asks, "What do you think about that?" to Alyssa, he's using the theory of the crime development, where the investigator knows there was a crime, but doesn't understand all the steps involved and doesn't fully comprehend the motive. This is where interrogators will use deceptively innocent questions to get the suspect to fill in the gaps and create a plausible working understanding of the events. - Well, I guess, the timing for digging that hole was definitely not good. - [David] Have you ever dug a hole like that before? - I have. - [Narrator] There's an entire discussion about other holes of similar shape and size that she's dug before. These holes are where she buries animals, but there's no clear indication of Alyssa happened upon these animals bodies or killed them herself. - [David] It doesn't matter if it's a year old, they have sonar, they can run right over it and they can tell you the shape, the depth, the whole thing. We're talking about guys that have, the FBI, they have instruments that can do- - [Tobie] Technology's great. - just about everything. - [Narrator] This is subtle intimidation meant to imply that Alyssa need not lie. - [David] Have you dug a hole like this before then or is this the first time? - It's not completely like this, but it's like kind of like that. - Okay, so this- - big enough for a shoe box. - [David] Okay, but this is the first time of that size. - Yes. Yes. - Okay. Okay. - What about the big round ones that I kept falling in? I mean, they're huge. (David laughing) I kept telling them, "Could you guys quit doing this, because they're dangerous." And we used to ride our horses up there and I could break a leg. - Sure. - [Karen] I mean, they are huge. - Okay. - [Karen] There's like three or four of them. - Yeah. - [Karen] Now this is on our property. - Digging pits for what? (laughs) - Well- - I don't know. - It was entertaining. - [David] Okay. (laughs) - And we like to make traps, just occasionally, put some sticks over it and some leaves. - [Karen] Yeah. I've already fallen in, yeah. - For you to break a leg in. - Well, if they have horses, that's not a good idea, Alyssa. - Well, we don't ride our horses back there. - I was gonna say, you know if a horse breaks its leg what happens? - I know, but we didn't do that. We didn't ride our horses up there. - [Karen] No, we used to, we haven't- - We used to before. - You have horses? Do you like horses? - I do. - [Karen] They're not rectangle, they're- - Big round ones. - [Karen] Big round ones. Well, I don't know if that matters or anything. - [David] Okay. Did ever go on walks with you in the woods? - Nope. - [Narrator] The questions asked here are entrapment questions. And if any inconsistencies are found, the suspect's statements would be treated as lies. This type of questioning places additional pressure on the suspect as the interrogation continues. - I've never seen her- - I know you said she was a girly girl, but- - Yeah, I've never seen her in the woods. - [David] Okay. I mean, did you ever take her on walks in the woods- - Nope. - [David] or anything like that? - When I'm on walks, I like to walk with myself. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Here we see a clear inconsistency in what Alyssa is saying and what her body is saying. When asked if she has ever gone on walks with Elizabeth in the woods, Alyssa states, "Nope." Her head movement transitions from side to side to up and down, Alyssa's body tells a different story. - [David] What do you know about all of this so far? Obviously, unfortunately, your poor family has been thrown in the middle of this. - [Narrator] His additional comment, such as, "Your poor family has been thrown into the middle of this," relay that he feels sympathy for Alyssa and her family, however false that sympathy might be. - [David] What do you know about this whole investigation on this? - She's still missing. They're out looking for her. They don't want anymore volunteers because there's a lot of volunteers so far. This is really big. They've had helicopters- - Yeah, they have. - searching as well. And, I don't know, that's pretty much what I know. - [Narrator] As noted previously, she responds cognitively rather than from a place of feeling. She doesn't have much to say about her family when Tobie and Sergeant Rice start empathizing with what Elizabeth's family must be feeling. And interestingly, her face falls into a neutral expression and she stays silent. - It's very sad for her. - Yeah. - Just imagine if was missing. God, it would be awful. - Yeah, and their mom and family. - [David] Yeah. I mean, that's why they're making such a big deal- - Her mom in such a state. about this in the community, like you said, I mean, you can understand- - You could hear going down the stairs- - why all this is going on. - when there was screaming outside. I mean, I just can't... - [David] I know, I've got kids, so I can't even imagine. (video swishing) What do you think happened to Elizabeth? - [Narrator] Sergeant Rice moves into opinion questions now. Many interrogation questions are closed, meaning they warrant a yes or no response or elicit a single fact or piece of information. Opinion questions are open-ended. Interrogation studies have shown that open-ended questions will get all suspects to talk longer and to be more likely to divulge incriminating evidence without even realizing it. - Um, (sighs) I really don't think she would run away because she's nine. And the way that they've been searching for two days, never found any sign of her. So I think that maybe someone kidnapped her or something. It's a terrible thing, but I don't know what else to assume. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Innocent individuals might be more likely to mention that they don't know. Guilty individuals might feel more compelled to provide an explanation that doesn't fit with the crime they committed. We see this as Alyssa evades the topic of murder. - Would she have easily been lured into a car? I mean, was she that kind of girl? I don't know anything about her, I mean, would she have been brought with a kitten? I mean... - Maybe, um, you'd have to ask her mom about that. - Sure. Sure. - [David] I mean, do you think somebody did something to her? Is that... - That seems most likely, because I don't think she'd be the kind of person that would like hide or stay out all night or anything like that. - [David] Okay. Is there anybody in that area you can think of that would, I mean that comes to mind, that you would think that would do that? Is there anybody that, knowing your neighbors, that you would- - No. - [Narrator] Rice baits Alyssa to place blame. Guilty suspects commonly deflect and offer helpful explanations as Alyssa does here. - But there is a lot of cars that drive down that highway. - [David] Okay. Okay, a couple, just a few opinion questions, I'm just asking your opinion, 'cause- - [Narrator] What follows are loaded questions. Here is the first one broken down. - [David] What type of person do you think would do this sort of thing to a nine-year-old girl? - [Narrator] One, it's assumptive. It assumes that someone did something to Elizabeth. Two, it's vague. It assumes that someone did something, but it doesn't specify what that something is. Three, use of this versus that. This is used as a definite article. In grammar, the function of a definite article is to imply but not state what is being referred to. In other words, this is used in such a way that the speaker is assuming that the listener knows what this is. Further, this implies that something is closer to the listener, whereas that implies that something is further away. Four, use of nine-year-old girl. This is distancing language or language that creates psychological distance from the main topic of discussion, i.e. use of that versus my. Up until this point, they've referred to Elizabeth by name. It also calls attention to Elizabeth's vulnerability. Five, it's a mirror. Guilty parties are forced to analyze themselves and resultingly come face to face with who they are and why they did what they did. This can produce observable signs of cognitive dissonance, a subjective experience of discomfort when two or more ways of thinking, feeling, or otherwise experiencing clash. The dissonance may include discordant ideas, beliefs, behavior, et cetera. - [David] What type of person do you think would do this sort of thing to a nine-year-old girl? - Um, a sick person, like someone that, I don't know, can put down all their morals and just take a nine-year-old girl. - [Narrator] Alyssa pauses, stutters, and struggles to get the words out. She's looking in the mirror. She parrots Rice, nine-year-old girl, using a parallel tone and inflection. Sociopaths and psychopaths hide in plain sight by observing and mimicking the mannerisms and behaviors of those around them. The word this, served as a placeholder. Whatever Alyssa said would represent what she knew this to be, but Alyssa evaded this trap. She could have filled that place holder with kill, but she filled it with take. On the other hand, this could be seen as a slip up as Alyssa did technically take Elizabeth into the woods. - [David] Whenever we find out what happened to her, if somebody did something to her, what do you think should happen to them? - I think they should get, uh, convicted. Well, yeah, 'cause all the trouble that they're causing so far. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Alyssa is faced with her fate. We can see and hear her cognitive dissonance in her ums, pauses and non-verbals, which all indicate discomfort. There are many areas in which Alyssa could slip up and incriminate herself. For instance, she could use possessive language, say I, instead of they. She may be aware of this, suggestive from her halting breaks in speech. The next questions that follow are direct and straight to the point, even though he prefaces that he asks everybody these questions. - [David] I'm gonna ask you, 'cause I ask everybody, did you do anything to? - No. - [David] Did you cause her disappearance? - No. - [David] Did you kill her? - No. - [David] Okay, do you know where she's at right now? - Nope. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Alyssa's responses may seem convincing. She says no with conviction, appearing to shake her head back and forth in tandem. We covered that inconsistencies between verbal and non-verbal behaviors imply lying. So why do Alyssa's verbal and non-verbal behaviors appear consistent with one another? A closer look reveals that Alyssa ever so slightly nods her head up and down after each no response. Incongruent head movements are more often subtle, as we see with Alyssa, than exaggerated. Directly following the big question, "Did you kill Elizabeth?" Alyssa says no, and begins to shake her head back and forth, but stops halfway. She's not committed to what she's saying. - [Tobie] I may have, I'm new to this like. So was playing with? - That's my understanding. - And when was that? - I don't know, they were... Sometime after I had gone in the forest, because I guess just decided to go to Elizabeth's. - Oh, after you ran away. - Yes. - She went to find somebody new to play with? - Mm-hmm. - Can I go to the bathroom? Yeah, go ahead. - Do I need to stop? - Yes, please. - You got it. - [Karen] You okay? - [Tobie] Do you need to go to the bathroom? - Nope. - Do you need some water? - Nope. - Okay. - [Karen] If you do, you can have some of mine. - Okay. - [Narrator] After a break in the interrogation, Alyssa sits quietly in the room alone. Rocking back and forth, as with other repetitive body movements is a self-pacifying non-verbal behavior. Tobie takes advantage of downtime to build rapport with Alyssa. - Who's on your rugby team? - Um- - And it's not through the school, because it's too dangerous? Liability issues? - Right, right. - [Narrator] As soon as detective Rice reenters the room, Alyssa begins to immediately display the self-pacifying behavior of hair stroking, something she didn't do right until the moment Rice reappeared. (door clicking) - Yeah, it reminds me (indistinct). All right, we? - I'm good. - Okay, everybody good? I'm pretty good on drinks and everything. - [Narrator] Alyssa sits expressionless as Rice and Tobie exchange lighthearted small talk. - You know, I used to talk to my parents, and they said I grew up listening, we didn't have TV, we had a radio, and like, God that's... You didn't have a television. You didn't have the internet. - [Narrator] Sergeant Rice asks about Elizabeth Olten's cell phone and tells Alyssa that law enforcement knows Elizabeth had her phone at the time of her disappearance. She's told that with the software available to law enforcement, they can find any cell phone anywhere on the planet. It's a simple scare tactic, but it's a way to say that any lies will be found out. - [David] Is there any reason at all that your fingerprints would be on this cell phone? - Nope. - [David] Okay. So if that cell phone were processed, your fingerprints would not be on it? - Right. - [David] Can you think of any reason why, have you ever touched that cell phone, have you ever held that cell phone? I mean, in the past, any time at all? Now it's my understanding that, did the FBI do a search or something of the house where you guys live? - Mm-hmm. - [David] Tell me about that. What was that all about? - They searched our house, I guess, for any signs of, and they found stuff in my room. But not like evidence like that. They found like marijuana seeds and- - [David] (laughs) And you understand, I don't care about marijuana seeds or any of that. - And they found, uh- - I couldn't care less. - my medication. - [David] Yeah. Don't care about that. - Yeah. - That's not what we're here about. Has ever been in the house? I mean, she's coming over to visit- - She has been in the house. - Yeah, I assume she's a neighbor girl, she's probably been in there. So not a big deal there. So, you said they searched your room. - Yes. - Other than marijuana seeds and that sort of stuff, did they find anything? - Nope. - [David] Okay, did they take anything? - Um, they took my sheet and dropped a pillowcase I like. - [David] Did they take anything else? - Um, I don't think so. I haven't really surveyed anything. - [David] Okay. Okay. - I think they took clothes. - Oh, they took from Emma. - Her clothes. And her diary. I mean, they gave us the list. It's not all coming to me what was on the list, but there's a long list. - [Narrator] This moment is incredibly significant. Up until this point, Alyssa had no idea her diary was collected as evidence. - [Karen] I mean they gave us the list. It's not all coming to me what was on the list, but there's a long list. - Your diary? Okay. You ever gone through the diary? - [Karen] I've looked at some of it, yes. - Okay. Did you know that? - No. - [David] Does it make you angry? - Oh yeah. - Yeah. It's kind of your private, personal thoughts, isn't it? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [Narrator] Alyssa's bedroom was anything but ordinary of what you would expect for a 15-year-old girl. The room was messy, with clothes thrown on the floor, but it was the bizarre writings all over her walls that caught investigators attention and a drawn figure with slash marks to their head and arms with the name, Emma, Alyssa's younger sister written next to it. Some of these writings, including dark poems, were written in pen and marker, but others looked like they'd been written in blood. Letters and cards were taped up onto the walls from her father, who was still in prison at the time. And on Alyssa's bed, hidden under a blanket was her journal. She wrote down her thoughts and feelings like any normal teenage girl, but nothing could prepare the investigators for what else they would find inside. The journal was filled with disturbing thoughts, including Alyssa's desire to burn a house down with a family inside. She wrote another entry, which stated, "If I don't talk about it, I bottle it up and when I explode someone is going to die." Her last entry, dated Wednesday, October 21st, was the same day Patty Olten reported Elizabeth's disappearance to the police. Alyssa had scribbled the words out in blue ink, thinking no one would ever figure out how to read them. Despite her efforts to cover up the entry, investigators were able to read the disturbing original writing. "I just fucking killed someone. I strangled them and slit their throat and stabbed them, now they're dead. I don't know how to feel at the moment. It was ahmazing. As soon as you get over the ohmygawd I can't do this feeling., it's pretty enjoyable. I'm kind of nervous and shaky though right now. Kay, I gotta go to church now, lol." This entire time, Detective Rice was well aware of the sickening confession Alyssa had written inside and was waiting up until this moment to confront her and take her completely off guard. From this point onward, there will be a massive shift in Alyssa's demeanor, as she realizes the games are over. - [David] Do you think they went through your diary? - If they collected it, then most likely. - [Narrator] He remained silent for 13 seconds and you can see how uncomfortable Alyssa becomes. He will continue to use long moments of silence to make Alyssa uncomfortable and eventually draw out a confession. - What? The only thing I can think of is some embarrassing things that they find in there about me. - [Narrator] The most important aspect of reading body language is analyzing clusters rather than individual indicators. In the following clip, you'll see a cluster of indicators that Alyssa exhibits, suggesting she is experiencing high levels of stress. - So... - [Narrator] She smacks her lips- - So. - Swallows, flips her hair. She will then exhibit what is known as the freeze response, which is a limbic system response to danger. She gets so still, she almost appears to be a statue. - [David] We talked a little bit earlier about technology. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Even if you write something down- - Yeah. - [David] It doesn't matter, let's say you write it down in pencil and then you take a pen and try real hard to scratch it out. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] That doesn't make it go away. - Okay. - It's still there. And forensically, and actually you don't even need a whole a lot of forensics, if you hold it up to a light you can see what was written. And then when that's processed, forensically, every word, every stroke is still there. Do you hear me? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] What we want to do is find out what happened to the little girl. - Okay. - [Narrator] Alyssa's face, though a bit grainy in the footage, is almost frowning. She's struggling to keep it together, giving only short answers to Rice's questions. Then, Rice drops another bomb shell. - [David] I need to know what the truth is. - Okay. - [David] We have your diary. We've read your diary. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Including the last entry. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [Narrator] He goes silent for a full 70 seconds, just over a minute. It may not seem like a very long time, but when you're in an interrogation and under pressure, this silence must've felt like the longest silence Alyssa ever endured. And you can see her face start to falter. Maybe her eyes are watering up, but it's hard to tell. Some argue that the first person who breaks silence in an interrogative setting loses the round. Alyssa indulges the silence, which might be more telling than if she objected to Rice's implication. Alyssa could be brainstorming. She could be terrified. It looks like there was a moment when Alyssa might break, but then she seems to reset her emotions and remain quiet, staring back at Sergeant Rice. - [David] We both know what we're talking about here. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Where's she at? - I don't know. (Tobie whispering) What? - We deal with kids all the time. - Mm-hmm - We deal with kids all the time, that's all I've done for 12 years, is deal with kids. - Mm-hmm. - You're not going to say anything in this room that's going to catch us off guard, okay? We need you to be honest. Just be honest. If you know something then say it, okay? - [Narrator] Tobie is making a serious error here by involving herself in the questioning. She is a juvenile officer, and in taking this role, she supposed to be acting as Alyssa's advocate, not as an interrogator. She is limited to observing the interrogation and protecting Alyssa's rights. She is crossing the line here and due to this mistake, the confession was later ruled inadmissible in court, citing deceptive tactics being used to draw a confession out of Alyssa. - Please continue. - Just say if you know something. - Okay. - Just go ahead. - [David] You need to tell us the truth. You need to tell us what happened. If this was an accident, that's fine, but we need the truth. - [Narrator] With Rice saying, it's fine if it, meaning the death of Elizabeth, was an accident. This is the minimization part of the Reid technique that's been used throughout this entire interrogation. Minimization is an interrogator's attempt to decrease a suspect's resistance to confessing by downplaying the seriousness of the crime. We can tell Alyssa is teetering on the precipice of confessing, toying with the idea. Cornered by two questioners, she tightly compresses her lips as she builds the courage to confess. - [David] We have to know the truth. That's all I'm asking for, is for whatever happened. I have to know the truth. This is not gonna go away. All I'm asking for is the truth. - [Karen] I don't know what's in the diary. I don't know the truth. - [David] That's what I'm asking. Tell us what happened. - [Narrator] The lip pull is a micro-expression that signals intense displeasure, dislike or disagreement. In sports, players will often exhibit the lip pull after a loss. They are resistantly admitting defeat. Alyssa exhibits the lip pull here. This may speak to Alyssa's mindset. Is this remorse, or regret, or is it defeat? The interrogator will now begin to reiterate the accident theory, and at this point, I think Alyssa's grandmother is losing her mind in a very quiet and composed way. - [David] If this was an accident, that's fine. We can deal with that. But I have to know what happened. I have to know what the truth is. I have to know how this happened. And the most important thing is, we have to know where she's at. We have to give this family some closure. Just like if this is your little sister, you would want closure. This family needs closure. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Okay? Let's start at the beginning. Is this something that was planned out or was this just an accident? - It was an accident. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Interrogators often offer a chance for suspects to admit that the crime was an accident, even if all evidence suggests otherwise. This is a method for interrogators to get a foot in the door. The suspect admits to the crime, thinking they will be perceived as being less culpable, a form of minimization. It's telling that there was a pause between the words it and was. - It was an accident. - [Narrator] She's quickly thinking about her options and whether she can lie her way out of this situation. - [David] Well, this is a starting point then. That's kind of what I thought. Why don't we start with... (Alyssa crying) Why don't we start with what happened? Did you get home from school at 3:30? - Do you want to stay here? - I did. - [David] Shh, shh. You got home at 3:30? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] And then what happened from there? - I went to the forest, like I said. (exhaling) And was there. - Do you have an extra one for her, please? Was there in the forest? - Yes. - Was she alone? - Yeah. (Alyssa sniffles) We decided to go hang out, 'cause it was a nice day. (sniffing) (Alyssa exhaling) (video swishing) We were just (exhaling) messing... (sniffing) - [David] Take your time. (Alyssa inhaling) (Alyssa sniffing) (video swishing) - We were just messing around. (sobs) And she, (exhaling) she fell. (Alyssa crying) She died. (crying) And I didn't know what to do. (crying) So I, (sniffing) oh. (video swooshing) (Alyssa sniffling) - [Narrator] Alyssa struggles to inhale. Her windpipe is constricting, which indicates the presence of severe stress. This biological marker of stress suggests Alyssa is legitimately affected. It could likewise be that Alyssa is effectively intentionally activating a stress response for the sake of believability. (Alyssa exhaling) (Alyssa sniffing) - So I burned her body - [Narrator] Alyssa goes from sobbing to attempting to pull herself together. She abruptly and flatly states the burnt Elizabeth's body. The time it took her to pull herself together is probably how long it took for her to come up with that lie. In reality, she didn't burn Elizabeth, as we'll soon find out what Alyssa actually did to her. - [David] Okay, who helped you? - Nobody. - [Narrator] Rice asks another assumptive question. When interrogators assume answers, suspects with answers are more likely to share them. - [David] Where at in the forest? (Alyssa sniffs) - I still did it by the creek bed. - [David] By the creek bed? - Yes. - [David] How did you burn her? - I just got a bunch of wood and (sniffs) I started a fire, then burned her body. - [Narrator] The only reason it seems she said she burned the body, without knowing how difficult it is to actually burn a body, is because burning would presumably get rid of evidence and the body of the missing girl everyone is looking for. - [David] Why did you dig that hole? Was that for her? (Alyssa sniffs) When did you dig that hole? You dug it ahead of time, didn't you? - I dug that hole on Wednesday. (sniffs) - [David] Before you played with her? - Yes. - [Narrator] First she states she dug the hole the day of the murder, to continue pushing the narrative that it was all just an accident. Then she slips up without even realizing it, stating the truth. The hole was dug on Friday, five days prior to the murder. At this point, Alyssa can't even follow her own story. Alyssa admitting to digging the hole before she and Elizabeth hung out, establishes premeditation. - [David] It doesn't matter whether the body's burned or not. They'll go through and do an autopsy. - Okay. - And they will discover every injury on her body and the cause of death. And I understand you said she fell and that's why she died. However, they will know on the autopsy, if she was shot, if she was hit in the head, if her throat was cut. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] They will know all of that from the autopsy. So we need to know the truth because at the end of the autopsy, they will know exactly how she died. So we need to know now the full truth, the full disclosure, right now so it doesn't come out later that, well, wasn't telling the full truth again. - [Narrator] Then, he calls her bluff. - [David] How did you kill her? - I didn't, she died. - [David] How did she die? Nine-year-old girls don't just die. - We were messing around, then she fell back and hit her head. (sniffs) - [David] Was her throat cut? - [Narrator] Alyssa sharply exhales as she responds. - Yeah. - Oh, you... (crying) - You can leave. (inhales) - [Narrator] We see Alyssa's emotional appeal to her grandmother. Her emotional stuntedness appears to have limits. Individuals with psychopathic and sociopathic personality traits or tendencies, while removed from feeling in a multitude of ways, may experience normal feelings of love for family and others closest to them. - Grandma? - [Karen] (sobbing) Oh, my God! - I wonder if she can get out. (Karen sobbing) - She would (indistinct) to leave, I'm not gonna ask any questions right now until we get... (knocking on door) (Karen sobbing) (door clicking) (Karen sobbing) Take your time. Take your time. (Karen sobbing) Do you want a drink of water? Take your time. (Alyssa crying) - [Karen] I'm going to pass out. - [Woman] We're her, we're here. (Karen crying) - [Narrator] Alyssa finally admits to cutting Elizabeth Olten's throat. Alyssa's grandmother cries out in utter anguish and disbelief. Her entire world was just destroyed. Her granddaughter, the one she rescued from a horrible living situation, just admitted to killing a nine-year-old girl. But why did Alyssa kill her? (Alyssa sniffling) - [David] I think you dug the hole ahead of time, because you knew you were going to kill her. I think you tried to dig the hole, like I said, and you realized it was too hard to dig down that far. - [Karen] It'll never be okay! No! (Alyssa crying) - [David] And I think you got out there. You knew you were going to kill her. And then you cut her throat. (Alyssa sniffling) Is that what happened? - [Alyssa] Yes. (exhaling) - [Narrator] We hear Alyssa exhale heavily, possibly a sign of relief. As she runs through her actions, she does this multiple times. - [David] What did you use to cut her throat with? - The knife. (exhaling) - [David] A pocket knife, a kitchen knife? - Kitchen knife. - [David] Okay, where's that kitchen knife now? - (sniffing) Home in the sink. - [David] In the sink of your house? - I believe so. - [David] Okay. (video swishing) Did you stab her? - Afterwards. - [David] Stab her body or where? - Yes. - Okay. How many times did you stab her? - Two, I think. - Two? (Alyssa sniffling) - [Narrator] Alyssa leans on words, such as I believe and I think. These phrases often function as hedges. In some instances, hedges serve to soften statements or make them seem more cautious. Imagine how Alyssa would sound when responding to questions without these hedge phrases. Her response may seem overly cold and blunt, suggesting emotional detachment and even premeditation. Given Alyssa has displayed socio and/or psychopathic tendencies thus far, it would be reasonable to conclude that she is consciously employing a social adaptive mechanism or a learned regularity in human social behavior, to mimic the normal flow of human conversation. - [David] Did you hit her with anything first? - No. - [David] Or did she just cut her neck or what? You tell me what happened. (Alyssa sniffling) (Alyssa crying) - [Karen] No. (crying) (Alyssa sniffling) - (exhaling) I, yeah, I cut her throat and she died and like I just (inhaling) stabbed her. (Alyssa sniffling) - [Narrator] Premeditation has been established because she dug a grave prior to Elizabeth's murder. And Alyssa finally tells Rice what the murder weapon was, a black handled kitchen knife that she took from her house and hid on her person. It's confirmed that Alyssa slit Elizabeth's throat and then stabbed her. Alyssa only recalled stabbing her twice, but the autopsy later revealed that Elizabeth was stabbed eight times. When she was finished, she just put the knife in the sink and washed it as if nothing had happened. - [David] When you got home from school about 3:30. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] What happened from there? Walk me through step-by-step. - Um, I got home, I went in my room, I still went out to the forest around 5:30-ish. When I walked over, was outside. - [David] When did you dig the hole? - Um, I dug that hole when I was trying to find a place to hide her body. - [David] So did you dig that after you killed her? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Yes? Okay. So at about 5:30, you went out, did you go to her house to get her? - I went over there and she was outside, so I was like, "Yeah." - [David] You knew you were gonna do it then? Okay, so you went over there about 5:30 and got her. Was with you? - She was for part of the way. Like I said, I ditched her. - [David] You ditched her? - [Alyssa] Yeah. - [David] Did you have the knife hidden on you, or where was it at? - Yeah, it was, I had it. - In your hand? - No. - [David] Okay. So did you walk all the way over to her house? - (exhaling) Yeah. - [David] Okay, show me what route you went. - I went out through here. - [David] Went and got her? (video swishing) What did you tell you were going to do? - We were just hanging out. I don't know, I just... (sniffling) (Alyssa exhaling) - [David] You had the knife with you, had you made up your decision you were going to kill her there at the park? At what point did you make the decision that you were going to kill her? (Alyssa inhaling) - (exhaling) When we had been at the creek. - [David] Okay. Why? (Alyssa sniffling) - I don't know. (exhaling) - [Narrator] Serial killers murder victims who are readily available, easily accessible, vulnerable, isolated or weak, and desirable, uniquely appealing. Elizabeth was a neighbor, easily accessible. She was a nine-year-old girl, vulnerable. One can only speculate how Elizabeth might've uniquely appealed to Alyssa. Either way, Alyssa could not identify why she did what she did, just as she seems to struggle to identify her emotions. Was 15-year-old Alyssa a premature fledgling, serial killer? - [David] You just decided? Okay. Was she facing you? Was she turned around? What happened? - Um, she was turned around. - [David] You just came up behind her and cut her throat? And then stabbed her twice? - [Alyssa] Hmm. - [David] Okay. And is it true, you said then you burned her body? Okay, is that part true? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] So is her body, should still be there? - I burned it and then I like scattered it in the moat or the creek. - [David] Into the creek? - Yes. - [David] Is the creek full of water? - Yes. (sniffs) - [David] Okay. 'Cause generally, it's pretty hard to burn a body all the way. So it wasn't burnt up all the way, was it? - No. - [David] No, 'cause it's hard to burn a body. - Right. - [David] So you kind of pushed what was left of the body into the water? - Mm-hmm. - Was the water moving pretty fast? - Kind of. - [David] Okay. Clothed still? You could still see her clothes? Or were they burned off on the fire? Okay. And you took the knife back home? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Okay, and then what did you do from there? You had the knife and then show me what happened from there. - I just walked back and came inside. - [David] Did you walk back this path that you showed me? - Ah, yes. - [Narrator] The conversation turns back to the hole. - [David] What about the hole though? - Um, it was just there. - [David] No, it wasn't just there. - I dug it, yeah, it was there. - [David] When did you dig it? - Um, after I... I was looking for something to do with her body, so I dug it. - [David] When? - (exhaling) It was before I came home. - [David] Before you came home from where? - From the forest. (Alyssa sniffles) - [David] Who helped you? - No one. - [David] Grandpa helped you, didn't he? - No. - [Narrator] Rice asks her if her grandfather helped her, since he was home at the time the murder took place. - [David] You didn't have a shovel with you. - I had a knife. - [David] You didn't dig that hole with a knife. You did not dig, I was out there for five hours. You didn't dig that hole with a knife. Your grandpa loves you very much, doesn't he? Grandpa would do anything for you. I know you don't want to tell me. I know you want to protect him, but we have got to get to the truth in this. You came back, you told him what had happened and he wanted to help you. He wanted to try to make this right. - I didn't tell my grandpa anything. - [David] Who helped you? - No one. - [David] We're gonna put them all on a polygraph. - Okay. - [David] Who helped you? - No one. - [David] When did you dig the hole? - Wednesday. - [David] When? - After I killed her. - [David] When after you killed her? - [Narrator] This is a very common tactic in interrogations. Once the suspect is open about events, they'll try to get more and more information out of them. The investigators will treat this crime as if it involves accomplices until other parties can be eliminated. The hole becomes the topic of discussion, yet again. - [David] You've got to tell the truth. You're not telling the truth at this point. (video swishing) - Why does it even matter now? - [David] It does matter because we have got to find out the truth. - Well, you already know it. - [David] We have got to know the whole truth. (Alyssa sniffling) Tell us the truth. (Alyssa inhaling) - [Alyssa] I dug it in my way back. - [David] No, you didn't. You didn't have a shovel. (video swishing) - It was the Friday one. (sniffs) (clearing throat) Yeah. - [David] You're telling the truth about how you killed her, I believe that, 'cause that matches your diary. - You've done the hard part. - Yeah. - Just tell the truth. The reality is we can deal with the truth. We can deal with the truth. (Alyssa exhales) - [Narrator] Tobie assumes a critical role in facilitating Alyssa's confession. (Alyssa crying) - I dug it Friday. It was the day, was it. No one helped me. - [David] Was it your grandpa? - No one helped me. I did it by myself. (sniffling) - [Narrator] It's interesting to see how Alyssa goes from trying to lie and pretend she had nothing to do with the missing little girl, to finally admitting she dug a grave and killed her. But Sergeant Rice and Tobie can't believe that she committed the crime herself or dug the hole. They think her grandfather had something to do with it too. They are almost giving Alyssa a way to continue her lie, but she's probably the most truthful when they try to implicate her grandfather, probably out of love for him. Because if there were ill feelings between them, there's no doubt she would attempt to throw him under the bus. - [David] Did you do anything else to her body? - [Alyssa] No. (Alyssa sniffling) - [David] Did anyone help you? - No. - [David] Who have you told about this? - No one. - No one? - No one. - Did you tell? - No. - Did you tell your grandpa? - No - Did you tell your friend? - No. - Did you tell anyone? - No. (sniffling) - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] There's a good reason that the investigators think Alyssa didn't act alone. Even her boyfriend said that he doesn't think she could have carried out the crime by herself, quite literally. - [David] How do you think she did this alone? - [Dustin] She couldn't have. - [David] I don't think she did either. - [Dustin] I mean she could barely lift me. - [David] I know. (video swishing) Who would be the person that would help her? - [Dustin] The only good friend that I know of that she always came out with in the back was a girl named. - (indistinct) - [Dustin] That's about it. - [David] She's right, Tobie's right. You've done the hard part on this. One thing I can assure you, Alyssa I can assure you, from working in a lot of homicides for the last 13 years, I do have a crummy job, the truth is going to come out. Every one of these that I work, where you're sitting here right now, is going through the agonizing part of not wanting to come this last portion and tell on someone else. (Alyssa sniffling) - No one else was there. - The truth is gonna... The full truth on whatever happened here is going to come out. - Okay, they didn't do it. - [David] Then tell me the full truth of all this. Why aren't you telling everything? - I did. I switched up the clothing 'cause I wanted to make it look like an accident. But then I wasn't, it really was on Friday that I dug the hole. (sniffles) - Well, we know it wasn't an accident. I mean, I've already talked (indistinct). I know you planned this. I know you had this in your mind. I know you thought about this, and I know you intended on doing this. I know that. Okay, I know this wasn't an accident, that it just spur of the moment. I know that from the hole. - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] I know you intended on killing her, brought her out there for that purpose, but the problem is your deception is causing this other issues here, okay? So I'm past the point of thinking, is this an accident, did she hit her head? Did you just change your mind at the last second for some reason and decide to kill her. I know you brought her out there to kill her. Okay, why I do, well, that's not the issue, but I know that happened. But we're still having a problem here with this hole and the rest of it because you've been lying to us on that. You see, I mean, none of your times make any sense. You didn't dig it with a knife. We know that didn't happen. (Alyssa sniffling) - It was Friday with the shovel. - [David] When on Friday? - I'm not sure exactly. - [Narrator] This is where we see the shift from the lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter, a crime of passion, to that of a premeditated murder. It's clear Alyssa planned her crime from beginning to end. She planned to lure Elizabeth into the woods to play and to dig a grave a few days before she killed her. There were signs leading up to the murder that either people didn't pay attention to, wrote off as someone just seeking attention, or it was entirely possible that they didn't think anything was wrong. Alyssa seemed to live a double life. At school she had friends and pulled good grades, never letting them fall below a B average. Her teacher said she was a smart kid and never had any behavioral issues in school. Her social media presence showed an entirely different Alyssa. Her YouTube bio listed her hobbies as cutting and killing people. Her Twitter page gave an insight into some of Alyssa's more concerning thoughts, as she often wrote about depression, addiction and terror. In particular, one tweet read, "All I want in life is a reason for all this pain." These types of comments weren't at all unusual for Alyssa. Case documents show that one of Alyssa's friends was interviewed by police. They said that over the last couple of years, Alyssa had said to them, "I wonder what it would feel like to kill someone." According to her friend, Alyssa would even talk about what would happen if she did kill someone, speculating about whether or not she would get caught and how exactly she would kill someone. The friend thought she was joking. She'd even said something similar to her boyfriend. - [Dustin] She said it herself, I remember she asked, "Do you know what it feels like to kill somebody?" - [Interrogator] She asked you that? What'd you say? - [Dustin] No. - [Interrogator] What else you say? - [Dustin] That was it. - [Interrogator] That was it? We just started watching that movie. I didn't even think anything about it, 'cause that wasn't on my mind. - [Interrogator] So you didn't even think about when somebody asks you, "Do you know what it feels like to kill somebody?" You don't think it's off? - No. - That's just something you have normal conversation with somebody about, that it gets brought up in just normal conversation? That's happened to you a lot? - Well, she's emo and emos think about that kind of stuff. - [Interrogator] She's what, - She's emo, so emos think about that kind of stuff. - [Interrogator] What's emo? - [Dustin] People who like to cut themselves and stuff like that and so on. And think dark things. - [Interrogator] Okay. - [Dustin] But I didn't know that she was actually capable of that. - [Narrator] But then on either Wednesday, October 21st or Thursday, October 22nd, Alyssa called her friend, depending on which day it actually was. It was either the day she killed Elizabeth or the following day. Alyssa told the friend that she had done something really bad. The friend asked her if she knew about the little girl that was missing and Alyssa told her yes, but asked why she was asking. Alyssa repeated over and over to the friend that "it was all supposed to be a game." There were videos on her YouTube channel that involved doing dangerous things like touching a live electric fence around her grandparents horse paddock. She forced her twin brothers to touch it and edited the video to say right before the boys touched the fence, "This is where it gets good. Where my brothers get hurt." Experts say that all of this, along with her other behaviors indicate that Alyssa had a sadistic need to hurt others and got a lot of pleasure from it, even experiencing a release of all the painful emotion she held deep inside her. Alyssa didn't just try to hurt others, as she often directed the need to inflict pain on herself. At a young age, Alyssa had started hurting herself. All of this came to a head when at 13, she attempted to take her own life. She fully recovered and spent time in a mental health facility, where she was prescribed the antidepressant Prozac. She began to see several counselors during her time at the facility and once she was released, she underwent intensive outpatient treatment. So, while she ended up getting help, it didn't really help her. Back in the interrogation room Sergeant Rice is trying to get Alyssa to empathize or at the very least sympathize with the Olten family about how they need help recovering Elizabeth's body so they can have closure. While that may be the first priority for the victim's family, it's law enforcement's priority to recover the body so a forensic autopsy can be performed to corroborate the suspects statements and generate additional evidence for the prosecution. Tobie begins to explain to Alyssa that the judicial system treats people who tell the truth differently than those that lie. This is when Alyssa finally drops the story about burning the body and tells them what she really did to Elizabeth Olten. - [David] We're going to have to talk some more about this, obviously, but for right now, I need to get a larger map. (Alyssa sobbing) - Now is the time... Now is the time to just tell the truth. That's all you have to do is tell the truth. There's parts of your story that don't make sense. They don't make sense. They don't make sense even to me. Because I am your advocate and I'm here to protect you. I'm not going to ask any questions, but there's statements that you're making that don't make sense and it's evident that you're lying. And we treat people who can't be honest completely different than we treat people who can be honest. You can be honest. If you can tell us what happened, even if you aren't protecting people you feel obligated to protect, we at least know we can help you, okay? So he's gonna walk out. And like he said, he can't come back and talk, but don't you have want to have told him the truth right from the beginning? This is your opportunity. It's your opportunity. - Okay, I slit her throat and I strangled her. - [David] Strangled her? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Okay. You strangled her with your hands? - [Alyssa] Yes. - [David] Okay. Did you have a knife on you? - Yes. - [David] Did you cut her throat at any time? - Yes. - [David] You cut her throat afterwards? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Okay, so you strangled her first? Until she was unconscious, dead, and then you slit her throat? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] And did you actually, did you stab her then? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Did you do anything else to her? - No. - [David] Okay. (Alyssa sniffles) And then what happened after that? - I went up (sniffling) and buried her body. - [David] You buried her? - Yes. - [David] Is the body still out there? - I think so. - [Narrator] It's unclear why Alyssa seemed so unsure that Elizabeth's body will be in the same location. The implication by Detective Rice is that Alyssa may have had help, and it's interesting to note how uncertain she is that Elizabeth will still be there. - [David] You didn't burn her, did you? - No. - [David] Again, I knew you didn't. She's still out there in the same spot? - I believe so. - [David] Okay. - [Narrator] Finally, the truth. She strangled her, stabbed her, slit her throat, and then buried the body in the hole she dug on Friday. Interestingly, the specific hole that has been in question the entire interrogation was never used as the grave site of Elizabeth Olten. - [David] The hole that I saw that you pointed out, what was that about? - That was gonna be a grave, but then I didn't do it. - [David] You didn't do it, why? What was...? - I couldn't dig that far. - [David] Okay, how deep did you dig the grave that's she's in? - It's not that deep. (sniffs) - [David] Okay. Will you be able to point out on the map and take us to where she's at? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] You didn't burn her, did you? - No. - [David] Did you bring the shovel with you? - Um, no. - [David] How did you dig the hole? - That was, I had already dug it. - [David] Okay, when did you dig that hole? - That one was also on Friday. - [David] So you dug the hole on Friday? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] And had it all ready. Did you leave the shovel out there? - No. - [David] Okay. So the hole was already dug on Friday and you brought her out there Wednesday? Killed her there on Wednesday, strangled her, then cut her throat, stabbed her twice, put her in the hole. And then how'd you fill the dirt in? - [Alyssa] With my hands. - [David] With your hands? (video swishing) - There's still something, there's still something. - [Narrator] Tobie takes this opportunity to push for any last pieces of information that Alyssa could be concealing. - There's still something you're not telling. I can tell. - [David] Oh. (Alyssa sniffling) - Um, no, that's it. - You're sure? - Yes. (Alyssa sniffles) - [Narrator] Alyssa had dug two holes that Friday, the first hole that had been discussed at length in the interrogation ended up being the one law enforcement found early on. But Alyssa says that she couldn't dig too deep in that area so she moved to another area where she could and that's where they would find the nine-year-old Elizabeth Olten's body. As the interviewer has noted, the two holes are interesting, but not everyone buys Alyssa's explanation. There is a theory that Alyssa may have dug two holes because she had originally planned to kill her two younger brothers. However, this theory hasn't been corroborated and so we may never know exactly why Alyssa chose to dig two holes. Now that the story is clearly laid out, they've established how the murder was done and where the body is. Sergeant Rice moves on to the motive, the reason Alyssa did it. - [David] Why did you pick her? - I don't know. 'Cause I just did. - [David] Is there something about her? Did you just want to know what it was like to kill someone? - Yeah, I just wanted to know. - [Narrator] Alyssa appears to cry, but her response carries a tone of indifference. Thrill killing, it is the act of killing someone for sheer excitement. Alyssa killed Elizabeth because she wanted to know what it would feel like to kill someone. Thrill killing stems from a place of powerlessness. These killers are empowered by their murders. - [David] Was she just someone nearby or was- - Yeah. (video swishing) (Alyssa crying) - [Narrator] She straddles the fence between emotional upset and removedness. She lowers her head, holding her face in her hands. Psychopaths and sociopaths are not incapable of experiencing guilt and remorse, particularly if they have comorbid conditions like borderline personality disorder or bipolar disorder. She could regret killing Elizabeth out of remorse, but she could also regret killing her for a more selfish reason. She knows the repercussions. - [David] We'll take a break, I'm just gonna (indistinct). (Alyssa sobbing) Be right back, I'm gonna get a map. - Do you need some water? Do you need anything? - [Alyssa] No. (sobbing) (David knocking on door) (Alyssa sniffling) - Okay. (door creaking) - Oh, God. - I want you to look at me. I want you to look at me. - [Narrator] She breaks down once Rice leaves to retrieve a larger map. Tobie attempts to reassure Alyssa. Again, we see her emotional instability. She struggles to self-regulate. - Did you use (indistinct) medicine? - (indistinct) sometimes. - Okay, how often? - Every five to six weeks, she's my psychiatrist. - Do you have a counselor? - Yes. - Who's that? - (indistinct). - Okay. What medication are you on? - Prozac. - Prozac? - Yeah. - Okay. - [Narrator] Prozac is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, SSRI, an antidepressant medication primarily used to treat major depressive disorder. If Alyssa has an underlying mood disorder like bipolar disorder, she might experience increased psychotic symptoms, as disorders like these are sensitive to imbalanced levels of serotonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that plays a role in modulating mood, sleep and cognition. Specifically, antidepressants prevent the breakdown of serotonin, which may lead to an overabundance in individual systems. Psychosis looks different from individual to individual, but it can involve increased aggression, hallucinations, delusions, mania, and other psychotic symptoms. Psychosis characterized by paranoid hallucinations, delusions and aggression, may lead to violent behavior. - Let me see your wrists. What happened there? - (sniffling) I was getting depression. - You're a cutter? - Yes, and I tried to kill myself. That's why I went to (indistinct). - When was that? - When I was 13, two years ago. But I've thought about it a lot since then. (video swishing) - How long have you lived with your grandparents? (indistinct). - (sniffling) I've lived with them since I was about eight. - Eight? Were you with your mom until then? - Yes. (sniffles) - Did she take care of you? - Not really. - [Narrator] Childhood maltreatment and/or neglect is a strong predictor of suicidal ideation, pathological aggression and criminality, all of which are present in Alyssa. - Did she let people hurt you? - I don't remember. - You don't remember? - Or anything (indistinct). - You don't remember anything before the age of eight? - No. - [Narrator] Dissociation is the separation of oneself from one's identity, memories, thoughts, and/or feelings. It's associated with childhood trauma, particularly that of an emotionally abusive or neglectful nature. Dissociation is linked to post-traumatic stress disorder, dissociative disorder, mood disorders, borderline personality disorder, and more. - How old are your brothers? - They're 11. (sniffling) - Are you close to them like you are your sister? - Yes. - Yeah. - Would you (indistinct) sister? (Alyssa sniffling) I have a little sister too. (Alyssa sniffles) (indistinct). - [Narrator] Tobie is walking Alyssa through the process of grounding. Grounding is a technique often used in therapy and crisis situations that pulls individuals away from flashbacks or disturbing emotions, into the present. She encourages Alyssa to use her breath as an anchor, a sensory tool to call attention to physical rather than emotional sensations. - [David] Do you feel like killing yourself right now? (Alyssa sniffles) (Alyssa sobbing) - Okay, we're gonna get out of here. And you don't have any sharp objects in your shoes or anything like that? Okay. What we're gonna do right now is kind of get some things line up to go out there and have you point out that site where she's at that. - Okay. - Will you be able to do that? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. (video swishing) (Alyssa sobbing) (door thudding) (Alyssa weeping) (Alyssa sniffles) - [Narrator] Once alone, Alyssa almost immediately regulates her breathing, her head hangs low. (Alyssa exhaling) - The reality is that your grandmother loves you, and love doesn't stop, okay? I don't want you to think nobody loves you. Your grandparents love you. - [David] Love is unconditional. - Absolutely. (Alyssa sniffles) - [David] She loves you unconditionally. And she's not going to understand why this happened and there are going to be some (indistinct), you know? I'm not gonna sugarcoat this, you guys have some rough times ahead of you, but she's not gonna stop loving you. (video swishing) And when you came back home, what did you do with that knife? - I put it in the sink. - [David] Did you clean it? - Yes. - [David] Describe the knife to me again, please. - It's a kitchen knife, like that long with a black handle. - [David] Black handle? - [Alyssa] Mm-hmm. - [David] Okay. Is it just straight edged, does it have those serrations in it? Do you know what I'm talking about? - It's a straight edge. - Straight edge? - Yeah. - [David] Okay. - Will I get in trouble now? (sniffles) - [Narrator] Because Alyssa is a juvenile, Sergeant Rice explains what's going to happen next in the investigation, how they must speak to everyone that could be involved, to get to the truth, especially since Alyssa lied at the beginning of the interrogation. Alyssa is then prepped to go out with Sergeant Rice. They're going back to the woods so that she can recount the crime and show them where she buried Elizabeth. Here's the audio from that excursion. - [David] It is, date's October 23rd, 2009, 2:00. Sergeant David Rice and Missouri State Highway Patrol. And it is- - [Michael] Michael Kuti. - [David] with the Cole County Juvenile Office. And we're here in Cole County at the site where you say this occurred, where you- - Mm-hmm. - [David] Can you walk me through? I want you to walk me through step by step, when you got up here, what actually occurred. - [Alyssa] We walked. (leaves scrunching) (video swishing) Um, right around here is where everything just happened and then I dragged her into the hole area. - [David] Okay. What happened here? - [Alyssa] (sniffling) I strangled her. - Okay. - And then cut her throat and stabbed her. - [David] Okay. When you strangled her, was she facing you? - [Alyssa] Yeah. - Okay, so she was facing you, looking towards you? - Mm-hmm. - And you strangled her, one hand? - [Alyssa] Two. - [David] Two hands. Okay, and what happened? Did she stand up, fall to the ground, what happened? - [Alyssa] She had fallen to the ground. - [David] Okay. Was she moving at that point? - [Alyssa] No. - [David] Okay. So she was lying on the ground. - Mm-hmm. - Was she face down, on her back? - No, she was on her back. - [David] Okay. And where was, you said earlier, you had a knife. Where was your knife at that point? - [Alyssa] Um, (sniffs) I put it back in my pocket, like not pocket, but like, held it. - [Narrator] Here Alyssa doesn't even remember where she placed her knife during the attack. It's unclear if she's even telling the truth still at this point, since every detail seems so muddled. - [David] Which pocket was it in? Front? Back? - It was like in my waist, in my waistband. - In your waist? - [Alyssa] Yeah, like- - Okay. - right there. Okay. And that was the knife that you told me about with the black handle you told me earlier? Okay, and what did you do with the knife? - [Alyssa] I put it in the sink. - [David] No, no, when you were here, once you said she was on the ground, not moving you said, after that point, what did you do? - [Alyssa] I cut her throat and I stabbed her. - [David] You cut her throat and stabbed her. Where did you stab her? - [Alyssa] In her chest area. - [David] In her chest area? - Yeah. - In the front or in the back? - Front. - In the front? Okay. How many times? - [Alyssa] Twice, I believe. - [Narrator] Alyssa's story still doesn't add up. Although continually claiming she stabbed Elizabeth twice, the autopsy report revealed she was stabbed a total of eight times in the chest. - [David] Twice, okay. And then what happened after that? - [Alyssa] Dragged her into the hole. - [David] Dragged her into this hole over here? - [Alyssa] And buried her. - [David] Okay, and when did you dig that hole? - [Alyssa] Friday. - [David] Okay. How did you cover her up? Did you have a shovel or something here? - No, I just used my hands? - [David] Used your hands? Okay, and this is the hole over here? She's in here. How deep is that hole? - [Alyssa] It's not very deep. - [David] Okay. All right. Okay, and I think we've talked about everything else back at the office, I just wanted to go over it. Is there anything else? This all happened right about here? - Mm-hmm. - Are you pretty sure of that. - [Alyssa] Yeah. - [David] Okay. Did you leave anything out here that you can think of? - [Alyssa] I think she dropped a piece of gum somewhere. - [David] You did? - [Alyssa] She did. - [David] She dropped a piece of gum? Where do you think that was at? - [Alyssa] I'm not sure, it's probably under some leaves now, but... - [David] What happened to her phone? - [Alyssa] I'm pretty sure it was in her pocket the entire time - [David] In her pocket? - [Alyssa] Yes. - [David] So do you think her phone is in her pocket in that hole? - [Alyssa] Yes. - [David] Okay. Did you ever hear it go off? - [Alyssa] No. - [Narrator] Alyssa claimed she never heard Elizabeth's phone ring, contradicting Elizabeth's mother, who claimed she called her phone over and over again. - [David] Okay. Okay, I'm gonna go ahead and shut the tape off then. - [Alyssa] Go ahead. - [Narrator] She used her hands to cover Elizabeth's body with leaves, dirt and twigs. Once the body was recovered and autopsied, Elizabeth Olten was laid to rest on Wednesday, October 28th, 2009. She was buried in a pink coffin and carried to the cemetery by a horse drawn carriage. Mourners wore pink and released balloons. Elizabeth's aunt described her as "the morning sun that pops out over the mountain. She was sunshine and you couldn't help but love her." In the end, it seems some details just don't add up. And it's clear that investigators believed Alyssa had some sort of help. And along with all the inconsistencies, Dustin's explanation behind how he discovered Alyssa killed Elizabeth was strange, to say the least. On Thursday, October 22nd, the day after Elizabeth's murder, Dustin stayed home sick and claimed Alyssa skipped school to spend the day with him at his residence. His mother unexpectedly arrived home at approximately 12:30 or 1:00 pm. He ushered Alyssa into a closet to hide, giving her clothes to change into, for unknown reasons, and continued to check on her repeatedly while she was hiding. While Dustin's mother was getting into the shower, he claimed Alyssa suddenly confessed that she strangled, cut and killed the girl. He then claimed, he told her she had to leave, guiding her to go out the front door while his mother was in the shower. This was his last alleged communication with Alyssa. - [David] And the day after this happened, you skipped school and you're smoking pot with? - Mm-hmm. - Right? Did you tell him about this? - No. - [David] Why not? I mean you guys are close. Didn't you feel like you needed to tell somebody? - No, that's not right really the kind of thing that you tell people. - [Narrator] Investigators also picked up on what they believed was a slip-up at the beginning of his interrogation. - [Dustin] All that I know is what the FBI told me. - [Interrogator] What'd they tell you? - [Dustin] They told me that she buried 'em and then slit her throat and stabbed her. She already had some hole dug for her, and then buried her. She wasn't big enough, so then they buried her again. - [Interrogator] They buried her again? - [Dustin] I mean, yeah. - [Interrogator] Who's they? - [Dustin] I mean. - [Interrogator] Who's they? - I didn't mean they. - Dustin, you're not in trouble here, okay?. You're not in a lot of trouble here. - [Dustin] I didn't mean they. - [Interrogator] You're not in a lot of trouble here, bud. - [Dustin] It's just what I've been saying for the past couple of days, 'cause I just couldn't see doing that by herself. But obviously, you just told me that there was another person involved and I can believe that. - [Interrogator] No, you told me that. - [Narrator] Alyssa was charged with first degree murder. Yet, even though she had confessed and even led law enforcement to the very site where she killed and buried Elizabeth, she entered a not guilty plea. She was certified as an adult on November 18th, 2009, due to the adult nature of her crime. The Cole County circuit judge assigned to the trial, ruled that her crime was vicious and that the Missouri state juvenile facilities were unequipped to deal with someone who could commit such a crime. For over a year, Alyssa stuck to her plea of not guilty. The day before her trial, January 9th, 2012, she was withdrew her not guilty plea and agreed to plead guilty to the lesser charge of second degree murder. Since she took the plea deal that had been presented to her, she waived her right to a jury trial, but as a condition of the deal, she needed to get up in front of the courtroom and tell the events of that fateful day. The courtroom was filled with both her family and Elizabeth's family, along with most of the St. Martin's community. Alyssa told the court what she'd done, speaking in a clear emotionless voice. She'd strangled Elizabeth with her hands and used the kitchen knife for the rest of the attack. Nearly everyone in the courtroom already knew the details of the murder since it was well publicized in the media. However, this was the first time hearing it straight from the murderer herself. Elizabeth's mother, Patty, sobbed while Alyssa retold her daughter's murder. There were several reasons that the courts probably reduced the charges. At the time, it was a gray area, whether it was legal to sentence a teenager to life without parole. The United States Supreme Court was getting ready to hear another case about two teenage murderers and they needed to decide if a life without parole was cruel and unusual punishment for people so young. The defense said that Alyssa was diagnosed with major depression, anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder from her difficult upbringing, borderline personality disorder, and showed early signs of bipolar disorder. And, more importantly, that all of these diagnoses were the reasons behind her killing of Elizabeth Olten. Case documents reveal a police interview with a mental health professional, who had worked with Alyssa for two years. They shared that during an annual assessment of Alyssa, only one month before the interview and Elizabeth's disappearance, the mental health professional had become concerned that her depression was spiraling and her delinquent behavior was increasing. Alyssa had actually called this mental health professional soon after Elizabeth went missing. During the call, Alyssa said she was distressed about the police being in her house and searching for clues about what happened to Elizabeth. One of the most interesting pieces from the case document is that the mental health professional initially said they had no concern about Alyssa being involved in the little girl's disappearance because in their experience, Alyssa never expressed a desire to harm anyone else, but herself. Another doctor even agreed with this same belief. However, they also conceded that they could be wrong. This interview took place two days after Alyssa killed Elizabeth. Alyssa's defense tried to prove she didn't know that murdering someone was wrong. In contrast to this, the mental health professional was asked during the police interview about whether or not Alyssa understood the difference between right and wrong, to which they replied, "Absolutely." Her defense also pointed out that Alyssa's dose of Prozac was increased only a short time before she killed Elizabeth. They claim that this increase may have played a role in making her behavior unpredictable and even could have made her more prone to violence. One question that everyone comes back to is why Alyssa had done it. Her grandfather said that the night Alyssa killed Elizabeth, she seemed to be in an unusually good mood. Her mood, along with her journal entry, show that Alyssa was likely a thrill killer. Thrill killers receive a rush of euphoric adrenaline from the act of killing their victims, which would explain why Alyssa was so happy after the gruesome murder. On February 8th, 2012, Alyssa addressed the court and apologized saying, "I really am extremely sorry for everything. I know words can never be enough to describe how horribly I feel for all of this. If I could give my life to get her back, I would. I'm sorry." Alyssa was sentenced to life in prison, but the story doesn't end there. Due to the publicized nature of the crime and the lead up to the trial, Alyssa became something of an underground celebrity. There's an online fan club and Facebook groups in support of Alyssa, some displaying artwork of her and even profiles using her picture pretending to be her. Alyssa would have been eligible for parole for the first time in 2044 But since the Senate Bill 26 passed someone convicted as a minor can ask for parole after 15 years. This means there is a chance Alyssa could be up for parole as early as 2027.

Channel: EXPLORE WITH US

Views: 10,415,195

Keywords: documentary, criminal psychology, educational, law

Id: 42tV6oM48NQ

Length: 123min 44sec (7424 seconds)

Published: Wed Dec 29 2021

Reddit Comments

[u/Koll989]

Sorry, the narrator talked way way too much. Pausing every few seconds made this a loooooong drawn affair.

Far too much “analysis” .... “notice she took a sip of water .. narcissists do this when theyre thirsty or have a dry throat”