Narrator: there was a break-in
And a m*rder
It looked like an execution
My first thought was, "this was a hit."
Narrator: until a closer look the forensic evidence revealed
The truth
That was definitely a staged scene
One of the best defense lawyers in san antonio, texas, was
Leslie vaughn.
Leslie was a workaholic, and if you know anything about guys
Who try to reach that status of perfectionism, leslie was a
Perfectionist.
He really was.
Narrator: not surprisingly, as a defense attorney, vaughn's
Practice also included problem clients.
He did have clients involved in the drug trade.
He did have clients that identified themselves with
Different organized-crime groups.
Narrator: on the night of november , , leslie's wife
Was working the night shift as a nurse at the local hospital.
Leslie and his two sons were home that night.
Around : a.m., -Year-old brian said he heard a loud bang
Coming from his father's bedroom.
[ g*n fires ] when he tried to get in, he
Discovered the door was locked.
He hears some more alarming noises in the nature of gurgling
Or breathing.
He can't get into his dad's room, and that concerns him.
Narrator: in a panic, brian called .
Narrator: in a panic, brian called .
After the call, brian took his -year-old brother to his
Neighbors' house.
He indicated there might have been maybe somebody in the
House.
That's why he was getting his brother out, to make sure that
His brother didn't get hurt.
[ Siren wailing ] narrator: when paramedics
Arrived, they broke down the bedroom door and found
Leslie vaughn dead.
There was a single g*nsh*t wound to his head.
There was a large limestone rock on the bedroom floor and a
Broken window, the k*ller's apparent point of entry.
The french doors open to a balcony, and one of the doors
Had a very large, gaping hole in it.
Someone had thrown a rock through the doors, and the size
Of the breakout in the glass could accommodate a grown
Person walking in and out through that opening.
So right off the bat, I was pretty sure that we were dealing
With the m*rder scene.
Narrator: there was a spent shell casing on the floor.
And the spent b*llet was found in the pillow under vaughn's
Head.
The b*llet had six grooves with a right twist, which would
Commonly indicate a smith & wesson semiautomatic
-Millimeter handgun.
Narrator: but the motive for the m*rder was unclear.
The television was on.
There was a remote control still intact.
There was no indications of drawers open.
Of course, somebody ransacked, was searching for something,
Whether it be jewelry, money.
So there was no indications at all of a burglary.
Narrator: leslie vaughn was just years old.
My first thought was, "this was a hit."
Narrator: just a day earlier, a federal prosecutor overheard
Vaughn say he feared he would be targeted for v*olence.
That's sometimes the risk you take when you lose a case for a
Client who happens to be a drug dealer.
What went through my mind is, is that rumors were that maybe
It was a client, a disgruntled client, somebody who's mad at
Him.
Narrator: homicide detective alfred damiani broke the news to
Leslie's wife, madeline.
I've made lots of those notifications, and after the
Initial gasp and shock, then it's, "how?
How did it happen?" And she never, ever asked that.
Narrator: and they found another surprise on the
Call.
Narrator: at leslie vaughn's funeral, prosecutors and
Law enforcement came together with drug dealers and felons to
Mourn his death.
You had these grown men that by society standards, they're
Thugs, but they were actually reduced to tears because
Leslie vaughn was in that box, about to be put in the ground.
Narrator: in a search for the k*ller, the vaughn family told
Police they were getting harassing telephone calls in the
Weeks leading up to the m*rder.
The family had been receiving calls that you'd pick the phone
Up, nobody would say anything.
They were basically just dead air.
Narrator: unfortunately, phone records couldn't determine
The origin of the calls.
For investigators, their first task was to eliminate the
Victim's wife, madeline, as a possible suspect.
Hospital records confirmed she was working on the night of the
m*rder and had never left the premises.
Madeline was grieving.
She was stunned.
She was in shock.
She was all of the things that you would expect her to be.
And remember I showed you the pictures of leslie and madeline,
And they looked real happy.
Does that look like a picture of somebody knocking each other
Out?
That's what I saw.
Narrator: on the night of the m*rder, as a matter of routine,
Police swabbed brian vaughn's hands for g*nsh*t residue, since
He was in the house when the crime occurred.
These are the small, microscopic particles that are
Left behind when a g*n is fired.
If a person fired a w*apon within a -hour period, it is
Very likely that I will be able to find g*nsh*t residue.
Narrator: but under the scanning electron microscope,
Magnified up to , times, the tests on brian's hands were
Negative.
Investigators suspected the k*ller somehow climbed up to a
Second-floor balcony, broke through the french doors, and
Then sh*t vaughn in the head with a -millimeter g*n.
The balcony was about feet from the ground.
This is a balcony without access to the ground level.
There's no stairway.
There's no other way to access this balcony except through
Those doors.
I think someone could have scaled that balcony.
I would say that someone who did that would have to be pretty fit
And in pretty good shape.
I don't think it would have been an easy thing to do,
Necessarily, but it could be done.
Narrator: but when investigators looked at the dirt
Below the balcony, they couldn't find any evidence of a ladder or
Even any foot impressions, despite three days of constant
Rain.
How did this person get up here?
How did this person climb up here and get up to the second
Floor of this wooden deck and gain entry to this residence?
If the ground had been disturbed by heavy footprints or
A ladder or some sort of equipment, it should have shown
Up in the soil.
Narrator: and investigators felt it would have been
Impossible to throw the rock from the yard.
It weighed close to pounds.
That person would have to be very strong to be able to throw
That rock from the bottom floor and to make it go right through
That glass.
We found no evidence that there was any activity, anybody
Walking around back there -- absolutely no evidence of it.
Narrator: and investigators found another inconsistency.
There was broken glass all over the bedroom floor and all over
Leslie vaughn's body, as well.
The rock that was thrown through that window didn't even
Faze him and didn't even wake him up.
The obvious conclusion that you have to draw from that is,
Is that the guy was probably dead already.
Narrator: toxicology tests found no dr*gs or alcohol in
Leslie vaughn's system.
So there was no evidence he was unconscious before he was
k*lled.
Next, investigators sent the rock to the forensic lab for
Testing.
I talked to a scientist and asked him if there was a process
Which he planned to use to attempt to raise these latent
Prints.
Narrator: the process is called superglue fuming.
Heated superglue produces fumes that adhere to a fingerprint,
And the adhesion is greater than fingerprint powder.
You want to preserve anything that is on that rock, as far as
Latent prints or fingerprints.
You want to make sure that there's no way by using a brush
That it's gonna come off.
Narrator: unfortunately, the surface of the rock was too
Jagged.
The test was unsuccessful.
Then, investigators found an inconsistency in brian vaughn's
Story.
Brian called to report the sh**ting at : a.m.
But brian took his brother to his neighbors' house minutes
Earlier, at :.
Brian told the floyds that he had already placed a call
And that he was going back to the house to wait for the
Police.
When I asked both mr. And mrs. Floyd what time it
Was, they both told me it was exactly : a.m., According to
This clock that they had in the bedroom.
Brian arrived at the floyds' house at : a.m.
Did not call until :.
Narrator: what was brian doing for these minutes?
Narrator: there were only three people in the house on the
Night of leslie vaughn's m*rder -- the victim and his two
Sons.
A background check revealed -year-old brian had a previous
Arrest.
He got into an argument with one of the security guards there
At the bowling alley, who actually was an off-duty
Bexar county sheriff's deputy.
And in that altercation, he ended up striking this deputy
And in fact fleeing, like evading, from the scene.
Those were pending charges at the time that leslie was
m*rder*d.
Narrator: investigators also learned that brian's car caught
On fire three months before his father's m*rder.
The origin was suspicious.
There was an emergency call that the vehicle was totaled and
Had to be put out.
There's some question as to whether or not brian was
Responsible for starting that fire or being there when the
Fire started.
Narrator: whether leslie vaughn suspected this or
Not is unclear.
But he offered to buy brian a used car to replace the one
Ruined in the fire.
Apparently, brian wanted a new one.
A car salesman told police he witnessed a heated argument
Between the two on the afternoon of the m*rder.
His academic grades were poor, which is the reason why
His father wouldn't buy him the car in the first place.
Narrator: according to brian's younger brother, chris,
The argument continued when they got home up until the early
Evening hours of the night of the m*rder.
According to chris, brian retaliated by threatening to
Quit his high school basketball team, relinquishing any chance
Of a college scholarship.
In chris' statement, he said that it was a heated exchange
Between him and his father in brian vaughn's bedroom and that
This scene occurred about : at night.
Narrator: investigators dusted the entire bedroom for
Fingerprints and found no foreign prints, only those of
Family members.
But on the french door with the broken window, investigators
Found only one set of prints -- brian's.
To have your own prints in your own house is not that
Significant, but given the fact that we have this story about
What happens -- and the door is really clean otherwise -- it's
Just one more piece to the puzzle.
Narrator: investigators found shards of glass in the hallway
Outside the bedroom, leading towards the bathroom.
It was easy to see it was from the k*ller.
There's some trace evidence, some transfer blood and tissue,
To a wall right next to the door that exits the bedroom, and
That's significant.
We followed the glass shards to the bathroom, and then inside
Of the bathroom, we found an additional glass shard.
And then we found two black hairs in the sink area.
Narrator: all of the hairs from that bathroom were sent to
The forensic lab for analysis.
These hairs had a very clumped and very dense
Pigmentation pattern.
They were short.
They were semicircular.
They contained overall characteristics that followed
And fell into the footsteps of what one would conclude as being
A negroid hair.
Narrator: finally, investigators listened to the
Entire conversation between brian and the operator on
The night of the m*rder.
Brian said his father's bedroom door was locked.
But he told the operator one small detail that only the
k*ller would know...
There is no way that brian vaughn would have known
That his dad had been sh*t if the door was locked and he could
Not gain entry.
The biggest evidence against brian vaughn was brian vaughn.
Okay?
He was his worst evidence.
Narrator: investigators suspected that brian used a
-Millimeter g*n from his father's own collection.
We believe, from talking to his friends and his office
Manager, that he would have had a g*n in his night-side table.
And on the night of the m*rder, no g*n was found there.
We understood that he has had -millimeter g*ns in the past,
As well, and leslie was k*lled with a -millimeter.
The g*n was, in this case, though, never found.
Was never found.
Narrator: finally, investigators interviewed the
Only other person inside the house at the time of the m*rder,
Brian's younger brother, chris.
We asked chris, "would brian k*ll your dad?"
And chris answered, "I don't know."
We asked him, "could brian k*ll your dad?"
"I don't know.
He's very athletic, but I don't know if he could."
"Would he k*ll your dad?" "I don't know."
Which is an unusual response, as opposed to "no, he wouldn't do
It.
No, he couldn't do it.
No, he would never do it."
Narrator: brian vaughn was arrested and charged with his
Father's m*rder.
But would the jury convict on so little evidence?
Narrator: three months before leslie vaughn's m*rder,
Prosecutors believe that his son brian may have set fire to his
Car as a ploy to get a new one.
But his father refused, offering to buy him a used car instead.
Apparently, they fought about this and other issues, like his
Grades in school and how he was jeopardizing his chances for an
Athletic scholarship to college.
According to chris vaughn, the two argued until close to :
On the night of the m*rder.
Prosecutors believe brian waited until his father went to sleep,
Then woke his little brother and took him to the neighbors'
House.
He told his neighbors that he heard a noise from his father's
Bedroom and that it might have been a g*nsh*t.
He said he already called .
But that was a lie.
Prosecutors believe he used the time to return home and sh**t
His father in the head.
[ g*n fires ] to create the illusion this was
Committed by an intruder, brian went out on the balcony and
Threw the rock through the window.
The glass landed on top of his father's body, proof that this
Happened after he was dead.
The evidence suggests brian locked the bedroom door and
Tracked shards of glass through the hallway on his way to the
Bathroom to clean up.
Where he disposed of the m*rder w*apon and his bloody clothing
Is unknown.
Twenty-two minutes after taking his brother to the neighbors',
Brian finally called .
The call was full of inconsistencies.
The call was full of inconsistencies.
In january of , brian vaughn went on trial for the m*rder of
His father, and he was tried as an adult.
I don't think that you can be in your right mind to pull off
Something as horrendous as that was if you were in your right
Mind.
That's all I'm gonna say.
And that's what I feel.
You cannot tell me that he was in his right mind if he pulled
That trigger.
Narrator: the defense said an intruder committed the m*rder.
But the lack of mud on the balcony outside the bedroom made
It clear that the sh**t came from inside the house.
And brian's fingerprints were the only ones on the broken
French door.
Brian also lied about the call and clearly knew
Information only the k*ller would know.
The jury found brian vaughn guilty.
We, the jury, assess the punishment of the defendant,
Brian vaughn, as confinement for years.
Narrator: he'll be eligible for parole in .
If leslie vaughn was here, he would have asked the prosecutors
To go lenient on his son.
I believe that.
All fathers would.
We could not fathom our children doing something as horrendous as
That to us, period.
He got a g*n, he snuck up on his dad while his dad was
Sleeping, he put it to the back of his dad's head, and he blew
His brains out, basically.
Yeah, I think he belongs in the penitentiary.
He was really a star athlete, and this is a kid that probably
Would have figured out a way to do well enough in school to
Graduate from high school and probably would have had a
College career playing basketball and probably would
Have had the time of his life.
And instead, he's spending his life in jail.
Narrator: few people can imagine a child k*lling a
Parent, but the evidence at the scene and evidence missing from
The scene clearly showed what happened.
This is such an unusual case, in that forensics played a big
Role in this, but not in the normal sense.
The lack of it in some ways was kind of compelling.
It is something that he probably just thought of either
Days before or that night, just planned it.
But he slipped, and he wasn't able to cover his tracks.
He provided all the necessary pieces to convict him.
And, in fact, he provided evidence that was so strong, you
Could not find him not guilty.
It takes days and weeks of investigation, okay?
It takes lives that you destroy, and you don't realize that when
You're pulling the trigger, 'cause once you pull that
Trigger, you can't take that b*llet back.
12x18 - Shattered Innocence
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Documentary that reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and outbreaks of illness.
Documentary that reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and outbreaks of illness.