12x24 - Driven to Silence

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: up next, a hairdresser is att*cked in her

Own salon.

It's a male fist against a female face.

Is it personal?

Yeah, it's personal.

Narrator: only one of them got out alive.

It was the most frustrating case I have ever dealt with.

Narrator: there is forensic evidence, but it doesn't match

Any of the suspects.

The fingerprint was never identified.

I really don't think that they're gonna catch him.

Narrator: the case goes cold until an auto mechanic comes

Forward with a secret.

There was something inside that said it still ain't right.

He's going to commit one of the most brutal murders in the

History of spartanburg county for what reason? Why?

Narrator: on a warm july night in , a south carolina

Woman was waiting for her ride home and witnessed a bizarre

Incident.

She'd saw a man jump through the window of a hair salon and run

Away.

The witness immediately called police.

[ Siren wailing ] the deputy arrived thinking,

"Okay, I'm going to investigate a burglary at this beauty

Salon."

Goes in, and it's completely dark.

He has a flashlight, training the beam of the flashlight

Around, walking, looking, seeing nothing.

Narrator: but in the back room, he found a woman on the

Floor, m*rder*d.

It had to be a very chilling discovery.

The k*ller had used a strap, tied it around her neck, and

Then hung her from a hot-water heater.

Robbery was not the motive.

Her purse was left behind.

There was money still in the cash register.

Her car was left behind.

It appeared that the motive probably was sexually related.

Narrator: the victim was identified as -year-old

Dana satterfield, the owner of the hair salon.

She was a mother of two young children.

She'd worked in the hair business for seven years.

I want to say she'd been in that shop for three to four.

When I say "shop," it was a converted mobile home that was

Made into a beauty salon.

Narrator: the m*rder happened sometime around :, when the

Shop was still open, although the logbook indicated no one

Was scheduled for an appointment.

I think that she would usually try to get out of there

Before it would get dark.

But it wasn't uncommon for her to work that late.

Narrator: the witness, diane harris, described the man

As white, about '" tall, and wearing jeans and a gray

T-shirt.

She was very good on height.

Obviously, race is important -- rule out a large segment of the

Population.

Narrator: based on the witness' facial description, a

Police artist created a composite sketch, which was

Distributed to the media.

Another witness reported seeing a suspicious vehicle in the

Area.

He sees a blue-and-white ford bronco parked at a

Business.

He notices this because he worked at this business himself.

The business was closed, and he knew that vehicle probably

Shouldn't be there.

Narrator: inside the salon, police dusted for fingerprints,

And they concentrated on the water heater, where the k*ller

Strapped dana's body.

It's a very smooth, hard finish.

And powder -- it was bringing them up real clear.

And you can lift them very easy off of a surface like that.

Narrator: they found one print that was very clear.

There was a detective who said, "whoever this print

Belongs to is definitely the k*ller.

I'm thinking, "god, 'definitely' is a strong word.

How do you know that?" And then he says the way the

Knot was tied, you had to have put your hand there to do it.

Narrator: in a surprising development, the print on the

Water heater matched dana's estranged husband,

Mike satterfield.

The couple, who had two young children, were recently

Separated.

All indications from the crime scene would be that the

Assailant knew dana.

It was angry and personal and vicious and vindictive.

Narrator: did dana's husband have an alibi?

Narrator: based on the evidence, investigators believe

That the k*ller entered dana satterfield's hair salon

Shortly before closing, locked the door, turned out the lights,

Dragged her into the utility room, where he strangled her to

Death.

To have a mother of two k*lled in this way, staged the

Way that her body was staged, left in that degraded state --

The guys that I know that worked on the case, come hell or high

Water, they're gonna solve it.

Narrator: at the autopsy, the medical examiner concluded the

Cause of death was strangulation.

And a r*pe-test kit found evidence of sexual as*ault.

Once they were able to generate a profile, that's when

Everyone started looking for a possible suspect.

Her body was the primary and best crime scene that we had,

Followed by the bathroom itself.

Narrator: investigators found a fingerprint on the water

Heater next to dana's body.

It belonged to dana's estranged husband, mike.

We had actually had a few problems, and she had actually

Been living half a mile from here.

The kids were staying here, and she was staying there.

Narrator: when questioned by police, mike claimed he was with

His children at the time of the m*rder.

'Cause we were with him that night.

Of course, when he got the phone call, we talked to her, and then

He took us up there.

So, I mean, I knew there was no way that my dad did it or had

Anything to do with it.

Narrator: and there was a perfectly logical explanation

For mike's prints to be there.

He did all the repair work.

I just put that water heater in there.

I done all the maintenance up there.

I took care of everything.

There's zero, nada, not one scintilla of evidence that

Mike satterfield had anything to do with this crime -- none.

Narrator: and it was clear that mike satterfield did not

Fit the description of the man the eyewitness saw jumping

Through the salon window.

He's an enormous man.

With all due respect to him, he couldn't get out that window.

There'd be a hole in the side of the mobile home if mike tried to

Get out the window, and he'd tell you the same thing.

Narrator: in a search for suspects, investigators found

Other fingerprints at the crime scene -- one in dana's blood.

All were submitted to the statewide fingerprint database.

It has all the fingerprints of all the prisoners that's

Been arrested in south carolina.

And we take a picture of the fingerprint, bring it up on the

Computer screen.

Narrator: investigators were certain the bloody fingerprint

Would provide a lead.

Unfortunately, there were no matches.

The fingerprint was never identified, and there's no

Telling how many they ran through -- how many people they

Checked on that.

Investigators with strong backgrounds in the work in these

Types of crimes were brought in for this type of case.

Narrator: the search for the white-and-blue ford bronco

Turned up plenty of possibilities.

And it's incredibly distinctive -- sawblade rims,

Blue-and-white ford bronco.

It's not unique, but it's rare.

I would think that that was a pretty distinct car, but

Apparently there are more of those than I would have

Imagined.

Narrator: police checked them all out, but all were dead ends.

Every single time me and my brother saw a bronco pass by, we

Had to call it in.

We had to tell my dad, "daddy, we saw a bronco.

You need to call."

Narrator: as leads dwindled, the case gradually turned cold,

And a year went by with no new developments.

Then police got a break.

A prison inmate told authorities that his cellmate, -year-old

Russell trevor quinn, often spoke of dana satterfield.

It was something about how attractive dana was.

Believe it or not, lots of folks in prison try to swap

Information for a reduction in charges or less prison time,

Interestingly enough, and his cellmate didn't keep that

Confidence.

He reported it to law enforcement.

Narrator: quinn was incarcerated for a crime that

Bore a marked similarity to dana's m*rder.

He also was in prison for raping a woman and tying her to

A tree.

Narrator: quinn was free at the time of dana's m*rder and

Fit the eyewitness description of the k*ller.

The police got his mug sh*t, put it in a photo lineup, showed

It to diane harris, as you will remember was our lone

Eyewitness.

Diane actually picked russell trevor quinn out of a

Photo lineup as being the person that she came in contact with.

One of dana's friends says, "I've seen this man in the shop

Before."

The police are able to put him in a car not dissimilar to the

One seen near the scene.

Narrator: but this turned out to be another dead end when his

Dna didn't match the biological evidence from the crime scene.

Russell trevor quinn was a hopeful moment for the

Detectives.

I mean, he's what you're looking for in terms of a suspect.

He just didn't do it.

Narrator: and the case went cold for the next years...

Until dana satterfield's daughter helped solve the case.

Narrator: there is no statute of limitations on m*rder cases,

And they're never officially closed.

But with each passing year, unsolved cases get more

Difficult to solve.

That was true of the dana satterfield m*rder.

It was the most frustrating case I have ever dealt with.

Narrator: for years, detectives rick gregory and

Thomas smith continued to work the case, following potential

Leads.

I think most homicide investigators have a case that

Really sticks with them probably more than any other case.

There was two banker boxes full of leads, so there was in

Excess of leads.

Narrator: and the satterfield family never gave up, either.

People would come up to me.

"Ashley, have they caught him yet?

Have they heard anything?" And I'm like, "you know, I know

That they're still working on the case, but I really don't

Think that they're gonna catch him."

'Cause I really didn't think they would.

Narrator: ashley satterfield was years old when her mother

Was k*lled.

Now she was , in college, and trying to move on with her life.

One day, ashley took her car in for repairs, and those repairs

Changed the course of the investigation.

Well, this girl came in with a little red honda, and she got

An oil change.

And I was like, "man, she was just in here a couple weeks

Ago."

And they said, "yeah, that's ashley satterfield.

You know dana satterfield that got m*rder*d in roebuck?

Well, that's her daughter."

I was like, "her daughter?

I didn't know she had kids."

Narrator: this man, who wanted to remain anonymous, is

An automobile mechanic.

He knew something about dana satterfield's m*rder, or

At least thought he did.

Just by seeing ashley, and her being her mother, I had to

Give them some closure.

Narrator: years earlier, when the auto mechanic was in

High school, his friend jonothan vick gave him a ride

Home.

Vick was driving a white ford bronco with blue trim, like

The one parked near the crime scene.

I'm gonna go get a haircut tonight.

A haircut?

He said he's gonna go get his hair cut.

And I was like, "where are you gonna get your hair cut this

Time of night?" He said, "over at dana's."

And I never knew her last name.

So hot, man.

I guess.

Narrator: and vick said he was interested in more than a

Haircut.

He would talk about how pretty she was and what he would

Like to do as far as sexualwise and things like that.

I'm gonna ask her out.

[ Laughing ] you're gonna ask her out on a date?

Yeah, so?

You serious?

Yes.

When I laughed at him, he got upset with me.

He said, "what, you don't think I have a chance?"

I just laughed.

I was like, "man, whatever."

Narrator: later, when he saw news reports about

Dana satterfield's m*rder, he wondered if jonothan vick was

Involved.

If you ask him, he'll say he really didn't believe that he

Did it -- couldn't believe it -- wouldn't believe it.

I mean, here's a -year-old with no record that you counted

As one of your best friends.

And he's going to commit one of the most brutal murders in the

History of spartanburg county?

For what reason? Why?

Narrator: just after dana's m*rder, this man claims he

Called police anonymously and told them about his conversation

With jonothan vick.

He also told them vick was driving a white ford bronco.

At the time, police questioned jonothan vick and his mother

Aggressively.

Investigators questioned her on six different occasions

About the vehicle -- you know, "where was it that night?

Who was using it?" And the family was getting tired

Of people asking them, "was this your bronco here?

Is this your vehicle?" And they even went to the

Lengths of making a homemade sign that said, "this is not the

Vehicle" and putting it on the bronco as it traveled down the

Road.

That's how many people were calling about it.

Narrator: police even tried to get a court order for

Jonothan vick's dna, but the court refused on the grounds

That driving a vehicle like the one seen near the crime scene

Was insufficient probable cause.

Where's the probable cause on jonothan vick at this time?

It doesn't exist.

Narrator: so police dropped their investigation of

Jonothan vick.

There was a time where I figured, "well, maybe, you know,

They have cleared him."

But there was something inside that said it still ain't right.

Something's just not right.

Narrator: so now, years later, this man, jonothan vick's

Friend, called police again, insisting that they investigate

Vick for dana satterfield's m*rder.

And just like before...

I didn't want to give them my name.

Narrator: but without his name, police couldn't get a

Court order to obtain jonothan vick's dna sample.

So police were right back where they started, and they had to

Wonder what was this man really hiding?

Narrator: after waiting long years, prosecutors now had

A witness who claimed he knew what happened on the night of

Dana satterfield's m*rder.

The witness said -year-old jonothan vick offered him a ride

Home from school.

Vick said he was going to dana's salon for a haircut.

Vick also admitted he fantasized about dana, a woman years

His senior, and said he planned to ask her out on a date.

Vick entered dana's salon around : p.m.

It was almost closing time.

Prosecutors believe vick made a sexual advance, and dana

Refused.

Perhaps she thought he was kidding.

All right.

Narrator: that's when vick locked the door, turned out the

Lights, and att*cked.

[ Screams ] narrator: in addition to

Sexual as*ault, he strangled her to death.

For reasons no one can understand, he decided to leave

Through the window, which caught the attention of the witness,

Diane harris.

She got a good look at him.

The composite sketch from this brief encounter was remarkably

Accurate.

Pretty close to exactly what jonothan vick looks like.

The hair -- there was some issue as to whether the hair was light

Or dark.

We had to go find some witnesses that said vick used to tip his

Hair back then.

Narrator: as to why vick's prints weren't found in the

Salon, investigators say it happens more often than people

Think.

Just because someone touches something doesn't mean that you

Have left a print.

It has a lot to do with the amount of oil on your skin at

The time and the surface that you're touching.

Narrator: eventually, the anonymous informant explained

Why he had waited all these years to come forward.

He said vick threatened to k*ll him if he ever told police what

He knew about the m*rder.

Well, he didn't even tell me what he did.

He said, "if you tell anybody, I'll k*ll you."

He knew that I knew that he was going over there.

Narrator: he also realized, years later, that he had a

Responsibility to the satterfield family, so he gave

Police his name -- michael pace.

That does not keep me from being extraordinarily frustrated

With him.

But, to his credit, he accepted responsibility.

He was a very, very good witness.

Narrator: and police got their court order for vick's dna

Sample.

Michael pace is the probable cause that allowed us to get

Jonothan vick's dna.

Clearly, unequivocally, michael pace is how we got his

Dna.

Narrator: jonothan vick was still living in south carolina

After serving two years in the marines.

I love my wife and daughter.

That's all that matters.

He'd had well over different jobs -- was getting

Fired or asked to leave because of his inability to get along

With his co-workers or his supervisors.

Narrator: vick also had some brushes with the law.

He had two arrests.

One was a domestic v*olence, which was dismissed.

And there was a malicious injury, which is basically a

Vandalism, that was dismissed.

Narrator: now a husband and father of an infant daughter,

Vick denied any involvement in dana satterfield's m*rder.

At the time of the arrest, he basically told us he never knew

The woman.

Narrator: jonothan vick's dna matched the biological evidence

From the r*pe-test kit gathered at dana's autopsy -- a

-Million-to- match.

I was relieved because that particular case had been sitting

On my desk for years.

I was relieved that there was a match.

Every time you see a poster or see an article or watch tv or

On the news or anything about the case, it bothered me.

And now that it's over with, I feel a lot better.

Narrator: investigators believe dana satterfield was

Vick's first victim, but possibly not his last.

There was another acquaintance of jonothan vick's,

Heather renee sellars, who mysteriously disappeared.

She's been missing for several years.

Miss sellars was actually engaged to him only weeks prior

To her disappearance.

Narrator: sellars' car was found at the bottom of a river.

Her case is still open.

In november of , jonothan vick was convicted of

Dana satterfield's m*rder and sentenced to life in prison.

It was guilty, guilty, guilty -- all guilty.

I mean, they all knew it -- yeah.

I'll never forget the words that he chose because after all

Of this, there was still such an arrogance almost or, "how can

You accuse me -- this innocent man that I am -- how can they

Convict me of this?"

And then the judge said, "you're going to prison for the rest of your life."

I have no sympathy for him or his mother or his wife or anyone

In his family.

I have no sympathy for none of them because they all still

Think that he's innocent.

And they know that he's guilty.

His mother knew that he was guilty.

She knew, and she held back on that.

He's a pathological, maniacal liar, and I don't like him.

But he received a fair trial.