WEBVTT 1 00:00:28.079 --> 00:00:30.640 Welcome back to the Pathwin Chili, I'm Robin. 2 00:00:30.960 --> 00:00:35.399 I'm Jules, and I'm Ashley. Let's dive right into this 3 00:00:35.439 --> 00:00:36.119 week's case. 4 00:00:37.399 --> 00:00:43.159 August third, nineteen eighty, Osable Township, Michigan, Twenty year old 5 00:00:43.200 --> 00:00:46.039 Charita Thomas borrows her friend's car to pick up her 6 00:00:46.079 --> 00:00:49.479 daughter from a babysitter, but the vehicle breaks down before 7 00:00:49.520 --> 00:00:54.119 she arrives. Witnesses see Charita climbing into a blue pickup 8 00:00:54.119 --> 00:00:56.960 truck driven by a white male, but she's never heard 9 00:00:57.000 --> 00:01:01.280 from again. Jimmy Allen Nelson, the babysitter's brother in law, 10 00:01:01.359 --> 00:01:05.079 is suspected of harming Sharita in a racially motivated hate crime, 11 00:01:05.560 --> 00:01:09.319 and even though Scharita's body is not found, Nelson is 12 00:01:09.400 --> 00:01:13.840 convicted of her murder. Three decades later, however, Nelson's conviction 13 00:01:14.000 --> 00:01:18.959 is overturned when new evidence surfaces which reportedly implicates another suspect, 14 00:01:19.519 --> 00:01:22.120 but no one else is charged with the crime, and 15 00:01:22.159 --> 00:01:24.200 Sharita remains a missing person. 16 00:01:25.280 --> 00:01:28.879 After that, the path went Chiley, So we've got a 17 00:01:28.920 --> 00:01:32.719 pretty convoluted missing persons case to cover today. The nineteen 18 00:01:32.719 --> 00:01:36.760 eighty disappearance of Charita Thomas, our future victim is a 19 00:01:36.799 --> 00:01:39.519 twenty year old African American woman who went missing over 20 00:01:39.560 --> 00:01:42.239 forty five years ago, and one theory is that her 21 00:01:42.239 --> 00:01:46.000 disappearance may have been a racially motivated hate crime. In fact, 22 00:01:46.079 --> 00:01:49.840 over two decades after Tarita's disappearance took place, a suspect 23 00:01:49.879 --> 00:01:52.760 named Jimmy Allen Nelson, who had a reputation for being 24 00:01:52.760 --> 00:01:56.000 a violent racist, wound up being charged and convicted of 25 00:01:56.040 --> 00:02:00.239 her murder, even though Tarita's body was never found. However, 26 00:02:00.319 --> 00:02:04.200 Nelson's conviction would be overturned after new evidence surfaced which 27 00:02:04.239 --> 00:02:08.599 allegedly pointed towards another suspect. Though specific details about why 28 00:02:08.639 --> 00:02:11.520 this happened have been sealed and kept hidden from the public. 29 00:02:12.360 --> 00:02:14.080 There have been a number of twists and turns in 30 00:02:14.120 --> 00:02:16.400 this story, and the reason I wound up learning about 31 00:02:16.439 --> 00:02:18.879 it is because it has a connection to a very 32 00:02:18.919 --> 00:02:22.800 controversial segment which was once featured on Unsolved Mysteries. But 33 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:25.159 we'll go into more details about that a little later, 34 00:02:25.879 --> 00:02:27.800 but let's just say this is one of those cases 35 00:02:27.800 --> 00:02:30.680 where I started out feeling absolutely convinced of the prime 36 00:02:30.759 --> 00:02:33.560 suspect's guilt before I was thrown for a loop, and 37 00:02:33.599 --> 00:02:36.400 I now have a lot more questions than answers. 38 00:02:36.759 --> 00:02:38.960 Well, I have a lot of questions too when we 39 00:02:39.000 --> 00:02:42.319 start looking at this case. One we know in the 40 00:02:42.360 --> 00:02:45.199 American justice system, when we look at someone who has 41 00:02:45.240 --> 00:02:49.639 been convicted and then has their conviction overturned, that is 42 00:02:49.680 --> 00:02:53.960 incredibly rare, even when there is significant evidence presented in 43 00:02:54.039 --> 00:02:57.800 their case. So there had to be something so damning 44 00:02:58.080 --> 00:03:01.039 to say that there was an error. Maid's that this 45 00:03:01.240 --> 00:03:05.680 case was one reinvestigated whatsoever, and two a court went 46 00:03:05.680 --> 00:03:09.919 all the way through with actually reversing his conviction. That's 47 00:03:09.960 --> 00:03:12.840 a major step in our justice system. There's cases where 48 00:03:12.879 --> 00:03:15.800 we have DNA matching another suspect and the person's still 49 00:03:15.840 --> 00:03:19.039 not released. The story just morphs to include that person 50 00:03:19.080 --> 00:03:22.400 in the crime. So I'd be so fascinated to know 51 00:03:22.439 --> 00:03:25.439 what that information is. But you said, it's been quite quiet. 52 00:03:26.240 --> 00:03:28.599 The other thing we see here is that we know 53 00:03:29.000 --> 00:03:32.159 that she was actually getting into a blue pickup truck 54 00:03:32.240 --> 00:03:35.439 by a being driven by a white driver, and that 55 00:03:35.479 --> 00:03:38.680 that's the last time she seems to be recognized anywhere. 56 00:03:39.400 --> 00:03:42.080 It is scary because it does play into this idea 57 00:03:42.120 --> 00:03:45.919 of was this something a racially motivated crime and who 58 00:03:46.000 --> 00:03:49.120 was driving that blue truck? In the end, when we look, 59 00:03:49.240 --> 00:03:51.039 do we know if Nelson had a blue truck? 60 00:03:51.879 --> 00:03:53.879 He did, Yes, And as we're going to go along, 61 00:03:53.960 --> 00:03:56.360 we're going to mention a whole bunch of compelling pieces 62 00:03:56.360 --> 00:03:59.719 of circumstantial evidence against him, where at first glance you're 63 00:03:59.719 --> 00:04:02.240 probably going to think this is the right guy, because 64 00:04:02.280 --> 00:04:04.520 regardless of whether he's guilty or innocent, it does not 65 00:04:04.680 --> 00:04:07.840 sound like he's a good person. Yet, completely out of 66 00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:11.080 the blue, his conviction wound up being overturned. And this 67 00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:13.039 is very out of the norm, like you said, because 68 00:04:13.120 --> 00:04:16.040 it's the prosecution who takes the initiative and decides to 69 00:04:16.120 --> 00:04:20.120 drop the charges because of new information that they supposedly uncovered, 70 00:04:20.120 --> 00:04:23.000 but they have still to this day not publicly revealed 71 00:04:23.000 --> 00:04:25.480 what they found. But like you said, it's just so 72 00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:27.959 rare that it must have been pretty compelling if they're 73 00:04:28.000 --> 00:04:30.519 willing to drop what looked like, on the surface, a 74 00:04:30.519 --> 00:04:33.319 pretty compelling case against Jimmie Allen Nelson. 75 00:04:34.319 --> 00:04:37.199 Yeah, and when they drop a case, they're saying, we 76 00:04:37.360 --> 00:04:39.920 messed up, we did something wrong, or we failed to 77 00:04:39.959 --> 00:04:43.079 provide the justice he deserved. And that takes quite a 78 00:04:43.120 --> 00:04:46.879 special prosecutor to be willing to admit that. So fascinating 79 00:04:46.920 --> 00:04:48.800 and like you said, it had to be pretty darned powerful. 80 00:04:50.279 --> 00:04:54.000 Our story begins in Michigan in nineteen eighty and our 81 00:04:54.040 --> 00:04:57.399 central figure is twenty year old African American woman named 82 00:04:57.439 --> 00:05:01.040 Cherita Thomas who's currently living in a apartment in the 83 00:05:01.040 --> 00:05:04.199 town of Oscota with her four year old daughter, as 84 00:05:04.240 --> 00:05:07.600 well as her fiance, William Merritt, who's enlisted in the 85 00:05:07.639 --> 00:05:11.000 Air Force. One of Sharita's best friends is a woman 86 00:05:11.079 --> 00:05:14.160 named Patricia Bates, who also happens to be one of 87 00:05:14.199 --> 00:05:17.519 her neighbors in the apartment building and has two children 88 00:05:17.560 --> 00:05:21.759 of her own. On Sunday, August third, Patricia was planning 89 00:05:21.800 --> 00:05:24.720 to travel to the nearby town of Mikado to see 90 00:05:24.759 --> 00:05:27.519 one of her friends play in a softball tournament, and 91 00:05:27.600 --> 00:05:30.360 Sharita wanted to go with her, so they made arrangements 92 00:05:30.399 --> 00:05:34.560 for Patricia's sister, Anna Bouchard to babysit their kids. The 93 00:05:34.600 --> 00:05:38.240 two women, along with Sharita's daughter and Patricia's two children, 94 00:05:38.680 --> 00:05:43.000 climbed into Patricia's car, an AMC Matador, and traveled to 95 00:05:43.040 --> 00:05:46.319 Ossable Township, where they dropped off the kids with Anna. 96 00:05:47.199 --> 00:05:50.199 They then stopped off at the Wurtsmith Air Force Base 97 00:05:50.279 --> 00:05:53.279 so Sharita could borrow some money from her fiance William, 98 00:05:53.759 --> 00:05:57.120 before driving to the Hilltop Bar in Oscota. 99 00:05:56.600 --> 00:05:57.199 For a drink. 100 00:05:57.759 --> 00:06:00.319 While there, they briefly ran into twenty eight eight year 101 00:06:00.319 --> 00:06:03.560 old Jimmy Allen Nelson, who happened to be Anna's brother 102 00:06:03.560 --> 00:06:06.519 in law, before they left to travel to Mikado for 103 00:06:06.600 --> 00:06:10.480 the softball tournament. After finding out that Patricia's friend was 104 00:06:10.519 --> 00:06:13.079 not actually playing in the game that was scheduled, they 105 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:15.959 decided to grab something to eat at the Mikado tavern. 106 00:06:16.720 --> 00:06:19.199 While they were there, Patricia recalled that many of the 107 00:06:19.240 --> 00:06:22.360 patrons stared at them and made them feel so uncomfortable 108 00:06:22.680 --> 00:06:25.680 that both she and Sharita stepped into the ladies room 109 00:06:25.720 --> 00:06:28.920 together for a moment in order to chat. When they 110 00:06:28.959 --> 00:06:31.920 walked out, one of the patrons shouted out, quote, did 111 00:06:31.959 --> 00:06:35.040 you two have a good time in there? This prompted 112 00:06:35.040 --> 00:06:37.639 Sharita and Patricia to leave the tavern, and while they 113 00:06:37.680 --> 00:06:40.920 were doing so, the bartender told them not to come back. 114 00:06:42.399 --> 00:06:44.800 Do we know much about this interaction because it sounds 115 00:06:44.839 --> 00:06:48.199 like they're being harassed and mistreated, But do we know 116 00:06:48.439 --> 00:06:50.839 why they were asked not to come back in? Is 117 00:06:50.879 --> 00:06:53.399 this something because he's being a jerk, or he's being 118 00:06:53.920 --> 00:06:57.160 racist or making assumptions, or were the girls getting into 119 00:06:57.199 --> 00:07:01.040 a verbal altercation with people. What happened and when they 120 00:07:01.160 --> 00:07:03.720 reacted to these people harassing. 121 00:07:03.319 --> 00:07:06.480 Them, it sounds like a speculation that this was kind 122 00:07:06.519 --> 00:07:09.360 of a racist area, and because Trida was black, they 123 00:07:09.439 --> 00:07:11.920 maybe just did not like her being in their establishment, 124 00:07:12.000 --> 00:07:14.839 and they were giving like the cold eye to both 125 00:07:14.839 --> 00:07:17.920 her and Patricia because Patricia is white, and they probably 126 00:07:17.920 --> 00:07:19.879 did not like the idea of a black girl and 127 00:07:19.920 --> 00:07:22.480 a white girl being friends. And that's probably why they 128 00:07:22.519 --> 00:07:25.319 gave that sarcastic comment when they went into the bathroom together, 129 00:07:25.399 --> 00:07:27.399 this black friend and his white friend, did you two 130 00:07:27.480 --> 00:07:29.959 have a good time in there, maybe trying to imply 131 00:07:30.079 --> 00:07:32.199 that they felt they were lesbians or something, And that's 132 00:07:32.240 --> 00:07:34.560 when they started getting the hints that these people don't 133 00:07:34.560 --> 00:07:36.000 want us here and it's time to go. 134 00:07:36.759 --> 00:07:37.040 Wow. 135 00:07:37.079 --> 00:07:39.160 So it really was a racially don't come back in here, 136 00:07:39.160 --> 00:07:40.199 like you're not welcome here. 137 00:07:40.560 --> 00:07:43.040 That's what it sounds like. Yeah, like they never explicitly 138 00:07:43.079 --> 00:07:45.920 said it, but the way that the entire bar stopped 139 00:07:45.920 --> 00:07:48.639 and started staring at them the moment that Trida walked 140 00:07:48.639 --> 00:07:51.079 in through the door and this is known for being 141 00:07:51.079 --> 00:07:54.519 a predominantly white conservative area. It seems like they just 142 00:07:54.519 --> 00:07:56.839 did not want a woman of color in their establishment. 143 00:07:57.600 --> 00:08:01.040 That sounds terrifying. I can't even imagine you go in 144 00:08:01.079 --> 00:08:03.279 with your friend to grab a drink and every single 145 00:08:03.279 --> 00:08:06.240 person at the bar is staring at you. Of course 146 00:08:06.240 --> 00:08:08.759 they wanted to go to the bathroom together, and then 147 00:08:08.879 --> 00:08:13.759 to think that they probably are not only racist, but 148 00:08:13.879 --> 00:08:19.000 they're anti gay or anti LGBTQIA plus, so you have 149 00:08:19.680 --> 00:08:23.399 a situation where they're implying that these women didn't go 150 00:08:23.439 --> 00:08:25.279 to the bathroom just to seek comfort in each other, 151 00:08:25.360 --> 00:08:29.160 that they're gay, and then that might add just another 152 00:08:29.279 --> 00:08:32.759 layer of complexity and hate to the situation. It sounds 153 00:08:32.919 --> 00:08:35.080 very charged, it does. 154 00:08:35.120 --> 00:08:36.679 It sounds like a scene you'd see in like the 155 00:08:36.679 --> 00:08:39.480 Deep South, in like the nineteen twenties or thirties. But 156 00:08:39.519 --> 00:08:42.159 this is Michigan in nineteen eighties. So I think it 157 00:08:42.240 --> 00:08:45.000 kind of took them completely aback that they would go 158 00:08:45.080 --> 00:08:47.159 into this town that was near to where they lived, 159 00:08:47.159 --> 00:08:49.559 and you then just have a feeling of being completely 160 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:52.879 unwelcome there and almost that their lives were being threatened. 161 00:08:54.840 --> 00:08:58.080 So Treda and Patricia finally went to see the softball tournament, 162 00:08:58.200 --> 00:09:01.120 and after it concluded, the tea seemed that Patricia's friend 163 00:09:01.159 --> 00:09:04.000 played on went to the Macado tavern for drinks, and 164 00:09:04.080 --> 00:09:06.879 in spite of the uncomfortable situation they had experienced at 165 00:09:06.919 --> 00:09:10.720 the tavern earlier that afternoon, Trida and Patricia decided to 166 00:09:10.759 --> 00:09:14.960 accompany them there. However, sometime after they arrived, Trida said 167 00:09:14.960 --> 00:09:16.960 that she wanted to leave so she could get back 168 00:09:17.000 --> 00:09:21.039 home before fiance returned from work. Since Patricia wanted to 169 00:09:21.039 --> 00:09:24.000 stay out later, she agreed to let Trida borrower car 170 00:09:24.120 --> 00:09:26.960 and said she would find her own way home. She 171 00:09:27.000 --> 00:09:29.320 also drew up a map to her sister Anda's place 172 00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:32.440 in Ausable Township so that Schrida could drive there and 173 00:09:32.440 --> 00:09:35.240 pick up the three children before returning to their apartment 174 00:09:35.240 --> 00:09:39.759 building in Oscata. Trida left Macado and Patricia's mattador, and 175 00:09:39.799 --> 00:09:42.879 after spending a couple more hours at the tavern, Patricia 176 00:09:42.960 --> 00:09:45.039 was given a ride back to her apartment at around 177 00:09:45.080 --> 00:09:49.000 two thirty am on August fourth. However, she was surprised 178 00:09:49.039 --> 00:09:51.600 to see that the mattador was not parked outside, and 179 00:09:51.639 --> 00:09:54.759 after phoning Anna, she learned that Trida had never shown 180 00:09:54.840 --> 00:09:57.919 up to pick up the children. Patricia then spoke to 181 00:09:57.960 --> 00:10:01.399 Triita's fiance, William, who to that Charita had not yet 182 00:10:01.519 --> 00:10:03.799 arrived home and he had no idea where she was. 183 00:10:04.759 --> 00:10:08.639 They subsequently contacted the Ascota Township Police Department to report 184 00:10:08.679 --> 00:10:12.039 Charita missing, but it wasn't long before they informed Patricia 185 00:10:12.120 --> 00:10:15.399 that her abandoned Matador had been discovered on Sunset Street 186 00:10:15.559 --> 00:10:19.320 in a Sable Township, only two blocks away from Anna's residence. 187 00:10:20.039 --> 00:10:22.320 There was no trace of Treeda, and even though the 188 00:10:22.399 --> 00:10:26.480 vehicle's keys were missing, Charita's apartment keys, cigarettes, and the 189 00:10:26.519 --> 00:10:29.360 map to Anna's place which Patricia had drawn up were 190 00:10:29.399 --> 00:10:32.840 still inside. The Mattador had broken down because of a 191 00:10:32.919 --> 00:10:36.000 leaky radiator, and it wasn't long before police were able 192 00:10:36.039 --> 00:10:38.399 to retrace the car's steps to figure out how it 193 00:10:38.440 --> 00:10:38.879 got there. 194 00:10:40.039 --> 00:10:43.399 Okay, this is really frustrating because you see Sharita kind 195 00:10:43.399 --> 00:10:48.120 of in this Charita. This is really frustrating because you 196 00:10:48.159 --> 00:10:51.759 see Charita in this kind of compromise situation where she's 197 00:10:51.799 --> 00:10:54.840 relying on her friend for transportation. She needs to get 198 00:10:54.879 --> 00:10:59.159 her kids, and still she says, Okay, I can I 199 00:10:59.159 --> 00:11:01.120 borrow your car? Or the friend says you can borrow 200 00:11:01.240 --> 00:11:03.879 my car. So she's trying to be responsible while the 201 00:11:03.919 --> 00:11:05.879 friend wants to stay out late. She says, I can't. 202 00:11:06.000 --> 00:11:07.799 I gotta go get the kids. I gotta go home 203 00:11:07.840 --> 00:11:10.840 to my fiance. And so you see a woman who's 204 00:11:10.879 --> 00:11:15.320 making good choices that evening. And you know, if you're 205 00:11:15.360 --> 00:11:17.639 a young woman broken down on the side of the road, 206 00:11:18.120 --> 00:11:20.360 you don't know how to examine your car or fix 207 00:11:20.399 --> 00:11:23.879 your car. So I'm assuming we have no cell phones. 208 00:11:23.919 --> 00:11:27.039 What year is this, nineteen eighty Yeah, okay, yeah. 209 00:11:26.799 --> 00:11:29.879 We definitely have no cell phones back then. And so 210 00:11:30.320 --> 00:11:33.039 Charita is sitting there thinking, how do I get help? Well, 211 00:11:33.159 --> 00:11:35.200 the only way you're going to get help is to 212 00:11:35.279 --> 00:11:38.480 thumb down or wave down somebody and pray to God 213 00:11:38.519 --> 00:11:41.480 that they're able to help you. Remember, there wasn't as 214 00:11:41.559 --> 00:11:45.080 much panic back then because we didn't have social media 215 00:11:45.080 --> 00:11:47.320 in the news telling you all the time how awful 216 00:11:47.440 --> 00:11:51.200 crime was. So I bet Charita really believed if I 217 00:11:51.240 --> 00:11:54.360 can get somebody to help me, I can get back 218 00:11:54.399 --> 00:11:56.519 to a place where I can contact my fiance, I 219 00:11:56.559 --> 00:11:58.919 can go to Anna's house, those kinds of things, And 220 00:11:59.000 --> 00:12:02.679 instead almost seems as if when she did trust somebody, 221 00:12:03.120 --> 00:12:04.519 they could have taken her life. 222 00:12:05.120 --> 00:12:08.159 That definitely sounds like what probably did happen is that 223 00:12:08.440 --> 00:12:10.480 she just broke down it was bad luck, and tried 224 00:12:10.480 --> 00:12:12.399 to get a ride with someone, but it just happened 225 00:12:12.440 --> 00:12:15.320 to be the wrong person. But the big answered question 226 00:12:15.360 --> 00:12:17.960 in this case was this just a complete stranger who 227 00:12:18.000 --> 00:12:20.559 was just passing by there by chance, or could it 228 00:12:20.600 --> 00:12:23.159 have been someone who was following Tarita from the tavern 229 00:12:23.320 --> 00:12:25.840 and got their eye on her and then just decided 230 00:12:25.879 --> 00:12:28.960 to take advantage of the situation After the car broke. 231 00:12:28.799 --> 00:12:34.039 Down, Investigators learn after leaving the Mikado Tavern on the 232 00:12:34.080 --> 00:12:38.159 evening of August third, Sharita had been traveling through Oscota 233 00:12:38.200 --> 00:12:41.159 when steam started leaking from the Matador's hood and it 234 00:12:41.279 --> 00:12:45.080 broke down at an intersection. A trio of teenage boys 235 00:12:45.120 --> 00:12:48.240 stopped to help her and discovered the leak in the radiator, 236 00:12:48.720 --> 00:12:51.000 so they refilled it with water and put some duct 237 00:12:51.000 --> 00:12:54.320 tape over the hose as a temporary solution. While this 238 00:12:54.480 --> 00:12:57.159 was going on, the teens claimed that a man driving 239 00:12:57.240 --> 00:13:00.200 a blue pickup truck passed by and gave them and 240 00:13:00.240 --> 00:13:03.720 of a scene gesture. Charita got back into the Matador 241 00:13:03.799 --> 00:13:07.639 and drove away, but the radiator evidently broke down again 242 00:13:07.879 --> 00:13:11.200 when she was driving down Sunset Street in O Sable Township. 243 00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:15.480 An eyewitness would claim that he saw Sharita walking down 244 00:13:15.559 --> 00:13:18.240 the street away from the vehicle while steam was leaking 245 00:13:18.240 --> 00:13:22.200 out of its hood. However, he then saw Sharita returned 246 00:13:22.200 --> 00:13:25.000 to the scene a short time later in a blue 247 00:13:25.000 --> 00:13:28.799 Ford pickup truck being driven by a white male. Another 248 00:13:28.799 --> 00:13:31.279 eyewitness would later say that they thought they might have 249 00:13:31.320 --> 00:13:34.000 seen a third person inside the truck, but could not 250 00:13:34.080 --> 00:13:38.000 be certain. After making an unsuccessful attempt to start the 251 00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:41.240 Matador again, Charita and the man climbed back into the 252 00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:44.879 truck before it drove away at around eleven fifteen pm, 253 00:13:45.159 --> 00:13:47.960 and unfortunately, this would turn out to be the last 254 00:13:48.000 --> 00:13:50.240 time that Scharita was confirmed to be alive. 255 00:13:52.039 --> 00:13:55.039 So, okay, this is interesting because you have this idea 256 00:13:55.120 --> 00:14:00.399 that it's possible multiple people stop to help her, and 257 00:14:00.440 --> 00:14:03.000 then you have this that's confirmed. 258 00:14:03.080 --> 00:14:03.240 Right. 259 00:14:03.240 --> 00:14:04.759 We know that those three boys were there. 260 00:14:05.399 --> 00:14:08.000 Uh yeah, the teens, like they weren't involved in her disappearance, 261 00:14:08.039 --> 00:14:09.960 but they came to the police and said that, yes, 262 00:14:10.000 --> 00:14:12.120 we pulled over and helped give her water because the 263 00:14:12.200 --> 00:14:13.720 radiator was overheating. 264 00:14:14.080 --> 00:14:17.039 Okay, so they get kind of intercepted by this blue truck, 265 00:14:17.360 --> 00:14:19.840 and that's where we find out this information that is 266 00:14:20.120 --> 00:14:22.519 very reliable, given that these boys were present at the 267 00:14:22.519 --> 00:14:26.840 scene and they what's said, is it those trio of boys. 268 00:14:26.919 --> 00:14:29.639 Had they been the only ones to arrive, she would 269 00:14:29.679 --> 00:14:31.720 likely would have returned home that evening and been just 270 00:14:31.799 --> 00:14:34.679 fine because they seemed like kids that said, there's a 271 00:14:34.679 --> 00:14:36.039 poor lady on the side of the road. We're going 272 00:14:36.080 --> 00:14:39.759 to stop and help her. How devastating that this blue 273 00:14:39.799 --> 00:14:43.799 truck pulls up and most likely that entire hopeful situation 274 00:14:43.960 --> 00:14:45.679 turns into absolute horror. 275 00:14:46.879 --> 00:14:49.080 Yeah, that's what I'm wondering. Was this guy in the 276 00:14:49.120 --> 00:14:52.440 blue pickup truck following Treeda for a long time, like 277 00:14:52.519 --> 00:14:54.480 maybe all the way from the tavern, or was it 278 00:14:54.600 --> 00:14:57.240 just a chance encounter where the first time her truck 279 00:14:57.320 --> 00:15:00.480 brought her truck broke down, he just happened to be 280 00:15:00.519 --> 00:15:03.440 passing by and saw that these teenage boys were helping 281 00:15:03.440 --> 00:15:05.840 her and then thought, Hm, she's got an unreliable truck. 282 00:15:05.879 --> 00:15:08.000 Maybe I'll follow her for a while to see if 283 00:15:08.000 --> 00:15:10.960 it breaks down again. And unfortunately, it seems like that's 284 00:15:11.039 --> 00:15:13.720 likely what happened. Where she needed to get some help, 285 00:15:13.840 --> 00:15:17.159 and even though he had supposedly given an obscene gesture, 286 00:15:17.200 --> 00:15:20.240 I guess treated didn't feel fearful of him or anything, 287 00:15:20.279 --> 00:15:23.039 because she was willing to briefly climb into the truck 288 00:15:23.080 --> 00:15:25.480 with him and return to the scene of her car 289 00:15:25.519 --> 00:15:27.840 and then drive away. So that makes you wonder could 290 00:15:27.879 --> 00:15:31.039 it have been someone she known rather than a complete stranger. 291 00:15:31.840 --> 00:15:34.399 Doesn't it strike you both as odd that if this 292 00:15:34.480 --> 00:15:38.720 person's objective was to harm Sarita, that he would then 293 00:15:38.879 --> 00:15:41.559 drive her back to her vehicle to try to get 294 00:15:41.559 --> 00:15:43.200 it up and operational. 295 00:15:44.320 --> 00:15:45.879 It makes me wonder if it might be a thing 296 00:15:45.919 --> 00:15:48.240 where he wasn't planning to kill her at first, Like 297 00:15:48.279 --> 00:15:50.480 maybe he thought, well, if I help her, she'll have 298 00:15:50.559 --> 00:15:53.080 sex with me or something like that, and then she 299 00:15:53.720 --> 00:15:57.000 resisted and fought him off, and then things escalated into violence. 300 00:15:57.039 --> 00:15:59.279 So may be a thing where he thought that he 301 00:15:59.320 --> 00:16:01.799 was going to take adage of her. But then after 302 00:16:02.879 --> 00:16:04.919 she climbed to new his truck for the second time, 303 00:16:05.519 --> 00:16:09.240 something went horribly wrong after they left the scene. So 304 00:16:09.279 --> 00:16:11.679 a search effort was launched for Trida, but it wasn't 305 00:16:11.679 --> 00:16:15.799 long before investigators focused on a potential suspect. Anna Bouchard's 306 00:16:15.840 --> 00:16:19.759 brother in law, Jimmy Allen Nelson. As you recall, Treeda 307 00:16:19.759 --> 00:16:22.480 and Patricia had briefly bumped into Jimmy at the Hilltop 308 00:16:22.559 --> 00:16:27.000 Bar several hours before Treeda vanished. Jimmy participated in the 309 00:16:27.000 --> 00:16:29.759 initial search effort for Trida, but one week after she 310 00:16:29.799 --> 00:16:33.080 went missing, he drew the attention of investigators when a 311 00:16:33.080 --> 00:16:36.440 woman came forward and accused Jimmy of sexually molesting her 312 00:16:36.720 --> 00:16:40.000 and also said that he was a violent racist. Indeed, 313 00:16:40.240 --> 00:16:42.759 a number of other people would back up allegations that 314 00:16:42.840 --> 00:16:47.000 Jimmy often expressed his dislike for African American people. One 315 00:16:47.039 --> 00:16:49.639 of these people was the bartender at the Hilltop, who 316 00:16:49.639 --> 00:16:52.159 claimed that Jimmy freely used the N word and once 317 00:16:52.200 --> 00:16:55.000 told her quote, the only good N word is a dead, 318 00:16:55.039 --> 00:16:58.919 one end quote. In fact, according to Anna Bouchard, Jimmy 319 00:16:58.919 --> 00:17:01.559 had once gotten angry with there for allowing Charita into 320 00:17:01.600 --> 00:17:05.119 her home because she was black. Jimmy also happened to 321 00:17:05.160 --> 00:17:07.799 live on Sunset Street with his wife and children, not 322 00:17:07.960 --> 00:17:10.240 too far from where the Matador broke down, and he 323 00:17:10.319 --> 00:17:13.599 drove a blue pickup truck. This made police wonder if 324 00:17:13.640 --> 00:17:16.759 Tarita's disappearance might have been a racially motivated hate crime, 325 00:17:17.039 --> 00:17:20.839 as she lived in a predominantly white, conservative area. Since 326 00:17:20.880 --> 00:17:23.079 the case was looked at as a potential hate crime, 327 00:17:23.359 --> 00:17:26.200 the FBI would be brought into assist with the investigation. 328 00:17:27.119 --> 00:17:29.759 When Jimmy was questioned, he did admit to owning two 329 00:17:29.839 --> 00:17:32.759 pickup trucks, one of which was a blue Ford brand 330 00:17:32.839 --> 00:17:35.160 while the other was red and orange, but he said 331 00:17:35.160 --> 00:17:38.119 his wife was borrowing the blue one. In the end, 332 00:17:38.240 --> 00:17:40.680 please never did get a chance to search Jimmy's blue 333 00:17:40.680 --> 00:17:45.279 pickup truck because their investigation soon turned towards another promising suspect. 334 00:17:46.240 --> 00:17:48.799 Interesting, Okay, so we'll talk about that promising suspect in 335 00:17:48.799 --> 00:17:51.839 a minute. But when you look at Jimmy, Jimmy actually 336 00:17:51.960 --> 00:17:55.960 already knew Anna. I mean, he knew Anna. But did 337 00:17:56.000 --> 00:17:58.720 he already know Sharita or is that Charita or is 338 00:17:58.759 --> 00:18:01.319 that somebody that he was going to meet? 339 00:18:01.880 --> 00:18:03.839 He had met her before. I mean, I don't think 340 00:18:03.880 --> 00:18:06.279 he knew her any more than casually, because I think 341 00:18:06.319 --> 00:18:09.799 he'd been present when his sister in law Anna, like 342 00:18:09.920 --> 00:18:12.000 let Chrida into the house, and that's why he got 343 00:18:12.039 --> 00:18:14.200 so mad at her about it. And then he bumped 344 00:18:14.200 --> 00:18:17.920 into Patricia and Schrida at the bar like a couple 345 00:18:17.960 --> 00:18:21.519 hours before Trieda went missing. So theoretically, if he had 346 00:18:21.519 --> 00:18:23.839 pulled up in a blue pickup truck, it's possible that 347 00:18:23.920 --> 00:18:26.599 Treeda might have felt comfortable enough with him to climb 348 00:18:26.599 --> 00:18:29.279 inside with him. Because I'm not sure if she was 349 00:18:29.319 --> 00:18:31.480 aware at that time that he had a reputation for 350 00:18:31.559 --> 00:18:33.680 being a racist. I don't know if he had displayed 351 00:18:33.759 --> 00:18:37.079 any racist behavior in front of her. So that's why 352 00:18:37.119 --> 00:18:39.519 at the outset it looks plausible because he owned a 353 00:18:39.559 --> 00:18:41.720 blue pickup truck that he could have been the guy 354 00:18:41.960 --> 00:18:43.319 that picked Trieda up. 355 00:18:44.000 --> 00:18:46.680 Even if it was the case that he came off 356 00:18:46.720 --> 00:18:50.400 as mildly racist, I would think that, given the way 357 00:18:50.440 --> 00:18:52.880 that that evening had gone and there wasn't any other 358 00:18:52.920 --> 00:18:57.319 options of anybody picking her up, mildly racist would have 359 00:18:57.400 --> 00:18:59.839 been not as bad as what she was experiencing at 360 00:18:59.839 --> 00:19:02.519 the bar, and it would feel very unsafe to be 361 00:19:02.599 --> 00:19:05.680 alone on the road. So I really feel for Charita, 362 00:19:06.240 --> 00:19:09.440 especially if she knew that he was a racist, but 363 00:19:09.640 --> 00:19:12.200 we can't be sure if she did. But either way, 364 00:19:12.359 --> 00:19:16.119 if that is your best option, it's nighttime and you're 365 00:19:16.160 --> 00:19:19.400 alone and you're in an unsafe situation that that is 366 00:19:19.480 --> 00:19:21.319 the person that you have to choose to be your like, 367 00:19:21.359 --> 00:19:25.359 quote unquote savior at that moment. It's terrifying. 368 00:19:26.440 --> 00:19:28.640 Yeah, it's really it's really terrifying. And you have this 369 00:19:28.720 --> 00:19:30.519 idea that I was wondering if they knew each other, 370 00:19:30.559 --> 00:19:33.440 like deeply, because if they did, I was wondering, you know, 371 00:19:33.480 --> 00:19:35.920 did he not present that way with her, like, Oh, 372 00:19:35.920 --> 00:19:38.119 she's an exception to the rule, because I've met really 373 00:19:38.160 --> 00:19:40.319 ignorant people who will be like, oh yeah, but not her. 374 00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:44.119 You know, she's she's she's a cool person. You know, 375 00:19:44.119 --> 00:19:46.000 I'm not. I don't hate her. I just hate most 376 00:19:46.039 --> 00:19:50.359 of those people, right, They're just ignorant and in mean. 377 00:19:50.880 --> 00:19:53.240 And so when you sit here and you have Charita 378 00:19:53.279 --> 00:19:56.039 and Patricia where they have bumped into him, if it's 379 00:19:56.079 --> 00:19:59.519 not this kind of deep familiarity with him, I wonder 380 00:19:59.559 --> 00:20:02.640 if she was aware of his racist tendencies, if it 381 00:20:02.720 --> 00:20:05.240 was just such a passer by thing that he presented 382 00:20:05.319 --> 00:20:07.680 as someone who was comforting and someone who was safe. 383 00:20:08.279 --> 00:20:11.400 But that's my first thought is that how would he 384 00:20:11.440 --> 00:20:14.519 be manipulating his way? Did he follow her there? But 385 00:20:14.839 --> 00:20:17.079 didn't we know down the road. There's another suspect you're 386 00:20:17.079 --> 00:20:19.799 about to tell me about. And we know that somebody 387 00:20:20.119 --> 00:20:25.599 was so incredibly likely involved in this case that they 388 00:20:25.680 --> 00:20:29.839 dropped the conviction against him down the road. So was 389 00:20:29.880 --> 00:20:31.880 it not even him? And we're going down a rabbit 390 00:20:31.920 --> 00:20:33.680 hole trying to see how he gained access to her 391 00:20:33.720 --> 00:20:36.039 when it probably wasn't him. 392 00:20:36.640 --> 00:20:38.960 Yeah, that's what's bizarre, because, like I said, just hearing 393 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:41.759 this information now you're thinking, Okay, this has to be 394 00:20:41.799 --> 00:20:44.079 the right guy. Yet, for reasons that we still don't 395 00:20:44.079 --> 00:20:46.640 know to this day, the state would eventually drop the 396 00:20:46.720 --> 00:20:47.839 charges against him. 397 00:20:48.759 --> 00:20:52.599 So on August thirteenth, a man named Grant Goddard broke 398 00:20:52.599 --> 00:20:56.480 into a wealthy family's vacation residence in Alcona County, Michigan, 399 00:20:56.680 --> 00:21:01.200 alongside his son Kenneth in order to perform a burglary. However, 400 00:21:01.359 --> 00:21:05.680 they crossed paths with the property's caretaker, George Wistmiller, and 401 00:21:05.720 --> 00:21:09.200