Zahn: HE WENT OUT FOR A NIGHT ON THE TOWN...
IT WAS A 19-YEAR-OLD BEING A 19-YEAR-OLD.
...BUT HE NEVER CAME HOME.
FIVE SHOTS RING OUT...
...AND HE'S DEAD.
Zahn: WHEN THERE WAS A BREAK IN THE CASE...
THESE ARE THE PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR MARK FISHER'S MURDER.
...THIS MOTHER WAS OUTRAGED.
Doreen: I WAS STUNNED.
HOW COULD THEY NOT SEE THROUGH IT?
IT WAS ALL LIES.
HOW FAR WOULD SHE GO TO CLEAR HER SON?
I WOULD HAVE DEFINITELY, WITHOUT A DOUBT,
SLEPT WITH HIM FOR THE TRUTH.
A STORY OF ONE MOTHER'S GRIEF AND ANOTHER'S OBSESSION.
AS YOU'RE DOING ALL THIS...
MM-HMM.
...WERE YOU KIND OF FEARFUL
THAT YOU WERE DESCENDING INTO CRAZINESS?
[ HORNS HONKING ]
[ HELICOPTER BLADES WHIRRING ]
ONCE YOU KNEW WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO YOU...
THE POLICE COME TO VISIT YOU.
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]
-- Captions by VITAC -- www.vitac.com
CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS
HELLO. I'M PAULA ZAHN.
TONIGHT, WE'RE ON THE CASE IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.
WITH ITS BEAUTIFUL VICTORIAN HOMES,
PROSPECT PARK SOUTH IS OFTEN USED AS A BACKDROP
FOR MOVIES AND TV SHOWS,
BUT A REAL-LIFE MURDER OF A COLLEGE STUDENT THERE
WOULD BEGIN A CHAIN OF EVENTS
WITH AS MANY TWISTS AND TURNS AS ANY HOLLYWOOD SCRIPT.
Doreen: I STARTED JOGGING. I WENT TO THE GYM.
I DYED MY HAIR THREE SHADES LIGHTER.
I STARTED WEARING FAKE NAILS.
I WENT TO THE TANNING SALON.
BY DAY, SHE WAS A TYPICAL HOUSEWIFE,
BUT BY NIGHT, SHE TRANSFORMED HERSELF
INTO A SEDUCTIVE WOMAN SHE CALLED "DEE MADISON QUINN."
IT WAS FUN TO PLAY PRETEND FOR A WHILE,
AND I KNEW, WHEN SOMETHING'S REALLY WORTH IT,
YOU CAN DO IT.
BUT SHE WASN'T DOING IT FOR FUN.
SHE WAS A MOTHER ON A MISSION TO SAVE HER SON.
YOU DON'T GIVE UP ON YOUR CHILDREN.
YOU NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR CHILDREN.
SO, WHO WAS THE REAL WOMAN BEHIND DEE MADISON QUINN,
WHAT WAS SHE UP TO, AND WHY WAS SHE FIGHTING FOR HER SON?
TO UNDERSTAND, YOU HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE BEGINNING.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2003, AROUND 6:40 A.M. IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.
Mladinich: THE POLICE ARRIVE AT ARGYLE ROAD
IN RESPONSE TO CALLS FROM PEOPLE THAT HEARD GUNSHOTS,
AND THEY FIND THE BODY OF A WHITE MALE
LAYING ON THE GROUND, WRAPPED IN A BLANKET.
Zahn: THE VICTIM HAD BEEN SHOT FIVE TIMES
AND HAD BRUISES ALL OVER THE RIGHT SIDE OF HIS FACE.
HE WAS ALREADY DEAD WHEN POLICE ARRIVED ON THE SCENE.
FORMER NYPD DETECTIVE ROBERT MLADINICH
WROTE A BOOK ABOUT THE CASE.
AT THIS POINT, THE POLICE HAVE NO IDEA WHO IT IS.
THERE'S NO WALLET.
THERE'S NO IDENTIFICATION ON THE BODY.
Zahn: POLICE LABEL HIM AS A JOHN DOE.
CRIME-SCENE INVESTIGATORS WERE BROUGHT IN TO GATHER EVIDENCE.
THERE WASN'T MUCH TO COLLECT THERE.
THERE WAS A BLANKET,
THERE WAS SOME OF THE BALLISTICS EVIDENCE,
AND THAT WAS REALLY IT.
THE POLICE WENT AND CANVASSED THE NEIGHBORHOOD,
WENT DOOR-TO-DOOR ASKING PEOPLE, "DID YOU HEAR ANYTHING?"
MANY NEIGHBORS REPORTED HEARING THE GUNSHOTS,
BUT THAT DIDN'T ANSWER THE CRITICAL QUESTION --
WHO WAS THIS YOUNG VICTIM?
THEN, WHEN INVESTIGATORS SEARCHED HIS POCKETS,
THEY FINALLY GOT THEIR FIRST CLUE --
AN ATM RECEIPT FROM EARLIER THAT MORNING.
WHAT KIND OF CLUES
DID THE ATM RECEIPTS GIVE INVESTIGATORS?
IT HELPED BUILD A TIMEFRAME.
WE KNEW THAT HE HAD BEEN THERE AT 5:26.
THE ATM RECEIPT ALSO HAD A NAME ON IT --
MARK FISHER.
BUT WAS THAT THE NAME OF THE VICTIM?
DETECTIVES COULDN'T BE SURE.
THAT CRITICAL QUESTION WAS ANSWERED
WHEN ONE OF MARK FISHER'S FRIENDS
CALLED TO REPORT THAT MARK WAS, INDEED, MISSING.
HE HAD CALLED HIM ON HIS CELLPHONE SEVERAL TIMES.
WHEN HE DIDN'T RESPOND, HE GOT VERY CONCERNED.
Zahn: THE FRIEND SENT POLICE A PICTURE OF MARK,
AND DETECTIVES WERE ABLE TO CONFIRM
THAT THEIR JOHN DOE WAS, IN FACT,
19-YEAR-OLD FAIRFIELD UNIVERSITY STUDENT MARK FISHER.
YOU HAD A 19-YEAR-OLD SO FULL OF PROMISE
AND, BY ALL ACCOUNTS, SO INNOCENT.
THAT LIFE WAS TAKEN BRUTALLY AND SENSELESSLY.
MARK FISHER WAS THE KIND OF SON,
THE KIND OF CHILD THAT I THINK PARENTS DREAM ABOUT HAVING.
FROM ALL ACCOUNTS, HE HAD IT ALL.
YOU KNOW, HE WAS HONEST. HE WAS OPEN.
HE WAS GIVING. HE WAS GENEROUS.
HE WAS CONSIDERED BY EVERYBODY
TO BE A REALLY DECENT GUY.
EVERYONE SAID NOTHING BUT
THAT HE WAS THE GUY THAT WOULD HELP SOMEONE
WHETHER HE KNEW THEM OR NOT.
HE WAS A KID THAT WAS INVOLVED IN HIS COMMUNITY,
INVOLVED IN HIS CHURCH,
PLAYED FOOTBALL FOR HIS TEAM AT FAIRFIELD UNIVERSITY,
WAS WELL-LIKED BY HIS PEERS.
Zahn: MARK FISHER WAS FROM ANDOVER, NEW JERSEY,
A SMALL COMMUNITY ABOUT AN HOUR OUTSIDE OF MANHATTAN.
DETECTIVES NOW HAD THE GRIM TASK
OF TELLING MARK'S PARENTS WHAT HAD HAPPENED TO HIM.
THE FISHER FAMILY WAS OVERCOME WITH GRIEF.
THEY TOLD POLICE THEY HAD LAST SEEN MARK
THE NIGHT BEFORE HIS MURDER.
A COLLEGE SOPHOMORE,
MARK HAD BEEN HOME FOR COLUMBUS DAY WEEKEND.
Mladinich: MARK WAS HOME FOR THE BREAK,
AND HIM AND A COUPLE OF HIS FRIENDS, A GUY AND SOME GIRLS,
THEY WANTED TO GO INTO MANHATTAN,
HIT ALL THE NIGHT SPOTS.
Zahn: IT WAS THE FIRST TRIP 19-YEAR-OLD MARK HAD EVER MADE
INTO MANHATTAN WITH HIS FRIENDS.
INVESTIGATORS STARTED PIECING TOGETHER
EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT.
IT ALL BEGAN AT A BAR ON MANHATTAN'S UPPER EAST SIDE.
THAT'S WHERE MARK RAN INTO A FRIEND FROM COLLEGE
NAMED ANGEL DiPIETRO,
WHO INTRODUCED MARK TO A YOUNG WOMAN NAMED MARY.
IT WAS AS IF SPARKS WERE FLYING ALMOST IMMEDIATELY.
THEY WERE BOTH, YOU KNOW, TOTALLY INTO EACH OTHER,
ALMOST FROM THE GET-GO.
HE TOOK A LIKING TO HER, AND APPARENTLY VICE VERSA,
AT LEAST SO MUCH THAT THEY SAT THERE
AND DRANK TOGETHER, TALKED TOGETHER,
AND AFTER A WHILE, THEY LEFT TOGETHER
TO GO TO A PIZZA PLACE THAT WAS ON THE SAME BLOCK OR NEARBY.
AS MARK LEFT THE BAR TO GET PIZZA WITH MARY,
HE TOLD HIS FRIENDS HE'D CATCH UP WITH THEM LATER.
IT PROVED TO BE A FATEFUL DECISION.
AND THAT WOUND UP BEING
THE LAST TIME THEY SAW HIM ALIVE.
Zahn: NOW SEPARATED FROM HIS FRIENDS,
MARK REALIZED HE HAD LOST HIS CELLPHONE
AND HAD NO WAY TO REACH THEM.
MARK AND MARY MET UP WITH HER FRIENDS INSTEAD.
THEY WENT TO TIN LIZZY'S. THEY COULDN'T GET IN.
MARK THOUGHT ABOUT GOING HOME,
BUT HE DIDN'T HAVE THAT MUCH MONEY ON HIM.
HE DIDN'T REALLY KNOW WHERE HIS FRIENDS WERE
BECAUSE HE DIDN'T HAVE HIS PHONE.
IT WAS LATE,
AND SINCE NONE OF THEM COULD GET INTO THE BAR,
ONE OF THE BOYS IN THE GROUP CAME UP WITH A PLAN.
"I HAVE THIS BIG HOUSE WITH NO ONE IN IT RIGHT NOW.
"WHY DON'T WE GO BACK TO MY HOUSE IN BROOKLYN,
AND WE CAN HAVE A PARTY?"
Zahn: DO YOU HAVE ANY BETTER UNDERSTANDING TODAY
OF WHY MARK FISHER, WHO HAD NO CELLPHONE,
HAD RUN OUT OF CASH,
AND KNEW HE HAD TOO MUCH TO DRINK,
WOULD VENTURE ON FROM THE CITY TO BROOKLYN?
I THINK IT WAS A 19-YEAR-OLD BEING A 19-YEAR-OLD
THAT WAS OUT WITH HIS FRIENDS.
HE'D BEEN DRINKING,
COUPLED WITH HIS INTEREST IN MARY --
A YOUNG, ATTRACTIVE WOMAN.
I THINK HE REALLY JUST WANTED TO KEEP THE NIGHT GOING,
NEVER THINKING THAT IT WOULD GO WHERE IT IS.
I THINK HE WAS A TRUSTING YOUNG MAN,
AND IN HIS LIFE THUS FAR,
HE HAD NEVER HAD ANY REASON TO THINK OTHERWISE.
Mladinich: EVERYBODY GOT INTO A CAB,
AND OFF THEY WENT TO BROOKLYN --
A PLACE THAT MARK FISHER
HAD NEVER BEEN TO BEFORE IN HIS LIFE.
Zahn: COMING UP NEXT...
INVESTIGATORS FOLLOW THE TRAIL TO A HOUSE PARTY IN BROOKLYN,
BUT NO ONE WAS TALKING.
WE HAD KIDS THAT NOT ONLY WOULDN'T SPEAK TO THE POLICE,
BUT THEY HAD LAWYERS RIGHT AWAY.
THEY WOULDN'T TALK TO ANYONE.
IN OCTOBER 2003,
19-YEAR-OLD FAIRFIELD UNIVERSITY STUDENT MARK FISHER WAS MURDERED
AFTER A NIGHT OF PARTYING WITH FRIENDS IN MANHATTAN.
DETECTIVES NOW UNDERSTOOD WHY MARK WENT TO BROOKLYN,
BUT THEY WERE STILL BAFFLED BY HOW, JUST HOURS LATER,
HE WOUND UP DEAD.
Mladinich: THE POLICE WERE ABLE TO RETRACE THE STEPS,
AND THAT LED THEM TO THIS HOUSE PARTY
AT THE RESIDENCE OF JOHN GUICA.
Zahn: JOHN GUICA WAS A TOTAL STRANGER TO MARK FISHER.
MARK HAD COME TO THE PARTY
WITH A GIRL NAMED MARY HE HAD JUST MET,
BUT WAS CLEARLY SMITTEN WITH.
AT THE PARTY, THE KIDS WERE DRINKING AND SMOKING MARIJUANA.
THEY WERE SOON JOINED
BY A NEIGHBORHOOD KID NAMED ANTONIO.
Mladinich: ANTONIO RUSSO WAS A FRIEND OF JOHN GUICA'S.
HE LIVED RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER.
HE WAS AN ACQUAINTANCE
OF SOME OF THE OTHER PEOPLE AT THE HOUSE PARTY.
HIS NICKNAME WAS "TWEED." HE WORE DREADLOCKS.
HE WAS KNOWN FOR BEING SOMEWHAT OF AN ERRATIC CHARACTER.
Zahn: THE PARTY ROLLED ON INTO THE EARLY MORNING.
EVENTUALLY, THEY RAN OUT OF BEER.
MARK WAS TOLD THE FREE RIDE WAS OVER.
IF HE WANTED TO KEEP PARTYING, HE'D HAVE TO PONY UP SOME CASH.
IN THE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING, NOT LONG BEFORE DAYLIGHT,
MARK FISHER WENT TO A NEARBY ATM MACHINE TO TAKE OUT $20.
Zahn: ANTONIO RUSSO WENT WITH HIM.
BY THE TIME THEY GOT BACK,
SOME GUESTS HAD LEFT AND THE PARTY WAS WINDING DOWN.
PEOPLE THAT HAD BEEN THERE HAD BEEN LEAVING SLOWLY.
BEFORE LONG, YOU KNOW, IN LITERALLY A MATTER OF MINUTES,
MARK, WHO, YOU KNOW, WHO'S NOT USED TO BEING UP,
YOU KNOW, TILL ALL HOURS OF THE NIGHT,
FALLS ASLEEP ON A COUCH.
Zahn: BY NOW, IT WAS AROUND 6:00 A.M.
WITH A NIGHT OF HEAVY PARTYING BEHIND HIM,
MARK FISHER WAS ASLEEP ON JOHN GUICA'S COUCH.
BUT EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED NEXT
WOULD BAFFLE AND FRUSTRATE INVESTIGATORS
FOR MORE THAN A YEAR.
AN HOUR OR SO AFTER FALLING ASLEEP,
MARK FISHER GETS UP, LEAVES THE HOUSE...
Zahn: AND JUST MOMENTS LATER...
...FIVE SHOTS RING OUT...
[ GUNSHOTS ]
...AND HE'S DEAD.
Zahn: IT WAS A PUZZLE INVESTIGATORS COULDN'T SEEM TO PIECE TOGETHER.
HOW AND WHY DID MARK FISHER LEAVE THE HOUSE?
WHERE WAS HE HEADING? DID ANYONE SEE ANYTHING?
POLICE FELT SURE
THE KIDS AT THE PARTY COULD ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS,
BUT NONE OF THEM WOULD TALK.
INVESTIGATORS WERE SURPRISED BY THE LEVEL OF RESISTANCE.
INVESTIGATORS MET WITH A STONE WALL.
WE HAD KIDS THAT -- DEFINITELY NOT THE NORM --
THAT NOT ONLY WOULDN'T SPEAK TO THE POLICE,
BUT THEY HAD LAWYERS RIGHT AWAY.
THEY WOULDN'T TALK TO ANYONE.
AND THE FACT THAT THEY WERE STONEWALLING THE INVESTIGATION
WAS BEYOND COMPREHENSION TO MOST INVESTIGATORS.
Zahn: AS THE MONTHS WENT BY,
INVESTIGATORS BEGAN TURNING UP THE PRESSURE
ON THE HOST OF THE PARTY, JOHN GUICA.
THEY THOUGHT HE KNEW MORE THAN WHAT HE WAS SAYING.
DOREEN GIULIANO IS JOHN GUICA'S MOTHER.
SHE WAS IN FLORIDA WHEN JOHN CALLED HER
THE DAY AFTER MARK FISHER WAS MURDERED.
SHE TOLD US ABOUT IT IN AN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW.
HE SAID, "MA, YOU NEED TO COME HOME."
AND I ASKED HIM WHY.
AND HE SAYS, "YOU JUST NEED TO COME HOME.
IT'S REALLY SERIOUS."
WHAT DID JOHN TELL YOU?
HE TOLD ME THAT SOMEONE HAD GOTTEN KILLED
AFTER THEY LEFT OUR HOME.
AND HE WAS DEVASTATED. HE WAS DEVASTATED OVER IT.
FROM THE BEGINNING,
DOREEN BELIEVED THAT POLICE WERE OUT TO GET HER SON.
WHEN JOHN ORIGINALLY TOLD THEM WHAT HAPPENED
AND WHAT HE WAS PRIVY TO,
THEY DIDN'T WANT TO HEAR IT.
ALL THEY REALLY WANTED, PAULA, FROM HIM
WAS A CONFESSION,
AND THEY DIDN'T WANT ANYTHING LESS.
AT WHAT POINT DID YOU REALIZE YOUR SON WAS IN TROUBLE?
THE DETECTIVES OR COPS KEPT HARASSING JOHN
AND DRAGGING HIM BACK TO THE POLICE STATION.
ANYTIME HE WOULD WALK OUT OF THE HOUSE,
THEY WOULD SEARCH HIM.
HE WAS A TARGET. HE WAS DEFINITELY A TARGET.
AND I THINK WHAT THEY WERE TRYING TO DO
IS MAYBE SQUEEZE HIM,
GET HIM TO ADMIT SOMETHING HE DIDN'T DO
OR FINGER SOMEBODY ELSE.
I MEAN, YOU KNOW, THAT'S WHAT THEY DO.
Zahn: OVER THE NEXT YEAR,
THE MURDER OF THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYER
CAME TO BE KNOWN AS "THE GRID SLAYING."
DOZENS OF NEWSPAPER ARTICLES ABOUT THE CASE
NAMED JOHN GUICA AS THE PRIME SUSPECT.
AT ONE POINT, THEY WERE SAYING
MARK FISHER WAS MURDERED IN THE HOUSE
AND THEN PUT IN A VAN.
I MEAN, EVERY DAY, IT JUST -- IT GOT WORSE AND WORSE.
Zahn: WHILE THE NEWSPAPERS
SEEMED TO HAVE LOCKED ONTO A PRIME SUSPECT,
FOR INVESTIGATORS,
THE HIGH-PROFILE CASE REMAINED A MYSTERY.
BY NOVEMBER 2004,
THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY INITIATED GRAND-JURY PROCEEDINGS,
TRYING TO FORCE THE OTHERS AT THE PARTY
TO BREAK THEIR SILENCE.
EVERY ONE OF THEM STANDS TO FACE CHARGES
OF THE FELONY OF PERJURY OR THE FELONY OF EVASIVE CONTEMPT.
WE ARE NOT GOING TO ALLOW MARK FISHER'S DEATH,
HIS TRAGEDY TO HIS FAMILY, TO GO UNANSWERED.
Zahn: NOW UNDER OATH
AND FACING POSSIBLE JAIL TIME IF THEY DIDN'T TESTIFY,
THE TEENS BEGAN TELLING THE GRAND JURY WHAT THEY KNEW.
ALL OF THE YOUNG PEOPLE YOU SPOKE TO
WHO WERE AT THE PARTY THAT NIGHT
WERE SUSPECTS THEMSELVES
DURING THE EARLY HOURS OF THE INVESTIGATION.
THEY HAVE A MOTIVATION TO LIE.
EVERY ONE OF THEM.
YOU DIDN'T KNOW WHO DID WHAT,
AND THIS WAS A GROUP THAT WAS SUSPECT.
AND NO ONE WAS TAKEN OFF THE LIST
AS A SUSPECT OR A PERSON OF INTEREST
UNTIL WE WERE ABLE TO REALLY NARROW IT DOWN,
WHICH WAS WELL OVER A YEAR AFTER THIS HAD HAPPENED.
WITNESSES WHO ONCE SAID THEY KNEW NOTHING
BEGAN GIVING INFORMATION TO THE GRAND JURY
THAT TWO OF THE YOUNG MEN AT THE PARTY
WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR KILLING MARK FISHER --
18-YEAR-OLD ANTONIO RUSSO AND 20-YEAR-OLD JOHN GUICA.
THIS CASE WAS LARGELY BUILT ON STATEMENTS,
THINGS THAT GUICA AND RUSSO
HAD SAID TO PEOPLE THAT THEY TRUSTED IN,
WHETHER IT WAS GIRLFRIENDS OR CLOSE FRIENDS
OR PEOPLE IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD.
PROSECUTORS LEARNED
ANTONIO RUSSO HAD CONFESSED TO A FEW PEOPLE
THAT HE WAS THE GUNMAN.
HIS GIRLFRIEND ENDS UP TELLING
THAT HE ADMITTED IT TO HER,
AND THE STORY KEPT EVOLVING FROM THERE.
WE HAD ANOTHER FRIEND THAT HE SPOKE TO
THAT HE ALSO ADMITTED TO, "YOU KNOW WHAT? I DID THIS."
Zahn: RUSSO CHANGED HIS APPEARANCE THE MORNING AFTER THE MURDER,
TELLING FRIENDS HE WAS WORRIED
BECAUSE HE'D BEEN SEEN ON ATM SURVEILLANCE VIDEO
WITH MARK FISHER.
WHEN RUSSO WAS ARRESTED, HE DIDN'T DENY HIS INVOLVEMENT.
THE FIRST THING THAT HE SAID TO THE POLICE IS,
"WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO ARREST THE OTHER GUYS?"
JOHN GUICA HAD ALSO CONFIDED IN THOSE CLOSEST TO HIM.
RIGHT AFTER THE MURDER,
HE SPOKE WITH HIS GIRLFRIEND AT THE TIME.
HE'S STARTING TO PANIC.
SHE'S SOMEONE HE BELIEVES HE CAN TRUST,
SO HE TELLS HER SOMETHING --
"I'M INVOLVED IN SOMETHING BAD, BUT, REALLY, RUSSO DID IT.
I'M INVOLVED, BUT I JUST GAVE HIM THE GUN."
AFTER ALL THE TESTIMONY,
PROSECUTORS STILL DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH
TO CHARGE JOHN GUICA WITH THE MURDER OF MARK FISHER,
BUT THAT WOULD ALL CHANGE WHEN ONE OF GUICA'S CLOSEST FRIENDS
DECIDED TO BREAK HIS SILENCE AND BUST THE CASE WIDE OPEN.
COMING UP NEXT...
POLICE MAKE ARRESTS,
BUT DO THEY HAVE ENOUGH TO PROVE THEIR CASE?
YOU HAD NO MURDER WEAPON
AND CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE AT BEST.
ISN'T IT TOUGH TO CONVICT SOMEONE THAT WAY?
AND LATER...
A MOTHER GOES UNDERCOVER.
I WOULD HAVE SLEPT WITH HIM FOR THE TRUTH.
MORE THAN A YEAR AFTER MARK FISHER WAS MURDERED,
PROSECUTORS BELIEVED
THEY WERE FINALLY CLOSING IN ON HIS KILLERS.
THEY ARRESTED ANTONIO RUSSO.
STILL, THEY DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH TO CHARGE JOHN GUICA.
BUT A TEENAGER WHO WAS AT THE FATEFUL PARTY IN BROOKLYN
WAS ABOUT TO STEP FORWARD WITH AN INCREDIBLE STORY.
COULD PROSECUTORS BELIEVE HIM?
HIS NAME IS ALBERT CLEARY,
AND HE WAS ONE OF JOHN GUICA'S CLOSEST FRIENDS.
HE TOLD PROSECUTORS
THAT HE KNEW EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED TO MARK FISHER
AND THEN EXPLAINED
WHY HE HAD SPENT THE LAST YEAR LYING TO EVERYONE.
HE SAID, "WELL, THE REASON I LIED
"WAS BECAUSE HE IS MY BOYHOOD FRIEND.
"WE'VE BEEN CLOSE FOR MANY YEARS,
AND THAT'S WHAT HE TOLD ME TO DO."
HE THEN TOLD PROSECUTORS
THERE WAS A DARK SIDE TO HIS FRIEND JOHN GUICA.
CLEARY DESCRIBED A TOUGH GUY,
THE LEADER OF A GANG KNOWN IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD AS "GM,"
SHORT FOR "GHETTO MAFIA."
AND HE SAID GUICA WAS CAPABLE OF ORDERING A HIT ON SOMEONE.
JOHN GUICA HEADED
THIS CRIMINAL GANG CALLED THE GHETTO MAFIA,
OF WHICH ANTONIO RUSSO
WAS PROBABLY HIS MOST TRUSTED LIEUTENANT.
Zahn: CLEARY SAID THAT, BEFORE MARK FISHER'S MURDER,
GUICA HAD BEEN COMPLAINING
THAT THE GHETTO MAFIA HAD NO STREET CREDIBILITY.
HE THOUGHT THAT HIS GANG, OR GM, WAS SEEN AS BEING SOFT,
AND THEY DIDN'T WANT TO BE PERCEIVED THAT WAY,
AND THAT NOW ANYONE THAT WAS IN THE GANG
WAS GOING TO HAVE TO "GET A BODY,"
WHICH BASICALLY MEANS TO COMMIT A MURDER,
TO BE PART OF THAT GANG.
CLEARY ALSO TOLD PROSECUTORS
THAT GUICA HAD GUNS IN HIS HOUSE,
AND HE PERSONALLY SAW TWO OF THEM.
PROSECUTORS BELIEVED ONE OF THEM WAS THE MURDER WEAPON.
JOHN GUICA HAD SHOWED HIM A .22-CALIBER WEAPON,
WHICH WAS WHAT THE -- WHAT MR. FISHER WAS KILLED WITH,
AND THAT JOHN GUICA
HAD FIRED INTO SOME PHONE BOOKS IN HIS HOUSE
TO SHOW HIM HOW THE WEAPON WORKED.
Zahn: CLEARY PRESENTED OTHER DETAILS,
WHICH PROSECUTORS NOW SAW AS A POSSIBLE MOTIVE
FOR THE MURDER OF MARK FISHER THAT MORNING.
HE SAT DOWN ON A TABLE -- IT WAS LIKE A CHEST --
AND AS SOON AS HE DID, GUICA SAID SOMETHING TO HIM,
LIKE, YOU KNOW, "GET OFF OF THAT."
AND MARK DIDN'T AT FIRST,
PROBABLY NOT REALIZING THAT THERE WAS REALLY MUCH TO IT,
AND GUICA REPEATED AGAIN.
CLEARY SAID JOHN GUICA WAS ANGRY
AND THOUGHT THAT MARK FISHER HAD DISRESPECTED HIS HOUSE
AND NEEDED TO PAY FOR IT.
BUT CLEARY DID MORE THAN TALK ABOUT POSSIBLE MOTIVES.
HE SAID JOHN GUICA TOLD HIM DIRECTLY
THAT HE WAS INVOLVED IN MARK FISHER'S MURDER.
Mladinich: GUICA HAD ADMITTED TO HIM
THAT HE HAD GIVEN ANTONIO RUSSO A GUN
AND SAID, "SHOW HIM" -- MEANING MARK FISHER --
"WHAT'S UP."
HE DIDN'T ELABORATE ON WHETHER HE BELIEVED THAT TO MEAN
"KILL HIM," "SCARE HIM," "ROUGH HIM UP," OR WHATEVER.
HE JUST CLAIMED TO HAVE HEARD THOSE WORDS.
Zahn: CLEARY'S ACCOUNT CONFIRMED WHAT JOHN GUICA'S GIRLFRIEND
HAD ALREADY TOLD INVESTIGATORS --
THAT GUICA GAVE ANTONIO RUSSO A GUN
THEY BELIEVED TO BE THE MURDER WEAPON.
EVEN THOUGH THEY STILL HAD NO PHYSICAL EVIDENCE
LINKING JOHN GUICA TO MARK FISHER'S MURDER,
PROSECUTORS THOUGHT THEY HAD ENOUGH TO INDICT HIM.
FOUR DAYS BEFORE CHRISTMAS OF 2004,
JOHN GUICA WAS ARRESTED AND CHARGED WITH MURDER.
YOU HAD NO MURDER WEAPON.
YOU HAD MINIMAL PHYSICAL EVIDENCE AT BEST.
YOU HAD TESTIMONY,
THE MOST DAMNING OF WHICH CAME FROM PEOPLE WHO WERE,
EARLY ON IN THE INVESTIGATION, SUSPECTS THEMSELVES,
AND CIRCUMSTANTIAL EVIDENCE AT BEST.
ISN'T IT TOUGH TO CONVICT SOMEONE THAT WAY?
EVERY CASE IS DIFFERENT,
AND SOMETIMES THIS TYPE OF EVIDENCE,
IF YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT CIRCUMSTANTIAL OR STATEMENTS,
IT CAN BE THE MOST OVERWHELMING AT TIMES
BECAUSE WHEN YOU START TO PUT EACH PIECE ON TOP OF THE OTHER,
YOU END UP WITH A MOUNTAIN.
AND WHEN YOU'RE AT THE TOP, IT ONLY POINTS TO ONE THING,
AND THAT'S WHAT WE HAD HERE.
ON SEPTEMBER 14, 2005,
THE CASE AGAINST JOHN GUICA AND ANTONIO RUSSO
BEGAN IN FRONT OF A PACKED BROOKLYN COURTHOUSE,
JUDGE ALAN MARRUS PRESIDING.
INSTEAD OF HAVING TWO SEPARATE TRIALS
WITH TWO SEPARATE JURIES,
TO EXPEDITE THE TRIAL, WE TRIED THEM TOGETHER
BEFORE TWO JURIES AT THE SAME TIME.
Zahn: AS THE TRIAL BEGAN,
PROSECUTORS CHARACTERIZED MARK FISHER
AS A LAMB AMONGST WOLVES.
PROSECUTORS THEN BROUGHT OUT PHONE RECORDS
SHOWING CALLS BETWEEN RUSSO AND GUICA THE NIGHT OF THE MURDER.
THEY PRESENTED THE JURY WITH A SEQUENCE OF EVENTS
BASED ON THE TIMES THE CALLS WERE MADE.
ONE PHONE CALL AT 5:25 A.M. AND A SECOND AT 5:31
LED PROSECUTORS TO THEORIZE THAT GUICA AND RUSSO
PLANNED TO ROB FISHER AFTER HE HAD VISITED THE ATM.
WE KNOW THAT THERE WAS A PHONE CALL
FROM RUSSO TO GUICA JUST A FEW MINUTES BEFORE
MARK ACTUALLY TOOK THE MONEY OUT.
AND THEN WE KNOW THAT,
ONE MINUTE AFTER HE TOOK THE MONEY OUT,
THERE WAS ANOTHER PHONE CALL FROM RUSSO TO GUICA.
PROSECUTORS BELIEVE THAT SOMETHING WENT WRONG
AND MARK FISHER CAME BACK TO GUICA'S HOUSE AND FELL ASLEEP.
THEY SAID GUICA WOKE MARK UP AROUND 6:30
AND TOLD HIM TO LEAVE.
NOW RUSSO WAS WAITING FOR HIM OUTSIDE, ARMED WITH GUICA'S GUN.
AT 6:40 THAT MORNING, HE IS SHOT.
HE IS BEATEN.
WE KNOW THAT THERE IS A PHONE CALL
FROM RUSSO TO GUICA JUST MINUTES BEFORE,
WHICH WE BELIEVE IS SOMETHING TO THE EFFECT OF,
"I'M IN PLACE.
I'M READY. WHERE ARE YOU GUYS?"
THE PROSECUTION USED THE PHONE RECORDS
TO BUILD A TIMELINE LEADING UP TO THE MOMENT OF THE SHOOTING,
WHICH NEIGHBORS PINPOINTED FOR POLICE.
BUT THEY CHOSE TO IGNORE ONE CALL.
AT 5:57 A.M., JOHN GUICA CALLED ALBERT CLEARY.
DOREEN GIULIANO SAYS THAT CALL FROM HER SON TO ALBERT CLEARY
SUGGESTS THAT MARK FISHER WAS ON HIS WAY TO CLEARY'S HOUSE
BEFORE HE WAS MURDERED.
MARK FISHER HAD WOKE UP
WITH THE BLANKET AROUND HIS SHOULDERS
AND ASKED FOR ANGEL DiPIETRO
BECAUSE ANGEL DiPIETRO WAS THE ONLY CONNECTION
THAT HE HAD FROM THE PARTY.
SO, JOHN TOLD HIM, "SHE LEFT WITH ALBERT."
JOHN TOLD THEM EXACTLY WHERE ALBERT CLEARY LIVES
AND CALLED UP ALBERT AND SAID, "MARK IS COMING.
HE WANTS ANGEL. HE WANTS TO LEAVE AND GO HOME."
AT TRIAL, PROSECUTORS SAID
THEY HAD NO EXPLANATION FOR THAT CALL,
AND ALBERT CLEARY TOLD AUTHORITIES
HE SIMPLY DIDN'T REMEMBER IT.
THE DEFENSE BELIEVED
THAT CALL BLEW A GAPING HOLE IN THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S CASE.
Doreen: THEY HAVE A THEORY FOR EVERY SINGLE PHONE CALL --
WHY THIS PHONE CALL WAS MADE,
BUT FOR THE MOST CRUCIAL PHONE CALL,
CAN'T BE EXPLAINED?
AND ALBERT CLEARY CONVENIENTLY FORGETS
ABOUT THAT PHONE CALL?
THE ONE PHONE CALL
THAT BRINGS MARK FISHER RIGHT TO HIS DOORSTEP
IS THE ONE THAT HE FORGOT.
Mladinich: THERE WERE PROBLEMS WITH CLEARY'S TESTIMONY,
EVEN FROM A LAYMAN'S PERSPECTIVE.
Zahn: DOREEN GIULIANO CLAIMS
EVERYTHING ALBERT CLEARY SAID ON THE STAND WAS A LIE
AND THAT HE WAS LYING TO PROTECT HIMSELF.
WHO DID JOHN TELL YOU HAD MURDERED MARK FISHER?
JOHN TOLD ME WHAT HE OVERHEARD ALBERT CLEARY SAYING.
DID HE ADMIT, ACCORDING TO JOHN,
THAT HE HAD KILLED MARK FISHER?
YES, HE DID. YES.
ALBERT CLEARY HAS NEVER BEEN CHARGED
WITH ANY CRIMES RELATED TO THIS CASE,
AND PROSECUTORS SAY
THERE'S NOTHING TO IMPLICATE HIM IN MARK FISHER'S MURDER.
WE CONTACTED ALBERT CLEARY A NUMBER OF TIMES
TO GET HIS SIDE OF THE STORY,
BUT HE CHOSE NOT TO DO AN ON-CAMERA INTERVIEW
AND DECLINED TO COMMENT.
DOREEN ALSO SAYS
THE PROSECUTION'S DESCRIPTION OF THE GHETTO MAFIA
AS A DANGEROUS STREET GANG WAS RIDICULOUS.
SHE SAYS IT WAS REALLY
JUST A HARMLESS COLLECTION OF BOYS
SHE'D KNOWN SINCE THEY WERE LITTLE.
THEY BEGAN THIS GANG,
THIS SO-CALLED "GANG," WHEN THEY WERE LIKE 12 YEARS OLD,
AND IT STARTED OFF REALLY HARMLESS.
IT WAS JUST A BUNCH OF NEIGHBORHOOD KIDS
THAT CAME TOGETHER
AND THAT WOULD CALL THEMSELVES THE GHETTO MAFIA,
BUT THERE WASN'T VIOLENCE CONNECTED TO IT.
THE DEFENSE ARGUED
THAT THE MOST INCRIMINATING STATEMENTS AGAINST GUICA
WERE COMING FROM SOMEONE WITH SOMETHING TO HIDE.
THE ONE WHO HAD THE MOST TO LOSE,
WHICH WAS ALBERT CLEARY,
WAS CONSTANTLY POINTING BLAME TOWARDS JOHN.
EVEN THOUGH THERE WERE NO EYEWITNESSES,
NO DNA EVIDENCE,
AND THE MURDER WEAPON WAS NEVER FOUND,
THE TWO JURIES BELIEVED WHAT THE PROSECUTION TOLD THEM.
ANTONIO RUSSO AND JOHN GUICA
WERE BOTH FOUND GUILTY OF MURDER.
WHAT WAS THE REACTION...
WHEN YOU HEARD THE GUILTY VERDICT COME DOWN FOR YOUR SON?
I WAS STUNNED.
I COULDN'T BELIEVE THAT THE JURY DIDN'T SEE THROUGH IT.
HOW COULD THEY NOT SEE THROUGH IT?
IT WAS ALL LIES.
WELL, IT'S LIKE SOMEONE STABS YOU IN THE HEART.
I MEAN, AND AFTER NOT EVEN TWO HOURS --
I MEAN, THAT DIDN'T MAKE ANY SENSE TO ME.
YOU'RE HEARING TWO WEEKS OF TESTIMONY,
IT'S SOMEONE'S LIFE ON THE LINE,
AND IN LESS THAN TWO HOURS,
YOU COME BACK WITH A GUILTY VERDICT?
THE REACTION WAS A SENSE OF RELIEF,
BUT AT THE SAME TIME,
THE REASON THAT WE'RE THERE DOESN'T CHANGE
BECAUSE IT DOESN'T BRING BACK MARK FISHER
TO HIS FAMILY AND HIS FRIENDS.
Zahn: COMING UP...
WITH HER SON CONVICTED OF MURDER,
A MOTHER GOES UNDERCOVER.
AS YOU'RE DOING ALL THIS...
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING ]
...WERE YOU KIND OF FEARFUL
THAT YOU WERE DESCENDING INTO CRAZINESS?
THE VERDICT WAS IN.
DESPITE THE FACT
THAT PROSECUTORS HAD NO PHYSICAL EVIDENCE
LINKING THE DEFENDANTS TO THE CRIME,
JURORS FOUND BOTH ANTONIO RUSSO AND JOHN GUICA GUILTY
OF MURDERING 19-YEAR-OLD MARK FISHER.
GUICA'S FAMILY BELIEVED HE DIDN'T GET A FAIR TRIAL,
AND THEY SET IN MOTION A DARING PLAN TO PROVE IT.
NOW CONVICTED OF MURDER,
21-YEAR-OLD JOHN GUICA STOOD BEFORE JUDGE ALAN MARRUS
TO HEAR HIS SENTENCE.
THE COVER-UP, THE HEINOUS NATURE OF THE CRIME,
THE BACKGROUND OF THE DEFENDANTS,
AND THE IMPACT THAT IT HAD
ON THE VICTIM'S FAMILY AND THE COMMUNITY
ALL SEEMED TO WARRANT, IN MY MIND,
THE MAXIMUM SENTENCE, WHICH WAS 25 YEARS TO LIFE.
WHAT DID YOU DO WHEN YOU REALIZED
YOUR SON WAS LIKELY GOING TO SPEND
25 YEARS OF HIS ADULT LIFE IN PRISON?
Doreen: IT WAS A NIGHTMARE. IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE.
THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT JUSTICE.
THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT THE TRUTH.
Zahn: THE TRUTH, ACCORDING TO JOHN GUICA'S MOTHER,
IS THAT HER SON DIDN'T KILL MARK FISHER.
DOREEN INSISTS HER SON DIDN'T RECEIVE A FAIR TRIAL.
HER THOUGHTS WENT BACK TO THE JURY AND THEIR GUILTY VERDICT.
I WAS FLOORED.
I COULDN'T BELIEVE
THAT THEY CAME BACK IN AN HOUR AND A HALF.
I WAS REALLY -- SOMETHING WAS FISHY.
DOREEN HIRED PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS
TO LOOK INTO HER SUSPICIONS,
BUT THEY COST THOUSANDS AND FOUND NOTHING.
HERE IS THE PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS --
WELL-SPOKEN, WELL-DRESSED --
HALF THE TIME,
THEY DIDN'T EVEN GET IN THE FRONT DOOR.
YOU HAVE TO BEFRIEND SOMEONE.
YOU HAVE TO KIND OF LET DOWN YOUR HAIR.
YOU CAN'T GO IN THERE ALL PROFESSIONAL.
NO ONE'S GONNA TALK TO YOU.
THEN SHE REMEMBERED
SOMETHING HER HUSBAND AND BROTHER OVERHEARD
DURING A BREAK IN THE TRIAL.
ONE OF THE JURORS WAS TALKING ABOUT
HOW HE REALLY WANTED TO GET HIGH ON MARIJUANA JUST THEN.
MY MAIN GOAL WAS TO PROVE THAT THIS KID WAS STONED.
SO, DOREEN BEGAN DOING RESEARCH.
SHE LEARNED THE JUROR'S NAME WAS JASON ALLO.
SO, WHAT WAS YOUR PLAN?
TO BEFRIEND HIM, TO PRETEND I WAS A SMOKER,
AND, ALSO, TO GET A CONFESSION FROM HIM.
AND I THOUGHT IF HE WAS TO CONFESS TO ME
THAT HE WAS STONED,
THAT THAT WOULD GET MY SON A REVERSAL.
AS MISGUIDED AND OUTRAGEOUS AS HER PLAN MAY HAVE SEEMED,
HER HUSBAND, FRANK,
FELT HE HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO GO ALONG WITH IT.
Frank: SHE'S ON A MISSION, AND SHE'S PRETTY DETERMINED.
SO, BY HOOK OR BY CROOK, IT WAS GONNA HAPPEN, ANYWAY.
IF I TOLD HER IT WAS, YOU KNOW, NOT A GOOD IDEA,
SHE'S GONNA DO IT ANYWAY.
I WAS CONCERNED, OF COURSE,
BUT, AGAIN, YOU KNOW, HOW DO YOU TELL A MOTHER
NOT TO DO EVERYTHING SHE CAN TO SAVE HER SON?
Zahn: DOREEN REALIZED
IF SHE WAS REALLY GOING AHEAD WITH HER PLAN
TO SHOW THAT ALLO WAS STONED WHEN HE SERVED ON THE JURY,
SHE'D HAVE TO BECOME A DIFFERENT PERSON
BY CHANGING HER APPEARANCE.
SO, DOREEN,
PULLING OFF THIS STING OPERATION INVOLVED A LOT OF WORK.
WALK US THROUGH THE PHYSICAL TRANSFORMATION
YOU HAD TO GO THROUGH TO PULL IT OFF.
WHAT DID YOU DO?
I STARTED JOGGING. I WENT TO THE GYM.
I DYED MY HAIR THREE SHADES LIGHTER.
I STARTED WEARING FAKE NAILS.
I WENT TO THE TANNING SALON.
AS I BECAME THINNER,
BOUGHT A WHOLE NEW WARDROBE, MORE PROVOCATIVE CLOTHING.
THE TRANSFORMATION TOOK ABOUT EIGHT MONTHS.
DURING THAT TIME,
DOREEN BEGAN TO FOLLOW JASON ALLO
AROUND HIS NEIGHBORHOOD.
I WOULD RIDE AROUND PAST HIS HOUSE
AND JUST WOULD WATCH HIM COME OUT AND GO OFF TO WORK
AND HANG OUT ON THE CORNER AND FOLLOW HIM AROUND,
JUST TO GET TO SEE WHO HIS FRIENDS ARE
AND HIS HABITS AND STUFF BECAUSE I WANTED HIM TO LIKE ME,
SO I WANTED TO BE MORE OF WHAT HE LIKES.
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKING ]
WITH HER NEW LOOK, SHE ALSO GOT A NEW NAME --
DEE MADISON QUINN,
A 20-SOMETHING BUSINESS-MANAGEMENT SPECIALIST
FROM CALIFORNIA.
SHE EVEN RENTED A $1,000-A-MONTH APARTMENT IN ALLO'S NEIGHBORHOOD
THAT SHE CALLED "THE STING APARTMENT."
AS YOU'RE DOING ALL THIS,
WERE YOU KIND OF FEARFUL
THAT YOU WERE DESCENDING INTO CRAZINESS?
IT WAS UNCONVENTIONAL, OF COURSE, BUT I --
"UNCONVENTIONAL"?
BUT I TRIED. [ CHUCKLES ]
YEAH. I TRIED THE OTHER WAY.
I WAS GOING BROKE,
AND WHAT OTHER BETTER WAY THAN A YOUNG, PRETTY BLONDE?
AS DEE MADISON QUINN,
DOREEN WAS NOW READY TO MEET THE MAN
WHO HELPED PUT HER SON IN PRISON.
SHE KNEW WHERE JASON ALLO LIKED TO HANG OUT
AND, ONE DAY, RODE HER BICYCLE RIGHT PAST HIM.
AS SHE DID, HIS FRIEND WHISTLED.
I SAID, "NOW IS THE TIME."
NOW I HAD TO DO IT.
WITH BUTTERFLIES IN MY STOMACH, I MADE A U-TURN.
DEE INTRODUCED HERSELF TO THE MEN
AND TOLD THEM SHE WAS NEW TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD.
I WAS THERE JUST 10 MINUTES,
AND HE ALREADY OFFERED HIS NUMBER TO ME.
SO I WAS FORCED TO TURN AROUND AND CONFRONT HIM,
AND HE GAVE ME HIS NUMBER.
IT LOOKED LIKE HER PLAN WAS WORKING.
ALLO DIDN'T SEEM TO RECOGNIZE HER AT ALL.
DOREEN WAITED A WEEK AND THEN CALLED
TO INVITE HIM TO THE STING APARTMENT FOR DINNER.
SHE WENT TO GREAT LENGTHS TO PROTECT HER TRUE IDENTITY
AND MAKE DEE SEEM REAL.
I WOULD PLACE SNOOP PROPS AROUND,
BECAUSE I KNOW EVERYBODY SNOOPS.
I KNOW I SNOOPED IN MY SON'S DRAWERS AND, YOU KNOW...
SO, WHAT'S A SNOOP PROP?
A SNOOP PROP IS --
I WOULD PLANT THESE THINGS THAT REPRESENTED CALIFORNIA,
SO HE WOULD FIND SOMETHING.
LIKE, I PUT A PHONE BOOK WITH ALL FAKE NAMES
AND FAKE PHONE NUMBERS WITH CALIFORNIA'S AREA CODE.
THE FINAL ELEMENT WAS A DIGITAL RECORDER
DOREEN BOUGHT AT A LOCAL SPY SHOP
TO TAPE HER CONVERSATIONS WITH ALLO.
SHE PLACED IT INSIDE HER BRA RIGHT BEFORE HE CAME OVER.
SO, DESCRIBE TO US WHAT HAPPENED THEN
AND HOW TERRIFIED YOU WERE THAT YOU MIGHT BLOW YOUR COVER.
I WAS SUCH AN AMATEUR
AND CONSTANTLY JITTERY AND SICK.
OVER THE NEXT MONTHS,
DOREEN LIVED A DOUBLE LIFE AS DEE QUINN,
SPENDING HER EVENINGS WITH JASON ALLO,
HAVING DINNER, DRINKING WINE, AND SMOKING MARIJUANA.
SHE SAYS SHE NEVER HAD A SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH ALLO,
BUT ADMITS SHE WOULD HAVE.
I WANT THE TRUTH. I WOULD HAVE DONE ANYTHING.
WOULD I HAVE CROSSED THAT LINE
TO GET THE TRUTH, TO UNCOVER?
PROBABLY, YEAH -- IF THAT'S WHAT IT TOOK, YEAH.
THE CONVERSATIONS WITH ALLO
BEGAN AS SMALL TALK BETWEEN FRIENDS,
BUT EVENTUALLY,
DOREEN FIGURED OUT A WAY TO MAKE HIM DISCUSS HER SON'S CASE.
I TOLD HIM THAT I WAS OFFERED A JOB
FROM THIS ORGANIZATION CALLED "SECOND LOOK,"
WHO TAKES A CLOSE LOOK AT WRONGFULLY CONVICTED PEOPLE.
AND THAT TRIGGERED HIM TO TALK ABOUT HIS CASE.
AND HE SAID, "I WAS ON A CASE BEFORE."
ALTHOUGH ALLO NEVER MENTIONED GETTING HIGH ON THE TAPES,
HE DESCRIBED SOMETHING ELSE --
HOW HE COULD HAVE AVOIDED JURY DUTY IN THE FIRST PLACE.
HIS REASON WAS SHOCKING.
ALLO MISTAKENLY BELIEVED JOHN GUICA WAS JEWISH.
ALLO'S ANTI-SEMITISM DIDN'T PROVE ANY WRONGDOING,
BUT WHAT HE WOULD SAY LATER MAY HAVE.
COMING UP...
A SHOCKING ADMISSION.
WOULD IT LEAD TO JOHN GUICA'S RELEASE FROM PRISON?
I THOUGHT WE HAD A SLAM DUNK. I WAS HAPPY.
I WAS LIKE, "THIS IS IT. IT WAS WORTH IT."
Zahn: WANT MORE "ON THE CASE"?
GO TO...
...AND VIEW MORE EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS
AND BEHIND-THE-SCENES VIDEO.
DOREEN GIULIANO WAS ON A MISSION.
ASSUMING THE ROLE OF PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR,
SHE WENT UNDERCOVER,
HOPING TO PROVE HER SON, JOHN GUICA,
DIDN'T GET A FAIR TRIAL.
BUT SHE WAS RUNNING OUT OF TIME.
HER ONE-WOMAN STING OPERATION WAS TAKING A HEAVY TOLL
ON HER BANK ACCOUNT AND HER MARRIAGE.
UNAWARE THAT HIS NEW FRIEND DEE MADISON QUINN
WAS REALLY JOHN GUICA'S MOTHER,
JASON ALLO MADE ANOTHER STARTLING ADMISSION.
ALLO SAID HE KNEW SOME OF THE PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THE CASE,
BUT DIDN'T REALIZE IT AT FIRST,
SINCE HE KNEW EVERYONE BY NICKNAMES.
BUT EVEN WHEN HE FIGURED IT OUT, HE NEVER TOLD ANYONE,
VIOLATING INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN TO HIM AS A JUROR.
Zahn: TAKE US BACK TO THAT MOMENT
WHERE JASON ALLO WAS OPENING UP
AND TELLING YOU, FOR THE FIRST TIME,
"I SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ON THAT JURY."
WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?
I WAS THINKING THAT HE KNEW EXACTLY WHAT HE DID WRONG.
HE WAS AWARE OF IT.
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES YOU DO SOMETHING
AND YOU'RE NOT QUITE SURE
IF IT'S THE RIGHT THING OR NOT.
HE WAS LETTING ME KNOW HE KNEW DAMN WELL
HE SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN ON THAT JURY.
ALLO TOLD DOREEN
THAT NOT ONLY DID HE KNOW JOHN GUICA'S FRIENDS,
BUT HIS COUSIN EVEN DATED ONE OF THEM.
DOREEN KEPT PRESSING,
AND THEN ALLO CONFESSED SOMETHING SHOCKING.
ACCORDING TO DOREEN,
THE INSIDER INFORMATION ALLO HEARD FROM THE FRIEND
DID NOT INCRIMINATE JOHN GUICA,
BUT IT CERTAINLY SHOULD HAVE DISQUALIFIED ALLO AS A JUROR.
WE TRIED TO CONTACT JASON ALLO FOR A COMMENT,
BUT WE WERE TOLD BY HIS ATTORNEY
THAT HE WOULD ONLY SPEAK TO US IF WE PAID HIM.
THE ASKING PRICE -- $25,000 TO $30,000.
IS THAT THE FIRST TIME YOU FELT ANY SORT OF HOPE
DURING THAT PROCESS?
DID YOU THINK YOU HAD FOUND YOUR SMOKING GUN?
AS JASON ALLO, I GUESS, YOU KNOW,
SAT THERE AND BRAGGED AND SPOKE ABOUT THE CASE
AND HOW HE HAD NO REGRETS ON WHAT HE DID,
I WAS SO UPSET,
I WAS GONNA VOMIT OR JUST PUNCH HIM.
WHEN I HEARD THE FACTS
OF WHAT WAS INVOLVED WITH THIS JUROR,
I JUST COULDN'T GET OVER IT.
IT WAS ALMOST LIKE A TEXTBOOK EXAMPLE OF JUROR MISCONDUCT.
Zahn: JOHN O'HARA IS DOREEN GIULIANO'S ATTORNEY.
SHE HIRED HIM AFTER HER STING OPERATION ENDED.
O'HARA FELT THAT,
BEFORE THEY COULD BRING THE INFORMATION FORWARD,
DOREEN WOULD NEED PICTURES TO PROVE TO THE JUDGE
SHE HAD SPENT TIME WITH JASON ALLO.
O'HARA AND HIS CLIENT MADE A PLAN.
O'Hara: DOREEN IS AT THIS BAR WITH ALLO.
AND I GO IN THERE, AND SHE SAID TO ME,
"HEY, MISTER, DO YOU MIND TAKING A PICTURE?"
AND I SAID, "SURE. NO PROBLEM."
[ CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS ]
Zahn: ARMED WITH THE TAPES AND THE PICTURES,
JOHN GUICA'S FAMILY HEADED BACK TO COURT.
I THOUGHT WE HAD A SLAM DUNK. I WAS HAPPY.
I WAS LIKE, "THIS IS IT. IT WAS WORTH IT.
"YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING YOU DID -- YOU WERE RIGHT,
AND NOW, YOU KNOW, WE'LL GET SOME JUSTICE."
Zahn: GUICA'S SUPPORTERS WERE CONVINCED
THIS WAS HIS TICKET TO A NEW TRIAL,
BUT THEIR HOPES WERE QUICKLY SLAPPED DOWN BY JUDGE MARRUS.
INSTEAD OF HOLDING A HEARING,
THE JUDGE ISSUED A 25-PAGE STATEMENT
CHASTISING DOREEN FOR HER STING OPERATION.
IN FACT, HE CALLED YOU A VIGILANTE
AND SAID YOUR ACTIONS WERE IRRESPONSIBLE.
MM-HMM.
WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO THAT?
JUDGE MARRUS TOOK THE FOCUS OFF THE REAL ISSUE.
THE REAL ISSUE HERE IS THAT JOHN DIDN'T GET A FAIR TRIAL,
AND I'M DEMANDING THAT HE HAS A FAIR TRIAL.
I BEGGED JUDGE MARRUS
TO HOLD A HEARING AND TO REVIEW THOSE TAPES.
INSTEAD, HE DECIDED TO FOCUS ON ME AND MY ACTIONS.
JUDGE MARRUS DECLINED TO COMMENT ON DOREEN'S TAPING,
DUE TO PENDING LITIGATION.
HE STILL BELIEVES IN THE JURY'S VERDICT.
THE JURY FOUND GUICA GUILTY.
THEY HEARD THE EVIDENCE. THEY MADE THE DECISION.
AND I'M SURE SHE'S NOT HAPPY ABOUT IT.
Zahn: DOREEN SAYS IT'S JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE
OF EVERYONE WANTING TO SWEEP THIS CASE UNDER THE RUG.
SO, WHY IS NO ONE LISTENING TO YOU?
BECAUSE CONVICTIONS ARE MORE IMPORTANT.
IT'S ALL ABOUT POLITICS. IT'S ALL ABOUT MONEY.
THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT THE TRUTH.
THE TRUTH, DOREEN SAYS,
IS THAT HER SON, JOHN GUICA, ISN'T MARK FISHER'S KILLER.
SHE BELIEVES HER SON WAS JUST AN EASY TARGET
FOR AUTHORITIES TO PLACE THE BLAME.
Nicolazzi: JOHN GUICA WAS NOT FRAMED.
IT'S JUST THAT THE EVIDENCE
POINTED TO THE GUILT OF TWO PEOPLE,
AND HER SON WAS ONE OF THEM.
WILL YOU EVER STOP FIGHTING FOR YOUR SON, JOHN?
OF COURSE NOT. OF COURSE NOT.
NOTHING'S GONNA GET IN MY WAY.
THE TRUTH IS THERE.
SOMEBODY'S JUST GOT TO LOOK AT IT.
DOREEN IS TORMENTED
BY VISIONS OF HER SON GROWING OLD IN PRISON.
BUT THERE'S ANOTHER MOTHER IN THIS STORY
WHO WILL NEVER AGAIN HAVE A CHANCE TO FIGHT FOR HER SON.
IS THERE ANYTHING YOU WOULD LIKE TO SAY
TO MARK FISHER'S MOTHER?
I'M GLAD I'M NOT WALKING IN HER SHOES.
I KNOW MY LIFE'S PRETTY HARD.
YOU KNOW, MY SON IS ALIVE.
[ Voice breaking ] SHE DOESN'T HAVE HER SON.
SHE LOST HER SON, PAULA.
WHAT DO YOU SAY? I CAN'T EVEN LOOK AT HER.
MARK FISHER'S FAMILY
BELIEVES THAT BOTH GUICA AND RUSSO ARE GUILTY
AND DESERVE WHAT THEY GOT,
BUT THEY ALSO THINK OTHERS AT THE PARTY THAT NIGHT
SHOULD BE PUNISHED, AS WELL.
I STILL GET A CALL FROM MRS. FISHER
AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR,
SAYING HELLO AND WISHING ME WELL,
AND THE CALL ALWAYS ENDS THE SAME --
"PLEASE DON'T FORGET ABOUT US."
AND WHAT I KNOW SHE MEANS BY THAT IS,
"PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU CAN DO
"ANYTHING THAT YOU CAN DO
"TO MAKE SURE THAT ANYONE AND EVERYONE
"THAT WAS RESPONSIBLE IN THE DEATH OF MY SON
IS HELD ACCOUNTABLE."
DOREEN GIULIANO HAS FILED AN APPEAL TO HAVE HER TAPES HEARD.
NO MATTER HOW THE COURT RULES,
DOREEN SAYS SHE'LL NEVER STOP WORKING
TO GET HER SON A NEW TRIAL AND PROVE HIS INNOCENCE.
I'M PAULA ZAHN.
JOIN US HERE NEXT TIME WHEN WE'RE BACK ON THE CASE.